CONCLUSION
The downside of this last variety of lecanomancy I experimented-with is a wet, oily mess to clean up afterward. Glad I thought to wear an apron. But an interesting exercise, nonetheless. Just don’t do it on fabric; opt for hard surfaces which are easy to clean.
Clearly, if you’re going to be a lecanomancer, it demands a lot of practice. I recommend you experiment, be patient with yourself, and don’t panic if at first it looks like meaningless shapes gently circulating in the dish. Remember that oil divination is a process; the oil doesn’t stay static in the dish, it evolves, and each stage may have something to say. As I discovered with the Ukraine issue, certain matters you inquire about may take more than one session of oil-divining in order to get a complete picture. After some practice, you may end up preferring one of these methods over the others.
That’s pretty-much it for lecanomancy, or oil divination. There is something to be said for this ancient, open-ended, fluid divination format. It allows for a more organic, if-ambiguous interpretation than other, hard-and-fast methods, such as this-card-means-this and this-position-in-the-spread-means-this. This can be desirable when faced with a question where a looser interpretation may be desired. Oil and water can paint a picture and gently suggest an answer, rather than hit you with it. Based on what I’ve seen, lecanomancy is also one of those divination methods where your intuition will need to play a big part. As you become more accustomed to practicing oil divination, you may find it is the right approach for certain kinds of questions.
EXERCISES
- Think of a question and try lecanomancy approach number one. What was the result?
- Think of a question and try lecanomancy approach number two, the one with the beads or pebbles. What was the result?
- Print out the under-the-basin chart, place it below a dish of water, then ask yourself, what best guidance can you give me now? Pour a small amount of oil over the center florette in the chart, and observe where it drifts.
- Try the ring-on-a-string technique I’ve labelled Basic Lecanomancy Number Four, asking yourself, ‘what’s just ahead for me?’ Or, you can ask about any other current event. I’ll leave it to you whether you want to turn the chart around and try again or not; that’s an intuitional judgement. What was the result?
- Having tried all four of these approaches to the practice of lecanomancy, which worked best for you? Is this a method of divination you would use again? If so, for what sort of questions would you employ it?
EXTRA CREDIT: Try experimenting with a variety water- and oil-temperatures. Hot water, cold water, lukewarm water. Hot oil, cold oil, warm oil. Mix and match temperatures of both. In your experience with this, what temperature-combination worked best?