Undoubtedly one of the simplest, most inexpensive and, as the experience of nearly three centuries has proved, most reliable forms of divination within its own proper limits, is that of reading fortunes in tea-cups.
Any person after studying this method, may with practice, quickly learn to read the fortunes that the tea-leaves foretell.
It should be distinctly understood, however, that tea-cup fortunes are only dealing with the events of the hour or the succeeding twenty-four hours at furthest. In this way the tea-leaves may be consulted once a day, and many of the minor happenings of life foreseen with considerable accuracy, according to the skill in discerning the symbols and the intuition required to interpret them.
Practice and the acquirement of a knowledge of the signification of the various symbols is all that is necessary in order to become proficient and to tell one’s fortune and that of one’s friends with skill and judgment.
Take Note:
- Tea leaf reading is also referred to as tasseomancy, tasseography or teomancy.
- Coffee reading is known as cafeomancy.
- Events do not happen to people by chance, but are invariably the result of some past cause.
- The mere act of doing something today sets in motion forces that in process of time will inevitably bring about some entirely unforeseen event.
- In ancient times, they would read the wine lees left in the glass.
- Many people believe you cannot read your own cup, however that is a personal preference. As with any form of divination, it is always difficult to read your own fortune objectively.
- Part of the ritual of this form of divination is to sit down and enjoy the tea and the company of your fellow drinkers before you get started. This is not as frivolous as it sounds as it allows you to relax and also gather your thoughts.(1)
Best Type of Tea To Use:
The best kind of tea to use if tea-cup reading is to be followed is undoubtedly China tea, the original tea imported into this country and still the best for all purposes.
Indian tea and the cheaper mixtures contain so much dust and so many fragments of twigs and stems as often to be quite useless for the purposes of divination, as they will not combine to form pictures, or symbols clearly to be discerned.
[box] If you prefer coffee, simply brew your favourite variety of coffee and add a pinch or two of dry coffee grounds to the coffee so that there will be enough grounds to read. If you add the grounds before drinking, then let the cup sit for a few minutes so that the grounds sink to the bottom. Otherwise add the grounds to the remaining coffee dregs after you have drunk your cup of coffee. You will find that different varieties of coffee, such as Turkish or Greek coffee, are more suitable for coffee reading.(1)[/box]The Best Type of Cup to Use:
The best shape of cup to employ is one with a wide opening at the top and a bottom not too small. Cups with almost perpendicular sides are very difficult to read, as the symbols cannot be seen properly, and the same may be said of small cups.
A plain-surfaced breakfast-cup is perhaps the best to use; and the interior should be white and have no pattern printed upon it, as this confuses the clearness of the picture presented by the leaves, as does any fluting or eccentricity of shape.