Dorje Tseten, with the assistance of Denma Lochö Rinpoche, Panchen Otrul Rinpoche and Khamtrul Rinpoche, gives an overview of the development and use of divination methods within Tibetan Buddhism.

Reproduced with permission.

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Divination and Buddhism

With the introduction of Buddhism in Tibet in the seventh century, various existing means of examining the future were incorporated into the Buddhist way of life. These have come to be widely used by Tibetans to foretell upcoming events. Although means of foretelling the future were employed before the advent of Buddhism, they are not regarded as an alien remnant outside the Buddhist framework that is occasionally convenient to call upon. Rather, they are used within the sphere of Buddhist concepts, functioning in accordance with Buddhist principles such as karma. There are no references to divination within the sutras, but many can be found in the tantras.

Divination in relation to karma, the law of cause and effect

According to the common Buddhist explanation, beings are driven by the power of the three poisons (ignorance, desire and hatred) to perform actions which keep them bound within the cycle of rebirth and suffering. Rebirth can take place in any of the six realms of gods, demi-gods, humans, animals, hungry spirits and hell beings.

Rebirth in the lower states, amongst the hell beings, hungry spirits, and animals or in conditions of suffering in the human realm is brought about by unwholesome actions.

Intentional action or karma has four characteristics.

1)         The result of an action is definite. Whatever action is accumulated, it gives rise to a corresponding result. Just as planting a chili seed will not result in a sweet-tasting plant, anger will not result in rebirth in a high realm. You cannot change the result of an action once it has come to fruition. For example, if you are born with a human body, you cannot exchange if for another human body or a celestial one.

2)         A small cause can give rise to a great effect. For example, a woman’s offering of seeds to the Buddha led him to predict that she would be reborn as a solitary realizer. Also, a man who called another a frog, was himself reborn as a frog for five hundred lives. The workings of cause and effect are so subtle that we have to be aware that even the smallest unwholesome deeds have effects.

3)         An action that is not done will not come to fruit. If a soldier wears a talisman to war and does not get hurt, it is not necessarily the power of the talisman which saved him, but rather the fact that he did not have the karma to be hurt.

4)         The results of actions are inevitable. Except when a counter force to a particular action is applied, the result will never fade away without maturing.

The purpose of performing divination

By looking into someone’s future, the diviner or medium can assess the particular situation and recommend how to respond or deal with it. Remedial action, in the form of rituals, evokes positive forces and can result in a change in the person’s fortune. Rituals will not change a person’s karma, and those requesting and performing a divination are aware of this. However, rituals can be employed to manipulate the karma in an individual’s continuum. They can induce latent positive potential to take precedence over that which is perceived as the cause of an impending misfortune.

Each individual’s karma may be divided into two types: nonspecific and particular. Nonspecific does not mean that it will not come to fruition, but simply that the time and mode of its fruition are not definite. Every action, whether pleasant or painful, does not necessarily give rise to a specific result. Beings have, as it were, a pool of potential for pleasure and pain, which may bear fruit whenever they encounter the proper conditions.

The efficacy of a ritual involves the patron making offerings of food and money to the monks or adepts performing it. The merit acquired from this gift is used to trigger the forces of latent positive potential in oneself or others. Thus, one is not transferring merit and stepping outside the laws of cause and effect, but merely using merit to awaken the forces of one’s own or other’s good karma.

If, for example, someone’s relative is ill, or his business is deteriorating, an individual may request a qualified practitioner’s divination to discover what ritual would be most helpful in setting conditions right. The success of this ritual depends on the strength of one’s own karma. In performing a tantric ritual, deities are invoked to bring to fruition latent positive predispositions present in a person’s continuum, in order to overcome the negative predispositions that are giving rise to disease, etc. However, if the karma or predisposition to be ill is stronger than the latent positive potential in the sick person’s continuum, the effects of the disease will not be overcome and the ritual will remain unsuccessful.

It is said, for instance, that the invasion of Tibet by the Chinese had been predicted through various means and accordingly many rituals were performed. However, since the Tibetan people’s negative karma was too strong to be countered by rituals, they remained ineffectual.

