is a traditional

Shinto , also called Shintoism, is a religion originating in Japan. Classified as an East Asian religions, East Asian religion by Religious studies, scholars of religion, it is often regarded by its practitioners as Japan's indigenous religion and as ...

system of

divination Divination () is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic ritual or practice. Using various methods throughout history, diviners ascertain their interpretations of how a should proceed by reading signs, ...

. Practitioners attempt to foresee future events by interpreting the pattern of cracks made by heating the shoulder-blade of a stag. The practice is thought to predate the introduction of divination by tortoiseshell, which was imported from China; archaeological evidence suggests it originated as early as the

Jōmon period In Japanese history, the is the time between , during which Japan was inhabited by the Jōmon people, a diverse hunter-gatherer and early agriculturalist population united by a common culture, which reached a considerable degree of sedentism an ...

. The ''

kami are the Deity, deities, Divinity, divinities, Spirit (supernatural entity), spirits, mythological, spiritual, or natural phenomena that are venerated in the traditional Shinto religion of Japan. ''Kami'' can be elements of the landscape, forc ...

'' most commonly associated with ''Futomani'' is , also-known-as , a special ''Kami'' of divination. ''Futomani'' is still practiced at the Shinto shrine on Mount Mitake as an annual event. In

aikido Aikido ( , , , ) is a gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art which is split into many different styles including Iwama Ryu, Iwama Shin Shin Aiki Shuren Kai, Shodokan Aikido, Yoshinkan, Renshinkai, Aikikai, and Ki Aikido. Aikido is now practic ...

, ''futomani'' is considered an important adjunct to '' kotodama'' practice.

References

See also