On the God of Socrates

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27 They pass to and fro: these they call by the Greek name daemons original: "δαίμονας" (daimonas). In the ancient world, these were not "demons" in the modern evil sense, but spirit-beings that acted as messengers., acting as carriers between the heaven-dwellers || and the earth-dwellers ||. From the former they bring prayers, and from the latter they bring gifts. They carry back and forth petitions from one side and assistance from the other, like a kind of interpreter and bringer of greetings for both parties. Through these same beings, as Plato asserts in his Symposium, all prophecies and the various miracles of magicians and all types of omens are 134 governed. Indeed, from their number, individuals are assigned their duties, according to the 5 province allotted to each: some shape our dreams, some inspect the clefts of entrails The practice of extispicy or haruspicy, reading the future in the organs of sacrificed animals., some govern the flight of birds, some teach the meanings of birds’ cries, some inspire prophets, some hurl lightnings, some make the clouds flash, and perform all other such acts by which we discern the future. We should believe that all these things occur by the will, power, and authority of the celestial gods, but through the obedience, labor, and service of the daemons.

28 For it is their duty, labor, and care that dreams might threaten Hannibal with the loss 10 VII 135 of an eye; that the inspection of entrails might predict the danger of disaster for Flaminius; and that auguries might confirm the miracle of the whetstone for Attus Navius Attus Navius was a legendary Roman augur who proved his skill to King Tarquin by cutting a whetstone with a razor.. Likewise, they ensure that signs of a future kingdom precede certain men, such as when Tarquinius Priscus was shaded by an eagle taking his cap, or when Servius Tullius was illuminated by a flame upon his head. Finally, they are responsible for all the 136 predictions of soothsayers, the Tuscan rites of atonement, the sacred sites of the lightning-interpreters, and the verses of the 29 Sibyls. All these things, as I have said, are performed by certain intermediary powers 15 between men and gods.

137 For it would not be in accordance with the majesty of the celestial gods that any of them should fashion a dream for Hannibal, or find a sacrificial victim for Flaminius, or direct a bird's flight for Attus Navius, or compose the prophecies of the Sibyl in verse, or wish to snatch the cap from Tarquinius only to return it, or indeed to set fire to Servius's head without burning him. It is not the business of the gods above to descend to these things; this is the lot of the intermediary divinities who dwell in the regions of the air, bordering the earth and no less 20 adjacent to the heavens.

1 Plato, Symposium 202 D-E: original Greek: "καὶ γὰρ πᾶν τὸ δαιμόνιον μεταξύ ἐστι θεοῦ τε καὶ θνητοῦ... ἑρμηνεῦον καὶ διαπορθμεῦον θεοῖς τὰ παρ’ ἀνθρώπων..." "For everything demonic is between god and mortal... interpreting and conveying to the gods what comes from men and to men what comes from the gods, the prayers and sacrifices of the one, and the commands and rewards for sacrifices from the other; being in the middle of both, it fills up the gap, so that the whole is combined into one. Through this also proceeds the whole of divination and the art of priests concerning sacrifices, rites, incantations, and all sorcery and magic." Augustine, City of God VIII, 22: "It remains that it should in no way be believed, as Apuleius tries to persuade, that daemons are intermediaries between gods and men like messengers and interpreters, who carry our petitions there and bring back help from the gods." See also ibid. VIII, 24. Ibid. VIII, 16: "He says that to them belong the divinations of augurs, soothsayers, prophets, and dreams; from these also come the miracles of magicians." — 10 Cicero, On Divination I, 24, 48. — 11 Livy XXI, 63, 13; Livy I, 36, 3; Cicero, On Divination I, 17, 32. — 12 Livy I, 34, 8. — 13 Livy I, 39, 1.

The following lines are part of the apparatus criticus, noting variations in the original manuscripts (M, F, O) and early printed editions.
1 "this" (hoc) in M; "Greek" (Graeco) in the Colvian edition; "the Greeks" (Graeci) in O; daemons (δαίμονας) in the Aldine edition; "demons" (demones) in O; "earth-dwellers" (terricolas) omitted in O, added by Goldbacher following Vulcanium. 2 "assistance" (suppetas) in M¹. 3 "for both" (utrisque) in Usener; "of both" (utriusque) in O; "from both sides" (utrimque) in Oudendorp; "Symposium" (simposio) in M; "symphosio" in F'. 4 "various [miracles] of magicians" (varia magorum) in reverse order in F'. 5 "of them" (eorum) deleted by Goldbacher. 6 "dreams" (somnis) in M; "inspecting" (fisiculandis) in M. 8 "through which" (per quē) in M. 9 "by name" (nomine) in M.
10 "Hannibal's all" (hannibalis omnia) in M, corrected in M²; 11 "might threaten" (comminentur) in Wower; "they might threaten" (comminarentur) in F; "he might threaten" (comminaretur) in M¹; "they might threaten" (comminitentur) in Oudendorp; "Flaminius" (flamminio) in M; "they predict" (praedicant) in Stewechins; "let them predict" (praedicent) in O; "Attus" (Atto) in Oudendorp; "Attius" (attio) in FM³; "Accius" (accio) in M; "Navius" (navio) in M. 12 "Likewise" (item) in Mercer; "so" (ita) in O. 13 "illuminated" (culuminetur) in M; "colluminetur" in M³. "Finally" (posttremo) in M. 14 "soothsayer" (ariolum) in F'; "lightning-interpreters" (fulguratorum) in M; "Sibyls" (sybillarum) in O; "Sibyls' verses" (sybillarum carmina) in reverse order in F'. 16 "Hannibal's" (hannibalis) in M. 17 "might fashion" (fingat) in Salmasius; "might paint" (pingat) in O; "Flaminius" (flaminio) in F; "might find" (conroget) in F; "might strengthen" (conroboret) in Goldbacher; "Attus" (Atto) in Oudendorp; "Attius" (atio) in M; "Attius" (attio) in F'; "bird" (avem) in Lindenbrog; "ship" (navem) in F; "ship" (navim) in M; "the Sibyl's prophecies might versify or" (sybillae fatiloquia versificet vel) omitted in F. 20 "of the air" (aeris) in F'.