B I R D S
Omens In The Sky
Ever wondered why some birds fly in a V-shaped group? Is it really an omen or a
kind of warning or is it just a characteristic of migrant birds?
By Walter Tarello (DVM, MRCVS, MA Cardiology)
The distinctive V-shaped formation of migrating birds
has intrigued philosophers and mystics since ancient
times. It is strongly believed that such aggregations
are cradles of omens. However, scientists claim it is a
method used by migrating birds to conserve energy!
“The reason why birds can fly and we can’t is simply
because they have perfect faith, for to have faith is
to have wings.” (J.M. Barrie, The Little White Bird.)
Auspices and Omens
The Etruscans, who lived in central Italy between
1400 and 300 BC, believed that the human destiny is
written in the sky. The practice of augury,the reading
of flight of birds to foretell the future, indicates their
Middle Eastern origin. To the Etruscans, every natural
phenomenon was the expression of human fate and
God’s will.
So the prediction of future events was organised
and rigidly structured. The art of augury was
somehow similar to modern fortune telling, but linked
to religion as it was considered to be the
interpretation of God’s will.
Premonitory Flocks
Special priests named augurs formulated
previsions for individuals, companies, even
governments, based on height, direction and size of
the bird or flock examined.
Before ‘taking the auspices,’ i.e. predicting the
favourable or unfavourable outcomes of an
endeavour, augurs also considered whether the bird
was flying in a group or alone, what call it made and
what specie it was.
through augury. Roman historian Livy famously said:
“Who does not know that this city was founded only
after taking the auspices? That everything in war
and in peace, at home and abroad, was done only
after taking the auspices?”
Spooky Past
Omen deciphering through observation of bird
flights was practiced long before by the
Assyrian-Babylonians, between 1900 and 1600 BC. In
the 14th century BC, the art of augury was
developed in the court of the king of Alasya
(Enkomi, Cyprus) who sent an ‘Eagle Diviner’ to
Egypt.
Later, the practice spread to ancient Greece.
Calchas, the renowned bird-watcher of
Agamemnon, excelled in the art of augury and led
the Greek army to Troy predicting that Troy would be
taken in the 9th year of war.
Roman Presage
Legend says that the twins, Remus and Romulus,
had a quarrel about the location of Rome. Romulus
wanted the city on the Palatine, while Remus
proclaimed that the Aventine Hill was more
strategic. At last they agreed to test their augury
competence by counting the birds they would see
in a given timeframe. According to Plutarch, Remus
saw six vultures whereas Romulus saw twelve. Rome
was thus built on the Palatine.
Then the augur would trace a square on the ground
and from there he would observe at length the
phenomenon before releasing the prevision. Reading bird flight became an essential part of the
Roman culture. They maintained that if there are
gods, they should care for men and therefore they
must send signals of their will, obviously from the
sky. In ancient Rome, any important decisions were
settled only after a positive auspicium obtained from
flying omens. Birds were Jupiter’s messengers.
Perilous Prophecy
‘Taking the auspices’ derives from the Latin auspex,
a word that is sum of two words, avis (bird) and spex
(observer,) literally ‘one who looks at birds.’ Augury,
the practice of prophecy based on the flight of
birds, was held in high respect by the Etruscans and
became popular in ancient Rome, spreading rapidly
throughout the Empire. There were five classes of auspices and the oldest
were related to birds, such as ex avibus (observation
of birds) and ex tripudiis (observation of the feeding
behaviour of sacred chickens.) Less important were
three other classes, including ex quadrupedibus
(observation of dog, horse, wolf and fox behaviour,)
ex diris (apocalyptic events) and ex caelo (thunder,
lightning.)
War, commerce, love and health related queries
were submitted for the approval or rejection of gods Avian Supremacy
Only some species, named aves augurales, could
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