Sorcery in Ancient Greece and Rome Part 3: Divination
Last time, we discussed the use of Oracles of the Dead, including how to adapt these techniques for a modern practitioner. There are other oracles that were widely used by those in Ancient Greece and Rome. Yes folks, this time we are discussing divination and oracles!
This topic overlaps with the topic of necromancy. Oracles of the Dead, which were discussed in the last post, allowed querants to ask questions of the dead. This is important to Greco-Roman views of the afterlife, as they viewed the dead as being outside of time and thus having more knowledge than when alive. It is also important to know the Greco-Roman views of foretelling the future. The common Greek viewed that the future was inevitable, so the role of oracles and divination wasn't to try and change one's fate, but to better prepare and come to terms with it. There are many instances where querants would visit multiple oracles or cast their divination multiple times in an effort to receive a favorable response.
There are two main types of manteis (Greek) and Haruspices (Roman), or seers, found in the Greco-Roman world - institutionalized and independent. Most people, when thinking of oracles, immediately think of the Oracle at Delphi, where the Pythia sat on a tripod and uttered prophecies. While this is the most famous of the oracles, it is by far not the only one. Most of the oracles were dedicated to specific deities, with Apollo, Zeus, Hermes, and Pan being the primary deities associated with oracles and divination.
In discussing divination, we will need to differentiate between what the Neoplatonists called inspired, or natural, divination and artificial divination. Inspired divination comes directly from the Gods, by the seer communing with the Gods through his/her nous, the intuitive part of the soul. According to Iamblichus, this form of divination is superior, as it 'allows us to participate in the divine life, experiencing the Gods' knowledge and noetic understanding of the Ideas (Iamblichus, On the Mysteries, p.346-347).' With this form of divination, or communion, can be difficult to put the message received into words, as it can often come through ecstatic trance and divine revelation. This is the type of divination practiced by the Pythia at the Oracle at Delphi, and Apollo and Dionysus are the deities that oversee inspired types of divination.
Artificial divination, on the other hand, relies on techniques that are taught, such as lot-casting divination. It utilizes skilled observation, language, discursive reason, and interpretation. It is more analytical, though there can be an intuitive component. Iamblichus admits that this form of divination can be influenced by the Gods, as the divination is often conducted within a ritual context, with deities being invoked and consecrated tools being utilized. The Gods are there to influence the fall of the lots as well as to guide our interpretation. Hermes is the deity that oversees lot-casting divination.
According to myth, Apollo was raised by three bee nymphs, called the Thriai, who taught him methods of divination. The Thriai were named Melaina ("The Black"), Kleodora ("Famed for her Gift"), and Daphnis ("Laurel"). Given that there are three, and the translations of the names, it is not unlikely that each bee nymph presided over one of the three realms: Melaina in the chthonic, Daphnis in the middle/earthly, and Kleodora in the heavenly. The Thriai taught Apollo how to divine via mantic pebbles (the casting of stones), and other forms of divination were taught to Hermes - cleromancy, or divination by lots, and augury, divination by birds.
Famous Oracles and their Processes
The Oracle of Zeus at Dodona was one of the earliest oracles to operate in Greece. There is archaeological evidence of the Oracle operating from as early as the eighth century BCE, and there were several expansions. The earliest sanctuary consisted of a sacred oak tree (or grove) that was likely surrounded by a ring of bronze tripods. By the fifth century BCE, the first stone temple was constructed and the sacred oak tree was surrounded by a peribolos wall. Three additional temples, to Aphrodite, Dione, and Themis, were added in the fourth century BCE. Priestesses called Peleiades would translate the oracle sent by Zeus, by listening to the sounds of pots hanging in the trees, the sounds of the wind, and other sounds of nature. The wind was of particular importance in these priestesses' divination. They would then interpret these noises as a prophecy from Zeus.
