View source for Divination

{{short description|Attempt to gain insight into a question or situation}}
{{hatnote group|
{{Other uses}}
{{redirect|Divining|pseudoscientific attempts to find water or other things|Dowsing}}
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[[File:Rhumsiki crab sorceror.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|A man in [[Rhumsiki]], [[Cameroon]], attempts to tell the future by interpreting the changes in position of various objects as caused by a freshwater crab through the practice of ''[[nggàm]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://era.anthropology.ac.uk/Divination|title=Anthropological Studies of Divination|work=anthropology.ac.uk}}</ref>]]
{{Anthropology of religion}}
{{magic sidebar|Forms}}
{{Paranormal}}
{{Esotericism}}

'''Divination''' ({{etymology|la|{{Wikt-lang|la|divinare}}|to foresee, foretell, predict, prophesy}})<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:2007.01.0043|title= M. Tullius Cicero, Divination}}</ref> is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an [[occult]]ic ritual or practice.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Divination {{!}} Religion, History & Practices {{!}} Britannica |url= https://www.britannica.com/topic/divination |access-date=2023-10-28 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref> Using various methods throughout history, diviners ascertain their interpretations of how a {{linktext|querent}} should proceed by reading signs, events, or [[omen]]s, or through alleged contact or interaction with  [[supernatural]] agencies{{sfnp|Silva|2016}} such as [[ghost|spirit]]s, gods, god-like-beings or the "will of the [[universe]]".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Divination {{!}} Religion, History & Practices {{!}} Britannica |url= https://www.britannica.com/topic/divination |access-date= 2023-10-28 |website= www.britannica.com |language= en}}</ref>

[[File:Divination display at the Pitt Rivers Museum.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Display on divination, featuring a cross-cultural range of items, in the [[Pitt Rivers Museum]] in [[Oxford]], [[England]] ]]

Divination can be seen as an attempt to organize what appears to be random so that it provides insight into a problem or issue at hand.{{sfn | Morgan | 2016 | pp=502–504}} Some instruments or practices of divination include [[Tarot card reading|Tarot-card]] reading, [[Runic magic|rune casting]], [[Tasseography|tea-leaf reading]], [[automatic writing]], water [[scrying]], and [[psychedelics]] like [[psilocybin mushrooms]] and [[DMT]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=10 Basic Divination Methods to Try |url=https://www.learnreligions.com/methods-of-divination-2561764 |access-date= 2023-10-28 |website= Learn Religions |language= en}}</ref> If a distinction is made between divination and [[fortune-telling]], divination has a more formal or [[ritual]]istic element and often contains a more social character,{{citation needed|date=December 2023}} usually in a [[religion|religious]] context, as seen in [[traditional African medicine]]. Fortune-telling, on the other hand, is a more everyday practice for personal purposes. Particular [[methods of divination|divination methods]] vary by culture and religion.

In its functional relation to [[Magic (supernatural)|magic]] in general, divination can have a preliminary and investigative role:
<blockquote>
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.<ref>
{{cite book
 |last1                = Sørensen
 |first1               = Jesper Frøkjær
 |last2                = Petersen
 |first2               = Anders Klostergaard
 |editor-last1         = Sørensen
 |editor-first1        = Jesper
 |editor-last2         = Petersen
 |editor-first2        = Anders Klostergaard
 |date                 = 3 May 2021
 |chapter              = Manipulating the Divine - an Introduction
 |title                = Theoretical and Empirical Investigations of Divination and Magic: Manipulating the Divine
 |url                  = https://books.google.com/books?id=W94sEAAAQBAJ
 |series               = Volume 171 of Numen Book Series: Studies in the history of religions - ISSN 0169-8834
 |publication-place    = Leiden
 |publisher            = Koninklijke Brill NV
 |page                 = 10
 |isbn                 = 9789004447585
 |access-date          = 9 December 2023
}} 
</ref>
</blockquote>

