In the early winter of 2022 I saw numerous omens that seemed to say someone I loved would die.
I was fried.
Anxious, obsessively doing more, and more readings, that seemed to give me bountiful confirming evidence.
In the language of the I Ching, I was in a darker version of 64.6: I was drunk off of emotions, but for the wrong reasons (whether there's right reasons is another story).
The sand minutes flowed to the bottom of the anxious hourglass and ...
My predictions were wrong.
The person I loved is still alive as I write this.
It was a little embarrassing, but the most important thing was that I came out of it all a little wiser.
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One popular translation of Hexagram 4 of the I Ching is "Youthful Folly."
Sometimes (even if you're in your thirties or above) the youth is in question, but the folly is definitely present.
It wasn't the first time I was wrong, and it won't be the last, but experiences like this have taught me some things that will hopefully help you keep egg off your visage.
Like first, forcing you to sit with the discomfort of a potentially dark outcome:
Divination As A Way To Digest Emotions
There's diviners whose abilities I greatly respect that were off on their predictions of my life.
I don't hold it against them, because if we're being honest as diviners (even if we're not professionals) sometimes we're on point, and sometimes hopes and dreams or fears and pains played into skewing our predictions.
Some forms of divination are better for yes - no questions: Geomancy and Astrology are two. Though, I've seen them go wrong, too.
But when an interpretation hits the nose, it's an exciting feeling.
I know there were times I'd laugh at how accurate Hexagram 38.2, or 5.6 were when consulting the I Ching, and then seeing them acted out in real life.
Even when it hasn't helped me see a freight train coming, revisiting a reading after the omen comes to pass has produced meaning for me.
It allowed me to digest the event, and digest the emotions that went along with it.
It's given me a piece of wisdom that helped me move forward.
In a world where surprise still holds some value, maybe a 'this is why that had to happen' message can be one of the most heartening we can receive from an oracle.
The Divination To Do To Avoid Doing Yourself In
There's an old adage Chaos Magician, Peter Carroll, likes to mention, which “is enchant long, divine short.”
While I've had long-term readings that played out just as they seemed to say, for your mental health, I believe it's a little better to look at the day in front of you instead of the decade.
A reading for your day keeps you focused on the present that you have some say in.
And on top of that, it gives you a sample size of 24 hours to learn more about the Hexagram, line, or Tarot card you received that day.
This kind of feedback, especially when paired with journaling, can quickly help you gain useful information about the meanings of your oracle of choice.
In addition to this, I'd recommend boosting the signal and reducing the noise as much as you can.
Don't be like me, and spend your early days with an oracle seemingly trying to jab it into submission with variations of the same question, hoping that the divination slot machine will come out with a jackpot of good fortune.
With more moving parts, the mind can become frantic, confused, and ultimately absorb little of what the message trying to get through your thick skull is saying.
For a minimalist daily reading, I'd suggest two questions:
- 1) What is the best I can do today?
- This is a question I learned from Tarot virtuoso, Enrique Enriquez, and it's done me quite well.
- 2) How can I avoid regrets today?
- Regrets are about the last thing most of us want when we connect with an oracle, and it's helped me have the right mindset to meet tricky parts of my day.
But those two questions aren't all I'd recommend if you're looking to facilitate healthier mental patterns around divination.
Let's talk about how enjoyable it is to be wrong.
How To Tame Your Anxiety, And Build Resilience By Making Wrong Predictions
With all divination, ask yourself - "What is this doing to the mind?"
It's a question I've learned from the Thai Forest Tradition of Theravada Buddhism.
While it can be rewarding to eventually tame your mind, if you find that your brain is going to unhealthy places when you work with an oracle, stay away from it.
For your own good.
With that said, if you're going to engage with divination, or fortune telling directly, there's one thing above all else that helped me quell anxiety: Predictions.
Every night I do some readings for the next day.
I ask what everyone needs to know for the next day (the world in general), the best I can do that day, how to avoid regrets, ensure regrets, be lucky, and what to expect, not expect, the reward, and the outcome.
Yeah, it's a lot, but this is kind of my life.
This routine may change at some point, but I look at those readings and thoughts instantly begin to populate in the forefront of my mind.
Sometimes what populates is anxiety.
In those cases (I have to do it less than I used to - which is the point of the exercise), I make a prediction for how each anxiety-inducing reading will play out, and I write it down.
Then the next night, I return to it, and almost always see that it played out true to the reading, but not true to my worries.
The benefit of this practice is you begin to dull that anxiety blade. It starts to feel like a Fisher-Price knife jabbing you instead of a Ginsu.
And you start to see life in a way that's a little more true to reality.
Because the tidal wave may only be that you got some coffee on your shirt.
If you're familiar with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, you likely see the similarities, and why this might be helpful.
And I hope it is just as helpful for those of you that decide to do the same.
Wrapping It Up
Sometimes I understand a bit why the Bible denounced divination. It has the potential to stir up a number of negative emotions.
But I also see how much my practices have enriched my life over time.
And I see how they've helped others, too.
What I hope is that all of this resonates in your life, and that these ideas help separate you from the "oh no's" that might become thought bubbles above your head when you see The Death card, or Hexagram 6, and think you can already feel the scythe or the argument.
And if you ever decide that all of this just isn't for you, pay attention to that, too.
Everything isn't for everyone, and the future isn't always as it seems.