§1Ἀμφί τε οὐρανοῦ ἀμφί τε ἀστέρων ἡ γραφή, οὐκ αὐτῶν ἀστέρων οὐδʼ αὐτοῦ πέρι οὐρανοῦ, ἀλλὰ μαντείης καὶ ἀληθείης, ἣ δὴ ἐκ τουτέων ἐς ἀνθρώπων βίον ἔρχεται.
This writing is about heaven and about the stars; not about the stars themselves nor about heaven itself, but about the divination and truth which indeed comes from them into the life of men.
ὁ δέ μοι λόγος οὐκ ὑποθημοσύνην ἔχει οὐδὲ διδασκαλίην ἐπαγγέλλεται ὅκως ταύτην τὴν μαντοσύνην διενεκτέον, ἀλλὰ μέμφομαι ὁκόσοι σοφοὶ ἐόντες τὰ μὲν ἄλλα ἐπασκέουσι καὶ παισὶ τοῖς ἑωυτῶν ἀπηγέονται, μούνην δὲ ἀστρολογίην οὔτε τιμέουσιν οὔτε ἐπασκέουσιν.
My discourse does not contain an instruction, nor does it promise a teaching on how this art of divination is to be conducted, but I blame all those who, being wise, practice other things and relate them to their own children, yet neither honor nor practice astrology alone.
§2καὶ ἡ μὲν σοφίη παλαιὴ οὐδὲ νέον ἐς ἡμέας ἀπίκετο, ἀλλʼ ἔστιν ἔργον ἀρχαίων βασιλέων θεοφιλέων.
And this wisdom is ancient and did not recently arrive among us, but is the work of ancient kings beloved of the gods.
οἱ δὲ νῦν ἀμαθίῃ καὶ ῥᾳθυμίῃ καὶ προσέτι μισοπονίῃ κείνοισί τε ἀντίξοα φρονέουσι καὶ εὖτʼ ἂν ἀνδράσιν ἐπικυρέωσιν ψεύδεα μαντευομένοις, ἄστρων τε κατηγορέουσιν καὶ αὐτὴν ἀστρολογίην μισέουσιν, οὐδέ μιν οὔτε ὑγιέα οὔτε ἀληθέα νομίζουσιν, ἀλλὰ λόγον ψευδέα καὶ ἀνεμώλιον, οὐ δικαίως, ἐμοὶ δοκέει, φρονέοντες·
But those of today, through ignorance, slackness, and furthermore a hatred of labor, think the opposite of those men, and whenever they encounter men prophesying lies, they accuse the stars and hate astrology itself, and do not consider it healthy or true, but a false and windy discourse, thinking, as it seems to me, unjustly.
οὐδὲ γὰρ τέκτονος ἀϊδρίη τεκτοσύνης αὐτῆς ἀδικίη οὐδὲ αὐλητέω ἀμουσίη μουσικῆς ἀσοφίη, ἀλλʼ οἱ μὲν ἀμαθέες τῶν τεχνῶν, ἑκάστη δʼ ἐν ἑωυτῇ σοφή.
For neither is a carpenter’s ignorance the fault of carpentry itself, nor is a flute-player’s lack of music the ignorance of music, but rather men are ignorant of the arts, while each art is wise in itself.
§3πρῶτον μὲν ὦν Αἰθίοπες τόνδε τὸν λόγον ἀνθρώποισι κατεστήσαντο.
First, then, the Ethiopians established this science for men.
αἰτίη δὲ αὐτέοισι τὰ μὲν ἡ σοφίη τοῦ ἔθνεος — καὶ γὰρ τἄλλα τῶν ἄλλων σοφώτεροι Αἰθίοπες — τὰ δὲ καὶ τῆς οἰκήσιος ἡ εὐμοιρίη· αἰεὶ γὰρ σφέας εὐδίη καὶ γαληναίη περικέαται, οὐδὲ τῶν τοῦ ἔτεος τροπέων ἀνέχονται, ἀλλʼ ἐν μιῇ ὥρῃ οἰκέουσιν.
The cause for them was partly the wisdom of their nation—for indeed in other matters the Ethiopians are wiser than others—and partly the favorable nature of their dwelling-place; for a clear and calm sky always surrounds them, and they do not suffer the changes of the seasons, but live in a single season.
ἰδόντες ὦν πρῶτα τὴν σεληναίην οὐκ ἐς πάμπαν ὁμοίην φαινομένην, ἀλλὰ πολυειδέα τε γιγνομένην καὶ ἐν ἄλλοτε ἄλλῃ μορφῇ τρεπομένην, ἐδόκεεν αὐτέοισιν τὸ χρῆμα θωύματος καὶ ἀπορίης ἄξιον.
Having first seen, therefore, the moon appearing not altogether the same, but becoming manifold and turning into a different form at different times, the matter seemed to them worthy of wonder and perplexity.
ἔνθεν δὲ ζητέοντες εὗρον τουτέων τὴν αἰτίην, ὅτι οὐκ ἴδιον τῇ σεληναίῃ τὸ φέγγος, ἀλλά οἱ παρʼ ἠελίου ἔρχεται.