Divination has long attracted criticism. In the modern era, it has been dismissed by the [[scientific community]] and by skeptics as being [[superstition|superstitious]]; experiments do not support the idea  that divination techniques can actually predict the future more reliably or precisely than would be possible without it.<ref>Yau, Julianna. (2002). ''Witchcraft and Magic''. In [[Michael Shermer]]. ''The Skeptic Encyclopedia of Pseudoscience''. ABC-CLIO. pp. 278-282. {{ISBN|1-57607-654-7}}</ref><ref>Regal, Brian. (2009). ''Pseudoscience: A Critical Encyclopedia''. Greenwood. p. 55. {{ISBN|978-0-313-35507-3}}</ref>  In antiquity, divination came under attack from philosophers such as the [[Academic skepticism|Academic skeptic]] [[Cicero]] in ''[[De Divinatione]]'' (1st century BCE) and the [[Pyrrhonism|Pyrrhonist]] [[Sextus Empiricus]] in ''Against the Astrologers'' (2nd century CE). The satirist [[Lucian]] ({{circa}} 125 – after 180) devoted an essay to [[Alexander of Abonoteichus|Alexander the false prophet]].<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.tertullian.org/rpearse/lucian/lucian_alexander.htm|title= Lucian of Samosata : Alexander the False Prophet|work=tertullian.org}}</ref>

==History==
[[Image:ChickenDivination.jpg|thumb|[[Russia]]n peasant girls using [[chicken]]s for divination; 19th-century [[lubok]].]]

===Antiquity===
The [[Nymphaion (fire sanctuary)|eternal fire at Nymphaion]] in southern [[Illyria]] (present-day [[Albania]]) 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.<ref>{{cite book|last=Anamali|first=Skënder|authorlink=Skënder Anamali|chapter=Santuari di Apollonia|pages=127–136|editor-last1=Stazio|editor-first1=Attilio|editor-last2=Ceccoli|editor-first2=Stefania|title=La Magna Grecia e i grandi santuari della madrepatria: atti del trentunesimo Convegno di studi sulla Magna Grecia|volume=31|series=Atti del Convegno di studi sulla Magna Grecia|publisher=Istituto per la storia e l'archeologia della Magna Grecia|year=1992|language=it|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6L0jAQAAIAAJ}} pp. 134–135.</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Larson|first=Jennifer Lynn|title=Greek Nymphs: Myth, Cult, Lore|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|location=New York|year=2001|isbn=978-0-19-514465-9|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1ww3m1vSRtsC}} pp. 162–163.</ref> The Oracle of [[Amun]] at the [[Siwa Oasis]] was made famous when [[Alexander the Great]] visited it after conquering Egypt from Persia in 332 BC.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Gardiner|first1=Alan Henderson|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lzhBbsElbKAC&q=The+Oracle+of+Amun+at+the+Siwa+Oasis+was+made+famous+when+Alexander+the+Great+visited+it+after+conquering+Egypt+from+Persia+in+332+BC.&pg=PA381|title=Egypt of the Pharaohs: An Introduction|last2=Sir|first2=Alan Henderson Gardiner|date=1961|publisher=Clarendon Press|isbn=978-0-19-500267-6|language=en}}</ref>
 
{{bibleverse|Deuteronomy|18:10-12}} or {{bibleverse|Leviticus|19:26}} can be interpreted as categorically forbidding divination. But some biblical practices, such as [[Urim and Thummim]], [[Cleromancy|casting lots]] and [[prayer]], 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.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hatch |first=Trevan G. |date=2007 |title=Magic, Biblical Law, and the Israelite Urim and Thummim |url=https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1074&context=studiaantiqua#:~:text=The%20Urim%20and%20Thummim%20was%20an%20object%20given%20to%20the,the%20prophets%20on%20God's%20terms. |journal=Studia Antiqua |volume=5 |issue=2 |via=Scholars Archive}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Klingshirn |first=William E |date=2002 |title=Defining the Sortes Sanctorum : Gibbon, Du Cange, and Early Christian Lot Divination |url=https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/1/article/10252 |journal=Journal of Early Christian Studies |volume=10 |issue=1 |pages=77–130 |doi=10.1353/earl.2002.0011 |issn=1086-3184|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

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) before [[Vivisection|vivisecting]] a sacrificial animal. Their abominal organs would reveal a divine message, which aligned with [[Cardiocentric hypothesis|cardiocentric]] views of the mind.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gabbay |first=Uri |date=2016 |title=The Practice of Divination in the Ancient Near East |url=https://www.thetorah.com/article/the-practice-of-divination-in-the-ancient-near-east |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240414030617/https://www.thetorah.com/article/the-practice-of-divination-in-the-ancient-near-east |archive-date=April 14, 2024 |website=TheTorah.com}}</ref>

