人類對於生活上未知的吉凶禍福，充滿期待與畏懼，先民於是訴諸占卜活動，尋求指引，以趨吉避凶為目的。這項活動源遠流長，影響深遠，成為中國文化上的一個特點。殷商卜筮文化的發達，反映先民在宗教情懷、民俗活動中具有實質的意義，對後世產生重大的影響，周代繼其後，自然也承襲這樣的文化傳統。《詩經》裡描寫占卜活動的詩句，呈現了當時生活習俗的風貌，對於瞭解周代社會的人文思想、民俗風情、生活習慣及信仰文化上，有相當的助益，是一個值得我們關心的議題。

Human beings in ancient times had been execting as well as fearing the unknown future in their lives, no matter auspicious or ill-fated. Our ancestors tended to rely on the augural activities for instruction to get good luck and avoid bad luck. The augural activity has come to affect us and become one of the characteristics of Chinese culture. The divination culture was well developed in Shang dynasty. It was reflected in the religion, living styles, as well as folklore activities. The Zhou people after the Shang inherited this legacy. In Shijing (The Book of Odes), the augural activities appear in many poems and play an important role in the daily lives of the Zhou people. Through the study of the augural activities presented in the Shijing, we can understand the thoughts, folk culture, customs, and belief of the Zhou people.