Tarot cards, Ouija Boards, Rune casting, water Scrying, dousing rods, tea leaves, palm lines, black mirrors, dancing flames… Phew there are a lot of ways to ask for answers in witchcraft.
Anytime you use metaphysical means to gain knowledge, we call that divination. Some of the methods used may seem mystical, ancient, and powerful while others… Well sometimes even witches call bulls**t.
One of the methods used for divination that may arouse skepticism at first glance is called Pendulum Scrying. In a nutshell, the diviner holds a pendulum, usually a crystal at the end of a chain, and asks a series of questions. The pendulum will swing on one axis for yes and the other axis for no. If the pendulum swings in some other wonky way or spins in circles, the answer is unclear.
Much like the Ouija Board, the pendulum doesn\’t typically inspire much faith as a reliable method of divination for the simple fact that it\’s extremely easy to fake. Pendulums can even react to the slightest twitches in the user\’s hand, giving a false reading that the user can misinterpret as authentic Scrying.
I personally didn\’t put much faith into Pendulum Scrying for these reasons … that is until I tried it.
Now obviously like all of witchcraft, it\’s not a science. Results can\’t be forced. Sometimes the energies are helpful and sometimes they aren\’t. When the energy is helpful, the Pendulum moves with such clarity that it seems like it\’s almost being tugged to the correct axis.
There are multiple methods but I personally use a Pendulum Board, a round wooden board with markings around the perimeter showing \”Yes\”, \”No\”, \”Maybe\”, and \”Rephrase\”. The board rests on a table below where I hold the Pendulum. I have had sessions where the Pendulum answers my questions, one after another, with clear answers, stopping and changing directions the moment I ask a new question, and I have had sessions where the Pendulum remains completely motionless.
Every practitioner is different and you should find what divination method feels right for you, but if you haven\’t tried it or maybe didn\’t get much of a response the first time I would urge you to give it a fair shot. Pendulum Scrying is fast, clear, and when it works it can be used to work through complex questions by breaking them down into Yes and No questions.