The Mancies: A Glossary of Divinatory Terms

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Kassandra
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The Mancies: A Glossary of Divinatory Terms

Post by Kassandra »

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This list is a great resource for one's BOS. Not all are -mancy words. Be sure to cross reference those that interest you with other sources, as sometimes terms for the same phenomena tend to vary slightly from source to source.
John_William_Waterhouse_-_Magic_Circle.jpg
Image: The Magic Circle, by John William Waterhouse, 1886
(click on image to enlarge)




Aeromancy: Divination by atmospheric conditions. The different forms of this are Austromancy, Ceraunoscopy, Chaomancy, and Meteormancy.
Ailuromancy: Divination from cats
Alectryomancy: Form of augury, the divination of the eating patterns of chickens.
Aleuromancy: Divination using slips of paper baked into dough balls, Fortune Cookies.
Alphitomancy: Using cakes made of wheat or barley flour.
Antinopomancy: Using the entrails of women and children. [what the...?! this is just wrong. --K]
Arachnomancy: Augury: divination from the appearance and behavior of spiders.
Arithomancy: Another name for numerology, or numeromancy. Belief that numbers influence our personalities and lives.
Astragalomancy: Sortiledge using the bones of sheep.
Astrology: Using stars and planets and signs of the zodiac.
Augury: Divination based on the appearance and bahavior of animals.
Austromancy: Form of aeromancy, divination using the wind.
Axinomancy: Divination using saws.
Belomancy: Divination by arrows (sortiledge)
Bibliomancy: Sortiledge divination from books, includes rhapsodomancy, and also called stichomancy.
Botanomancy: Form of pyromancy- burning leaves and branches.
Capnomancy: Divination by smoke (pyromancy)
Carromancy: Using modern playing cards.
Catoptromancy: Mirror gazing divination
Catoxtromancy: Looking glasses
Cattabomancy: Vessels made of metal.
Causinomancy: Objects cast into fire.
Cephalomancy: Augury using the divination from the skull or head of a donkey or goat.
Ceraunoscopy: Thunder and lightning (aeromancy)
Ceromancy: Melted Wax
Chaomancy: Aerial visions
Chartomancy: writing papers
Chirognomy: Palm reading, also: Chirology, chiromancy, and palmistry.
Clairaudience: Hearing the future ahead of time.
Clairvoyance: Seeing the future ahead of time.
Cleidomancy: Form of radiesthesia, using a suspended key
Cleromancy: Another name for sortilege
Coscinomancy: Suspended sieve (Radiesthesia)
Crithomancy: Markings in freshly baked bread
Cromniomancy: Divination using onions
Crystallomancy: Scrying into a crystal ball
Dactylomancy: Radiesthesia using suspended ring.
Demonomancy: Suggestions from demons
Daphnomancy: burning laurel leaves
Dowsing: Method of divination to find lost things, or locate unknown things, under the Earth.
Entomomancy: Behavior and appearance of insects
Gastromancy: sounds of the belly
Geomancy: Using the earth, rocks, or sand.
Graphology: Determining person's character by handwriting.
Gyromancy: divination by rounds or circles.
Halomancy: Casting salt into a fire
Haruspicy: Divination using the entrails of animals, one form is hepatoscopy, sometimes considered part of augury.
Hepatoscopy: Divination using the liver.
Hippomancy: Divination from horses (not hippos! haha)
Hydromancy: Scrying into water, Pegomancy.
I Ching: Ancient Chinese text
Ichthyomancy: Shape and entrails of fish
Idolomancy: Divination using idols, images, or figures
Lampadomancy: Using an oil lamp flame or torch flame.
Lecanomancy: Using a basin of water
Lithomancy: Using precious stones
Livanomancy: Burning frankincense
Logarithmancy: Divination by logarithms.
Lychnomancy: Flames of three wax candles
Macharomancy: Knives and swords
Metagnomy: Seeing future events in a hypnotic trance.
Meteormancy: aeromancy, using shooting stars and meteors.
Metoscopy: Lines on the forehead
Moleoscopy: Moles on the body.
Molybdomancy: Molten tin or lead
Myomancy: Color and movement of mice
Necromancy: Asking the dead to answer questions; ouija board
Numerology: Determining personality and lives with numbers.
Numeromancy: Same as above
Oenomancy: Augury: Patterns make by wine
Oinomancy: Divination by wine
Omphilomancy: Divination by the navel
Oneiromancy: Using dreams
Onomatomancy: Using Names
Onychomancy: Using nails
Ophiomancy: Augury using color and movement of snakes.
Oriental Astrology: based on a 12 year cycle, involving 12 animals, but is not based on the movement of the stars or planets.
Ornithomancy: Flight of birds patterns
Palmistry: Using the palm of the hand
Pegomancy: Form of hydromancy using a sacred pool or spring.
Pessomancy: Sortilege divination by using marked pebbles drawing out of a bag or casting them, also called psephomancy
Phyllorhodomancy: Rose petals
Phrenology: bumps on the head
Physiognomy: Facial features
Podomancy: Using the feet
Psephomancy: Sortilege using cast or drawn pebbles
Precognition: inner paranormal knowledge of the future
Psychomancy: divination by men's souls, affections, wills, religious or moral dispositions.
Psychometry: about a specific person usually holding an object that was theirs.
Pyromancy: Divination using fire
Pyroscopy: Burning a sheet of paper on a white surface and examining the resulting stains.
Radiesthesia: Using a pendulum, and can be used in dowsing
Rhapsodomancy: Form of bibliomancy from a book of poetry
Roadomancy: By the stars
Runes: Symbols of an ancient alphabet used for divination
Scapulomancy: Augury: patterns or cracks and fissures on the burned shoulder blade of an animal
Sciomancy: Divination by the shadows
Scrying: gazing onto a reflective surface
Sideromancy: Form of pyromancy in this case the divination is by casting an odd number of straws onto iron brought into red heat in a fire and reading the patterns formed by the straws, their movements, and the nature of the flames or smoke
Sortilege: Divination by casting or drawing of lots
Spatalamancy: Using skin bone or excrement
Stareomancy: Using the elements
Sternomancy: Divination using the line from the breast to the belly.
Stichomancy: Sortilege using books
Sycomancy: Using figs
Tasseography: Using tea leaves
Tephromancy: Patterns formed in the ashes of burnt offerings left to the Gods
Theomancy: Pretending to divine by the revelation of the words of God
Theriomancy: By beasts
Tuphramancy: By ashes
Tyromancy: Divination from cheese
Zoomancy: Augury using the appearance and behavior of any animal :x

