Divination Week Five: Veracity of Divination

## Lecture: Veracity of Divination

"Hullo, und velcome again to Divination, everyvone. I hope you all haf found the holidays relaxing und refreshing, for ve shall be continuing our lessons.

"As you are fresh from break, ve shall begin vith a lecture und an easy assignment, to get everyvone back vithin the sving of things." At that, the Professor raised his wand and the lights within the room dimmed, allowing the universe in miniature that drifted lazily across the classroom to come to life. The tiny stars shone in the dim light, a soft glow settling over each of the tables.

"Now that ve have all had some experience first hand vith Divination, und all of us haf vithin in our minds more than bias or preconceptions, it is time to visit un aspekt I know many of you are strongly curious about." With a wave of his wand, words came to life just before him, made of twinkling, coloured lights.

"It is a subjekt hotly contested und polarizing, und few branches of magic enjoy such un *controversial* reputation as Divination does, und so ve vill be talking about that today.

"First und foremost it is important to stress that much of magical theory as ve know it is beyond our understanding. I vill not touch too deeply upon that as I vould not vant to tread unto the feet of Professor Malakhov, but as it stands there are *many* vorking theories on the origin of magic, und none haf, as of yet, been confirmed or denied. The vone thing ve know is that the complexity is *astounding*. Thus, vhen it comes to Divination, it is difficult to claim vith certainty that such forces vhat dominate it are *not* vithin the realm of possibility.

"In fact, The Ministry of Magic *does* recognize Divination as a legitimate branch, due to *aspekts* of it being tangible und measureable by mundane means. Prophecy, *true* prophecy, often comes vith a trace not unlike vhat surrounds each und every vone of us! A distinct und undeniable impression carved vithin the very fabric of our reality. To speak in further detail of such things vould be treading unto Unspeakable territory, information even I am not privy to, but it is the allowance of Divination to be *taught* vithin official curriculum acts as proof of the Ministry's recognition of this branch.

"Zat said, there are still limitations vhat are impressed upon us, but that is for another time." Friedrich said with a twist of his wand, the words that hung before the classroom vanishing in a flurry of tiny *starbursts*, the shimmering light causing shadows to dance over the walls.

"So now ve vill talk on the *theory* of Divination!" With a second graceful arc, new words were scripted across the air for everyone to see.

"Currently there is a theory vhat me and several of my esteemed colleagues haf been vorking upon, und vhile I must impress that it has not been verified, nor vill it likely *ever* be, it is perhaps a vay vone may think on such things.

"To begin vith this theory, ve must look at time itself und how it exists in this vorld. Many muggle scientists haf made theories implying time is aktually a physical thing, a level of reality vhat ve experience upon our own as a slow march into the future. There are also theories that vithin our world und universe, there are vays vhich time may be *manipulated*, gravity itself *vorking* against it to either slow down or speed up the passage... und if such theories are *correkt*, it adds further veracity to how time exists as a tangible force in our lives, and not merely a unit of measurement invented to ease our daily processes.

"Our theory proposes that the vorld around us is not so dissimilar to fabric or a liquid; something vhat ve are *all* encapsulated in, surrounding and *seeping into* every atom and molecule vhat creates our physical flesh. Every movement ve make causes *ripples* through that fabric, impacting everything it passes." The words that had previously formed broke down, and Friedrich guided the movement of the sparkling lights, drawing it into a spiral.

"Vithin this proposed realm, Time is not bound so like how it is as ve *perceive* it, und may move *freely* vithin the space. This is vhere Divination comes unto play.

"People vhat possess *True Sight* may be more sensitive to the effects of these ripples, und pick up bits and pieces of vhat is to come from that jostling fabric. Vhether it is an aspekt of their magic vhat allows this or something else entirely is still hotly contested, but it is not only those vith *sight* that may tap into it.

"As it ripples out, it is not only us vhat experience the touch, but every object, visible or invisible, vithin our vorld. They bounce against vone another, jostling here und there, the forces vhat set such *chaos* in motion omnipresent und unyielding. This is vhere *Catalysts* come in." The rippling motion had ceased, reforming in the shape of fresh letters.

"Catalysts, by proper definition, are a substance vhat causes reactions vithout itself undergoing any permanent change. Ve all use catalysts vithin our daily lives, vith the most common being the vone you are all carrying vith you right now: Your Vand!" Friedrich pinched the handle of his between his thumb and forefinger, showing it to everyone present.

"It *enhances* our magic, allowing us to utilize it in the magnificent vays ve do! The catalysts ve use in Divination are similar, as there is a common thread vhat pervades each vone:

"**Randomness.**" Another flick and a deck of Tarot cards at the small table near Friedrich's elbow grew in size so everyone could see, and shortly after, began to shuffle itself upon the table.

"Vhere the cards vill fall is a good example of that randomness, or the shapes the tea-leaves might take, or the swirls of mist vithin a crystal ball, or how the flames might dance vithin your pyre! All of that has an element to it vhat is difficult to predict, und in that vay, may also come under effect by the forces vhat ve spoke of before. *Time* is everyvhere, und the effects of time upon our fabric may bring to light *omens* vithin these othervise mundane objekts." The cards ceased shuffling and returned to their normal size, while Friedrich himself began to walk the classroom.

"But that is not to say such aspekts of Divination such as spirituality are meaningless! As though ve haf this theory on perhaps *how* such divine information might pass through the physical realm, ve do not know *vhat* causes it, or *vhy* it exists such as it does in the first place. It is not wrong to put belief in such things, as *belief is vhat gives magic its strength.* Do not let others shame you for it; belief is the *crux* of our existence!

"But there is another thing vhat ve must remember in this subjekt, und that is how though these effekts might theoretically be *tangible* on a vide scale, they are often unreliable."

"Vhere finding meaning in randomness might fail, it is *psychology* vhat becomes the critical key vithin our art. Many of these catalysts und the symbols vhat arise vithin them are all reflektions of the human condition; Things vhat all may experience to varying degrees. There is little vhat represents this better than tarot, und ve shall cover more of the *psychology* of it over the next two veeks as ve continue our lessons on the art of Cartomancy.

"Regardless, ve humans tend to have *similar* woes, und that is not a bad thing! It is something vhat facilitates the connektions ve make as ve use empathy and *understanding* of these familiar issues to help each other vith the problems ve face! Never be afraid to look upon your own experiences so that you might find *visdom* in them, visdom vhat may be of use to others vhen they find themselves trapped in a situation vhat's familiar. This grows easier vith time und experience, und ve vill touch on it more heavily soon.

"For this veek, your assignment vill be a little more indepth but still simple. I am passing to each of you a sheet vhat you may fill out, und it vill count as your grade.

"As always, you may use the tea und the cards to perform readings if you like, regardless of class, but it vill not be required. Thank you all for listening, und I vill be here to answer any questions you might haf."

## Week 5: Assignment

**Week 5: Divination Assignment**

**Assignment Form**

**Due: Tuesday, November 15th**

Read the lecture and then answer all of the required fields with as little or as much detail as you like. It can be anything from a few sentences to full essays.

For the extra credit question, you may use any resource you like for Tarot, but here are a few to start you out:

https://www.trustedtarot.com/cards/

http://www.tarotcardmeanings.net/tarotcards.htm

**This form counts as your ATTENDANCE and GRADE.** You will not receive attendance or credit if you don’t fill it out.