Apantomancy is a form of
divination
Divination () is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic ritual or practice. Using various methods throughout history, diviners ascertain their interpretations of how a should proceed by reading signs, ...
using articles at hand or things that present themselves by chance.
The diviner works him/herself into a
state of trance until an object or event is perceived and a divination worked out. This form of divination was used in ancient Rome by the
augurs.
There is no set of standard interpretations in apantomancy, with the interpretations of events depending on the background of the seer.
A branch of apantomancy places special significance on chance meetings of animals.
The superstition regarding black cats crossing your path comes from this form of divination.
Other common superstitions based on apantomancy are the belief that seeing a
buzzard is an omen of death.
References
Divination
{{Occult-stub