About the author
Richard Werbner is a social anthropologist whose research centers on religion, divination, and political life in southern Africa, associated for much of his career with the University of Manchester. His book Divination's Grasp: African Encounters with the Almost Said, published by Indiana University Press, is an ethnographic study of contemporary charismatic wisdom divination, tracing how diviners in southern Africa interpret the silent language of divinatory lots and translate it into the metaphorical and poetic speech through which meaning is revealed to clients. The book is grounded in extended fieldwork and situates divination within broader questions of charisma, knowledge, and everyday religious practice in the region. Werbner's writing is academic in register, aimed at readers with an interest in African religion, anthropology of divination, or ethnographic method rather than at practitioners seeking divinatory technique.
📖 Where to start with Richard Werbner
💬 What our editors say about Richard Werbner's books
“Richard Werbner offers a dense, scholarly exploration that demands patience and intellectual engagement from its audience. While the analysis of the Tswapong moral landscape is intricate and rewarding for those versed in…”
Esoterica Books editorial team, Occult literature desk · on Divination's Grasp: African Encounters with the Almost Said
“Werbner provides a rigorous, poetic analysis of Tswapong divination, illuminating how metaphor constructs moral truth. However, this is not a casual introduction to occult practices or a practical guide to reading lots. It is an…”
Esoterica Books editorial team, Occult literature desk · on Divination's Grasp: African Encounters with the Almost Said
