PREFACE The curiosities of esoteric literature, separated from the grandeurs of esoteric philosophy, are not without their individual interest, and the byways of practical occultism are not without their importance. It is desirable that they should be rescued from the mutilations of charlatans and distinguished from the worthless impostures which are foisted on public credulity as genuine remains of the ancient and traditional science perpetuated by the traditional Kings of the East. This little work has been compiled for the use of those persons, so numerous at the present epoch of psychic inquiry, who are desirous to test their intuitional faculties by some of the innumerable divinatory methods which were used in the past. They are offered at their own value to be tried by the results of experience, without putting forward any specific claim concerning them. A few matters more curious than useful have been introduced for the sake of variety, but the chief aim has been to collect what is simple, practical, supported by the kind of authority which can be expected in matters of this kind and following to a certain extent the accepted lines of procedure. Some of the materials are presented for the first time to the English reader, and these, in particular, have been gleaned from remote and comparatively unknown sources.

vi PREFACE It will be understood that the successful conduct of all psychic operations depends on the temporary predominance of the intuitional faculties in the Seer, and the errors and uncertainties which commonly characterize the results are referable to the disabilities, limitations and untrained condition of these faculties in the great majority of men. The student should not be discouraged by several initial failures; intuitive perception exists in all minds, and practice will ultimately develop it; as it is otherwise a natural faculty, when once it has free play, it will perform its operations with the accuracy that characterizes all the intellectual powers. A word must be added on the abuse of divinatory methods. It has not been unusual in the past to invest them with an inherent virtue of their own; this is an ignorant superstition. Whatever the process, whatever the instruments, they are simply aids to elicit clairvoyance, and to cast the Seer for the time being into a subjective or interior condition. It should be also remembered that any attempt to force the oracles, for the utterance of a favourable augury, makes void the whole operation. The application of the bias of an interested person in the direction of the voice of prophecy, obviously renders the prophecy abortive, and befools all who consult it. Grand Orient.

CONTENTS PAGE Preface........ v Introduction: The Lesser Secret Sciences and the Tradition therein..... i The Oracle of Human Destiny; or, The Nine Hundred Answers to the Thirty Life-Questions of Pythagoras 7 The Mystic Alphabet of the Magi... 87 The Golden Wheel of Fortune....89 The Art of Invoking Spirits in the Crystal. 97 An Egyptian Method of Fortune-Telling..108 The English Method of Fortune-Telling by Cards hi An Universal Oracle, giving Answers to all Questions 119 The Book of the Secret Word and the Higher Way to Fortune...... 125 How to Find Lucky Numbers with Dice.. 145 To Read a Person's Character by means of Kabalistic Calculations 147 The Mathematical Fortune-Teller; or, How to Learn any Person's Age....152 vii

viii CONTENTS PAGE Astrological Prediction as deduced from the Character of the Sign of the Zodiac ascending at the Birth of the Individual: the Prognostications from the Ruling Sign..154 Judgments Drawn from the Moon's Age..188 The Virtues and Influences of Precious Stones 192 Somb Unheard of Curiosities....196 The Hours, Virtues and Colours of the Planets 200 The Art of Ruling by the Law of Grace.. 203 Fatality of Days and Places, including Fatal Presages: — Part I. — How to Determine the Lucky and Unlucky Days of any Month in the Year. 207 Part II. — Further Miscellaneous Notes on the Observation of Times and Seasons. 212 The Arts of Divination: — Part I. — Some Miscellaneous Methods. 220 Part II. — A Supplementary Lexicon of the Art 229 Of Divination by Dreams 237 u\