Divination
 

Divination noun : ( from Middle English divinacioun, from Latin divination-, divinatio, from divinare 'to foresee, to foretell, to predict, to prophesy')

1): : the art or practice that seeks to foresee or foretell future events or discover hidden knowledge usually by the interpretation of omens or by the aid of supernatural powers

2): unusual insight : intuitive perception

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Divination, is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic, process or ritual. Used in various forms throughout history, diviners determine theiranswers or solutions; by reading signs, events, or omens, or through alleged contact with asupernatural agency.

Divination can be seen as a systematic method with which to organize what appear to be disjointed, random facets of existence such that they provide insight into a problem at hand. If a distinction is to be made between divination and fortune-telling, divination has a more formal or ritualistic element and often contains a more social character, usually in a religious context, as seen in traditional African medicine. Fortune-telling, on the other hand, is a more everyday practice for personal purposes. Particular divination methods vary by culture and religion.

In the context of ancient Roman culture and belief, divination was concerned with discov-ering the will of the gods. Today, however, scholars no longer restrict the word to the root meaning. Divinatory practices and the beliefs undergirding them are greater in scope than discerning the will of the gods and the fatalistic view of the human condition that inspired so much of early Mediterranean religious thought. In some societies, in fact, divination is a practice to which many persons frequently resort, but never in terms of discovering the will of the gods. The idea of a godly providence controlling human affairs in such societies is unusual, although humbler spirits are often thought to intervene in troublesome ways. While divination is most commonly practiced in the modern Western world in the form of horoscopic astrology, other forms were and continue to be of equal importance for other cultures.

Divination has long been criticized. In the modern era, it has been dismissed by the scientific community and skeptics as being superstition; experiments do not support the idea that divination techniques can actually predict the future more reliably or precisely than would be possible without it. In antiquity it was attacked by philosophers such as the skep- tic Cicero in De Divinatione and the Pyrrhonist Sextus Empiricus in Against the Astrologers. The satirist, Lucian, devoted a witty essay to Alexander the false prophet.

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DIVINATION SYSTEMS
A

B

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M

N

O

P -Q

  • pallomancy: by pendulums (Greek pallein, to sway + manteía, prophecy)
  • palmistry/palm reading → see somatomancy (Latin palma, palm)
  • papyromancy: by folding paper, especially paper money (Greek papūros, papyrus paper + manteía, prophecy)
  • pedomancy → see somatomancy (from podomancy, influenced by Latin pēs [pēd-], foot)
  • pegomancy: by fountains (Greek pēgē, spring + manteía, prophecy)
  • pessomancy: by pebbles (Greek pessos, oval pebble + manteía, prophecy)
  • pecthimancy/petchimancy: by brushed cloth (possibly akin to Greek pekein, to card wool, or pēktē, netting + manteía, prophecy)
  • phobomancy: by feelings of fear (Greek phobos, fear + manteía, prophecy)
  • photomancy: by fields of light (Greek phōs [phōt-], light + manteía, prophecy)
  • phrenology (also organoscopy): by the configuration of one's brain (Greek phrēn, mind + -logiā, study)
  • phyllomancy: by leaves (Greek phullon, leaf + manteía, prophecy)
    • sycomancy: by fig leaves (Greek sūkon, fig + manteía, prophecy)
    • tasseography/tasseomancy (also kypomancy): by tea leaves or coffee grounds (French tasse, cup + Greek -graphiā, representation)
  • phyllorhodomancy: by rose petals (Greek phullon, leaf + rhodon, rose + manteía, prophecy)
  • physiognomy/physiognomancy: by faces (Greek phusis, nature + -gnōmoniā, interpretation)
  • phytognomy: by the appearance of plants (Greek phuton, plant + -gnōmoniā, interpretation)
  • plastromancy: by cracks formed by heat on a turtle's plastron (English plastron + manteía, prophecy)
  • pilimancy: by observing the patterns produced by a collection of human hair
  • plumbomancy: by observing shapes molten lead makes when poured in water (Latin plumbum, lead + Greek manteía, prophecy)
  • pneumancy: by blowing (Greek pneuma, breath + manteía, prophecy)
  • podomancy/pedomancy → see somatomancy
  • poe divination: by throwing stones on the floor, practised at Taoist temples
  • portenta (also ostenta): study of natural phenomena
  • psephomancy: by lots or ballots (Greek psephos, pebble + manteía, prophecy)
  • pseudomancy: by false means, such as Peter Answers (Greek pseudēs, false + manteía, prophecy)
  • psychognomy: by phrenological notations (Greek psūkhē, soul + -gnōmoniā, observation)
  • psychomancy → see necromancy¹ (Greek psūkhē, soul + manteía, prophecy)
  • ptarmoscopy/ptarmoscopie: from ancient Greek the interpretation of sneezes[15]
  • pyromancy/pyroscopy: by fire (Greek pūr, fire + manteía, prophecy)
  • qabalah → see kabbalah

