How to use words in divination: 4 ways to find spiritual guidance

Often when we think of divination, our mind goes straight to tarot cards or crystal balls, palm reading or even runestones. Yet there are many practitioners who divine the future simply by using words. There are many different ways in which you can employ words in your divination practices, and if you take the time to work with each of them you will have an abundance of methods at you finger tips in which to gain guidance and insight.

Whether you want to use the alphabet, flip through a book, try your hand at automatic writing or listen out for overheard words, it’s a fascinating field. Although some divination techniques need special equipment, working with words doesn’t often require much more than a little understanding, a willingness to learn and perhaps a humble pen and paper.

It can be a great place to start or, if you’re already familiar with other techniques, one more string to add to your bow. Best of all, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution, and none of them are too challenging to pick up. As with so many divination practices, the more you work with words the more they’ll have to offer, but you’ll build on your skills and abilities every step of the way.

4 ways to work with words

1. Write it out

Some believe that automatic writing offers messages from the spirit world, whilst others think that your own deepest self will be in charge. Whichever you prefer, it’s a practice that rewards perseverance.

Simply put your pencil on the page, close your eyes, empty your mind and let your hand move. You might need to wait a little while to get a response but be sure you’ve got plenty of pencils and paper or your favourite journal type in case the messages come thick and fast.

Hopefully you’ll soon produce letters or symbols on the paper and, when the writing stops, you can examine what you’ve written. It’s natural that the results of your sessions might look like confusing scribbles, but the more you work, the clearer they will become. From your earliest efforts though, you’ll be able to examine your output and interpret what you see in relation to your own situation.

2. Ask the alphabet

1. Create the letters

Write or print the letters of the alphabet multiple times on pieces of paper and put them in a jar with a lid.

2. Spill the letters

Shake up the jar filled with letters then empty the contents all over a table.

3. Find your answer

Look through the spilled letters and identify words and patterns to answer your question or offer insight.

3. Pick up a book

Whether you call it stichomancy or bibliomancy, this ancient practice is one that anybody can do. All you need to do is think of the question you have or the guidance you seek and open any beloved book at a random page. Focus on the line, word or passage that commands your attention and consider it carefully.

Note it down and muse on its meaning; somewhere in the words you were drawn to is the guidance you’re seeking.

4. Keep your ears open

Practitioners of cledonism believe that chance encounters and overheard words can carry messages about the future. We can find examples of cledomancy in Homer’s Odyssey, but it’s just as relevant today as it was in the days of antiquity.

Simply ask a question in your mind and concentrate on it as you move through your day. Pay attention to the words or conversation snatches that jump out at you, because cledomancers believe that’s where your answer will be found.