MANES

A word of uncertain etymology, applied generally by the Romans to souls separated from the dead. 1 here is some obscurity, however, about the precise meaning of this term. According to Apuleius, the Manes were originally called Lemures, and consisted of two cla es, — the Lares and the LarvcB; the former of whom were the souls of those who had led virtuous lives, and the latter of those who had lived improperly; and, at a later period, the term Manes came to be a general designation for both. On the other hand, St. August in maintains that Manes was, from the first, a term applied to the spirits of deceased men when no definite opinion could be formed of their merits: — " Animas hommum daemones e e, et ex hominibus fier i Lares, si merit i bon i sint; Lemures sive Larvas, simali; manes autem cum incertum est bonorum eos, sive malorum e e meritorum." In the month of February, annually, the Manes were propitiated at their sepulchres during twelve days. It was the duty of the pontifex maximus to see that proper ceremonies were observed. The stones in the Roman burial-places, and their funereal urns, were generally inscribed with the letters D. M. S. (Dis Manibus Sacrum). [s. 722]