Divining Methods for Efficient Initial Love Readings

When someone asks me about a matter of the heart, the method I use for divining the situation quickly and efficiently uses three coins.  I call it a “15.50 reading” because the value of the coins adds up to 15.50 NIS.  Each coin is consecrated to an Orisha who is in charge of a particular aspect of romantic/marital relationships getting underway.  Eshu opens and closes all doors to anything.  The Ancestors determine whether two people will have sexual relations or have children (by birth or emotional legacy, as epigenetics is in their domain as much as raw genetics).  Oshun determines whether there will be joy and romance in a relationship.  I write more on this method in the article about family curses.

There are many methods one can use though, to get an answer about what the situation is.  When people come to us with matters of the heart, they are often in a good deal of distress or confusion, and a straight answer is a comfort.  The most frequently asked questions are what is going on, and whether or not spellwork would help.

With coins, you can consecrate them to whichever deities in your pantheon deal with relationships and sexuality.  I use three coins, but you can use as many or as few as are relevant in your system.  I recommend at least three though, because most situations have many sides to them, and you need the perspective of more than one to know more about the situation than whether or not the marriage deity blesses the union.

On that note, if you prefer, you can use numbered dice, and divine the situation based on numerology.  You can also use a standing pendulum over a cloth marked with symbols of your relevant deities, a spinner, or any divining method that will offer a fast, straight answer with minimal need for trance.

A suggestion though, if you’re a professional witch or doing frequent service to your community: don’t actually advertise that you’re doing this for free.  The gift of divination is something one can lose if the deities are disrespected or exploited.  In Vodun and diaspora traditions, though many deities divine or have some say in it, the main one is Orunmila or someone similar, and they all require offerings and tend to be somewhat strict “schoolmaster” types.

Aside of his regular offerings of melons and/or plain, mildly sweet food and stationery, like Oshun, he likes when we take good care of our supplies, behave and look professional and competent, and glorify him.  So even if your path requires specifically that you do not charge for divination, you should not put yourself out there to be a sucker.  It should at least require some effort and humility on the part of the client to approach the messenger.  The messenger should have the humility to understand that they have a gift they should not be taking for granted or allowing others to.

Now, even though I am recommending an efficient or “easier” method of divination to help the clients receive the direction or closure they need, there is still some ceremony involved.  Here is mine:

1. Light some incense and ask Eshu to open the way for information to get through.
2. Ask to Orunmila to allow the coins to bring messages from Eshu, the Ancestors, and Oshun about the client and their love interest.
3. Pass the basket with the coins and shells through the smoke.
4. Pick up the coins, holding Eshu between the index and middle, the Ancestors between the middle and ring, and Oshun between the ring and the pinky, and the focus/offerings shells between the thumb and other fingers.
5. Say, “Ashe!” and drop the coins and shells into the basket.
6. Thank the Orishas for their answer, and tell the client what came up.

So basically, it’s brief but thorough.  You can try it this way, or you can come up with another method that suits you.  Whatever you do though, it should answer the question of what’s going on directly, so that the client can easily decide what to do next.