Divination is not necessarily the prediction of future! For me it is seeking knowledge from within and therefore from nature. A form of introspection. However, the difference from normal introspection is that you have something external directing your thought in different directions. This could be tarot cards, runes, the I-ching etc.. It is as if you are consulting nature/chaos/the universe for answers. Even if you dont believe in any of the above you can see the external factors as a way of being creative and holistic with your thought process in order to prevent intellectual stagnation and wallowing.
I have heard many people rave about how much they love David Bowie’s lyrics, and how much they mean to them, but in fact most of his lyrics where cut-ups. A technique created by writer and occultist William S Burroughs as a form of divination. This method involves cuting up pieces of found text (i.e. from a newspaper) and then randomly putting them together. The human mind, even when processing random pieces of information the one after the other, creates narratives through them that bridge the discontinuities. These narratives, because of the non-sense of the juxtaposed and randomly ordered information, probably say much more about your worries and what has happened in your day so far, rather than highlight the original relations of the fragmented texts. The cut-up only creates an enviroment for your narratives to unfold and gives them dirrection. It has no inherent narrative of its own. Maybe only the ordering shows something about the person who created it.
This method is almost identical to the way the Tarot cards work, but in the Tarot you have pictures and symbols to interpret. Though again, it is about creating your own narrative which acts as a mirror to your internal universe.
Maybe this is why Bowie’s lyrics are so succesful. They speak to everyone because they dont preech, they imply and they show us our inner reality and potentiality. And everyone is interested in themselves.
Sigil Music 