I think everyone has a mental picture of the psychic sitting in a candlelit room, surrounded by

tapestries, sitting behind a crystal ball. Everyone wants a crystal ball. I know I do. I havent yet
found one that actually works, and trust me, Ive looked. However, there are literally hundreds of
divination tools out there that do work. The tools of the trade vary widely from reading tea leaves
or palms to watching the wind blow over a field. I once had an ocular reading that knocked my
socks off in terms of accuracy, where the reader stared into my eyes for two minutes before
speaking. Pretty much anything can be a divination tool.

The best psychic reading I ever had was a palm reading, given by a man who fully admitted he
channeled most of it. I think this is pretty common. When youre first learning to work with
divination tools, you are pretty dependent on the tool itself along with the books and instructions
that come in the box. However, it doesnt take long for the tool to simply become an extension
for your inner guidance, if you let it; a decoder ring so to speak.

I know a lot of very gifted readers who still use their tarot cards when they are working with
clients for the clients sake only, because 100% of whats coming through in the reading is
intuition. The cards are just a prop that provides a visual reference for what the reader already
knows.

My grandmother used to refer to tarot cards as training wheels. They are a way to learn to lean
into your intuition and get your balance without the fear of falling. All divination tools can work
that way. Whether your work with them is a bridge to being free from them or its a permanent
partnership doesnt matter. Learning your way around some tools and finding one or two that
work for you is a very good idea if you want to form a deeper relationship with your intuitive
voice.

My first divination tool was a pendulum. I still have it. Ive bought many others since, but theres
nothing like your first love. I still use it from time to time. However, Ive found it works more
reliably when Im reading other people than when Im using it on things that pertain to me. I have
a lot more influence on how that thing moves than I like to admit. I can make my pendulum tell
me anything I like if Im focused enough. So, its a more honest tool when Im asking questions
where I dont have skin in the game. However, thats just my experience. The pendulum works
remarkably well for most people with just a little practice.

My next big love was the Runes. I got a set of rune stones, followed by a rune symbol deck. I
love the simplicity of the runes because there are only 25 symbols to learn and work with, and
most of them are pretty self-explanatory. If Im going to do a spread for myself when Im looking
for guidance, I almost always use my rune cards just because its easy. They leave a lot of room
for interpretation without wandering off in the woods.

Ive played some with muscle testing. I love the work of Dr. David Hawkins and I wanted to
master muscle testing after reading Power vs. Force. I cant say I have. Muscle testing is one
area where I tend to question whether or not my will is overriding the results. However, I have
friends who routinely use muscle testing as a way to gain instant clarity with great accuracy.
What I love most is my tarot deck. I have a whole bunch of decks ranging from Angel Healing
Cards to Rumi Cards. Most of them are just randomly decorating my bookshelves. I have a
deep connection to the Tarot. I tend to like older more established systems of divination
because there are so many years of cumulative energy in those systems.

Im guessing everyone whos taking this course has played with some form of divination. Some
probably use it regularly. What Id like to do this week is find one you are curious about or have
some experience with and use it daily, as in every single day for a while. The more you use
them, the more you understand how they speak to you.

What Id like you to be curious about is what intuitive skills the tools uncover for you or connect
you to. For example, my Tarot cards were a gateway to my first experience as a medium. My
pendulum was a gateway to noticing my telepathic abilities. The tools might not really be
training wheels, but they are most definitely a portal if you allow them to be. It can be very easy
to find one tool thats comfortable that connects you to one piece of your extra-sensory
perception. I highly recommend finding a handful of tools, maybe three or four, to work with.
That will most likely help you access other intuitive talents you might not have fully explored.

The tools can be useful in and of themselves, but without intuition to fuel them up, they can feel
pretty flat. You can take the tools to a level thats way more powerful than just useful if you use
them as a bridge to your intuition.

Here is a pretty good list of tools to explore.

Astrology-
The reading of the planets and stars and how they affect us. Astrology is very particular to
Earth. The stars would align differently if you were on another planet, or even the moon.
Theoretically this would make a difference on the energies surrounding you. Horoscopes are
very common, and there are differing types. The zodiac is made of 12 houses in Western
astrology. Chinese astrology uses a different system entirely, basing whole years on a single
house, usually symbolized by an animal.

Augury- (Animal Guides)

Watching of birds. From species of birds, to the migration of birds, this is one of the most
common forms of divination. Commonly considered an omen when an unusual sighting of one
or more birds occurs.

Aura Readings- (How to Read an Aura)

Some people use the aura around a person to see the immediate future. Also some places have
an aura around them, but it may not be perceivable to sight. Auras can give you a sense of
health, mental state, stresses, and sometimes things that the person is thinking about.
Automatic Writing-
A person channels from the spirit realm and allows the spirit(s) to use their body to write a
message or draw symbols to be interpreted later.

