I tend to think it\u2019s all of the above, but ultimately, I don\u2019t know. What I do know is that the information I get through divination is of great help. Tarot<\/a> cards can\u2019t tell me what I should do, but they can tell me what things will be like if I take a certain course of action. Then it\u2019s up to me to decide if that\u2019s what I want, or if I want a different outcome. Different outcomes require different actions.<\/p>\n One of the most frequent ways I use divination is to confirm and clarify messages from Gods and spirits.<\/p>\n My religion is based on the direct, first-hand experience of the Gods. I speak to Them and They speak to me. But many times They don\u2019t use words \u2013 They speak in concepts, impressions, and images. Even when They use words, they\u2019re almost never audible. Over the years I\u2019ve learned to recognize the voice of Cernunnos and the voice of the Morrigan. But Djehuty? Not so much.<\/p>\n And when what I hear is critically important or personally sensitive, I want to make absolutely sure I get it right. If I\u2019m going to deliver messages for the Morrigan (and I have, on numerous occasions) I want to be sure I\u2019m relaying Her words and not my own. Divination provides confirmation. When it involves the Morrigan, the confirmation usually says \u201cof course that\u2019s what I said \u2013 now go do it.\u201d<\/p>\n Finding a reader \u2013 a diviner \u2013 is easy. These days it seems like half the people on Twitter offer readings of one sort or another. Some post menus of their services and rates. A couple weeks ago I saw a bunch of small roadside signs in my neighborhood that said \u201cPsychic: $10 Readings.\u201d<\/p>\n Maybe these readers are good.<\/p>\n Maybe they aren\u2019t.<\/p>\n Finding a good reader can be a challenge.<\/p>\n Another way I often express this recommendation is \u201cfind a good polytheist diviner.\u201d<\/p>\n In my experience, most public Tarot readers operate from either a Christian perspective or a pantheist (or occasionally, panentheist) perspective. If you ask them to confirm a message from the Morrigan, they\u2019re like to understand that as a message from \u201cGod\u201d or \u201cthe Universe\u201d or \u201cyour higher self.\u201d Those aren\u2019t the same things by a different name \u2013 they\u2019re very different things.<\/p>\n Find a reader who shares your polytheist perspective \u2013 someone who understand that the Morrigan is not Brighid or Isis or Gaia by another name. Even if you\u2019re looking for guidance about something that doesn\u2019t directly involve a God, it\u2019s better if you work with someone who sees the world in the same way you do \u2013 someone who speaks your language.<\/p>\n The best general readers can answer a question from any perspective, even if they operate from a different perspective. If you already work with someone who\u2019s been helpful in the past, they may be able to help with this as well. But if they can\u2019t give you the answers you need, don\u2019t stick with them just because you like them.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re going to seek out a new reader anyway, you might as well find someone who sees the Gods and the world the same way you do.<\/p>\n The bad news is that there is no directory of polytheist diviners. The good news is that social media makes asking around really easy.<\/p>\n I recommend asking people privately rather than posting a request for recommendations on Facebook. Do that and you\u2019ll likely be overwhelmed with suggestions, most of whom are general readers, not polytheist diviners.<\/p>\n Most \u2013 though not all \u2013 polytheist priests and devotees practice some form of divination. Some of them read professionally. Some will read for people they know but not for strangers \u2013 others will read for strangers but not for those they know. If they don\u2019t read themselves, they almost certainly have a reader they use when they need one.<\/p>\n I read for myself and my close co-religionists. I read for others on occasion, but it\u2019s not a primary activity for me \u2013 and sometimes a situation just isn\u2019t right for me. I have a couple readers I usually recommend when asked. They have their own sources. Those sources have more sources.<\/p>\n It shouldn\u2019t take more than two or three messages to find someone who can do what you need.<\/p>\n If someone I know and trust recommends a reader to me, I\u2019m automatically going to trust them more than someone I\u2019ve interacted with on Twitter once or twice. But I\u2019m not the trusting type \u2013 I still have questions.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t be afraid to ask questions before you book a reading. How long have you been doing this? What tradition do you follow? What Gods do you work for\/with? What divination systems do you use? What are your rates and terms? How do you handle follow-up questions?<\/p>\n Ask enough questions to get comfortable that this is someone who 1) will understand your question, 2) can answer your question, and 3) you\u2019re comfortable doing business with.<\/p>\n Do not ask for a free \u201csample\u201d reading. Some readers will offer this. Most won\u2019t. I won\u2019t. If you want professional services you should expect to pay for them.<\/p>\n As with so many things in life, the time to prepare is before you have a need. If Odin is yelling at you and you can\u2019t quite figure out what He wants, it\u2019s best to already have someone in your contact list who\u2019s skilled at interpreting Odin-speak.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t wait till you have an urgent need. When you have a small need, seek out someone. See how they do \u2013 and see how well you do with them. And while building a strong relationship with a single reader can be helpful, so is building a good relationship with several different readers. You never know when your favorite diviner will be unavailable. And some diviners are naturally better with some matters than with others.<\/p>\n All this becomes really simple if you can read for yourself.<\/p>\n Some people feel like they can\u2019t read for themselves because they\u2019re too close to the matter to be objective. But the older I get, the more I\u2019ve learned to \u201cknow thyself<\/a>\u201d and the more comfortable I am reading for myself. Honestly, I think I do a better job reading for myself than I do reading for others, because I\u2019m not worried about delivering upsetting messages. I need to learn to be more ruthless when I read for others.<\/p>\n Still, there are times when either I can\u2019t get a clear answer, or the matter is so important I want to be absolutely sure I\u2019ve got it right. That\u2019s when I contact one of handful of readers I\u2019ve used in the past.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2021\/07\/Morrigan-divination-07.14.21-03-1024x536.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nKnow what you need<\/h2>\n
![\"Ogham\"](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2021\/07\/Ogham-07.14.21-01-1024x536.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nAsk around<\/h2>\n
Interview<\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2021\/07\/Tarot-spread-07.14.21-01-1024x536.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nTry out readers in advance<\/h2>\n
Read for yourself<\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2021\/07\/flooded-creek-06.12.21-01-1024x536.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n