====Oracles and Greek divination====
{{See also|Oracle|Greek divination}}
Both oracles and seers in ancient Greece practiced divination. [[Oracle#Greece|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 ({{Langx|el|μάντεις}}).<ref name="Princeton Classics">{{cite web | title=The Seer in Ancient Greece | website=Princeton Classics | url=https://classics.princeton.edu/research/bookshelf/seer-ancient-greece | access-date=28 November 2022}}</ref>

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 including [[extispicy]], [[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 to [[Delphi]] or other such distant sites.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Flower|first=Michael A.|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/290580029|title=The seer in ancient Greece|date=2008|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-93400-9|location=Berkeley|oclc=290580029}}</ref>

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|date=November 2019}}

During battle, generals would frequently ask seers at both the [[campground]] (a process called the ''hiera'') and at the [[battle]]field (called the ''sphagia''). 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 appropriate [[omen]]s.{{citation needed|date=November 2019}}

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,<ref>Flower, Michael Attyah. ''The Seer in Ancient Greece.'' Berkeley: University of California Press, 2008.</ref> and the [[Stoicism|Stoics]] accounted for the validity of divination in their [[Stoic physics#Divination|physics]].

===Middle Ages and Early Modern period===
{{further|Medieval magic|Renaissance magic|Folk Catholicism}}{{Artes prohibitae}}
The divination method of casting lots ([[Cleromancy]]) was used by the remaining eleven disciples of Jesus in {{bibleverse|Acts|1:23-26}} to select a replacement for [[Judas Iscariot]]. Therefore, divination was arguably an accepted practice in the early church. However, divination became viewed as a pagan practice by Christian [[emperor]]s during [[ancient Rome]].<ref>Bailey, Michael David. (2007). ''Magic and Superstition in Europe''. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. pp. 52-53. {{ISBN|0-7425-3386-7}}</ref>

In 692 the [[Quinisext Council]], also known as the "Council in Trullo" in the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]], passed canons to eliminate pagan and divination practices.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://apostolicconfraternityseminary.com/council_of_trullo.html|title=Council of Trullo - Apostolic Confraternity Seminary|work=apostolicconfraternityseminary.com|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707152243/http://apostolicconfraternityseminary.com/council_of_trullo.html|archive-date=2011-07-07}}</ref> [[Fortune-telling]] and other forms of divination were widespread through the [[Middle Ages]].<ref>Bailey, Michael David. (2007). ''Magic and Superstition in Europe''. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. pp. 88-89. {{ISBN|0-7425-3386-7}}</ref> In the constitution of 1572 and public regulations of 1661 of the [[Electorate of Saxony]], capital punishment was used on those predicting the future.<ref>Ennemoser, Joseph. (1856). ''The History of Magic''. London: Henry G. Bohn, York Street, Covent Garden. p. 59</ref> Laws forbidding divination practice continue to this day.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://pluralism.org/news/view/147|title=Wiccan Priest Fights Local Ordinance Banning Fortune Telling (Louisiana)|work=pluralism.org|access-date=2009-10-06|archive-date=2011-07-27|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727180737/http://pluralism.org/news/view/147|url-status=dead}}</ref> The [[Waldensians]] sect were accused of practicing divination.<ref name="Golden 2006 p. ">{{cite book | last=Golden | first=R.M. | title=Encyclopedia of Witchcraft: The Western Tradition | publisher=ABC-CLIO | issue=v. 4 | year=2006 | isbn=978-1-57607-243-1 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LyoZAQAAIAAJ | access-date=2023-05-05 | page=}}</ref>

[[Småland]] is famous for [[Årsgång]], 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.<ref>{{cite web|last=Kuusela|first= Tommy|year= 2014|title= Swedish year walk: from folk tradition to computer game. In: Island Dynamics Conference on Folk Belief & Traditions of the Supernatural: Experience, Place, Ritual, & Narrative. Shetland Isles, UK, 24–30 March 2014|url= https://www.academia.edu/6624109 |access-date= <!-- 09/07/14 -->}}</ref> 

