Myomancy (from ''

myo- Skeletal muscles (commonly referred to as muscles) are organs of the vertebrate muscular system and typically are attached by tendons to bones of a skeleton. The muscle cells of skeletal muscles are much longer than in the other types of muscle ...

'' "mouse" + '' -mancy'' "divination by means of") is the practice of reading

omen An omen (also called ''portent'') is a phenomenon that is believed to foretell the future, often signifying the advent of change. It was commonly believed in ancient times, and still believed by some today, that omens bring divine messages fr ...

s from the

behavior Behavior (American English) or behaviour (British English) is the range of actions and mannerisms made by individuals, organisms, systems or artificial entities in some environment. These systems can include other systems or organisms as wel ...

rat Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents. Species of rats are found throughout the order Rodentia, but stereotypical rats are found in the genus ''Rattus''. Other rat genera include ''Neotoma'' ( pack rats), ''Bandicota'' (bandicoot ...

s or

mice A mouse ( : mice) is a small rodent. Characteristically, mice are known to have a pointed snout, small rounded ears, a body-length scaly tail, and a high breeding rate. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse (''Mus musculus' ...

, a " theriomantic" method of

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 histor ...

which might be implied in the Bible verse

Isaiah Isaiah ( or ; he, , ''Yəšaʿyāhū'', "God is Salvation"), also known as Isaias, was the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet after whom the Book of Isaiah is named. Within the text of the Book of Isaiah, Isaiah himself is referred to as "the ...

66:17. In the context of

Western history The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to the various nations and states in the regions of Europe, North America, and Oceania.

, certain mouse or rat vocalizations ("their particular cries") and other phenomena, including severe cases of damage wreaked by the rodents, was taken to be a sign predictive of evil. For example, Ælain relates that Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus resigned the dictatorship in consequence of a "warning" from these creatures; according to

Varro Marcus Terentius Varro (; 116–27 BC) was a Roman polymath and a prolific author. He is regarded as ancient Rome's greatest scholar, and was described by Petrarch as "the third great light of Rome" (after Vergil and Cicero). He is sometimes calle ...

, Cassius Flaminius retired from the command of the cavalry for the same reason. Horapollo describes the rat as a

symbol A symbol is a mark, sign, or word that indicates, signifies, or is understood as representing an idea, object, or relationship. Symbols allow people to go beyond what is known or seen by creating linkages between otherwise very different conc ...

of destruction. According to

Herodotus Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known f ...

, Sennacherib's attempt to invade Egypt was thwarted due to his army's weapons being systematically destroyed by rats the night before they were due to attack. The Hebrew word for "mouse" is derived from a root meaning "to separate, divide, or judge". It was remarked by one of the commentators on Horapollo that the mouse has a finely discriminating taste. An Egyptian manuscript in the ''

Bibliothèque nationale de France The Bibliothèque nationale de France (, 'National Library of France'; BnF) is the national library of France, located in Paris on two main sites known respectively as ''Richelieu'' and ''François-Mitterrand''. It is the national repository ...

'' in Paris contains the representation of a soul going to judgement in which one of the figures is depicted with the head of a rat wearing a traditional judges' wig.

References

Divination Old World rats and mice {{murinae-stub