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.
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
Divination 