the twelve signs of the zodiac or the four cardinal points, as well as its signification, good or bad, and indicates also, in a special way, a certain part of the elemental world) and to note each figure according to its presage of weal or ill; and so, with the aid of an astrological table giving the explanations of the various signs and combinations, according to the nature of the figure, its aspect, influence and temperament (astrologically considered) and the natural object it indicates, a judgment is formed upon the question for a solution of which the operation was undertaken.  I may add that the board or table of sand (tekht reml), so frequently mentioned in the Nights, is a shallow box filled with fine sand, carefully levelled, on which the points of the geomantic operation are made with a style of wood or metal. (The name tekht reml is however now commonly applied to a mere board or tablet of wood on which the necessary dots are made with ink or chalk. ) The following scheme of a geomantic operation will show the application of the above rules.  Supposing the first haphazard dotting to produce these sixteen rows of points,

1 ......... (9)  5 .....   (6) 9 .........  (9)  13 ......   (6)
2 ......... (9)  6 ....    (4) 10 ........  (8)  14 ....     (4)
3 ........  (8)  7 ....... (7) 11 ......... (9)  15 ........ (8)
4 .......   (7)  8 .....   (5) 12 .......   (7)  16 .....    (5)

By the process of elimination we get the following four primaries: 

Fig. 1 x Fig. 2 x x Fig. 3 x Fig. 4 x x
        x x x x x x x
       x x x x x x
        x x x x

The process of confrontation of the corresponding points of these four figures (according to rule 2) gives the following four secondaries: 

Fig. 5 x Fig. 6 x Fig. 7 x Fig. 8 x
        x x x x x x
        x x x x x x
       x x x x x x x x

By confrontation of the points of each secondary with those of its corresponding primary, the following four fresh figures are obtained: 

Fig. 9 x x Fig. 10 x Fig. 11 x x Fig. 12 x
        x x x x x x x
         x x x x x x
         x x x x

Fig. 9, confronted with Fig. 10 gives a thirteenth figure x
x x
x x
x x

And Fig. 11 confronted with Fig. 12, a fourteenth x
x
x x
x x

Figures 13 and 14, similarly treated, yield a fifteenth figure

x x
x
x x
x x

Which, in its turn, confronted with Fig. 1, gives a sixteenth
and last figure, x
x x
x x
x

Completing the scheme, which shows the result of the operation as follows: