3.3 (2) Divination Practices

What is divination primarily used for in various cultures?

• Entertainment purposes

• Predicting and understanding the unknown

• Physical healing

• Enhancing mathematical calculations

Which ancient civilization provides the earliest written evidence of divination practices?

• Ancient Egypt

• Mesopotamia

• Ancient Greece

• The Roman Empire

What is the difference between an omen and an oracle in divination?

• Omens are questions asked, while oracles are signs from gods

• Omens are naturally occurring signs, while oracles provide specific answers to queries

• Omens were used in Rome, and oracles were used in Mesopotamia

• Omens are always negative, while oracles are always positive

What is “natural divination”?

• Divination that uses logic and reasoning

• Divination that relies on external tools

• Divination that involves spontaneous visions or prophecies

• Divination practiced by scientists

What was one reason astrology was often forbidden in ancient societies?

• It was seen as too powerful and influential

• It was considered unscientific even in ancient times

• It required rare and expensive materials

• It was only practiced by priests

In which religious text was divination explicitly forbidden?

• The Quran

• The Tanakh

• The Bhagavad Gita

• The Tao Te Ching

Why did divination research nearly stop after the 1920s?

• Lack of interest from scholars

• Many primary sources were destroyed in wars

• The dominance of new scientific methods in research

• Political restrictions on religious studies

What significant discovery changed previous assumptions about divination in ancient Egypt?

• New sources found in Roman-period papyri

• The translation of the Dead Sea Scrolls

• The discovery of the Rosetta Stone

• The excavation of Egyptian ziggurats

How do modern scholars increasingly view prophecy and divination?

• As entirely separate disciplines

• As two related aspects of communicating with the divine

• As outdated concepts with no historical relevance

• As purely fictional traditions

What was the primary purpose of divination in ancient Rome?

• Political decision-making

• Determining agricultural techniques

• Resolving conflicts between city-states

• Developing philosophical theories