Abacomancy, also known as Amathomancy (from the Greek word "amathos" meaning sand) a form of divination

Divination

Divination is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic standardized process or ritual...

 based on the interpretation of the patterns in dust

Dust

Dust consists of particles in the atmosphere that arise from various sources such as soil dust lifted up by wind , volcanic eruptions, and pollution...

, dirt

Dirt

Dirt is unclean matter, especially when in contact with a person's clothes, skin or possessions when they are said to become dirty. Common types of dirt include:* dust — a general powder of organic or mineral matter...

, silt

Silt

Silt is granular material of a size somewhere between sand and clay whose mineral origin is quartz and feldspar. Silt may occur as a soil or as suspended sediment in a surface water body...

, sand

Sand

Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local rock sources and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland continental settings and non-tropical coastal...

, or the ashes of the recently deceased. Reading the patterns is believed to give some insight into the future. Readers drop the dirt, sand, or ashes on a flat surface and start looking for a pattern that may represent symbols or pictures. They interpret these symbols and pictures to what is going to happen in the future. Some look for certain symbols that are seen over and over.

See also

• Divination
  Divination
  Divination is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic standardized process or ritual...
  
  
• List of basic parapsychology topics
• Methods of divination
  Methods of divination
  Innumerable methods of divination can be found around the world, and many cultures practice the same methods under different names. During the Middle Ages, scholars coined terms for many of these methods — some of which had hitherto been unnamed — in Medieval Latin, very often utilizing the suffix...