Divination is the practice that seeks to foretell future events or discover hidden knowledge. The term divination derives from Latin divinare ‘to foresee, foretell, predict, prophesy, etc.
What is divination?
A witch usually foresees the future by the interpretation of omens. She gains insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic ritual or practice in the form of horoscopes, astrology, crystal gazing, tarot cards or a ouija board.
The difference between divination and fortune-telling is that the first is more ritual, usually religious, and fortune-telling is more for personal things.
Divination in history
In the context of ancient Roman culture and belief, divination was concerned with discovering the will of the gods.
Divination was forbidden for religious or political reasons in some ancient societies, primarily for religious reasons. The bible says about divination “You shall not eat anything with its blood. You shall not practice divination or soothsaying.” (Leviticus 19:26) In Christianity it is a form is sin and not an alternate source of wisdom.
Types of divination
- Astrology (by celestial bodies)
- Ailuromancy (by the behaviour of felines)
- Augury (by the flight of birds)
- Aura-Soma, based on colors
- Bibliomancy (by book, frequently but not always a religious text)
- Cartomancy (by cards, e.g., playing cards, tarot cards, and non-tarot oracle cards; see also Taromancy)
- Cheiromancy (by palms; see Palmistry)
- Chronomancy (by time; lucky/unlucky days)
- Coscinomancy (by a sieve)
- Crystallomancy (by crystals or other reflecting objects; see also Scrying)
- Extispicy (from the entrails of sacrificed animals)
- Geomancy (by earth), includes Feng Shui divination
- Graphology (by handwriting)
- I Ching divination (ancient Chinese divination using I Ching): (But using an I Ching manual can make it also a form of Bibliomancy/Stichomancy)
- Heruspicy (by the organs of sacrificed animals)
- Necromancy (by trying to ask the dead)
- Numerology (by numbers)
- Oneiromancy/Incubatio (by dreams)
- Onomancy (by names)
- Ouija board divination
- Palmistry (by palm inspection)
- Phrenology (by the shape of one’s head)
- Pyromancy, or pyroscopy (by fire)
- Rhabdomancy divination by rods
- Scrying (“seeing” in a crystal ball, a mirror, or water)
- Runecasting / Runic divination (by runes)
- Sternomancy (by markings or bumps on the chest)
- Taromancy (by specially designed cards: Tarot; see also Cartomancy)
