Gesture
and orientation in prayer
by M. Horatius Piscinus
One
of the notable features of the religio
romana is the tension between innovation and conservatism.
Throughout Roman history, perhaps even as a consequence of the Founding
of the city, there were introduced new deities, new cults, and new modes of
worship. The Romans adopted
certain features of the Etruscan tradition.
They were themselves a union of Latins and Sabines, and over time
adopted more from their neighboring Italic tribes, such as the Sabellians of
Cumae. More often noted is the
introduction of Greek cults with a prescription to perform their rites
according to the ritus Graecae. Later in the imperial period foreign cults were introduced to
Rome that were tolerated as practiced beside the religio romana but not adopted into the rites of the religio
romana. For all of the
innovations that were introduced, however, there was always an expressed
conservatism in the religio romana.
Pliny made this clear when discussing whether words have power (Natural
History XXVIII.10-11):
“In fact a sacrifice without a
prayer is thought to have no effect, or not to constitute a proper
consultation of the gods. Besides,
one kind of formula is used in seeking omens, another in averting evil,
another for praise. We see too
that senior magistrates make their prayers using a precise form of words:
someone dictates the formula from a written text to ensure that no word is
omitted or spoken in the wrong order; someone else is assigned as an overseer
to check <what is spoken>; yet another man is given the task of ensuring
silence; and a piper plays to prevent anything else but the prayer being
audible.”
Together
with the formulary words of prayer we should note mention in some instances of
the use of certain gestures and of the orientation of a practitioner while
conducting a prayer. The use of
proper gesture and orientation, when mentioned, are regarded as part of the
proper formula. A case in point
is made with the description of a devotio
given by Livy (A.U. C. 8.9.4-8)
where a pontifex instructs Consul
Decius:
“The
Pontifex ordered him to take the toga
praetexta and with the head covered, a hand protruding from beneath the
toga touching the chin, standing with his feet over a spear said the
following: "Janus, Jupiter, Father Mars, Quirinus, Bellona, Lares, divine
Novensiles and Indigetes, you gods to whom belongs the power over us and over
our foes, and you, too, Divine Manes, I pray to you, I venerate you, I pray
that by your grace and favor that you will bless the Roman People, the
Quirites, with power and victory, and visit the enemies of the Roman People,
the Quirites, with fear and dread and death. In like manner as I have uttered
this prayer so do I now on behalf of the Roman Republic of the Quirites, on
behalf of the army, the legions, the auxiliaries of the Roman People, the
Quirites, I devote the legions and auxiliaries of the enemy, together with
myself to the Divine Manes and to Tellus."
Here
the stance of the worshipper over a spear, with his head covered, and the
gesture of touching a hand to his chin are just as important in performing the
devotio as are the words to be used.
In another description of a devotio,
Macrobius (Saturnalia, 3.9.10-12)
states that during the reciting of the prayer the worshiper should touch the
ground with both hands while praying to Tellus, direct his (right) hand
skyward when addressing Jupiter, and touch both hands to his chest while
reciting the vow: cum Tellum dicit
manibus terram tangit; cum Jovem dicit manus ad caelum tollit; cum votum
recipere dicit manibis pectus tangit.
Although
this description is given specifically for a devotio we can consider this to have been the general practice
during prayer. The absence of any
mention of a specific gesture cannot be taken to mean that no gestures were
used in prayer. For example texts refer to an adoratio being made without specifically stating that a particular
gesture is associated with an adoratio.
However Pliny (Historia Naturalis XXVIII.25) mentions how the right hand is to be
kissed as a gesture when making an adoratio.
Therefore when Cato instructs in his De
Agricultura that certain prayers be offered, it should be understood, as
he understood, that the act of addressing a prayer to a god is made with
certain commonly practiced gestures. What was commonly performed and
associated with ritual acts was not always mentioned as they would have been
understood as implied and it would be only the fault of our ignorance to think
otherwise. The general gesture of
prayer in the religio romana is with
the right hand held up, palm forward, with the fingers bent slightly backward:
supinae manus.
Depictions of this gesture in prayer are somewhat rare, but do appear
in some instances, such as in a relief from Trajan’s Forum, now housed in
Paris. Another example may be
that of the figure of Roma on the relief taken from the base of a column
honoring Emperor Antoninus Pius. When specifically addressing Jupiter and the
heavens the entire hand, or even the forearm, should be held slightly back so
that the palm is directed towards the sky.
When addressing other deities through the use of an image the palm is
held up and forward, the fingers slightly bent back, directed towards the
image. When images are not used,
the palm should be directed towards the god or goddess being addressed.
