h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Divination is often confused with foretelling the future. But the purpose of divining is more intimately linked to the present.

When an individual participates in the act of divination, they aren't necessarily looking to foresee events that have not yet taken place. Rather, they are looking for a course of action to more appropriately deal with events that cannot be foreseen.

The conduit of divination is another area that is worth commenting on. Any revelation comes from the individual themselves. The method is almost akin to a distraction, similar to hypnosis. It allows the individual to remove themselves from their subjective selves and enter into a deeper realm of consciousnees, a more objective one. In essence, they are asking themselves what they should do.

Finally, divination has to do with patterns. The very idea that one can come to understand events that have yet to take place is based on the assumption that the future will flow from the present.

I don't necessarily believe in divination, or any occult phenomena for that matter. But I do believe in the inner power of the human mind.