I’ve developed an interest in discovering methods of divination that have no links to kabala, and the reductionist ideas of modern occultism (12 signs, 7 planets, 4 elements etc., into which everything is crammed to fit) which are found in Tarot.
I also find the use of symbols and text associated with the Abrahamic cults off-putting; I’m aware there are arguments to be made that these concepts are ancient teachings that were were stolen/appropriated, in the same manner Christianity appropriated pagan holidays such as Easter, but that is not the topic I wish to cover here today.
This post looks at methods of divination, in order to understand past, present, and future events, as well as gaining personal insights, that have no links to kabala:
So far, the simplest and most beginner friendly method I’ve found is Napoleon’s Book Of Fate for which I created a tutorial that includes a link to a legal download and my notes on how to adapt the questions, you’ll find that here.
The Book is at its strongest giving readings on anything related to powerplays, politics, and making decisions about investments of time, money, energy, or trust, and at its weakest when used for love and romance.
I also use a pendulum which is the most adaptable, convenient, and discreet method of divining; it takes time and frequent use to overcome wishful thinking, so if you want to have this skill, make sure to use a pendulum OFTEN, to be able to observe results and become used to allowing answers to come through you without too much baited breath.
Experience has shown me that best results come from asking about my own reactions: “Will I regret taking this course of action?” for example, or “Will such-and-such make me happy?” rather than abstract yes/no questions, which correlates to the way people’s random precognitive flashes tend to be about events of great emotional significance, and I prefer a using very simple pendulum, mine is made from a bolt on a piece of string.
I also posted how, with time, you will be able to do without the pendulum itself, here: Tutorial : Tool-Free Magick Using Your Hands.
The I Ching makes a great backup to the pendulum, because where a pendulum is reasonably limited, the I Ching ranges pretty far away from binary answers, and I’ve never heard of it telling someone what they wanted to hear: its answers are generally difficult to put an egoic or sentimental spin on. Less of a tool for a hard-edged snapshot though, of the present or future, in my opinion.
There are many well-researched texts written about the I Ching; in my experience, although striving to understand the philosophy behind it is a noble and respectful endeavour, it will work just fine for simple divination even if you are ignorant regarding the broader framework of ideas that underly it.
Lenormand and other fortune-telling decks exist which portray events, objects, and people in a manner that doesn’t directly link to the Astrological, Elemental, or Sephirothic correspondences, I don’t have much to report on these.
Runes can obviously be used for divination, but I prefer to use them for spellcasting, so I won’t cover those here right now.
The newest discovery I’m working with right now is Sortes Homericae - divination using the works of Homer, which was recorded as being used at least as far back as 399 BCE:
It is this I particularly wanted to share here, because I haven’t seen this method of divination widely discussed, and I believe it has value to many people on this forum.
This method has given me given answers that seem far more relevant than random chance would allow for, and so far, the answers derived by this method have been accurate once verified against actual outcomes.
- Whether you can perform this with other classical texts that are not traditionally considered scriptural in nature, or even more modern works, would be a matter for you to decide, based on your estimation of the book’s author and its personal relevance to your life and the times we live in.
Bonus Material - How To Do Bibliomancy In A Computer Document (Fiddly, But Free):
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note the total number of pages in the document (use the internal numbering of the pages with the original text within the document, not prefaces and modern introductions)
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translate this into a number of columns: ones, tens, hundreds, thousands. A document with 27 pages has 2 columns, for example, 759 pages = 3 columns, 1,294 pages - 4 columns
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create slips from paper or card that give you the numbers 0 to 9. Make ONE set of slips numbered 0 - 9 for EACH column: a 27 word document requires 2 sets of numbered slips, a 1,294 page document requires 4 sets of slips numbered 0 - 9.
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place all of the slips, together, in a box, bag, or even a hat. Give them a good shake or stir, to mix them up randomly
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to get your page number, draw out as many slips as there are columns – for example, a 27 page document means 2 columns, so draw 2 slips. This will give you 2 numbers, go to that page in the document, and then allow your eye or finger to be drawn to a sentence on that page - this will be your answer.
Edit to add: if the first numbers are too high (you draw say 9, 8, and 6 for a document with 127 pages) either redraw, or knock down any overages to 0, so that would be page 006). 0 is chosen because the numbers drawn do not exist in the document.
Obviously buying a cheap paperback of The Iliad or any other text is simpler, but not an option for everyone who may want to test this method right now.
) But how do I focus on a specific sentence? The whole page was about Athena encouraging Diomedes to fight, so I guess the message for me is to keep fighting for it right?
