Marius the Epicurean — Volume 1

In a remote countryside of early imperial Rome, a young boy named Marius grows up amid the lingering traces of the ancient “religion of Numa.” Surrounded by rustic shrines, oak groves, and family rites that echo the simple, reverent practices of a bygone era, he learns to read the world through ritual and a deep sense of the sacred. The narrative opens with the celebration of a private Ambarvalia, a modest harvest rite that binds the household to the gods and to each other.

Marius’s education is not limited to the liturgy; he is also drawn to the contemplative currents of Epicurean thought, seeking pleasure tempered by wisdom. As the empire’s religious landscape shifts, his reverence for old customs clashes with emerging doctrines, creating a tension that shapes his outlook on duty, nature, and personal happiness. The first volume follows his formative years, offering a vivid portrait of a mind caught between tradition and the promise of a new philosophical horizon.