Latin — 1533, repaired
Est etiam divinationis species, quae inter dormiendum fit, somniorum scilicet, et philosophorum traditionibus, et theologorum autoritatibus, historiarumque exemplis, et quotidiana experientia comprobata. Somnium autem dico hic, non quod phantasma, vel insomnium — haec enim vana sunt, et nihil divinationis habent, sed ex vigiliarum reliquiis aut corporis turbatione nascuntur: quoties namque oppressi, corporis vel fortunae commodis vel incommodis, tunc qualis animus vigilantem fatigaverat, talis se ingerit dormienti: vel aliquando contrarius, insomnio decepti. Somnium igitur dico hic, quod in spiritu phantastico, animo et corpore bene se habentibus, caelestium causatur influxu. Huius quidem interpretandi regula apud astrologos invenitur, in ea parte quae de quaestionibus inscribitur, sed tamen parum sufficiens, quia somnia huiusmodi diversis hominibus diversimode usu veniunt, iuxta diversam spiritus phantastici qualitatem ac dispositionem: quapropter non potest eadem communisque regula somniorum interpretandorum singulis adhiberi: sed, iuxta Synesii sententiam, cum accidentia sunt eadem rebus, eisdem similiaque similibus, sic qui in idem aut simile visum saepius inciderit, eandem aut similem sibi designet sententiam, passionem, fortunam, actionem, eventum denique. Quemadmodum inquit Aristoteles: sensu confirmatur memoria, ex memoria vero eiusdem rei saepius obtenta nascitur peritia, ex pluribus peritiis paulatim cumulatur ars et scientia: simili ratione et circa somnia oportebit incedere. Unde iubet Synesius, unumquenque somnia sua et suos inde observare eventus, scilicet quae visa in quales eventus inciderint, ac huiusmodi regulas, scilicet visa et accidentia, cum somnii, tum vigiliae memoriae commendare, atque sedula quadam hac observatione huiusmodi per plurimas regulas penes seipsum accumulare, ex qua quidem accumulatione ars quaedam divinatoria, et suorum cuique somniorum interpretandorum paulatim consurgit, dum nihil dilabitur a memoria. Efficaciora autem sunt somnia, quando luna illud percurrit signum, quod fuit in nona [domo] radicis nativitatis vel revolutionis illius anni, vel in nono signo a signo proiectionis. Verissima autem atque certissima divinatio neque natura neque humanis artibus, sed purgatis mentibus provenit, inspiratione divina. Quod vero hic ad vaticinia oraculaque spectat, discutiemus alibi.
Close translation
There is also a species of divination that occurs during sleep — namely, that of dreams, confirmed by the traditions of philosophers, the authority of theologians, the examples of histories, and daily experience. I call it a dream here, however, not phantasm or insomnium — for these are vain, and hold nothing of divination, but arise from the leftovers of waking life or from disturbance of the body: for whenever one, weighed down by the body's or fortune's advantages or disadvantages, [dreams], such a state as had wearied the waking mind presents itself again to the sleeper — or sometimes the contrary, those deceived by insomnium. I call a dream, then, that which is caused, in the phantastic spirit, the soul and body being in good condition, by the influx of the heavens. The rule for interpreting these indeed is found among the astrologers, in that part which is entitled Of Questions — yet it is scarcely sufficient, because dreams of this kind come to different people in different ways, according to the differing quality and disposition of the phantastic spirit: wherefore the same common rule for interpreting dreams cannot be applied to each individual — but, according to the opinion of Synesius, since accidents are the same for the same things, and like for like, so whoever falls repeatedly into the same or a similar vision should assign to himself the same or a similar meaning, passion, fortune, action, or outcome. As Aristotle says: memory is confirmed by sense, and from memory of the same thing obtained repeatedly is born skill, and from many skills, art and science are gradually accumulated — by similar reasoning one must also proceed regarding dreams. Whence Synesius instructs each person to observe his own dreams and their outcomes — namely, what things seen fell into what outcomes — and to commit rules of this kind, that is, the things seen and the events, to memory both of the dream and of waking life, and, by a certain diligent observation, to accumulate many such rules within himself, from which accumulation a certain divinatory art gradually arises, whereby each person may interpret his own dreams, so long as nothing slips from memory. Dreams are more effective, moreover, when the moon runs through that sign which was in the ninth [house] of the radical nativity or of the revolution of that year, or in the ninth sign from the sign of projection. But the truest and most certain divination arises neither from nature nor from human arts, but from purified minds, by divine inspiration. What pertains here to prophecies and oracles, we shall discuss elsewhere.
Modern rendering
There's also a kind of divination that happens during sleep — dreaming — and it's backed up by the traditions of philosophers, the authority of theologians, historical examples, and everyday experience. But by 'dream' here I don't mean a mere phantasm or ordinary sleep-vision — those are empty and carry no divinatory content; they just come from the residue of waking life or from bodily disturbance. Whenever someone is weighed down by good or bad fortune in body or circumstance, whatever state wore out the waking mind reasserts itself in sleep — or sometimes the opposite happens, and people are misled by such visions. What I mean by 'dream' here is something caused, when the imaginative faculty, mind, and body are all in good working order, by an influence coming down from the heavens. Astrologers do have a rule for interpreting these, in the section on judicial questions, but it's not really adequate, because dreams like this affect different people differently, depending on the particular quality and state of each person's imaginative faculty. So you can't apply one single rule of dream-interpretation to everyone. Instead, as Synesius holds, since the same things produce the same effects, and like things produce like effects, someone who repeatedly has the same or a similar dream-image should take it to mean the same or a similar thing — the same feeling, fortune, action, or outcome as before. As Aristotle puts it: sense experience is confirmed by memory, repeated memory of the same thing produces skill, and skill, accumulated, gradually becomes art and knowledge — the same logic applies to dreams. That's why Synesius tells people to track their own dreams and what actually followed from them — which images led to which outcomes — and to store up these patterns, from both dreaming and waking memory, so that through careful, sustained observation a personal set of rules builds up over time. Out of that accumulation, a kind of dream-divination gradually takes shape, letting each person interpret their own dreams, as long as they don't let the record slip from memory. Dreams carry more force when the moon is passing through whatever sign occupied the ninth house at your birth, or in that year's solar return, or the ninth sign counted from the sign of your progression. But the truest, most reliable divination doesn't come from nature or human skill at all — it comes to purified minds, through divine inspiration. I'll deal with prophecy and oracles proper elsewhere.
Editorial flags — draft status
- uncertain: 'domo' supplied editorially in the ninth-house astrological reference; not present in OCR, added only for sense in the technical phrase — consider removing in manual pass if over-interpretive
- uncertain: 'figno proscaelionis' / 'signo proiectionis' — the technical astrological term for the operative direction/progression method is uncertain; OCR form does not cleanly match a standard term