Divination

Alright, what exactly is divination?

First and foremost I must tell you, Divination is an Art. Secondly it is an action. Working both together, it is a system of obtaining hidden or unknown insights or guidance into the subtle energies of the movements, patterns and paths in one's life.
Problem is with this stuff, there is no "right" answer. It all comes from within. Knew I was gonna say that, huh? That's where the Art comes in. Perhaps second only to the discipline of the mind through meditation, the art of divination is the system of which
many of our basic desires can be guided to success. There are many many forms of tools within this system.
They can and do include cloud shapes (Aeromancy),
handwriting (Graphology), a tub of water, (Leconomancy),
books (Bibliomancy), and even the old favorites, table salt Alomancy, fortune cookies (Aleuromancy) and the planets and stars, Astrology.
The tools I have found and become familiar with are those of
the Tarot (Cartomancy), Numbers (Numerology),
Scrying.
No matter what tool you use, the basics are that they are
used to aid the Reader to tune into the minds ability to read those oh so subtle energies. It is a compact type of language translator if you will. A language of symbols. A vehicle in which the Reader can interpret the energies exchanging and engaging in at a particular time.
Once you have chosen your own tool, you must work with this and become completely comfortable with it. As you are working with your choice, and hopefully with your journal as well, you will also notice an increase in your awareness. The more you work with this, the more you will learn to trust your own hunches,
intuition, precognition.
Now, what better tool could you have?
One very important matter to relay. One of the hardest things to
deal with in working with divinatory tools is framing your question.
Learning how to ask a question is as important as translating it.
Should I? is not a good question. You have left much open yet
at the same time, limited yourself. A better way to phrase that would be to ask what is it I can focus on in this question?. Try to
narrow down the question, focus in on what it is you need to know and give the tool the means of which to answer you.
The use of the tools will guide you, as you work with them, in knowing whether or not you have in fact addressed it so they can answer. And.. sometimes too, you will ask a question and get an entirely different answer or stream of thought. This will tell you perhaps that the real issue in all this is what I am relaying to you, or hey! smell the coffee!
You hadn't even thought of this aspect now have ya'?.
Given time and familiarity with the tool you have chosen, you will
instinctively know what it is you have asked and the message you have received. Much like Candle Magick, think about the question, write it down if you have to. Phrase it as such that it will
give the tool a path in which it CAN answer you.
Remember too, sometimes just ain't the right time for you to know the answer! (drat!) Then wait. (drat again!)Ask again when
you are a little more clearheaded or the situation has been
given time to evolve. As you work with it, it will come to you.

Divination

It has been said that divination is a way of clearing a straight and clear path to the future by paying attention to details and events so small as to escape ordinary notice, often thought of as irrelevant. In divination we learn that nothing is unimportant as all things at some level are connected. The diviner reads the world for signs of underlying energies that will shape future events and lives.

Diviners are people who once their skills have been honed are able to use whatever materials are at hand. Effective methods are passed down through tradition, but the most important tool is the mind of the diviner. All the techniques, props and prayers are useless unless they help the diviner achieve the state of awareness that is necessary in order to interpret the signs correctly.

Choosing a form of Divination:

When you are first starting out, choose a form of divination that calls to you. Starting with only one or two forms of divination will allow you to focus your attention on those forms and you wont feel overwhelmed by what there is to learn. All oracles will require time and concentration to study so don’t be disheartened if you don’t remember everything overnight.

Types of Divination

Below is a list of some the common forms of divination we will explore:
Cartomancy: Divination using cards. These can be Tarot, Rune or Cartouche ( an Egyptian system) playing cards, Karma or Medicine Cards. Each type of card has its own symbolism.
Crystal Gazing: This is sometimes referred to as scrying, where one uses a crystal ball, bowl or water or a mirror.
Dowsing: This form of divination uses a pendulum, forked stick or metal rod. It is excellent when you are looking for a yes/no answer to a question.
Numerology: This is divination by the use of numbers. This can include using your birth date, calculating numbers from the letters of your name.
Palmistry: Divination by the examination of an individual’s hands.
Runes: Divination by the use of stones or crystals that are inscribed with the magical alphabet of the Runes.
I-Ching: Divination using three coins or chips.

