|
Common Name |
Technical Name
(If Having One ... )
|
Brief Description |
|---|
| Arrows or Darts |
Belomancy |
The darts or arrows are drawn at random at which some of them have been inscribed with possible answers to a question prior to use. |
| Animal Behavior |
Alectryomancy |
Divination by means of an animal's behavior, related to apantomancy. |
| Ashes Of A Sacrifice |
Spodomancy |
I should note here that "sacrifice" is not meaning animal or human sacrifices but rather "offerings" - i.e. wood, incense, written papers, etc.
This method was known to been still practiced in Germany up through the first half of the 19th century. What is done is that one scatters the ashes thickly in some place exposed to the air (outside best for this, naturally, but some author's writings described it to be used in the hearth as well *shrug*) and writing in these ashes with the end of the finger the question about which information is required or felt needed. The inscribed ashes are then left overnight and in the morning the letters that remained legible are used as oracles, when/if they form an intelligible word, it may be considered to contain the mystic sense of the oracle and the answer to the question it was asked. Otherwise insight might be used to extract the appropriate answer in trying to assemble the letters. Since it is considered destiny or fate that decided what letters remained legible, this latter form of intervention by the diviner is not seen as interfering with the work of the oracle ... but simply helping it to manifest. |
|
Astrology |
Divination in accordance to the placement of the moon and stars and such at the time of a person's (or event's) birth. There are several areas of study under this heading that provide more details in certain areas. |
| Atmospheric OR Celestial Conditions |
Alectromancy |
Predictions made through the changes in the weather patterns. For example: an eclipse indicated a downfall of an enemy. A widely known version of this method of divination in use still today is the rhyme "Star light, Star bright, First star I see tonight, Wish I may, Wish I might ..." recited either upon spying of the first star seen by that person after nightfall or upon sighting of a falling star.
Astrometeorology incorporates astrology and alectromancy to foretell future weather patterns and disasters. |
|
Astragalomancy
OR
commonly referred to as
Astragyromancy |
Divination by throwing of object with sides (i.e. dice, dominoes, i-ching coins) for the future or for answers to a person's question. |
| Auras |
|
Study of the person's aura (a "coloring" around their outer body due to energy within them). As a note though, I should add that this electromagnetic energy field surrounds *all* considered living entities -- people, animals, plants, and yes - even minerals and crystals. |
| Barley Flour |
Crithomancy |
One of many methods employing tossing a handful of an item onto a flat surface then interpreting the shapes or images. |
| Barley Meal |
Alphitomancy |
Another guilty party finder technique .. The accused person was "compelled" (Oh ok... forced or guilt tripped may be the better term to use here since if they refused then "guilt" was more so thought in terms of their refusal) to partake some barley meal or barley meal bread. Before taking a bite, he or she says aloud "If I am deceiving you, may this piece of bread (or barley) choke me." If innocent, the person would suffer no inconvenience...but however if they would suffer indigestion upon consumption or choking while swallowing then they were revealed by the "uncontrolled forces" to be the guilty party. |
| Birds |
Augury |
One thing about divination is that sometimes very common everyday activities or items were employed for use. This is an example of one that the ancient Romans liked .... |
| Bird Songs |
Ornithomancy |
|
| Biorhythms |
|
Natural body cycles that start from moment of birth. |
| Branch Of Laurel |
Daphnomancy |
Listening and observing the crackling of a laurel branch when thrown into a fire. If it crackled while burning, this was a good sign... and vice versa. |
Card Reading
(This one doesn't open into a separate viewing window as it is linked to many other pages) |
Cartomancy |
Divination done with a regular pack of playing cards or Tarot cards. One of the more commonly thought of forms of divination as well. |
| Interpretation of a baby's caul |
Amniomancy |
Method of predicting future good or bad times of an individual at their birth according to the caul (birth membrane) that sometimes remain on an infant's head during birth: through taking in account the caul's coloring and how much coverage on the baby it had, et al. Some say when a child is born with a caul covering it's head *and* face (like a veil of sorts) then they were gifted with awesome psychic powers and insight abilities - other groups took it to mean that the child would not be a victim of drowning in their lifetime. |
| Divination With Cheese |
Tiromancy |
|
| Chinese Astrology |
|
Dependent upon year of birth then subsequent animal placement ... good years and bad years are pointed out along with some other interesting tidbits of info. |
| Clouds |
Aeromancy
OR
Nephelomancy |
|
| Crystals |
Crystallography |
Crystals always been mysterious : strange, dull pieces of rock which, when cut and polished, shine with a brilliance and life of their own. Can be used for healing and divinational purposes. |
|
Dactylomancy |
Divination by rings made by certain stellar aspects. |
| Dice |
|
