{"id":21605,"date":"2020-02-01T01:10:16","date_gmt":"2020-02-01T05:10:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/?p=21605"},"modified":"2020-02-04T13:21:20","modified_gmt":"2020-02-04T17:21:20","slug":"seeing-the-signs-reviews-the-cup-of-destiny","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/2020\/02\/01\/seeing-the-signs-reviews-the-cup-of-destiny\/","title":{"rendered":"Seeing the Signs Reviews – The Cup of Destiny: A Traditional Fortune-teller\u2019s Cup and Saucer Plus Illustrated Book of Interpretations by Jane Lyle"},"content":{"rendered":"

Seeing the Signs Reviews<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n

The Cup of Destiny<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n

A Traditional Fortune-teller\u2019s Cup and Saucer Plus Illustrated Book of Interpretations <\/b><\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n

by Jane Lyle<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n

96 Pages<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n

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I was no stranger to The Cup of Destiny when it arrived in my mailbox. A very good witchy friend of mine \u2013 a woman who has been a friend since childhood \u2013 has had one for years. She often does tealeaf readings and then posts the readings on Facebook so we can all chime in with our ideas on what we see. The discussions can get quite lively! Usually several of us see the same thing and a few other of us see something somewhat different but on the same wavelength and one of us will see something radically different. I am convinced that we are all correct in our readings, having been taught at a very early age \u2013 by my grandmother, who read tealeaves \u2013 that there was never an incorrect reading. Just like with looking at art \u2013 it\u2019s in the eye of the beholder. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

I have been reading tealeaves for years. In recent years, I have had trouble finding loose tea \u2013 you don\u2019t see it like you used to \u2013 even in places like the Co-op \u2013 so I compromised by breaking open teabags and reading those tiny manufactured leaves. But the uniformity of those tealeaves left something to be desired when it came to divination \u2013 although you can <\/i>read them. You can read anything<\/i> left inside a cup \u2013 coffee grounds, beer foam, the dregs from a thick soup. Sometimes you don\u2019t even plan to do a reading but you \u201csee\u201d something \u2013 whether or not you\u2019re looking for it. That has happened to me more times than I can count! <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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I have a nice collection of cups and saucers and tea pots. Most of them I inherited from my two grandmothers. In times past, if I wanted to do a reading, I would pick a cup and saucer from my collection and brew tea in one of my teapots. Now that I have this new Cup of Destiny, I guess I don\u2019t have to go through the process of choosing a cup anymore. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Before I could start using the Cup of Destiny, I had to get it out of the box. This was a marvel of packaging! I have to say that I was quite impressed. Opening the box, the cup itself was covered by the instruction book and a paper pull-out which, once unfolded, could be used as a mat for your readings. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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The instruction book, The Cup of Destiny<\/u> is written by Jane Lyle \u2013 the woman who created this lovely cup and saucer set \u2013 and is published by Shelter Harbor Press. It contains a wealth of information.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Under the book and the paper fold-out \u201cquick\u201d instructions, was the cup in a gorgeous red satin cup holder. Absolutely stunning. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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But then I was like \u2013 where\u2019s the saucer? I was actually thinking that maybe there wasn\u2019t a saucer and you were supposed to use the paper fold-out to drain your tea onto but the pictures on the fold-out and in the book showed <\/i>a saucer and the box said that it contained a cup and <\/i>a saucer so it had to be in there. I found it \u2013 by taking apart the box \u2013 it was under the red satin cup holder! <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Like I said \u2013 a marvel of packaging!<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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So now that I had the cup and saucer unpacked, I washed them before using \u2013 I don\u2019t have a dishwasher but if you do, do not <\/i>put the Cup of Destiny into a dishwasher! In the Cup of Destiny book, on the page that gives you all the bibliographic information, there\u2019s this little tidbit:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cPLEASE NOTE: The Cup of Destiny <\/i>cup and saucer that were created to accompany this book are hand decorated and therefore not dishwasher safe. We recommend that you wash them carefully by hand.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

I mention this because not everyone reads the bibliographic information and you might just miss that. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

For my first reading, I chose the fat white teapot in which to brew the tea. This teapot came with little Japanese-style cups \u2013 I have never done a reading with one of those cups \u2013 that might be interesting! I like using this teapot because it\u2019s small and I can make just a few cups of tea at a time. I\u2019m usually drinking alone. I have yet to read the leaves for another person. But I have always followed a solitary path and as I get further into my Crone years and more disabled, the more true this is.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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While the tea steeped, I peeled and sectioned an orange to enjoy while I sipped my tea. These oranges are called Cara cara navels and they are so <\/i>delicious! Perfect with a cup of Oolong tea.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