Taking care of Divination Tools:

Taking care of your divination tools is important. This includes cleansing the tools when you first get them and after you have been using them a lot. One way to cleanse them is to allow them to sit in the sunlight or moonlight for a couple of hours. Keeping them in a type of covering will also protect them. Black keeps out negativity. If you are using cards, runes or coins you might want to have a specific cloth that you lay them on when you use them.

Atmosphere and Environment:

In creating an environment for using any form of divination, you may want to clear a specific space where you wont be disturbed, light candles, burn incense and lay down a cloth on which you want to work.

Beyond Tarot Cards and Runes.

Looking at seemingly natural and random events in search of portents and omens of the future is a practice as old as time. I'm sure you've heard of tasseography, or the reading of tea leaves. Well, there are many other kinds of scrying that are much stranger.
�?nbsp;Aeromancy - divination from the air and sky, particularly concentrating on cloud shapes, comets, and other phenomena not normally visible in the heavens.
�?nbsp;Alectryomancy - a bird picks corn grains from a circle of letters.
�?nbsp;Alomancy - using table salt.
�?nbsp;Austromancy - studying of the winds.
�?nbsp;Axiomancy - the observation of how an ax or hatchet quivers or points when driven into post.
�?nbsp;Belomancy - performed by tossing or balancing arrows.
�?nbsp;Botanomancy - burning tree branches and leaves.
�?nbsp;Capnomancy - the study of smoke rising from a fire.
�?nbsp;Catoptromancy - an early form of crystal gazing with a mirror turned to the moon to catch its light.
�?nbsp;Causimomancy - the behavior of objects placed in a fire.
�?nbsp;Cephalomancy - using the skull or head of a donkey or goat.
�?nbsp;Ceraunoscopy - draw omens from the study of thunder and lightning.
�?nbsp;Ceromancy - melted lead was is poured into cold water.
�?nbsp;Chirognomy - the study of the general hand formation.
�?nbsp;Cleromancy - casting lots, similar to using dice but with more natural objects such as pebbles or sea shells.
�?nbsp;Cleidomancy - using a dangling key.
�?nbsp;Critomancy - the study of barley cakes.
�?nbsp;Cromniomancy - using onion sprouts.
�?nbsp;Cyclomancy - finding omens from a turning wheel.
�?nbsp;Dactylomancy - using a dangling ring.
�?nbsp;Daphnomancy - listening to laurel branches crackling and spitting in an open fire.
�?nbsp;Dendromancy - using either oak or mistletoe.
�?nbsp;Geomancy - the study of figures on the ground and the influence of the Earth's movements.
�?nbsp;Gyromancy - a person walks in a circle marked with letters until they become dizzy and stumble at different points, thus spelling out a prophesy.
�?nbsp;Haruspication - inspecting the entrails of animals, popular with the priests in ancient Rome.
�?nbsp;Hippomancy - the stamping and neighing of horses.
�?nbsp;Hydromancy - with water including the color, ebb and flow, or ripples produced by pebbles dropped in a pool.
�?nbsp;Ichthyomancy - using fish.
�?nbsp;Libanomancy - the study of incense and its smoke.
�?nbsp;Lithomancy - using precious stones of various colors.
�?nbsp;Margaritomancy - using bouncing pearls.
�?nbsp;Molybdomancy - the hissing of molten lead.
�?nbsp;Myomancy - the study of the prophetic meaning of behavior of rats and mice.
�?nbsp;Pegomancy - spring water and bubbling fountains.
�?nbsp;Phyllorhodomancy - slapping a rose petal against ones hand and finding an omen by the sound.
�?nbsp;Pyromancy - any form of divination with fire or flame, often assisted by substances thrown onto the flames.
�?nbsp;Radiesthesia - using a dangling tool such as a bob or pendulum.
�?nbsp;Rhapsodomancy - using a book of poetry whereby the book is opened at random and a passage read.
�?nbsp;Sideromancy - burning of straws with hot metal, the resulting burn marks having divinatory properties.
�?nbsp;Spodomancy - using cinders or soot.
�?nbsp;Stichomancy - throwing open any book and selecting a random passage.
�?nbsp;Tephramancy - using tree bark ashes.
�?nbsp;Tiromancy - using cheese.
The 5 Most Important Things You Need To Know About Divination

