The first month, Januarius, is named after
Janus. My opinion is, that Numa moved the month named after Mars from
its precedence, wishing the art of good government to be honoured before
that of war. For Janus in very ancient times was either a deity or a
king, who established a social polity, and made men cease from a savage
life like that of wild beasts. And for this reason his statues are made
with a double face, because he turned men's way of life from one form to
another.
XX. There is a temple to him in Rome, which has two doors, and which
they call the gate of war. It is the custom to open the temple in time
of war, and to close it during peace. This scarcely ever took place, as
the empire was almost always at war with some state, being by its very
greatness continually brought into collision with the neighbouring
tribes. Only in the time of Caesar Augustus, after he had conquered
Antonius, it was closed; and before that, during the consulship of
Marcus Atilius and Titus Manlius, for a short time, and then was almost
immediately reopened, as a new war broke out. But during Numa's reign no
one saw it open for a single day, and it remained closed for forty-three
years continuously, so utterly had he made wars to cease on all sides.
Not only was the spirit of the Romans subdued and pacified by the gentle
and just character of their king, but even the neighbouring cities, as
if some soothing healthful air was breathed over them from Rome, altered
their habits and longed to live quiet and well-governed, cultivating the
earth, bringing up their families in peace, and worshipping the gods.
Pages:
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212