Divination

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Divination is the prognostication of the future by means either of art (or ‘skill’, gr. τέχνη tékhnē, lat. árs) or of inspiration. The efficacy both of divination in general and of specific divinatory methods was much debated in antiquity. We still have manuals for some of these methods, especially astrology, allowing us to practice them still or again today, while others have been largely or entirely lost, or were never put into writing to begin with.

Major Forms of Technical Divination

There can be little doubt that, in the Greater Mediterranean, astrology (divination from the stars) was the form of technical divination that inspired the greatest amount of literary production. This does not necessarily mean, however, that it was the most widely practiced. Other methods could be diffuse, less formalized, simpler, or simply taught orally, and yet equally or even more popular. And some in fact did generate significant bodies of ancient literature, but happened to interest medieval scribes less or not at all, either because of their connection to overtly polytheistic rituals or for more uncertain reasons.

Other forms of technical divination on which we are relatively well informed, whether through practical manuals or theoretical accounts, are:

These methods generally have multiple names in both Latin and Greek, and still more in other languages, which will be listed on the respective pages.

Ancient Classifications of Divinatory Methods

Divination in Homeric Scholarship

Porphyry of Tyre (late 3rd century CE), best known as a Neoplatonist philosopher but also an important philologist, [re: μάντιές εἰσι θυοσκόοι ἢ ἱερῆες]

A Porphyrian Catalogue of Divinatory Methods

The fullest list of divinatory methods surviving from antiquity also comes, either partly or wholly, from Porphyry. The relevant section of his lost Letter to Anebo was summarized in the form of a brief catalogue by the Christian writer Joseph of Tiberias (4th century CE). The first section lists kinds of divination:

How many divinations there are among the pagans (gr. Héllēnes).
(1) Astronomical divination (‘astronomy–astrology’, gr. astronomikḗ).
(2) Horoscopic divination (i.e., ‘natal’ or ‘horoscopic astrology’, gr. genethliakḗ).
(3) Dream-interpreting divination (gr. oneiroskopikḗ).
(4) Augural divination (‘from birds’, gr. oiōnistikḗ).
(5) Symbolic divination (‘from symbols’ or ‘tokens’, gr. symbolikḗ).
(6) [unintelligible] (gr. athrikḗ).
(7) Divination by lots (gr. hē dià klḗrōn).
(8) Divination by knucklebones (gr. hē di’ astragálōn).
(9) Divination by things on fire (or ‘by fire, by fiery things’, gr. hē di’ empýrōn).
(10) Divination by lots (gr. hē dià lakhmôn).[1]
(11) Animal-sacrificial divination (gr. hē thytikḕ zṓᵢōn).
(12) Egg-inspecting divination (gr. ōoskopikḗ).
(13) Divination by prodigies (gr. hē dià terátôn).
(14) Divination through enthusiasm (gr. hē kat’ enthousíasin).
(15) Divination through the ingress of some inspiration (gr. hē kat’ eískrisin tinos epipnoíās).
(16) Divination by chance utterances (gr. hē dià klēdónōn).
(17) Divination by ...
(18) Divination by Panic movement.
(19) Divination by the inspection of shapes.
(20) Divination by the inspection of hands.
(21) Divination by ...
(22) Divination by a sieve.
(23) Divination by a magic dish.
(24) Divination in a bowl.
(25) Divination by autoptic invocation.
(26) Divination by psychopompy.
(27) Divination by cult statues carried on yokes.
(28) Divination by flutes.
(29) Divination by cymbals.
(30) Divination by tympanums and any musical instrument.[2]

The second section shifts grammatically to list kinds of diviners, with some doublets to the first section (namely 41=11, 42=4, 46bc = 14 and 15):

(31) Those (divining) by Sabazius.
(32) Those acting through the Mother (metrízontes).
(33) Others divine (here theiázousin) through the imaginative faculty.
(34) Others make darkness their assistant.
(35) Others, draughts.
(36) Others, incantations and communions.
(37) Others see appearances in water.
(38) Others, on a wall.
(39) Others, in the air of the open sky.
(40) Others, in the Sun and in the other stars across the heaven.
(41) Some (divine) by entrails.
(42) Others, by birds.
(43) Others, by barley-groats.
(44) Others, by natural observation indicating the changes that come upon animals or plants.
(45) Others, by numbers.
(46a) Others, by physiognomonic
(46b) There is also an enthusiastic onrush (epibolḕ enthousiastikḗ).
(46c) And an onrush of divine possession (epibolḕ theophoríās).[3]

A third and final section (mostly) goes through more localized practices:

There are also famous oracular sanctuaries (khrēstḗria) among them:
(47) The betyls (baitȳ́lia) in the temples.
(48) By stones cast onto letters, in Egypt.[4]
(49) By the byní, a certain triangular musical instrument, which the temple-singers (hieropsáltai) play with plectrums at revels. [Two unintelligible words.]
(50) The Vestal Virgins (lit. ‘virgins of Hestia’), when they make sacrifice, speak and determine the future from the undying flame.
(51) Those who act Corybantically (korybantizómenoi), by Corybantic (dances), beside the Dionysian (temple).
(52) In the Colophonium, the priest of the Clarian (Apollo) would drink water and speak to each concerning what they came about.
(53) In Delphi, the women divine (here thespízousin) while sitting beside apertures of water.
(54) And in Branchidae, again, they give oracles by breathing vapors from the waters.
(55) Standing upon characters, people are filled by ingresses (eiskríseis)[5] in certain temples of Apollo.
(56) The Pythia, seated on the tripod,[6] receives the divinatory ingresses through her female parts.
(57) There are also many oracles (manteîa) in many temples (which work) by urns of response ballots, with the temple-keeper looking at the ballot and reading the oracle (khrēsmós) from a book.[7]
(58) And as Porphyry says in the Letter to Anebo: “For many, a charlatan (agýrtēs) abuses the one who is credulous with expectations from you.”[8][9]

Notes

  1. ↑ If there is a distinction between nos. 8 and 9, it is not clear what it is.
  2. ↑ Joseph of Tiberias, Hypomnesticon 143.1–30 = Porphyry, Letter to Anebo, fr. 43 (H. Saffrey & A.-P. Segonds): Κεφ. ΡΜΓʹ. Ὅσαι εἰσὶ μαντεῖαι παρ’ Ἕλλησιν. (1) Ἀστρονομική· (2) γενεθλιακή· (3) ὀνειροσκοπική· (4) οἰωνιστική· (5) συμβολική· (6) ἀστρική· (7) ἡ διὰ κλήρων· (8) ἡ δι’ ἀστραγάλων· (9) ἡ δι’ ἐμπύρων· (10) ἡ διὰ λαχῶν· (11) θυτικὴ ζῴων· (12) ὠοσκοπική· (13) ἡ διὰ τεράτων· (14) ἡ κατ’ ἐνθουσίασιν· (15) ἡ κατ’ εἴσκρισίν τινος ἐπιπνοίας· (16) ἡ διὰ κληδόνων· (17) ἡ διὰ φήμης· (18) ἡ διὰ πανικοῦ κινήματος· (19) ἡ διὰ μορφοσκοπίας· (20) ἡ διὰ χειροσκοπίας· (21) ἡ διὰ πιττακίων ὑπὸ σφραγῖδα πιπτόντων· (22) ἡ διὰ κοσκίνου· (23) ἡ διὰ λεκάνης μαγικῆς· (24) ἡ ἐν φιάλῃ· (25) ἡ διὰ κλήσεως αὐτοπτικῆς· (26) ἡ διὰ ψυχοπομπίας· (27) ἡ διὰ τῶν ζυγοφορουμένων ἀγαλμάτων· (28) ἡ δι’ αὐλῶν· (29) ἡ διὰ κυμβάλων· (30) ἡ διὰ τυμπάνων καὶ ‹ὀργάνου› παντὸς μουσικοῦ.
  3. ↑ Joseph of Tiberias, Hypomnesticon 143.31–46 = Porphyry, Letter to Anebo, fr. 43 (H. Saffrey & A.-P. Segonds): (31) Οἱ διὰ Σαβαζίου· (32) οἱ μητρίζοντες· (33) ἄλλοι κατὰ τὸ φανταστικὸν θειάζουσιν· (34) ἄλλοι σκότος συνεργὸν λαμβάνοντες· (35) ἄλλοι καταπόσεις· (36) οἱ δὲ ἐπῳδὰς καὶ συστάσεις· (37) ἄλλοι εἰς ὕδωρ φαντάζονται· (38) οἱ δὲ ἐν τοίχῳ· (39) οἱ δὲ ἐν ὑπαίθρῳ ἀέρι· (40) ἄλλοι ἐν ἡλίῳ καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἄλλοις κατ’ οὐρανὸν ἄστροις· (41) οἱ δὲ διὰ σπλάγχνων· (42) οἱ δὲ δι’ ὀρνίθων· (43) οἱ δὲ δι’ ἀλφίτων· (44) ἄλλοι διὰ τῆς φυσικῆς παρατηρήσεως φθανούσης ἐπὶ ζῴων παραλλαγὰς ἢ φυτῶν· (45) οἱ δὲ δι’ ἀριθμῶν· (46) οἱ δὲ διὰ τῆς φυσιογνωμονικῆς. ἔστι δὲ καὶ ἐπιβολὴ ἐνθουσιαστικὴ καὶ ἐπιβολὴ θεοφορίας.
  4. ↑ Presumably, pebbles thrown on an alphabet, not entirely unlike the idea of the modern ‘ouija’ or ‘spirit board’.
  5. ↑ More literally, “filled by (inspiration) from ingresses”.
  6. ↑ The Greek actually says “unseemly tripod”; this reflects the judgment of Joseph rather than Porphyry.
  7. ↑ Presumably, this refers to a set of unique ballots or pebbles keyed to a table in a reference book, although a simpler process would employ a set number of black and white pebbles, or something of that sort. In any case, this is effectively institutionalized sortilege, and also similar to astragalomancy.
  8. ↑ “You” referring to Egyptian priests like Anebo.
  9. ↑ Joseph of Tiberias, Hypomnesticon 143.47–58 = Porphyry, Letter to Anebo, fr. 43 (H. Saffrey & A.-P. Segonds): [...]’·.
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