1. Divination is the use of external objects and methods (scrying, reading tarot, reading runes, etc.) as a means to establish a clear and smooth communication between the subconscious (or higher self) and conscious mind. It is very similar to meditation and prayer. In fact, I have sometimes light-heartedly referred to reading tarot as "prayer with pictures".

2. Divination is NOT fortune telling. It is NOT a means of
predicting the future and is not intended to be used in such a manner. If anyone tells you they can predict your future through the cards or other divination tools, run immediately the other direction for they are a FRAUD. On a similar note, never judge a reading by whether or not the future shown in the reading manifests itself. Judge a reading by how much you learn and how it allows you to make more informed decisions and therefore improve your life.

3. Divination DOES provide you with insight into the possibilities in your future. Each person has free will and is able to make their own decisions, thus mastering their own destiny, to an extent. Divination provides you with information concerning what will happen if you make certain decisions. IF you do not like what appears before you in a reading, make the conscious effort to CHANGE the potential outcome.

4. Reading the tarot, and other oracles, lies within the
interpretation of symbols. Our subconscious mind speaks in symbols, such as dreams. Divination oracles use pictures and other symbols to stir the subconscious and at the same time bring the subconscious symbolism into conscious interpretation by associating what is seen with words and conscious thoughts and language.

5. Divination is not to be confused with consulting supernatural beings. It is a purely psychological process. Granted, modern psychology has much to learn about the workings of the human mind, particularly the subconscious, and how our minds relate to each other and our surroundings, and even the minds of those deceased. There is a great deal that modern science has yet to learn in it's quest for knowledge. Those of us who practice the art and science of intuition understand these workings to be natural, as opposed to supernatural. Divination is no exception. There is nothing supernatural about the reading of tarot, or dowsing, or crystal gazing. We are simply using our minds in a way that most of humanity has yet to discover.

Einstein himself believed that if human beings used their brains to their full potential, we would not need a physical form, for we would simply be pure energy, much like the Hindu concept of Nirvana, but with a bit of a twist. We are all part of this great All, and we need only tap into our "collective unconscious" to receive the information we need to live a full and healthy life. Divination is one means of doing this.
Using Divination for Guidance
including Drunvalo's Triple Numbers system
by Susan Barber

Divining means asking the external Universe to answer our questions through the patterns of seemingly chance events. In this article, we will present an overview of what divining is and how it's used, and then share with you a couple of the tools we have found to be the most powerful and reliable.

One of the tools we'll explain will be Drunvalo's Triple Numbers system.

Three Divination Categories
The practice of divination is as old as mankind, and is certainly not confined to uneducated, superstitious peoples, as we were all taught in grade school. For example, the sophisticated ancient Romans sought answers by examining the entrails of chickens killed for the purpose. And while modern divining tools �?like Tarot, I-Ching, and even tea leaves �?are usually kinder and more sanitary than that, the principle is the same: Answers are read in the patterns that show up when the divination tools are "cast."

Another method of seeking answers, and probably the most reliable one, is that of looking for meaningful coincidences. This approach, which we'll explain further on in this article, is examined in James Redfield's Celestine Prophecy and subsequent books in that series. The Knock of the Spirit in Castaneda's book The Power of Silence also belongs in this category, and is defined as the First Abstract Core of sorcery.

