Dactylomancy: A term covering various forms of divination practiced with the aid of rings. One method resembles the table-rapping once used in spiritualism. A round table is inscribed with the letters of the alphabet, and a ring suspended above it. The ring, it is said, will indicate certain letters, which go to make up the message required. It was used, according to Ammianus Marcellinus, to find Valen's successor, and the name Theodosius was correctly indicated. Solemn services of a religious character accompanied this mode of divination. Another form of dactylomancy of which there is no detailed account, was practiced with rings of gold, silver, copper, iron, or lead, which were placed on the finger-nails in certain conjunctions of the planets. A wedding ing is, however, most in favor for purposes of this sort. Another way is to suspend the ring with a glass tumbler, or just outside of it so, that the ring on being swung may easily touch the glass. As with table-rapping, a code for an affirmative, twice for a negative answer, and so on. Suspend above a sovereign, the ring will indicate the person from whose head hair has been taken, or, if requested, another other member of the company.

Daphnomancy: Divination by means of the laurel. A branch is thrown in the fire, if it crackles in burning it is a happy sign, but if it burns without doing so, te prognostication is false.

Dark Night of the Soul: the phrase is derived from the works of the Spanish mystic and poet, St. John of the Cross. In Western mystical thought, it refers to the arduous process of purifying the soul of worldly attachments in preparation for illumination.

Davenport Brothers (lan and William): Two American mediums who gave seances for physical phenomena in America and Britain during the decade 1860-70. They seem to have attained to a considerable measure of fame, and to have won a great many people to the belief that their performances were genuine spirit manifestations. On their coming to England in 1864 they were accompanied by a chaplain, the Rev. J. B. Ferguson, who helped to inspire confidence in their good faith. The usual plan of their seances was as follows : The Brothers Davenport took their seats vis-a-vis in a small walnut cabinet " made very like a wardrobe or clothes-press." Any two gentlemen from among the audience were requested to bind them firmly to their benches, so as to preclude any possibility of their freeing their hands. Musical instruments were then placed in the cabinet, apparently out of reach of the medium, and the lights were lowered. Soon the musical instruments began to play within the cabinet, dim " spirit hands " were seen in front of it. At the conclusion of the seance, however, the mediums were found tied as securely as ever. They met with a check, however, on their provincial tour, for at Liverpool there were two men among the audience who possessed the secret of a special knot. The " Tom Fool's knot," as it was called, baffled the spirits, and the mediums were mobbed. Later in a seance given before a committee of the Anthropological Society, they shirked nearly all the conditions, and succeeded in accomplishing nothing which could not be done by a skilful conjurer. Tolmagne, Anderson, and other conjurers emulated their feats, and Maskelyne and Cooke so successfully that mediums had no resource but to class them as"fellow-adepts."

Davis, Andrew Jackson: Known as the " Poughkeepsie Seer" from his residence in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., was a prophet, clairvoyant, and mystic philosopher, who commenced his mission to the world about 1844, some time before the Rochester Rappings had inaugurated the movement known as " modern spiritualism." In 1847 he published a volume of trance discourses, The Principles of Nature, Her Divine Revelations, and A Voice to Mankind. In the same year he issued the first number of the Univerccelum, a periodical devoted to clairvoyance and trance phenomena generally, which continued till 1849. Not until 1850, however, did Davis and his followers identify themselves with the spiritualists. In his Revelations the Poughkeepsie Seer propounds his Harmonial Philosophy, afterwards to be elaborated in many volumes. His mission, revealed to him by Galen and Swedenborg, was the prophesying of a new dispensation, preceded by a social revolution. He was associated, throughout his career, with many prominent spiritualists.

Day of the Dead: jjjj

Deathbed Visions: jjjjj

Death Coach: There is widespread suspersitious belief that death goes round in a coach picking up souls. The form of the belief varies, of course, with the locality. In some parts of England Waes, the death-coach passes silently at midnight, without sound of hoof or wheels. Both coach and horse are black, and a black hound runs in front. In some localities the horses and coachman are headless, which doubtless adds to the effectiveness of the apparition. The Breton peasant hears the approach at midnight of a cart with a creaking axle. It is the Ankon death -- and when the cart stops before a dwelling someone within must die.

Death-watch: The ticking of the death-watch—a small insect found in decaying wood— is thought by the superstitious to presage death.

Dee, John: Dee, John : Born in London 1527, this remarkable mathematician and astrologer is supposed to have been descended from a noble old Welsh House, the Dees of Nant y Groes in Radnorshire; while he himself affirmed that among his direct ancestors was Roderick the Great, Prince of Wales. Dee's father appears to have been a gentleman server at the court of Henry VIII., and, being consequently in tolerably affluent circumstances, he was able to give his son a good education. So at the age of fifteen John proceeded to Cambridge, and after two years there he took his degree as Bachelor of Arts ; while a little later on his becoming intensely interested in astronomy and the like, he decided to leave England and go and study abroad. In 1547, accordingly, he went to the Low Countries, where he consorted with numerous scholars, and whence he eventually brought home the first astronomer's staff of brass, and also two gloves constructed by Gerard Mercetor; but Dee was not destined to remain in his native land for long, and in 1548 he lived for some time at Louvain, and in 1550 he spent several months in Paris, lecturing there on the principles of geometry. He was offered, indeed, a permanent post at the Sorbonne ; but he declined this, and in 1551 he returned to England, where, having been recom- TBF.............

Devas: In Theosophy, constitute one of the ranks or orders of spirits who compose the hierarchy which rules the universe under the Deity. Their numbers are vast and their functions are not all known to mankind, though generally these functions may be said to be connected with the evolution of systems and life.

