Burkina Faso
Sand Origin
Ouagadougou
Random Sand Fact
Can mice read the future in sand?
In Burkina Faso, an old form of divination begins with a diviner arranging hundreds of signs in sand on the floor. Mounds, lines, circles and other shapes form a map in which different patterns carry different meanings.
Then a mouse is left alone with the sand.
As it moves across the pattern, the mouse changes the shapes and leaves tracks behind. The diviner reads those changes to answer questions about matters such as family, health or decisions. The tradition is particularly associated with the Mossi people of Burkina Faso.
