HARUSPICY

Theory

The documented practical application of haruspicy goes back 3000 years, so it may seem pointless to seek an explanation of its efficacy in modern terms. Nevertheless, modern quantum theory does provide one explanation of why it works. This theoretical explanation may not be right, and in any case is unnecessary to the proper practice of The Art. It is largely a matter of taste: do you prefer the ancient mysticism of the pagans or the modern mysticism of physics?
Quantum theory tells us that the state of a system is indeterminate so long as it is unobserved, and so the innards of the egg are indeterminate; this means they have no definite configuration. Cracking the eggshell and observing its contents causes a "collapse of the wavefunction," in other words the egg enters a definite state. So what the haruspex observes is in no way determined by simple mechanical laws, but the probabilities of its configurations can be influenced by the past, present and future.

Quantum theory also tells us that the wavefunctions of all objects extend infinitely in all directions. More accurately, the wavefunctions of objects (such as the egg) are just pieces of the wavefunction of the universe, which means that the interior of the egg is connected with everything else in the universe: the macrocosm is reflected in the microcosm. Thus the egg may reflect any other condition in the present universe.

That it can also reflect the past and future is shown by relativity theory, which tells us that whether something occurred in the past, present or future is a matter of point of view: what is past for one reference frame is future for another. The wavefunction exists in a space-time continuum, and so is connected to the past and future as well as the present. Thus the past and the future condition the shape of the wavefunction of the inside of the egg, and thus the probabilities of its configurations when it is observed.

The microcosm of the egg contains the macrocosm of the universe, but the skill of the haruspex is required to ensure that the configuration of the egg is relevant to the question at hand. This is because the wavefunction of the haruspex's mind is also connected to that of the egg and the rest of the universe. Thus the concerns, questions, purposes, attitudes and intentions of the haruspex can influence the collapse of the egg's wavefunction by causing its wavefunction to couple with the relevant aspects of the past, present or future wavefunction of the universe. It also couples with the wavefunction of the skilled haruspex's mind, with the result that the signs are interpretable. The art of haruspicy, if performed with care, accomplishes this coupling. Do not forget, however, that the state of the egg is not determined; all the haruspex can do is influence the probabilities; there is no guarantee that the procedure will work.

The simpler theory of haruscipy is that by proper prayer and ritual we may influence the gods to send us a sign, though they may choose not to do so, either through caprice or to suit their larger plan. But when they are willing, they can project the Macrocosm into the Microcosm and embody in the egg signs which answer our needs.