The most famous oracle is the Oracle of Delphi. This sanctuary, dedicated to the god Apollo, was known as the navel of the world. When Apollo was looking for a suitable site for his sanctuary, he was advised that Mount Parnassus would be the ideal place - however, it was already occupied. The site chosen by Apollo was already a sanctuary to Gaia and her serpentine children, Python and Delphine, and was known as an oracle from as early as 1400 BCE, placing its oracular use in the Mycenaean Period. However, occupation and use of the site dates to the Neolithic Period. There are mentions of the site's oracular use in the Homeric Hymns and the Iliad.
The Oracle at Delphi relied on a priestess, called the Pythia, who sat on a bronze tripod over a chasm, chewed on a laurel leaf, and uttered prophesies. While the Pythia originally was a young maiden, the sanctuary later ruled that only older matrons could hold the position after a young Pythia ran off with a man (gasp!). The Pythia's prophesies were usually uttered in rhyme and could be very ambiguous. One of the most famous cases of this ambiguity is when Croesus asked what the outcome would be should he go to war with the Persians. The oracle's response? "If you go to war you will cause the destruction of a great empire." Indeed, a great empire did fall - Croesus'.
Querants could only consult the oracle on certain days of the week, and could not be consulted during the winter months, as Apollo traveled to Hyperborea during this time, leaving the sanctuary in the hands of Dionysus. How fitting is it, then, that the Pythia uttered her prophesies while in an altered state? The altered state is said to be caused by the 'sweet smelling pneuma' emitting from the chasm. According to myth, Apollo threw Python's body into the chasm to rot. However, archaeological evidence suggests the Pythia inhaled ethylene gas, which has a sweet smell.
Another oracle worth mentioning is the Chthonic Oracle of Zeus Trophonius in Lebadeia, which was seen as the magician's oracle of choice. According to Maytszak, the priestess at this oracle has ties to Astarte, who prophesied in a cave under the sanctuary. Lucian describes the oracle thus:
[9.39.5] What happens at the oracle is as follows. When a man has made up his mind to descend to the oracle of Trophonius, he first lodges in a certain building for an appointed number of days, this being sacred to the good Spirit and to good Fortune. While he lodges there, among other regulations for purity he abstains from hot baths, bathing only in the river Hercyna. Meat he has in plenty from the sacrifices, for he who descends sacrifices to Trophonius himself and to the children of Trophonius, to Apollo also and Cronus, to Zeus surnamed King, to Hera Charioteer, and to Demeter whom they surname Europa and say was the nurse of Trophonius.
[9.39.6] At each sacrifice a diviner is present, who looks into the entrails of the victim, and after an inspection, prophesies to the person descending whether Trophonius will give him a kind and gracious reception. The entrails of the other victims do not declare the mind of Trophonius so much as a ram, which each inquirer sacrifices over a pit on the night he descends, calling upon Agamedes. Even though the previous sacrifices have appeared propitious, no account is taken of them unless the entrails of this ram indicate the same; but if they agree, then the inquirer descends in good hope. The procedure of the descent is this.
Trophonius, Historia Deorum Fatidicorum, Geneva, 1675.
[9.39.7] First, during the night he is taken to the river Hercyna by two boys of the citizens about thirteen years old, named Hermae, who after taking him there anoint him with oil and wash him. It is these who wash the descender, and do all the other necessary services as his attendant boys. After this he is taken by the priests, not at once to the oracle, but to fountains of water very near to each other.
[9.39.8] Here he must drink water called the water of Forgetfulness, that he may forget all that he has been thinking of hitherto, and afterwards he drinks of another water, the water of Memory, which causes him to remember what he sees after his descent. After looking at the image which they say was made by Daedalus (it is not shown by the priests save to such as are going to visit Trophonius), having seen it, worshipped it and prayed, he proceeds to the oracle, dressed in a linen tunic, with ribbons girding it, and wearing the boots of the country.
[9.39.9] The oracle is on the mountain, beyond the grove. Round it is a circular basement of white marble, the circumference of which is about that of the smallest threshing floor, while its height is just short of two cubits. On the basement stand spikes, which, like the cross-bars holding them together, are of bronze, while through them has been made a double door. Within the enclosure is a chasm in the earth, not natural, but artificially constructed after the most accurate masonry.