Of Devas there are three kinds -- Bodiless Devas, Form Devas, and Passion Devas. Bodiless Devas belong to the higher mental world, their bodies are composed of mental Elemental Essence, and they belong to the first Elemental Kingdom. Form Devas belong to the lower mental world, and while their bodies are composed of mental Elemental Essence, they belong to the second Elemental kingdom.  Passion Devas belong to the astral world and their bodies are composed of astral Elemental Essence. Devas are creatures superlatively glorious, of vast knowledge and power, calm yet irresistible, and in appearance altogether magnificent. 

Devil: A name derived from the Greek Diabolos, "slanderer." The name for the supreme spirit of evil, the enemy of God and man. In primitive religious systems there is no conception of evil, and the gods are neither good nor bad, as we conceive these terms, but many possess "good" and "bad" attributes at one and the same time. Thus we have very few traces or beings which are absolutely evil in the older religions, and it may be broadly stated that the conception of Satan as we have it to-day is almost purely Hebrew and Christian. In Egypt and Babylon, figures like Apepi and Tiawath, although clearly in the line of evolution of a Satanic personality, are by no means rulers of the infernal regions. Again the Hades of the Greeks is merely a ruler of the shades of the dead, and not an enemy of Olympus or mankind. It is strange that in Mexico, Mictlantecutli, lord of hell, is a much more directly Satanic figure than any European or Asiatic ruler of the realms of the dead. But in some mythologies, there are frequent allusions to monsters who may quite easily have coloured our conception of Satan. Such is the Hindu serpent Ahi, and the Hebrew Leviathan, the principle of Chaos. In the Teutonic mythology we have the menacing shape of Loki, originally a god of fire, but afterwards the personification of evil. The conception of Satan, too, appears to have some deeply-rooted connection with the ancient serpent-worship, which seems to have penetrated most oriental countries. Thus we find the Tempter in the Old Testament in the guise of a serpent. The serpent or dragon is being generally regarded as the personification of night who swallows the sun and envelopes the world in darkness.

The Hebrew conception of Satan it is thought, arose in the post-exilic period, and exhibits traits of Babylonian or Assyrian influence. It is not likely that before the captivity any specific doctrine respecting evil spirits was held by the Hebrews. Writing on this subject, Mr. F. T. Hall in his book The Pedigree of the Devil says:

"The term 'Satan' and 'Satans' which occur in the Old Testament, are certainly not applicable to the modern conception of Satan as a spirit of evil; although it is not difficult to detect in the Old Hebrew mind a fruitful soil, in which the idea, afterwards evolved, would readily take root. The original idea of a 'Satan' is that of an 'adversary' or agent of 'opposition.' The angel which is said to have withstood Balaam is in the same breath spoken of as 'The angel of the Lord' and a 'Satan.' When the Philistines under Achish their king were about to commence hostilities against the Israelites under Saul and David and his men were about to march with the Philistines; the latter objected, lest, in the day of battle, David should become a 'Satan' to them, by deserting to the enemy. When David, in later life, was returning to Jerusalem, after Absalom's rebellion and death; and his lately disaffected subjects were, in turn, making their submission; amongst them came the truculent Shimei: Abishai, David's nephew, one of the fierce sons of Zeruiah, advised that Shimei should be put to death: this grated upon David's feelings, at a time when he was filled with exuberant joy at his own restoration; and he rebuked Abishai as a 'Satan.' Again Satan is said to have provoked David to number Israel, and at the same time, that 'the Lord moved David to number Israel;' a course strenuously opposed by Joab, another of the sons of Zeruiah. Solomon in his message to Hiram, king of Tyre, congratulated himself on having no 'Satans' and that this peaceful immunity from discord enabled him to build the Temple, which had been forbidden to his warlike father, David. This immunity was not, however, lasting; for Hadad, the Edomite, and Regon, of Zobah, became 'Satans' to Solomon, after his profuse luxury had opened the way for corruption and disaffection. In all these cases, the idea is simply identical with the plain meaning of the word: a Satan is an opponent, an adversary. In the elaborate curse embodied in the 109th Psalm, the writer speaks of his enemies as his 'Satans' and prays that the object of his anathema may have 'Satan' standing at his right hand. The Psalmist himself, in the sequel, fairly assumes the office of his enemy's 'Satan,' by enumerating his crimes and failings, and exposing them in their worst light. In the 71st Psalm, enemies (v. 10) are identified with 'Satans' or adversaries (v. 13).

"The only other places in the Old Testament where the word occurs, are in the Book of Job, and the prophecy of Zechariah. In the Book of Job, Satan appears with a distinct personality, and is associated with the sons of God, and in attendance with them before the throne of Jehovah. He is the cynical critic of Job's actions, and in that character he accuses him of insincerity and instability; and receives permission from Jehovah to test the justice of his accusation, by afflicting Job in everything he holds dear. We have here the spy, the informer, the public prosecutor, the executioner; all embodied in Satan, but the writer does not suggest the absolute antagonism between Jehovah and Satan, which is a fundamental dogma of modern Christianity.

"In the prophecy of Zechariah, Satan again, with an apparent personality, is represented as standing at the right hand of Joshua, the high-priest, to resist him: he seems to be claiming strict justice against one open to accusation; for Joshua is clothed in filthy garments - the type of sin and pollution. Jehovah relents, and mercy triumphs over justice: the filthy garments are taken away, and fair raiment substituted. Even here, the character of Satan, although hard, is not devoid of virtue, for it evinces a sense of justice."

