These divination methods I use in my practice and a loose definition on what they are and how they work. Keep in mind this is not a complete list of methods used or the definitive guide on how they work; this is just what I do.

Most of these methods are available for client readings, but not all. Contact me if interested in a specific style of reading.

Book Divination

This is a fun and easily customized method of divination. It’s divination through books. Essentially, you take a book, flip it open, point at a passage, then analyze it to see how it connects to your question.

It’s most commonly used with the Bible, but books of poetry or favorite books can be used. I personally like to use spell book, poetry books, dictionaries, plays, and novels for this.

It’s also known as bibliomancy (divination via the bible or books), chartomancy (“[papyrus] paper divination/prophecy), dictiomancy (divination via a dictionary), stichomancy (“by books, lines or lines of verse divination/prophecy”), and stoicheomancy (“element divination/prophecy”) which is using specifically Homer’s works such as the Illiad, Odyssey, or the Aeneid but it may also have been used to refer to the Bible, Quran, or Virgil’s writings as well, although this is up for debate.

Crystal Scrying

This is the world famous crystal ball reading. Crystals or gemstones of any kind and shape can be used for this purpose to answer questions. It was the first divination method I learned and I love it dearly.

Also known as gastomancy (“crystal divination”) or lithomancy (“stone, gem, or crystal divination”.

Dice Divination

There is no one way to use dice for divination. Each diviner has to come up with their own method. I have mine and it works well for me.

I use various types of dice for divining answers, including both standard dice and fancier or specialty dice.

This may also be called cubomancy or astragalomancy (“vertebra prophecy/divination”) and falls into the category of cleromancy.

Dowsing

This may use metal or wood divining rod to search for water, oil, or minerals. Also called water-witching or simply divining.

Dreams Divination

As a seer, I do receive visions via dreams but more often dreams reveal a psychological state of being. There are dozens upon dozens of names and types involving dreams and sleep. The most common name is oneiromancy (“dream prophecy/divination”)

Fire and Smoke Divination

This is a very common and well known scrying practice and has of variations.

Also called pyromancy (“fire prophecy/divination”), capnomancy (“smoke divination/prophecy”), lychonomancy (“candle/lamp prophecy/divination”) carromancy (“[melting] wax divination/prophecy”), and libanomancy (“frankincense prophecy/divination”)

Cineromancy (“ashes prophecy/divination”) uses the ashes of sacrificial or ritual fire. It may also be called spodomancy (soot “wood ashes prophecy/divination”).

Stigonomancy (“to brand prophecy/divination”) is divination, of course, but can also double as a spell. You write something on bark and burn it.

King’s Divination

The King’s Divination is a thrown stone lots system designed by me, This Crooked Crown. It’s technically considered a cleromancy ([casting] “lot prophecy/divination”), but it’s exclusive to me.

You can see a sample reading of this here.

Lots / Cleromancy / Sortilege

This is throwing a series of items and determining the future on how they fall. Dice and rune casting fall into this category, but many others do as well.

Also known as cleromancy and sortilege.

Mirror or Glass Scrying

Also known as catoptromancy (“mirror divination”) or enoptromancy (“mirror divination”).

I use regular mirrors, black glass mirrors, silver encased mirrors, and plain ol’ regular glass for my readings. I also use turned off computer and phone screens as black glass mirrors,

Necromancy and Demonomancy This is using spirits, demons, and ghosts to tell the future. I don’t tend to do this often, as I prefer to tell the future myself but sometimes I’ll use it. It may also be called psychomancy (“soul prophecy/divination”).

Pendulum

A pendulum session is best for yes or no questions, finding lost objects, or decisions where two distinctive options are available. Another name for pendulum divination is pallomancy (“sway prophecy/divination”)

Technically, a pendulum is anything that swings back and forth evenly without a bias to any direction.

I typically use a green aventurine stone pendulum and a custom made azurite pendulum. I also will use silver metal or quartz crystal.

Queen’s Divination

The Queen’s Divination is a spinning divination board. Anything can be used to divine, including a pendulum, but the King’s Divination is often used as well. It is a unique divination board created and used exclusively by me, This Crooked Crown.

Salt, Sand, and Flour Divination

Salt is thrown and spread over a surface and divined with symbols not unlike tea leaf reading. Sand and flour can be used in the exact same fashion.

Also known as halomancy/alomancy (“salt prophecy/divination”), amathomancy (“sandy soil divination/prophecy”), and aleuromancy (“flour divination/prophecy”).

