Divination Systems
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Types of Divination
Types of Divination ASTROLOGY is divination using celestial bodies: the sun, moon, planets, and stars. CARTOMANCY is fortune telling using cards such as the Tarot. CLAIRAUDIENCE is "clear hearing" of divinatory information. Parapsychologist generally regard as a form of extrasensory perception. CLAIRVOYANCE is "clear seeing" of divinatory information. Parapsychologist generally regard as a form of extrasensory perception. CRYSTALLOMANCY is divination through crystal gazing. DOWSING or DIVINING RODS are methods of divination where a forked stick is used to locate water or precious minerals. NUMEROLOGY is the numerical interpretation of numbers, dates, and the number value of letters. OCULOMANCY is divination from a person's eye. PALMISTRY is the broad field of divination and interpretation of the lines and structure of the hand. PRECOGNITION in an inner knowledge or sense of future events. PSYCHOMETRY is the faculty of gaining impressions from a physical object and its history. SCIOMANCY is divination using a spirit guide, a method generally employed by channelers. SCRYING is a general term for divination using a crystal, mirrors, bowls of water, ink, or flames to induce visions. TASSEOGRAPHY is the reading of tea leaves that remain in a tea cup once the beverage has been drunk. AEROMANCY divination from the air and sky, particularly concentrating on cloud shapes, comets, and other phenomena not normally visible in the heavens. ALECTRYOMANCY is divination whereby a bird is allowed to pick corn grains from a circle of letters. A variation is to recite letters of the alphabet noting those at which a cock crows. ALEUROMANCY is divination using "fortune cookies"; answers to questions are rolled into balls of dough and once baked are chosen at random. -
Cleansing the Cosmos
CLEANSING THE COSMOS: A BIBLICAL MODEL FOR CONCEPTUALIZING AND COUNTERACTING EVIL By E. Janet Warren A thesis submitted to The University of Birmingham for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Theology and Religion College of Arts and Law The University of Birmingham November 14, 2011 University of Birmingham Research Archive e-theses repository This unpublished thesis/dissertation is copyright of the author and/or third parties. The intellectual property rights of the author or third parties in respect of this work are as defined by The Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 or as modified by any successor legislation. Any use made of information contained in this thesis/dissertation must be in accordance with that legislation and must be properly acknowledged. Further distribution or reproduction in any format is prohibited without the permission of the copyright holder. ABSRACT Understanding evil spiritual forces is essential for Christian theology. Evil has typically been studied either from a philosophical perspective or through the lens of ‘spiritual warfare’. The first seldom considers demonology; the second is flawed by poor methodology. Furthermore, warfare language is problematic, being very dualistic, associated with violence and poorly applicable to ministry. This study addresses these issues by developing a new model for conceptualizing and counteracting evil using ‘non-warfare’ biblical metaphors, and relying on contemporary metaphor theory, which claims that metaphors are cognitive and can depict reality. In developing this model, I examine four biblical themes with respect to alternate metaphors for evil: Creation, Cult, Christ and Church. Insights from anthropology (binary oppositions), theology (dualism, nothingness) and science (chaos-complexity theory) contribute to the construction of the model, and the concepts of profane space, sacred space and sacred actions (divine initiative and human responsibility) guide the investigation. -
Newsletter of the Societas Magica/ No. 4
Newsletter of the Societas Magica/ No. 4 The current issue of the Newsletter is devoted mostly to the activities, collections, and publications of the Warburg Institute in London. Readers desiring further information are urged to communicate with the Institute at the following address, or to access its Website. È Warburg Institute University of London School of Advanced Study Woburn Square, London WC1H 0AB tel. (0171) 580-9663 fax (0171) 436-2852 http://www.sas.ac.uk/warburg/ È The Warburg Institute: History and Current Activities by Will F. Ryan Librarian of the Institute The Warburg Institute is part of the School of Advanced Study in the University of London, but its origins are in pre-World War II Hamburg. Its founder, Aby Warburg (1866-1929),1 was a wealthy historian of Renaissance art and civilization who developed a distinctive interdisciplinary approach to cultural history which included the history of science and religion, psychology, magic and astrology. He was the guiding spirit of a circle of distinguished scholars for whom his library and photographic collection provided a custom- built research center. In 1895 Warburg visited America and studied in particular Pueblo culture, which he regarded as still retaining a consciousness in which magic was a natural element. In his historical study of astrology he was influenced by Franz Boll (part of whose book collection is now in the Warburg library). In 1912 he delivered a now famous lecture on the symbolism of astrological imagery of the frescoes in the Palazzo Schifanoja in Ferrara; he wrote a particularly interesting article on Luther's horoscope; and he began the study of the grimoire called Picatrix, the various versions of which the Warburg Institute is gradually publishing. -