The Babylonians, among whom the Hebrews dwelt during the Captivity, believed in the existence of vast multitudes of spirits, both good and bad, but there is nothing to show that the Hebrews took over from them any extensive pantheon, either good or evil. Indeed the Hebrew and Babylonian religions possessed many things in common, and there was no necessity that the captive Jews should borrow an animism which they probably already possessed. At the same time it is likely that they adopted the idea of an evil agency from their captors, and as the genius of their religion was averse to polytheism, the probabilities are that the welded the numerous evil forces of Bablyonian into one central figure. Again, it must have occurred to them that if the world contained an evil principle, it could not possibly emanate from God, whom they regarded as all-good, and it was probably with the intention of separating all evil from God that the personality of Satan (having regard to the amount of evil in the universe) was invested with such importance.

In later Judaism we find the conception of Satan strongly coloured by Persian dualism, and it has been supposed that Asmodeus of the Book of Tobit is the same as Aeshara Daewa of the Ancient Persians. Both "Satan" and "Satans" were mentioned in the book of Enoch, and in Ecclesiasticus he was identified with the serpent of Genesis, and in the "Book of the Secrets of Enoch" his revolt against God and expulsion from Heaven are described. In the Jewish Tagrinn, Samael, highest of the angels, merges with Satan into a single personality.

The Satan of the New Testament is merely a reproduction of these later Jewish forms. In Matthew he is alluded to as the "Prince of Demons," and in Ephesians is spoken of as ruling over a world of evil beings who dwell in the lower of heavens. Thus he is prince of the powers of the air. In Revelation the war in Heaven between God and Satan is described, and his imprisonment is foreshadowed after the overthrow of the Beast and the Kings of the earth, when he will be chained in the bottomless pit for one thousand years. After another period of freedom he is finally cast into the lake of brimstone for ever. According to the orthodox Christian belief of the present day, Satan has been endowed with great powers for the purpose of tempting man to prove his fortitude. In the middle ages, the belief in Satan and Satanic agencies was overwhelming, and was inherited by Protestantism from Roman Catholicism. This is not the place to enter into a discussion as to the likelihood of the existence of an evil being, but the great consensus of theological opinion is in favor of such a theory.

Devil Worship: (1) The worship of Satan or Lucifer. (2) The worship of semi-civilised or barbarous people; of deities having a demoniac form.

The Worship of Satan or diabolism is spasmodic and occasionally epidemic. It dates from the early days of dualism (q.v.) and perhaps originated in the Persian dual system when the opposing deities Ormuzd and Ahriman symbolised the good and bad principles respectively. Instances of pure Satanism are comparatively rare, and it must not be confounded with the Sabbatic orgies of witchcraft which partake more of the nature of (2), or with the evocation of the Evil One, for the purpose of making a pact with him. Modern groups practicing Satanism are small and obscure, and, unorganized as they are, details concerning them are conspicuous by their absence.

Plentiful details, however, are forthcoming concerning the cultus of Lucifer, but much discrimination is required in dealing with these, the bulk of the literature on the subject being manifestly imaginative and willfully misleading. The members of the church of Lucifer are of two groups, those who regard the deity they adore as the evil principle, thus approximating to the standpoint of the Satanists, and those who look upon him as the true god in opposition of Adonai or Jehovah, whom they regard as an evil deity who has with fiendish ingenuity miscreated the world of man to the detriment of humanity.

Modern diabolic literature is written from the point of view of the Roman Catholic Church, and much may be said for the theory that it was composed to subserve the necessities of that institution. But this cannot be wholly true, as it is a substantial fact that hosts are frequently abstracted from Catholic churches for the purpose of Satanic rite which requires the destruction of the consecrated water as a ritual act. In 1894 a hundred consecrated hosts were stolen from the Nôtre Dame by an old woman under circumstances that clearly proved that the vessels which contained them were not the objects of the theft, and an extraordinary number of such lacrencies occurred in all parts of France about the end of last century, no less than thirteen churches in the diocese of Orleans being thus despoiled. In the diocese of Lyons measures were taken to transform the tabernacles into strong-boxes, and in eleven of the dioceses similar acts were recorded. In Italy, Rome, Liguria and Solerus suffered, and even in the Island of Mauritius an outrage of peculiar atrocity occurred in 1895. It has been asserted by many writers such as Archbishop Meurin and Dr. Bataille that Freemasonry is merely a mask for Satanism, that is, that in recent years an organization of which the ordinary mason is ignorant has grown up which has diabolism for its special object. This it is asserted is recruited from the higher branches of masonry and initiates women. Needless to say, the change is indignantly denied by masons, but it must be remembered that the persons who bring it are Catholics, who have a direct interest in humiliating the fraternity. Bataille and Margiotta have it that the order of the Palladium or Sovereign Council of Wisdom, was constituted in France in 1737, and this, they infer, is one and the same as the legendary Palladium of the Templars, better known by the name of Baphomet (q.v.). In 1801 one Isaac Long, a Jew, carried the "original image" of Baphomet to Charleston in the United States, and it is alleged that the lodge he founded then became the chief in the Ancient and Accepted Scotch Rite. He was succeeded in due course by Albert Pike, who, it is alleged, extended the Scotch Rite, and shared the Anti-Catholic Masonic chieftainship with the Italian patriot Mazzini. This new directory was established, it is asserted, as the new Reformed Palladium Rite or the Reformed Palladium. Assisted by Gallatin Mackey, one Longfellow, Holbrook and a Swiss, Phileas Walder by name, Pike erected the new rite into an occult fraternity with world-wide powers, and practiced the occult arts so well that we are asked to believe that the head lodge at Charleston was in constant communication with Lucifer! Dr. Bataille in s wholly ludicrous work Le Diable au XIX Siècle, states among other things that in 1881 his hero "Dr. Hacks" in whom his own personality is but thinly disguised, visited Charleston in March 1881, where he met Albert Pike, Gallatin Mackey and other Satanists. Mackey showed him his Arcula Mystica in appearance like a liqueur stand, but in reality a diabolical telephone, worked like the Urim and Thummim. Miss Diana Vaughan, once a Palladist, Grand Mistress of the Temple, and Grand Inspectress of the Palladium, was converted to Roman Catholicism, and in Memoirs of an ex-Palladist, (1895) she has given an exhaustive account of her dealings with the Satanists of Charleston. She claims to be descended from the alchemist Thomas Vaughan, and recounts her adventures with Lucifer. These are so wholly absurd that we must request freedom from the necessity of recounting them. There is little doubt that Miss Vaughan was either the victim of hallucination or else the instrument of the Roman Catholic Church in its attempts to brand Masonry as a vehicle of Satanism. The publications of Margiotta and Gabriel Pages are equally puerile, and we may conclude that, if Satanism and the worship of Lucifer exists, that the rites of their churches are carried on in such a secret manner, that few, even mystics of experience, can be aware of them.