Tea Leaf Reading 

The ever popular tea leaf reading or tasseomancy (tasseography, kypomancy, or pyllomancy). It’s done by looking at the tea leaves and seeing what shapes are made in the leaves. The shapes have meanings assigned to them, but many readers just use their intuition. The leaves location in the cup also sometimes matter. You can also use coffee grounds in the exact same way.

When I do this for clients, involves for me selecting a homemade tea designed to increase psychic abilities and visions, drinking said tea, and reading the symbols the tea leaves left at the bottom of the cup.

Technomancy

Technomancy is any kind of divination that uses technology as the medium. I use a lot of technology in my day-to-day life and often pair that with divination.

Shufflemancy is using a music player of some kind and putting it on shuffle and using the lyrics or tune of the song as the divination. You can also skip a certain number of songs to select the song.

Videomancy is like it said on the tin. Divination by videos or films, often in a similar fashion to shufflemancy or other visual or audio based divinations..

Theriomancy / Animals Divination 

This is divination by animal’s behaviors. Originally meant for wild animals, it’s now been adopted to domesticated animals as well. Birds (A.K.A ailuromancy, augury, auspicy, avimancy, orniscopy) are the most common but I also divine with cats (felidomancy “cat prophecy/divination”), and random encounters with animals (apantomancy “encounter prophecy/divination”).

Water, Ice, Blood, and Oil Scrying

Typically, water or oil is poured in a dark reflective bowl. It’s used just like a mirror at that point. However, certain motions can be made to help the divination or things can be added to the water or oil to create the divination. Water and oil can even be combined to create the divination medium.

Ice divination can be done in a variety of ways, from using it like a scrying crystal to studying how the ice melts.

The source of the water, oil, or ice can also weigh in on the divination. Moon water, melted ice or snow, freshwater, purified water, salt water, ocean water, tap water, or even polluted water can all affect the reading. I use all of the above to great effect.

Blood can be used just like water or oil, it’s the amount that’s the issue. Buying blood from a butcher will allow water or oil methods to be used for blood. When using your own (or other’s), just watching how it drips on the tabletop can reveal the reading. I only undertake blood divination when the sacrifice is blood is worthwhile. It’s not worth the trouble to me otherwise.

Also known as hydromancy (“water divination/prophecy”), hydatomancy (“raindrop divination/prophecy”), ceromancy (dripping wax into water and reading the symbols the wax makes), cyclicomancy (swirling water in a cup), lecanomancy (mixing oil and water in a basin and dropping stones in it ), and cryomancy (divination through ice). Eleomancy is the name for oil divination.

Hematomancy (“blood divination/prophecy”), dririmancy (“dripping blood divination/prophecy”), or even drimimancy “bodily fluid prophecy/divination”) are other names for blood divination.

Weather Scrying

Weather divination is often casually used by diviners unless said diviner has an affinity for certain weather types. Scientifically speaking, this was an early form of weather forecasting.

I use a variety of methods such as aeromancy (“air prophecy/divination”), brontomancy (“thunder prophecy/divination”), nephomancy (“cloud prophecy/divination”) anemoscopy (“wind observation”), and astrapomancy (“lightning divination/prophecy”)

Other Divination Methods I Sometimes Use or Know

• By hearing or seeing things. Known by lots of names such as transataumancy (“accidentially seeing or hearing”), alveromancy (“sounds divination/prophecy”)
• Arrows (bolomancy “arrow divination/prophecy”)
• Mahjong divination
• Ouija board
• Bones (osteomancy/ossomancy “bone prophecy/divination”) which may also be thrown as in cleromancy lots of just examined and used to pull information out of psychically.
• Palmistry (palm reading or chiromancy)
• Shadows (sciomancy “shadow prophecy/divination” or simply shadowmancy)
• The Moon (selenomancy “moon prophecy/divination”)
• Skulls specifically. Some might called it cephalomancy (“head prophecy”) but I use the bone of the skulls, not the flesh so it’s more osteomancy.
• Numerology
• Coins (numismatomancy),
• Feng Shui
• Geomancy (“earth prophecy/divination”)
• Eggs (oomancy/ovomancy “egg prophecy/divination). I might use the eggs themselves or the eggshells (casacrilla) for divination.
• Arithmancy is using words with numerical meanings attached or assigned to them.
• Pyllomancy (“leaf divination/prophecy”)
• Dendromancy usually refers to sacred trees such as oak, yew, and mistletoe but it can and does mean any tree divination.
• Phyllorhodomancy is using rose petals as a divination method, especially used in love divination.