Methods that combine aspects of divination and meaningful coincidence include Drunvalo's Triple Numbers system (which we also will explain further on), and interpretation of the kinds of animals that appear around us. Margaret Craven's haunting book I Heard the Owl Cry My Name describes how a priest living among the Northwest Indians comes to understand that the Universe really does communicate with us in these ways. The beautiful book that goes with David Carson's Medicine Cards is a good source for the divinatory meanings of the animals that may show up in our environment.

Does Divination Really Work?
More than thirty years ago, before I believed in "any of this stuff," a friend challenged me to try an experiment. I was to put out a request to the Universe, and then watch for unusual feelings and signs.

In those days, I was mainly interested in men. So I asked the Universe to help me meet and get to know this gorgeous guy I was intrigued with but had been too shy to approach. As instructed, I wrote the request down on five index cards, along with a declaration of what my friend called the Five Criteria of a Well-Formed Intent: that I really wanted it, could imagine it, deserved to have it happen, and was willing to take responsibility for it; and that everyone involved would benefit.

The next day, when I was halfway home from playing tennis, I had a strong impulse to walk back and take a strange and much longer route. Realizing that this crazy impulse might be an answer to my request, I obeyed it. In doing so, I ran into my friend Max. He was on the porch of his home, barbecuing chicken �?and talking with the man I wanted to meet (I hadn't known where Max lived, or that they knew each other). Max introduced us and invited me to have dinner with them.

That delicious happening pretty much changed my entire theory of the nature of the Universe. Later, I practiced for months with dice-throwing experiments until I was totally convinced that random events are not, in fact, random. Science was just plain wrong about everything that really mattered.

Does this mean you should believe in divination? No, not at all. What it does suggest is that it might be worth your time to do what I did: Try it and see what happens.

Using Divination Tools
Tarot, Medicine Cards, and the I-Ching are probably the most popular divination tools. There are many books about what the various hexagrams, cards, and layouts mean, and there are both online and CD-ROM software programs that will do the shuffing, selecting, and interpreting for you. Here, we will address more general concerns.

The first thing to know about divination tools is that any future events they seem to predict are not set in stone. They are possibilities, or even opportunities. Spirit has no interest in scaring us or giving us negative ideas, and everything that happens to us has a positive purpose.

So it follows that if we are shown something that appears negative, we are being told either that something needs to change, or that if we just "hang in there" this seemingly negative event will turn out just fine. Then we can look to other parts of the reading for clues as to what needs changing or what the meaning is. In doing this, we will find out how to cultivate (or avoid) any outcome that's shown, or at least understand the positive underlying reason behind any temporarily negative manifestation.

James Redfield gives a really good example in the Celestine Prophecy of how this works. One day, while seeking the answer to a particular question, the protagonist finds himself having to choose between two roads. He takes the one that seems brighter �?he just "knows" it's the correct path �?and is immediately arrested and thrown in jail! This looks very bad for his theories about how to decide which road to take �?until he finds out that the man who is sharing his cell has the answer to his question! As soon as he receives this information, the police turn him loose.

Secondly, it's important not to become "hooked." In my experience, people who seem to be addicted to card readings and such are actually people who don't believe the answers they've already received. So they keep asking essentially the same question over and over, hoping for a different answer (or for confirmation of the first one). If you find yourself doing this, just sit down and write out what the answers are that you have been getting to your big question. Then don't ask about that again until the situation makes some kind of major shift.

Also, it's important to be thoughtful about framing our questions. I have found that it works best to ask something like, "What does my Highest Guidance want me to know right now?" If we seek answers in a particular area, we can say, "What does my Highest Guidance want me to know right now about ___________?"

I think it's also important to request answers of our Guidance that will help us energetically. This overcomes any tendency toward the doom-and-gloom kinds of readings that we so often subconsciously expect and thus create.