When applied to the ceremonies of barbarous races, devil-worship is a misnomer, as the "devils" adored by them are deities in their eyes, and only partake of the diabolic nature in the view of missionaries and others. But inasmuch as the gods possess a demoniac form they may be classed as diabolic. Among these may be enumerated many South American can African tribes. The Uapès of Brazil worship Jurupari, a fiend-like deity, to whom they consecrate their young men. His cult is invested with the utmost secrecy. The myth of his birth states that he was born of a virgin who conceived after drinking a draught of chakiri, or native beer. She possessed no sexual parts, and could not give birth to the god until bitten by a fish whilst bathing. When arrived at man's estate Jurupari invited the men of the tribe to a drinking-bout, but the women refused to provide the liquor, and thus gained his ill will. He devoured the children of the tribe because they had eaten of the uacu tree which was sacred to him. The men, enraged at the loss of their offspring, fell upon him, and cast him into a fire, from the ashes of which grew the paxiuba tree, which the Uapès say is the bones of Jurupari. Whilst it was night the men cut down the tree and fashioned it into sacred instruments which must be never be seen by the women, on account of the dislike Jurupari conceived for them. Should a woman chance to see the sacred symbols pertaining to the worship of Jurupari, she is at once poisoned. On hearing the "Jurupari music" of the priests on the occasion of one of his festivals the women of the tribe wildly rush into concealment, nor dare to emerge from it until all chance of danger is past. In all probability this custom proceeds from the ancient usage common to most American tribes that the rites of initiation of the men of the tribe must not be witnessed by the women thereof, probably on account of some more or less obscure totemic reason or sex-jealousy analogous to the exclusion of women from the rites of freemasonry, to which, strange to say, the worship of Jurupari bears a strong resemblance.

This is a good example of the "devil worship" of savage races. The Chinese also placate devils (see China) as do the people of Burma and Cambodia (q.v.) but in no sense can their oblations to evil spirits be classed as "worship," any more than the gods of classic times may be regarded as devils, simply because they were so labelled by early Chistianity.

(See Gnostics, Obeah, Ju-ju, Devil, Demonology, etc.)

Devils, Afraid of Bells: It was an old superstition that evil spirits were afraid of bells and fled from the sound of them.

Dhammapada: (Sans.) A work containing various aphorisms from the Buddhist Scriptures.

Diaphane: The Kaballistic term for the imagination.

Direct Drawing and Painting: a development of automatic drawing and painting in which the hand of the automatist is not made use of, and sometimes even drawing and painting materials are dispensed with, the sketch being precipitated in the darkness in a time which is usually too short for normal execution.
[Read the full article]

Direct Writing: A term used in spiritualism for spirit writing which is produced directly, and not by the hand of a medium, or through a mechanical contrivance such as a psychograph or planchette. The best known form of direct writing is that made popular by the mediums Slade and Eglinton - slate-writing (q.v.). But the spirits are not dependent solely on prepared materials, but can produce direct writing anywhere, and under any circumstances. Thus during a poltergeist disturbance at Stratford, Conn., in 1850-51, direct writing was found on turnips which sprang apparently from nowhere. An unfinished letter left for a few moments would be found completed in a different hand, though during the interval it might have been inaccessible to any normal agency. Direct writing may also be produced at spiritualistic seances, either by means of slate-writing, or by putting scraps of paper and pencil into a sealed drawer or a closed box. A sound as of writing will shortly be heard, and on the paper being withdrawn it will be found to contain some sort of message from the spirit world. Experiments on these lines were carried out by a noted spiritualist, Baron de Guldenstubbé, in 1856. Paper and pencil he locked in a small box, the key of which he carried about with him. At the end of thirteen days he found some writing on the paper; and on that same day the experiment was repeatedly performed, each time with success. Another method he adopted was to visit galleries, churches, and other public places, and to leave writing materials on the pedestals of statues, on tombs, and so on. In this way he obtained writing in English, French, German, Latin, Greek, and other languages purporting to come from Plato, Cicero, St. Paul, Juvenal, Spencer, and Mary Stuart. The Baron was accompanied on these expeditions by the Comte d'Ourches and others of his friends, while on one occasion a medium is mentioned as being present. It is probable, indeed, that a medium was essential to these spirit performances; for, though the medium's physical organism is not used as an agent, the writings generally take place in the vicinity of one gifted with supernormal faculties. Not only is legible hand-writing produced in this way; sometimes mysterious hieroglyphs are inscribed, which can only be deciphered by those who possess mediumistic powers.

Discarnate or Discarnate Entity: an intelligence that is disembodied as contrasted with an incarnated one.