R

S

  • scapulimancy/scapulomancy (also spatulamancy, omoplatoscopy): by bovine or caprid shoulder blades (Latin scapula, shoulder blade + Greek manteía, prophecy)
  • scarpomancy: by old shoes (Italian scarpa, shoe + Greek manteía, prophecy)
  • scatomancy: by excrement (Greek skōr [skat-], excrement + manteía, prophecy)
  • schematomancy → see somatomancy
  • sciomancy¹ (also shadowmancy): by shadows (Greek skiā, shadow + manteía, prophecy)
  • sciomancy²: by spirits (of the same origin as sciomancy¹)
  • scrying: by gazing (shortened from descrying)
    • crystal gazing: by reflective objects
      • catoptromancy/captromancy (also enoptromancy, djube): by mirrors (Greek katoptron, mirror + manteía, prophecy)
      • gastromancy¹ (also crystallomancy, spheromancy, crystal ball gazing): by crystal ball (Greek gastēr, belly [i.e., round object] + manteía, prophecy)
      • hydromancy (also ydromancy): by water (Greek hudōr, water + manteía, prophecy)
  • selenomancy: by the moon (Greek selēnē, moon + manteía, prophecy)
  • shadowmancy → see sciomancy¹ (English shadow + Greek manteía, prophecy)
  • Shufflemancy: by the use of an electronic media player such as an electronic playlist, iPod, or other medium wherein one skips a certain number of songs and the lyrics and/or tune of the song is the answer to the divinatory question
  • sideromancy: by burning straw with an iron (Greek sidēros, iron + manteía, prophecy)
  • sikidy: by drawing sixteen lines in sand (perhaps a Malagasy transliteration of English sixteen)
  • skatharomancy: by beetle tracks (Greek skatharōn, spot + manteía, prophecy)
  • slinneanachd/slinnanacht: by animal shoulder blades (Scottish Gaelic slinnean, shoulder blade)
  • solaromancy: by the sun (Latin sōl [{{wikt-lang|la|sōlāris|sōlār-], sun + Greek manteía, prophecy)
  • somatomancy: by the human form (Greek sōma [sōmat-], body + manteía, prophecy)
    • cephalomancy (also craniognomy): by skulls (Greek kephalē, head + manteía, prophecy)
    • cheiromancy/chiromancy /kaɪˈrɒmænsi/ (also palmistry, palm reading): by palms (Greek kheir, hand + manteía, prophecy)
    • cheirognomy/chirognomy /kaɪˈrɒ(ɡ)noʊmi/: by hands (Greek kheir, hand + -gnōmoniā, interpretation)
    • podomancy/pedomancy (also cartopedy): by the soles of one's feet (Greek pous [pod-], foot + manteía, prophecy)
    • rumpology (also natimancy): by buttocks (English rump + Greek -logiā, study)
    • schematomancy: by the face (Greek skhēma [skhēmat-], figure + manteía, prophecy)
  • sortilege: by the casting of lots, or sortes
  • spasmatomancy: by convulsions (alteration of spasmodomancy, from Greek spasmos [spasmōd-], spasm + manteía, prophecy)
  • spatilomancy: by animal excrement (Greek spatilē, excrement + manteía, prophecy)
  • spatulamancy → see scapulimancy (from scapulimancy, influenced by Latin spatula, splint)
  • spheromancy → see scrying (Greek sphaira, sphere + manteía, prophecy)
  • sphondulomancy: by spindles (Greek sphondulos, spindle + manteía, prophecy)
  • splanchnomancy → see anthropomancy (Greek splankhna, innards + manteía, prophecy)
  • spodomancy: by soot (Greek spodos, wood ashes + manteía, prophecy)
    • cineromancy/ceneromancy: by the ashes of a specifically sacrificial or ritual fire[17]
    • libanomancy /laɪˈbænoʊmænsi/: by smoke or ash from incense (Greek libanos, frankincense + manteía, prophecy)[7][8]
    • tephramancy/tephromancy: by tree bark ashes, by sacrificial or ritual fire ashes, or human sacrificial victim ashes (Greek tephrā, ash + manteía, prophecy)[18]
  • stareomancy: by the four elements (Greek stais [stair-], dough + manteía, prophecy)
  • stercomancy: by seeds in bird excrement (Latin stercus, excrement + Greek manteía, prophecy)
  • sternomancy: by ridges on the breastbone (Greek sternon, breastbone + manteía, prophecy)
  • stichomancy → see chartomancy
  • stigonomancy: by burning writing onto bark (Greek stizein [stigōn-], to brand + manteía, prophecy)
  • stoicheomancy/stoichomancy → see chartomancy
  • stolisomancy: by fashion (Greek stolis, garment + manteía, prophecy)
  • styramancy: by observing patterns produced by chewing gum, gum wax, or products produced by the L. styraciflua tree
  • sycomancy → see phyllomancy
  • symbolomancy: by things found on the road (Greek sumbolon, sign + manteía, prophecy)

