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Bibliomancy is the use of books in
divination Divination (from Latin ''divinare'', 'to foresee, to foretell, to predict, to prophesy') is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic, standardized process or ritual. Used in various forms throughout history ...
. The method of employing sacred books (especially specific words and verses) for 'magical medicine', for removing negative entities, or for divination is widespread in many religions of the world.


Terminology

According to the '' Oxford English Dictionary'', the word ''bibliomancy'' (etymologically from βιβλίον ''biblion-'' "book" and μαντεία ''-manteía'' "divination by means of") "divination by books, or by verses of the Bible" was first recorded in 1753 ('' Chambers' Cyclopædia''). Sometimes this term is used synonymously with ''stichomancy'' (from στίχος ''stichos-'' "row, line, verse") "divination by lines of verse in books taken at hazard", which was first recorded ( Urquhart's '' Rabelais''). ''Bibliomancy'' compares with ''
rhapsodomancy Rhapsodomancy is an ancient form of divination performed by choosing through some method a specific passage or poem from which to ascertain information. There were various methods for practicing rhapsodomancy. Sometimes, individuals would write se ...
'' (from ''rhapsode'' "poem", "song", "ode") "divination by reading a random passage from a poem". A historical precedent was the
ancient Roman In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman people, Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom ...
practice of sortes (" sortilege, divination by drawing lots") which specialized into ''
sortes Homericae The ''Sortes Homericae'' (Latin for "Homeric lots"), a type of divination by bibliomancy, involved drawing a random sentence or line from the works of Homer (usually the ''Iliad'') to answer a question or to predict the future. In the Roman world i ...
'', ''
sortes Virgilianae The Sortes Vergilianae (''Virgilian Lots'') is a form of divination by bibliomancy in which advice or predictions of the future are sought by interpreting passages from the works of the Roman poet Virgil. The use of Virgil for divination may date ...
'', and ''
sortes Sanctorum ''Sortes Sanctorum'' (incipit ''Post solem surgunt stellae'') is a late antique text that was used for divination by means of dice. The oldest version of the text may have been pagan, but the earliest surviving example—a 4th- or 5th-century Gree ...
'', using the texts of
Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the '' Iliad'' and the '' Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of ...
,
Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: th ...
, and the Bible.


History

In
Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in the ...
, according to the
Shulchan Aruch The ''Shulchan Aruch'' ( he, שֻׁלְחָן עָרוּך , literally: "Set Table"), sometimes dubbed in English as the Code of Jewish Law, is the most widely consulted of the various legal codes in Judaism. It was authored in Safed (today in Is ...
(Rema, Yoreh Deah, 179), it is not the sin of
necromancy Necromancy () is the practice of magic or black magic involving communication with the dead by summoning their spirits as apparitions or visions, or by resurrection for the purpose of divination; imparting the means to foretell future event ...
to divine an answer using the ''goral'', the practice of opening the
Chumash Chumash may refer to: *Chumash (Judaism), a Hebrew word for the Pentateuch, used in Judaism *Chumash people, a Native American people of southern California *Chumashan languages Chumashan was a family of languages that were spoken on the south ...
to see an answer to a question, or asking a child for the first piece of scripture that comes to his mind.


