a few words about bibliomancy

[ArmsMerchant]

Bibliomancy is the branch of the divinatory arts which involves using books as oracles. It is, arguably, the only form of divination which some fundies approve of--while some would argue that, say, the tarot is satanic, using the Bible for divination is kewl.

The way it works is fairly simple--you focus your mind on a specific question or problem, open a book at "random" and see what you see. Btw, this is not terribly useful for simple yes/no questions-- a die or a coin would probably work better.

Oracles seem to know how serious you are--asking a silly-ass question usually invites a silly-ass answer.

I speak from experience here, as I usually do on these matters. Sure as shooting, howver, someone with zero experience or knowledge of the subject will pipe up insisting that because they do not comprehend it, it must be incomprehensible.

[Zanick]

Does it matter what kind of book? I have some old ones, some not so old. Some are fiction, some nonfiction; some are religious and some are scientific, philosophical, "For Dummies" etc. Does it matter what edition, what quality?

Can I use any book, or are some better than others (like the I Ching) ?

[Pee Vee Proots, M.D.]

I prefer cybermancy.

[Ethan]

Originally Posted by Pee Vee Proots, M.D.

I prefer cybermancy.

This.

Book of Ordinary Oracles

Have a question? Turn on the TV and be confident that the first thing you hear is the answer to your question. Oracles sure do have a sense of humor.

[ArmsMerchant]

Originally Posted by zanick

Does it matter what kind of book? I have some old ones, some not so old. Some are fiction, some nonfiction; some are religious and some are scientific, philosophical, "For Dummies" etc. Does it matter what edition, what quality?

Can I use any book, or are some better than others (like the I Ching) ?

What matters most is clarity of intent on your part. Offhand, the only genre which might (and I stress "might" be inappropriate would be bodice-rippers.

The edition is irrelevant.

[Zanick]

Alright, I just opened my copy of The Perennial Philosophy by Aldous Huxley. In a general sense, I wanted to understand if somebody can know whether their life holds real personal value, beyond the persisting ego and its need for psychological security.

I immediately located a section which said that few people in each generation answer the call to a spiritual life, noting that those who do are typically older. Our spiritual nature is worked out through many lives in Buddhist and Hindu thought, and through all this time our inevitable ascension is a decision rather than intrinsic unworthiness. Of course this isn't Huxley's exact wording, I lost my place and the page number escapes me for the moment, I shut the book prematurely. For some reason I found the answer to be oddly relevant to my purposes for asking, but altogether unsatisfactory.

... I just realized, at work today I only had time on break to read a single paragraph of Alan Watt's The Way of Zen, and it happened to describe the history and use of the I Ching in relation to the Taoist tradition. I suppose this is my little "synchronicity" of the day, but it's all about my level of awareness. I'm sure many more can be found for the watchful eye.

This is an interesting method of divination. Reminds me of when my schoolmates would put their mp3 players on shuffle, with a survey of regarding personal relationships and other things in life, and they would answer each question with the name of the next song in the play queue before putting it all up on MySpace for their friends to see. I drink lots of tea, maybe I can start there too.

[The Duke]

I consulted this book called Kasher in the Rye by Moshe Kasher. I asked if ArmsMerchant liked me as a poster on this site. The page I opened and set my finger on a sentence, it was dialogue.

It said: "You mean the pipe that I just saw you drop out of the window that's still warm from you smoking from it? Is that what you are asking about?"

Thought it was sort of lulzy.

[Blunderstar]

I asked, "is this whole bibliomancy thing bullshit?" and opened it up to a random page with the word "yes" staring back at me.

WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT - YouTube

WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT - YouTube
Video: click to display

[Zanick]

Originally Posted by Blunderstar

I asked, "is this whole bibliomancy thing bullshit?" and opened it up to a random page with the word "yes" staring back at me.

WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT - YouTube

Once I asked, "Can God possibly exist?"

Then he answered, "No."

[Pee Vee Proots, M.D.]

Q: "Does God exist?"