For example a prayer addressed to Tiber should face the palm towards
the Tiber River; a prayer addressed to Neptune should be directed towards the
nearest ocean or spring. Similarly,
when a prayer is addressed to Tellus and the di inferi, or to the Manes, the
palm should be directed towards the earth: pronus
manus. As Varro states, “puerum imponere equo pronum in ventrem, postea sedentem,” and
Sallustius has “pecora quae natura
prona finxit.” The earth is
touched as described for a devotio
above when a vow is made to Tellus or the Manes, but not necessarily when a
prayer is addressed to them.
A
consideration when addressing prayer to the gods and goddesses is directional
orientation. As stated above,
orientation is generally made towards an image or location associated with the
particular deity being addressed. However
a more general consideration can be taken into account. The earliest fana
were oriented with their entrances on the West so that the altar could be
approached while facing East. Vetruvius makes mention of an easterly
orientation as well, although Roman temples seem to have been laid without
consideration of any particular orientation in mind.
An easterly orientation is given when addressing Janus or Matuta as
They were associated with the dawning sun.
The Actum Fratrum Arvalium
specifies the magister addressing
prayers to Dea Dia while facing East [CIL
VI, 32340.0-20], Varro indicates an association of Ceres with the East [Lingua
Latine VII.9], and there are other references to an easterly orientation
as well. So we may consider an easterly orientation as appropriate in most
situations. However with regard
to taking auguries a southerly orientation is specified, where the abode of
the gods was regarded to have been in the north.
Ovid makes mention of certain rites addressed towards Sirius, and its
direction would alter between its rising in the East or descending in the West
depending on the time of the year. Likewise
other heavenly bodies were associated with certain deities and prayers
addressed to Them may have been oriented on such celestial appearances.
Where as the East is generally noted for most deities when an
orientation is given, the West is considered to be the direction of the dead.
Some deities are associated with the dead or with the Underworld and it
may be more appropriate to orient towards the West when addressing Them.
Examples
of other gestures used in conjunction with rituals may be drawn from Roman
art. There are images of
supplicants approaching an altar with the right hand held forward from the
waist with the palm up. At the
altar when incense is offered the right hand is often seen held over the flame
with the palm facing down, pronus manus,
as though a vow is made to the Di inferi.
In most scenes of animal sacrifices the celebrants stand near an altar
while the sacrifice is made somewhat to the side.
As the sacrifice is made the celebrants hold out their right hand to
one side, with open palm, generally directed towards the altar as a sign of
offering. In one scene from
the triumphal arch of Marcus Aurelius the emperor is depicted making a
libation with his right hand held upright over the flame in a loose fist, his
index and middle finger extended. The
same gesture is seen in the same context on the calendar of Filocalus and
elsewhere. Other scenes of
libations show the patera held in
the same manner. This hand
gesture is commonly depicted and more frequently so in later periods, although
not necessarily as a gesture of prayer. The
famed statue of Augustus from the Prima Porta has the emperor holding his
right hand aloft in a similar gesture with his two fingers extended.
Christian bishops later adopted this same pose and gesture of Augustus
when giving a blessing. However
we should not confuse any Christian gestures as adaptations from the religio
romana. Like the
Christian gesture of a priest offering prayer with both hands held out at the
sides, the palms facing forward, such gestures were usually adopted from the
manner in which orators addressed public audiences rather than from the pious
acts of pontifices. That is the case with Augustus, too, in that his pose
represents him as an orator addressing his people and not as a priest in
prayer. Elsewhere the gesture of
two extended fingers can be found in the context of gladiatorial games where a
contestant makes an appeal. That
is what the gesture of extended fingers means, an appeal to an audience to
listen, whether made by a gladiator, an orator attempting to carry across a
point of his argument, or a worshipper in addressing the gods. It is even found on the Corbridge lanx where Minerva uses the gesture in addressing Diana.
From various depictions of sacrifices it is clear that different
gestures were used when approaching an altar and when sacrificing, depending
on the type of offering being made.
Other
examples of gestures would include the protective signs such as the fica
mentioned by Ovid at Fasti V. 433
where the thumb is pushed through the index and middle finger of a fist.
The fica is meant to
represent the protective goddess Mania Genita or Manuana and is thus used
during the Lemuria when addressing
the Manes. Undoubtedly there were an
assortment of postures and gestures used in conjunction with ancient Roman
rites. Many are depicted, some are mentioned, but seemingly our textual
sources mention only those that were less commonly known. Still, the use of gestures should never be neglected when
addressing the gods in prayer as these were regarded in the mos maiores to be an
integral part of any ritual in the religio
romana. That is made clear in
those instances where gestures are specifically mentioned, and an absence of
reference to specific gestures in other places cannot be taken as evidence
that no gestures were used. The adoratio
refers to a specific rite of offering made with an implied gesture.
A salutatio refers to a
respectful greeting made with an implied gesture. And thus when addressing the gods in prayer it should be
taken that a gesture is implied as well.
M
Horatius Piscinus, Rector Collegii Religionis