Divination: The method of obtaining knowledge of the unknown or the future by means of omens. Astrology (q.v.) and oracular utterances (See Oracles), may be regarded as branches of divination. The derivation of the word supposes a direct message from the gods to the diviner or augur. It is practiced in all grades of barbarism and civilisation. The methods of divination are many and various, and strangely enough in their variety are confined to no one portion of the globe. Crystal-gazing has been relegated to a separate article. Shell-hearing and similar methods are allied to crystal-gazing and may be classed with it, as that method of divination which arises from the personal consciousness of the augur. Of the same class are divination by dreams, automatic writing, and so forth. What might be called divination by "luck" is represented by the use of cards, the casting of lots, the use of knuckle-bones as in Africa and elsewhere, cocoanuts as in Polynesia. Haruspication, or the inspection of entrails, divination by foot-print in ashes, by the flight of birds, by meeting with ominous animals, represents the third class of augury.

The art of divination is usually practiced among savages by the shaman caste; among less barbarous people by the augur, as in Rome and ancient Mexico; and even amongst civilised people by persons who pretend divination, such as the spiritualistic medium or the witch. The art is undoubtedly or great antiquity. It was employed in ancient Egypt side by side with astrology, and divination by dream was constantly resorted to, - a class or priests being kept apart, whose office it was to interpret dreams and visions. We find instances of dreams recorded in the Egyptian texts: as for example those of Thothmes IV king of Egypt in 1450 B.C., and Nut-Amen, king of the Eastern Soudan and Egypt about 670 B.C. The Egyptian magician usually set himself to procure dreams for his clients by such devices as the drawing of magical pictures and the reciting of magical words; and some of these are still extant, such as that in the British Museum papyrus No.122. We find, however, that in Egypt augury was usually effected by astrological methods.

In ancient China the principal method of divination was by means of the oracles; but we find such forms as the examination of the marks on the shell of a tortoise, which reminds us of the examination of the back of a peccary by the Maya of Central America. We find a Chinese monarch consulting the fates in this manner in 1146 B.C. and finding them unfavourable; but as in Egypt, most soothsaying was accomplished by means of astrology. Omens, however, were by no means ignored, and were given great prominence, as many tales in the ancient books testify.

In ancient Rome a distinct caste or college of priests called Augurs was set apart to interpret the signs of approval or disapproval sent by the gods in reference to any coming event. This college probably consisted originally of but three members, of whom the king himself was one; and it was not until the time of Cæsar that the members were increased to sixteen. The college remained in existence as late as the fourth century, and its members held office for life. The tenets of the Roman augurs were, that for signs of the gods one must look towards the sky and glean knowledge of the behests of the divine beings from such omens as the lightning-flash, and the flight of birds. On a windless night, the augur took up his position on a hill which afforded an extensive view. Marking out a space for himself, he pitched a tent within it, and seating himself therein with covered head requested the gods for a sign, and waited for an answer. He faced southwards, thus having the east, or lucky quarter, on his left, and the west, or unfavourable portion of the sky, on his right. He carefully observed every sign which came within the purview of his vision: such as lightning, the appearance of birds, and so forth. The song or utterance of birds was also carefully hearkened to; and these were divided into birds of good omen and evil omen: while others referred to definite persons and events. The reading of omens was also effected by the feeding of birds and observing the manner in which they ate. The course of animals and the sounds uttered by them were also closely watched, and all unusual phenomena were regarded as omens or warnings. Sortilege or the casting of lots was often resorted to by the caste of augurs. The election of magistrates was nearly always referred to the Auspices or College of Diviners, as were the setting out of an army for war, and the passing of laws.

In the East generally, divination appears to have been effected by crystal-gazing, dreams and similar methods of self-hallucination, or self-hypnotism. Divination flourished in Chaldea and Assyria among the Babylonians and Ethiopians, and appears to have been very much the same as in Egypt. In the Jewish Talmud we notice that witches are said to divine by means of bread-crumbs. Among the Arabs, the future is often foretold by means of the shapes seen in sand. The Burmese and Siamese pierce an egg at each end, and having blown the contents on the ground, trace within them the outline of things to be. (See Burma.) Divination by astrology too is very common in oriental cultures, and prophetic utterance is likewise in great favour.

It is remarkable that among the native races of America the same arts of divination as are known to the peoples of the Old World were and are in vogue. These arts, as a rule, are the preserve of the medicine-man and priestly class. In ancient Mexico there was a college of augurs corresponding in purpose to the Auspices of ancient Rome, the members of which occupied themselves with observing the flight and listening to the songs of birds, from which they drew their conclusions. In Mexico, the Calmecac or college or priests had a department where divination was taught in all its branches, but there were many ex officio prophets and augurs, and the reader is referred to the article on Mexico for an account of the astrological methods of casting nativities, and so forth. Oracles were common, and in this connection an amusing Peruvian story may be recalled. A certain huaca or oracle was reported to be evil influence; orders were given to destroy it; and upon its being broken up a parrot found means to escape from within it, - thus giving us a pretty shrewd idea of the means employed by the priesthood to effect oracular utterance. In Peru, still other classes of diviners predicted by means of the leaves of tobacco, or the grains or juice of coca, the shapes of grains or maize, taken at random, the forms assumed by the smoke rising from burning victims, the viscera of animals, the course taken by spiders, and the direction in which fruit might fall. The professors of these several methods were distinguished by different ranks and titles, and their training was a long and arduous one. The American tribes as a whole were very keen observers of bird life. Strangely enough the bird and serpent are combined in their symbolism, and indeed in the names of several of their principal deities. The bird appeared to the American savage as a spirit, in all probability under the spell of some potent enchanter - a spell which might be broken by some great sorcerer or medicine man alone. As among the ancient Romans, the birds of America were divided into those of good and evil omen; and indeed certain Brazilian tribes appear to think that the souls of departed Indians enter into the bodies of birds. The shamans of certain tribes or Paraguay act as go-betweens between the members of their tribes and such birds as they imagine enshrine the souls of their departed relatives. This usage would appear to combine the acts of augury and necromancy.