A: "Really, I'd like to know."

Teehee. But that's a yes or no question.

Q: "What is my purpose in life?"

A: "Hmm. I see. So all the mayhem of the last day or two is your fault then?"

My purpose is to bring chaos and mayhem to the world, eh? I believe it. All answers from The Algebraist by Iain M. Banks.

[Zanick]

I'll take my earlier synchronicity as evidence that my next attempt should come from The Way of Zen.

Q: Will I ever find a group that I can resonate with to produce beautiful music?

A: To train yourself in sitting meditation [za-zen] is to train yourself to be a sitting Buddha. If you train yourself in za-zen, (you should know that) Zen is neither sitting nor lying. If you train yourself to be a sitting Buddha, (you should know that) the Buddha is not a fixed form. Since the Dharma has no (fixed) abode, it is not a matter of making choices. If you (make yourself) a sitting Buddha this is precisely killing the Buddha. If you adhere to the sitting position, you will not attain the principle (of Zen).

I am beginning to notice a trend.

[Spacecase]

Every possible life is being lived at once, though right now you find yourself as a single person - those connections are still there, and so when you make the conscious effort to bridge them (like asking a "random" source of information for information), certain gaps are bridged in the direction of unity.

Meaning right now, any random source of information around you is in truth, spread out throughout every parallel reality possible containing every message possible. If you were to turn on the TV or open a book multi-dimensionally, it would become a real-time stream of your conscious choice, rather than subconscious.

[Blunderstar]

Originally Posted by Spacecase

Every possible life is being lived at once, though right now you find yourself as a single person - those connections are still there, and so when you make the conscious effort to bridge them (like asking a "random" source of information for information), certain gaps are bridged in the direction of unity.

Meaning right now, any random source of information around you is in truth, spread out throughout every parallel reality possible containing every message possible. If you were to turn on the TV or open a book multi-dimensionally, it would become a real-time stream of your conscious choice, rather than subconscious.

Source?

[Zanick]

Originally Posted by Blunderstar

Source?

Take the idea of reincarnation with M-Theory and you get many different lives being lived at once--if you watch Doctor Who you know it as "wibbly-wobbly, timy-wimey" or just that time is not linear, we only perceive it as such. Imagine yourself stepping away from time and viewing all of your lives (assuming reincarnation) on a filmstrip, and that's the general idea. Now apply the Jungian concept of synchronicity, and you have a new dimension (literally) through which to interpret meaning.

[Flatland]

Nifty idea. I like it.

And since this technique involves text, I wrote down my questions first in the hope of possibly achieving some additional synchronization that way.


How do I access the full potential of my mind, body, soul, being-ness, etc?

"You don't want to hound them, but it's definitely helpful to show initiative."


....

Do I have a Soul-Mate?

"This is what happens when you have a family. You sacrifice. [Pause] You sacrifice a lot. [Long Pause] It's gonna be in your best interest to stay away from me for the next couple days"

Interesting.

[Pee Vee Proots, M.D.]

Q: "Am I going to be of importance in the new era?"

A: "Of course! I swear!"

Q: "Is everyone going to be important in the new era?"

A: "Like strange, translucent clouds beneath them."

Get ready to bow before me.

[Pee Vee Proots, M.D.]

Q: "What does the new era entail?"

A: "Existence."

Q: "What purpose does meditation serve?"

A: "Progress."

HAAHAHAHAHAHAHA

[TheSexyBeast821]

With a whole smattering of concerns about a girl and the idea of soul-mates, etc. the first time I opened a Bible as an adult, the first words I read were:

"Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of your youth" Prover 5:18

or

"You ask, “Why?” It is because the LORD is the witness between you and the wife of your youth. You have been unfaithful to her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant. Has not the one God made you? You belong to him in body and spirit. And what does the one God seek? Godly offspring. So be on your guard, and do not be unfaithful to the wife of your youth." Malachi 2:14-15

Rejoice and be faithful to the wife of your youth was the main message I got, so I don't remember exactly which of these two verses it was.