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is comprehended by those things considered as opposite to each of the good things, so that instead of life, death is brought upon men from it, and instead of truth, deceit, and in place of each of the better things, the corresponding evil; 59 for this is dear to it, whatever might by nature become destruction for men. And just as those who do harm by means of poisons often sweeten the destructive drug with honey, not making an effort to please the one being harmed with the taste, but to conceal the perception of what destroys, so also this destructive nature, having the aim to make man stand apart from the good nature, puts on the forms of certain good things, with certain prophecies and healings covering up the hidden ambush of deceit, so that the wretched race of men, by paying attention to this and considering this to be good, might have no desire for the good that is according to nature. For this very reason, in whatever way one happens to have preconceived a form of foreknowledge through some deceit, in that way the deceitful power of the demons has also responded, in liver-divination and augury, in omens, in necromancy, in astrology, each of these foretelling what is to come not in the same manner but differently. Just as, therefore, he who signifies the future by the liver, or he who conjectures what will be through some omen, or he who looks at the flight of a bird of prey does not profess to foretell such things by the necessity of fate, in the same way, there being one cause, as has been said, which pursues such a form of prophecy (I mean according to the deceitful activity of demons), not because something of the things mentioned was ever attained 60 by chance, if indeed it was attained at all, is the power of fate proven through this, since every form of prophecy would reasonably be constructed to have its strength from fate; so that for us the dream is one fate, observation from palpitations is another, and another is constituted from augury or omens or some symbols. And if nothing in those cases prevents there being both prophecy and there not being fate, neither, if some prophecy from number was achieved for the astrologers, would it become a sufficient proof that such things are not easily achieved. And yet the predictions from those who profess such things are neither precise nor indubitable, but they prepare for themselves many retreats in the outcome, if the pronouncement were refuted to the contrary, and those who are concerned with these things contrive some preliminary art for themselves, so as not to attribute the failure to the science but to the error of the observation at the hour, and the prophecies from them are for the most part 61 oblique and ambiguous with respect to the twofold nature of the outcomes, so that whatever should turn out, this might seem to have been foretold. For often the one who observes the hour of birth has indicated that which is conspicuous and above others. Then, when this one had come to be in some extraordinary misfortunes, the foreteller strongly asserted that he had not been mistaken at all; for he had the greater part above others in the participation of evils. And the history of our time is a witness of these things. For when Valens the emperor was in power over the Romans, a certain such deceit incited rebellion against the rule. And he set out, having the prediction of the astrologers as a provision for his audacity; but the end of the undertaking became such, that he became more distinguished than those known for the greatest offices by the greatness of his misfortune; and this was considered by the many a support for astrology, that greatness in misfortune befell the man instead of greatness in good things. But I do not yet consider the fact that the predictions about these things are erroneous a great proof that the doctrine of fate does not stand, but because the deceitful power of demons contrives prophecies by many other devices. For indeed a certain prophetic water frenzies and 62 madness to those who have tasted it

