God of war in rome. Ancient gods of Rome: features of paganism

In ancient times, the Romans represented the gods in the form of some invisible forces that accompany a person throughout life and even after it.

Gods of Ancient Rome

To systematize knowledge, we will create a list and description of the main gods of Ancient Rome.

During the time of the closer relationship between Rome and Greece, the Roman gods from an inexplicable substance acquired a human image.

Rice. 1. Roman god Jupiter.

Rice. 2. The Roman god Cupid.

The Greek and Roman gods are very similar to each other and have the same functions. They differ only in names. In addition, the legends and myths of Ancient Greece also spread to the Roman religious culture.

In terms of religion, Rome is much diverse and changeable, along with this, religion changed and transformed, along with the rest. Inhabitants ancient rome were pagans and idolaters, the worship of the Greek and Etruscan gods was widespread. Over time, the Romans plunged further and more into paganism.

But with the changing circumstances and goals of the state, in the end, main religion Christianity was chosen, which, after the collapse of Rome into the Western Empire and the Eastern, took the form of the current Catholicism. The Gods of Ancient Rome have disappeared. The cult of the ancestors and the land was the basis of the beliefs of pagan Rome.

Beliefs of pagan Rome

All rituals were traditionally performed by the heads of the family or community. Developing, the state has developed for itself and its population official religion, and took on the responsibility of officially organizing and celebrating the festivities.

The first pantheon of the Romans was dominated by Jupiter, Mars and Quirinus, but over time they were replaced by more a good combination: Jupiter, Juno and Minerva.
These deities were considered the protectors and patrons of the country, and their sanctuaries became the centers of the state cult of the gods.

With the development of the state, sciences also developed, namely history. Learning about the history of their predecessors, the Greeks, the Romans increasingly identified their gods with the Greeks.

So Jupiter began to be called Zeus, Juno - Hero, Mars - Ares. The myths were also re-read, rethought and altered to match the state. A favorite myth was the myth of "The 12 labors of Hercules", where Hercules began to be called Hercules. In addition to associating their gods with the Greeks, the Romans added to their pantheon those they did not have from Greek and Egyptian cultures.

The borrowing of other deities, not only from Greek culture, begins very early and rather quickly. The goddess Tsaana, the patroness of feminine, a new cycle and a new life. Much later, another Latin goddess, Venus, began to be worshiped. Her patronage, according to legend, extended to nature.

The triple pantheon of the Romans was not the only one. The Romans adopted deities and rituals from neighboring civilizations with great success. So it happened with Saturn. Initially, Saturn was worshiped by people from the Satriya clan, but over time, this cult acquired the outlines of a nationwide one. Saturn was the patron saint of new crops. He was considered the pioneer of the world because according to legend, he gave people food. There was a holiday in his honor.

During this holiday, people forgot about their social status and became equal. An interesting fact is that the Romans did not close their pantheon of deities, and all the time tried to comprehend the meaning of other deities and win them over to their side. This process was especially vividly expressed during the war, when the Romans adopted the gods of their opponents.

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In ancient Rome, as in ancient Greece, religion consisted of the cults of various gods. At the same time, the Roman pantheon had many deities similar to the Greek ones. That is, here we can talk about borrowing. This happened because Greek mythology was more ancient than Roman. The Greeks created colonies on the territory of Italy, when Rome did not even think about greatness. The inhabitants of these colonies spread Greek culture and religion to nearby lands, and therefore the Romans became the successors of Greek traditions, but interpreted them taking into account local conditions.

The most significant and revered in ancient Rome was the so-called council of the gods, corresponding to the Olympian gods of ancient Greece. The father of Roman poetry, Quintus Ennius (239 - 169 BC) systematized the deities of Ancient Rome and introduced six men and six women to this council. He gave them their Greek equivalents. This list was later confirmed by the Roman historian Titus Livy (59 BC - 17 AD). Below is a list this advice celestials, Greek counterparts are given in brackets.

