Filosofia Política Clássica vs Moderna II

Sacrifício de Ifigénia @ Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli.
Fresco de Pompeia, da Casa do Poeta Trágico. [Calcas, o adivinho, à direita]

And as for the things relating to war, doubtless you yourselves would bear witness that generalship uses forethought in the finnest manner in other respects and also concerning what is going to be, and it thinks that it must not serve, but rule, divination, on the grounds that it has finer knowledge of the things relating to war, both those that are coming into being and those that will come into being. And the law ordains thus, not that the diviner rule the general, but that the general rule the diviner.

[καὶ δήπου τὰ περὶ τὸν πόλεμον αὐτοὶ ἂν μαρτυρήσαιτε ὅτι ἡ στρατηγία κάλλιστα προμηθεῖται τά τε ἄλλα καὶ περὶ τὸ μέλλον ἔσεσθαι, οὐδὲ τῇ μαντικῇ οἴεται δεῖν ὑπηρετεῖν ἀλλὰ ἄρχειν, ὡς εἰδυῖα κάλλιον τὰ περὶ τὸν πόλεμον καὶ γιγνόμενα καὶ γενησόμενα· καὶ ὁ νόμος οὕτω τάττει, μὴ τὸν μάντιν τοῦ στρατηγοῦ ἄρχειν, ἀλλὰ τὸν στρατηγὸν τοῦ μάντεως.]

Platão, Laques 198e2-199a3

in Thomas Pangle (ed.), The Roots of Political Philosophy - Ten Forgotten Socratic Dialogues.

Cornell University Press, Ithaca/Londres: 1987. (trad.: James Nichols, Jr.)

Furthermore, it will be evident to anyone who carefully examines Roman history how useful religion was in controlling the armies, in giving courage to the plebeians, in keeping man good, and in shaming the wicked. [...] Among other auspices, they had in their armies a certain order of soothsayers thay called pullarii, and whenever the Romans decided to engage the enemy in battle, they wanted the pullarii to take the auspices; when the chickens pecked, the Romans fought with a good augury; when they did not peck, the Romans abstained from any encounter. None the less, when reason showed the Romans that something had to be done, they undertook it, notwithstanding the fact that the auspices were unfavourable, but they gave them a different meaning with such suitable words and methods that they did not appear to be doing so with any disrespect to religion.

[E vedesi, chi considera bene le istorie romane, quanto serviva la religione a comandare gli eserciti, a animire la Plebe, a mantenere gli uomini buoni, a fare vergognare i rei. [...] Ed in fra gli altri auspicii, avevano negli eserciti certi ordini di aruspici, ch’e’ chiamavano pullarii: e qualunque volta eglino ordinavano di fare la giornata con il nimico, ei volevano che i pullarii facessono i loro auspicii; e, beccando i polli, combattevono con buono augurio, non beccando, si astenevano dalla zuffa. Nondimeno, quando la ragione mostrava loro una cosa doversi fare, non ostante che gli auspicii fossero avversi, la facevano in ogni modo; ma rivoltavanla con termini e modi tanto attamente, che non paresse che la facessino con dispregio della religione.]

Maquiavel,  Discourses on Livy 1.11 e 1.14

Oxford University Press, Oxford: 1997 (trad.: Julia & Peter Bondanella).