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crops already ripe, and the produce still hanging on the trees now drawing to maturity. The third, yet more acute than they, have established for the end of the year the most complete maturity and decay of all productions; for this cause do they hold their annual festivals when the Autumn is now drawing to an end. But our ancestors, from the time of that most religious King Numa, paying special honour to the god in question, cast aside the common practice, and as they were of superior understanding, they recognized this deity, and settled to hold the New Year's festival in the present season, at what time the Sun returns to us, leaving the extreme distance of the meridian, and bending his course around Capricorn as his goal, moves from the South towards the North; being about to give us our share of his annual blessings. And that they have thus fixed the time of the New Year's festival out of an accurate understanding of the case, may be easily discerned from the following circumstance—they did not fix the festival upon the actual day when the Sun makes the turn [but on the day]' when it is apparent to all that he is making his progress from the South towards the North. For not yet known to them was the subtlety of those rules which the Chaldæans and Egyptians invented, but which Hipparchus and Ptolemy brought to perfection; but they trusted to their senses, and followed the guidance of natural phenomena. And in this way, as I have said, the matter was discovered to be of such a nature by those who came after them. Immediately after the last month, which is Saturn's, and previous to the festival in question, we celebrate the most solemn of our Games, dedicating it to the honour of the "Invincible Sun," during which it is not lawful for anything cruel

1 áλà must have dropped out of the text; for Julian argues that New Year's Day was not fixed at the real solstice, December 21, but at a later day, when the change in the Sun's motion was clearly perceptible to these simple rustics.

(although necessary), which the previous month presented in its Shows, should be perpetrated on this occasion. The Saturnalia, being the concluding festival, are closely followed in cyclic order by the Festival of the Sun; the which I hope that the Powers above will grant me frequently to chaunt, and to celebrate; and above all others may the Sovereign Sun, lord of the universe! He who proceeding from all eternity in the generative being of the Good, stationed as the central one amidst the central intelligible deities, and replenishing them all with concord, infinite beauty, generative superabundance, and perfect intelligence, and with all blessings collectively without limit of time; and in time present illuminating his station which moves as the centre of all the heavens, his own possession from all eternity! Whilst he imparts his own beauty to every phenomenon of Nature, and fills the universal heaven with as many deities as he contains intelligibly within himself; whilst they multiply round about him without separation, and dwell together with him in unity of species! And nevertheless the region below the Moon he embraces by the agency of his perpetual generation, and the benefits flowing out of the Cyclic Body; providing for the entire family of Man, and, especially, for our commonwealth; in the same way as he hath from all eternity created our own soul, having appointed it for minister unto himself. May He therefore grant unto me that which I have just now prayed for; and moreover to the whole of my empire may He with his good will supply and guard all possible continuance ! And to ourselves may He grant success both in religious and secular affairs, so long as He may concede us life!

'The Saturnalia lasted the three days following the 16th or 18th December, the festival of the "Sol Invictus" was held on the 25th of the same month.

2 ὥσπερ οὖν καὶ τὴν ἡμετερὰν ψυχην ἐξ ἀϊδίου ὑπέστησ' εν, ὁπαδὸν Vπо þýνaç áνтоv. A remarkable enunciation of the soul's eternal preexistence, and derivation from the Sun.

And grant us to live, and to govern in life, as long as it is well-pleasing to himself, best for us, and expedient to the public interests of the Romans! 1

Thus much, my dear Sallust, upon the threefold operation of the deity have I ventured to write for you, in about three nights' space, having gone over the subject in my memory as far as it was possible: since what I had previously written to you "upon the Saturnalia "2 did not prove entirely labour thrown away. But on the same subject you will obtain more complete and more abstruse information by consulting the works upon it composed by the divine Iamblichus: you will find there the extreme limit of human wisdom attained. May the mighty Sun grant me to attain to no less knowledge of himself, and to teach it publicly to all, and privately to such as are worthy to receive it: and as long as the god grants this to us, let us consult in common his well-beloved Iamblichus; out of whose abundance a few things, that have come into my mind, I have here set down. That no other person will treat of this subject more perfectly than he has done, I am well aware; not even though he should expend much additional labour in making new discoveries in the research; for in all probability he will go astray from the most correct conception of the nature of the god. It were perhaps an idle attempt (if I were writing this discourse for the sake of giving instruction) for me to treat of it at all after what that philosopher has done; but inasmuch as it is my wish only to compose a hymn of thanksgiving in honour of the god, I have deemed it quite sufficient3 to discourse to the best of my ability concerning his I do not think I have wasted words to no pur

nature.

1 A prayer most remarkably fulfilled! for what a troublous, perhaps disgraceful reign, awaited the enthusiast, had he returned alive from his unsuccessful expedition.

2 The book has perished; it doubtless was of the same mystic character as this and the following "Hymn."

3 Tò TavÙ, all in all-complete success.

pose: the maxim, "Sacrifice to the immortal gods according to thy means," I accept as applying not merely to burnt-offerings, but also to our praises addressed unto the gods. I pray for the third time, in return for this my good intention, the Sun lord of the universe to be propitious to me, and to bestow on me a virtuous life, a more perfect understanding, and a superhuman intellect, and a very easy release from the trammels of life at the time appointed and after that release, an ascension up to himself, and an abiding place with him, if possible, for all time to come; or if that be too great a recompense for my past life, many and long-continued1 revolutions around his presence!

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1 Before the same soul is again re-united with Matter, and imprisoned in the body exemption from such thraldom being a reward doled out in measure proportioned to merit during its last probation on earth.

UPON THE MOTHER OF THE GODS.1

MUST we then speak of this subject also: and shall

we write concerning things that are not to be told, and shall we publish things not to be divulged, and secrets not to be spoken aloud? Who indeed is Attis or Gallos; who the Mother of the Gods; what is the reason of this rule of Chastity; moreover for what cause has such an institution been established among us from remote antiquity; handed down to us indeed from the most ancient of the Phrygians, but accepted in the first place by the Greeks and those not the vulgar herd, but the Athenians-taught by the event that they had not done well in ridiculing him that was performing the rites of the Great Mother. For they are said to have insulted and driven off the Gallos, as one who was making innovations in religion: because they did not understand the character of the goddess, or how that she was the very “Deò,” Rhea," and "Demeter" so much honoured amongst them themselves.

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Then followed vengeance on the part of the goddess, and then a remedy for that vengeance. For she that was directress unto the Greeks in all good things (namely, the prophetess of the Delphic god) ordered them to propitiate the anger of the Great Mother; and hence was

1 Written at Pessinus, in a single night (says Libanius), in the winter before his expedition into Persia (which also appears from Julian's own asseveration at p. 278), A.D. 362-3.

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