AN ACTUAL HISTORICAL EXAMPLE
I want to end this lesson with a true tale about alectryomancy’s role in an actual series of events.
Valens Caesar was Emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire some time in the late 300s, C.E. When Valens decided to ban all oracles, soothsayers, astrologers and philosophers (because philosophers of the day tended to hang around with and associate with practioners of the mantic arts), a bunch of diviners got together in a secret conclave to figure out what they were going to do. Being followers of the philosopher Iamblichus, who’d re-popularized alectryomancy in the 330s C.E., they decided to attempt alectryomancy in an attempt to learn who Valens’ successor as Emperor of the East would be. The seers figured if they could learn who the next emperor would be, they could start currying favor with this individual.
It took a number of tries, but eventually the chicken spelled-out the letters T-H-E-O-D. The diviners tried hard to keep this conclave a secret, but Valens learned of it anyway, and the diviners were persecuted. There was a man named Theodorus at court who was well-regarded, so Valens had him killed. But there were a lot of guys at this time whose name started with T-H-E-O-D, so Valens went on a Herod-like killing spree of every man he could find whose name started with those five letters.
Still, Valens felt insecure. Had he gotten the man? Then Valens learned his nephew Gratian had just become Emperor of the Western Roman Empire with the aid of a very capable general named Theodosius. Seized with the notion that this Theodosius was the culprit, Valens got him executed on a false charge of treason, right after he’d won a battle at Carthage on Gratian’s behalf. Certain that he’d finally licked the problem of his successor, Valens confidently charged off into battle against the Visigoths, instead of waiting for Gratian to arrive with reinforcements. Valens was killed in battle and his army was overwhelmed. Only Gratian’s arrival saved the day.