Divination is the practice of determining the unknown
by the manipulation and observation of tools recognized by their
users as possessing the ability to provide such information.
The ancient art of divination has never lost its popularity. Even
today, in our largely materialistic world, we perform age-old rites
to discover the shape of the future. In its many forms, divination
is as much a part of our lives as it was in the ancient world.
The practice of foretelling the future through the use of tools
predates history and so we have no record of the first culture
that acted upon its desire to peer into tomorrow. Perhaps the earliest
forms consisted of gazing into lakes, watching the smoke rising
from cooking and heating fires, and observing the shapes of clouds.
In preliterate times all such phenomena were invested with spiritual
energies, and it seems logical that it was to these that our ancestors
turned for glimpses of tomorrow.
In the great cultures of the past, divination was usually linked
with religion. The deities, it was believed, were willing to provide
hints of the future if they were given the opportunity to do so.
This was provided to them by the presentation and use of specific
tools, which the deities manipulated to provide specific responses.
The earliest diviners thought that divination revealed the will
of the deities. The future, they thought, was unchangeable.
After many centuries of practice, however, it became obvious that
this concept could easily be challenged. Why did some events revealed
in predictions never occur? Werent the deities in total control
of human life? Some cultures answered such questions by altering
their definition of divination. Rather than revealing a fated future,
divination provided glimpses of possible future events. The future
could be altered by human action. Thus, divination provided a window
into potential tomorrowsnot of fate. Negative messages were now
considered to be useful warnings, not inescapable messages of future
doom.
Today, divination is often defined as a branch of magic. This
is untrue. The two practices are entirely different. Divination
attempts to discover the past, present, or future, while magic
is an active process by which the future is thought to be changed.
Though magic and divination can be used together, they are in no
way related. Those who claim that they are one and the same have
no understanding of either practice, or have their own axes to
grind.
How It Works
There are many theories that attempt to explain the mechanism at
work during divination, some of which are ap-plicable only to
specific forms. In general, however, it is believed that our
actions and thoughts produce nonphysical waves of energy that
extend into the future, and thus shape it to a certain extent.
They produce a map of tomorrow based on our current speed and
direction, but many destinations lie upon its surface, and we
can change course at any time.
Divinatory techniques examine these energy waveswhich may not
be consciously known to the divinerand, by taking them as well
as other forces into account, paint a picture of the futureif things
continue on the present course for some time.
The tools reveal the unknown information in a wide variety of
ways. Some of these (the use of the pendulum or sand divination,
for example) seem to rely on the subconscious mind, in which we
become aware of these streams, to produce the response.
Others techniques are completely free of our conscious or subconscious
control, relying on other forces to manipulate the objects and
to produce the prediction. In these forms, which are usually the
most reliable, we simply present the tools and allow them to do
the work.
The Major Types of Divination
By studying the hundreds of techniques used in cultures throughout
history, scholars have divided divination into two basic forms:
operational and natural. Operational divination consists of the
manipulation of tools (smoke, oil in water, eggs, dice, pieces
of paper, knives, stones, and so on) to determine the future.
Such tools are used in specific ways for this express purpose.
These represent later developments of divinatory technique.
Natural divination consists of the observation of occurrences
in the natural world. A specific time and place is set aside for
the express purpose of asking that omens derived from natural physical
phenomena present themselves to reveal the future. The casual observation
of omens that may unexpectedly occur at any time isnt true divination.
Omens must be preceded by a request for information in order to
be classified as divination. These are known as provoked omens.
Such omens are created by the world around us. The flight or appearance
of birds, the behavior of animals, observation of the stars and
clouds, the winds activity, and the sudden appearance of meteors
and lightning are some popular forms.
The Divinatory Response
Messages received during divination are known as responses. They
usually take one of three forms. The nature of the technique
determines the messages form.
The first form produces so-called binary responses. The techniques
that create binary responses are the easiest to perform and often
produce the clearest answers. Questions are asked that can be answered
with a yes or a no; hence the term binary. Occasionally, a third
option, maybe, perhaps, or no answer is also included.