Jupiter(Zeus) - the king of the gods, the god of the sky and thunder, the son of Saturn and Opa. The main deity of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. The rulers of Rome took an oath to Jupiter and venerated him annually in September on the Capitol Hill. He was personified with law, order and justice. There were 2 temples in Rome dedicated to Jupiter. One was built in 294 BC. e., and the second was erected in 146 BC. NS. This god was personified by an eagle and an oak tree. Juno was his wife and sister.

Juno(Hera) - daughter of Saturn and Opa, wife and Native sister Jupiter, queen of the gods. She was the mother of Mars and Vulcan. She was a defender of marriage, motherhood, family traditions. It is in her honor that the month of June is named. She was a member of the Capitoline Triad along with Jupiter and Minerva. There is a statue of this goddess in the Vatican. She is depicted in a helmet and shell. Not only mere mortals, but all the gods of Ancient Rome revered and respected Juno.

Neptune(Poseidon) - god of the sea and fresh water... Brother of Jupiter and Pluto. The Romans also worshiped Neptune as the god of horses. He was the patron saint of horse racing. In Rome, one temple was erected to this god. It was located near the Flaminia circus in the southern part of the Champ de Mars. The circus had a small hippodrome. All these structures were built in 221 BC. NS. Neptune is an extremely ancient deity. He was a domestic god even among the Etruscans, and then migrated to the Romans.

Ceres(Demeter) - goddess of harvest, fertility, Agriculture... She was the daughter of Saturn and Ope and sister to Jupiter. She had an only daughter, Proserpine (goddess underworld) from the connection with Jupiter. It was believed that Ceres could not see hungry children. This put her in a state of grief. Therefore, she always took care of orphans, surrounded them with care and attention. Every year in April there was a festival dedicated to this goddess. It lasted 7 days. She was also mentioned during marriages and ceremonies associated with the harvest.

Minerva(Athena) - goddess of wisdom, patroness of art, medicine, trade, military strategy... Often gladiator battles were held in her honor. She was considered a virgin. She was often depicted with an owl (Minerva's owl), which symbolized wisdom and knowledge. Long before the Romans, this goddess was worshiped by the Etruscans. Celebrations in her honor were held from March 19 to 23. This goddess was worshiped on the Esquiline Hill (one of the seven hills of Rome). The Temple of Minerva was erected there.

Apollo(Apollo) is one of the main gods of Greek and Roman mythology. This is the god of the sun, light, music, prophecy, healing, art, poetry. It should be said that the Romans in relation to this god took the traditions of the ancient Greeks as a basis and, practically, did not change them. Apparently they seemed extremely successful to them, and therefore they did not change anything, so as not to spoil beautiful legends about this god.

Diana(Artemis) - the goddess of hunting, nature, fertility. She, like Minerva, was a virgin. In total, the gods of Ancient Rome had 3 goddesses who took a vow of celibacy - these are Diana, Minerva and Vesta. They were called maiden goddesses. Diana was the daughter of Jupiter and Latona, and was born with her twin brother Apollo. Since she patronized the hunt, she wore a short tunic and hunting boots. She always had a bow, a quiver and a crescent-shaped diadem. The goddess was accompanied by deer or hunting dogs. The Temple of Diana in Rome was erected on the Aventine Hill.

Mars(Ares) - God of war and protector of agricultural fields during the early Roman period. He was considered the second most important god (after Jupiter) in the Roman army. Unlike Ares, who was treated with disgust, Mars was respected and loved. Under the first Roman emperor Augustus, a temple to Mars was built in Rome. During the Roman Empire, this deity was considered the guarantor of military power and peace and was never mentioned as a conqueror.

Venus(Aphrodite) - the goddess of beauty, love, prosperity, victory, fertility and desires. The Roman people considered her to be their mother through the son of Aeneas. He survived the fall of Troy and fled to Italy. Julius Caesar claimed to be the ancestor of this goddess. Subsequently, in Europe, Venus became the most popular deity of Roman mythology. She was personified with sexuality and love. The symbols of Venus were the dove and the hare, and of the plants, the rose and the poppy. The planet Venus is named after this goddess.

