MANILIUS. — In manuscripts also Mallius, Manlius, with the praenomen M. and C., a Latin poet who lived at the end of the reign of Augustus. Of him nothing is known, except for the composition of a five-book poem in hexameters, dedicated to Augustus, entitled *Astronomicon*, but in fact dealing with astrological content (see ASTROLOGY).
Of the five books, the first, more properly astronomical, treats of the origins of the world, of the geocentric cosmic system, of the celestial spheres, etc.; the second describes the signs of the Zodiac: their form, natures, associated deities, mutual relations with other constellations; the third teaches the method of taking an horoscope, that is, observing which stars are on the horizon at the moment of birth, which is done by facing east and determining the position of the sun and the planets, especially the star that rises at the precise moment of birth: there are twelve fundamental influences to which the individual is subject in correspondence with
his arts of mastering the course of fate: this explains the spread, in the imperial age, of mystical cults and theurgic practices.