Divination in Tibetan society

Divination is very much a part of life in Tibet and continues to be so among the exiled community in India and elsewhere. Major decisions concerning everyday life such as marriage or business agreements are made only after consulting some form of divination. The gravity of illness is investigated and the most beneficial forms of treatment are sought. In most cases, people have favorite lamas whom they consult. The lamas throw dice or use beads to guide them in reaching a decision. Sometimes other forms of divination such as oracles or mirror readers are consulted. In nomadic areas where the sparse population is subject to the whims of nature, divination, signs and omens are seriously examined. They generally interpret these themselves.

Qualifications of the person performing divination

When performing a divination, an individual is relying on the power vested in him by a particular deity. This power may have been acquired through a connection with the deity in a past life, and reinforced through retreats involving recitation of a mantra as many as one million times, identifying himself with the deity with clear concentration and the generation of divine pride. There are many ways of performing divinations related to the practice of various deities. For example, there are divinations dependent on Manjushri, Tara, Vajrapani, the Five Dakinis, Palden Lhamo, Dorje Yudronma and Tsering Che-nga (the Five Long Life Sisters).

The motivation for performing divination must be pure. Although anyone can acquire a relationship with a deity through intensive mantra recitation and consequently acquire certain powers, if they are used for unwholesome purposes, they will eventually rebound and bring about an unfortunate rebirth. Therefore, the fundamental motive for engaging in the practice of divination should be to help sentient beings and relieve them of suffering.

Varieties of divination

Doughball Divination: This method is practiced mainly in the monasteries or by individual lamas when an important decision needs to be made, such as in the search for the reincarnation of very high lamas. A number of possible answers to the inquiry, such as the names of likely candidates for a reincarnation, are written on slips of paper. These are then encased in equal-size balls of dough. Great care is taken to weigh the doughballs to ensure that they are exactly the same size. The doughballs are then placed in a bowl, which is carefully sealed and placed in front of a sacred object, such as the Jowo statue in the main temple in Lhasa, images of Dharma protectors or the funerary monuments of great lamas, requesting their inspiration in deciding the outcome. For a period of three days monks remain in the temple reciting prayers day and night. During that time no one is allowed to touch the bowl. On the fourth day, before all those present the cover of the bowl is removed. A prominent lama rolls the doughballs around in the bowl before the sacred object until one of them falls out. That is the ball containing the answer.

Dice divination: Palden Lhamo dice divination is conducted with three dice with a number from one to six indicated by dots on each face. Divination associated with other deities can be conducted with dice marked with letters. The dice are made of bone, wood or conch shell. Garje Khamtrul Rinpoche described his own procedure for doing dice divination as follows:

“For a divination to be successful, it is essential that the diviner should have a pure motivation and the person who came for advice believe in the diviner. It is important that they both pray to the Three Jewels, their root and lineage lamas and their deities, chiefly Palden Lhamo and other Dharma protectors, for a clear answer. If I didn’t hear the request clearly, I ask again. Then, I visualize myself as my personal deity Dorje Shonu or Vajra Kilaya and call on Palden Lhamo. Through my long familiarity with her, I can clearly request her to give a perfect answer to the person who came for advice. Then I throw the dice and according to the numbers indicated on the dice, I refer to a divination book. There are many such books written by great lamas, and they provide all the possible answers, though once you are familiar with divination techniques reference to texts is no longer necessary.

“I then tell the person the results as indicated by the dice. Sometimes the answer is right but at other times it may not be. In some cases it is not intelligible, and then I throw the dice again until I obtain a clear answer.”

Divination on a mala: To begin with, the person doing the divination prays to the deity he is invoking for the correct answer and recites that deity’s mantra. He then holds up the mala (rosary) horizontally in front of him, with the finger of each hand grasping a randomly chosen bead, leaving half the beads or fewer between them. Then the fingers of each hand move towards each other counting three beads at a time. The outcome of the divination depends on the number of beads left. The procedure is repeated three times.