[9.39.10] The shape of this structure is like that of a bread-oven. Its breadth across the middle one might conjecture to be about four cubits, and its depth also could not be estimated to extend to more than eight cubits. They have made no way of descent to the bottom, but when a man comes to Trophonius, they bring him a narrow, light ladder. After going down he finds a hole between the floor and the structure. Its breadth appeared to be two spans, and its height one span.
[9.39.11] The descender lies with his back on the ground, holding barley-cakes kneaded with honey, thrusts his feet into the hole and himself follows, trying hard to get his knees into the hole. After his knees the rest of his body is at once swiftly drawn in, just as the largest and most rapid river will catch a man in its eddy and carry him under. After this those who have entered the shrine learn the future, not in one and the same way in all cases, but by sight sometimes and at other times by hearing. The return upwards is by the same mouth, the feet darting out first.
[9.39.12] They say that no one who has made the descent has been killed, save only one of the bodyguard of Demetrius. But they declare that he performed none of the usual rites in the sanctuary, and that he descended, not to consult the god but in the hope of stealing gold and silver from the shrine. It is said that the body of this man appeared in a different place, and was not cast out at the sacred mouth. Other tales are told about the fellow, but I have given the one most worthy of consideration.
[9.39.13] After his ascent from Trophonius the inquirer is again taken in hand by the priests, who set him upon a chair called the chair of Memory, which stands not far from the shrine, and they ask of him, when seated there, all he has seen or learned. After gaining this information they then entrust him to his relatives. These lift him, paralyzed with terror and unconscious both of himself and of his surroundings, and carry him to the building where he lodged before with Good Fortune and the Good Spirit. Afterwards, however, he will recover all his faculties, and the power to laugh will return to him.
There are some very interesting parallels between this oracle and Greek mystery traditions. The prominence of Demeter and the barley cakes are reminiscent of the mysteries at Eleusis - which is fitting, considering that in one of the myths surrounding Trophonius is that Demeter served as his wet nurse (like Demophoon in the myth of Eleusis). There are also hints of Dionysiac mysteries - the supposed madness of the querants upon leaving the cave and the prominence of the rivers Lethe and Mnemosyne.
The Romans were not without their oracles as well. The most famous of these is the Cumaean Sibyl, who wrote nine books of prophecy called the Oracula Sibyllina. The oracle that this sibyl operated at was located at thThe books were sold by one of the sibyls to Tarquinius Superbus, one of the early mythic kings of Rome. According to myth, the sibyl offered all nine books to Tarquinius, who refused due to the cost. She then burned three books and made the same offer. Tarquinius refused again, so she burned three more books. Finally, Tarquinius relented and bought the remaining three books - at the price of the original nine! The books were consulted frequently by the Roman government and were initially held in the Temple of Jupiter on the Capitoline Hill until it burned in 80 BCE. After that, the oracles were reassembled, and Augustus kept them in the Temple of Apollo on the Palatine Hill.
The Alphabet Oracle
The Alphabet Oracle is derived from an inscription in Olympus. Each letter of the Greek alphabet has a corresponding message, with the first letter of the message matching its corresponding letter. There are also deity correspondences with the letters (see https://phosphorou.wordpress.com/2016/11/26/greek-alphabet-oracle/ for deity correspondences). In antiquity, the Greek letters would have been inscribed on ostrakai, or pottery sherds.
The ancient Greeks also utilized sheep knucklebones, or astragaloi (Greek)/tali (Roman), to determine the letter. Knucklebones have been found at archaeological sites from 5,000 BCE and have been found across cultures. In ancient Greece, the use of knucklebones is credited to Palamedes. According to Pausanias (2.20.3), Palamedes dedicated his newly invented procedure to a Temple of Fortune in Corinth. Meanwhile, Plato ascribes the invention of knucklebones to Thoth, which links their use with Hermes. For example, there were statues of Hermes in Anatolia where oracular phrases that corresponded to numbers were inscribed. These places were a sort of 'self-service' divination stop; the querant would roll five astragaloi and match the number that resulted to the corresponding phrase.