Source: paganuskeltica.tripod.com/mancy.html]http://paganuskeltica.tripod.com/mancy.html

See also: http://www.paranormal-encyclopedia.com/ ... pes.html#a





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Violet
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Re: The -Mancies: a Glossary of Divinatory Terms

Post by Violet »

Wow! I want to try them all.
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North Star
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Re: The -Mancies: a Glossary of Divinatory Terms

Post by North Star »

Cunningham's 'Divination for beginners' is a really fun book, lots of interesting ways to look at divination. From plants and herbs, to moon and stars... and mice lol (I don't ever want to try that one) it mentions many of these methods.

HAHA Kassandra, when I first read the word 'hippomancy' in Scott's book I immediately thought hippos! :lol:
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Re: The -Mancies: a Glossary of Divinatory Terms

Post by Echo_of_shadows »

Oooo I see a few that I hadn't heard of yet. :) I might look into Arachnomancy since lately spiders are starting to show up when I post stuff on here. :?
North Star wrote:Cunningham's 'Divination for beginners' is a really fun book, lots of interesting ways to look at divination. From plants and herbs, to moon and stars... and mice lol (I don't ever want to try that one) it mentions many of these methods.


That sounds like a good book. I haven't heard of it before, which kind of surprised me since I'm a fan of Cunningham's work. I might add it to my shopping list.
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Re: The -Mancies: a Glossary of Divinatory Terms

Post by MistressOfTheMoon »

Theomancy gave me quite the laugh! Lol.
"For the Spirit lies within."
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Re: The -Mancies: a Glossary of Divinatory Terms

Post by Pinkpower_80 »

MistressOfTheMoon wrote:Theomancy gave me quite the laugh! Lol.
LOL me too! :surprisedwitch:
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Kassandra
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Re: The -Mancies: a Glossary of Divinatory Terms

Post by Kassandra »

Pinkpower_80 wrote:
MistressOfTheMoon wrote:Theomancy gave me quite the laugh! Lol.
LOL me too! :surprisedwitch:
Haha, "pretending," not actually doing. Good eye, MistressOfTheMoon.



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Kassandra
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Re: The Mancies: A Glossary of Divinatory Terms

Post by Kassandra »

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Adding:

Shufflemancy!
(as defined here:
viewtopic.php?f=37&t=34394

Thanks.



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Last edited by Firebird on Thu Feb 25, 2021 7:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: fixing broken link
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