Geomancy

A geomancer is one who is involved with geomancy. The word geomancy is derived from a combination of the Greek root “geo,” referring to the earth, and “mantikos,” meaning "of a soothsayer" or “prophetic."

Geomancy is a type of divination whereby the placement of physical structures becomes a spiritual act. It can be as simple as the interpretation of the pattern of tea leaves that fall into a cup, the fall of sand from a hand or some kind of human manipulation and interaction with the geographical formations upon earth. It stems from the belief that “spirit” (or some kind of energy force) integrates with matter in certain geometrical forms and in certain geographical places and at particular alignments of stars, planets and moons.

Geomancers work sensing, (as in dowsing for water) or creating, (such as the practice of Feng Shui) what is referred to as “sacred spaces” upon the Earth. Akin to geomancy is something “new” called Archaeoastronomy, which is the study of such “sacred” (spiritual) places. This would include the study of places and structures like the Great Pyramid, Stonehenge, or the Mayan Palace because it is believed that these are not only marvelous feats of human construction and engineering, but that they were also somehow astronomically aligned, or had some spiritual significance in why and how they are constructed in this way.

Archaeoastronomy is considered to be the study of the celestial lore, mythologies and religious worldviews of human cultures particularly as they relate to astronomy and archeology. It is a field that would require knowledge of physics, astronomy and archeology as well as beliefs of ancient cultures. Such study is known to those who have metaphysical interests, and thus are quick to turn the science of astronomy into astrology and science into religious mythical pantheism.

The University of Maryland founded an international center for such studies called the International Society for Archaeoastronomy and Astronomy in Culture, (ISAAC) in 1978. It’s an “independent foundation created to advance research, education, and public awareness of archaeoastronomy, including ethnoastronomy; and to promote archaeoastronomy as a discipline within the sciences, the arts, and the humanities.”