Augury
The ancient Romans also practiced divination techniques. Romans would frequent the Greek oracles, especially the oracle at Delphi. However, there were methods of divination that the Romans developed that had been drawn from the techniques of the Etruscans.
To the Roman haruspex, divination was a form of communication with the Gods, and rather than merely foretelling events, sought to determine the attitudes of the Gods in the hope of maintaining the pax deorum, or harmony between the human and divine realms. The word for the Roman seer - haruspex - derives from the most common form of divination, the reading of animal parts (such as the liver, intestines, and heart).
Haruspicy originated with the Etruscans; there is a number of artifacts and written works depicting Etruscan haruspicy. The Etrusca Disciplina was a sacred collection of texts that were written in the Etruscan language and taught how to perform different types of divination, including haruspicy and augury. These texts were divided by the Romans into the Libri Haruspicini, which contained the theory and practice of divination via entrails; the Libri Fulgurales, which contained methods for divination from lighting strikes; the Libri Rituales, which was composed of several parts: the Libri Fatales, the Libri Acherontici, and the Libri Ostentaria.
PGM
So, how can we adapt these techniques for the modern practitioner? We have numerous types of divination currently available to us, including tarot and runes (which would fall under the 'artificial divination' rubric). The book Oracles of Apollo details how to use some of these types of divination, including the Alphabet Oracle and the Oracle of the Seven Sages, and is an excellent resource on divination in the ancient world.
If choosing to work with a deity in divination, the best to call upon are Apollo (visions and other intuitive types of divination, such as scrying), Hermes (lot-casting/learned technologies of divination), and Dionysus (using mind-altering techniques during divination). I have successfully worked with all three, sometimes invoking just one, at other times invoking multiple deities.
One thing to discuss is the use of entheogens, or mind-altering substances, in divination. The Pythia at Delphi inhaled the fumes emitting from the chasm over which she sat, which produced her altered states. There is also some evidence that the use of entheogens was responsible for creating the visions that initiates into the Eleusinian Mysteries received. Wine, and ritual intoxication, was also part of being a maenad, or follower of Dionysus.
While I will cover the use of entheogens and the poison path in a later blog, it is useful to discuss the potential benefits and drawbacks to using entheogens to induce an altered state during divination. As with anything, I believe moderation and knowledge are key. There are some herbs and liquids that can be used safely; as a maenad, I utilize wine often in ritual as I am communing with Dionysus. I do not, however, get rip-roaring drunk. I have also utilized absinthe and have both made my own wormwood wine and soaked wormwood in absinthe to get a better effect of the thujone (the active chemical in absinthe, which is highly regulated in commercial absinthe here in the United States). Burning mugwort has also successfully created an altered state for me. While there are incense sticks available, I have found that burning the herb on charcoal is more effective at inducing visions and creating an altered state. Blue lotus is another herb I have successfully used, both steeped in wine and water. There is basis for using blue lotus in the ancient world; Odysseus encountered the Lotus Eaters on his journey home to Ithaca after the end of the Trojan War (Odyssey, Book IX). The lotus that these people consumed was a narcotic, causing peaceful sleep and the desire to stay on the island. Herodotus stated that the Lotus Eaters made wine from the plant. The ancient Egyptians utilized blue lotus in a ritual context.
While this will be discussed in greater detail in the poison path blog, you can also use flying ointment to create an altered state. There are many recipes out there, but most of them contain poisonous herbs, such as henbane, belladonna, hemlock, and wolf's bane, all of which contain compounds that create altered states. When utilizing poisonous herbs, I do recommend extreme caution; many of these cannot even be handled without gloves on. Flying ointment is usually rubbed on the pulse points and the bottom of the feet and the effects are absorbed through the skin. All of these methods can be utilized to attain a state conducive to receiving the Gods' oracular messages.