Method commonly found in books dealing with various older methods of fortune-telling or divination practices, but one that I have rarely seen employed for a reading but it is starting to regain a sense of re-employment here of late.. |
| Dominoes |
|
As like with Dice, this method is more often found in divination compilation books ... I have not yet seen this employed by a psychic at a "fair", but have heard of it being used in more private settings... |
| Dreams |
Oniromancy |
Analysis of the thought patterns or images recalled from dreams |
| Etymology Of Names |
Onomamancy |
|
| Faces or Body Characteristics |
Anthroposomancy
Or
Physiognomy |
The study of character thru facial and/or body features and placements. |
| Fall Of A Body Into the Water |
Lecanomancy |
The study of the sound or the image made by the fall into a body of water. |
| Fig Leaves |
Sycomancy |
Divination format where the leaves (of a fig tree), where questions were written on, are observed. If the leaves dried quickly, it was a bad omen ... and vice versa. |
| Divination By Fire |
Causimomancy |
Well..simply put, if a combustible item failed to burn in the fire, this was seen as a happy omen. |
| Flame Of A Lamp |
Lampadomancy |
|
| Flour and Paper |
Aleuromancy |
A practice of divination done with messages baked inside of a cake, cookie, or bread. |
| Flower Meanings |
Florigraphy |
Not really a divination method but listed in some divinational topic books. The art of the language of flowers. Normally used to convey a message or a string of messages through the use of bouquets arrangements, so more of a romantic "silent language" than one of divination terms.. |
| Flower Oracle |
|
A format of divination devised in France by a University of Lyons professor that was popular in the 18th century time period. It was used to reveal a person's character to and forecast into what their future career may be by using a large bouquet of various flowers. A person would first look over the floral bounty then pick the first flower that struck their fancy over the rest of the selection and the reading would be based upon the divinatory meaning attached to that particular flower. |
| Flowers |
Floromancy |
Divination done by the observance of plants and flowers - particularly for love divination purposes - that was popular among Victorian ladies. For love divination: take two flowers that haven't bloomed yet .. on the stems place the initials of the lovers (male on one - the female on the other) ... take the flowers to a secret place and observe them and tend to them for 10 days. Now, if the one of the flowers twined with the other, it foretold of marriage for the man and woman - a blossom indicated children and the number could be sometimes be foretold by the number of blossoms; if the flowers died was seen as an indication of a break-up or even perhaps death of one of the lovers. |
Handwriting
Analysis |
Graphology |
Study of the loops, the swirls, the crossings, the dotting of the "i"'s, the slant, the angle, the height, and the curves that reveals a lot about a person's character and their ways of dealing with some things. |
| Horse Sounds |
Hippomancy |
Deriving omens from the neighing of horses. |
| I-Ching |
|
An ancient Chinese Oracle. |
| Insects |
|
Yep ... another one of those methods where you watch the movements of a particular critter ... |
| Itches |
|
Got an itch?? Before you scratch you might want to know what it might mean ... |
| Knucklebones |
Ragalomancy |
Not to be confused with the casting of bones method similar to dice or dominoes ....this is one of the many methods where a handful of an item are thrown onto a flat surface then the shapes or images they landed in are then studied. |
| Laughter |
Geloscopy |
An art of ascertaining certain characteristics from hearing the person's laugh. Not a divination form as per the meaning of the word. |
| Lightning Patterns |
Ceraunscopy |
Often was used in conjunction to the application of Aeromancy or Nephelomancy. |
| Moles |
|
Non-skin cancer meanings.... |
| Movements Of A Hanging Key |
Cleidomancy |
Listed separately from pendulum or dowsing arts .... Similar to a method described later on under Bibliomancy. It is the use of a key, a book, and a piece of string for ascertaining guilt in a theft or murder. The key was placed in a book with a ring outside, and the book was tied up with a string. The questioner held the key by his/her finger placed in the ring and whispered the name of the suspected person. If innocent, the key did not move ... but if this was the guilty party,then the key moved so violently that the string around the book was broken. (Generally a virgin was the person asked to hold the book, most often a Bible or other religious book.) |
| Number Of Letters In A Family Or Birth Name |
Arithmancy |
A member or version of the numerology area of divination. |
| Divination With Needles |
|
Take 25 new needles; set them on a plate and pour water on them. Those that cross over each other indicate how many enemies one has. Other attributes given to needles are : When the covering sheet of a corpse had been sewn with it, the needles acquires a "power of enchantment" over a bridal bed, and the fulfillment of the "marriage act" can be prevented by its means. |
| Numerology |
Geomancy |
Cutely put -- it is using the logical system of mathematics to bring a semblance of order out of the chaotic .... (told you it was cute...) |
| Divination With Onions |
Cromniomancy |
