The ancient Egyptians believed dreams were sent down from the gods on high. The Greeks shared a similar contention, regarding dreams as visitations from the gods, offering information divine. Aristotle, however, was a notable exception in this regard. Three of the seven topics in his Parva Naturalia (Short Treatises on Nature) addressed the state of slumber: De Somno et Vigilia (On Sleep), De Insomniis (On Dreams), and De Divinatione per Somnum (On Divination in Sleep). Levelheaded as always, Aristotle dismissed the idea of dreams as being heavenly directed, and instead he cleaved strongly to
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