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Author Topic: Where to Start?  (Read 1063 times)

Sylnes

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Where to Start?
« on: March 26, 2017, 12:56:37 am »
Alrighty so first off: Hi I'm super new! Please explain terminology to me and I'm sorry if this is very vague/silly.

I have no idea where to start.

Brief history: Grew up with the "you can have fun, but not believe in it" with witchcraft and the like. Majority of friends actively practice it (some more in the witchcraft, others more in tarot).  I know I don't really want to do either.

I've done some searching and I'm really at a toss up. I want to do some sort of scrying. I'm not sure if I want to use a ball or a pendulum, but the more I think about runes, the more I like the idea.

I'm drawn to the ball the most, but I'm scared it won't work for me, or we'll never connect?

I'm really looking for some tips or more direction to come to a solid choice. (Also, a Dummies Guide to How Do I Start Channeling Everything would be super helpful as well, but I can do some searching for that if needed.)


TLDR: Ball, Pendulum, or runes and why. Also how do I start making things "work"

Jenett

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Re: Where to Start?
« Reply #1 on: March 26, 2017, 07:18:26 am »
Quote from: Sylnes;204171

I've done some searching and I'm really at a toss up. I want to do some sort of scrying. I'm not sure if I want to use a ball or a pendulum, but the more I think about runes, the more I like the idea.


So, here's the thing. There are different kinds of divination (both methods, and reasons for) and as you'd probably expected some tools work better for different goals  than others, as well as some tools being a better fit for some people than others.

You mention in your intro that you're interested in fortune telling - but a lot of Pagans see a difference between using these tools for fortune telling (what's going to happen in the future) and divination (understanding ourselves and our situation and our possible choices better.) Most folks I know do the latter rather than the former, and I do too.

In terms of method, many people find some methods work better for them than others. I'm really not a visually focused person: I don't do well scrying (I've tried it enough times, with several different kinds of foci, to be pretty sure of that), and it took me a while (and finding decks that worked for me - probably about five years) to deal with the visual aspects of Tarot well.

Some of it is that different tools give different kinds of information: a pendulum can be really useful for more direct yes/no/topic answers (if you use a chart with pre-written options on it - link is to an image search to show you the kind of variation out there for that). Astrology is a complicated system to learn, but it's one of the few systems that has a more direct sense of time and when things might happen (or be more or less possible).

(And then there's the question of what cultural context you need to understand a system: you can use runes without focusing your religious practice on Norse deities or beings, but if you don't understand the cultural background inherent in the runes and the rune poems, they're going to be hard to read.)

Many people - and many teachers of witchcraft - advise learning multiple systems. A lot of people start with the pendulum because it's fairly straightforward to learn, and because it will help you learn how to form questions better, and that's a really useful long-term skill.

From there, many people suggest learning one tool that gives you information about smaller events, the microcosm, for day to day sorts of questions (Tarot, runes, oracle decks, etc.) and one that does larger events and arcs, the macrocosm (astrology is the really common one here, but there's a bunch of variations). The balance is useful long-term.

Quote
(Also, a Dummies Guide to How Do I Start Channeling Everything would be super helpful as well, but I can do some searching for that if needed.)


The first queston here is - do you want to? And why do you want to? (By which I mean 'what are you specifically looking to do in your life that this would improve'?)

Channelling, being open-headed, often comes with specific experiences that can affect what choices you make in other areas of your life, like what situations you're comfortable in and not comfortable in, what kinds of jobs you might be okay working, what relationships (romantic, friendship, familial) feel like to you, and all sorts of other things. Before you focus on opening up, I'd suggest getting some basics down about self awareness of your own energy and the energy of others.

(Also, not everyone is naturally open-headed - many people aren't. If you aren't, it may be a skill you can learn, but it's sort of like music or sports, some people will find it a lot easier than others, some people can get very good through applied practice and experience, and some people *could* get very good, but choose not to put in the time on that and do something else instead. And some people can get some basic skill and enjoy it but it's never going to be the thing they're amazing at.)

I've got some introductory material about basic energy work practices on my website (see the top section of that page on centering, grounding, etc.), but I'd also recommend a book by Diana Paxson for you, called Trance-Portation, because it's got some good commentary about being open-headed or close-headed, and what some of your choices are. (It's focused on trance skills, but trance and divination are obviously closely linked in some ways.)
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Sylnes

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Re: Where to Start?
« Reply #2 on: March 26, 2017, 04:11:14 pm »
Quote from: Jenett;204186

You mention in your intro that you're interested in fortune telling - but a lot of Pagans see a difference between using these tools for fortune telling (what's going to happen in the future) and divination (understanding ourselves and our situation and our possible choices better.) Most folks I know do the latter rather than the former, and I do too.


I didn't know there was a difference with that :o
So would fortune telling be more "If you continue doing X then Y will happen" (a more general example "Should I take the left path today" "Then you will/it's more possible to run into a cat", then "Should I take the right path" "You will/more possible to run into a dog" and decide from there), or would that fall into divination?

That just opened up a new bit of research I need to do.

Quote from: Jenett;204186



(And then there's the question of what cultural context you need to understand a system: you can use runes without focusing your religious practice on Norse deities or beings, but if you don't understand the cultural background inherent in the runes and the rune poems, they're going to be hard to read.)