In [[Islam]], [[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.{{sfnp|Leoni|Lory|Gruber|2016|p=13}}<ref>Greenwood, William, and Andrew Shore. "[https://blog.britishmuseum.org/seeing-stars-astrolabes-and-the-islamic-world/ Seeing Stars: Astrolabes and the Islamic World] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201020200415/https://blog.britishmuseum.org/seeing-stars-astrolabes-and-the-islamic-world/ |date=2020-10-20 }}." Curator's Corner Blog. [[The British Museum]], 2017.</ref> 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.{{sfnp|Leoni|Lory|Gruber|2016|pp=10, 16-17}} [[Astronomy in the medieval Islamic world|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 from [[lunar phase]]s and drought to times of prayer and the foundation of cities. The courtly sanction and elite patronage of [[Muslims|Muslim]] rulers benefited astrologers’ intellectual statures.{{sfnp|Leoni|Lory|Gruber|2016|pp=13, 16-17}}

[[File:Safavid Dynasty, Joseph Enthroned from a Falnama (Book of Omens), circa 1550 AD.jpg|thumb|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 as [[geomancy]], is “based on the interpretation of figures traced on sand or other surface known as [[geomantic figures]].”{{sfnp|Leoni|Lory|Gruber|2016|p=21}} 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 significant [[Prophecy|prophecies]] as opposed to [[omen]]s (''‘ilm al-fa’l''), which were process of “reading” visible random events to decipher the invisible realities from which they originated. It was upheld by [[Prophecy|prophetic]] tradition and relied almost exclusively on text, specifically the [[Quran|Qur’an]] (which carried a table for guidance) and poetry, as a development of [[bibliomancy]].{{sfnp|Leoni|Lory|Gruber|2016|p=21}} 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.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sardar |first=Marika |date=2020-08-28 |title=The Gwalior Qur'an |url=https://sites.lsa.umich.edu/khamseen/topics/2020/the-gwalior-quran/ |access-date=2025-03-29 |website=Khamseen: Islamic Art History Online |language=en-US}}</ref> 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 the [[Islamic calendar]] approached.{{sfnp|Leoni|Lory|Gruber|2016|p=26}}

Dream interpretation, or [[oneiromancy]] ''(‘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 of [[Abraham]], [[Yusuf (surah)|Yusuf]], and [[Muhammad]]. The important delineation within the practice lies between “incoherent dreams” and “sound dreams,” which were “a part of prophecy” or heavenly message.{{sfnp|Leoni|Lory|Gruber|2016|pp=26-27}} [[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.{{sfnp|Leoni|Lory|Gruber|2016|pp=26-31}}

The power of text held significant weight in the "[['Ilm al-Huruf|science of letters]]" ''(‘ilm al-huruf''), the foundational principle being "God created the world through His speech."{{sfnp|Leoni|Lory|Gruber|2016|p=31}} The science began with the concept of language, specifically [[Arabic]], as the expression of "the essence of what it signifies."{{sfnp|Leoni|Lory|Gruber|2016|p=31}} 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 like [[amulet]]s and [[talisman]]s through the study of the letters of the Qur’an with alphanumeric computations.{{sfnp|Leoni|Lory|Gruber|2016|p=31}}

In Islamic practice in [[Senegal]] and [[The Gambia|Gambia]], just like many other [[West Africa]]n countries, diviners and religious leaders and [[Alternative medicine|healers]] 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."{{sfnp|Graw|2012|pp=19-20}} So strong was the idea of esoteric knowledge in West African Islam, diviners and [[Magic (supernatural)|magicians]] uneducated in Islamic texts and Arabic bore the same titles as those who did.{{sfnp|Graw|2012|p=19}}

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 like [[Al-Ghazali|Abu-Hamid al Ghazili]] (d. 1111) objecting to the science of divination because he believed it bore too much similarity to [[Paganism|pagan]] practices of invoking spiritual entities that were not God.<ref>Francis, Edgar W. "Magic and Divination in the Medieval Islamic Middle East." ''History Compass'' 9, no. 8 (2011): 624</ref>{{sfnp|Leoni|Lory|Gruber|2016|p=13}} 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."{{sfnp|Leoni|Lory|Gruber|2016|p=17}}

===Mesoamerica===
{{see also|Mesoamerican religion}}
Divination was a central component of ancient [[Mesoamerican]] religious life. Many [[Aztec religion|Aztec gods]], including central [[creator deity|creator gods]], were described as diviners and were closely associated with [[Magic (paranormal)|sorcery]]. [[Tezcatlipoca]] is the patron of sorcerers and practitioners of [[Magic (paranormal)|magic]]. His name means "smoking mirror," a reference to a device used for divinatory [[scrying]].{{sfnp|Miller|2007|p={{page needed|date=November 2021}}}} In the [[Maya mythology|Mayan]] ''[[Popol Vuh]]'', the creator gods [[Xmucane and Xpiacoc]] perform divinatory hand casting during the creation of people.{{sfnp|Miller|2007|p={{page needed|date=November 2021}}}}  The Aztec ''[[Codex Borbonicus]]'' shows the original human couple, [[Oxomoco]] and [[Cipactonal]], 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.<ref>Sandstrom, Alan R. "Divination." In [[David Carrasco]] (ed). ''The Oxford Encyclopedia of Mesoamerican Cultures''. : Oxford University Press, 2001.</ref>

