Divination Systems

Social Role

The notion of divination refers to the art or practice that seeks to foresee or foretell the future or discover the hidden causes of illness and other forms of affliction. It is also a potent means of insight in the decision-making process and a way of knowing the will of the Gods in people's lives by the aid of supernatural powers or a sophisticated interpretation of omens. As such, it pertains to the realm of prophecy, wisdom, and healing technique. In Africa, divination sessions are instances of consulting the Gods or the ancestors. These are not metaphysical constructs, but real living beings that interact with the living. As a means of communication with the village of the ancestors, divination reinforces the belief in the reality of the world of the spirits and the ancestors. Indeed, in African worldview, “the Dead are not dead.”

Divination (lubuko in Luba religion) and ancestral veneration are the two fundamental pillars of African religious beliefs. The practice is as old as humanity. During the colonial era, divination was regarded with extreme suspicion as an [Page 206]irrational practice detrimental to its adherents. Under the influence of Christianity and Western Enlightenment and modern scientific worldview, divination got a sinister signification as a harmful superstitious ignorance. Diviners were perceived as charismatic charlatans exploiting a credulous and anxiety-ridden people.

Ghana, Bolgatanga, Kassena diviner performs ritual. Before a Kassena hunt begins, the village diviner must be consulted. Using his traditional instruments of divination, a sacred forked stick that he drops repeatedly onto a stone divination board, he communicates with the ancestor and nature spirits on behalf of the hunter.

Source: Carol Beckwith/Angela Fisher/Getty Images.

Many Westerners regarded divination sessions as instances of arbitrary and idiosyncratic behavior by ignorant “witch-doctors.” Yet divination is found in every age and every country. It has survived all forms of attack and thrives today not only in remote villages, but also in major urban centers in Africa, Europe, and the Americas. It is, in part, divination that has made Yoruba religion, Santeria, and other forms of African religion popular in the West. Everywhere in Africa, divination plays a pivotal role as a trusted means of decision making and a basic source of vital knowledge.

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