Seeking from there, they found the cause of these things, that the light is not proper to the moon, but comes to her from the sun.
§4εὗρον δὲ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἀστέρων τὴν φορήν, τοὺς δὴ πλάνητας ἡμεῖς καλέομεν — μοῦνοι γὰρ τῶν ἄλλων κινέονται — φύσιν τε αὐτῶν καὶ δυναστείην καὶ ἔργα τὰ ἕκαστος ἐπιτελέουσιν.
They found also the course of the other stars, which indeed we call planets—for they alone of the others move—and their nature and power and the works which each accomplishes.
ἐν δὲ καὶ οὐνόματα αὐτέοισιν ἐπέθεσαν, οὐκ οὐνόματα, ὅκως ἐδόκεον, ἀλλὰ σημήια.
And they also put names upon them, not names, as they thought, but signs.
§5ταῦτα μὲν ὦν Αἰθίοπες ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ ἐπέβλεψαν, μετὰ δὲ γείτοσιν οὖσιν Αἰγυπτίοισιν ἀτελέα τὸν λόγον παρέδοσαν, Αἰγύπτιοι δὲ παρὰ σφέων ἐκδεξάμενοι ἡμιεργέα τὴν μαντικὴν ἐπὶ μέζον ἤγειραν, μέτρα τε τῆς ἑκάστου κινήσιος ἐσημήναντο καὶ ἐτέων ἀριθμὸν καὶ μηνῶν καὶ ὡρέων διετάξαντο.
These things then the Ethiopians observed in the sky, and afterwards they handed down the unfinished science to the Egyptians who were their neighbors. The Egyptians, receiving from them the half-done art of divination, raised it to a greater height, marked the measures of the movement of each, and arranged the number of years, months, and seasons.
καὶ μηνῶν μὲν σφίσι μέτρον ἡ σεληναίη καὶ ἡ ταύτης ἀναστροφὴ ἐγένετο, ἔτεος δὲ ἠέλιος καὶ ἡ τοῦ ἠελίου περίφορος.
And for them, the moon and her return became the measure of months, while the sun and the course of the sun became the measure of the year.
§6οἱ δὲ καὶ ἄλλα ἐμήσαντο πολλὸν μέζω τουτέων· ἐκ γὰρ δὴ τοῦ παντὸς ἠέρος καὶ ἀστέρων τῶν ἄλλων ἀπλανέων τε καὶ εὐσταθέων καὶ οὐδαμὰ κινεομένων δυώδεκα μοίρας ἐτάμοντο τοῖσι κινεομένοισι, καὶ οἰκία ζῷα ἐόντα ἕκαστον αὐτῶν ἐς ἄλλην μορφὴν μεμιμέαται, τὰ μὲν ἐνάλια, τὰ δὲ ἀνθρώπων, τὰ δὲ θηρῶν, τὰ δὲ πτηνῶν, τὰ δὲ κτηνέων.
They also devised other things much greater than these; for indeed from the whole sky and the other fixed, stable, and never-moving stars, they cut twelve portions for those that move, and they fashioned each of them as living "houses" in imitation of another form, some of sea-creatures, some of men, some of wild beasts, some of birds, some of cattle.
§7ἀπὸ τέω δὴ καὶ ἱερὰ τὰ Αἰγύπτια πολυειδέα ποιέεται· οὐ γὰρ πάντες Αἰγύπτιοι ἐκ τῶν δυώδεκα μοιρέων πασέων ἐμαντεύοντο, ἄλλοι δὲ ἀλλοίῃσι μοίρῃσιν ἐχρέοντο, καὶ κριὸν μὲν σέβουσιν ὁκόσοι ἐς κριὸν ἀπέβλεπον, ἰχθύας δὲ οὐ σιτέονται ὁκόσοι ἰχθύας ἐπεσημήναντο, οὐδὲ τράγον κτείνουσιν ὅσοι αἰγόκερων ᾔδεσαν, καὶ οἱ ἄλλοι τὰ ἄλλα ὡς ἕκαστοι ἱλάσκονται.
From this indeed the Egyptian sacred rites are made manifold; for not all Egyptians divined from all the twelve portions, but different people used different portions, and those who looked towards Aries worship the ram, while those who marked Pisces do not eat fish, and those who knew Capricorn do not kill a goat, and others propitiate other things as each does.
ναὶ μὴν καὶ ταῦρον ἐς τιμὴν τοῦ ἠερίου ταύρου σεβίζονται, καὶ ὁ Ἆπις αὐτοῖς χρῆμα ἱερώτατον τὴν χώρην ἐπινέμεται καί οἱ ἐκεῖ μαντήιόν γε ἀνατιθέασιν σημήιον τῆς ἐκείνου τοῦ ταύρου μαντικῆς.
Nay, they even worship the bull in honor of the celestial Bull, and Apis, a most sacred thing to them, pastures in their land, and they establish a oracle for him there as a sign of the divination of that Bull.