Post by Brad-LaSpirits on Sept 5, 2008 21:01:29 GMT -5
The following information was obtained from the OKPRI newsletter:
Divination: The Fortune-telling Phenomenon
We’ve all heard of fortune-telling. As a matter of fact, I’ve had the opportunity to have readings done myself, some were quite accurate and some that were just plain off. I was driving down the street the other day and noticed a large sign in front of a business that read ‘Palm Reader’ on it. I didn’t stop, but it sparked something in me and I began to wonder just how many ways are there to ‘divine the future’. Of course the usually ones came to mind, but I did more research on the subject and I was amazed at all the other methods I found. Here are just a few of many.
Ailuromancy – A form of zoomancy also known as feliomancy. It is divination by observing the movements of cats, especially the way they jump and where they land.
Alectromancy – An ancient Roman method of divination using a cock or a hen placed in a circle of grain, around which are written the letters of the alphabet. The letters close to where the bird pecks are gathered and assembled to answer specific questions.
Aleuromancy – Used mainly by the ancient Greeks it is seldom practiced today, although it is the origin of modern-day fortune cookies. It is the divination through sortilege of fortunes written on slips of paper inserted into balls of dough and baked, mixed and distributed randomly.
Amniomancy – From the Latin word amnion, meaning membrane, this is the ancient method of divining by means of the membrane that sometimes envelops the head of a baby at birth. From inspecting the membrane, the diviner predicted what sort of life the newborn would have.
Apantomancy – Divining by taking cues from chance meetings with animals, birds and other creatures.
Bibliomancy – Today’s method of this involves taking any book, usually a collection of prose or poetry or wise thoughts, closing one’s eyes, thinking about a particular problem or question, opening the book at random and interpreting the first words or sentences read in a prophetic or advisory way.
Botanomancy – An ancient practice that can be traced back to the Druidic tree worship. This method consists of burning branches of trees, typically vervain and briar, upon which questions have been carved. The fire and smoke indicate the course of future action to be pursued.
Cartomancy – Often associated with gypsies, this is divination by the use of cards. Tarot cards are the most popular form of this method, but regular playing cards can also be used.
Cattabomancy – This was said to be the practice by which Nostradamus came about his knowledge of the future. It is the use brass bowls, a metal thought to protect against evil spirits, which were filled with water or ink and used as focal points in scrying or capturing glimpses of the future in scenes and images appearing in the bowl. The diviner would stare at the liquid without blinking until a trancelike state was entered and visions experienced.
Crystal Ball – A tool used to help diviners go into a psychic trance, the crystal ball is perhaps the classic and best-known method of divination. Most people assume it is the ball that has the power, but it is not. The secret is not the ball but the technique of scrying, which involves keeping your eyes open while staring into a shiny, reflective surface to induce a form of meditation or selfhypnosis, the prime state for opening awareness to clairvoyance and psychic insight.
Dactylomancy – Thought to be one of the earliest forms of divination involving the use of pendulums. This method uses a ring tied to a string, or dropped into a bowl of water, with the position of the ring at the end of the string, or the bottom of the bowl, determining the answer or response to the question asked.
Demonancy – A form of divination that calls upon demons to reveal the truth of a matter or of future events. This is done by summoning spirits via an oracle or occult magic.
Elemental – Divination by means of the four elements: air (aromancy), fire (pyromancy), water (hydromancy), and earth (geomancy).
Demonancy – A form of divination that calls upon demons to reveal the truth of a matter or of future events. This is done by summoning spirits via an oracle or occult magic.
Elemental – Divination by means of the four elements: air (aromancy), fire (pyromancy), water (hydromancy), and earth (geomanEntomancy – Interpreting the appearance and behavior of insects to divine the future.
Icthyomancy – The ancient art of examining the heads and the entrails of fish and interpreting them.
Lampadomancy – Divination from the form, color and movements of a candle or flame of a lamp.
Lecanomancy – This ancient method involves the inspection of fluids, either in a cup or basin or other container. It was performed by dropping precious stones into water and reading the patterns on the water’s shimmering surface or the sound the stones made when being dropped into the water.
