There are many holidays we celebrate across the world, and especially here in America that very few people truly understand. Today, January 1st is one of those holidays many people think is just about partying and bringing in the New Year with some new resolutions that they never keep. But in reality, this day has a deeper meaning you are probably unaware of...

The name of the month January, is derived from the two-faced god with the Latin name of Janus. The reason he has two faces, is because one face looks back into the past, and the other face forward to the future. This is essentially what happens on New Years Eve when you countdown to midnight which is the ending of one year, and the beginning of a brand new year filled with new hopes and dreams. A time to put an end to the past year which is now old, and begin fresh with a new year.

To the ancient pagans and Greeks, he was their custodian of the key to the Temple of Wisdom. Plutarch had written; "For this Janus, in the most remote antiquity, whether a demi-god or a king, being remarkable for his political abilities, and his cultivation of society, reclaimed men from their rude and savage manners; he is therefore represented with two faces, as having altered the former state of the world, and given quite a new turn to life."

The Greek historian and geographer, Strabo, had said that the original worship of Janus had come from the priesthood of the Curetes of Crete who were accustomed to celebrate annually the rites of Juno and Latona, on Solmissus. (1)

The Roman advocate, rhetorician, and Christian apologist, Minucius Felix had said Saturn fled from Crete to Italy and was received hospitably by Janus. Out of gratitude, since he was a Greek of culture, he taught the rude and uncivilized Italians many things, among them, to write, to coin money, and to make tools.(2) The ancient Romans had adopted  him as their god of time, doorways, new beginnings, coinage, war and peace. The double face of Janus was often placed on Roman coins. During the time of war, the Gates of Janus would be left open, and when a war was about to commence, lavish wartime ceremonies were performed throughout the Roman Empire. It was during the time of Pax Romona (Peace of Rome), when Augustus Caesar had officially "closed the gates of Janus," instituting a time of peace which ended 200 years of constant war.
The Pax Romana started after Octavian (Augustus) beat Marc Anthony in the Battle of Actium. He became princeps, or "first citizen". Lacking a good precedent of successful one-man rule, Augustus created a junta of the greatest military magnates and stood as the front man. By binding together these leading magnates in a coalition, he eliminated the prospect of civil war.