Oneiromancy in the Bible
Oneiromancy 1 Oneiromancy in the Bible So what did the medieval or early Renaissance reader make of oneiromancy--the process of divination through dreams? Even through the King James Bible would not appear in English until the 1600s, most educated readers would be familiar with various biblical accounts of divinely inspired dreams. These pages list biblical passages that Christians in the medieval period considered important. In some cases, there is some confusion in the Latin text as to whether or not the events described took place as a dream (somnium) during sleep (somnus), or as a waking vision (visio). To differentiate, I include the Latin below. Note that the phrases "in somno" and in somnis" can mean "in dreams" or "while asleep." Genesis 20:3-7 (somnium): In the story of Abraham and Sarah, a male dreamer (Abimelech) is warned against taking Sarah from Abraham. 28:12-15 (in somnis) Jacob's dream of a ladder, with angels moving up and down it. 31:10-13 (in somnis) Angel appears to Jacob in a dream, shows him Laban's sheep producing speckled and striped ewes, which will be his according to agreement. 31:24 (in somnis) Laban warned by God in dream not to speak harshly to Jacob. 37:5-9 (ut visum somnium) Joseph hated by his brothers, he tells them a dream he already dreamed; the frame is a narrator telling a past dream in which Jacob's brothers' sheaves stand in a field with sheaves bowing down to his. Then the sun and moon and stars worship it as well. -
'A Great Or Notorious Liar': Katherine Harrison and Her Neighbours
‘A Great or Notorious Liar’: Katherine Harrison and her Neighbours, Wethersfield, Connecticut, 1668 – 1670 Liam Connell (University of Melbourne) Abstract: Katherine Harrison could not have personally known anyone as feared and hated in their own home town as she was in Wethersfield. This article aims to explain how and why this was so. Although documentation is scarce for many witch trials, there are some for which much crucial information has survived, and we can reconstruct reasonably detailed accounts of what went on. The trial of Katherine Harrison of Wethersfield, Connecticut, at the end of the 1660s is one such case. An array of factors coalesced at the right time in Wethersfield for Katherine to be accused. Her self-proclaimed magical abilities, her socio- economic background, and most of all, the inter-personal and legal conflicts that she sustained with her neighbours all combined to propel this woman into a very public discussion about witchcraft in 1668-1670. The trial of Katherine Harrison was a vital moment in the development of the legal and theological responses to witchcraft in colonial New England. The outcome was the result of a lengthy process jointly negotiated between legal and religious authorities. This was the earliest documented case in which New England magistrates trying witchcraft sought and received explicit instruction from Puritan ministers on the validity of spectral evidence and the interface between folk magic and witchcraft – implications that still resonated at the more recognised Salem witch trials almost twenty-five years later. The case also reveals the social dynamics that caused much ambiguity and confusion in this early modern village about an acceptable use of the occult. -
Divination in the Ancient Near East Humans Are Creatures That Thrive on Information
1 Divination in the Ancient Near East Humans are creatures that thrive on information. We have always tried to learn what was going on around us, particularly in times of danger or crisis. If we cannot find hard facts, we will make something up. Divination in the ancient world helped to soothe this need, but it served other functions as well. The ultimate basis of divination was a sense that divine action and intent has a ripple effect across the rest of the physical world. These manifest themselves in subtle changes and events both large and small that the wise could identify and interpret. Usually when we talk of divination we focus on the mechanics, and we will do that here to some extent. Perhaps the most famous form of divination among Israel’s neighbors and especially the civilizations of Mesopotamia was hepatoscopy or divining based on marks or deformations of the liver of a sacrificial animal. This was part of a larger form of divination called extispicy, which tried to discern divine intent by examining an animal’s internal organs. The Figure 1: Etruscan Bronze Mirror of Chalchas the Seer Babylonian and Assyrians were Reading a Liver (Vatican: Gregorian Museum, Rome, not the only ones to practice cat # 12240). this; one finds it throughout the Mediterranean basin, but they brought it to unparalleled levels of sophistication. One obvious question is, “why a liver?” The most likely reason is that it was something beyond reach until it was extracted by the diviner. Until then, no one could touch it or manipulate it, and so it constituted something on which the action and intent of the gods could write itself without human interference or manipulation. -
