Attempt to gain insight into a question or situation
For other uses, seeDivination (disambiguation)."Divining" redirects here. For pseudoscientific attempts to find water or other things, seeDowsing.
A man inRhumsiki,Cameroon, attempts to tell the future by interpreting the changes in position of various objects as caused by a freshwater crab through the practice ofnggàm.[1]
Divination (from Latindivinare'to foresee, foretell, predict, prophesy')[2] is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of anoccultic ritual or practice.[3] Using various methods throughout history, diviners ascertain their interpretations of how aquerent should proceed by reading signs, events, oromens, or through alleged contact or interaction withsupernatural agencies[4] such asspirits, gods, god-like-beings or the "will of theuniverse".[5]
In its functional relation tomagic in general, divination can have a preliminary and investigative role:
the diagnosis or prognosis achieved through divination is both temporarily and logically related to the manipulative, protective or alleviative function of magic rituals. In divination one finds the cause of an ailment or a potential danger, in magic one subsequently acts upon this knowledge.[8]
Theeternal fire at Nymphaion in southernIllyria (present-dayAlbania) also functioned as an oracle. The forms of divination practiced in this natural fire sanctuary with peculiar physical properties were widely known to the ancient Greek and Roman authors.[12][13] The Oracle ofAmun at theSiwa Oasis was made famous whenAlexander the Great visited it after conquering Egypt from Persia in 332 BC.[14]
Deuteronomy 18:10–12 orLeviticus 19:26 can be interpreted as categorically forbidding divination. But some biblical practices, such asUrim and Thummim,casting lots andprayer, are considered to be divination. Trevan G. Hatch disputes these comparisons because divination did not consult the "one true God" and manipulated the divine for the diviner's self-interest.[15] One of the earliest known divination artifacts, a book called the Sortes Sanctorum, is believed to be of Christian roots, and utilizes dice to provide insight into the future.[16]
Uri Gabbay states that divination was associated with sacrificial rituals in the ancient Near East, including Mesopotamia and Israel. Extispicy was a common example, where diviners would pray to their god(s) beforevivisecting a sacrificial animal. Their abominal organs would reveal a divine message, which aligned withcardiocentric views of the mind.[17]
Both oracles and seers in ancient Greece practiced divination.Oracles were the conduits for the gods on earth; their prophecies were understood to be the will of the gods verbatim. Because of the high demand for oracle consultations and the oracles’ limited work schedule, they were not the main source of divination for the ancient Greeks. That role fell to the seers (Greek:μάντεις).[18]
Seers were not in direct contact with the gods; instead, they were interpreters of signs provided by the gods. Seers used many methods to explicate the will of the gods includingextispicy,ornithomancy, etc. They were more numerous than the oracles and did not keep a limited schedule; thus, they were highly valued by all Greeks, not just those with the capacity to travel toDelphi or other such distant sites.[19]
The disadvantage of seers was that only direct yes-or-no questions could be answered. Oracles could answer more generalized questions, and seers often had to perform several sacrifices in order to get the most consistent answer. For example, if a general wanted to know if the omens were proper for him to advance on the enemy, he would ask his seer both that question and if it were better for him to remain on the defensive. If the seer gave consistent answers, the advice was considered valid.[citation needed]
During battle, generals would frequently ask seers at both thecampground (a process called thehiera) and at thebattlefield (called thesphagia). The hiera entailed the seer slaughtering a sheep and examining its liver for answers regarding a more generic question; the sphagia involved killing a young female goat by slitting its throat and noting the animal's last movements and blood flow. The battlefield sacrifice only occurred when two armies prepared for battle against each other. Neither force would advance until the seer revealed appropriateomens.[citation needed]
Because the seers had such power over influential individuals in ancient Greece, many were skeptical of the accuracy and honesty of the seers. The degree to which seers were honest depends entirely on the individual seers. Despite the doubt surrounding individual seers, the craft as a whole was well regarded and trusted by the Greeks,[20] and theStoics accounted for the validity of divination in theirphysics.