T

  • taromancy → see chartomancy
  • tasseography/tasseomancy → see phyllomancy
  • technomancy: by technology (English techno(logy) + Greek manteía, prophecy)
  • temurah: → see kabbalah
  • tephramancy/tephromancy: → see spodomancy (Greek tephrā, ash + manteía, prophecy)
  • theomancy: foretelling events, prophecy.(Greek theos, god + manteía, prophecy)
  • theriomancy /ˈθɪərioʊmænsi/: (also zoomancy): by animal behavior (Greek thēr, wild animal + manteía, prophecy)

     
      • ailuromancy/aeluromancy /aɪˈlʊəroʊmænsi/ (also felidomancy): by cats (Greek ailouros, cat + manteía, prophecy)
      • alectryomancy/alectoromancy /əˈlɛktərioʊmænsi/: by rooster behavior (Greek alektruōn, cockerel + manteía, prophecy)
      • augury: by bird formations[20] (Latin augur, diviner)
      • hippomancy /ˈhɪpoʊmænsi/: by horse behavior (Greek hippos, horse + manteía, prophecy)
      • ichthyomancy /ˈɪkθioʊmænsi/: by fish behavior (Greek ikhthūs, fish + manteía, prophecy)
      • myomancy /ˈmaɪoʊmænsi/: by rodent behavior (Greek mūs, mouse + manteía, prophecy)
      • myrmomancy /ˈmɜːrmoʊmænsi/: by ant behavior (Greek murmēx, ant + manteía, prophecy)
      • nggàm: by spider or crab behavior (Mambila nggàm, divination)
      • ophidiomancy/ophiomancy: by snakes behavior (Greek ophis [ophid-], snake + manteía, prophecy)
      • orniscopy/ornithomancy (also auspicy/auspication, avimancy): by bird migration (Greek ornīs [ornīth-], bird + -skopiā, observation)
    • thumomancy /ˈθjuːmoʊmænsi/: by one's own soul, presage[21] (Greek thūmos, soul + manteía, prophecy)
    • topomancy /ˈtɒpoʊmænsi/: by geography and geological formations (Greek topos, place + manteía, prophecy)
      •
    • transataumancy: by things accidentally seen or heard
    • trochomancy /ˈtrɒkoʊmænsi/: by wheel ruts (Greek trokhos, wheel + manteía, prophecy)
      •
    • turifumy: by shapes in smoke (Latin tūs [tūr-], incense + fūmus, vapor)
    • tyromancy/tiromancy /ˈtaɪəroʊmænsi/: by cheese (Greek tūros, cheese + manteía, prophecy)

    U

    • umbilicomancy: by umbilical cords (English umbilic(al cord) + Greek manteía, prophecy)
    • umbromancy: by shade (Latin umbra, shadow + Greek manteía, prophecy)
    • uranomancy/ouranomancy: by the sky (Greek ouranos, firmament + manteía, prophecy)
    • uromancy/urimancy: by urine (Greek ouron, urine + manteía, prophecy)
    • urticariaomancy: by itches (New Latin urticāria, hives + Greek manteía, prophecy)

    V-Z

    • videomancy: by films (English video + Greek manteía, prophecy)
    • xylomancy: by the shape or texture of wood, or the appearance of burning wood (Greek xulon, wood + manteía, prophecy)[22]
    • ydromancy² → see alomancy (from idromancy above, influenced by alomancy)
    • zygomancy: by weights (Greek zugon, yoke, balance + manteía, prophecy)