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Capnomancy
Alternatively known as Libanomancy.
Derived
from the
Greek
kapnos
('smoke') and manteia ('divination'), this is a method of
divination
by interpreting the movement of smoke rising from a fire, principally
sacrificial fires.
In the most common form of Capnomancy, smoke from sacrificial offerings augured well if it rose lightly from the altar, and ascended straight
to the clouds; but the opposite if it hung about.
Another technique was to cast
some jasmine, laurel leaves, granulated incense, or poppy seeds upon burning coals to observe the smoke behavior and sniff it,
and then draw omens
from the alleged observations.
On yet another method, the
diviner had to breath the smoke from a
sacrificial fire, and by considering its smell and effects, the omens
were drawn. Sometimes the seer would get into a trance
induced by ingesting smoke, usually from a specially prepared hallucinogenic
drug or herb.
In many parts of the world smoke was once
believed to have magical properties. Consequently it has a long history of
application in rituals of purification, magical protection, and blessing.
According to occult tradition, Capnomancy
is a form of
Aeromancy and/or Pyromancy,
and is believed to have originated in ancient
Babylon, where on certain sacred days they used to burn cedar branches
or shavings to draw omens from the patterns
of the smoke.
The Druids were also very
skilled in the art of Capnomancy, using the smoke generated by the burning
of humans and animals on a sacrificial altar.
See
Divination,
Casting Black Magic Spells,
Commanding Spirits,
The Tarot Store and
Divination & Scrying Tools and
Supplies.
Sources: (1) Dunwich, Gerina,
A Wiccan's Guide to Prophecy
and Divination, Carol Publishing Group; (2)
Spence, Lewis,
An Encyclopedia of
Occultism,
Carol Publishing Group; (3)
Dictionary of the
Occult, Caxton
Publishing;
(4) Pickover, Clifford A.,
Dreaming the Future: The
Fantastic Story of Prediction, Prometheus Books;
(5) K, Amber,
Candlemas: Feast of Flames,
Llewellyn Publications.
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