Every civilization that developed in [[pre-Columbian Mexico]], from the [[Olmecs]] to the [[Aztecs]], practiced divination in daily life, both public and private. Scrying through the use of reflective water surfaces, [[Mirrors in Mesoamerican culture|mirrors]], or the [[Cleromancy|casting of lots]] were among the most widespread forms of divinatory practice. [[Vision (spirituality)|Vision]]s derived from [[hallucinogens]] were another important form of divination, and are still widely used among contemporary diviners of Mexico. Among the more common [[hallucinogenic plants]] used in divination are [[morning glory]], [[jimson weed]], and [[peyote]].{{sfnp|Miller|2007|p={{page needed|date=November 2021}}}}

==Contemporary divination in Asia==

===India and Nepal===
[[Theyyam]] or "theiyam" in [[Malayalam]] is the process by which a devotee invites a [[Hinduism|Hindu]] god or goddess to use his or her body as a medium or channel and answer other devotees' questions.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://english.mathrubhumi.com/videos/news/news-in-videos/devakoothu-the-lone-woman-theyyam-in-north-malabar-1.3468731|title='Devakoothu'; the lone woman Theyyam in North Malabar|website=Mathrubhumi|access-date=2021-11-03|archive-date=2021-06-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210606105354/https://english.mathrubhumi.com/videos/news/news-in-videos/devakoothu-the-lone-woman-theyyam-in-north-malabar-1.3468731|url-status=dead}}</ref> The same is called "arulvaakku" or "arulvaak" in [[Tamil language|Tamil]], another south Indian language - [[Adhiparasakthi Siddhar Peetam]] is famous for arulvakku in [[Tamil Nadu]].<ref>{{Citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YBs9DgAAQBAJ|title=Women's Authority and Leadership in a Hindu Goddess Tradition|author=Nanette R. Spina (2017)|date=28 February 2017|page=135|publisher=Springer|isbn=978-1-1375-8909-5}}</ref> The people in and around [[Mangalore]] in [[Karnataka]] 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.<ref name=":5">{{Cite journal|last=Brückner|first=Heidrun|year=1987|title=Bhuta Worship in Coastal Karnataka: An Oral Tulu Myth and Festival Ritual of Jumadi|journal=Studien zur Indologie und Iranistik |volume=13/14|pages=17–37}}</ref><ref name=":6">{{Cite journal|last=Brückner|first=Heidrun|year=1992|title=Dhumavati-Bhuta" An Oral Tulu-Text Collected in the 19th Century. Edition, Translation, and Analysis.|journal=Studien zur Indologie und Iranistik |volume=13/14|pages=13–63}}</ref><ref name=":7">{{Cite book|title=Fürstliche Fest: Text und Rituale der Tuḷu-Volksreligion an der Westküste Südindiens.|last=Brückner|first=Heidrun|publisher=Harrassowitz|year=1995|location=Wiesbaden|pages=199–201}}</ref><ref name=":8">{{Cite book|title=On an Auspicious Day, at Dawn … Studies in Tulu Culture and Oral Literature|last=Brückner|first=Heidrun|publisher=Harrassowitz|year=2009a|location=Wiesbaden}}</ref><ref name=":9">{{Cite book|title="Der Gesang von der Büffelgottheit" in Wenn Masken Tanzen – Rituelles Theater und Bronzekunst aus Südindien edited by Johannes Beltz|last=Brückner|first=Heidrun|publisher=Rietberg Museum|year=2009b|location=Zürich|pages=57–64}}</ref> In [[Nepal]] it is known as, "Devta ka dhaamee" or "[[Jhākri|jhaakri]]".<ref>{{cite book |first=Kuldip Singh |last=Gulia |year=2005 |title=Human Ecology of Sikkim – A Case Study of Upper Rangit Basin |publisher=Kalpaz Publications |place=Delhi, India |isbn=978-81-7835-325-8  |pages=152–154, 168}}</ref>

