Geomancy is sort of a material “numerology.” But it doesn’t focus on numerological values, instead focusing on recurrent patterns in the earth and how they are reflected/reflect an almost mandala like pattern of the natural/cosmic order.

The basic premise is simple. “Invisible” energies create visible imprints in our environment, but most don’t stop to notice them. Sort of like Jung’s concept of synchronicity, they observe that each set of patterns occur predominantly in the presence of a specific energy, like death say. There is no “subtle sense” needed to read geomantic patterns.

The energies manifest in sets of patterns? Yes, like odd circles of enhanced greenery in otherwise only normally verdant plant growth. Unusually tall hillocks of shrubbery, that sort of thing.

Geomantic practice does have two sides to it. A divinatory practice and an art that, for lack of a better term, best approaches “engineering.” Feng-shui would be an eastern example of “geomantic” engineering, but it has been practiced by other cultures as well.

I’m guessing the divinatory practice is something like predicting weather from how the plants grow? That’s a good guess, but usually it’s done when one of the herd is butchered, a goat or sheep or even a cow, but no more commonly than haruspication which is divination by reading the “shape” of entrails. It’s believed that the earths energies affect all the energy rhythms of anything living on it. So though they use a variety of techniques world wide, and the “I-ching” is geomantic as well (I-ching = Book of Change), they all focus on first generating a pulse pattern, and then systematically arranging it using a binary algorithm, for lack of a better term.

Is this the engineering variety or also done in the divination? It is the divination. Sort of the “math” of the engineering practice.

How is a pulse pattern generated? The pulse pattern is generated by anything from removing random numbers of beans from a bag, to in the case of I-ching divination, tossing coins or casting lots. Lots = sticks even in bone reading.

These methods put out a pulse of energy into the earths energy? No. They read it as it moves through you, and allow you to translate it into events that will manifest in that environment in the case of divination. In the “engineering” facet of geomancy, they recognize some energies and patterns as auspicious, as supportive. It isn’t actually about “luck”, but even the original Norse meaning of the word luck (which is where we get the word from) meant more like “fate” or cause and effect.

In geomantic engineering they seek to read geographic patterns and cross reference them to astrological influences, thus the reason for erecting structures like the Ziggurats, Menhirs, and even Stonehenge, and by way of observing the heavens, select places for settlement or development of any kind that best served that purpose.

Example: It’s considered inauspicious for the living to dwell in a ravine, because the flow of energy is very poor. Traffic both physical or “cosmic” being very limited, but the same ravine would make a fine burial ground or graveyard. If a graveyard is placed somewhere that’s too “alive”, it’s too noisy. It won’t let the dead rest and it will have angry haunting issues.

The United States has seriously neglected this insight of course, though the Native Americans didn’t, and we have all sorts of inexplicable stuff happen. We just say “random death/destruction happens” without reflecting on the relationship of our living places with the rest of the world. What do you think of this?

I agree. The town I’m in now has a lot of dead end streets. It feels like bad energy flow. According to geomancy that is part of the reason it’s so poor.

It reminds me of a theory about petroglyphs on a sacred mountain being warnings about the types of energies there. Shamanic traditions have always had at least an intuitive grasp of geomancy. They see that “spirits” of different types “live” in different places, and if you choose to live with an insane spirit the consequences are rather predictable.

I was in a friends house once where the kitchen and living room adjoined and had high ceilings and odd angles to the walls. There was one seat in the living room I couldn’t sit in. I told him it felt like the energy was being sucked out of me. Yes. A “shar”, and it was. Had an unusually sharp angle to your back or something? To the front of me across the room where the kitchen and living area met. That would do it too. As a matter of fact, traffic lines running by it would just make the drain that much worse.

Your thoughts are welcome. Be well friends.

Travis Saunders
Dragon Intuitive
~science,mysticism,spirituality~