CHARTOMANCY
Welcome! In this lesson we’ll be focusing on Chartomancy, which means divining by things on paper. There are two major sub-branches of Chartomancy: Cartomancy, which uses Tarot cards, and Stichomancy, which uses books or lines of verse.
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Stichomancy
This method can be performed using any book, though books of historical or cultural significance are often used. You’ll need to be thinking of something – a question or something you want to know more about. Start by opening the book to a random page – you may even flip through the pages and use your intuition to stop when it feels right. Then, without looking, point to a random line on the page. The line or passage will provide a message about your question or topic. Of course, you’ll need to do some interpretation to discover the meaning of the message – it won’t necessarily be straightforward!
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An alternative method involves dropping an object onto a page rather than pointing. This could be a coin, key, pebble, or anything small and flat. Some readers, rather than looking at one full passage, will take just one word or phrase from the page, then flip to another page for another word, and ultimately put them together for a full message. Although books are the most commonly used items for Stichomancy, anything containing lines of verse will work! Try a reading using poems or perhaps even music. As the reader, you can determine how you prefer to perform the reading.
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Aleuromancy is a type of Stichomancy where written messages are baked into balls of flour and then distributed to Querents to answer their questions. Today, muggles practice a form of Aleuromancy using what they call fortune cookies, which contain little slips of paper with so-called fortunes. The “fortunes” often contain advice or positive sayings. While most muggles put minimal stock into the words in these cookies, Seers will occasionally reference them in their readings.
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Cartomancy
Cartomancy is a form of Divination that uses Tarot cards. It’s important to note that there are many different decks that can be used to read Tarot, but today we’ll be using the Sharman-Caselli deck to become familiar with the cards.
A deck of Tarot cards contains 78 cards split into two parts: the Major Arcana and the Minor Arcana. The Major Arcana includes 22 cards, and each card represents a stage of life or a typical life experience; some examples are pictured below. You can find a description of each card in the Major Arcana in chapter 8 of Symbology for Seers.
In the Minor Arcana, the cards are split into four suits: Wands, Pentacles, Swords, and Cups. Each suit has a theme of sorts, which is described in chapter 9 of Symbology for Seers.
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Each suit contains 14 cards, named similarly to a traditional playing card deck (i.e. Ace of Swords, Four of Cups, Ten of Pentacles, Queen of Wands, etc.) except that in lieu of a Jack, each suit has a Page (or Princess) and a Knight (or Prince). Each card contains an image representing an influence that may come up in daily life; some examples are pictured below.
As you can see, there is considerable interpretation required in understanding the Tarot cards; the images depicted are not straightforward. You’ll generally be looking at multiple cards when completing a reading, so you should look for connections and relationships between the cards.
In general, the querent should ask a question about an issue, problem, or concern they are currently having. Be careful with yes/no questions – you can ask yes/no questions that involve simple choices about your own life, but the Tarot will not help you to answer yes/no questions about another person’s actions!
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Then, you’ll complete a Tarot spread in order to help you answer the question. There are many different spreads to choose from depending on the situation! Some require as few as two Tarot cards while others involve up to 15. The spreads form a variety of shapes, including crosses, circles, spirals, lines, and diamonds.
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The most common Tarot spread is a three card spread. The first card, placed on the left, represents the past. The second card, placed in the middle, represents the present, and the third card, placed on the right, represents the future. As you’re reading, you’ll want to start with the past, but consider how the past, present, and future are affecting each other.
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Assignment
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Choose one of the following activities to complete.
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OPTION A: READ AND RESPOND
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Answer the following questions in complete sentences. Your responses must be in your own words.
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1. What books of historical or cultural significance might be commonly used in Stichomancy (by either muggles or wizards – your choice)? 5 points
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2. Describe your preferred method of Stichomancy! This may be one of the methods described in the lesson (please explain in your own words though!), or you may add your own twist to it. If you choose to drop an object rather than point, please include what object you’d use and why. 5 points
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3. The Eight of Pentacles is pictured below. What do you see in this card? What might it represent? 5 points
4. The Five of Swords is pictured below. What do you see in this card? What might it represent? 5 points
5. Deputy Head Nooms recently visited my office and expressed concern regarding her Crup, Russell. She asked whether I’d seen any strange behavior and wondered aloud whether he was alright. After she left, I drew three Tarot cards, as follows:
What do you think this means? Remember to interpret each card in terms of the time period it represents as well as their connections to each other. 20 points
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OPTION B: DEEP DIVE
Research two different decks of Tarot cards! One can be the Sharman-Caselli deck that we’ve seen in this lesson if you choose. Compare and contrast the two decks! How are they similar and different? Drawing styles, images, ideas? Respond in one to two paragraphs (approximately 200-300 words). 40 points