DIVINATION SYSTEMS Written by Nicole Yalsovac Additional Sections Contributed by Sean Michael Smith and Christine Breese, D.D
DIVINATION SYSTEMS Written by Nicole Yalsovac Additional sections contributed by Sean Michael Smith and Christine Breese, D.D. Ph.D. Introduction Nichole Yalsovac Prophetic revelation, or Divination, dates back to the earliest known times of human existence. The oldest of all Chinese texts, the I Ching, is a divination system older than recorded history. James Legge says in his translation of I Ching: Book Of Changes (1996), “The desire to seek answers and to predict the future is as old as civilization itself.” Mankind has always had a desire to know what the future holds. Evidence shows that methods of divination, also known as fortune telling, were used by the ancient Egyptians, Chinese, Babylonians and the Sumerians (who resided in what is now Iraq) as early as six‐thousand years ago. Divination was originally a device of royalty and has often been an essential part of religion and medicine. Significant leaders and royalty often employed priests, doctors, soothsayers and astrologers as advisers and consultants on what the future held. Every civilization has held a belief in at least some type of divination. The point of divination in the ancient world was to ascertain the will of the gods. In fact, divination is so called because it is assumed to be a gift of the divine, a gift from the gods. This gift of obtaining knowledge of the unknown uses a wide range of tools and an enormous variety of techniques, as we will see in this course. No matter which method is used, the most imperative aspect is the interpretation and presentation of what is seen. -
The Effects of Superstition As Destination Attractiveness on Behavioral Intention
The Effects of Superstition as Destination Attractiveness on Behavioral Intention Yunzhou Zhang Thesis submitted to the faculty of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science In Hospitality and Tourism Management Muzaffer Uysal, Committee Chair Ken McCleary Vincent P. Magnini May 2, 2012 Blacksburg, VA Keywords: destination attractiveness, superstition attitude, behavioral intention, superstition as destination attractiveness (SADA) The Effects of Superstition as Destination Attractiveness on Behavioral Intention Yunzhou Zhang ABSTRACT Superstitious beliefs date back thousands of years and continue to the present, and research suggests that superstitious beliefs have a robust influence on product satisfaction and decision making under risk. The study therefore examines how superstition attitude will impact potential tourists’ intention to visit a destination so that relevant organizations (e.g. destination management/marketing organizations) could better understand potential tourists’ behaviors, identify a niche market encompassing those prone to superstition, and tailor the tourism products to the needs and beliefs of potential tourists. The study used a survey instrument which consists of four components: the scale of Superstition as Destination Attractiveness (SADA), the revised Paranormal Belief Scale, the measurement of Intention to Visit, and respondents’ demographics and travel experiences. A mixed-method data collection procedure was adopted -
Rhabdomancy and Belomancy, Or Divination by the Rod and by the Arrow Author(S): A
Rhabdomancy and Belomancy, or Divination by the Rod and by the Arrow Author(s): A. W. Buckland Source: The Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, Vol. 5 (1876), pp. 436-450 Published by: Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2841115 . Accessed: 15/06/2014 04:45 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp . JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to The Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland. http://www.jstor.org This content downloaded from 195.34.79.223 on Sun, 15 Jun 2014 04:45:13 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 436 A. W. BUCKLAND.-Rhabdomancyand Belomnancy, would meet the case withoutinterfering with those givenin MNr. Evans's paper,viz.: abv grun Prehistoricclwelling P halfunderground, or pits... or chamber undergroundchamber or artificial cave ... ... B Then, again, althoughthere was a radicalfor a defensivework, therewas none forearthworks of a non-defensivecharacter, which were commonin all parts 'of the world. He thoughtthat the annexedsymbol might be employedin conjunctionwith any other symbolto denotethat a workwas defensiveS4; whilst the symbolemployed in the paper for " campor defensivework " might be used merelyto designate" earthwork."If the code obligedus to markall earthworksas defensiveit wouldlead to error. -
D I V I N a T I O N Culture a N D the H a N D L I N G of The