The divination method of casting lots (Cleromancy) was used by the remaining eleven disciples of Jesus inActs 1:23–26 to select a replacement forJudas Iscariot. Therefore, divination was arguably an accepted practice in the early church. However, divination became viewed as a pagan practice by Christianemperors duringancient Rome.[21]
In 692 theQuinisext Council, also known as the "Council in Trullo" in theEastern Orthodox Church, passed canons to eliminate pagan and divination practices.[22]Fortune-telling and other forms of divination were widespread through theMiddle Ages.[23] In the constitution of 1572 and public regulations of 1661 of theElectorate of Saxony, capital punishment was used on those predicting the future.[24] Laws forbidding divination practice continue to this day.[25] TheWaldensians sect were accused of practicing divination.[26]
Småland is famous forÅrsgång, a practice which occurred until the early 19th century in some parts of Småland. Generally occurring on Christmas and New Year's Eve, it is a practice in which one would fast and keep themselves away from light in a room until midnight to then complete a set of complex events to interpret symbols encountered throughout the journey to foresee the coming year.[27]
InIslam,astrology (‘ilm ahkam al-nujum), the most widespread divinatory science, is the study of how celestial entities could be applied to the daily lives of people on earth.[28][29] It is important to emphasize the practical nature of divinatory sciences because people from all socioeconomic levels and pedigrees sought the advice of astrologers to make important decisions in their lives.[30]Astronomy was made a distinct science by intellectuals who did not agree with the former, although distinction may not have been made in daily practice, where astrology was technically outlawed and only tolerated if it was employed in public. Astrologers, trained as scientists and astronomers, were able to interpret the celestial forces that ruled the "sub-lunar" to predict a variety of information fromlunar phases and drought to times of prayer and the foundation of cities. The courtly sanction and elite patronage ofMuslim rulers benefited astrologers’ intellectual statures.[31]
Joseph Enthroned. Folio from the "Book of Omens" (Falnama),Safavid dynasty. 1550.Freer Gallery of Art. This painting would have been positioned alongside a prognostic description of the meaning of this image on the page opposite (conventionally to the left). The reader would flip randomly to a place in the book and digest the text having first viewed the image.
The “science of the sand” (‘ilm al-raml), otherwise translated asgeomancy, is “based on the interpretation of figures traced on sand or other surface known asgeomantic figures.”[32] It is a good example of Islamic divination at a popular level. The core principle that meaning derives from a unique occupied position is identical to the core principle of astrology.
Like astronomy, geomancy used deduction and computation to uncover significantprophecies as opposed toomens (‘ilm al-fa’l), which were process of “reading” visible random events to decipher the invisible realities from which they originated. It was upheld byprophetic tradition and relied almost exclusively on text, specifically theQur’an (which carried a table for guidance) and poetry, as a development ofbibliomancy.[32] One example for this is this Qur'an from Gwalior, India, which includes a set of instructions to use the Qur’an as a divinatory text. It is the earliest known example of its kind.[33] The practice culminated in the appearance of the illustrated “Books of Omens” (Falnama) in the early 16th century, an embodiment of the apocalyptic fears as the end of the millennium in theIslamic calendar approached.[34]
Dream interpretation, oroneiromancy(‘ilm ta’bir al-ru’ya), is more specific to Islam than other divinatory science, largely because of the Qur’an’s emphasis on the predictive dreams ofAbraham,Yusuf, andMuhammad. The important delineation within the practice lies between “incoherent dreams” and “sound dreams,” which were “a part of prophecy” or heavenly message.[35]Dream interpretation was always tied to Islamic religious texts, providing a moral compass to those seeking advice. The practitioner needed to be skilled enough to apply the individual dream to general precedent while appraising the singular circumstances.[36]
The power of text held significant weight in the "science of letters"(‘ilm al-huruf), the foundational principle being "God created the world through His speech."[37] The science began with the concept of language, specificallyArabic, as the expression of "the essence of what it signifies."[37] Once the believer understood this, while remaining obedient to God’s will, they could uncover the essence and divine truth of the objects inscribed with Arabic likeamulets andtalismans through the study of the letters of the Qur’an with alphanumeric computations.[37]
In Islamic practice inSenegal andGambia, just like many otherWest African countries, diviners and religious leaders andhealers were interchangeable because Islam was closely related with esoteric practices (like divination), which were responsible for the regional spread of Islam. As scholars learned esoteric sciences, they joined local non-Islamic aristocratic courts, who quickly aligned divination and amulets with the "proof of the power of Islamic religion."[38] So strong was the idea of esoteric knowledge in West African Islam, diviners andmagicians uneducated in Islamic texts and Arabic bore the same titles as those who did.[39]