When only one bead remains, the result is called “falcon.” When two beads remain, it is called “raven.” When three beads remain the result is called “snow lion.”

The outcome on the first attempt indicates the deity’s support and the quality of the divination in general. A falcon at the first attempt would indicate support from protectors, luck in a new enterprise, success in a lawsuit.

A raven on the first try means the protectors are not on your side. There will be no accomplishment, lawsuits will be unsuccessful and there are enemies present. Such a divination would caution against starting on any new enterprise.

A snow lion on the first round would indicate support from the deities, slow but stable accomplishments and weakness on the part of the enemies. If the question concerned successful business, this would be regarded as a neutral result.

At the second attempt, the outcome indicates conditions to take place in one’s immediate environment. The falcon indicates good luck in general, but not much success for those wishing to have children. The risk of thefts and illness in general would remain small.

The raven indicates serious illness, obstacles to health and a decline in the life force. There will be a tendency for things to get lost or stolen. However, in the case of an ordained person, these negative aspects would be reduced.

On the third occasion, the number of remaining beads gives clues about an expected person arriving from elsewhere. This was a very important aspect of life in Tibet, for people traveled constantly and there was no communication system. A falcon with regard to an unexpected visitor indicates imminent news or arrival. With regard to illness, it would indicate finding the best way to cure it.

A raven represents a bad indication concerning expected travelers. They are likely to encounter obstacles on the way, will not arrive at all or will be robbed. The sick will not be cured and possessions will be lost or stolen. The snow lion indicates that travelers will arrive late, but come to no harm. Problems with health will be few, although there will be difficulties with finding the right treatment.

The best divination would be three consecutive falcons. This would indicate that travelers will arrive quickly, patients will recover and accomplishments will be swift.

Interpretation of incidental signs

When a practitioner is setting up a mandala or preparing the requisites for a retreat, certain occurrences in his environment can be interpreted as indicative of his future accomplishments. These can be either positive or negative.

Positive signs indicating that the practitioner will receive the Buddhas’ and bodhisattvas’ blessings include: seeing cranes, geese, ducks, swans, pheasants and other auspicious birds flying overhead or hearing their calls; overhearing the sounds of drums, of stringed instruments, flutes, gongs, bells; people reciting auspicious stanzas including such words as victorious, accomplished, excellent, happiness, success, give it, take it, fruitful, great, numerous and glorious.

Negative signs indicating impending obstacles include: hearing the chatter of monkeys, the squeaking of mice, the howl of wolves, the bray of donkeys and the low of buffaloes; having one’s path crossed by snakes or scorpions and other unpleasant creatures; encountering people in mourning, hearing them express words like defeat, decline, die, sick, get rid of something, alas, difficult, unsuccessful and meaningless. In such instances, the practitioner should interrupt his practice and move to another site.

In general, when setting out on a journey or some other enterprise, the following would be considered good omens, or signs of success: meeting elaborately dressed men, women and children; pregnant women, cows with their calves, properly dressed bhikshus, illustrious people, Brahmins dressed in white, beautiful bejeweled women, young girls playing together, elephants, smart carriages, and people holding religious symbols such as the wheel, vase, garland, lotus, umbrella or banners.

Signs of failure would be indicated by the following: losing luggage; encountering wicked, frightful, worn out or ragged persons; having one’s road blocked; seeing collapsed houses, something catching fire, or having things break.

Dreams

Certain individuals are gifted with clairvoyant dreams which they can use as a means of predicting the outcome of future events. These dreams usually take place in the latter part of the night, before dawn, and are characteristically very clear. Like other forms of divination, they usually occur as the special relationship with a deity and use either established symbolism or that which is particular to the dreamer and easily recognized by him or her.

