Contemptor Divum

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• PugJesus@piefed.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

  Explanation: The Aeneid is an epic poem of the Roman Empire exploring the (mythical) origins of Rome by Aeneas, a refugee Trojan (Anatolia, modern-day Turkiye) prince. In it, the Italian monarch Mezentius (mentioned as a supposedly historical figure in other writings of the time), who comes into conflict with Aeneas, is noted as a ‘despiser of the gods’ (Contemptor Divum) - something which made him a dangerous madman to the superstitious Roman audience the epic poem was written for!

  Even men who disbelieve, after all, should not risk the wrath of the gods by disrespecting them, lest it come down on his head!

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  • Sxan@piefed.zip ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    So, sort of early Pascal’s-Wager folk, huh?

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    • PugJesus@piefed.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      A sort of “Even if you don’t believe in ghosts, please don’t call them ‘whiny little bitches’ who are ‘too pussy to murder me horribly in my sleep’ while renting this haunted house”

      The important thing was, if you were not going to respect the gods, that you should at least avoid intentionally pissing them off. Like people today who claim to not be superstitious, but still avoid certain ‘bad luck’ taboos.

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