Of course, if you don't know where it originates/why, you won't understand the full meaning, or it could be misinterpreted. Would it be a wiser idea to steer clear of runes for the time being, then? Until I can have a more solid understanding of everything, and look up more on the history and other factors with both the runes and culture?

 
Quote from: Jenett;204186

it will help you learn how to form questions better, and that's a really useful long-term skill.


I've seen that point a lot, but I don't understand what would constitute a "better question," or how you would know when to rephrase a question. When you get an answer you weren't expecting? Only when you would receive an "I don't know"? Or would I get to know this the more I would practice?


Quote from: Jenett;204186


I've got some introductory material about basic energy work practices on my website (see the top section of that page on centering, grounding, etc.), but I'd also recommend a book by Diana Paxson for you, called Trance-Portation, because it's got some good commentary about being open-headed or close-headed, and what some of your choices are. (It's focused on trance skills, but trance and divination are obviously closely linked in some ways.)


I'll definitely see about getting that book, and your site is a huge help too! Thank you so much!

Emma Eldritch

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Re: Where to Start?
« Reply #3 on: March 26, 2017, 05:35:25 pm »
Quote from: Sylnes;204201
I've seen that point a lot, but I don't understand what would constitute a "better question," or how you would know when to rephrase a question. When you get an answer you weren't expecting? Only when you would receive an "I don't know"? Or would I get to know this the more I would practice?


My focus is primarily tarot, so I am going to answer from that perspective on this one. For me, a 'better question' is one that leads to clearer answers. It's not so much getting an answer you don't expect - that's often useful - but rather if the answer is vague and confusing, or unhelpful. (So, yes, "I don't know" is a crap answer.)

An example: Person A says, "I want to know about my career." The reading says, "yup, your employment is steady." That's swell and all, but it isn't really telling Person A anything they didn't know already. For me, as a reader, I always want whoever I'm reading for to walk away feeling like they have a gameplan for the future.

So, a better question in that case might be if Person A asked, "If I stay at my current job, what does  the future look like in terms of growth?" or "if I leave this line of work, what might be a better path to focus on?"

Essentially, a better question usually involves narrowing the focus a little.

Jenett

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Re: Where to Start?
« Reply #4 on: March 26, 2017, 06:01:30 pm »
Quote from: Sylnes;204201
I didn't know there was a difference with that :o
So would fortune telling be more "If you continue doing X then Y will happen" (a more general example "Should I take the left path today" "Then you will/it's more possible to run into a cat", then "Should I take the right path" "You will/more possible to run into a dog" and decide from there), or would that fall into divination?


Fortune telling: will X thing happen? (even when X thing has a lot of possible variables or may not happen at all!) Sometimes can be very helpful if you frame your questions precisely and there are actual answers, but often frustrating.
  • What will the winning lottery numbers for the next drawing?
  • When will Bob/Mary/Chris propose?
  • Will I get the job I just applied for?


Divination: much more about process, getting some ideas about what different alternatives might look like (and they're usually not universally good or bad). Also for broader questions like things to keep in mind, approaches to problem solving (not 'what should I do' usually as much as 'how should I approach doing it')
  • What should I know about my walk today? What might happen if I go left? What mght if I go right? (note the 'might' here.)
  • What should I consider to improve my relationship with Bob/Mary/Chris?
  • What should I focus on in my current job hunt?


Quote
Would it be a wiser idea to steer clear of runes for the time being, then? Until I can have a more solid understanding of everything, and look up more on the history and other factors with both the runes and culture?


Depends on what your priorities and preferred learning resources are, in part. Any divination system's going to take some time to learn (even pendulums, it takes some time to learn how to frame questions). But I'd say it's worth doing right, so if you do explore runes, expect to spend time learning about the cultures that used them, and what the things depicted in the runes (and rune poems) meant in that context.

(Just like if you decide to learn about Tarot, starting with a deck that uses more standard sets of imagery can give you more resources, and also will give you a bunch of symbols to learn more about, because many of them are things not everyone's equally familiar with.)

Quote
I've seen that point a lot, but I don't understand what would constitute a "better question," or how you would know when to rephrase a question. When you get an answer you weren't expecting? Only when you would receive an "I don't know"? Or would I get to know this the more I would practice?


Some of all of the above. Good questions for divination tend to be ones where you can get some meaningful information (not necessarily 'an answer to all of your questions' but some direction)

Two sets of examples on asking questions from a site I like a lot for Tarot (she's somewhat more focused on people who read for others, especially professionally, but there's tons of cool stuff for people who are learning or read for themselves only too.) Here's one article on questions, and here's the other (focusing on love questions, but you can likely see how they apply to all sorts of other things.)

(I probably have more links on this buried in my 'save this for later' files, but I have an absurd week, and don't have time to dig them out any time soon, but that should get you started.)
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Sylnes

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Re: Where to Start?
« Reply #5 on: March 26, 2017, 09:03:38 pm »
Quote from: Emma Eldritch;204207

Essentially, a better question usually involves narrowing the focus a little.



Quote from: Jenett;204211

(I probably have more links on this buried in my 'save this for later' files, but I have an absurd week, and don't have time to dig them out any time soon, but that should get you started.)

That's all awesome, thank you so much! I really appreciate your help!
« Last Edit: March 26, 2017, 09:04:52 pm by Sylnes »

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