Such conjectural, or divinatory, criticism has in the past enjoyed a traditional preeminence: Dr. Johnson observed that William Warburton's correction of "good" to "god" in the second act of Hamlet (scene 2, line 182) almost set the critic on a level with the author.
The codex contains a wealth of information on astrology and on divinatory practices.
The metaphysical vision, expressed in the Yijing ("Classic of Changes"), combines divinatory art with numerological technique and ethical insight.
In the divinatory calendars, Tlaloc was the eighth ruler of the days and the ninth lord of the nights.
Two basic calendars, a 260-day divinatory calendar and one based on the solar year of 365 days, were found throughout the area.
Cicero's De divinatione (Concerning Divination), dated probably 44 bc, provides the best source on ancient divinatory practices.
Some evolution in divinatory practice and theology evidently occurred.
The use of the drum was limited to the Lapps, Voguls, and Ostyaks among the Finno-Ugric peoples, but similar divinatory practices with the aid of a sieve were known among the Finns and other Balto-Finnic groups.
The ding was often used in divinatory ceremonies for sacrificial offerings, or it was buried with its owner in a tomb as a spiritual utensil (mingqi).
The origin of gambling is considered to be divinatory: by casting marked sticks and other objects and interpreting the outcome, man sought knowledge of the future and the intentions of the gods.
In one of the maqlu ("oath") texts, in which an āšipu priest is being sent forth by his god, the deity first asks "Whom shall I send?" The baru (a divinatory or astrological priest) declared the divine will through signs and omens, and thus is considered by some to have been a prophet.