I set myself up in my living room. I have a little table (actually a writing board set on a Coleman cooler) in front of my small couch where I sit and have tea in the afternoons. I either read or watch one of my dramas on Netflix or Amazon Prime. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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I didn\u2019t have a specific question for this reading. I rarely do nowadays, no matter what method of divination I\u2019m using. My life has settled into a routine of boredom that really doesn\u2019t require a lot of looking into the future. However, I do like to know \u201cwhich way the wind is blowing\u201d and even a boring life has unforeseen twists and turns! Forewarned is forearmed, as the saying goes!<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Here are the leaves in the hot cup of tea:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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After sipping the tea and eating a few sections of the orange, while thinking about what I might need to know in the near future, I decided to do the reading. I turned the cup three times widdershins and then turned it over on its saucer. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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It\u2019s always such a magical moment before you turn the cup over to reveal the tealeaves! What are they going to say? Are they going to say anything at all? Or will they just be the magical version of mumblings that make no sense whatsoever? <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

This is what I saw:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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In The Cup of Destiny<\/u>, the book that accompanies the cup and saucer, Lyle gives specific instructions for how to read the leaves \u2013 what the specific shapes might mean and what the symbols on the cup mean \u2013 so, for instance, if you see the leaves forming the shape of a cow within the square along the rim containing the symbol of the bell, you can figure on getting some happy news which usually concerns money, cows being a symbol of wealth. If the shape of the cow lands on the Saturn symbol inside of the cup, it could mean that you need to work hard to gain whatever wealth you may need. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

What did I see in my cup? Along the rim \u2013 where the horseshoe is \u2013 I saw two dogs \u2013 their heads facing away from each other. The dog on the right is more fully on the horseshoe than the dog on the left, while the dog on the left is completely on the sign of Mercury. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Inside the cup, I saw what looked to me to be a flock of birds, with one bird flying away from the flock \u2013 perhaps it was shot by hunters and one of the dogs are going to retrieve it? I know that\u2019s a lot to see in a cup of tealeaves but that\u2019s what I thought. The one bird that was flying away was on the sign of Mars. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Immediately, I thought of my ex-boyfriend Billy, who was (and still is) a dedicated hunter, and our hunting dogs Maggie and Lucy, both of whom have gone to Summerland, many years ago. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t need to look in book to get a sense of what the images meant, but I did anyway \u2013 just to see what Lyle\u2019s take on my tealeaves were. Dogs, of course, symbolize loyalty. A horseshoe means \u201cFortunate coincidences, lucky breaks and meaningful surprises\u201d (Lyle, 16) \u2013 I could wrap my brain around trying to put together these concepts and the concept of loyalty and trust that you get with a dog but perhaps it just means \u201clucky dog\u201d. The other dog \u2013 being placed on the sign of Mercury \u2013 could just be telling me to listen to what the dog is telling me. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

In my newest story, one of the characters is named Maggie \u2013 after our lovely chocolate lab. So these images of the dog could be telling me to work with this new character and listen to what she has to say for herself. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Maggie<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Birds generally mean news and messages. Billy was crazy about goose hunting for several years and geese in particular mean happiness and prosperity. So, either I can read it that my writing venture is going to be a success or go with my first thought \u2013 that I was going to hear from Billy.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Since I did this reading two weeks ago, I can tell you what happened. On January 10, I found out that Neil Peart of the band Rush died of brain cancer. Billy and I were both huge Rush fans \u2013 it was one of the things that drew us together initially \u2013 and although I hadn\u2019t spoken to him in over six months \u2013 maybe even longer \u2013 I texted him immediately. Then I called him but it went right to voice mail and of course he never set up his mailbox, because that\u2019s who he is. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

He called me early the next morning. He was broken up by the news, as I was. We talked for about a half an hour. He told me \u2013 of course he did \u2013 that he missed me and he still loved me and he wanted to see me again. I don\u2019t need to read tealeaves or tarot cards or the Lenormand to know what would happen if I got back together with Billy again. So that\u2019s just not going to happen. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Still \u2013 my first instincts about what I was seeing in the cup were imminently correct, although using \u201cthe book\u201d backed up my original assessment and even gave me a few additional ideas. My point here is \u2013 read the book, study the book, and use the book during your readings but don\u2019t ever be constrained by the book. And honestly, that\u2019s true about all divinatory methods \u2013 it\u2019s good to have reference books \u2013 but it\u2019s even better to go by your own intuition and personal sense of what is being said to you. The only way to get this kind of experience is to practice, practice, practice! <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

In my case, that means I\u2019ll be drinking a lot <\/i>of tea out of The Cup of Destiny! <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Now given a prominent spot among my other cups and saucers!<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Brightest Blessings!<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

References<\/u><\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Lyle, Jane. The Cup of Destiny<\/u>. NY: Shelter Harbor Press, 2000<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n