Volcano(Hephaestus) - the god of fire and the patron saint of blacksmiths. He was often depicted with a blacksmith's hammer. This is one of the most ancient Roman deities. In Rome, there was a Vulcan temple or Vulcanal, built in the VIII century BC. NS. at the site of the future Roman Forum at the foot of the Capitol Hill. A festival dedicated to the Volcano was celebrated every year in the second half of August. It was this god who forged lightning for Jupiter. He also made armor and weapons for other celestials. He set up his forge in the mouth of Mount Etna in Sicily. And golden women, whom God himself created, helped him in his work.

Mercury(Hermes) - the patron saint of trade, finance, eloquence, travel, good luck. He also acted as a guide of souls to the underworld. Son of Jupiter and Maya. In Rome, the temple to this god was located in the circus located between the Avetian and Palatine hills. It was built in 495 BC. NS. A festival dedicated to this god took place in mid-May. But he was not as magnificent as for other gods, since Mercury was not considered one of the main deities of Rome. The planet Mercury was named in his honor.

Vesta(Hestia) is an extremely revered goddess among the ancient Romans. She was the sister of Jupiter and was identified with the goddess of the home and family hearth. In her temples, a sacred fire always burned, and the priestesses of the goddess - virgin vestals - supported it. It was a whole staff of women priestesses in ancient Rome, enjoying undeniable authority. They were taken from wealthy families and had to be celibate for 30 years. If one of the Vestals broke this oath, then such a woman was buried in the ground alive. Celebrations dedicated to this goddess were held annually from June 7 to 15.

The Roman pantheon has many analogs to the ancient Greek gods and goddesses, but it also has its own deities and lower spirits.

The following gods were considered the most famous.

Aurora is the goddess of the morning dawn.

Bacchus is the god of vegetation, wine and fun, the patron saint of viticulture and winemaking.

Venus is the goddess of love and beauty, identical to the Greek goddess Aphrodite.

Vesta is the goddess of hearth and fire.

Diana is the goddess of the hunt, the moon, fertility and procreation, the patroness of wild animals. Diana was identified with the ancient Greek goddess Artemis.

Cupid is the god of love, the son of Venus.

Mars is the ancient Italian god of war and fertility. Mars was identified with ancient greek god Ares.

Mercury is the god of cattle breeding and trade, the patron saint of travelers, the messenger of the gods. Mercury was depicted with wings on its legs, with a rod and with a money bag on its side.

Minerva is the goddess of wisdom, the patroness of sciences, arts, crafts. Under the tutelage of Minerva were teachers, doctors, actors, artisans. Minerva was identified with the ancient Greek goddess Athena.

Neptune is the god of the seas, identified with the ancient Greek god Poseidon. Neptune was considered the patron saint of horse breeding and equestrian competitions.

The term is the god of boundaries and boundary boundary signs: pillars, stones, etc.

Flora is the Italian goddess of flowers and youth. In ancient art, Flora was portrayed as a young woman holding flowers.

Fortune is the goddess of happiness, chance and luck. Fortune was portrayed as a woman with a bandage over her eyes, with a cornucopia in her hands, pouring coins with a bandage over her eyes.

Juno is the queen of the gods, the wife of Jupiter, the patroness of marriage and birth. Juno was identified with the ancient Greek goddess Hero. Juno was portrayed as a stately woman wearing a crown.

Jupiter is the supreme god, the lord of gods and people, identified with the Greek Zeus. Sometimes the statues of Jupiter in Rome were given the appearance of the reigning emperor.

Janus is an ancient Italian deity; the God:

• - inputs and outputs;
• - all beginnings;
• - the creator of all life on earth;
• - patron saint of roads and travelers, etc.

Janus was portrayed as a man with two faces looking in opposite directions. Janus's attributes were keys and a staff.

Like any other polytheistic faith, Roman paganism did not have a clear organization. Essentially, this is a meeting a large number ancient cults. But, despite this, the triad of the gods of Ancient Rome clearly stands out: Jupiter, Mars and Quirin.