Mah-Jong Tiles – In addition to being a game, mah-jong tiles have been used for divination for centuries. The symbols on them come from ancient Chinese systems of mystical knowledge, and they were used for obtaining answers from the gods long before they were used in games.
Myomancy – Divination by the movements, cries, noises and gnawing that rats make.
Oloygmancy – Interpreting the howling of dogs. Divination is by the pitch, length of howl and the distance from the observer.
Oneiromancy – This is to see the future in dreams.
Ovomancy – Divination using eggs. A typical method was to break an egg and allow the inside to fall slowly into a glass of water. The shapes formed by the white of the egg were then interpreted; a popular Victorian method that was done at the full moon, Halloween, or New Year’s Eve.
Physiognomancy – Popular in ancient Greece, this was judging mental and moral characteristics and future success in life by the features of a face.
Podomancy – It was once believed that a person’s feet were the ‘symbol of the soul’, and would reveal their personality and future characteristics when certain signs – size, shape, lines, etc. – were properly interpreted by a skilled diviner.
Selenomancy – Divination by the appearance of the moon. Patterns on the surface of the moon, the phase of the moon and its visibility through cloud cover are all interpreted in this form.
Sortilege – Typically done by casting objects such as stones or dice after they have been mixed together and interpreting how they land.
Spasmatomancy – This utilizes convulsive twitching of the limbs. For example, if the left eyebrow throbs or twitches this can mean an enemy will soon be encountered. If the right twitches, then it will be a friend. If a buzzing is heard in the left ear, slander or unpleasant words will come your way. If the right ear, good wishes. If the left palm itches then money will be paid out. If the right itches money will be coming in.
Tasseography – The ancient Chinese practice of divining through reading the patterns in tea leaves left in a cup.
Xylomancy – Reading the omens from positions of small pieces of dry wood found in one’s path, or divining the casual arrangement of sticks when stacked for burning.
Zoomancy – Divination by the appearance and/or the behaviors of animals. Also known as interpretations/predictions made based upon the appearance of imaginary or mythical creatures such as the unicorn or mermaid.
Divination: The Fortune-telling Phenomenon
We’ve all heard of fortune-telling. As a matter of fact, I’ve had the opportunity to have readings done myself, some were quite accurate and some that were just plain off. I was driving down the street the other day and noticed a large sign in front of a business that read ‘Palm Reader’ on it. I didn’t stop, but it sparked something in me and I began to wonder just how many ways are there to ‘divine the future’. Of course the usually ones came to mind, but I did more research on the subject and I was amazed at all the other methods I found. Here are just a few of many.
Ailuromancy – A form of zoomancy also known as feliomancy. It is divination by observing the movements of cats, especially the way they jump and where they land.
Alectromancy – An ancient Roman method of divination using a cock or a hen placed in a circle of grain, around which are written the letters of the alphabet. The letters close to where the bird pecks are gathered and assembled to answer specific questions.
Aleuromancy – Used mainly by the ancient Greeks it is seldom practiced today, although it is the origin of modern-day fortune cookies. It is the divination through sortilege of fortunes written on slips of paper inserted into balls of dough and baked, mixed and distributed randomly.
Amniomancy – From the Latin word amnion, meaning membrane, this is the ancient method of divining by means of the membrane that sometimes envelops the head of a baby at birth. From inspecting the membrane, the diviner predicted what sort of life the newborn would have.
Apantomancy – Divining by taking cues from chance meetings with animals, birds and other creatures.
Bibliomancy – Today’s method of this involves taking any book, usually a collection of prose or poetry or wise thoughts, closing one’s eyes, thinking about a particular problem or question, opening the book at random and interpreting the first words or sentences read in a prophetic or advisory way.
Botanomancy – An ancient practice that can be traced back to the Druidic tree worship. This method consists of burning branches of trees, typically vervain and briar, upon which questions have been carved. The fire and smoke indicate the course of future action to be pursued.
Cartomancy – Often associated with gypsies, this is divination by the use of cards. Tarot cards are the most popular form of this method, but regular playing cards can also be used.
