Numen

**Numen**, pl. **numina**,  is a Latin term.  It is used  for "divinity", a "divine presence" or a "divine will." The Latin authors defined it as follows. Cicero writes of a "divine mind" (_divina mens_), a god "whose numen everything obeys," and a "divine power" (_vis divina_) "which pervades the lives of men." It causes the motions and cries of birds during augury. In his Aeneid, Virgil tells about the  how the one-eyed giant, Polyphemus, is blinded:  First, Odysseus and his men "ask for the assistance of the great numina" (_magna precati numina_). Reviewing public opinion of Augustus on the day of his funeral, the historian Tacitus reports that some thought "no honor was left to the gods" when he "established the cult of himself" (_se ... coli vellet_) "with temples and the effigies of numina" (_effigie numinum_). Pliny the younger in a letter to Paternus raves about the "power," the "dignity," and "the majesty;" in short, the "_numen_ of history." Lucretius uses the expression _numen mentis_, or "bidding of the mind," where "bidding" is _numen_, not, however, the divine numen, unless the mind is to be considered divine, but as simply human will.

Since the early 20th century, numen has sometimes been treated in the history of religion as a pre-animistic phase. This is a belief system that comes from an earlier time. Sociologists also use the term _Numen_ to refer to the idea of magical power coming from an object, particularly when writing about ideas in the western tradition. When used in this sense, _numen_ means almost the same thing as _mana_. However, some authors only use the word _mana_ for ideas about magic from Polynesia and Southeast Asia.

## Etymology

> The literal meaning is simply "a nod", or more accurately,"that which is produced by nodding". In the same way, _flamen_ is "that which is produced by blowing", _i.e._, a gust of wind. It came to mean "the product or expression of power" — not, be it noted, power itself._Numen_ (divinity) is not personified (although it can be a personal attribute) and should be distinguished from _deus_ (god).

## Roman cults of the numina

Numen was also used in the imperial cult of ancient Rome, to refer to the guardian-spirit, 'godhead' or divine power of a living emperor. It was  a way of worshiping a living emperor without literally calling him a god.

The cult of Augustus was promoted by Tiberius, who dedicated the _Ara Numinis Augusti_.
In this context, a distinction can be made between the terms _numen_ and _genius_.

## Definition as a pre-animistic phase of religion

The expression _Numen inest_ appears in Ovid's _Fasti_ (III, 296) and has been translated as 'There is a spirit here'. Its interpretation, and the exact sense of _numen_ has been discussed extensively in the literature.

Some people thought that numen could have been a leftover of ealier animist religions which was incorporated into the Roman religion. Sometimes the etymology of Latin names for deities, has often been popularly implied,  but it  was criticised as "mostly a scholarly fiction" by McGeough (2004).

## Numina and specific religions

The phrase "numen eris caeloque redux mirabere regna" appears on line 129 of the poem _Metrum in Genesin_, attributed to Hilary of Arles.

## In popular culture

In modern times, the term (referring to the Christian God) has been used in various expressions:

- _Innocue vivito, numen adest_ (Live blameless; God is here.) was the motto of Carl Linnaeus, taken from Ovid's Ars Amatoria (I, 640).
- _Nil sine numine_ is the state motto of Colorado. Its origin could be the phrase "...non haec sine numine divum eveniunt" (...these things do not come to pass without the will of Heaven) from Virgil's _Aeneid_ (II, 777).
- _Benigno numine_ (with divine favor) is the motto of the city of Pittsburgh.
- _Numen lumen_ (God is the light) is the motto of the University of Wisconsin–Madison and Elon University.
- The term _numen_ appears three times (142.23, 162.13, 282.21) in James Joyce's _Finnegans Wake_.

## Related pages

- Animism
- Lares
- Penates
- Sacred (comparative religion)

## Other websites

- Roman religion