Jupimter (Latin Iuppiter) - in ancient Roman mythology, the god of the sky, daylight, thunderstorms, the father of the gods, the supreme deity of the Romans. Spouse of the goddess Juno. Corresponds to the Greek Zeus. God Jupiter was worshiped on the heights, the tops of mountains in the form of a stone. The days of the full moon - ida are dedicated to him.

As the supreme god, Jupiter had a council of gods with him and decided all earthly affairs through the augurs, sending them signs of his will. Jupiter was the god of the entire Roman state, its power and power. The cities subordinate to Rome made sacrifices to him on the Capitol and erected temples in them. Jupiter was the patron saint of emperors. The most important acts of state life (sacrifices, the oath of new consuls, the first meeting of the year of the Senate) took place in the Capitoline Temple of Jupiter.

The cult of Jupiter was widespread in all Roman provinces and in the army. Many local supreme gods in the countries of Syria and Asia Minor were identified with him.

After the fall of the Roman Empire, the names of Jupiter and Zeus began to be used almost without distinction. Jupiter, like Zeus, was portrayed as full of dignity, with a beard, often on a throne, with an eagle, lightning and a scepter.

Mars is one of the oldest Roman gods. Initially, he was considered the ancestor and guardian of Rome. In ancient Italy, Mars was the god of fertility; it was believed that he could either send the loss of crops or the death of livestock, or turn them away. In his honor, the first month of the Roman year, in which the rite of expulsion of winter was performed, was named March. Later, Mars was identified with the Greek Ares and became the god of war. The Temple of Mars, already as the god of war, was built on the Champ de Mars outside the city walls, since the armed army was not supposed to enter the territory of the city.

From Mars, the vestal Rhea Sylvia gave birth to twins Romulus and Remus. As the father of Romulus, Mars was the ancestor and guardian of Rome.

Quirinus (Sabinsk. Quirinus - spear-bearing) is one of the most ancient Italian and Roman gods.

Quirinus is the oldest Roman deity, patronizing the life-giving forces of nature, and later - military actions. Quirinus was especially revered in the early times of Roman history, even when scattered tribes lived on the Apennine Peninsula: Sabines, Latins, Oscans, Umbras, etc.

The gods of Ancient Rome, whose list includes more than 50 different creatures, were objects of worship for many centuries - only the degree of influence of each of them on the consciousness of the people changed.

in the discipline "Culturology"

on the topic: "Roman gods"

Introduction

1 the religion of ancient Rome

2.Heroes of Roman myth

Conclusion

List of used literature

Until now, the idea is widespread that ancient Roman culture is not original, for the Romans tried to imitate the unattainable examples of classical Greek culture, adopting everything and practically creating nothing of their own. However, the latest research shows the original character of the culture of Ancient Rome, because it is a certain unity that arose as a result of the combination of the original with the borrowed cultural innovations. We should not forget the essential point that the ancient Roman and ancient Greek cultures were formed and developed on the basis of the ancient civil community. Its entire system predetermined the scale of basic values, which, in one way or another, were guided by all fellow citizens. These values ​​included: the idea of ​​the significance and initial unity of the civil community in inextricable link the welfare of the individual with the welfare of the entire collective; the idea of ​​the supreme power of the people; the idea of ​​the closest connection of the civil community with gods and heroes who care about its welfare.

At an early stage of development, during the transition from a primitive communal system to a class society, religion played an exceptional role in the private and public life of the Romans. The Roman religion never had a complete system. Remnants of ancient beliefs coexisted in it with religious ideas borrowed from peoples at a higher stage of cultural development.

In the Roman religion, as in other Italic cults, remnants of totemism have been preserved. This is evidenced by the legends about the she-wolf who nurtured the founders of Rome. The wolf (in Latin the wolf - lupus) was associated, apparently, with the festivities of the Lupercalia and the special Lupercal sanctuary dedicated to Faun, the priestly college of the Luperk, etc. Other deities also had animals dedicated to them. The woodpecker, the wolf and the bull were animals dedicated to Mars, the geese to Juno, etc. It should be noted, however, that the devil of totemistic cults, suggesting the identification of the animal with the ancestor of the genus, was not observed in Rome in the historical era. This stage spiritual development was already passed by the Italic tribes.

