by Magi  The word divination is based upon the Latin word divinatio, which means "the faculty of foreseeing". The root word is itself based on a Latin word for "divine power" or "of the gods", and this exposes a more subtle meaning which is "to make devine". This sheds an entirely different light on the subject of divination. Far from being a superstitious practice, the art of divination reveals itself as a spiritual science that seeks to discover the divine significance behind chance events. And like other magickal arts, divination has existed as a tool for psychic development and spiritual health long before the development of modern psychology, which has often borrowed heavily from the techniques of ceremonial magick, putting new names on old magickal ideas.
In the ancient world, atmospheric signs such as rain, wind, and lightning were considered the precursors of major events - all of which had divine implications. In societies where warfare against other tribes and nations was a way of life, divination was often employed strategically, to petition the gods' advice on the best course of action to take against one's enemies. One of the earliest recorded forms of such divination used militarily was the Mingling of Arrows mentioned in the Book of Ezekiel: "For the king of Babylon stood still at the crossways, at the head of the two ways, in order to resort to divination. He has shaken the arrows. He consulted with images and looked into the liver". At one time, divining arrows employed in the great mosque at Mecca. One arrow was inscribed with the words, "My Lord hath commanded me". On a second arrow was written, "My Lord hath forbidden me". A third arrow was blank. If the first arrow was drawn, the diviner concluded that the enterprise in question had divine sanction. If the second arrow was drawn, the opposite conclusion was reached. If the blank arrow was drawn, the divination was started again until a decisive answer was reached. The casting of lots (or sortilege) was an early form of divination frequently employed to determine a person's guilt or innocence in a criminal matter. The early Christians and Muslims often divined by opening a holy book (the Bible or Koran) and reading whatever portion of text first appeared. The Romans practiced a form of divination known as augury, which relied on interpreting omens such as atmospheric phenomenon, the fight of birds, etc. The Purpose of DivinationThe forms of divination that developed were as varied as the inventive minds from which they sprang. It often did not seem to matter what form the divination took; it was more important that the diviner be able to quiet the mind enough to attune with the higher forces and then perceive certain signs or symbols by means of an inner vision that could interpret their divine implications. Divination can open up the mind to the mechanics of the spiritual realm. The various methods of divination are good exercises for developing one's psychic faculties of intuition and imagination. | 
