View source for Cleromancy

{{Short description|Divination by casting of lots}}
{{for|the use of random selection as a way to make a fair form of selection|Sortition}}
'''Cleromancy''' is a form of [[sortition]] (casting of [[wikt:lot#Noun|lots]]) in which an outcome is determined by means that normally would be considered [[random]], such as the rolling of [[dice]] ([[astragalomancy]]), but that are sometimes believed to reveal the will of a deity.

==In classical civilization==
In [[ancient Rome]], fortunes were told through the casting of lots or ''[[Sortes (ancient Rome)|sortes]]''.<ref name="DGRA">{{Citation  | last = Smith  | first = William  | author-link = William Smith (lexicographer)  | contribution = Sortes  | editor-last = Smith  | editor-first = William  | title = [[Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities]]  | volume = 1  | pages = 1051–1052  | publisher = [[Little, Brown and Company]]  | place = Boston  | year = 1870  | contribution-url = http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-dgra/1058.html  | access-date = 2021-06-20  | archive-date = 2009-07-08  | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090708035820/http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-dgra/1058.html  | url-status = dead  }}</ref>

==In Judaic and Christian tradition==
[[File:Schnorr von Carolsfeld Bibel in Bildern 1860 073.png|thumb|Casting lots for tribal inheritance, woodcut for [[:c:Die Bibel in Bildern|Die Bibel in Bildern]], 1860, [[:s:Bible (King James)/Joshua#Chapter 14|Joshua, Chapter 14]]]]
[[File:Detail of East Window, Lincoln Cathedral (14224253959).jpg|thumb|[[Aaron]] draws lots to select which of two [[goats]] will be the [[scapegoat]]. ([[Leviticus]] 16:7–10; [[stained glass]] from [[Lincoln Cathedral]])]]
Casting of lots ({{Langx|he|גּוֹרָל|gōral}}, {{Langx|el|{{math|κλῆρος}}|klē̂ros}}) is mentioned 47&nbsp;times in the [[Bible]].{{cn|date=February 2023}} Some examples in the [[Hebrew Bible]] of the casting of lots as a means of determining [[God]]'s will:
* In the [[Book of Leviticus]] {{bibleverse-nb||Leviticus|16:8|KJV}}, God commanded [[Moses]], "And [[Aaron]] shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the {{LORD}}, and the other lot for the [[scapegoat]]." One goat will be sacrificed as a [[sin offering]], while the scapegoat is loaded up with the sins of the people and sent into the wilderness.
* According to [[Book of Numbers|Numbers]] {{bibleverse-nb||Numbers|26:55|KJV}}, Moses allocated territory to the [[tribes of Israel]] according to each tribe's male population and by [[Land lottery|lot]].
* In [[Book of Joshua|Joshua]] {{bibleverse-nb||Joshua|7:14|KJV}}, a guilty party ([[Achan (biblical figure)|Achan]]) is found by lot.
* In the Book of Joshua {{bibleverse-nb||Joshua|18:6|KJV}}, Joshua says, "Ye shall therefore describe the land into seven parts, and bring the description hither to me, that I may cast lots for you here before the {{LORD}} our God." The Hebrews took this action to know God's will as to the dividing of the land between the seven tribes of Israel who had not yet "received their inheritance" (Joshua 18:2).
* In the [[First Book of Samuel]] {{bibleverse-nb|1|Samuel|14:42|KJV}}, lots are used to determine that it was [[Jonathan (1 Samuel)|Jonathan]], [[Saul]]'s son, who broke the [[oath]] that Saul made, "Cursed be the man that eateth any food until evening, that I may be avenged on mine enemies" (1 Samuel 14:24).
* In the [[Book of Jonah]] {{bibleverse-nb||Jonah|1:7|KJV}}, the desperate sailors cast lots to see whose god was responsible for creating the storm: "Then the sailors said to each other, 'Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.' They cast lots and the lot fell on [[Jonah]]."