From the beginning of Islam, there "was (and is) still a vigorous debate about whether or not such [divinatory] practices were actually permissible under Islam,” with some scholars likeAbu-Hamid al Ghazili (d. 1111) objecting to the science of divination because he believed it bore too much similarity topagan practices of invoking spiritual entities that were not God.[40][28] Other scholars justified esoteric sciences by comparing a practitioner to "a physician trying to heal the sick with the help of the same natural principles."[41]
Divination was a central component of ancientMesoamerican religious life. ManyAztec gods, including centralcreator gods, were described as diviners and were closely associated withsorcery.Tezcatlipoca is the patron of sorcerers and practitioners ofmagic. His name means "smoking mirror," a reference to a device used for divinatoryscrying.[42] In theMayanPopol Vuh, the creator godsXmucane and Xpiacoc perform divinatory hand casting during the creation of people.[42] The AztecCodex Borbonicus shows the original human couple,Oxomoco andCipactonal, engaged in divining with kernels of maize. This primordial pair is associated with the ritual calendar, and the Aztecs considered them to be the first diviners.[43]
Every civilization that developed inpre-Columbian Mexico, from theOlmecs to theAztecs, practiced divination in daily life, both public and private. Scrying through the use of reflective water surfaces,mirrors, or thecasting of lots were among the most widespread forms of divinatory practice.Visions derived fromhallucinogens were another important form of divination, and are still widely used among contemporary diviners of Mexico. Among the more commonhallucinogenic plants used in divination aremorning glory,jimson weed, andpeyote.[42]
Theyyam or "theiyam" inMalayalam is the process by which a devotee invites aHindu god or goddess to use his or her body as a medium or channel and answer other devotees' questions.[44] The same is called "arulvaakku" or "arulvaak" inTamil, another south Indian language -Adhiparasakthi Siddhar Peetam is famous for arulvakku inTamil Nadu.[45] The people in and aroundMangalore inKarnataka call the same,Buta Kola, "paathri" or "darshin"; in other parts of Karnataka, it is known by various names such as, "prashnaavali", "vaagdaana", "asei", "aashirvachana", and so on.[46][47][48][49][50] InNepal it is known as, "Devta ka dhaamee" or "jhaakri".[51]
In English, the closest translation for these is, "oracle." TheDalai Lama, who lives in exile in northern India, still consults an oracle known as theNechung Oracle, which is considered the official state oracle of the government ofTibet. The Dalai Lama has according to centuries-old custom, consulted the Nechung Oracle during the new year festivities ofLosar.[52]
Personality typing as a form of divination has been prevalent in Japan since the 1980s. Various methods exist for divining personality type. Each attempt to reveal glimpses of an individual's destiny, productive and inhibiting traits, future parenting techniques, and compatibility in marriage. Personality type is increasingly important for young Japanese, who consider personality the driving factor of compatibility, given the ongoing marriage drought andbirth rate decline in Japan.[54]
An import to Japan,Chinese zodiac signs based on the birth year in 12 year cycles (rat, ox, tiger, hare, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, cock, dog, and boar) are frequently combined with other forms of divination, such as so-called 'celestial types' based on the planets (Saturn, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Mercury, or Uranus). Personality can also be divined using cardinal directions, thefour elements (water, earth, fire, air), andyin-yang. Names can also lend important personality information under name classification which asserts that names bearing certain Japanese vowel sounds (a, i, u, e, o) share common characteristics.Numerology, which utilizes methods of divining 'birth numbers' from significant numbers such as birth date, may also reveal character traits of individuals.[54]
Individuals can also assess their own and others' personalities according to physical characteristics.Blood type remains a popular form of divination from physiology. Stemming from Western influences, body reading orninsou, determines personality traits based on body measurements. The face is the most commonly analyzed feature, with eye size, pupil shape, mouth shape, and eyebrow shape representing the most important traits. An upturned mouth may be cheerful, and a triangle eyebrow may indicate that someone is strong-willed.[54]
Methods of assessment in daily life may include self-taken measurements or quizzes. As such, magazines targeted at women in their early-to-mid twenties feature the highest concentration of personality assessment guides. There are approximately 144 different women's magazines, known asnihon zashi koukoku kyoukai, published in Japan aimed at this audience.[54]
The adaptation of the Western divination method of tarot cards into Japanese culture presents a particularly unique example of contemporary divination as this adaptation mingles with Japan's robust visual culture. Japanese tarot cards are created by professional artists, advertisers, and fans of tarot. One tarot card collector claimed to have accumulated more than 1,500 Japan-made decks of tarot cards.
Japanese tarot cards fall into diverse categories such as:
Inspiration Tarot (reikan tarotto);
I-Ching Tarot (ekisen tarotto);
Spiritual Tarot (supirichuaru tarotto);
Western Tarot (seiyō tarotto); and
Eastern Tarot (tōyō tarotto).
