Astronomicon

These men Referencing the ancient priest-kings of Egypt and Babylon mentioned on the previous page. alone were able to stir so great a glory, and through their art they were the first to see the fates hanging from the wandering stars original: "sideribus uagis," referring to the planets, which appear to move independently against the fixed backdrop of the constellations.. For they marked individual moments of time with their own specific outcomes, having embraced long ages through constant, diligent care. They sought to know what day of birth belonged to each person, what their life would be, under which laws of fortune they fell, what power each hour held, and how great a difference even the smallest movements of the heavens could make.

After the whole appearance of the sky was understood as the stars returned to their proper seats, and after the specific power of every heavenly form was assigned to the fixed orders of the fates, experience created this art through various applications. With history itself showing the way, long observation grasped the stars ruling by silent laws The "silent laws" (tacitis legibus) refer to the Stoic belief in a rational, pre-determined order of the universe that operates without the need for constant divine intervention.. They perceived that the entire world is moved by an alternating reason Ratio: The underlying logic or divine intelligence that governs the cosmos in Stoic philosophy., and they learned to discern the turns of fate by certain signs.

For before their time, life was uncultivated and lacked any distinction; though humans had the appearance of men, they were devoid of reason. They stood amazed, hanging upon the new light of the world—now grieving as if the stars had been lost when they set, then joyful when they were born again. They could not yet distinguish the various lengths of days, the uncertain timing of the nights, nor why the shadows changed as the sun receded or drew closer to its own causes. Ingenuity had not yet created the learned arts, and the vast earth lay idle under unrefined farmers. In those days, gold still dwelt undisturbed in the deserted mountains.