Other places in the Hebrew Bible relevant to divination include:
* [[Book of Proverbs]] {{bibleverse-nb||Proverbs|16:33|KJV}}: "The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from [[Yahweh]]" and {{bibleverse-nb||Proverbs|18:18|KJV}}: "The lot settles disputes, and keeps strong ones apart."
* Book of Leviticus {{bibleverse-nb||Leviticus|19:26|KJV}} KJV "... neither shall you practice [[Incantation|enchantment]], nor observe times."<ref>{{bibleverse||Leviticus|19:26|}}</ref> The original Hebrew word for enchantment, as found in ''[[Strong's Concordance]]'', is pronounced ''naw-khash'''. The translation given by Strong's is "to practice divination, divine, observe signs, learn by experience, diligently observe, practice fortunetelling, take as an omen"; and "1. to practice divination 2. to observe the signs or omens". ''Times'' in the original Hebrew is pronounced aw-nan'. Its translation in Strong's is "to make appear, produce, bring (clouds), to practise soothsaying, conjure;" and "1. to observe times, practice soothsaying or spiritism or magic or augury or witchcraft 2. soothsayer, enchanter, sorceress, diviner, fortune-teller, barbarian...". In the [[Hebrew-Interlinear Bible]], the verse reads, "not you shall [[augur]] and not you shall consult cloud".{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}
* [[Deuteronomy]] {{bibleverse-nb||Deuteronomy|18:10|KJV}} "let no one be found among you who ''[qasam qesem]'', performs ''[onan]'', ''[nahash]'', or ''[kashaph]''{{-"}}.<ref>{{bibleverse||Deuteronomy|18:10|}}</ref> ''qasam qesem'' literally means ''distributes distributions'', and may possibly refer to cleromancy. ''Kashaph'' seems to mean ''mutter'', although the [[Septuagint]] renders the same phrase as ''pharmakia'' (''poison''), so it may refer to [[magic potion]]s.
* In the [[Book of Esther]], [[Haman (Bible)|Haman]] casts lots to decide the date on which to exterminate the Jews of [[Shushan]]; the Jewish festival of [[Purim]] commemorates the subsequent chain of events.
* In [[I Chronicles]] {{bibleverse-nb|1|Chronicles|26:13|KJV}} guard duties are assigned by lot.
* To Christian doctrine, perhaps the most significant ancient Hebrew mention of lots occurs in [[the Book of Psalms]], {{bibleverse-nb|Psalms|22:18|NIV}} "They divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots." This came to be regarded as a prophecy connecting that psalm and the one that follows to the crucifixion and resurrection of [[Jesus]], since all four gospels (for example, John {{bibleverse-nb||John|19:24|NIV}}) tell of the Roman soldiers at Jesus's crucifixion casting lots to see who would take possession of his clothing. That final act of profanation became the central theme of ''[[The Robe (film)|The Robe]]'', a 1953 film starring Richard Burton.

A notable example in the [[New Testament]] occurs in the [[Acts of the Apostles]] {{bibleverse-nb||Acts|1:23–26|KJV}} where the eleven remaining [[Twelve apostles|apostles]] cast lots to determine whether to select [[Saint Matthias|Matthias]], or [[Joseph Barsabbas|Barsabbas]] (surnamed Justus) to replace [[Judas Iscariot|Judas]].{{Citation needed| date = October 2024 }}

The [[Eastern Orthodox Church]] still occasionally uses this method of selection. In 1917, [[Metropolitan bishop|Metropolitan]] [[Patriarch Tikhon|Tikhon]] became [[Patriarch of Moscow]] by the drawing of lots. The [[Coptic Orthodox Church]] uses drawing lots to choose the [[Coptic pope]], most recently done in November 2012 to choose [[Pope Tawadros II]]. German [[Pietist]] Christians in the 18th century often followed the New Testament precedent of drawing lots to determine the will of God. They often{{quantify|date=May 2017}} did so by selecting a random Bible passage. The most extensive use of drawing of lots in the Pietist tradition may have come with Count von [[Zinzendorf]] and the [[Moravian Church|Moravian]] Brethren of [[Herrnhut]], who drew lots for many purposes, including selection of church sites, approval of missionaries, the election of bishops, and many others. This practice was greatly curtailed after the General Synod of the worldwide Moravian Unity in 1818{{citation needed|date=May 2017}} and finally discontinued in the 1880s. Many [[Amish religious practices|Amish]] customarily select ordinary preachers by lot. (Note that the Greek word for "lot" (''kleros'') serves as the etymological root for English words like "cleric" and "clergy" as well as for "cleromancy".)<ref>
{{etymonline | cleric | accessdate = 2017-05-03}}
</ref>

