海外文化:英美民俗-占卜

【英文原文】

摘要：试图通过魔法或超自然手段获取未知信息称为占卜。迷信认为，占卜人能够通过占卜得知过去发生事件的真相、异地正在发生的事件以及未来发生的事件。

Divination is the practice of trying to learn about the unknown by magical or supernatural means. A diviner is supposed to have the ability to learn about the past, present, or future. Some diviners believe they can learn the causes of past events. For example, if a person has died mysteriously, the diviner is supposed to be able to tell when, where, and how the person died. Other diviners, called dowsers, claim they can find the location of underground water. Still others believe they can foretell events, such as when a person will die or whom a person will marry.

There are many kinds of divination. Some diviners try to learn about the unknown by communicating with the spirits of the dead. Astrology is an attempt to describe future happenings by studying the positions of the sun, the moon and stars. Some diviners interpret dreams to foretell events. Palmistry claims to know one’s future by examining the lines on the palm of one’s hand. Some fortunetellers are supposed to be able to see, in their crystal balls, pictures of events that happened in the past, are happening at present or are going to happen in the future.

Courts in the West once used divination to determine the guilt or innocence of criminals. Divination in a trial was called an ordeal. For example, in many witch trials of the 17th century in Europe and colonial America, a suspected witch was tied up and thrown into water. If she sank, she was considered innocent. If she floated, she was considered a witch – and was executed.