I agree @Nixi beautifully said. 
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I have a crystal ball that my husband gifted me over a year ago but I havenât used it. When I look into the ball I get motion sickness. Lol! Donât know what thatâs about, but with this challenge I will try it again. Thank you @tracyS for giving me the idea!
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This should be an interesting challenge. My sister invited a friend to dinner one evening and little did we know she was a psychic! 
Well at least someone that spoke to spirits in the room. We worked with divining rods on yes/no queries 
There are some divinations that I just donât feel comfortable working with but for some time now I have been doing the daily candle meditations and feel at ease so Pyromancy and its forms of divination have my interest as does the Runes and Tarot. I have some herbs and oils to make a divination oil that I would like to have for my practice as well. 
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@Garnet Thank you for posting the information on Water Scrying. I rarely work with the water element because it is so heavy for me. I get very uncomfortable. Every time I try I feel like I am literally, physically, and spiritually drowning. I am going to try harder to fight through my fear and face it. I am going to try this ritual.
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Oh wow, that is really interesting! I had never heard of Faust but it was fascinating to read. Iâm still looking into scrying.
I was thinking about the water element 
where you said that you get uncomfortable. Water is associated with emotions & intuition, maybe there is something underlying that you need to work through to help it be more of a comfort & flow. Water can be very cleansing, healing, & comforting. I recently found a Healing Waters meditation on Insight Timer, that happens to be by our own @MeganB. It really made a difference for me the other day when I have having some anxiety issues. A type of water healing meditation may help you maybe with some journaling or other processing afterward.
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Challenge Entry
I felt as I was ready to perform scrying just yet but I went and did some research instead and got most of my information from the zen shop online.
Many witches use scrying in their practice to uncover truths about themselves and the world around them. The word âscryingâ means to reveal or to perceive. To be a scryer, you are crossing over to another consciousness, a mystical plain, and leaving behind your conscious mind. The formal definition being: âScrying is the art of gazing into a dark mirror, water or crystal, going beyond the physical eyes and letting the inner psychic eye open allowing us to receive visions and Information.â
Scrying was first mentioned in the 10th Century in an Ancient Persian text called the âShahnameh.â Later, as Christianity rose to power, scrying was outlawed. And yet almost every culture has used some form of scrying: from the Native Americanâs observation of smoke, to the Egyptians use of oil gazing to gain wisdom. Ancient Greeks and Celts practiced scrying using beryl, crystal, black glass, polished quartz, water, and other transparent or light catching bodies
The most famous user of the scrying mirror might be Dr. John Dee, a famous Alchemist, Mathematician, and Astronomer; he was also an advisor to Queen Elizabeth I on matters pertaining to science and astrology, as such, he was commonly referred to as âthe last royal magicianâ A serious academic, some thought him to be the most learned man in the whole of Europe. He was fascinated by all things occult, and was an adept in Hermetic and Cabbalistic philosophy. Dee had a particular interest in divination, and spent much of his later life experimenting with different methods in his efforts to communicate with Angels. From 1583 onward, Dee worked with Edward Kelly using both a black obsidian mirror and a crystal ball to see visions of âAngelsâ. Allegedly they communicated by pointing to squares containing letters and symbols that Dee had transcribed.
Other forms of scrying:
Wax â This is done by dripping wax onto a water surface. The scryer then interprets the images or words formed from the dried wax.
Cloud â Also called cloud gazing, this form of scrying involves observing clouds and the shapes they form. This is used to gather special information or knowledge.
Mirror â This is perhaps the most popular form of scrying. Also called catoptromancy, this involves relaxing your vision and staring into a mirror. After a while, images and scenes will begin to emerge.
Water â Staring into water, images can be perceived after a time. Objects such as pebbles can also be dropped into the water to create ripples. These ripples are then interpreted.
Oil â This form of scrying can involve pouring oil into a dish, rubbing it on the body, or coating a cup/plate. The scryer then observes the light reflected off the oil for information.
Fire â Possibly the most ancient form of scrying, this type of scrying involves gazing into fiery flames for visions. This can be done through the use of a simple candle or oil lamp. Bonus points if itâs a bonfire!
Smoke â As smoke rises from fire, its ethereal shapes present spiritual messages.
Crystal â This is the stereotypical form of scrying, but nonetheless very effective. It involves the use of a crystal object (usually a ball or globe) to gather special meaning.
Eye â This is unusual! Also called soul gazing, this form of scrying involves looking deep within a personâs eyes and observing the reflections.
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Fascinating. Particularly the part about Dr John Dee. It is rumoured here, (in England) that the Royals have always and still do have an occult adviser. Thankyou for your research. So interesting. 
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@brandy20 that is really interesting about the different forms of scrying including the Eye one. I still havenât tried it with my cracked glass globe or my clear glass globe. I want to look more into it myself⊠different types of divination Iâm more apprehensive about since my Ouija board experience when I was younger 
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thezenshop.ca had some very interesting facts about scrying, I was amazed at all the ways you could scry.
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Challenge Entry
Inspired by @brandy20 because I got curious about the history & uses over the ages
The use of crystal balls has been recorded back to at least the 1st century & even today are used by psychics, fortune tellers, & mediums as a tool for fortune telling & clairvoyance. Clairvoyance: - perceiving things or events in the future or beyond normal sensory contact.
