Book 1, Chapter 31

65 “From this come the words of Calanus, whom I mentioned earlier, and those of Homer's Hector, who, as he dies, foretells Achilles' approaching death. Nor would common usage have accepted this expression without reason, if there were no such thing at all:

‘My heart foresaw a fruitless journey as I left my home.’

“For the Latin sagire means to perceive keenly: hence old women are called sagae, because they want to know so much, and dogs sagaces, keen-scented. Someone who perceives a thing before it presents itself is therefore said to praesagire—to sense the future in advance.

66 “The soul, then, has a power of foreknowledge, imparted from outside and lodged within it by divine agency. When it flares more fiercely, it is called frenzy: the soul is drawn away from the body and stirred by a divine impulse.

H. ‘But why this sudden frenzy in your blazing eyes?Where is the wise restraint you showed so recently, a modest girl?’C. ‘Mother, a woman far better than the best of women,I am driven by the ravings of superstitious prophetic visions;For Apollo drives me mad against my will to speak fate’s decrees.I shrink before the girls my age; I blush for what I do before my father,That best of men; my mother, I pity you and loathe myself.You bore Priam splendid children—all but me; that is my grief.Must I harm while they help, I resist while they obey?’

“What tender poetry, how true to character, how moving! But this is less to the point;

67 “what we are looking for is expressed in the following lines: frenzy often speaks true prophecy.

‘It comes, it comes, a torch wrapped round with blood and fire!For many years it lay concealed; citizens, bring help and quench it!’

“Now it is a god enclosed in a human body who speaks, not Cassandra.

‘And now upon the mighty sea a swift fleetIs being built; a swarm sweeps ruin onward;It will come: a savage host, in sail-wingedShips, will crowd the shores.’

65 “So this explains the case of Calanus, whom I mentioned before. It also explains Homer's Hector, who tells Achilles as he dies that Achilles' own death is near. Common usage would never have accepted the following expression for no reason, if there were nothing at all behind it:

“‘My mind sensed in advance, as I left home, that my trip would be wasted.’

“The Latin verb sagire means to sense something sharply. That is why old women who are eager to know a great deal are called sagae, and dogs with a keen nose are called sagaces. So someone who senses a thing before it actually appears is said to praesagire: to sense future events beforehand.

66 “So our minds contain a power of foreseeing, put into them from outside and lodged there by a god. When it flares up more fiercely, it is called frenzy. The mind withdraws from the body and is stirred by a divine impulse.

“‘Hecuba: But why have you suddenly gone wild, with your eyes blazing?Where is the sensible, modest girl you were a moment ago?Cassandra: Mother, even the finest women fall far short of you,I have been driven to superstitious prophecies.Apollo forces me, unwilling and out of my mind, to speak fate's words.I am ashamed before girls my own age. I am ashamed before my father,That excellent man, of what I do. Mother, I pity you and hate my plight.You gave Priam the finest children, except for me. This hurts:Must I harm him while they help, obstruct him while they obey?’

“What a tender, sensitive, gentle poem! But that is less to the point.

67 “What we are looking for is clearly stated: frenzy often makes true predictions.

“‘Here it is, here it is, the torch wrapped in blood and fire!It lay hidden for many years. Citizens, help! Put it out!’

“Now it is not Cassandra speaking, but the god lodged in a human body.

“‘Already on the great sea a swift fleetIs being built. A swarm carries destruction.It will come: a savage force in ships speedingUnder sail will fill the shores.’