Month: September 2019

Overview of Divination Methods, Part 2

This week, we’ll continue to explore the various branches and methods of Divination that you’ll study in the next few years. Remember, you are not expected to know everything about each method this year – rather, these lessons will provide an overview so that you can decide which topics you’ll study more in depth over the next few years. You will be allowed to look back at these lessons during the exam.

Kau Cim

Originating in China, Kau Cim is a method of divining using fortune sticks. The reader holds a cup containing several sticks, each of which has a number inscribed on it. The querent asks a question and then carefully shakes the cup until one stick falls onto the floor. If more than one stick falls out, the process must be restarted.

The number on the fallen stick corresponds to numbered fortunes on small slips of paper or in a book. The numbers range from 1-78. Sometimes, multiple readings are completed in order to effectively answer the question asked.

In the United States of America, a version of Kau Cim is available to muggles as “Chi Chi Sticks”.

Lithomancy

Lithomancy is the art of dropping stones for divination. A reader typically chooses his/her own gems or stones to conduct Lithomancy. The stones are generally found in nature and should all be around the same size.

Typically, a set consists of 13 stones, representing each of the following symbols:

• Sun – energy, life, and power
• Moon – inspiration and intuition
• Mercury – intelligence, self-improvement, and wit
• Venus – love and happiness
• Mars – courage and conflict
• Jupiter – wealth and prosperity
• Saturn – health and protection
• Spirit – needs of self
• Universe – entirety of life
• Earth – family and home
• Air – hopes and dreams
• Fire – passion and willpower
• Water – healing and cleansing

The stones are placed inside a bag, and three stones are dropped/cast at random to answer a question. The stones are read based on what they represent as well as their proximity to each other.

To learn more about Lithomancy, you may peruse chapter 2 in the course textbook, Symbology for Seers. This is not required at this time, though.

Xylomancy

Xylomancy is the art of divining by twigs, generally as found in nature. Two aspects of twigs can be analyzed and interpreted for a reading: the type of wood and the pattern of the twigs. As you may know from reading about wands, different types of wood are associated with different characteristics, which can help to provide information about the future for the querent.

As far as the pattern of twigs, they are generally studied for symbols. Professor Trelawney would warn to beware of the grim in the twigs, but we know that there are many other symbols that might come across our paths! These include positive symbols, such as a butterfly or baby, and negative symbols, such as a knife or volcano.

To learn more about Xylomancy, you may peruse chapter 10 in the course textbook, Symbology for Seers. This is not required at this time, though.

Pyromancy

Pyromancy is a rather basic form of divination, mainly providing positive or negative vibes in terms of a topic or question. Think of the flame as having its own life; when it’s calm, light in color, and predictable, the message is generally positive, while a wild, dark flame suggests negative things to come.

Seers can practice Scrying into a flame by gazing into the light and observing images that appear. Some may also throw items into the fire in order to observe the reaction of the flames and make predictions based on that.

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Homework

Please answer the following questions in complete sentences. Your responses must be in your own words.

1. How is a fortune acquired from Chinese fortune sticks? 5 points

2. How are the Spirit and Universe stones different? 5 points

3. If I wanted to know specific details about my future, which of these methods would I be best to practice? Explain your answer. 5 points

4. Other than the symbols mentioned in the lesson, research some symbols that might appear in your twigs (or in divination in general). List at least 3 symbols and what each one might represent. 5 points

Overview of Divination Methods, Part 1

Now that we’ve covered the basics of Divination, we’re going to explore the various branches and methods of Divination that you’ll study in the next few years. Each week, I’ll offer a brief summary of a few Divination methods. You are not expected to know everything about each method this year – rather, these lessons will provide an overview so that you can decide which topics you’ll study more in depth over the next few years. You will be allowed to look back at these lessons during the exam.

Chiromancy

Also known as Palmistry, Chiromancy is the art of divining by reading a person’s palm. In Chiromancy, a person’s personality, traits, emotions, and fate are represented by parts of the hand. A palm reader can discover much about a person by studying his or her hand. Chiromancy can be performed on oneself or on another person and is most often performed on a person’s dominant hand.

Palm readers observe the shape of a person’s hand/palm, the lines of the palm, and the mounts or bumps on a person’s palm. Some palm readers also look at the size of a person’s hand, their fingers and knuckles, and the temperature or feeling of their hand for more information.

To learn more about Chiromancy, you may peruse chapters 3-5 in your course textbook, Symbology for Seers. This is not required at this time, though.

Tasseomancy

Also known as Tasseography, this form of divination involves studying tea leaves to make predictions about the future. To start, the reader brews tea using loose leaves. Of course, a shallow, wide teacup is best to allow the leaves to spread out and form a shape. After drinking the tea, the reader shakes the cup around so that the leaves settle. Each reader has his/her own method of shaking the cup; some will move the leaves around until it feels ready, some will swirl the cup three times, some will flip the cup upside down and back, etc.

The reader looks to the tea leaves for shapes and symbols to interpret. The images that appear represent ideas; for example, a dog might represent loyalty, while a cat represents sneakiness. Sometimes, you’ll notice multiple smaller images, in which case the reader should interpret each image individually, starting at the handle and rotating clockwise.

A list of common symbols that may appear in tea leaf reading is included in your course textbook, Symbology for Seers, in chapter 1. You may choose to read this chapter in order to learn more, but this is not required for this lesson.

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Homework

Please answer the following questions in complete sentences. Your responses must be in your own words.

1. Which hand is typically read in Chiromancy? 5 points

2. What are some of the characteristics of a person’s hand/palm that can be studied? 5 points

3. Describe the steps a reader would take to prepare for tea leaf reading. 5 points

4. If a cup contains multiple images, how should the reader interpret the images? 5 points

Divination Terms

Now that we’ve discussed a basic definition of Divination, we’ll be looking at the terms that will commonly come up in our study of Divination. Please note that these terms may vary from one resource to another, but these definitions should help you understand these terms in the course of our lessons.

Querent – the person who is asking a question or seeking information

Reader – the person who is completing a reading or performing another method of Divination

In some cases, the Querent and Reader may be the same person. Although not all methods of Divination involve “reading”, I will use the term Reader to generally refer to the person performing the method.

Tool – an object used to aid in the process of Divination, such as Tarot cards

Symbol – a image or representation of an object or concept that appears in Divination, often representing something else

Branch – a subset of Divination; for example, Cleromancy is any Divination done by casting

Method – a particular type of Divination and the process used to complete it

There is some overlap between branches and methods of Divination, but in some cases there are distinctions, so be careful using these words interchangeably.

Last week, I asked you to hypothesize what the suffix -mancy might mean. Many of our branches and methods of Divination end with this suffix, which is derived from the Greek word manteia, meaning prophecy. By breaking down these words and analyzing their roots, we can often discover their meaning. For example, the Greek word lithos means stone; therefore, Lithomancy is Divination by gems or stones.

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Homework

Please answer the following questions in complete sentences. Your responses must be in your own words.

1. Describe a situation in which the Querent and the Reader might be the same person. 5 points

2. Symbols that appear in Divination often have either a positive or negative connotation, or feeling. For each of the following symbols, describe whether you think the reading would be positive or negative, and briefly explain your answer. 3 points each

• Kite
• Pig
• Wheat
• Butterfly
• Hourglass

3. Based on its root word, what do you think Pyromancy is? What about Hydromancy? 5 points