hydromantic
- adjective
- /ˌhaɪdrəˈmæntɪk/
- Archaic
:
hidromántico
- In ancient cultures, people often performed hydromantic rituals by observing the movement of water to predict the future.
Examples
-
Toward the end of the era, a description of a hydromantic ceremony performed at the twelfth-century imperial court recalls the ritual described in the late antique magical papyri and demonstrates the persistence of divinatory knowledge over time.
Academic text (2008) -
Although the S. Marco bowl is unique, aspects of its program parallel features of other middle Byzantine vessels, raising the possibility that these objects also functioned as lecanomantic, hydromantic tools.
Academic text (2008) -
The hydromantic practices of the village included reading the ripples on the surface of the lake during ceremonies.
-
Many believed that hydromantic divination could reveal hidden truths through the patterns formed in flowing streams.
Synonyms
Relating to telling the future using water in a bowl
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
Hydromantic comes from the parts hydro- ('water') and -mantic ('telling the future'), with hydro- the same 'hydro' you see in hydrogen or hydrant. So hydromantic describes a ritual or reading that uses water to predict or interpret events.
