omen. He states that during one's sleep, the soul is in a relaxed state and remnants of one's waking thoughts move freely within the soul. It concludes with a chapter on the evils of superstition, and Cicero's efforts to extirpate it. The whole thread is interwoven by curious and interesting stories. De Divinatione is notable as one of posterity's primary sources on the workings of Roman religion, and as a source for the conception of scientificity in Roman classical antiquity. Quotes Nothing so absurd can be said that some philosopher had not said it. () (II, 119) That old saying by Cato is quite well known; he said he was surprised that one haruspex did not burst out laughing when he saw another one. () (II, 24, 51) Citations References Further reading Pease, Arthur Stanley, M. Tulli Ciceronis de Divinatione, 2 vol., Urbana 1920–1923 (reprint Darmstadt 1963). Wardle, David, Cicero on divination : De divinatione, book 1. Transl., with introd. and historical commentary by David Wardle, Oxford 2006. Engels, David, Das römische Vorzeichenwesen (753–27 v.Chr.). Quellen, Terminologie, Kommentar, historische Entwicklung, Stuttgart 2007, pp. 129–164. External links De Divinatione, Latin text De Divinatione, English translation Wardle, David - Cicero On Divination, Book 1 OUP Oxford, 30 Nov 2006 Ancient Roman religion Roman mythology Philosophical works by Cicero 1st-century BC works