example of how the huayru game was used in order to divine the fate of the community during an ecuadorian agrarian reform, and interpreted the dice throw as the deceased being unhappy with the direction the community was heading. This shows that the game provided a link between the living and the deceased, with the game serving as a way to communicate and receive guidance. The game also represents the journey of the deceased, with the dice representing llamas that undertake a journey throughout places associated with commodities such as a silver mine, and it is this journey that introduces ambiguity into the game. The players of the game try to influence the results of the dice by offering prayers or pouring libations, indicating it is a game of chance. This is in contrast to the cultural context of the game, where the deceased is the one who controls how the dice fall, and the players react as such, beating on the corpse of the deceased and questioning why it wishes them to fail if the dice do not fall in their favour. The dice themselves in some cultures instead are carved out of manioc or plantain as opposed to llama bones, and are carved in the shape of a canoe. Both llamas and canoes hold significance as they are both symbols of travel, with both llamas and canoes being used to carry cargo long distances, and so the playing of the game assists the soul of the deceased on its journey. For some Amazonian societies, the symbol is more powerful as the corpse of the deceased is placed in a hollowed tree called a canoe. Notes and references External links Occultopedia.com Skeptic's Dictionary Divination Archaeological artefact types Dice