Tasseography

The Art of Reading Tea Leaves

By Cassandra Vablatsky, Author of Unfogging the Future

My Dear students,
Welcome to the art of Divination, specifically reading tea leaves
to foresee the future. Most of you will have a difficult time in
Divination, as it is complicated to read the signs of portend and
prophesy without the inner eye. Some students, though rare, may in
fact possess the inner eye as I do and will have no trouble seeing the
signs.
Many witches and wizards, talented though they are in the area
of loud bangs and smells and sudden disappearings, are yet unable
to penetrate the veiled mysteries of the future. Broaden your minds,
my dears, and allow your eyes to see past the mundane!

Follow the instructions carefully and find out if Tasseography is

your cup of tea.

Professor Sybill Trelawney

Tasseography is the Art of reading tea leaves to divine present and

future events.

There are three steps to proper Tasseography etiquette:

1. Drinking the Tea properly

2. Reading the leaves
3. Interpreting the leaves
Drinking the tea properly
1. When the tea is almost at room temperature, have your subject sip it
and concentrate on a specific question

2. Tell your subject to leave a tiny bit of liquid and most of the tea
leaves in the bottom of the cup. Since many people are used to drinking
tea that’s strained through a tea bag as opposed to loose tea, a little
coaching may be necessary. It’s really easy to just swallow the tea
leaves, so make sure that he leaves some behind for you to read. Strain
the tea out of the cup through a napkin stretched over the top, again
taking care to leave a little bit of liquid and most of the tea leaves
behind.

3. Take the cup in your left hand and swirl it around clockwise three
times.

4. Cover the top of the cup with your right hand, making sure to swirl the
leaves completely up and around the sides and rim of the cup. (A little
bit of shaking is all right for beginners.)

5. When all this is done, peer into the cup and read the leaves

Reading the tea leaves

If you have swirled correctly, the leaves should now be clumped together in
several different places on the cup’s inside, including the rim, sides and
bottom. These clumps will form the symbols that you will read. You should
always begin the interpretation by looking for the simplest symbols first.
Several of the leaf clumps may clearly form shapes, letters or numbers.
 • Shapes:

Triangles = good karma

Squares = the need for caution

Circles = great success

• Letters: refer to the names of friends or relatives

• Numbers: indicate spans of time, like months or years.

Most of the clumps, however, will form random shapes (a bird, an anchor, a
spider). With a little staring and a bit of creativity, these shapes can easily be
distinguished.

Interpreting the leaves

It’s time for your grand finale: making sense of it all. Assume your most imperious expression
and make varying noises of surprise, horror and glee. Ignore the look of fear on your subject’s
face. Predicting when something will happen is one of the most fun parts of reading tea leaves
because it makes you look methodical and scientific.

• Symbols that lie in straight lines indicate a definite occurrence.

• Curved or wavy lines indicate the possibility of change.

• Crystal clear symbols are events that are more likely to occur than, shall we say,
“stretches of interpretation.”

• Check over your cup for lines, numbers, shapes or letters first, and interpret any
clear symbols. Then follow the rules about lines above.

Tips of the Trade-

Be Accommodating- If the subject told you of any questions that he had
before the reading, try to tailor your prediction to these queries.
However, if nothing applies, just hint that the leaves are being mysterious.
YOU are not, after all, responsible for the vagaries of the divine.

Be Dramatic- Don’t forget that it is the mysticism of the reading that

wins out above all. Make sure you throw in a few gasps and feel free to
faint dead away (taking care not to knock the cup).
 Remember: You have the inner eye- Anyone can look at patterns
and give them meaning on the third dimension level. The trick is to see
beyond third dimension - and psych on the formations that are created.
Good luck!

The following is a list of those symbols most often encountered along with their
interpretations:

Acorn: financial success Kangaroo: a trip

Airplane: an impending journey
Anchor: an unpleasant situation
Angel: good news
Ants: many impending difficulties
Apple: prosperity, achievement
Arrow: bad news in love
Axe: possible danger or difficulty to you or a
friend
Baby: small worries
Kettle: a sign of peace in the home
Kite: wishes that will come true
Ladder: success in business
Leaf: a new life
Lock: obstacles
Man: a visitor, male or female
Mask: a secret that must be kept

Bag: a trap; if open, escape Mouse: theft of heart, object or idea

Ball: desire to travel

Bell: good news
Bear: bad luck
Bird: good luck, good news
Boat: a visit from a friend
Book (open): the answer to a question
Book (closed): a question needing
investigation
Bottle: possible disease
Bull: arguing with friends
Bush: a new friend
Butterfly: much expected happiness
Cabbage: jealousy; with dots means at work
Mushroom: a future disturbance
Necklace (whole): admirers
Necklace (broken): danger ahead in love
Net: a trap
Oak tree: health
Oar: success in store after a period of trials
Owl: a sign of good or bad luck ahead
Oyster: love, an impending engagement
Palm tree: a trip to an upcoming tropical
place
Pig: greed
Cap: trouble

Candle: a light for the future, help from

friends
Cat: deceit, a false friend Purse (open): financial gain
Chain: engagement, a wedding

Chair: a guest

Cigar: a new friend

Circle: success, completion; with dots means a

baby

Clock: better health Purse (closed): financial loss

Clouds: trouble; with dots means many

problems

Comb: an enemy

Cup: reward

Child: a new idea

Coin: prosperity Question mark: questionable morals
Cross: sacrifice, reward for suffering Rabbit: bravery
Daisy: a new love Rat: a dishonest person
Dog: a good friend Raven: bad news
Dove: coming peace Ring: upcoming marriage
Drum: a change Rose: popularity
Eggs (broken): a career setback Shark: bankruptcy
Eggs (whole): assured career success Shell: good news
Envelope: good news Shoe: increased energy and productivity
Eye: caution, foresight Snake: an enemy nearby
Face: a change in friendships Spider: reward for work

Finger (raised): a warning Star: hope

Finger (lowered): a need for direction Sword: warning of future arguments

Flag: impending danger Teapot: friends

Foot: a walk away from the past Tower: disappointment

Fountain: great happiness Tree: health

Forked line: a coming decision
Fruit: fruitful hopes
Garden: a party
Globe: travel
Grapes: happiness
The Grim: Death
Gun: arguments with family
Hand: a friend’s assistance
Harp: romance
Hat: an upcoming raise on the job, an
upcoming honor
House: comfort, home
Iceberg: lack of inner self
Turtle: criticism
Umbrella: protection
Vase: a secret admirer
Volcano: an impending emotional eruption
Wagon: hard times ahead
Waterfall: abundance
Wheel: business advancement through great
effort
Witch: a strange occurrence
Wolf: jealousy
Yoke: need for change
Zebra: a move from one physical or emotional
state to another