The oldest surviving document in Old Turkic, the Irk Bitig is the Book of Omens for the ancient Uyghur culture of Central Asia. Written around 1200 years ago, this small book was found in the Thousand Buddha Caves outside Dunhuang in Gansu, western China. Containing 65 omens that could be divined by the use of prayer sticks or bone dice, these were likely an animist oral tradition that predates the written word and Buddhism in the region. This episode became as much about crafts and texts as it did voice and images. Divination is a cultural tradition that is nearly universal across all regions and eras. So I bought knucklebones on Etsy and a woodburning tool. I fashioned prayer sticks and I made my own artful little book. To better understand the document, I adapted the Book of Omens from its transliteral versions into a more accessible attempt. The original as translated by Talat Tekin can be found here: https://altaica.ru/LIBRARY/Tekin%20Talat/Tekin_Irk%20Bitig%20-%20The%20Book%20of%20Omens%201993.pdf My adaptation can be found here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oZnfnHXBSDLEO4CbOvjceSh3668nMABS/view?usp=sharing Listening to a list of omens may sound like a dull way to spend a half hour, but I assure you that the omens contain their own lyrical power, and the insight they provide into the lost lives of the ancient nomads of the steppe cannot be replicated anywhere else. I invite you to not only appreciate the wisdom and traditions of the ancient Uyghur people, but to use your own four-sided dice to generate your own divinations and see how they might apply to your life. Know thus: the omens are good! To support the SAMA channel, become a Patron and make history matter! Patreon: https://patreon.com/make_history_matter?utm_medium=unknown&utm_source=join_link&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator&utm_content=copyLink Donate directly to PayPal: https://paypal.me/NickBarksdale !!!!!!!!!!Above and beyond all -- visit this link to the gofundme for the family of our dear departed founder Nick Barksdale!!!!!!!!!! https://gofund.me/eea3bd37