In English, the closest translation for these is, "[[oracle]]." The [[Dalai Lama]], who lives in exile in northern India, still consults an oracle known as the ''[[Nechung Oracle]]'', which is considered the official state oracle of the government of [[Tibet]]. The Dalai Lama has according to centuries-old custom, consulted the Nechung Oracle during the new year festivities of [[Losar]].<ref>Gyatso, Tenzin (1988). ''Freedom in Exile: the Autobiography of the Dalai Lama of Tibet.'' Fully revised and updated. Lancaster Place, London, UK: Abacus Books (A Division of Little, Brown and Company UK). {{ISBN|0-349-11111-1}}. p.233</ref>

===Japan===
Although Japan retains a history of traditional and local [[methods of divination]], such as ''[[onmyōdō]]'', contemporary divination in Japan, called ''uranai'', derives from outside sources.{{sfnp|Miller|2014}} Contemporary methods of divination in Japan include both Western and Chinese [[astrology]], [[geomancy]] or [[feng shui]], [[Tarot|tarot cards]], [[I Ching]] (Book of Changes) [[I Ching divination|divination]], and [[physiognomy]] (methods of reading the body to identify traits).{{sfnp|Miller|2014}}

In [[Japan]], divination methods include [[Futomani]] from the [[Shinto]] tradition.{{Citation needed|date=November 2019}}

====Personality types====
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 and [[Birthrate decline|birth rate decline]] in Japan.{{sfnp|Miller|1997}}

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, the [[Classical element|four elements]] (water, earth, fire, air), and [[Yin and yang|yin-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.{{sfnp|Miller|1997}}

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 or ''ninsou'', 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.{{sfnp|Miller|1997}}

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 as ''nihon zashi koukoku kyoukai'', published in Japan aimed at this audience.{{sfnp|Miller|1997}}

====Japanese tarot====
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 ({{Transliteration|ja|reikan tarotto}});
* I-Ching Tarot ({{Transliteration|ja|ekisen tarotto}});
* Spiritual Tarot ({{Transliteration|ja|supirichuaru tarotto}});
* Western Tarot ({{Transliteration|ja|seiyō tarotto}}); and
* Eastern Tarot ({{Transliteration|ja|tōyō tarotto}}).

The images on tarot cards may come from images from Japanese popular culture, such as characters from [[manga]] and [[anime]] including [[Hello Kitty]], or may feature cultural symbols. Tarot cards may adapt the images of Japanese historical figures, such as high priestess [[Himiko]] (170–248CE) or imperial court wizard [[Abe no Seimei]] (921–1005CE). Still others may feature images of cultural displacement, such as English knights, [[pentagram]]s, the Jewish [[Torah]], or invented [[glyph]]s. The introduction of such cards began by the 1930s and reached prominence 1970s. Japanese tarot cards were originally created by men, often based on the [[Rider–Waite Tarot|Rider-Waite-Smith tarot]] published by the Rider Company in London in 1909.{{sfnp|Miller|2017}} Since, the practice of Japanese tarot has become overwhelmingly feminine and intertwined with [[kawaii]] 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."{{sfnp|Miller|2011}} 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.{{sfnp|Miller|2017}}

===Taiwan===
A common act of divination in Taiwan is called the [[Poe divination|Poe]]. “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|date=November 2019}}
 
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 the [[Shen (Chinese religion)|deity]] 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.<ref>Rohsenow, Hill Gates, and David K. Jordan. “Gods, Ghosts, and Ancestors: The Folk Religion of a Taiwanese Village.” The Journal of Asian Studies, vol. 33, no. 3, 1974, p. 478., doi:10.2307/2052956.</ref>

