Editing Weather modification (section)

==In religion and mythology==
{{See also|Mythopoeic thought|Rainmaking (ritual)}}
[[File:Witches add ingredients to a cauldron.JPG|thumb|[[Witchcraft|Witches]] concoct a [[Potion|brew]] to summon a [[hail]]storm.]]

[[Magic (paranormal)|Magical]] and religious practices to control the weather are attested in a variety of cultures. In [[ancient India]], it is said that yajna or Vedic rituals of chanting mantras and offerings were performed by [[rishis]] to bring sudden bursts of rainfall in rain starved regions. Some [[indigenous peoples of the Americas|Indigenous Americans]], like some Europeans, had rituals which they believed could induce rain. 

The early modern era saw people observe that during battles the firing of [[cannon]]s and other firearms often initiated precipitation.

In [[Greek mythology]], [[Iphigenia]] was offered as a [[human sacrifice]] to appease the wrath of the goddess [[Artemis]], who had becalmed the [[Achaeans (Homer)|Achaean]] fleet at [[Avlida|Aulis]] at the beginning of the [[Trojan War]]. In [[Homer]]'s ''[[Odyssey]]'', [[Aeolus]], keeper of the winds, bestowed [[Odysseus]] and his crew with a gift of the four winds in a bag. However, the sailors opened the bag while Odysseus slept, looking for booty (money), and as a result, were blown off course by the resulting gale.<ref>Homer, ''[[s:The Odyssey/Book X|The Odyssey]]'', book 10.</ref> In ancient Rome, the ''[[lapis manalis]]'' was a sacred stone kept outside the [[Servian Wall|walls of Rome]] in a temple of [[Mars (mythology)|Mars]]. When Rome suffered from drought, the stone was dragged into the city.<ref>Sir [[James George Frazer|James Frazer]], ''[[The Golden Bough]]'', ch. 5 (abridged edition), "The Magical Control of Rain"</ref>
The [[North Berwick witch trials|Berwick witches]] of Scotland were found guilty of using [[black magic]] to summon storms to murder [[James I of England|King James VI of Scotland]] by seeking to sink the ship upon which he travelled.<ref>[[Christopher Smout]], ''A History of the Scottish People 1560–1830'', pp. 184–192</ref> Scandinavian witches allegedly claimed to sell the wind in bags or magically confined into wooden staves; they sold the bags to seamen who could release them when becalmed.<ref>[[Adam of Bremen]] and [[Ole Worm]] are quoted as maintaining this in [[Émile-Jules Grillot de Givry|Grillot de Givry]]'s ''Witchcraft, Magic and Alchemy'' (Frederick Publications, 1954).</ref> In various towns of [[Navarre]], prayers petitioned [[Saint Peter]] to grant rain in times of drought. If the rain was not forthcoming, the statue of St Peter was removed from the church and tossed into a river.

In the [[Hebrew Bible]], it is recorded that Elijah in the way of judgement, told King Ahab that neither dew nor rain would fall until Elijah called for it.<ref>1 Kings 17:1</ref> It is further recorded that the ensuing drought lasted for a period of 3.5 years at which time Elijah called the rains to come again and the land was restored.<ref>1 Kings 18</ref> The [[New Testament]] records Jesus Christ controlling a storm by speaking to it.<ref>Mark 4:39</ref>

In [[Islam]], Salat Al-Istisqa’ (Prayer for Rain) is taken as a recourse when seeking rain from God during times of drought.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.prayerinislam.com/guide-to-prayer/nafl-prayers/prayer-for-rain/ |title = Prayer for Rain (Salat Al-Istisqa') |website=www.prayerinislam.com |date = February 16, 2017 |access-date = September 26, 2019|archive-date = September 26, 2019|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190926061924/http://www.prayerinislam.com/guide-to-prayer/nafl-prayers/prayer-for-rain/|url-status = live}}</ref>