Cattabomancy – This was said to be the practice by which Nostradamus came about his knowledge of the future. It is the use brass bowls, a metal thought to protect against evil spirits, which were filled with water or ink and used as focal points in scrying or capturing glimpses of the future in scenes and images appearing in the bowl. The diviner would stare at the liquid without blinking until a trancelike state was entered and visions experienced.
Crystal Ball – A tool used to help diviners go into a psychic trance, the crystal ball is perhaps the classic and best-known method of divination. Most people assume it is the ball that has the power, but it is not. The secret is not the ball but the technique of scrying, which involves keeping your eyes open while staring into a shiny, reflective surface to induce a form of meditation or selfhypnosis, the prime state for opening awareness to clairvoyance and psychic insight.
Dactylomancy – Thought to be one of the earliest forms of divination involving the use of pendulums. This method uses a ring tied to a string, or dropped into a bowl of water, with the position of the ring at the end of the string, or the bottom of the bowl, determining the answer or response to the question asked.
Demonancy – A form of divination that calls upon demons to reveal the truth of a matter or of future events. This is done by summoning spirits via an oracle or occult magic.
Elemental – Divination by means of the four elements: air (aromancy), fire (pyromancy), water (hydromancy), and earth (geomancy).
Demonancy – A form of divination that calls upon demons to reveal the truth of a matter or of future events. This is done by summoning spirits via an oracle or occult magic.
Elemental – Divination by means of the four elements: air (aromancy), fire (pyromancy), water (hydromancy), and earth (geomanEntomancy – Interpreting the appearance and behavior of insects to divine the future.
Icthyomancy – The ancient art of examining the heads and the entrails of fish and interpreting them.
Lampadomancy – Divination from the form, color and movements of a candle or flame of a lamp.
Lecanomancy – This ancient method involves the inspection of fluids, either in a cup or basin or other container. It was performed by dropping precious stones into water and reading the patterns on the water’s shimmering surface or the sound the stones made when being dropped into the water.
Mah-Jong Tiles – In addition to being a game, mah-jong tiles have been used for divination for centuries. The symbols on them come from ancient Chinese systems of mystical knowledge, and they were used for obtaining answers from the gods long before they were used in games.
Myomancy – Divination by the movements, cries, noises and gnawing that rats make.
Oloygmancy – Interpreting the howling of dogs. Divination is by the pitch, length of howl and the distance from the observer.
Oneiromancy – This is to see the future in dreams.
Ovomancy – Divination using eggs. A typical method was to break an egg and allow the inside to fall slowly into a glass of water. The shapes formed by the white of the egg were then interpreted; a popular Victorian method that was done at the full moon, Halloween, or New Year’s Eve.
Physiognomancy – Popular in ancient Greece, this was judging mental and moral characteristics and future success in life by the features of a face.
Podomancy – It was once believed that a person’s feet were the ‘symbol of the soul’, and would reveal their personality and future characteristics when certain signs – size, shape, lines, etc. – were properly interpreted by a skilled diviner.
Selenomancy – Divination by the appearance of the moon. Patterns on the surface of the moon, the phase of the moon and its visibility through cloud cover are all interpreted in this form.
Sortilege – Typically done by casting objects such as stones or dice after they have been mixed together and interpreting how they land.
Spasmatomancy – This utilizes convulsive twitching of the limbs. For example, if the left eyebrow throbs or twitches this can mean an enemy will soon be encountered. If the right twitches, then it will be a friend. If a buzzing is heard in the left ear, slander or unpleasant words will come your way. If the right ear, good wishes. If the left palm itches then money will be paid out. If the right itches money will be coming in.
Tasseography – The ancient Chinese practice of divining through reading the patterns in tea leaves left in a cup.
Xylomancy – Reading the omens from positions of small pieces of dry wood found in one’s path, or divining the casual arrangement of sticks when stacked for burning.
Zoomancy – Divination by the appearance and/or the behaviors of animals. Also known as interpretations/predictions made based upon the appearance of imaginary or mythical creatures such as the unicorn or mermaid.