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Anemoscopy
Alternatively known as Anemosomancy.
From the
Greek
anemos for wind, it is the art and practice of
divination by the observation or study of specific
characteristics of winds. Also said to be the science of atmospheres,
Anemoscopy is a form of
Aeromancy.
This type of divination involves the observation of wind direction and
strength, including the shape of dust clouds lifted by it.
A different method is posing a question and then tossing a handful of dirt, sand or light seeds into the air; the
answer comes in the form of the small dust cloud made by the flying particles.
Another process uses a pendulum, allowed to move only by
the wind, positioned over a circle graph or a set of letters, glyphs or runes.
Yet another technique consists of listening to the sound of the wind and interpreting its message.
Anemoscopy, like most divination techniques, is quite ancient, and was once widely
popular in the orient, specially in China. On the first day of the first
month of the year, the ancient Chinese anemosomancers used to study the
winds to foretell the fate of crops, wars, health and other events for the
coming year. They listened to the composite sound made by the noise of the
wind and of any surrounding people and then determined the pitch of the
sound on a musical scale. Based on all these details, they made predictions
about harvests, warfare, and future weather conditions.
The ancient Greeks practiced Anemoscopy in the sacred grove of
Dodona,
dedicated to Zeus.
Psellus referred to this
technique:
"There was a mode of predicting by means of the air and the leaves of
the trees. The method involved the hanging of striking wands from
branches of sacred oak trees in a way that they stroked resounding brass
basins when the wind blew. Interpretations were made of these sounds and
that of the wind. On a windy day, if one stood still, they could hear
tones or perhaps 'whispers in the wind' of the trees as the moving air
carried sound vibration."
Aboriginal populations that believed in wind spirits practiced this method of
divination as a means of communication with their gods. Native Americans
still practice wind divination to this day and age.
You can practice
wind divination today by simply using pieces of paper and, if needed, a fan. If
the answer sought is just a 'yes' or 'no', write these on two papers; if you
need more than that, consider all the possible answers, and write them on as
many pieces as necessary. Make sure your pieces of paper are of the same
size. You can then drop the papers from higher ground, an upstairs window or
such, or use the fan to blow them away from a flat surface, such as a table.
The paper that touches the ground first reveals your answer.
See Aeromancy,
Austromancy, Nephomancy,
The Tarot Store
and
Divination & Scrying Tools and
Supplies.
Sources: (1) Pickover, Clifford A.,
Dreaming the Future: The
Fantastic Story of Prediction, Prometheus Books;
(2) Schure, Edouard,
Great Initiates: A Study of the Secret History of Religions,
Garber Communications; (3) Psellus, Michael,
Chronographia,
Kessinger Publishing.
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