Generic cults played a significant role in Roman religion. Individual deities, patrons of clans, acquired general Roman significance and became the personification of various forces of nature.

During historical development the family became the primary in Rome social education... This process has found its reflection in religion. Each family had its own shrines, its own patron gods, its own cult. The focus of this cult was the hearth, in front of which the pater familias performed all the rituals accompanying any important matter, for example, in front of the hearth, the father of the family declared the newborn his child. The guardians of the house were venerated by the penates, who care about the well-being and well-being of the family. These good spirits- the inhabitants of the house. Outside the house, lars were baked about the family and its property, the altars of which were located at the boundaries of the plots. Each family member had their own "genius", which was considered an expression of strength this person, his energy, abilities, the expression of his whole being and at the same time his keeper.

The genius of the father of the family was revered by all the household. It was genius familiae or genius domus. The mother of the family also had her own genius, who was called Juno. Juno introduced the young wife into the house, she made it easier for the mother to give birth. Every house had many other deities guarding it. Of particular importance was the god of doors Janus, who guarded and guarded the entrance to the house.

The family took care of the deceased ancestors. Ideas about afterlife were not developed among the Romans. After death, the human spirit, according to the beliefs of the Romans, continued to live in the grave where his relatives put the ashes of the deceased and to which they brought food. At first, these offerings were very modest: violets, a pie dipped in wine, a handful of beans. Deceased ancestors, who were cared for by their descendants, were good deities - metas. If the dead were not cared for, they became evil and revengeful forces - lemurs. The genius of the ancestors was embodied in the father of the family, whose power (potestas) received, thus, religious justification.

The circle of beliefs related to family life and ancestral religions, as well as ideas about the afterlife, characterize Roman religion as a religion fundamentally animistic. A feature of Roman animism was its abstractness and impersonality. The genius of the house, penates and lares, mana and lemurs are impersonal forces, spirits on which the well-being of the family depends and on which one can influence by prayers and sacrifices.

The agricultural life of the Romans was reflected in the worship of the forces of nature, but the original Roman religion is far from anthropomorphism, it was not peculiar to the personification of nature in the form of deities endowed with human qualities, and in this respect it was the complete opposite of the Greek religion. Especially characteristic of Roman animism were ideas about special mystical forces inherent in natural phenomena; these forces are the deities (numina) that can benefit and harm a person. Processes occurring in nature, such as the growth of a seed or the ripening of a fruit, were represented by the Romans in the form of special deities. With the development of social and political life, it became a habit to deify such abstract concepts as hope, honor, harmony, etc. Roman deities are thus abstract and impersonal.

Of the many gods, those stood out who acquired significance for the entire community. The Romans were in constant interaction with other peoples. From them they borrowed some religious ideas, but they themselves, in turn, influenced the religion of their neighbors.

One of the ancient Roman gods was Janus. From a deity of doors, a vigilant gatekeeper, he turned into a deity of all origins, the predecessor of Jupiter. He was portrayed as two-faced and subsequently the beginning of the world was connected with him.

The trinity appeared relatively early: Jupiter, Mars, Quirin. Jupiter was revered as the deity of the sky by almost all Italians. Jupiter was associated with the idea of ​​a supreme deity, the father of the gods. His name is subsequently joined by the epithet pater (father), and under the influence of the Etruscan. he turns into a supreme deity. His name is accompanied by the epithets "Best" and "Greatest" (Optimus Maximus). In the classical era, Mars was the deity of war, the patron and source of Roman power, but in distant times he was an agrarian deity - the genius of spring vegetation. Quirin was his double.

The cult of Vesta, the guardian and protector of the hearth, was one of the most revered in Rome.