Originalveröffentlichung in: G. Leick (Hrsg), The Babylonian World, New York/London, 2007, S. 361-372 CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE DIVINATION CULTURE AND THE HANDLING OF THE FUTURE Stefan M. Maul n omen is a clearly defined perception understood as a sign pointing to future A events whenever it manifests itself under identical circumstances. The classification of a perception as ominous is based on an epistemological development which establishes a normative relationship between the perceived and the future. This classification process is preceded by a period of detailed examination and is thus initially built on empirical knowledge. Omina only cease to be detected empirically when a firm conceptual link has been established between the observed and the future which then allows omina to be construed by the application of regularities. In the Mesopotamian written sources from the first and second millennia BC, omina based on regularities far exceed those based on empirical data. Mesopotamian scholars generally collected data without formally expressing the fundamental principles behind their method. It was the composition of non-empirical omina as such which allowed students to detect the regularities on which they were based without this formulated orally or in writing. Modern attempts at a systematic investigation of such principles however, are still outstanding. It is interesting that there is no Sumerian or Akkadian equivalent for the terms 'oracle' or 'omen'. Assyriologists use the term omen for the sentence construction 'if x then y' which consists of a main clause beginning with summa ('if') describing the ominous occurence, and a second clause which spells out the predicted outcome. -
The Punishment of Clerical Necromancers During the Period 1100-1500 CE
Christendom v. Clericus: The Punishment of Clerical Necromancers During the Period 1100-1500 CE A Thesis Presented to the Academic Faculty by Kayla Marie McManus-Viana In Partial Fulfillment of the Degree Requirements for the Bachelor of Science in History, Technology, and Society with the Research Option Georgia Institute of Technology December 2020 1 Table of Contents Section 1: Abstract Section 2: Introduction Section 3: Literature Review Section 4: Historical Background Magic in the Middle Ages What is Necromancy? Clerics as Sorcerers The Catholic Church in the Middle Ages The Law and Magic Section 5: Case Studies Prologue: Magic and Rhetoric The Cases Section 6: Conclusion Section 7: Bibliography 3 Abstract “The power of Christ compels you!” is probably the most infamous line from the 1973 film The Exorcist. The movie, as the title suggests, follows the journey of a priest as he attempts to excise a demon from within the body of a young girl. These types of sensational pop culture depictions are what inform the majority of people’s conceptions of demons and demonic magic nowadays. Historically, however, human conceptions of demons and magic were more nuanced than those depicted in The Exorcist and similar works. Demons were not only beings to be feared but sources of power to be exploited. Necromancy, a form of demonic magic, was one avenue in which individuals could attempt to gain control over a demon. During the period this thesis explores, 1100-1500 CE, only highly educated men, like clerics, could complete the complicated rituals associated with necromancy. Thus, this study examines the rise of the learned art of clerical necromancy in conjunction with the re-emergence of higher learning in western Europe that developed during the period from 1100-1500 CE. -
Fusing Organisational Change and Leadership Into a Practical Roadmap for South-African Organisations
T Blom 70425655 – DBL Thesis Fusing organisational change and leadership into a practical roadmap for South-African organisations by TONJA BLOM Submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of DBL at the UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA SUPERVISOR: DR RC VILJOEN MAY 2015 i T Blom 70425655 – DBL Thesis DECLARATION I, T. Blom (Student number: 704 256 55) hereby declare that “Fusing organisational change and leadership into a practical roadmap for South-African organisations” is my own work and that all the sources that I have used or quoted have been indicated and acknowledged by means of complete references. __________________________ _______________________ SIGNATURE DATE (Mrs T. Blom) ii T Blom 70425655 – DBL Thesis ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my gratitude to the following people for their invaluable assistance in this research project: To my husband: Jan Blom. Thank you for your endless patience and support. I would not have been able to do this without you by my side. To my academic promoter: Dr Rica Viljoen. Thank you for you. With your guidance, wisdom and expertise this was a most enjoyable journey. I do not believe we have reached the end yet. Your energy is contagious! To the SBL librarians: Ms Lorraine Grobler and Ms Megan Scheepers. Thank you for your commitment, dedication and willingness to assist. I would like to acknowledge Ms Moya Joubert for assuming the role of editing and proofreading of this document. To everybody who responded to all my questions. Thank you for the insights gained through our conversations. I am grateful to everybody who assisted me on this journey.