Method

:# A book is picked that is believed to hold truth. :# It is balanced on its spine and allowed to fall open. :# A passage is picked, with the eyes closed. Among Christians, the Bible is most commonly used (in the ''
Sortes Sanctorum ''Sortes Sanctorum'' (incipit ''Post solem surgunt stellae'') is a late antique text that was used for divination by means of dice. The oldest version of the text may have been pagan, but the earliest surviving example—a 4th- or 5th-century Gree ...
''), and in Islamic cultures the
Quran The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , sing. ...
. In the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
the use of
Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: th ...
's ''
Aeneid The ''Aeneid'' ( ; la, Aenē̆is or ) is a Latin epic poem, written by Virgil between 29 and 19 BC, that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Trojan who fled the fall of Troy and travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the ...
'' was common in Europe and known as the ''
sortes Virgilianae The Sortes Vergilianae (''Virgilian Lots'') is a form of divination by bibliomancy in which advice or predictions of the future are sought by interpreting passages from the works of the Roman poet Virgil. The use of Virgil for divination may date ...
''. In the classical world the ''sortes Virgilianae'' and ''
sortes Homericae The ''Sortes Homericae'' (Latin for "Homeric lots"), a type of divination by bibliomancy, involved drawing a random sentence or line from the works of Homer (usually the ''Iliad'') to answer a question or to predict the future. In the Roman world i ...
'' (using the ''
Iliad The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Odyss ...
'' and ''
Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; grc, Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia, ) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Iliad'', th ...
'') were used. In Iran, bibliomancy using ''
The Divān of Hafez ''The Divān'' of Hafez (Persian: دیوان حافظ) is a collection of poems written by the Iranian poet Hafez. Most of these poems are in Persian, but there are some macaronic language poems (in Persian and Arabic) and a completely Arabic g ...
'' is the most popular for this kind of divination, but by no means the only kind. The Quran, as well as the Mathnawī of
Rumi Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī ( fa, جلال‌الدین محمد رومی), also known as Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Balkhī (), Mevlânâ/Mawlānā ( fa, مولانا, lit= our master) and Mevlevî/Mawlawī ( fa, مولوی, lit= my ma ...
may also be used. Fāl-e Ḥafez may be used for one or more persons. In group bibliomancy, the dīvān will be opened at random, and beginning with the ode of the page that one chances upon, each ode will be read in the name of one of the individuals in the group. The ode is the individual's fāl. Assigning of the odes to individuals depends on the order in which the individuals are seated and is never random. One or three verses from the ode following each person's fāl is called the šāhed, which is read after the recitation of the fāl. According to another tradition the šāhed is the first or the seventh verse from the ode following the fāl . An ode which had already been used for one individual in the group is disqualified from serving as the fāl for a second time. Because book owners frequently have favorite passages that the books open themselves to, some practitioners use dice or another randomiser to choose the page to be opened. This practice was formalized by the use of coins or
yarrow ''Achillea millefolium'', commonly known as yarrow () or common yarrow, is a flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. Other common names include old man's pepper, devil's nettle, sanguinary, milfoil, soldier's woundwort, and thousand seal. T ...
stalks in consulting the I Ching.
Tarot divination Tarot card reading is a form of cartomancy whereby practitioners use tarot cards to purportedly gain insight into the past, present or future. They formulate a question, then draw cards to interpret them for this end. A traditional tarot deck co ...
can also be considered a form of bibliomancy, with the main difference that the cards (pages) are unbound. Another way around this is to cut the page with something like a razor. There is a prevalent practice among certain, particularly messianic, members of
Chabad-Lubavitch Chabad, also known as Lubavitch, Habad and Chabad-Lubavitch (), is an Orthodox Jewish Hasidic dynasty. Chabad is one of the world's best-known Hasidic movements, particularly for its outreach activities. It is one of the largest Hasidic groups ...
Chasidic movement to use the Igrot Kodesh, a thirty-volume collection of letters written by their leader
Menachem Mendel Schneerson Menachem Mendel Schneerson (Modern Hebrew: מנחם מענדל שניאורסון; old-fashioned spelling: מנחם מענדל שניאורסאהן; April 5, 1902 OS – June 12, 1994; AM 11 Nissan 5662 – 3 Tammuz 5754), known to man ...
for guidance. Another variant requires the selection of a random book from a library before selecting the random passage from that book. This also holds if a book has fallen down from a shelf on its own. English poet
Robert Browning Robert Browning (7 May 1812 – 12 December 1889) was an English poet and playwright whose dramatic monologues put him high among the Victorian poets. He was noted for irony, characterization, dark humour, social commentary, historical settin ...
used this method to ask about the fate of his attraction to Elizabeth Barrett (later known as
Elizabeth Barrett Browning Elizabeth Barrett Browning (née Moulton-Barrett; 6 March 1806 – 29 June 1861) was an English poet of the Victorian era, popular in Britain and the United States during her lifetime. Born in County Durham, the eldest of 12 children, Elizabe ...
). He was at first disappointed to choose the book ''Cerutti's Italian Grammar'', but on randomly opening it his eyes fell on the following sentence: "if we love in the other world as we do in this, I shall love thee to eternity" (which was a translation exercise).''The Letters of Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett'', Vol, 1, p. 470