They have been traced back to Ancient Rome by the Roman Pliny the Elder, they were described as being used by âsoothsayersâ & the balls themselves were called âcrystallum orbisâ then later as âorbuculumâ. Over the next several hundred years the practice was widely accepted by the Romans & then it was condemned by the Catholic Church as being specifically mentioned in the Bible in The Book of Deuteronomy 18:14, where it says: âfor these nations, which you are about to dispossess, listen to fortune-tellers and to diviners. But as for you, the Lord your God has not allowed you to do this.â
Around the same time, the Druids of the British Isles were also using crystal balls for scrying & seeing into the future. However, the practice basically vanished for a while once the Romans annexed Great Britain & all but wiped out the Druids & Pagans.
Between the centuries 500 & 1500 crystal balls were more decorative, however there were some throughout Europe that still practiced crystallomancy while keeping it hidden from the church. According to stories of the time, the great wizard Merlin carried one with him however, itâs still in question whether Merlin was a true historic figure or one passed down through stories, myths, & lore.
As mentioned in @brandy20 challenge entry, Queen Elizabeth I reignited the use of the crystal ball for fortune telling through her advisor John Dee. He used a Black Obsidian ball to scry & believed that he was receiving messages from various Angels & Demons then shared his findings with the queen. Once it became more widely accepted occult practitioners began to read things by Indian & Arabic writers such as The Picatrix which was written around the 11th century about astrology & magic. This gave other gazers support that it was a legitimate tool for telling the future.
When the Roma people migrated from India to Europe they were ostracized by the church however, many were drawn to seeking them out for their fortune telling. At first the crystal ball wasnât what they typically used, but due to the European popularity of the crystal ball, they started to accept the use of it & since they were easy enough to transport they became a staple of their fortune telling services. After that the Roma people became widely associated with the crystal ball & fortune telling.
From the 19th century on crystal gazing became a fashionable practice, as well as all things related to the occult & spiritualism. âOne of the most famous was the American Claude Conlin, who performed as âAlexander, the Man Who Knows.â A stage âmentalist,â Conlin used the crystal ball to magically answer sealed questions from audience members. Performing between 1915 and 1924, Conlin may have originated the image of the crystal ball gazer wearing flowing robes and a turban.â
During the 20th century, Jeane Dixon became one of the most popular psychics that used a crystal ball & would make political predictions. âIn 1956 she correctly predicted Kennedyâs assassination. She later advised Richard Nixon and Nancy Reagan. After her death, Dixonâs crystal ball was auctioned off to the tune of $12,000.â
Now within the 21st century crystal balls are a popular tool among Neo-Pagan, New Age, & other belief systems & still used by psychics, mediums, & fortune tellers alike.
â Information from the article Origins & Uses of the Crystal Ball on Learn Religions by Lisa Jo Rudy in February 2020
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Fabulous. So old and yet survived the test of time. Thank you for sharing.
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@Ancient_Queen My daughter would like to try scrying with a black mirror, can she just paint mirror with black glass paint or is it something else to make the mirror? Thankyou lovely 
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@tracyS - Merry Meet Tracy,
You use black paint.
I followed the instructions in How to Make and Use a Magic Mirror by Donald Tyson.
It is a great book. The book goes into how you can charge it with lunar magnetism, and rituals to aid in the mirrorâs efficiency. I did all of these and the mirror works great.
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Yes, I found 1 copy on amazon, ÂŁ36.00 and not even new. And itll be gone by the time I write this 
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@tracyS we have a couple of topics on black mirrors & creating one:
â Scrying Mirrors
â Scrying Questions
From what I can tell, you can paint the mirror black with black paint too. Thereâs also a section on the site about using one too that mentions how to make one:
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Thankyou, Iâll take a look. Ive never done mirror work.
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Siofra shared some great links and I just wanted to pop in a few others that are outside sources 
If youâve got Scribd, thereâs a copy on there to read for free! (I have a referral code you can use to get 2 months free if you want: https://www.scribd.com/g/8b11np)
â Donald Tyson - How To Make and Use A Magic Mirror | PDF
I also have a video on my channel where I made something very similar to a scrying mirror. I use it on my ancestor altar as a placeholder for all the ancestors that I donât have pictures of.
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Challenge Entry
As I understand it, scrying is yet another way of introspection. To looking in and finding ones true self and answering some of the questions we have asked for lifetimes. There are many other things scrying can do for us, but this is the one I will work on for now. It has been a lifelong quest to find âŠME. A pursuit that means a great deal to me.
I have not found a suitable âbowlâ for water scrying, but will continue looking. Water has a certain affinity with me, being a water dragon and having a strong water personality.
So, I made a black mirror
Cleansed, consecrated and sat with it. No great revelations as yet. I will continue working with it to see what becomes of my efforts. I feel as though I have done this before, but with meditation and not a âtoolâ as such. Scrying is new to me and Iâm sure it is not a practice that doesnât take some time to develop and learn. Like so much on this path, it is a learning experience. As a baby witch I have learned that I have much to learn. I thank you all for bearing with me and allowing me to learn from you.
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**Challenge entry **
I lit a black candle and set up my black mirror. I cast a circle, did some deep breathing then stared in front of the mirror. I only used one cable as I found two made it too bright.
As recommended in the post by Francisco, I only tried to scry for 10 minutes. The hardest part was getting my eyes to stop refocusing. Then when I saw little bits of movement in the mirror to stop trying to focus to see, get excited and or think about what I was seeing. I kept breathing and relaxed. There were outlines in light, red mostly, there was movement. There seemed to be a rolling fog. It seemed like there was a constellation being shown, then seemed like feet walking then like there were wings beating. There was definite movement. Not discernable but definitely something I want to go back at do again.
Thanks for the challenge @BryWisteria
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