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Geomancy FAQs

What even is Geomancy?

A traditional Islamicate Geomancy Tableau on parchment with ink
Robin Pool's modern geomancy tableau with red challenge zones and green advantage zones

Traditional
Islamicate Tableau

Geomancy is a traditional divination system specifically designed to produce concrete answers to yes/no questions along with remedies and suggestions to achieve the best possible outcome and ward off any challenges.

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It complements other systems like Tarot or astrology, producing information those two don't - see more below!

My Updated Version

​Why is it called geomancy? 

Back in the day, before industrial production made fancy divination tools like tarot cards accessible for regular people, sages used to write out geomancy figures in the dirt or sand, using their finger or a stick. 

 

So “geo” is from the Greek for “earth,” and “mancy” comes from a root essentially meaning magic (e.g. necromancy, cartomancy, etc.)

 

The Arabic term is ilm al-raml, “the knowledge of the sand.”

 

It's a type of divination that allows you to generate predictive figures with regular materials at hand. It produces concrete answers with the specific recommendations, no need to interpret general energies or hazard a guess at whether something will happen or not.

 

Alternatively, some people believe the name arose because geomancy involves channeling the energies of the planet and figuring out how to make the best use of them. But I like the image of the ancient sage, literally scratching out wisdom from the very earth itself…

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Note: "geomancy" as a category is sometimes used to denote location-based practices like Feng Shui or dowsing, but that's not what I do.

How do you generate the geomantic figures? 

Traditional geomancy figures with their Arabic names

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Some people use a “random” generation mechanic like flipping a coin.

 

But I prefer to use my own body because that gives my inner wisdom and Spirit Team more direct input to affect the number of marks I make.

 

After quieting my mind and doing a quick ritual purification, I collaborate with my wisdom sources to make the marks that determine the first four figures. Then the others are produced by adding those and subsequent figures in different combinations. 

 

Each figure has its own yes/no signification plus astrolological correspondences, best practices and advised remedies. Plus, every location in the tableau is associated with a specific life area and a different energetic outcome. 

 

So geomancy produces both a concrete answer with specific recommendations and also a more nuanced look at the influences and energies at play in every area of the querent’s life.

Stacked stones by ocean
Rough irregular pearls in oyster shells symbolizing making the most of our gifts

"One faces one's future with one's past."

Pearl S. Buck

Author The Good Earth

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All divination methods have uses where they shine.

 

Geomancy is specifically designed to produce concrete answers to yes/no questions along with remedies and suggestions for how to achieve the best possible outcome and ward off any challenges.

 

It overcomes some limitations of other divination methods. Tarot cards don't specifically say "yes" or "no" – that's up to the reader to make that assessment. In horary, all charts cast within a short window of time look almost identical. Plus you have to deal with Mars retrograde for months!

 

I use geomancy alongside astrology and Tarot because it has strengths that other divination systems don't.

Is geomancy better than Tarot or horary astrology or other popular divination methods?

Sand Dunes
A camel gazing at pyramids, symbolizing looking into the future

"My interest is in the future because I'm going to spend the rest of my life there."

Charles Kettering

Where did it come from?

 

Is it okay for Western white people to use it?

The best modern scholarship I've found suggests that it originated thousands of years ago amongst the Berber people of West Africa. It was expanded by medieval Islamicate occult practitioners in the Near East, and then picked up by European scholars during the Renaissance. 

 

My practice is a mix of traditions from these three locations along with a healthy dose of my own techniques. 

 

To my best knowledge, none of these is associated with any initiatory tradition that would limit who can use them.

 

Since geomancy is so multicultural and has been used by people of many races on multiple continents, I think it's fine for anyone to employ as long as we acknowledge our debt to the sages and seers of the past who developed this incredible system. 

 

If you have concerns about that or questions, please let me know. I would love to discuss this more with you.

Astrologer-Calculating-Rising-Sign

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