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Divination is the occultic practice of ascertaining information by supernatural means. If a distinction is to be made with fortune-telling, divination has a formal or ritual and often social character, usually in a religious context; while fortune-telling is a more everyday practice for personal purposes. Divination is often dismissed by skeptics as being mere superstition. However, advocates say there is plenty of anecdotal evidence for the efficacy of divination. Divination is a universal cultural phenomenon which anthropologists have observed as being present in many religions and cultures in all ages up to the present day. However, the Judeo-Christian Bible states that divination is strictly forbidden by God. Scientific research and methods have made it possible to predict future events with some success, e.g., eclipses, weather forecasts and volcanic eruptions. However, this is not divination. Strictly speaking, divination assumes the influence of some supernatural force or fate, whereas scientific predictions are made from an essentially mechanical, impersonal world-view and rely on empirical laws of nature. So, as an operational definition, divination would be all methods of prognostication that have not been shown to be effective using scientific research.
Beyond mere explanations for anecdoctal evidence, there are some serious theories of how divination might work. One such theory is rooted in the nature of the unconscious mind, a theory which has some empirical scientific basis. Based on this theory, divination is the process by which messages from the unconscious mind are decoded. The belief in a supernatural agency or occultFor other uses of this term, see occult (disambiguation). The word occult comes from Latin occultus (hidden), referring to the knowledge of the secret' or 'knowledge of the hidden' and often meaning 'knowledge of the supernatural', as opposed to 'knowledg force as the source of these messages is what distinguishes this theory from a scientific explanation.
Julian JaynesJulian Jaynes ( 1920 1997) was an American psychologist, best known for his book The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind (1976), in which he argues that ancient peoples were not conscious as we consider the term today, and that categorized divination according to the following types:
- Omens and omen texts. "The most primitive, clumsy, but enduring method...is the simple recording of sequences of unusual or important events." (1976:236) Chinese history offers scrupulously documented occurrences of strange births, the tracking of natural phenomena, and other data. Chinese governmental planning relied on this method of forecasting for long-range strategy. It is not unreasonable to assume that modern scientific inquiry began with this kind of divination; Joseph NeedhamJoseph Needham ( December 9, 1900 — March 24 1995) was a British biochemist and pre-eminent authority on Chinese science and author of definitive texts on the subject. He pioneered the Western academic recognition of Chinese scientific past with the ongoi's work considered this very idea.
- Sortilege. This consists of the casting of lots whether with sticks, stones, bones, beans, or some other item. Modern playing cards and board games developed from this type of divination.
- Augury. Divination that ranks a set of given possibilities. It can be qualitative (such as shapes, proximities, etc.) DowsingDowsing is a controversial method of divination which dowsers say empowers them to find water, metals, gem stones and hidden objects by carrying some form of stick and watching its motion while walking over a piece of land. However repeated tests under co (a form of rhabdomancy ) developed from this type of divination. The RomansSee also Roman Republic (18th century) and Roman Republic (19th century). The Roman Republic traditionally lasted as a representative government of Rome and its territories from 510 BC until the establishment of the Roman Empire, typically placed at 44 BC in classical times used EtruscanThe Etruscan civilization existed in Etruria and the Po valley in the northern part of what is now Italy, prior to the formation of the Roman Republic. The Etruscans were a non- Indo-European people who inhabited northern and central Italy before 800 BC. methods of augury such as hepatoscopyHepatoscopy is a form of divination using the internal organs of sacrificed animals, specifically the liver. It is unrelated to endoscopy of this organ. The Babylonians were famous for hepatoscopy. The liver was considered the source of the blood and henc (actually a form of extispicy). HaruspicesThe bronze sheep's liver of Piacenza, with Etruscan inscriptions A haruspex was a sort of augur in the Roman religion who practiced divination, by inspecting the entrails of sacrificed animals, especially the livers of sacrificed sheep. The plural is haru examined the livers of sacrificed animals.
- Spontaneous. An unconstrained form of divination, free from any particular medium, and actually a generalization of all types of divination. The answer comes from whatever object the diviner happens to see or hear. Some Christians and members of other religions use a form of bibliomancy: they ask a question, rifle the pages of their holy book, and take as their answer the first passage their eyes light upon. Other forms of spontaneous divination include reading auras and New Age methods of Feng Shui such as "intuitive" and Fuzion.
One of the most popular methods of divination is astrology, typically categorized as Vedic, Western, and Chinese.