==In Germania==

[[Tacitus]], in Chapter X of his [[Germania (book)|''Germania'']] (circa 98&nbsp;AD), describes casting lots as a practice used by the Germanic tribes. He states:<ref>
{{cite web | url = http://www.sunnyway.com/runes/intro.html | title = Introduction to Runes | publisher = Sunnyway.com | access-date = 2013-06-02}}
</ref>

<blockquote>
To divination and casting of lots, they pay attention beyond any other people. Their method of casting lots is a simple one: they cut a branch from a fruit-bearing tree and divide it into small pieces which they mark with certain distinctive signs and scatter at random onto a white cloth. Then, the priest of the community if the lots are consulted publicly, or the father of the family if it is done privately, after invoking the gods and with eyes raised to heaven, picks up three pieces, one at a time, and interprets them according to the signs previously marked upon them.
</blockquote>

In the ninth century [[Anskar]], a Frankish missionary and later [[Archbishopric of Bremen|bishop of Hamburg-Bremen]], observed the same practice several times in the decision-making process of the Danish peoples. In this version, the chips were believed to determine the support or otherwise of gods, whether Christian or Norse, for a course of action or act. For example, in one case a Swedish man feared he had offended a god and asked a soothsayer to cast lots to find out which god. The soothsayer determined that the Christian god had taken offence; the Swede later found a book that his son had stolen from Bishop Gautbert in his house.<ref>
"Rimbert's Life of Anskar", in Carolingian Civilisation: A Reader (2nd ed.), ed. P. E. Dutton, 2009.</ref>

==In Asian culture==
{{Uncited section|date=October 2024}}

In [[History of Science and Technology in China|ancient China]], and especially in [[Chinese folk religion]], various means of divination through random means are employed, such as ''[[Kau chim|qiúqiān]]'' ({{Lang|zh|求簽}}). In [[Japan]], [[omikuji]] is one form of drawing lots.

[[I Ching divination]], which dates from early China, has played a major role in Chinese culture and philosophy for more than two thousand years. The I Ching tradition descended in part from the [[oracle bone]] divination system that was used by rulers in the [[Shang dynasty]], and grew over time into a rich literary wisdom tradition that was closely tied to the philosophy of [[yin and yang]]. I Ching practice is widespread throughout East Asia, and commonly involves the use of coins or (traditionally) sticks of [[yarrow]].

In South [[India]], the custom of ritualistically tossing sea shells (sozhi) and interpreting the results based on the positions of the shells is prevalent, predominantly in the state of [[Kerala]].

==In West African culture==
{{Uncited section|date=October 2024}}

In [[Yoruba people|Yoruba]] and Yoruba-inspired religions, [[babalawo]]s use variations on a common type of cleromancy called [[Ifá|''Ifá divination'']]. Ifá divination is performed by "pounding ikin"—transferring consecrated oil palm kernels from one hand to another to create a pattern of eight to sixteen marks called "Odù" onto a tray of ''iyerosun'', or consecrated termite dust from the Irosun tree. The casting itself is called {{Lang|yo|Dafá}} in [[Yoruba language]] speaking areas in West Africa. Similar to [[I Ching]], this form of divination forms a binary-like series of eight broken or unbroken pairs. This allows for 256 combinations, each of which references sets of tonal poems that contain a structure that includes various issues, problems and adversities and the prescriptions of offerings to correct them.

==In M'ikmaq tradition==

The game of Waltes is a form of cleromancy practiced by traditional [[Mi'kmaq]] and preserved since colonial potlache law, the Indian Act and residential schools in Canada. It is played with a bowl, six bone dice, and a counting stick. Three sticks are grandmothers and one the grandfather.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbu.ca/indigenous-affairs/mikmaq-resource-centre/miscellany/the-game-of-waltes/|title = The Game of Waltes}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Religion}}
* [[Astragalomancy]]
* [[List of spirituality-related topics]]
* [[Magic 8 Ball]]
* [[Urim and Thummim ]]
* [[John Cage]]
* [[Sortition]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20051026154113/http://www.ancientlibrary.com/divination/index.html Halliday, Greek Divination]}} (1913), full online edition. Chapter 10 is on {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20051026153637/http://www.ancientlibrary.com/divination/0217.html Kleromancy]}}.
{{Divination}}

[[Category:Divination]]