The Renewal Haruspicy

The day after the first thaw of spring, the farmers in each agrot go to the local augur-priest, bringing several animals to the temple. There, the augur-priest determines one animal to have the most divine potential and sends the farmers away before killing the animal as swiftly as possible while keeping the corpse whole. From there, the augur-priest will slice the animal open, spilling its entrails across the floor, and from there reading the patterns of the entrails to determine how the harvest will be come fall. The augur-priest then summons the farmers back in and informs them of what they divined, and will give advice on how to improve the harvest.

There are only two important components of the haruspicy: the animal sacrifice and the ritual knife. The animal sacrifice is provided by the farmers, and they bring a selection, usually of four to six. These animals can be of any kind, but the haruspicy is more accurate if the animal has a stronger emotional bond to a human, so the animals brought are usually pets or beasts of burden, or sometimes even particularly large livestock. The priest then selects one of the selection based on which will have the greatest potential for an accurate omen based on advice from the hero spirits that bring them their divinations.

The other component, the knife used to both kill the sacrifice and spill its entrails, is a specific ritual knife held in each temple for haruspicy. The knife is made of ceramic, to differentiate it from the metal tools commonly found on the Shelyb Plains, and painted with motifs of different heroes. After the ritual is complete, the farmers will then bring a bowl of water to the temple for the priest to wash to maintain the knife, a standard practice after every act of haruspicy.

The haruspicy is a very private affair, just like any divination the priests perform. The only person present in the room when the reading takes place is the augur-priest themselves. However, the farmers have an important role as well, for they bring the priest the animal sacrifice, and well as bring the water for the priest to clean their knife afterwards.

The Renewal Haruspicy occurs on the day after the first thaw of spring every year, when enough snow from the winter melts that grass can be seen through it. This marks the beginning of planting season, which begins with the haruspicy. Part of what the omen tells the augur-priest is when to begin planting for the best harvest, but it usually happens a week after the ritual.