The images on tarot cards may come from images from Japanese popular culture, such as characters frommanga andanime includingHello Kitty, or may feature cultural symbols. Tarot cards may adapt the images of Japanese historical figures, such as high priestessHimiko (170–248CE) or imperial court wizardAbe no Seimei (921–1005CE). Still others may feature images of cultural displacement, such as English knights,pentagrams, the JewishTorah, or inventedglyphs. The introduction of such cards began by the 1930s and reached prominence 1970s. Japanese tarot cards were originally created by men, often based on theRider-Waite-Smith tarot published by the Rider Company in London in 1909.[55] Since, the practice of Japanese tarot has become overwhelmingly feminine and intertwined withkawaii culture. Referring to the cuteness of tarot cards, Japanese model Kuromiya Niina was quoted as saying "because the images are cute, even holding them is enjoyable."[56] While these differences exist, Japanese tarot cards function similarly to their Western counterparts. Cards are shuffled and cut into piles then used to forecast the future, for spiritual reflection, or as a tool for self-understanding.[55]
A common act of divination in Taiwan is called thePoe. “The Poe” translated to English means “moon boards”. It consists of two wood or bamboo blocks cut into the shape of a crescent moon. The one edge is rounded while the other is flat; the two are mirror images. Both crescents are held out in one's palms and while kneeling, they are raised to the forehead level. Once in this position, the blocks are dropped and the future can be understood depending on their landing. If both fall flat side up or both fall rounded side up, that can be taken as a failure of the deity to agree. If the blocks land one rounded and one flat, the deity indicates "Yes", or positive. “Laughing poe” is when rounded sides land down and they rock before coming to a standstill. “Negative poe” is when the flat sides fall downward and abruptly stop; this indicates "No". When there is a positive fall, it is called “Sacred poe”, although the negative falls are not usually taken seriously. As the blocks are being dropped the question is said in a murmur, and if the answer is yes, the blocks are dropped again. To make sure the answer is definitely a yes, the blocks must fall in a “yes” position three times in a row.[citation needed]
A more serious type of divination is the Kiō-á. There is a small wooden chair, and around the sides of the chair are small pieces of wood that can move up and down in their sockets, this causes a clicking sounds when the chair is moved in any way. Two men hold this chair by its legs before an altar, while the incense is being burned, and thedeity is invited to descend onto the chair. It is seen that it is in the chair by an onset of motion. Eventually, the chair crashes onto a table prepared with wood chips and burlap. The characters on the table are then traced and these are said to be written by the deity who possessed the chair, these characters are then interpreted for the devotees.[57]
Divination is widespread throughout Africa. Among many examples it is one of the central tenets ofSerer religion in Senegal. Only those who have been initiated asSaltigues (theSerer high priests and priestesses) can divine the future.[58][59] These are the "hereditary rain priests"[60] whose role is both religious and medicinal.[59][60]
In his work entitledOn the divination of demons,[61] saintAugustine of Hippo affirms that, most of the times,demons simply predict what they do in the future. However, they also possess a divinatory power essentially deriving from the greater acuity of the senses of their aerial bodies and the experience accumulated during their long lives. This allows them to interpret divine signs of the times in the natural world that humans are unable to grasp and to foretell future events, even those that are not immediate. Furthermore, they can cause illnesses and fantastic visions in people in both a sleeping and waking state.[62]The accuracy of the predictions clashes with their evil and deceptive nature, and with God's higher plans that are only known and holy angels can divert and override the signs caught by demons in the natural world.[61]
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Miller, Laura (2014)."The divination arts in girl culture". In Kawano, Satsuki; Roberts, Glenda S.; Long, Susan Orpett (eds.).Capturing Contemporary Japan: Differentiation and Uncertainty. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press. pp. 334–358 – via Academia.edu.
Sahagún, Bernardino de.General History of the Things of New Spain, Book 4, The Soothsayers and Book 5, The Omens. Number 14, parts 5 and 6. Translated by Charles E. Dibble and Arthur J. O. Anderson. Santa Fe, N. M., 1979. This single volume of the Florentine Codex contains books 4 and 5, listing attributes of Aztec days signs and omens.
Tedlock, Barbara.Time and the Highland Maya. Albuquerque, N.M., 1982. Detailed study of divination techniques using the ritual calendar among Quiché Maya in the Guatemalan Highlands.
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