Then, we have to be intuitive about interpreting the results. This takes a lot of practice, but it's fun. You can study books about whatever tool you are using. Also, you can learn a lot by doing readings for others.

Finally, if we try to use these tools as a substitute for the inner work that needs doing, we'll find ourselves going around in circles. Divination tools can help us choose the path our Higher Self wants us to walk. But the choosing and the walking are both up to us.

Meaningful Coincidences
For the most part, this is an easy one. The important aspect is that we have made our list of questions. We know what it is we are seeking. This is what makes the coincidence meaningful!

At the very least, meaningful coincidences let us know that the Universe is not a mechanical, cause-and-effect system, as we have been taught to believe. If we telepathically send a message to our partner to stop off and pick up a head of lettuce on the way home from work, and it happens, we can't prove anything scientifically, but we know.

Here are two divination systems that rely upon meaningful coincidence.

The Knock of the Spirit

In the Power of Silence, Don Juan teaches Carlos that when Spirit has something extremely important to communicate with us, it will "knock" three times. In other words, we will receive three clear, unambiguous "meaningful coincidences" to let us know that some decision we need to make is correct. What makes the coincidence meaningful is that it comes in conjunction with our thoughts.

The Knock of the Spirit is our guidance sending us a message. We don't need to be psychic or have any particular abilities to perceive and interpret these messages. We simply need to be aware.

Here's an example from my own experience.

When I first knew inside that I wanted to help Drunvalo, I also got, "You and about ten thousand other people." So I told my guidance that if this was my path I needed to receive three signs, and that I needed to receive the first sign during my upcoming seminar with Drunvalo at the Omega Institute.

I drove the 200 or so miles to that seminar on a beautiful summer's day. It would be my first experience of Drunvalo's work except for his lectures at Wesak. As I approached the Institute, I was so happy that I started singing �?joyfully, at the top of my lungs �?an old Girl Scout camp song I hadn't thought of in decades.

On the last day of the seminar, Drunvalo told us the story of the Japanese Sun Goddess, Amaterasu, and her children. At the end of that story, Amaterasu's children appear as a group of Australian laughing birds �?they're called Kookaburras. And the song I'd been singing? "Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree..."

Drunvalo says that he guides many of his major decisions by the Knock of the Spirit. He was urged by others to do the workshop in Japan, where he brought Amaterasu out of the Earth after centuries of darkness, but he agreed to this only after receiving three clear, unambiguous signs.

Drunvalo's Triple Numbers System

As Drunvalo explains it, one of the ways Spirit communicates with us is by means of triple �?or even quadruple or larger �?numbers that appear around us �?license plates, clocks, airline flight numbers, street addresses, and so on.

It's clear that numbers are basic to the way the Universe works. From Sacred Geometry, the Golden Mean, and the Fibonacci spiral to the harmonics of music, numerical relationships underlie the Reality.

In this case, this system is based on music. In the Chromatic scale of music, as the notes go up the scale, C, C#, D etc. the cycles per second increase by eleven cycles per second on each note. Therefore all increases are multiples of eleven. So the notes increase relative to each other by 11, 22, 33, etc.

Since all of nature is also based on vibration and the harmony of music, whenever you see double numbers or double anything, it is a "harmonic" moment. But it is normal. However, when you see triple numbers, 111, 222, 333, etc., then it is a very harmonic moment. If you see 1111, 2222, 3333, etc. then it is extremely harmonic.

So in this system, each number has its own meaning, and the more numbers there are together, or the more often we see them, the more powerful the sign. For example, 1111 is a much stronger and more significant sign than 111 �?and if you see it twice or more in a row, this means you should really pay attention.

Further, it does not have to be just numbers. It can be, for example, three black birds in a row followed by three more black birds, followed by three more black birds. This sequence equals 333.

