Scrying

Inquiry of bowl divination and necromancy. Whenever you want to inquire about matters, take a bronze vessel, either a bowl or a saucer, whatever kind you wish. Pour water: rainwater if you are calling upon heavenly gods, seawater if gods of the earth, river water if Osiris or Sarapis, spring water if the dead. Holding the vessel on your knees, pour out green olive oil, bend over the vessel and speak the prescribed spell. And address whatever god you want ask about whatever you wish, and he will reply to you and tell you about anything. And if he has spoken dismiss him with the spell of dismissal, and you have used this spell will be amazed.

The quote above is from the Greek Magical Papyri (PGM), detailing a scrying ritual using a bowl, sometimes referred to lecanomancy, or lekanomanteia. Compared to some other forms of divination, it’s pretty simple, and is very low-cost! The most important ingredient is water from different sources, differing based on who you are trying to contact.

The other key ingredient is stuff you put into the water; usually olive oil, as an offering of sorts, and to make patterns into which you can gaze.

The spell spoken over the vessel: “AMOUN AUANTAU LAIMOUTAU RIPTOU MANTAUI IMANTOU LANTOU LAPTOUMI ANCHÔMACH ARAPTOUMI, hither to me, O NN god; appear to me this very hour and do not frighten my eyes. Hither to me, O NN god, be attentive to me because he wishes and commands this ACHCHÔR ACHCHÔR ACHACHACH PTOUMI CHACHCHÔ CHARACHÔCH CHAPTOUMÊ CHÔRACHARACHÔCH APTOUMI MÊCHÔCHAPTOU CHARACHPTOU CHACHCHÔ CHARACHÔ PTENACHÔCHEU” (a hundred letters). But you are not unaware, mighty king and leader of magicians, that this is the chief name of Typhon, at whom the ground, the depths of the sea, Hades, heaven, the sun, the moon, the visible chorus of stars, the whole universe all tremble, the name which, when it is uttered, forcibly brings gods and daemons to it. This is the name that consists of 100 letters.

NN is basically “insert name here”. I’m definitely very new to Typhon so I personally do not chant this incantation (though I do hope to research him and write about his worship eventually).

Variations

• Adding lots into the water and drawing - I guess you could make lots from clay, wood etc.? Maybe alphabet stones could be combined with this.
• Drawing from a well and interpreting the junk on the surface
• Sanctuary of Demeter at Patrai, only used for questions of sickness: mirror on fine cord, let it hang so it just grazes surface of holy spring with its rim; then pray to her and burn incense and look into mirror; shows sick person as either living or dead.
• Crystal-gazing could be considered an extension of this (summoning Gods into it usually)

References

• Greek Divination by W. R. Halliday
• The Greek Magical Papyri in Translation by Hans Dieter Betz