Borrowing from the cycle of religious beliefs of neighboring tribes begins quite early. One of the first to be worshiped was the Latin goddess Tsaana - the patroness of women, the goddess of the moon, as well as the annually born vegetation. The Temple of Diana on Aventine was built, according to legend, under Servius Tullius. Relatively late, another Latin goddess began to be worshiped - Venus - the patroness of gardens and vegetable gardens and at the same time the deity of the abundance and prosperity of nature.

A major event in the history of Roman religion was the construction of a temple on the Capitol dedicated to the trinity: Jupiter, Juno and Minerva. Tradition attributes the construction of the Etruscan temple to the Tarquinia, and its consecration dates back to the first year of the Republic. Since that time, the Romans have images of the gods.

At first, Juno was also the original Italic goddess, she was considered a genius-guardian of women, was adopted in Etruria under the name of Uni, and after returning to Rome, she became one of the revered goddesses. Minerva was also an Italic goddess borrowed by the Etruscans; in Rome, she became the patroness of crafts.

Along with the Capitoline Trinity, the worship of other deities passed from the Etruscans to the Romans. Some of them were originally patrons of individual Etruscan clans, then acquired national significance. So, for example, Saturn was originally revered in the Etruscan family of Satrians, then received general recognition. Among the Romans, he was revered as a deity of crops, his name was associated with the Latin word sator - sower. He was the first to give people food and originally ruled the world; his time was a golden age for people. At the festival of Saturnalia, everyone became equal: there were no masters, no servants, no slaves. The legend that was created subsequently was, invisibly, a comprehension of the holiday of Saturnalia.

The volcano was revered at first in the Etruscan genus Velcha-Volca. In Rome, he was the deity of fire, and then the patron saint of blacksmithing.

From the Etruscans, the Romans borrowed the ritual and that peculiar system of superstitions and fortune-telling, which was known as disciplina etrusca. But already in the early era, they influenced the Romans and Greek religious ideas. They were borrowed from the Greek cities of Campania. Greek ideas about certain deities were combined with Latin names. Ceres (Ceres - food, fruits) was associated with the Greek Demeter and became the goddess of the plant kingdom, and in addition, the goddess of the dead. Greek god winemaking, wine and fun Dionysus became known as Lieber, and the Greek Cora, daughter of Demeter, became Libera. Trinity: Ceres, Lieber, and Libera were Greek-worshiped and were plebeian deities, while the temples of the Capitoline Trinity and Vesta were patrician religious centers. From the Greeks, the veneration of Apollo, Hermes (in Rome - Mercury) and other deities passes to Rome.

The Roman pantheon did not remain closed. The Romans did not refuse to accept other gods into him. So, repeatedly during wars, they tried to find out what deities their opponents pray to in order to attract these gods to their side.

A number of holidays were associated with family and social life, with the commemoration of the dead, with an agricultural calendar. Then there are special military holidays and, finally, the holidays of artisans, merchants, seafarers.

Simultaneously with the construction of the Capitoline Temple, or shortly thereafter, games (ludi) began to cope with the Etruscan model in Rome, which initially consisted of rides in chariots, as well as competitions of athletes.

The most ancient stages of religious development are reflected in Roman religious rites and customs. A number of religious prohibitions date back to the oldest taboos. So, during the divine service to Sylvan (the deity of the forest), women could not be present; on the festivities of the Good Goddess (Bona dea), on the contrary, men were not allowed. Some priestly positions were associated with a wide variety of prohibitions: Jupiter's flamin could not look at an armed army, wear a ring and a belt; violation of certain prohibitions, such as the vow of celibacy by virgins-vestals, was punishable by death.

The basis of the ethical canon of the Roman, and the dominant feature that determines the heroism of a historical person is his willingness to act for the good of the state. The pathos of Roman culture is the pathos, first of all, of the Roman citizen.

An important component of the Roman myth was the idealization of poverty and the condemnation of wealth. In a state that waged continuous wars, accumulated unheard-of treasures and made the social advancement of a person directly dependent on his qualifications, i.e. from his ability to enrich himself, the condemnation of money-grubbing must have looked unnatural nonsense. It should have been, but apparently it didn't. The high qualification was not only an advantage, but also the obligation of a person who was exacted by fate to give more to the state - the deprivation of a state horse, for example, which required large expenses, nevertheless, was perceived not as a relief, but as a shame.