==Contemporary divination in Africa==
{{further|African divination}}
[[African divination|Divination]] is widespread throughout Africa. Among many examples it is one of the central tenets of [[Serer religion]] in Senegal. Only those who have been initiated as [[Saltigue]]s (the [[Serer people|Serer]] high priests and priestesses) can divine the future.<ref>[[Alioune Sarr|Sarr, Alioune]], « Histoire du Sine-Saloum » (introduction, bibliographie et notes par Charles Becker), in Bulletin de l'IFAN, tome 46, série B, nos 3-4, 1986-1987 pp 31-38</ref><ref name="Kalis">Kalis, Simone, "Medecine Traditionnele Religion et Divination Chez Les [[Serer people|Seereer]] [[Kingdom of Sine|Siin]] du [[Senegal]]", L'Harmattan (1997), pp 11-297 {{ISBN|2-7384-5196-9}}</ref> These are the "hereditary rain priests"<ref name="Galvan"/> whose role is both religious and medicinal.<ref name="Kalis"/><ref name="Galvan">Galvan, Dennis Charles, "The State Must be our Master of Fire : How Peasants Craft Culturally Sustainable Development in Senegal", Berkeley, University of California Press, (2004), pp 86-135, {{ISBN|978-0-520-23591-5}}.</ref>

==Divination of demons==
In his work entitled ''On the divination of demons'',<ref name="Divination">{{cite web |url=
https://www.roger-pearse.com/weblog/2020/06/10/augustine-de-divinatione-daemonorum-on-the-divination-of-demons-now-online-in-english/|title=On the divination of demons|date=June 10, 2020|author =Roger Pearse|author2=Mattias Gassman (British Academy, translator)}} (see § 5)</ref> saint [[Augustine of Hippo]] affirms that, most of the times, [[demon|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.<ref>{{cite book|author=Karin Schlapbach|author2= K. Pollmann|author3= W. Otten|title= Oxford Guide to the Historical Reception of Augustine|location=Oxford|publisher=Oxford University Press|oclc=5606492572|access-date=April 9, 2025|year=2013|url=https://www.academia.edu/9459176|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240705222712/https://www.academia.edu/9459176/The_reception_of_Augustine_De_divinatione_daemonum|archive-date=July 5, 2024|url-status=live|chapter=The reception of Augustine, De divinatione daemonum|format=PDF|pages=7|edition=1st}} (at [[Academia.edu]])</ref>
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.<ref name="Divination" />

==See also==
{{cols|colwidth=26em}}
* [[Astrology]]
* [[Chinese fortune telling]]
* [[Fortune telling]]
* [[Geomancy]]
* ''[[Jiaobei]]''
* ''[[Kau chim]]''
* [[List of occult terms]]
* [[Methods of divination]]
* [[Oneiromancy]]
* [[Prophecy]]
* [[Qimen Dunjia]]
* [[Sandobele]]
* ''[[Shaobing Song]]''
* [[Tengenjutsu (fortune telling)|''Tengenjutsu'' (fortune telling)]]
* ''[[Tui bei tu]]''
{{colend}}

==References==
===Citations===
{{Reflist}}

===Works cited===
* {{cite book |last=Graw |first=Knut |year=2012 |chapter=Divination and Islam: Existential Perspectives in the Study of Ritual and Religious Praxis in Senegal and Gambia |editor1-last=Schielke |editor1-first=Samuli |editor2-last=Debevec |editor2-first=Liza  |title=Ordinary Lives and Grand Schemes an Anthropology of Everyday Religion |series=EASA Series |volume=18 |place=New York |publisher=Berghahn Books}}
* {{cite book |last=Greenbaum |first=Dorian G. |year=2015 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BnLsCgAAQBAJ |title=The Daimon in Hellenistic Astrology: Origins and Influence |location=[[Leiden]] |publisher=[[Brill Publishers]] |series=Ancient Magic and Divination |volume=11 |doi=10.1163/9789004306219 |isbn=978-90-04-30621-9 |issn=1566-7952 |lccn=2015028673}}
* {{cite book |last1=Leoni |first1=Francesca |last2=Lory |first2=Pierre |last3=Gruber |first3=Christiane |year=2016 |title=Power and Protection: Islamic Art and the Supernatural |publisher=[[Ashmolean Museum]] |isbn=978-1910807095}}
* {{cite journal |last=Miller |first=Laura |author-link=Laura Miller (anthropologist) |date=1997 |title=People Types: Personality Classification in Japanese Women's Magazines |url=https://www.academia.edu/28155359 |journal=The Journal of Popular Culture |volume=31 |issue=2 |pages=143–159 |via=Academia.edu |doi=10.1111/j.0022-3840.1997.00143.x}}
* {{cite journal |last=Miller |first=Laura |date=May 2011 |title=Tantalizing Tarot and Cute Cartomancy in Japan |journal=Japanese Studies |volume=31 |issue=1 |pages=73–91 |doi=10.1080/10371397.2011.560659 |s2cid=144749662}}
* {{cite book |last=Miller |first=Laura |date=2014 |chapter=The divination arts in girl culture |chapter-url=https://www.academia.edu/25806189 |editor1-last=Kawano |editor1-first=Satsuki |editor2-last=Roberts |editor2-first=Glenda S. |editor3-last=Long |editor3-first= Susan Orpett |title=Capturing Contemporary Japan: Differentiation and Uncertainty |place=Honolulu |publisher=University of Hawai'i Press |pages=334–358 |via=Academia.edu}}
* {{cite journal |last=Miller |first=Laura |date=2017 |title=Japanese Tarot Cards |journal=ASIANetwork Exchange |volume=24 |issue=1 |pages=1–28 |doi=10.16995/ane.244 |doi-access=free}}
* {{cite book |last=Miller |first=Mary |year=2007 |title=Gods and Symbols of Ancient Mexico |publisher=Thames & Hudson |location=London}}
* {{cite journal |last=Silva |first=Sonia |year=2016 |title=Object and Objectivity in Divination |journal=Material Religion |volume=12 |number=4 |pages=507–509 |doi=10.1080/17432200.2016.1227638 |s2cid=73665747 |issn=1743-2200|url=https://hcommons.org/deposits/download/hc:19124/CONTENT/object-and-objectivity-in-divination.pdf/ |url-access=subscription }}
* {{cite journal | last=Morgan | first=David | title=Divination, Material Culture, and Chance | journal=Material Religion | volume=12 | issue=4 | date=2016-10-27 | issn=1743-2200 | doi=10.1080/17432200.2016.1227637 | pages=502–504}}