Bibliomancy in fiction

*In ''
Michael Strogoff ''Michael Strogoff: The Courier of the Czar'' (french: Michel Strogoff) is a novel written by Jules Verne in 1876. Critic Leonard S. Davidow, considers it one of Verne's best books. Davidow wrote, "Jules Verne has written no better book than thi ...
'' (1876) by
Jules Verne Jules Gabriel Verne (;'' Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet, and playwright. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the ''Voyages extraor ...
, Feofar Khan judged Michael Strogoff to blindness after pointing randomly in the
Koran The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , sing ...
at the phrase: "And he will no more see the things of this earth." *In ''The Book of Webster's'' (1993) by J. N. Williamson, the sociopathic protagonist Dell uses the dictionary to guide his actions. *In the short story "
The Ash-tree "The Ash-tree" is a ghost story by British writer M.R. James, included in his 1904 collection ''Ghost Stories of an Antiquary''. Plot summary In 1690, the English county of Suffolk is wracked with a fear of witches. Many girls and women are acc ...
" by
M. R. James Montague Rhodes James (1 August 1862 – 12 June 1936) was an English author, medievalist scholar and provost of King's College, Cambridge (1905–1918), and of Eton College (1918–1936). He was Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridg ...
, bibliomancy is used to produce a warning message from the Bible. *The novel '' The First Verse'' by
Barry McCrea Barry McCrea (born 15 October 1974) is an Irish writer and academic. He grew up in Dalkey, County Dublin, and was educated at the Jesuit Gonzaga College, and Trinity College, Dublin (1993–1997) where he studied French and Spanish literature. H ...
tells the story of Niall Lenihan, a student who falls in with a 'cult' whose members use ''sortes'' to guide them. *In the novel ''
The Man in the High Castle ''The Man in the High Castle'' (1962), by Philip K. Dick, is an alternative history novel wherein the Axis Powers won World War II. The story occurs in 1962, fifteen years after the end of the war in 1947, and depicts the political intrigues be ...
'' by
Philip K. Dick Philip Kindred Dick (December 16, 1928March 2, 1982), often referred to by his initials PKD, was an American science fiction writer. He wrote 44 novels and about 121 short stories, most of which appeared in science fiction magazines during his l ...
, every major character uses bibliomancy, mainly by casting yarrow stalks in conjunction with the I Ching. Dick himself reportedly used this process to decide key points in the story, even blaming the I Ching for plot developments that he did not particularly care for. *In
Wilkie Collins William Wilkie Collins (8 January 1824 – 23 September 1889) was an English novelist and playwright known especially for '' The Woman in White'' (1859), a mystery novel and early "sensation novel", and for ''The Moonstone'' (1868), which has be ...
' 1868 novel ''
The Moonstone ''The Moonstone'' (1868) by Wilkie Collins is a 19th-century British epistolary novel. It is an early example of the modern detective novel, and established many of the ground rules of the modern genre. The story was serialised in Charles Di ...
'', the narrator Gabriel Betteredge routinely practices bibliomancy using the pages of
Daniel Defoe Daniel Defoe (; born Daniel Foe; – 24 April 1731) was an English writer, trader, journalist, pamphleteer and spy. He is most famous for his novel ''Robinson Crusoe'', published in 1719, which is claimed to be second only to the Bible in its ...
's ''
Robinson Crusoe ''Robinson Crusoe'' () is a novel by Daniel Defoe, first published on 25 April 1719. The first edition credited the work's protagonist Robinson Crusoe as its author, leading many readers to believe he was a real person and the book a tra ...
''. This is a good example of
intertextuality Intertextuality is the shaping of a text's meaning by another text, either through deliberate compositional strategies such as quotation, allusion, calque, plagiarism, translation, pastiche or parody,Gerard Genette (1997) ''Paratexts'p.18/ref>Hal ...
, since Crusoe himself uses bibliomancy in his journey toward redemption. *In ''
Lirael ''Lirael'' (called ''Lirael: Daughter of the Clayr'' in some regions) is a fantasy novel by Garth Nix, first published in 2001. Named for its central female character, ''Lirael'' is the second in his Old Kingdom trilogy, preceded by ''Sabriel'' ...
'', by
Garth Nix Garth Richard Nix (born 19 July 1963) is an Australian writer who specialises in children's and young adult fantasy novels, notably the ''Old Kingdom'', '' Seventh Tower'' and '' Keys to the Kingdom'' series. He has frequently been asked if his ...
, ''The Black Book of Bibliomancy'', a fake book, is mentioned. *In Augusten Burroughs' '' Running with Scissors'', bibliomancy (referred to as "Bible-dipping") is used by one of the main characters. * The narrator of Graham Greene's ''
Travels With My Aunt ''Travels with My Aunt'' (1969) is a novel written by English author Graham Greene. The novel follows the travels of Henry Pulling, a retired bank manager, and his eccentric Aunt Augusta as they find their way across Europe, and eventually ev ...
'' recounts that his late father used to practice bibliomancy with the writings of Walter Scott: "Once, when he was suffering severely from Constipation, he opened '' Rob Roy'' at random and read out "Mr Owen entered. So regular were the motions and habits of this worthy man". ('' Travels With My Aunt'', Ch.16.)


See also

*
Bible code The Bible code ( he, הצופן התנ"כי, ), also known as the Torah code, is a purported set of encoded words within a Hebrew text of the Torah that, according to proponents, has predicted significant historical events. The statistical like ...
*
Rhapsodomancy Rhapsodomancy is an ancient form of divination performed by choosing through some method a specific passage or poem from which to ascertain information. There were various methods for practicing rhapsodomancy. Sometimes, individuals would write se ...


References


External links


''Bibliomancy'' from the Jewish Encyclopedia

Bibliomancy Oracle
{{Divination Divination Bible Language and mysticism