From the moment the wealth of Rome became an obvious factor in state life and until the very end of the Republic, laws were periodically passed that made it mandatory to restrict personal expenses... Their repetition shows that they were not performed, but something made them systematically accept. Moralists and historians praised the ancient heroes of Rome for their poverty; it was customary to say, in particular, that their land allotment was seven yugers. Against the background of estates with an area of ​​thousands of yugers, this looked nothing more than an edifying fable; but when the colonies were being withdrawn, as it turns out, the size of the plots provided was really focused on approximately the same seven yugers, i.e. this figure was not fictitious, but reflected a certain norm - psychological and at the same time real.

Apparently, the repeatedly attested demonstrative refusals of the commanders to use the spoils of war for personal enrichment are indisputable - indifference could, therefore, play the role of not only an ideal, but in certain cases also a regulator of practical behavior - one was inseparable from the other.

It is understandable that although Rome transformed from a small city-state into a gigantic empire, its people have kept the old ceremonies and customs almost unchanged. In light of this, it is not surprising that massive irritation caused by the shocking demonstration of wealth, concluded in the use of lektik (stretcher) by some Romans. It is rooted not so much in politics or ideology as in those innermost, but indisputably living layers. public conscience, where the age-old and on the surface the outlived historical experience of the people was molded into forms of everyday behavior, into unaccountable tastes and antipathies, in the tradition of everyday life.

At the end of the republic and in the 1st century. AD fantastic sums of money were circulating in Rome. The emperor Vitellius "ate" 900 million sesterces in a year, the temporary worker of Nero and Claudius Vibius Crispus was richer than the emperor Augustus. Money was the main thing life value... But the general idea of ​​morality and the proper was still rooted in natural communal forms of life, and money wealth it was desirable, but at the same time it was somehow unclean, shameful. Augustus' wife Livia herself spun wool in the atria of the imperial palace, the princesses passed laws against luxury, Vespasian saved a penny, Pliny praised ancient thrift, and eight Syrian Lecticarii, of which each had to cost no less than half a million sesterces, insulted those laid down in time immemorial, but understandable to everyone ideas about decent and acceptable.

It's not just about wealth. Freeborn Roman citizen spent most of their time in the crowd that filled the Forum, basilicas, baths gathered in an amphitheater or circus, fled to a religious ceremony, seated at tables during a collective meal. Such being in the crowd was not an external and forced inconvenience, on the contrary, it was felt as a value, as a source of acute collective positive emotion, for galvanized the sense of community solidarity and equality, almost disappeared from the real public relations, insulted daily and hourly, but nestled at the very root of Roman life, persistently did not disappear, and all the more powerfully demanded compensatory satisfaction.

Dry and spiteful Cato the Elder melted in soul during the collective meals of the religious college; August, in order to increase its popularity, revived meetings, ceremonies and joint meals of residents of urban areas; the rural cult of the "good border", which united for several days in January, in the interval between field work, neighbors, slaves and masters, survived and survived throughout the entire early empire; circus games and mass performances were regarded as part of the people's cause and were regulated officials... Attempts to stand out from the crowd and stand above it insulted this archaic and enduring feeling of Roman, polis, civil equality, and was associated with the mores of Eastern despotism. The hatred of Juvenal, Martial, their compatriots and contemporaries towards the upstarts, the rich, the proud, floating in open lectures above the heads of their fellow citizens, looking at them "from the height of their soft pillows", grew from here.

The situation is exactly the same with another side of the Roman myth. Wars have always been fought here and were of a predatory nature, treaties and the right of those who voluntarily surrendered to preserve their lives were often not respected - such facts have been attested repeatedly and are beyond doubt. But Scipio the Elder executed the tribunes who allowed the plunder of the surrendered city, and deprived the whole army of the booty; the Roman general, who achieved victory by poisoning the wells in the enemy's lands, was surrounded by general contempt for the rest of his life; no one began to buy slaves captured during the capture of the Italian city. The successful commander considered it obligatory for himself to build for hometown a water supply system, a temple, a theater or a library, cases of evasion from very burdensome duties in city government are noted only from the II century. AD, and even then mainly in the Greek-speaking east. The glorified Republic was robbed, but the result of a Roman's life left for centuries was cursus, i.e. a list of what he achieved in the service of the same Republic, etc.