The priesthood o Peru practised ocular methods by "making idols speak," and this they probably accomplished by ventriloquial arts. The piagés or priests of the Uapès of Brazil have a contrivance known to them as the paxiuba, which constists of a tree-stem about the height of a man, on which the branches and leaves have been left. Holes are bored in the trunk beneath the foliage, and by speaking though these the leaves are made to tremble, and the sound so caused is interpreted as a message from Jurupari, one of their principal deities. But all over the American continent from the Eskimos to the Patagonians, the methods of oracular divination are practically identical. The shaman or medicine-man raises a tent or hut which he enters carefully closing the aperture after him. He then proceeds to make his incantations, and in a little while the entire lodge trembles and rocks, the poles bend to breaking point, as if a dozen strong men were straining at them, and the most violent noise comes from within, seemingly now emanating from the depths of the earth, now from the air above, and now from the vicinity of the hut itself. The reason for this disturbance has never been properly accounted for; and medicine-men who have been converted to Christianity have assured scientific workers amongst Indian tribes that they have not the least idea of what occurred during the time they occupied these enchanted lodges, for the simple reason that they were plunged in a deep sleep. After the supernatural sounds have to some extent faded away, the medicine-man proceeds to question the spirit he has evoked, - the answers of whom for sheer ambiguity are equal to those of the Pythonesses of ancient Greece. There is little doubt that the shamans who practice this method or oracular utterance are the victims of hallucination, and many cases are on record in which they have excited themselves into a condition of permanent lunacy.

America is the touchstone of the science of anthropology, and since we have adopted it as the continent from which to draw the majority of our illustrations, it will be as well if we conclude the article on American lines for the sake of comparison. We find then that divination by hypnosis is well-known in the western continent. Jonathan Carver, who travelled among the Sioux about the latter end of the eighteenth century, mentions it as in use amongst them. The "Ghost Dance" religion of the Indians of Nevada had for one of its tenets the belief in the hypnotic communion with the dead. Divination by means of dreams and visions is extremely common in both sub-continents of the western hemisphere, as is exemplified by the derivation of the word "priest" in the native languages: by the Algonquians they are called "dreamers of the gods," by the Maya "listeners," and so forth. The ability to see visions was usually quickened by the use of drugs or the swallowing or inhalation of cerebral intoxicants, such as tobacco, maguey, coca, the snake-plant, and so forth. Indeed many Indian tribes, such as the Creeks, possessed numerous plants which they cultivated for this purpose. A large number of instances are on record in which Indian medicine-men are said to have divined the future in a most striking manner, and perhaps the following will serve to illustrate this:

In his autobiography, Black Hawk, a celebrated Sac chief, relates that his grandfather had a strong belief that in four years' time 'he should see a white man, who would be to him as a father.' Supernaturally directed, as he said, he travelled eastward to a certain spot, and there, as he had been informed in dreams, met with a Frenchman who concluded an alliance on behalf of his country with the Sac nation. Coincidence is certainly possible here, but it can hardly exist in the circumstances of Jonathan Carver. While he was dwelling with the Killistenoes, they were threatened with a famine, and on the arrival of certain traders, who brought them food in exchange for skins and other goods, their very existence depended. The diviners of the tribe were consequently consulted by the chief, and announced that the next day, at high noon exactly, a canoe would make its appearance with news of the anxiously looked-for expedition. The entire population came down to the beach in order to witness its arrival, accompanied by the incredulous trader, and, to his intense surprise, at the very moment forecasted by the shamans, a canoe rounded a distant headland, and, paddling speedily shorewards, brought the patient Killistenoes news of the expedition they expected.

John Mason Brown has put on record an equally singular instance of the prophetic gift on the part of an American medicine-man. (See Atlantic Monthly, July, 1866.) He was engaged several years previously in searching for a band of Indians in the neighbourhood of the Mackenzie and Coppermine rivers; but the difficulties of the search induced the majority of his band to return, until out of ten men who originally set out only three remained. They had all but concluded to abandon their search when they stumbled upon a party of braves of the very tribe of which they were in search. These men had been sent out by their medicine-men to find three whites, of whose horses, accoutrements, and general appearance the shaman had given them an exhaustive account ere they set out, and this the warriors related to Brown before they saw his companions. Brown very naturally inquired closely of the medicine-man how he had been able to foretell their coming. But the latter, who appeared to be 'a frank and simple-minded man,' could only explain that 'he saw them coming, and heard them talk on their journey.'

Crystal-gazing is in common use amongst many Indian tribes. The Aztecs of Mexico were wont to gaze into small polished pieces of sandstone, and a case is on record where a Cherokee Indian kept a divining crystal wrapped up in buckskin in a cave, occasionally "feeding" it by rubbing over it the blood of a deer. At a village in Guatemala, Stephens saw a remarkable stone which had been placed on the altar of the church there, but which had previously been used as a divining-stone by the Indians of the district. Divination by arrow was also commonly resorted to.

