There are many methods you can use to develop your psychic skills: meditation, tarot, dream analysis, and much more. Scrying is one more that you can add to your psychic toolbox.
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What is Scrying?
Scrying is a form of divination used by witches, Wiccans, and pagans. It entails relaxing oneself into a state of dreamy awareness and gazing into a reflective surface. As you relax even more, images will begin to suggest themselves to you – think of staring up at clouds or into a fire and seeing shapes appear. These pictures are then decoded in a similar way that you would use a dream journal.
The word ‘scrying’ comes from the Middle English, ‘descry’, which means to discern, to see dimly. In turn, descry’ probably derives from the French, ‘descrier’: to announce. From that we get ‘describe’. So scrying only means ‘seeing, discerning and describing’.
Scrying has been around for centuries, notably used by the ancient Egyptians, Greeks and Persians. Gazing at polished stones, such as obsidian, was a popular method of divination. Nostradamus is said to have used a bowl of water to help him predict the future. Cups of oil and even blood were used to foretell success or failure in battle by royal wizards.
How Can Scrying Help with Intuition?
To tune into your intuition, you need to recognize when it is trying to show you something, whether through an image or a symbol. Scrying helps you to focus and bring yourself to a state of trance-like receptiveness; the perfect time for your psychic intuition to kick in. As you practice, you will become more attuned to the messages being delivered to you.
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Tools for Scrying
There are various tools you can use for scrying: a crystal or glass ball (crystallomancy), a dark mirror (catoptromancy or enoptromancy) or a bowl of water (hydromancy). The object acts as a focus for the scryer, allowing them to empty their mind of thought-chatter. It works in the same way as a mantra during meditation. A reflective surface is essential for shapes, symbols and images to suggest themselves to the scryer. These are unlikely to appear as they do in certain movies as fully formed images, but rather as abstracts that mean something to the viewer, again think of cloud bunnies, faces in a fire or random patterns in peeling paint.
Make Your Own Dark Mirror for Scrying
You can easily make your own dark mirror. Take a picture frame of whatever size you prefer. Take it apart. Clean the glass thoroughly ( it needs to be glass, not perspex or acrylic). Use some high gloss black paint and paint the glass on one side. Allow to dry and re-coat two more times. Put the frame and glass back together and you have a scrying mirror.
Scrying Bowl
Choose a dark bowl of stoneware or glass. You can use filtered water but preferably water from a natural source, such as a stream or collected rainwater. If you like, you can add a drop or two of black food coloring or ink. Place the bowl of water on a flat, stable surface and allow the water to become still.
Preparation for Scrying
Scrying is best carried out in a dimly lit room. The only light should be from a candle – the moving candle reflections are considered to be part of the image forming process. However, some prefer to scry in a half-light with no distracting flames nearby.
It is essential that you give yourself plenty of time to scry – there should be no interruptions, so switch off your phone and leave it in another room. It’s best not to have any electronics around. Sit in a comfortable position, on cushions on the floor, a couch or a chair at a table.
If you like, you can incorporate a ritual to prepare yourself for the scrying session. Lighting incense and formulating your questions will begin to open your mind to visions. Some people like to ‘draw’ a protective circle, calling on the four quarters (direction/elements) to keep them safe while scrying.
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Scrying Techniques
Close your eyes and use your favorite relaxation technique to settle yourself. Breathe deeply and allow any tension to leave your body.
Open your eyes but keep them relaxed. You need a sort of general view, looking at the crystal, mirror or bowl before you and also being aware of your peripheral vision. If you have ever looked at those ‘magic eye’ pictures, you know that you have to hold your vision in a relaxed manner to discern the hidden image within the pattern. That’s the technique used in scrying. If you’re not sure, then simply hold your focus on the object lightly.
Your mind will wander as if in a daydream, That’s okay; pay attention to any random thoughts and memories. However, if you start mentally creating your shopping list, then thank that thought and let it drift away.
You should start seeing either with your eyes or via mental pictures, images or symbols. If you have to take a moment to write them down, then do so, trying to stay relaxed so you can enter the scrying state again.
When you begin to feel thirsty, hungry or uncomfortable, it’s time to stop. You may also feel a little woozy and lightheaded, so take a moment to ground yourself by using a short visualization. Take down the circle, if you used one. Eat and drink something to bring yourself back to reality.
Deciphering Symbols and Images
If you haven’t already, make as many notes as you can of what you saw, thought of and felt during the scrying session. It’s good to have a dream dictionary, but if not, you can look images up on the internet. Here are a few basic interpretations:
- Apple – knowledge, wisdom
- Bird – news, spiritual guidance
- Books – learning something of importance
- Butterfly – transformation, endings, and beginnings
- Circle – completion, attainment
- Cup – love, emotions
- Dagger or knife – warning, danger
- Door – opportunity, adventure
- Eye – awakening (open) or something is hidden from view (closed
- Fence – temporary limitations
- Kite – freedom
- Letter/envelope – news, messages
- Mountain – an obstacle or challenge
- Needle – trying to remember something
- A ring – marriage or relationship
- Scissors – cutting something unwanted or breaking a connection
- Tree – life, relationships, growth
- Words – (indecipherable) a hidden message, (decipherable) a message.
Dream Moods has an extensive list of keywords and symbols that you can use to help you interpret your scrying visions and symbols.