The second response consists of the creation of symbols or images.
These forms are termed symbolic. The divinatory tools (particularly
crystal spheres, clouds, fire, smoke, and oil dropped into water)
produce symbols that are interpreted in conjunction with the diviners
question. Forms that produce such responses arent limited to answering
specific questions; they can be used to determine the general future.
The symbols thus produced are interpreted to provide information
such as it will be a prosperous year, or expect losses, and so
on.
Symbolic
responses rely both on the diviners powers of observation as
well as on her or his ability to unlock the symbols inner meanings.
Generally speaking, only symbols familiar to the diviner will appear,
and this enhances the probability of a successful interpretation.
The
value of techniques that produce binary responses is obvious:
no such interpretation is necessary. Both of these forms, however,
can produce satisfactory results if used with the proper attitude.
The third type of divination produces what we may term selective
responses. A number of likely future events are written on pieces
of paper, leaves, stones, or on other tools. These are then manipulated
(placed in a windy spot, chosen at random) to provide the most
likely prediction.
Divination Isnt Psychic Awareness
Many of the processes at work during divination are little understood.
However, one fact is clear: true divination doesnt consist of
the use of psychic abilities. It doesnt rely on a persons ability
to tap into a bank of knowledge usually unknown to the conscious
mind. Because of this, anyone, psychic or not, can successfully
practice divination.
It can certainly be argued that our psychic minds may be at work
during some techniquesthat they examine waves of future energy
and then relate them (through symbolic responses) to our conscious
mind. No such awareness can be at work during techniques that produce
binary or selective responses, yet all three systems can produce
insightful answers.
Some diviners still believe that higher beings manipulate the
tools or, alternately, place symbols within them for us to see.
This, the ancient view, may or may not be accepted according to
the diviners spiritual beliefs. Such a belief isnt necessary, for
even nonreligious persons can satisfactorily perform divination.
Why Is the Past of Importance?
Some question the need to examine the past to discover the future.
This is based on the assumption that we know everything about
our pasts because weve lived them.
Why, then, do so many divinatory techniques focus on both the
past and the future? Most Tarot spreads include a placement for
a card that symbolizes the past as well as the future. Magic mirrors
and other tools are used to illuminate the past, especially to
see the circumstances surrounding a crime that has been committed
at an earlier time.
The fact remains that divination has always been used for this
purpose. The explanation of why is rather simple: every day, were
building our futures. Every decision that we make affects tomorrow.
When were faced with a difficult situation, we may ask ourselves,
Why? The answer often lies in the past.
Though most of us can remember our pasts, we may not be able to
make the conscious connection between past and present. Were incapable
of seeing that we reap the fruits of our actions. If, yesterday,
a man decided to sit on train tracks for twenty-four hours, and
is then run over by the train, hes feeling the effects of his past
decision.
If we make unwise choices well suffer because of them. Deciding
not to take an important medication may result in a severe relapse
this week. If we allow another person to steer us away from our
goals and dreams, we may find ourselves living an unfulfilling
experience bereft of happiness. Moving to a town thats flooded
every year during heavy rains will probably make our shoes wet.
Though these are simple examples, the fact remains that many of
us are simply unable to link past actions and the present state
of our lives.
The past also affects the future, for the streams of energy not
only follow us, they race on into the future, continuing to mold
our lives. Becoming aware of these past streams can not only answer
questions concerning our present lives, but can also provide hints
of the future. Therefore, examination of the past can be of great
importance in divination.
Divination remains a mysterious art. Perhaps this is part of its
appeal. Scientific inquiry and education have largely stripped
our lives of mystery. Though the purpose of divination is the clarification
of the future, the manner in which this is achieved is highly romantic
and evocative. This may explain why divination has never lost its
popularity during the 5,000 years of its practice.
| Authors
Details: From the book 'Divination for Beginners:
Reading the Past, Present & Future'
by: Scott Cunningham |
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