According to Fuentes, the chronicler of Guatemala the reigning king of Kiche, Kicah Tanub, when informed by the ambassador of Montezuma II, that a race of irresistible white men had conquered Mexico and were proceeding to Guatemala, sent for four diviners, whom he commanded to tell him what would be the result of this invasion. They asked for time to discover the future fate of his kingdom, and taking their bows discharged some arrows against a rock. They returned to inform their master that, as no impression had been made upon the rock by the arrowheads, they must prognosticate the worst and predicted the ultimate triumph of the white man - a circumstance which shows that the class to which they belonged stood in no fear of royalty. Kicah Tanub, dissatisfied, sent for the 'priests,' obviously a different class from the diviners, and requested their opinions. From the ominous circumstance of an ancient stone - which had been brought from afar by their forefathers - having been broken, they also augured the fall of the Kiche empire.

Many objects such as small clay birds, boats of boat-shaped vessels, etc., have been discovered in sepulchral mounds in North America, and it is conjectured that these may have been used for purposes of divination. As any object might become a fetish, it is probable that any object might become a means of augury. The method employed appears to have been so to treat the object that the probably changes for or against the happening of a certain event would be discovered - much, indeed, as some persons will toss coins to "find out" whether an expected event will come to pass or not. Portents, too, were implicitly believed in by the American races, and this branch of augury was, we find, one of the accomplishments of Nezahualpilli, king of Tezcuco, near Mexico, whom Montezuma consulted concerning the terrible prodigies which startled his people prior to the advance of the Spaniards upon his kingdom, and which were supposed to predict the return of Quetzacloatl, the legendary culture-hero of Anahuac, to his own again. These included earthquakes, tempests, floods, the appearances of comets and strange lights, whilst mysterious voices were heard in the air - such prodigies, indeed, as tradition usually insists upon as the precursors of the downfall of a mighty empire.

The various methods of divination have each been accorded a separate article: thus the reader is referred to Axinomancy, Belomancy, Capnomancy, and so forth; and in the articles dealing with the various countries a goodly number of instances of divinatory practice will be discovered.

Divine World: Formerly known as the Adi Plane -- is in the theosophic scheme of things, the first or highest world, the world first formed by the divine impulse in the creative process. It is unattainable by man in his present state. 

Divining Rod: A forked rod, or branch of tree, which in the hands of certain people is said to indicate, by means of spasmodic movements of varying intensity, the presence of water and minerals underground. Traces of the rod used for purposes of divination are to be found in the records of Ancient Egypt. Cicero and Tacitus both wrote of the rod "virgula divina." This ancient divining rod was a form of rhabdomancy (q.v.) or divination by means of little pieces of stick. In Germany it was known as the "wishing-rod" and was used just as fortune-tellers use cards, coffee or tea-grounds at the present day. Agricola's De Re Metallica published at Basle, at the beginning of the sixteenth century, makes reference to another rod which he calls the "virgula furcata," the forced rod, to distinguish it from the "virgula divina." This rod, he said, was used by miners to discover mineral lodes; rhabdomancy having nothing to do with this use of the divining rod. Melancthon mentions this use of the rod and ascribed the behaviour of the "instrument" in the discovery of metallic ores to the law of sympathy, according to the belief then obtaining that metals, trees and other natural objects had certain subtle relationships with each other; and believers in this theory pointed to the fact that trees which grew above mineral lodes droop as though attracted downwards; the modern scientific explanation of this natural phenomenon being that it is due to the poverty of the soil. In Sebastian Minister's Cosmography, also of the sixteenth century, may be found engravings of these "mineral diviners" at work. The priests of that time persecuted them as demons in disguise; they were also included in the witchcraft persecutions, suffering tortures and burning to death. Among miners on the Continent the use of the "virgula furcata" became universal, especially in the Harz Mountains and throughout Saxony. In Germany it was called the Schlag-Ruthe, "striking-rod" from the fact of its appearing to strike when held over mineral ores.

Robert Boyle, the "father of chemistry" is the first to make mention of the divining rod in England. In an essay of his published in 1663 may be found the following: "A forked hazel twig is held by its horns, one in each hand, the holder walking with it over places where mineral lodes may be suspected, and it is said that the fork by dipping down will discover the place where the ore is to be found. Many eminent authors, amongst others our distinguished countryman Gabriel Plat, ascribe much to this detecting wand, and others, far from credulous or ignorant, have as eye-witnesses spoken of its value. When visiting the lead-mines of Somersetshire I saw its use, and one gentleman who employed it declared that it moved without his will, and I saw it bend so strongly as to break in his hand. It will only succeed in some men's hands, and those who have seen it may much more readily believe than those who have not." Some authorities on the subject state that it was first brought into England in the time of Queen Elizabeth. In the State papers of that reign may be found recorded the fact that commissioners were sent to Germany to study the best methods of mining and brought back with them German miners from the Harz Mountains; and that these "foreigners" introduced the divining rod into England seems highly probable. It was first used for water finding, however, in Southern France, and not until a century later was it used in England for this purpose. It became the "dowsing rod" and De Quincey, also belonging to the county, tells of singular cases of "jousers" as he calls them. Down to the present day this means of finding water is used, farmers and owners of large estates sending for a "dowser" when they wish to find a spring of water. These men are not geologists, who might have a scientific knowledge of the locality, they are often merely labourers. The rods are mostly cut from the hazel, but all kinds of nut and fruit trees have been used, white and black thorn and privet also being favorites. Pieces of watch-spring and copper-wire are also used; and in some cases the forked rod is dispensed with, the peculiar sensation felt in the arms, hands and body being sufficient to indicate the water. These dowsers wander over the ground with the ends of the fork grasped in the palms of the hands and the rod downwards and when this moves, turning suddenly in his hands, upwards, it is said for water, downwards for minerals, at that spot will be found the desired object, absolute correctness frequently being achieved. In later years attempts have been made to scientifically investigate the question and amongst amateur "dowsers" we find the names of Lord Farrer and the late Mr. Andrew Lang. As to the theory for these movements the electrical or magnetic theory was exploded by Father Kircher in 1654 who balanced the rod on a frictionless support like a delicate pair of scales and found that in this position nothing would induce it to move over hidden water or metal. It must be held by some human being before the movements take place. Chevreul, the French savant, in 1854 put forward the theory of involuntary muscular action. A modern scientist gives his opinion that very possibly it is due to a faculty in the "dowser" akin to that possessed by a medium: "some transcendental perceptive power unconsciously possessed by certain persons, a faculty analogous to what is called clairvoyance. Not exactly to be described as 'clear-seeing' but rather, a dim, obscure impression not reaching the brain through the organ of vision, seldom ever rising to the level of a conscious impression, but one able to start the nervous reflex action which caused the muscles to twitch and the rod or other 'autoscope' to move. Doubtless, changes of blood pressure and pulse rate also occur in the dowser; and if this be so, quite possibly modern instrumental appliances for recording these will ultimately supersede the primitive forked twig." He goes on to say that: "The 'dowser' in fact, 'feels for' and subconsciously discerns the hidden object, whether it be water, hidden treasure or even a malefactor concealing himself from justice, who was pursued and discovered by the agency of the famous dowser Jacques Aymar, using his supernormal powers in 1692." See Sir W. F. Barrett F. R. S. Lecture on the Dowsing Rod; A. E. Waite, The Occult Sciences.