Two methods of use, usually done only on Christmas Eve. Method #1 is used to ascertain tidings of the absent persons. Place several onions on a table and leave them undisturbed till they begin to sprout (having inscribed upon each the name of some absent friend prior). The one which sprouts the fastest signifies that person (whose name the onion bears) is enjoying vigorous health. Method #2 was used by maidens in hopes of ascertaining certain particulars about their future spouse, similar to technique used in Method #1. |
| Palmistry |
Chiromancy |
The art and science of interpreting lines and swirls on hands. In theory, it is recommended that you compare the non-dominant hand (as it is claimed to show what talents or skills you were born with ... or to some, what you were originally meant to have achieved) in relation to the dominant hand (as it shows what you have accomplished or changed). |
| Use Of A Pearl |
Margaritomancy |
This form of divination was used primarily for trying to recover stolen goods or ascertain names of guilty parties and is rumored to been used heavily in the Middle Ages. A pearl is placed by a fire and covered by a glass vase. The names of persons suspected is repeated in a loud clear voice above the vase ... and at the sound of the guilty party's name it is said that the pearl would suddenly bound and strike (and shiver) the top of the vase. If no such event occurs then the diviner may be certain that he/she is on the wrong avenue of thought and may seek out information by some other method. |
| Pebbles Or Peas |
Cleromancy |
Divining through "figures or shapes" made by a handful of these items thrown onto a flat surface. |
Pendulum
Or Dowsing |
Dowsing |
With a pendulum you determine which way it swings in answer to simple questions that need only one word responses. Dowsing is more so known over the years due to the usage in locating underground water pools. |
| Phrenology |
|
You get to feel about the other person's head and tell things about them through the placement, size, et al of the "bumps" on their noggins. |
| Psychometry |
Psychometry |
Sensing vibrations or mental images by holding a personal item or photo of the person. |
| Ripples | Aeromancy | Divining through the formation of ripples on water made by either speech or the wind. |
| Runes |
|
"Casting" runes is generally how a reading process is described although the runes are actually drawn out of a pouch of sorts one by one and laid out in a reading pattern or layout. The lettering on them is either Norse or some are done in Celtic (Ogham) alphabets. |
| Salt |
Alomancy |
Divining through the patterns made by a handful of salt thrown onto a flat surface. |
Scrying or
Crystal Gazing |
Scrying |
Where one can see images or symbols while steadily looking into a crystal or pool of dark water while in a "daydream" state of mind. Some also employ the use of candle flames or log fires or various other sources. The terms "gypsy" and "fortune-teller" often conjure up in the mind the image of this art in use. |
| Shapes Of Shadows |
Sciomancy |
Similar practice as like tasseography (tea leaf reading) or aeromancy (cloud reading)). |
| Smoke Of The Hearth |
Capnomancy |
A simple form of divination using smoke, obtained by the burning of vervain and other sacred plants. The shapes in the smoke and the direction of the smoke were taken into consideration. |
| Smoke Of Incense |
Thurifumia |
|
| Stars |
Horoscopy |
The Latin term gives a clue as to what this pertains mainly to.... |
| Stones |
Lithomancy |
|
Sudden Meeting Of An Animal
...OR ...
Chance Hearing Of Fortuitous Words |
Apantomancy OR Cledonismancy |
Extracting presages from the appearance of any object unexpectedly -- or rare in the parts you live in -- for example, a spider caught running or spinning it's web in the morning was regarded of a promise of money .. or a black cat crossing your path (in Britain this is good luck, in the United States it is regarded as bad luck). |
Reading Tea Leaves
Or Coffee Grounds |
Tasseography |
This divination practice has also led off to minor offshoots of lesser known methods that substitute other materials for the tea leaves, but not classified under the same heading even though they are relatively a copycat version per se. The reader uses their imagination in conjunction with their intuition to help "decipher" or "name" the clusterings. Closely linked to the mental image of "gypsies" or women in "Victorian times putting this to use around the kitchen table. |
Use Of Bible
... OR ...
Other Sources of Literature |
Bibliomancy OR Rhapsodomancy |
A method that has been around for a long time and still in pretty active use today. |
| Divination With Water |
Lecanomancy |
Another method of divination with water that is similar to Scrying in a way. The water is placed in a silver vase on a clear moonlit night, the light of a candle is reflected from the blade of a knife onto the water. The "reader" concentrates his/her attention onto the surface of the water ...and if they possess any form of clairvoyance then they will be able to read an answer to the questions (wether pictorially or literally) represented on the surface. |
| Water Of Fountains |
Pegomancy |
|
Western
Astrology |
|
The more commonly used version of astrology ... this is the one that contains terms like zodiac ... sun signs...moon signs...etc.; placement of planets, moon, and stars at the time of a person's or an event's birth. Western Astrology looks to advise and the Far East (Chinese) more so seen as a way to blueprint coming events. |
| Winds |
Austromancy |
|
| Wine Appearance |
Oenomancy |
|
| Use Of Wood |
Xylomancy |
Done with the pieces of dry wood found on the road ... and also by the casual arrangement of sticks of firewood and the way in which they burn. |