Astronomicon, Book I

485-519

The videntia (the seeing ones), the audientia (the hearing ones), and the amantia et insidiantia (the loving and the treacherous ones).

The videntia are generally called in Greek bleponta or bleponta allela, but also oronta. They are defined in Heph. Theb. II 22 (C.C.A.G. VI p. 100 11 sq.) as “bleponta are those signs that are equidistant from the tropical signs,” and enumerated in Ludw. Maxim. p. 106 10 sq.: “Oronta (seeing): Gemini-Leo, Taurus-Virgo, Aries-Libra, Scorpius-Pisces, Sagittarius-Aquarius,” the two tropical signs Cancer and Capricorn being excluded. Statements which entirely, or so far as they go, agree with the above are to be found in Paul. Alex. D 3, Porph. Isag. p. 193 (where there are misprints both in the Greek and in the Latin translation), C.C.A.G. I p. 155 11-3, Gemin. 2 32. But Ptolemy Tetr. pp. 9 sq. and Hephaestio I 10 put the tropical points for the tropical signs, as Geminus advises in 2 33-9, so that the videntia will be Gemini and Cancer, Taurus and Leo, and so forth, with no exclusion of any sign. The chapter Vett. Val. I 8, in spite of its title, does not deal with this relation.

The scheme therefore is the following.

[Image description: A circular diagram of the zodiac.]

Manilius' MSS deviate from the scheme at 487 sq.: Taurum . . . qui . . . videt . . . Pisces.

The audientia are called in Greek akouonta or akouonta allelon, and are divided into keleuonta (or prostassonta—commanding) and upakouonta (obeying), the northernmost of each pair commanding and the southernmost obeying. They are defined in Heph. Theb. II 22 (C.C.A.G. VI p. 100 8 sqq.), a passage which I have corrected in the Classical Quarterly 1908 p. 53, as “they hear one another which are equidistant from the equinoctial signs,” and are enumerated in Ludw. Maxim. p. 106 12 sq.: “Akouonta (hearing): Taurus-Pisces, Gemini-Aquarius, Cancer...