Dixon, (Jeanne): kkkkkkk

Djemschecd, The Cup of: A divination cup, which has been the subject of many poems and myths of ancient Persia. It was believed to have been found while digging the foundations of Persepolis, filled with the elixir of immortality. In this magical cup was mirrored the whole world, and everything, good and evil, was revealed therein. The Persians had great faith in these revelations; and attributed the prosperity of their empire to the possession of this famous cup.

Dowsing: jjjj

Dragons: A purely fabulous monster of enormous size, and common to almost all countries. Descriptions of its appearance vary; but it appears to have been f a reptilian nature, often of a red or green color, sometimes with several heads which vomited forth fire and vapors, and a large and clumsy tail. It was of enormous strength; but the ancients believed that it could be charmed by music, and the dragon which guarded the golden fleece was soothed by the voice of Medea. In India at he time of Alexander the Great, a dragon was worshipped as a god; and in occult history it is the manifestation of hell. The dragon, however, is best known in legendary history as the terrible monster whose duty it was to provide the hero with opportunities of valor, and in this capacity it has figured in many a tale. The legend of St. George and the Dragon is familiar to everyone, and also the knights of King Arthur's Round Table. In Revelation the dragon, a representation of the Evil One, is oversome by the Archangel Michael. On one side of the coin given to those who were cured of possession, about the time of Henry VII, there was portrayed an angel standing with both feet on a dragon.  The idea of the dragon, is perhaps evolved from the conception of the earth, as a living being, a notion which would gain currency from Earthquake and related phenomena.

Dreamland:  llllll

Dreams: The occult significance of dreams was a matter of speculation among the wise at an early period in the history of civilisation. In the articles upon Babylonia and Egypt we have to some extent outlined the methods by which the wise men of those countries divined the future from visions seen in sleep, and to these we must refer the reader, as well as to the articles dealing with other countries, savage and civilised, where he will discover a good deal of data relating to dreams and dream-lore. In this place we can only indicate some of the more outstanding theories of antiquity regarding the nature and causes of dreams and the manner in which the ancient diviners generally interpreted them.

Dreams were regarded as of two kinds - false and true, in either case emanating from a supernatural intelligence, evil or good. By the ancients sleep was regarded as a second life, in which the soul was freed from the body and therefore much more active than during the waking state. The acts it observed and the scenes through which it passed were thought to have a bearing on the future life of the dreamer, but it is possible that the dream-life was regarded as supernatural and "inverted," and that the events which the bodies spirit beheld were the opposites of those which would later occur on the earth-plane. The idea thus originated that "dreams go by contraries," as both popular belief and the many treatises upon the subject of nightly visions assure us in the case.

However the belief in the divinatory character of dreams arose, there is every proof that their causes and nature exercised some of the greatest minds of antiquity. Aristotle believed them to arise solely from natural causes. Posidonius the Stoic of the opinion that they were of three kinds, the first automatic, and coming from the clear sight of the soul, the second from spirits and the third from God. Cratippus, Democritus, and Pythagoras held doctrines almost identical or differing only in detail. Later, Macrobius divided dreams into five kinds: the dream, the vision, the ocular dream, the insomnium and the phantasm. The first is a figurative and mysterious representation which requires an interpretation; the second was an exact representation of a future event in sleep; the third was a dream representing some priest or divinity, who declared to the sleeper things to come; the fourth was an ordinary dream not deserving of attention, and the fifth was a disturbed half-awake dream, a species of nightmare. Other writers divide dreams into accidental dreams and those which were induced for the purposes of divination. We are told by Herodotus that in the temple of Bel in Babylon a priestess lay on a bed, ready to dream visions of the second class, and that the beds of such soothsayers were often made of the skin of a ram is well known. The ancient Hebrews obtained such dreams by sleeping among tombs, and this especial gateway to the supernatural world seems to have been, and still is known to the majority of nations, barbarous and the reverse, as intimately as hypnotic and other methods of reaching its planes and hearing its pronouncements. Sleep was, of course, often induced by drugs, whether the soma of the Hindoos, the peyollotl of the ancient Mexicans, the haschish of the Arabs, or the opium of the Malays or Chinese, and these narcotics which have the property of inducing speedy sleep and of heightening inward vision were and are greatly prized by professional dreamers all over the world, especially as they rendered dreaming almost immediately possible.