How were oracle bones used?

Oracle bones, primarily used during the Shang Dynasty in ancient China, served as a medium for divination and communication with ancestral spirits. The process of using oracle bones involved several steps:

1. Preparation: Diviners prepared the bones, typically from the shoulder blades of oxen or the plastrons of turtles. They would inscribe questions on the bones, often related to issues such as warfare, harvests, weather, health, and the welfare of the royal family.

2. Heating: The bones would then be subjected to intense heat, often from a hot poker. This heating caused the bones to crack.

3. Interpreting Cracks: The resulting cracks were examined by the diviner, who would interpret them to determine the answer to the posed question. The patterns of the cracks were believed to reveal the will of the ancestors or the spirits.

4. Recording Results: The outcome, including both the question and the interpretation, was often inscribed on the bone itself. This practice not only served immediate divination needs but also created a recorded history of queries and outcomes.

In essence, oracle bones were primarily used for divination to predict the future and guide decisions based on what was interpreted as divine or ancestral will.