In ancient times, both mythical characters and real historical figures were actively engaged in predicting the future. The ancient Greeks believed that it was the god Prometheus who endowed mankind with the ability to divine, and the seer Calchas guided soldiers in the Trojan War.
The philosophers
Socrates,
Pythagoras and
Plato also believed in prophecies, and the first two also practiced fortune-telling themselves. The services of fortune tellers were necessarily resorted to before military campaigns. It is known that
Alexander of Macedon also listened to soothsayers, and
Xenophontes not once turned for advice to his seer Arexion during the famous
March of the Ten Thousand in 401-399 BC.
Unlike the priests of the Oracle of Delphi, who, as the ancient Greeks believed, spoke directly to the gods, seers recognized the future with the help of natural signs.
The list of ancient ways of looking into the unknown is endless. But among them are some pretty bizarre examples. Here are seven of the most popular but unusual methods used by seers in
Ancient Greece.
1. Water
Hydromancy, that is
guessing by water, is a common type of prediction in ancient Greece, which later became popular in medieval Europe. The magic technique involved throwing stones into a body of water and then observing the ripples, flow, and color that appeared. On the basis of what was seen, the diviner made conclusions about the future or answered questions about the present.
Photo: historyskills.com
Another type of hydromancy involved the use of bread. The ancient inhabitants of Greece, who lived in the south of the city of Epidaurus at the beginning of our era, threw a loaf of bread into the fountain. Since the structure was erected in honor of the goddess Ino, believers asked her questions and received unambiguous answers, yes or no, which depended on the location of the bread in the water. The immersion of the loaf at the bottom of the fountain was interpreted as an auspicious sign. Floating bread became a messenger of negative events.
2. Smoke
Capnomancy is divination by smoke. In ancient Greece, animals were sacrificed and then burned. By the nature of the smoke, seers determined the future. A thin smooth stream rising upward was considered a good omen. Thick and billowing smoke portended trouble, and if it drifted over the ground, it was a sign of impending disaster.
3. Overheard words
Cledonomancy is divination by randomly heard words. About this method, which was practiced by the oracles of Smyrna and Pharae, told the writer Pavsanius, who lived in ancient Greece in the 2nd century AD. A believer would ask a question of the god, close his ears, leave the sanctuary and open them. The first words heard were considered the answer.
In Homer's Odyssey, Odysseus receives an answer from Zeus in exactly this way. The protagonist asks a question and then hears the answer in the words of a servant girl.
4. Birthmarks
The legendary soothsayer Melampus wrote a treatise on the interpretation of birthmarks. According to his teachings, the marks on the body predicted the fate of a person. Thus, a spot on the forehead indicated the future ruler, and on the nose - the passion for travel in men and bad foot odor in women. A birthmark on the tongue portended marriage to a rich and beautiful woman, and on the throat - financial prosperity or in the worst case, according to circumstances, death through decapitation.
5. Fetal sheath
Amniomancy - divination by the fetal shell of a born child. It consisted in predicting the fate of the baby by analyzing its "shirt", if it was lucky to be born in it. The shell had a purple or red color - it meant that the newborn was destined for a full, prosperous life. A dull color was a sign of an unhappy fate.
6. Animal viscera
One of the most famous divination methods from the ancient world is known as extispicy or haruspicy (Latin). It has its roots in the tradition of sacrificing sheep, chickens, goats and other animals to the gods.
Before the ritual, soothsayers paid attention to the way the doomed creature moved to the altar: walking calmly, cheerfully or waddling sadly. Depending on the behavior of the victim, they concluded whether the gods were favorable to a particular offering.
Then the entrails of the dead animal were extracted, giblets were carefully laid out on a stone and carefully examined. The soothsayer studied each organ, its size, shape, color, texture and interpreted what he saw at his discretion.
Photo: starsinsider.com
When searching for answers, evaluating events and phenomena, seers paid special attention to the liver. A healthy red colored organ was considered favorable for prophecies. A large liver with a smooth texture and uniform color was perceived as a good omen. A dry organ without pronounced lobes and if it was damaged during carcass cutting was considered a harbinger of terrible events.
It is known that Aristander, the seer of Alexander the Great, often practiced divination on entrails on military campaigns. Once, during the siege of Tyre in 332 BC, he predicted the capture of the city in 24 hours. And he wasn't wrong. Tyre fell to Alexander within 24 hours of his conversation with the diviner.
7. Ghosts
Modern people associate the word "necromancy" with images of medieval witches and sorcerers who raise the dead and communicate with the souls of the deceased. Such rituals cause horror and are perceived as something repulsive. However, in ancient times, divination with the help of the dead - necromancy - was practiced everywhere, from China to Greece.
Photo: greekreporter.com
Thus, Homer's hero Odysseus, before going home
descended to the underworld to talk to the dead about the journey ahead. The descent into the underworld was called katabasis.
In ancient Greece, there was a ceremonial called a nekia. During the ritual, soothsayers summoned spirits and asked them about the future, because they believed that the inhabitants of the land of the dead knew about it. The temples where the rituals were performed were called necromantions. The ancient Greek population treated such sacred places with reverence, perceiving them as a link between the god Hades and the gateway to the underworld.