The system also works for letters. A, J, and S=1, B, K, and T=2, and so on (CLU=3, DMV=4, ENW=5, FOX=6, GPY=7, HQZ=8, IR=9). So if you see 11A, then it also equals 111, and M4D equals 444 �?but these forms mean that what's going on is slightly hidden. If you see AAA (or DMV), then it is even more hidden. But AAA and 111 still carry the same inner meaning.

The way we would interpret the numbers for ourselves has to do with whatever we are thinking or doing, or the nature of our circumstances, at the time that the number appears. Sometimes we then have to use our intuition and/or wait to see other triple numbers for further information.

For example, if we were thinking of starting a new business and we saw triple ones, this might indicate that there was a lot of energy available for that endeavor.

The power of triple numbers comes not only from the "harmonics" of the moment itself, but also from the fact that it is sourced in the outside reality and therefore is not affected by our ego.

Drunvalo says that triple numbers are God speaking to us.

Here are what the nine possibilities mean:

111 �?Energy flow. Money, sexual energy, movement of energy from one place to another. If we are thinking about something important to us when we see triple ones, this indicates that energy is moving or being gathered related to that subject.

222 �?The beginning of a new cycle. We do not know the nature of the cycle until the next triple number shows up.

333 �?We are being faced with a decision. Triple threes also means that there may be a lesson here. Depending on your decesion, it will move to 666 or 999. If you see 666 next, then the lesson will be given to you again, either in the same manner or in some other way. When it moves to 999, then this lesson is complete for you.

444 �?Triple fours indicates study related to the Mystery School. Depending upon what's happening, events may be presenting us with Mystery School lessons and information.

555 �?This is the number of Christ Consciousness. It means that we have mastered a lesson in Life in our spiritual path and are now living it.

666 �?We tend to think of 666 as evil, but it's not, except in extreme cases. Actually, it's the number of the human being, and it means density �?the physical plane. Carbon, which is what organic life is based upon, has 6 protons, 6 neutrons and 6 electrons. In divinatory terms, triple sixes ask us to pay attention, be aware, slow down, look around. If we see more than one instance of 666, we might want to consider being very careful.

777 �?This is like 444, except it is a higher level of the Mystery School. Instead of studying, we are practicing, even playing. We are making our knowledge real in the world.

888 �?Triple eights means that we have completed something in the Mystery School, whether we were at the four level or the seven level. We have mastered something.

999 �?This means completion on all levels.

000 �?This is the void and does not relate to this world. It is the pause between the notes of music.
Developing Your Intuition

You've heard the phrase -- a woman's intuition. We all have it, but we may not have enough trust in what we feel, sense and believe. We may hesitate, thinking someone won't understand why we're saying not to do something. We may get such an intense need to call someone and stop ourselves only to find out later that that person was thinking of us, too.

We question ourselves, we don't believe we really could know the truth. Many times, we act from a place of fear.
When we trust our intuition, we are trusting the Divine. We are working with Spirit, knowing that there are no coincidences.
Our knowing, our intuition, is available right now, every second. We just have to listen and trust. We need to move out of our way with all the thoughts and what ifs and should haves. Begin to listen to yourself so you will begin to discern when you are focused on fear and when you are focused on your truth and strength.

The most effective way to develop your intuition is to meditate By quieting your mind and becoming receptive, you are allowing Spirit to speak to you. You are giving yourself a place to connect with your own wisdom. By going deep inside ourselves, we find a treasure -- us.
We have learned to doubt ourselves for forever and let others make decisions for us. It's time to change that.
Some suggestions to develop your intuition

Don't censor yourself, everything you think counts.

Try writing with your your non-dominant hand.

Day dream -- let your mind go wherever it wants.

Write free form -- no particular place to go, just write what comes up.

Use the Tarot , pendulum or astrology . These crafts can help you build trust in what you know and who you are.

When I could be as unselfconscious as
a trusting child, intuitively moved to respond
in the moment, I would find that I also was
in touch with the wise woman who knew
what was true in myself.
--- Jean Shinoda Bolen