Embedded Files
Runes
Runes
The Rune Primer by Sweyn Plowright
Taking up the Runes by Diana Paxson
Ogham
Ogham
Ogam: Weaving Word Wisdom by Erynn Rowan Laurie
The Secret Langauge of the Druids by Rev. Skip Ellison
Greek Alphabet Oracle
Greek Alphabet Oracle
The Oracles of Apollo by John Opsopaus, PhD
A Greek Alphabet Oracle by Apollonius Sophites
Divination with the Greek Alphabet Oracle by Rev. Jan Avende
Haruspicy
Haruspicy
The Divine Liver by Rev. Robert Lee (Skip) Ellison
Other Resources
Other Resources
Initate Wayne Keysor helpfully compiled an annotated bibliography for sources that may be useful for specific questions in the Divination courses for the Initiate Path. Some of these are excerpts from books, most of which can be found by searching GoogleBooks. Others are journal articles that Wayne has helpfully pulled PDFs for from academic libraries and are included here.
Mapping the Entrails: The Practice of Greek Hepatoscopy
Mapping the Entrails: The Practice of Greek Hepatoscopy
Derek Collins
American Journal of Philology, Volume 129, Number 3 (Whole
Number 515), Fall 2008, pp. 319-345 (Article)
This article reconstructs the Greek divinatory practice of hepatoscopy (the reading of the entrails) in the classical period and thereafter. Attention is given to the most relevant features of the liver as they pertain to divination, in both Greek and later Roman sources, as well discussing the seers who specialized in this form of divination.
(Useful for Divination 1, Questions 4 & 5)
Hepatoscopy.pdfCharming Children: The Use of the Child in Ancient Divination
Charming Children: The Use of the Child in Ancient Divination
Johnston, Sarah Iles, 1957-
Arethusa, Volume 34, Number 1, Winter 2001, pp. 97-117
Beginning in the first century B.C.E., there are Greek accounts of using children in mediumistic divinatory processes during which they were able to see gods, demons, and ghosts that other people could not. The earliest descriptions of these processes are obscure, but, not much later, there is a large number of spells to induce mediumistic trances in children in the magical papyri. This essay interprets these rituals from the papyri, supplementing the analysis of rituals with remarks made by other late antique authors, who discuss the phenomenon.
(Useful for Divination 1, Question 4)
ChildDivination.pdfPlutarch, Alexander, and Dream Divination
Plutarch, Alexander, and Dream Divination
Author(s): Carol J. King
Source: Illinois Classical Studies , No. 38 (2013), pp. 81-111
This paper examines nine divinatory dreams in Plutarch’s Life of Alexander and other comparable dreams within their broader historical contexts and it concludes that dream divination was less marginal than generally thought by scholars and that consultation of professional interpreters was customary for kings and military commanders, especially in times of crisis.
(Useful for Divination 1, Questions 4 & 5)
GreekDreamDivination.pdfThe Oxford Handbook of Animals in Classical Thought and Life
The Oxford Handbook of Animals in Classical Thought and Life
edited by Gordon Lindsay Campbell - Chapter 19
This chapter discusses Greco-Roman divination and its connection to animals. It discusses the use of living birds and other animals as divinatory tools, as well as the reading of animal entrails.
(Useful for Divination 1, Question 4)
Precognitive Dreams in Celtic Legend
Precognitive Dreams in Celtic Legend
Author(s): E. Ettlinger
Source: Folklore, Vol. 59, No. 3 (Sep., 1948), pp. 97-117
This paper addresses the Celtic attitude towards dreams, particularly prophetic or divinatory dreams, through an examination of such dreams in literature. It analyzes numerous examples of these types of dreams that are found in medieval sources.
(Useful for Divination 1, Question 4)
DreamsInCelticLegend.pdfImbas Forosnai
Imbas Forosnai
Nora K. Chadwick
Scottish Gaelic Studies, vol 4, part 2, pp. 97-135
Oxford University Press (1935)
This paper analyzes the entry in Cormac’s Glossary that describes how medieval Irish poets gained access to supernatural wisdom or insight by engaging in certain ritual practices. These practices are outlined and analyzed.
(Useful for Divination 1, Question 4)
ImbasForosnai.docxOmens and Celtic Warfare
Omens and Celtic Warfare
Author(s): Ellen Ettlinger
Source: Man, Vol. 43 (Jan. - Feb., 1943), pp. 11-17
This paper analyzes the appearance of omens, as they relate to warfare, in Celtic literature. It provides numerous examples of omens and how they were interpreted, as well discussing the individuals who obtained the omens and their roles in society.
(Useful for Divination 1, Questions 4 & 5)
IrishOmens.pdfNāḍī Divination and Indian Astrology
Nāḍī Divination and Indian Astrology
Martin Gansten
This article explores the Indian divinatory art known as nāḍī. In nāḍī reading, the role of the diviner is minimized: he is considered merely the mouthpiece of ancient sages or divinities who are believed to have set down in writing the details of the client’s life long before the birth of either reader or client. Predictions for a client’s future and answers to his or her questions are readout from pre-existent, physical texts (generally in the form of palm-leaf manuscripts).
(Useful for Divination 1, Question 4)
NadiDivinationAndIndianAstrology2011.pdfThe Language of Birds in Old Norse Tradition
The Language of Birds in Old Norse Tradition
Timothy Bourns
This article discusses the role of birds in delivering supernatural wisdom in medieval Icelandic literature; this does not directly talk about divination, but it is focused on stories about obtaining knowledge from birds, which could be regarded as a divinatory practice.
(Useful for Divination 1, Question 4)
The Language of Birds in Old Norse Tradition.pdfProphets, Seers, and Politics in Greece, Israel, and Early Modern Europe
Prophets, Seers, and Politics in Greece, Israel, and Early Modern Europe
Author(s): Jan N. Bremmer
Source: Numen, Vol. 40, No. 2 (May, 1993), pp. 150-183
This article concludes that, in Greece, seers were closely connected with the political elite, especially the kings. As their main function was the legitimation of royal choices, their public influence started to wane with the rise of democracy and public political debate.
(Useful for Divination 1, Question 5)
GreekSeers.pdfDivination, Royalty and Insecurity in Classical Sparta*
Divination, Royalty and Insecurity in Classical Sparta*
Anton Powell
p. 35-82
This rather long article discusses the role of diviners and divination in Spartan society, particularly how they were used to help make military and political decisions, by examining examples provided in classical texts.
(Useful for Divination 1, Question 5)
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