The work of Titus Livius "The History of Rome from the Founding of the City" is a rich source of legends and reliable information about Roman history. This work can be considered an almost epic work, as it contains information about most of the historical figures known to this day. The book is replete with those pages that have forever entered the culture of Europe and which even today take for the soul: large, sharply outlined figures - the first consul Brutus, Camille, Scipio the Elder, Fabius Maximus; scenes full of deep drama - the suicide of Lucretia, the defeat and shame of the Romans in the Cavdin Gorge, the execution by the consul Manlius of his son who violated military discipline; for a long time memorable speeches - the tribune of Canulei to the people, the consular (as they called in Rome a man who had once been consul) Flamininus to the Hellenes, the commander Scipio to the legions.

As an example, Titus Livy's description of the enmity between the Romans and the Sabines, caused by the abduction of women, can be cited. One of the widespread epic stories describing the heroism of women who prevented the battle between the two tribes: “Here are the Sabine women, because of whom the war began, loosening their hair and tearing their clothes, forgetting women's fear in trouble, bravely rushed right under the spears and arrows across the fighters , in order to separate the two systems, to calm the anger of the warring ones, turning with a prayer first to the fathers, then to the husbands: let them not stain them - father-in-law and sons-in-law - themselves with unholy shed blood, do not defile the offspring of their daughters and wives with parricide. “If you are ashamed of the property between yourself, if the marriage union is repugnant to you, turn your anger on us: we are the cause of the war, the cause of the wounds and death of our husbands and fathers; we'd rather die than be left to live without one or the other, as widows or orphans. " Not only the warriors were moved, but also the leaders; everything suddenly fell silent and stood still. Then the leaders went out to conclude a treaty, and not only reconciled, but made one of the two states. They decided to reign together, and made Rome the center of all power. So the city doubled, and so that the Sabines would not be offended, in their city of Kuram, citizens receive the name of "quirits". In memory of this battle, the place where the Curtius horse, having got out of the swamp, stepped on a solid bottom, is nicknamed the Curtius Lake. The war, so woeful, ended suddenly with a joyful peace, and that is why the Sabine women became even more dear to their husbands and parents, and above all to Romulus himself, and when he began to divide the people into thirty curiae, he gave the curiae the names of Sabine women. ”

Thus, it is obvious that the Roman heroic epic was formed under the influence of the ideology of strengthening the state, the steady increase in the power of Rome.

At the end of the 5th century. Ancient Rome as a world empire ceased to exist, but its cultural heritage did not perish. Today it is an essential ingredient in Western culture. Roman cultural heritage took shape and was embodied in the thinking, languages ​​and institutions of the Western world.

The Romans were originally pagans, worshiping Greek and, to a lesser extent, Etruscan gods. Later, the mythological period was replaced by a fascination with pagan cults. Finally, at the end of evolution, the victory was won by Christianity, which in the IV century, after the division of the Roman Empire into Western and Eastern, took on the concrete outlines of Catholicism. The oldest religious ideas of the Romans were associated with agricultural cults of deification of nature, the cult of ancestors and others. magic rituals performed by the head of the family. Then the state, taking upon itself the organization and conduct of rituals, created an official religion, which changed the previous ideas about the gods. The ethics of citizenship became the focus of the Roman epic.

A certain influence of ancient Roman culture can be seen both in classical architecture public buildings and in a scientific nomenclature constructed from the roots Latin; many of its elements are difficult to isolate, so firmly they entered the flesh and blood of everyday culture, art and literature. We are no longer talking about the principles of classical Roman law, which lies at the basis of legal systems many Western states and catholic church, built on the basis of the Roman administrative system.

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