Drink the Tea & Read the Leaves The joy of reading tea leaves By Sharon Renae Intellectual Property of Sharon Renae, TLSEM, All Rights Reserved © Please do not distribute Reading Tea Leaves We goddesses love tea parties! Okay, this goddess does! When we had our new age store we had tea and tea leaf reading instructions available on Saturdays. It was fun and the participants enjoyed themselves. The important thing when reading tea leaf readings is to have fun. It is not about getting caught up in the accuracy or predictions it is about the energy shared between friends having tea and the fun of interpreting the leaves in the cup. I like to compare it to the Harry Potter movie Prisoner of Azbakan where they are in Divination class and Ron is reading Harry’s tea leaves – as says “You are going to suffer, but be very happy.” Although suffering is far from funny – it was funny and light to predict such a contradiction! Do it from a light frame of mind. If you read tea leaves in combination of interpreting and fun it can be quite enjoyable. In my current psychic development class I teach we have had so much fun with the tea leaves and having “tea” and the accoutrements we had a hard time moving on to something else! Through the learning and the play we have actually found there have been some accuracies and truth! Also called, tasseography, I had to know why it is called that and so I took 10 seconds to look it up and this is what Wikipedia said: The terms derive from the French word tasse (cup), which in turn derives from the cognate Arabic word tassa, and the Greek suffixes -graph (writing), -logy (study of), and -mancy (divination). But I will stick with the term Tea leaf reading! It is based on reading the shapes and the designs left by the tea leaves. I will say that we have learned too many tea leaves in a cup of tea will only leave an unreadable blob! Shapes and images have meanings as and it gives the reader the ability to allow their imagination to tell the story. However, never use it to frighten or upset the client. It is a method of divination that can be categorized as a scientific and an intuitive art form. There is a background of well- known symbolic shapes which can be learned by heart, (but I would rather just use a 1 Intellectual Property of Sharon Renae, TLSEM, All Rights Reserved © Please do not distribute guide or a book! I am about keeping it light and fun butI don’t use this as a business tool. If I did, well then I would study and learn and memorize at a deeper level, but for me it is about the enjoyment.) and applied by simple translation but can be taken further with the aid of true psychic ability and/or imagination. Coffee grounds can be used the same way and those readings are usually done in locations that are not big into tea. If you have ever studied dream interpretation you can actually use those meanings interchangeably with interpreting the shapes and figures in tea leaves. I also share with you traditional references to zodiac signs, astrology symbols, tarot and playing cards these all have interpretable attributes. History and Background Tea originated in China where it was grown and harvested. It spread across the Orient and varieties were based upon the plant and the richness of the soil they were cultivated in. Tea leaf readings started in China and eventually spread as part of the process of drinking the tea as it traveled so did the tradition of reading tea leaves. As it moved into countries of migrating peoples we come to know as Gypsies! Fun Fact: Traditionally, the Chinese and Japanese despise milk and dairy foods and they were never used for human consumption until foreigners on trade ships came to the east. Before You Begin You can basically use any tea to do a tea reading, however orange pekoe is the most common. If you enjoy herbal studies and the meanings of herbs you can select special brews for specific readings such as romance/relationships or finances. Romance might include a rosehip blend while green tea might be used for finances. This can add to the joy and the fun of doing tea readings and you can choose to do specialty readings. 2 Intellectual Property of Sharon Renae, TLSEM, All Rights Reserved © Please do not distribute If you intend to drink the tea before reading the leaves, do not use any milk or sweetener. Sweeteners and milk make the leaves sticky and will interfere with the quality of the reading. You need the following: Tea cup and saucer - a mug will not work the sides are too vertical and would not disperse the leaves or grounds properly, making it hard to get an accurate reading. Napkin or paper towel Loose tea leaves - Use loose tea leaves. If you only have tea bags, tear the bag open and dump the contents into the cup. Loose tea is recommended because the tea in bags has a tendency to clump more than allowing patterns to form and so there would be less to read. A bowl to swirl the tea over. Of course we have a tea party and swirl over the plate. The person who is receiving the tea-leaf reading should make and drink their own tea it needs to be infused with their energy. The Process 1. Put ½ teaspoon of loose tea leaves into the cup. 2. Pour very hot water on the leaves to cover them entirely. Note: If you want a cup of tea to drink before reading the leaves, then fill the cup with hot water and brew the tea to your liking. Then drink the tea, leaving enough water to cover the leaves. 3. Now you want the client to impregnate the tea leaves with their energy. If they were drinking the tea then the energy has been infused. If they are not drinking the tea have them hold the palm of their prominent hand (right hand if right handed) and holding it there around two minutes. 4. Place a napkin or paper towel on a saucer and set it aside. 5. Gently swirl the tea leaf/water mixture around the cup. It may take practice to develop the technique of dispersing the leaves when getting rid of the water and not losing all of the leaves. Hold the cup's handle and use wrist motion to 3 Intellectual Property of Sharon Renae, TLSEM, All Rights Reserved © Please do not distribute gently, slowly slosh the water around the inside of the cup. As you rotate and slosh the mixture, allow the cup to tip sufficiently for small amounts of water to spill over the top and to drip into bowl. Continue until the water is gone and the tea leaves are dispersed around the inside of the cup. Then turn the cup upside down and place it on the napkin/paper towel on the saucer. This will absorb the remaining liquid. 6. Set the cup, still upside down in the saucer, in front of the person for whom the reading is to be done. 7. Have the person rotate the cup three revolutions in a clockwise direction with the left hand. This accomplishes two things: it dislodges any remaining drops of water and it gives the person's energy an additional opportunity to connect with the leaves. 8. Pick the cup up by the handle and turn it right side up. NOTE You may lose a few tea leaves during the "sloshing" process. This is to be expected. Don't be concerned about it. During the sloshing, if you go too slowly, the leaves will tend to bunch in one big clump. If you go too fast, the leaves will not stick to the sides of the cup. With a little practice, you will master the technique. In any case, use the cup however it turns out, because it will still contain data. How to Read the Cup There are several ways to read the cup, much like tarot spreads. This method tells the future from now forward. The cup will display 12 months of information. Pictured below is a drawing of the cup as you look down into it. The time zones of the cup are labeled. 4 Intellectual Property of Sharon Renae, TLSEM, All Rights Reserved © Please do not distribute Always read the cup in a clockwise direction starting at the left edge of the handle. The cup is divided into four quadrants - The handle represents the client and movement begins clockwise from there. To the left of the handle is NOW and the right edge of the handle is 12 months from NOW. The first quadrant from left to right is the present – 3 months. The Second quadrant is 3-6 months The third is 6-9 months The fourth is 9-12 months. Symbols near the left edge of the handle relate to events or situations that are going to occur within a day to a couple of weeks. Those that appear 1/4 of the way around will 5 Intellectual Property of Sharon Renae, TLSEM, All Rights Reserved © Please do not distribute occur in about 3-months, and so forth, as shown on the drawing until you reach one year at the right edge of the handle. The cup is also divided in fourths from the bottom to the top of the rim.