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τῶν κατὰ τὸ ἀντικείμενον ἑκάστῳ τῶν ἀγαθῶν θεωρουμένων καταλαμβάνεται, ὥστε ἀντὶ μὲν ζωῆς θάνατον, ἀντὶ δὲ ἀληθείας ἀπάτην, καὶ ἀνθ' ἑκάστου τῶν βελτιόνων τὴν ἀντιδιαστελλομένην κακίαν παρ' αὐτῆς τοῖς ἀνθρώποις 59 ἐπάγεσθαι· εἶναι γὰρ αὐτῇ τοῦτο φίλον ὅπερ ἂν τῇ φύσει τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ἐπ' ὀλέθρῳ γίνηται. ὥσπερ δὲ οἱ διὰ τῶν δηλητηρίων κακοποιοῦντες πολλάκις καὶ μέλιτι τὸ φθεῖρον ἐφηδύνουσι φάρμακον οὐκ εὐφρᾶναι τῇ γεύσει τὸν βλαπτόμενον σπουδὴν ποιούμενοι, ἀλλ' ἐκκλέψαι τὴν τοῦ φθείροντος αἴσθησιν, οὕτω καὶ ἡ φθοροποιὸς αὕτη φύσις σκοπὸν ἔχουσα τῆς ἀγαθῆς φύσεως ἀποστῆσαι τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἀγαθῶν τινων πραγμάτων μορφὰς ὑποδύεται προρρήσεσί τισι καὶ ἰατρείαις τὸν ἐγκεκρυμμένον τῆς ἀπάτης λόχον ἐπικαλύπτουσα, ὡς ἂν τούτῳ προσέχοντες τὸ δείλαιον τῶν ἀνθρώπων γένος τοῦτό τε νομίζοντες ἀγαθὸν εἶναι τοῦ ὄντος κατὰ φύσιν ἀγαθοῦ μηδεμίαν ἔχοιεν ἐπιθυμίαν. διά τοι τοῦτο, καθ' ὅπερ ἄν τις προγνώσεως εἶδος διά τινος ἀπάτης προ ειλημμένος τύχῃ, κατ' ἐκεῖνο καὶ ἡ ἀπατηλὴ τῶν δαιμόνων ὑπήκουσε δύναμις, ἐν ἡπατοσκοπίαις καὶ οἰωνισμοῖς, ἐν κληδόσιν, ἐν νεκυίαις, ἐν γενεθλιαλογίαις, ἑκάστου τούτων οὐ κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον ἀλλὰ διαφόρως τὸ ἐφεξῆς προμηνύον τος. ὥσπερ τοίνυν ὁ τῷ ἥπατι τὸ μέλλον διασημαίνων ἢ ὁ διά τινος κληδόνος προεικάσας τὸ ἐσόμενον ἢ ὁ πρὸς τὴν πτῆσιν τοῦ οἰωνοῦ βλέπων οὐ τῇ τῆς εἱμαρμένης ἀνάγκῃ τὰ τοιαῦτα προαγορεύειν κατεπαγγέλλεται, κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον μιᾶς οὔσης αἰτίας, καθὼς εἴρηται, τῆς τὸ τοιοῦτο τῆς προρρήσεως εἶδος μετιούσης (λέγω δὲ κατὰ τὴν ἀπατηλὴν τῶν δαιμόνων ἐνέργειαν), οὐκ ἐπειδή ποτέ τι κατὰ τὸ συμβὰν ἐπετεύχθη 60 τῶν εἰρημένων, εἴπερ δὴ καὶ ὅλως ἐπετεύχθη, διὰ τούτου ἡ τῆς εἱμαρμένης ἀποδείκνυται δύναμις, ἐπεὶ πᾶν προρρήσεως εἶδος εἰκότως ἂν ἐξ εἱμαρμένης τὴν ἰσχὺν ἔχειν κατα- σκευάζοιτο· ὥστε ἡμῖν μίαν μὲν εἱμαρμένην εἶναι τὸν ὄνειρον, ἑτέραν δὲ τὴν ἐκ παλμῶν παρατήρησιν, ἄλλην δὲ ἐξ οἰωνισμῶν ἢ κληδόνων ἤ τινων συμβόλων συνισταμένην. εἰ δὲ οὐδὲν ἐπ' ἐκείνων κωλύει καὶ πρόρρησιν εἶναι καὶ εἱμαρμένην μὴ εἶναι, οὐδὲ εἴ τις ἐξ ἀριθμοῦ τοῖς γενεθλιαλογοῦσιν ἐπετεύχθη πρόρρησις, ἀρκοῦσα γένοιτο ἂν πίστις εἰς τὸ μὴ ῥαδίως τὰ τοιαῦτα ἐπιτυγχάνεσθαι. καίτοι γε οὐδὲ ἀκριβεῖς τε καὶ ἀναμφίβολοι παρὰ τῶν τὰ τοιαῦτα ἐπαγγελλομένων αἱ προμηνύσεις γίνονται, ἀλλὰ πολλὰς ἑαυτοῖς ἀναχωρήσεις παρασκευάζουσιν ἐπὶ τῇ ἐκβάσει, εἰ πρὸς τοὐναντίον ὁ λόγος ἐλέγχοιτο, καί τινα προτεχνολογοῦσιν ἑαυτοῖς οἷς τούτων μέλει, ὥστε μὴ τῆς ἐπιστήμης τῷ ἐσφαλμένῳ τῆς κατὰ τὴν ὥραν σημειώσεως τὴν ἀποτυχίαν λογίζεσθαι, καὶ λοξαὶ ὡς 61 ἐπίπαν καὶ πρὸς τὸ διπλοῦν τῶν ἐκβάσεων ἐπαμφοτερίζουσαι γίνονται παρ' αὐτῶν αἱ προρρήσεις, ἵν' ὅπερ ἂν ἐκβῇ, τοῦτο προμεμηνῦσθαι δόξῃ. πολλάκις γὰρ τὸ περιφανές τε καὶ τὸ ὑπὲρ τοὺς ἄλλους ὁ τὴν ὥραν τῆς γενέσεως κατανοήσας ἐμήνυσεν. εἶτα ἐν ἐξαισίοις τισὶ συμφοραῖς τούτου γεγονότος οὐδὲν διεσφάλθαι ὁ προαγορεύσας διισχυρίσατο· ἔσχε γὰρ ὑπὲρ τοὺς ἄλλους τὸ πλέον εἰς τὴν τῶν κακῶν μετουσίαν. καὶ τούτων ἡ καθ' ἡμᾶς ἱστορία μάρτυς ἐστίν. Οὐάλεντος γὰρ τοῦ βασιλέως ἐπὶ τῆς Ῥωμαίων ὄντος ἀρχῆς ἀπάτη τις τοιαύτη πρὸς τὴν ἀνταρσίαν τῆς ἀρχῆς παρεκίνησε. καὶ ὁ μὲν ὥρμησεν ἐφόδιον πρὸς τὴν τόλμαν τὴν τῶν γενεθλιαλογούντων προαγόρευσιν ἔχων· τὸ δὲ πέρας τῆς ἐγχειρήσεως τοιοῦτον ἐγένετο, ὥστε αὐτὸν τῶν ἐπὶ ταῖς μεγίσταις ἀρχαῖς γνωρισθέντων ἐν τῷ μεγέθει τῆς συμφορᾶς γενέσθαι δια- σημότερον· καὶ τοῦτο συνηγορία τῆς γενεθλιαλογίας τοῖς πολλοῖς ἐνομίσθη, ὅτι τὸ κατὰ συμφορὰν μέγεθος ἀντὶ τοῦ μεγέθους τῶν ἀγαθῶν τῷ ἀνδρὶ συνηνέχθη. Ἐγὼ δὲ τὸ μὲν πεπλανημένας τὰς περὶ τούτων γενέσθαι προαγορεύσεις οὔπω μέγα ποιοῦμαι τεκμήριον τοῦ μὴ ἑστάναι τῆς εἱμαρμένης τὸν λόγον, ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ πολλαῖς καὶ ἄλλαις ἐπινοίαις ἡ ἀπατηλὴ τῶν δαιμόνων δύναμις τὰς προρρήσεις σοφίζεται. καὶ γὰρ καὶ ὕδωρ τι μαντικὸν παραφορὰς καὶ 62 μανίας τοῖς γευσαμένοις