==Further reading==
* Beerden, K. 2013. ''Worlds full of signs: ancient Greek divination in context''. Leiden: [[Brill Publishers|Brill]].
* Engels, D. 2007. ''Das römische Vorzeichenwesen (753-27 v.Chr.). Quellen, Terminologie, Kommentar, historische Entwicklung.'' Stuttgart: [[Franz Steiner Verlag]].
* [[E. E. Evans-Pritchard|Evans-Pritchard, E. E.]] 1976. ''Witchcraft, oracles, and magic among the Azande''.
* Fahd, Toufic. 1966. ''La divination arabe; études religieuses, sociologiques et folkloriques sur le milieu natif d’Islam''.
* [[Philip K. Hitti|Hitti, Philip K.]] 1968. ''Makers of Arab History''. Princeton, NJ. [[St. Martin's Press]]. p.&nbsp;61.
* [[Alisa LaGamma|LaGamma, Alisa]]. 2000. "[http://libmma.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/p15324coll10/id/42448/rec/1 Art and oracle: African art and rituals of divination]." New York: [[Metropolitan Museum of Art]]. {{ISBN|9780870999338}}.
* [[Michael Loewe|Loewe, Michael]], and [[Carmen Blacker]], eds. 1981. ''Oracles and Divination''. [[Shambhala Publications|Shambhala]]/[[Random House]]. {{ISBN|0-87773-214-0}}.
*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.
*[[J. P. Vernant|Vernant, J. P.]] 1974. ''Divination et rationalité''. Paris: [[Éditions du Seuil]].
*[[William Montgomery Watt|Watt, W. Montgomery]]. 1961. ''Muhammad: Prophet and Statesman''. Edinburgh, UK. [[Oxford University Press]]. pp.&nbsp;1–2.

==External links==
{{Sister project links |collapsible=collapsed
 |b=no |commonscat=yes |n=no |q=yes |s=yes |v=no |wikt=yes 
}}

* [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.168757 ''Greek Divination: a study of its methods and principles''], William Reginald Halliday, Macmillan, 1913, 309pp - a complete scanned edition of a general treatment of Greek divination (at [[Google Books]])
* David Zeitlyn and others on African Divination systems: [http://era.anthropology.ac.uk/Divination/ Africa Divination: Mambila and others]
* {{CathEncy|wstitle=Divination}}
* Marika Sardar, [https://sites.lsa.umich.edu/khamseen/topics/2020/the-gwalior-quran/ “The Gwalior Qur’an,”] ''[https://sites.lsa.umich.edu/khamseen/ Khamseen: Islamic Art History Online]'', published 28 August 2020.

{{Divination}}
{{Witchcraft}}
{{Contemporary_witchcraft}}
{{Fantasy fiction}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Divination| ]]
[[Category:Romani religion]]