Botanomancy - (Scrying) - a form of pyromancy

This method involves divination through the burning of leaves, tree branches and herbs. It is a
practice where a diviner draws messages from the smoke of the fire and/or from the ashes that
remain.

Crystal Ball- (Scrying)

Used as a tool to trigger visions, crystal balls come in many shapes and sizes and colors. Most
commonly used in a trance or meditative state while looking into the ball and viewing any
inclusions or shadows seen in the ball itself.

Fire and Smoke Scrying- (Scrying) - a form of pyromancy

The flame from a candle or a campfire may allow one to see various images dancing in the
flames. It sometimes puts the person into a trance and allows visions. Smoke scrying is similar,
but shapes are observed dancing on the smoke.

Haruspicy-
Viewing of animal entrails to divine the future. First seen used in the early Roman culture, it is
still used in some circles today.

I Ching-
Depending on where you live, I Ching can either be a type of bibliomancy, religious text, or a
guide for how to divine the future by use of symbols and objects. The I Ching means "Book of
Changes" and is a classic Chinese text that shows how to use a symbol system to identify order
in the chaos that surrounds us. Historically it was viewed as an account from the time of Fu Xi in
a similar story to the Noah's Ark legend in the Christian and Jewish texts. More modern
meanings use the text as a guide to the "oracle bones" and the casting of them much like rune
stones.

Numerology-
The meaning of numbers in everything, from giving letters in your name a symbolic number and
reading that meaning, to the meaning of your birthday, to the oracle meaning of the number of
any certain type of animal you see.

Oracle Cards-
These cards are similar to tarot. Some use animals as the basis for their meanings, others use a
combination of animals, plants, stones, symbols, etc.
Palmistry-
The reading of palms. Commonly thought a parlor trick, it uses the natural creases and lines in
the palm of a hand to chart out things like how long the person's life will be, how many times he
will marry, etc. Some people use palmistry like tea leaves, and view the patterns as shapes to
divine the future of the person.

Pendulum - (The Pendulum)

A device on a string or chain, usually made of stone, wood, glass, crystal, or bone that is
polished into a point and then dangled from the string. Some superstition says that a pendulum
dangled over a pregnant woman's belly will move in one direction or another to foretell the sex
of the unborn child. Primary methods use the movement of the pendulum to divine answers to
questions, or even scry for the direction of an object that is lost. It supposedly uses the energy
lines and patterns around the user and in the earth.

Runes - (Nordic Runes & The Ogham Script)

These are stones or sometimes sticks that are marked with either Norse runes or Ogham runes.
The most common are using the Norse system. Readings again vary in how they are done.
Some people pull a single stone, others use a spread similar to the tarot. They can be found
custom made, out of stones, and hand carved, or commercially produced.

Tarot - (The Tarot)

Also called tarotmancy, the use of tarot cards to foretell the future. Made up of the Major and
Minor Arcana, there are usually 21 cards in the Major Arcana, and 4 suits of 14 cards in the
Minor Arcana. There are custom decks available, and decks that use different suits, as well as
some that have extra cards, or some that feature fewer cards. Some decks even change the
names of the Major Arcana cards to suit the theme of the deck itself. Each spread can vary in
number of cards, meaning, and even the depth of the questions asked.

Scrying Mirror - (Scrying)

Similar to the crystal ball, this type of mirror (usually colored black) is possibly most reputable
from Nostradamus's visions of the future. The colored glass can create a depth illusion in which
a person can see objects, people, or happenings.

Scrying Bowl - (Scrying)

A plain bowl (sometimes made of metal, glass, or stone) that is filled to the brim with water, until
the water bubbles at the lip of the bowl to create an edge. Used in meditation or trance.

Spirit Boards / Witch Boards / Talking Boards - (Ouija Boards)

Typically used during a sance, a tear or heart shaped piece of wood is placed on a board with
letters, numbers, symbols and some common words on it, then touched by everyone in the
circle around the board. Sold as a game, or custom made, it supposedly works to communicate
with the spirit world. Many stories highlight the more "evil" intentions around the board.
Tea Leaves-
Drink a cup of tea, then tip the cup over onto the saucer to drain the dregs of the tea out. Look
at the pattern of tea leaves and view them. This will supposedly tell the future of the person that
drank the tea and is based on shapes and patterns in the remaining leaves at the bottom of the
bowl or cup.

Vision Quests - (Meditation Guide)

A Native American tradition that induces visions, vision quests and sweat lodges are reported to
lead to many types of seeing, from future to past to Otherworld.

Wind Listening - a form of Austromancy

A meditative trance in a secluded area. Listen for what you may hear on the wind.

Wind Watching - a form of Austromancy

This method utilizes observation of the wind and its effects on objects, such as trees, animals,
clouds, the ground etc.