Divination, the practice of seeking knowledge of the future or the unknown through supernatural means, presents a fascinating challenge when attempting to understand its structure and foundations. It raises the question: Is divination a natural consequence of pre-existing beliefs, or do the beliefs themselves emerge from the practice as a post-hoc justification? Disentangling this relationship is complex, particularly when examining diverse cultural traditions.
China, for example, boasts a rich history of divination practices, yet lacks a unified religious cosmology comparable to those found in Mayan, Hindu, or Judeo-Christian traditions. This suggests that divination in China might operate independently of a single, overarching belief system.
In other instances, the connection between divination and belief can be deliberately obscured. Consider the popularity of astrology in Christian countries since the Renaissance. To minimize conflict with religious and scientific doctrines, the metaphysical underpinnings of astrological practice are often downplayed. This highlights the potential for practical application to overshadow philosophical foundations.
Generally, the philosophical support for divination doesn’t need to be sophisticated. However, if it exists, it offers insight into core beliefs about humanity and the natural world, both visible and invisible. Ancient and established divination systems, such as astrology, geomancy, and Chinese divination, make it extremely difficult to uncover their original contexts. These practices have persevered through significant changes, becoming perennial attempts to answer fundamental questions about the human condition.
Originating within the hierarchical structure of ancient theocracies, these traditions bear the marks of the specialists who developed their systematic techniques. However, with their modern observance primarily as folk or popular tradition, any underlying philosophical tradition is difficult to trace. The I Ching, the Chinese “Classic of Changes,” stands out as an exception, having accumulated substantial scholarly commentary over millennia. Systematic studies of geomancy are recent, and astrological literature tends to be fleeting. Babylonian astrology, the root of later forms, emerged within an agrarian Mesopotamian civilization deeply concerned with the changing seasons and matters of governance.
The mercantile, seafaring, and individualistic Greeks adopted the divination system of Mesopotamia’s collectivistic floodplain civilization. They further developed it by incorporating horoscopic techniques and transmitted it to Europe via Hellenistic, Egyptian, and Islamic science. This evolution reveals a reciprocal relationship between a society’s worldview and its divination system. Priests and scholars contributed to the system, but a clear link exists between the cultural character and the application of divination. The worldview within the divination system may reflect its historical context rather than its current usage.
Using a Ouija board or a forked stick to find water requires only practical understanding. Therefore, people with varying beliefs may use the same practices, and a strong link between practice and belief is likely only if both evolve in the same cultural environment. When the appeal of divination is based on its “exotic” nature, its symbolism may be poorly understood. However, divination tends to evolve into a specialized discipline with organized specialists, as diviners often use unique methods. This holds true even among the Zande people of Africa, where divination is common and many techniques are accessible to ordinary individuals.
On sensitive issues, extraordinary credibility is desired, and the reliability of an oracle reflects the political standing of its owner. For example, the king’s oracle is viewed as the final authority, and the royal court protects this source of power (divinatory and other) from corruption. The Zande people are enthusiastic about divination, using it routinely to explore their thoughts and requiring oracular confirmation before important undertakings. While the ordinary Zande person could be seen as a divination specialist, elsewhere, divination is reserved for significant crises, requiring a recognized expert to ensure an authentic response.
In conclusion, the structure of divination and its relationship with underlying beliefs are complex and varied. While philosophical underpinnings may exist, the practice itself can be adopted and adapted across cultures, sometimes overshadowing or even contradicting established belief systems. Divination serves as a tool for understanding the human condition and navigating uncertainty, often guided by specialists and deeply intertwined with cultural and political contexts.
