Tea Leaf Readings Divining a fortune from tea leaves has probably been around as long as there has been tea - over five thousand years. Tea Leaf reading is also known as Tasseomancy or Tasseography and probably had its origins in ancient China. The Chinese would often read the dredges of their cups for symbols, omens or unusual patterns.       Tea Leaf reading is considered to be one of the most creative and intuitive forms of divination. Success in this divinatory art is often attributed to the individual's ability to concentrate. Concentration is important to enable you to see beyond the symbols and work with true intuitive knowledge or clairvoyance. A quiet and peaceful atmosphere is highly conducive to a good reading.   Try it yourself   First of all sit, down and enjoy a nice cup of tea. Remembering of course, that you need to make your tea the old-fashioned way using a teapot, so that you end up with some tea leaves! You need a teacup with a wide mouth, sloping side of cups, and a plain, undecorated surface inside of cup. Do not strain the tea as you pour it. If you prefer coffee, simply brew your favourite variety of coffee and add a pinch or two of dry coffee grounds to the coffee so that there will be enough grounds to read. If you add the grounds before drinking, then let the cup sit for a few minutes so that the grounds sink to the bottom. Otherwise add the grounds to the remaining coffee dregs after you have drunk your cup of coffee. You will find that different varieties of coffee, such as Turkish or Greek are more suitable for coffee readings. Part of the ritual of this form of divination is to actually sit down and enjoy the tea and your company before you get started. This is not as silly as it sounds as it allows you to relax and also to gather your thoughts.   Before you even start to read the leaves there may already be some early signs to interpret:   Bubbles on the surface of your tea or coffee means that money is on its way. If any tea leaves are floating on the surface, then visitors are imminent. The number of leaves shows how many days away they are. If two teaspoons are accidently placed on a saucer, then you can expect news of twins soon. If a teaspoon is placed upside down onto a saucer then it is indicated that you may hear news of the ill-health of a close relative.   If you are reading for yourself now is the time to concentrate on a question or area of life that insight is required. Drink the tea quietly until about a half of a teaspoon's worth of tea is left in the cup. Swirl the tea leaves at the bottom of the cup three times while thinking of your question. You can ask a question about yourself, about the past, about the future, or even about someone else in your life. Finish your tea leaving a small amount of liquid in the bottom of cup of the cup. Holding the cup in your left hand, swirl the tea leaves round three times in a clockwise direction. Make sure that the remaining tea swirls around the whole of the cup. Then, turn the cup over down on to a saucer and let the liquid drain away for about three minutes.  Then turn your cup back over gently and see how the tea leaves have settled. If all the moisture is removed, you are ready to have the leaves interpreted. Coffee drinkers can use the same method with the remains of their coffee, or they can pour the remains across a plate and interpret the patterns that are left on the plate. Now you can examine the cup and the patterns of the tea leaves inside. The cup is held so that the handle points towards the questioner. The handle represents the questioner and his or her home, and the tea leaves are read in relation to the position of the handle. The rim of the Cup represents recent events. Leaves lying closer to the bottom of the Cup indicate events that are more distant in time. The very bottom of the Cup represents misfortunes. Leaves that lie to the right of the handle indicate the future, and leaves to the left of the handle indicate the past. The further away the leaves lie from the handle, the further away the events are in either time or even physical distance. First take a quick look inside the cup to see if there are any signs that jump out at you: Any distinct drops of tea or coffee that remain in the cup despite the swirling and emptying of the cup, represent tears. A very large clump of tea leaves indicates trouble. At the handle -indicates trouble caused by your own making. Opposite the handle - the trouble is not your fault. Tea-stalks indicate people. Long stalks indicate men. Shorter stalks indicate women. Pale or dark stalks indicate colouring. Slanted stalks indicate untrustworthy people.   As a general first impression, just a scattering of leaves inside the cup indicates a tidy mind and disciplined life. A lot of leaves will indicate a rich, full, busy life.   Position of the Leaves In a tea leaf reading, it is not only the shape that the leaves form which counts. We also must place importance on which area of the teacup the leaves stick to. For instance, leaves that land near the handle represent events which will happen to the questioner. Leaves on the opposite side from the handle indicate events outside of the questioner's life, perhaps happening to a family member or friend. Traditionally, leaves that end up near the rim of the teacup are good luck. Leaves settled closer to the bottom of the cup may show disappointment or challenge   Symbols and Positions in a Reading   Symbol meanings are interpreted differently depending on the feeling you may get when seeing them. Tea leaf readers from all cultures based their readings on objects and images which were common in everyday life. Natural forces like the weather, or animals, people, and even man-made objects each may turn up as a tea leaf symbol. I add my own symbols to the list of possible images, for example, using cars to represent travel or roller coasters to represent drama. Numbers for example, can indicate days, weeks, months or even years. Letters can represent clues to a person`s name or even a place. A circle could indicate to you the end of a cycle, such as a completed project, or you may see it as a group of people .It is important to trust in what you feel at the time of your reading.   You may choose to stick with the universal images that we all have witnessed in our daily lives . As long as you the reader are good at interpretation, the images that you choose to work with will not really matter.   Something to remember   A good reader recognizes his responsibility to be helpful and clear with the person receiving a reading from him. It is not a reader's place to scare or depress his subject. All omens and shapes in the cup can be seen as positive, because as we all know, it is sometimes necessary to endure great challenges before we can reap the appropriate rewards. We make many choices in our life's journey, and each choice is an essential step towards learning and growth. I always respect this and guide clients to work through any upcoming challenges.   Why not share your experiences with me, I am very interested to hear all your stories, or for some extra insight feel free to email me a photograph and I will take a peek into the bottom ofyour cup.