For a practitioner, the following are established symbols of high accomplishments: seeing Buddhas, bodhisattvas, one’s personal deities, and receiving teachings from them; dreaming of being enthroned, putting on a crown, taking a bath, being given vajras and other religious implements; dreaming of having become monarch, of reading scriptures, of being in temples with holy objects, of making offerings; dreaming of riding on elephants, tigers, dragons, lions, garudas, horses, or ascending into the sky close to the sun and moon; rotating the four continents, easily swimming across the sea, seeing the sun or moon rising, plowing a field, eating dairy products, and of sitting on a lotus; dreaming of being respected and praised by the gods, by one’s parents, spiritual masters, beautiful ladies, and friends; dreaming of wild animals, of mountains, trees, waterfalls, oceans, flowery parks, rain, ripe fruit, kings, ascetics, Brahmins, wealthy people, virtuous masters, geese and other auspicious birds.

Overcoming obstacles is indicated by dreaming of gold, treasure, precious stones, sound weapons, food grains, ornaments, armor, and of killing one’s enemy.

The following dreams, although apparently negative, actually indicate good results and symbolize the surmounting of obstacles: cutting off one’s head, eating human flesh, washing one’s body in blood, drinking alcohol, shaving off one’s hair, burning one’s body, immersing oneself in sewage, surrounding the town with one’s entrails, and making love during the day.

The following dreams indicate obstacles created by harmful spirits: meeting tigers, leopards, cats, dogs, pigs, donkeys, mice, scorpions, weasels, snakes, vultures, owls, dwarfs, dark, naked thin people, butchers, pale and skinny children, tall naked men, and struggling with any of the above; dreaming of wells becoming dry, of heaps of bones and skulls, and of ruined houses.

In general bad dreams are those including the following indications: being chased by soldiers, applying vegetable oil to one’s body, talking with crippled or hunchback individuals, seeing the sun or the moon going down, climbing mountains or sand or twigs, seeing red flowers, having one’s teeth fall out, going southward on a donkey or camel’s back, passing through narrow passages, wandering in a swamp, running downward, breaking the parts of one’s body or things, being defeated by others, and engaging in unwholesome actions. These dreams indicate that an individual has very little merit and will have a short life. In such cases, a lama would advise that the person should accumulate merit, meditate on emptiness, and perform peaceful fire ritual offerings before resuming any activities he or she was engaged in.

Examining flames

Observing the flames of ritual fire offering is also a form of divination. First, one invokes the fire god and then observes the flame. A bright, golden, orange color, a smokeless and soundless quality, the flame burning strongly and turning to the right, or burning upward in a single point, the fire lasting long and giving off a pleasant smell are general positive signs, and indicate that whatever questions one had in mind will be answered in a positive way. When the color of the flame is snow white and the fire burns very gently, it means one has been cleansed of imprints left by unwholesome actions. The flame turning yellow means that one will become powerful and wealthy. Its turning bright red signified success in any undertaking and its becoming a clear, smokeless blue color symbolizes health and that one will develop one’s lineage.

Signs of illness and other misfortunes are indicated by the fire blazing fiercely and the flame turning dark, smoky, the color of human flesh, green, that of vegetable oil, dull, pale, having two or three points and a foul smell. When performing a fierce fire offering ritual, though, the above signs are considered to be positive. Signs that are considered to be negative in the case of either peaceful or wrathful rituals are sparks and smoke afflicting the performer of the ritual.  Dark flames moving in all directions and blazing in an unsteady way indicate the termination of one’s lineage.

Observing a butter lamp

The butter lamp used for divination should be faultless and made of gold, silver or another previous metal. It should be thoroughly cleaned. A wick should be made from a dry and odorless piece of wood, which is neither too thick nor too thin, with a height reaching the brim, and placed in the center of the lamp. Barley should be heaped on it, and melted, purified butter poured over it. The diviner should then invoke the assembly of deities and recite: Om ah hum vajra guru dhe vadakki nihum ‘od li ‘od li sarva ah lo ke pra bha dhe naye svan hah a hundred times and think of the question he wishes to ask.

He then lights the butter lamp and observes the shape of the same. A globular point means safety, a conch shape represents fame, a bright yellow flame indicates no obstacles, a lotus and jewel-like flame denote wealth. A flame with a hook-shape tip means that one will become powerful and one with two points signifies that the person will leave for another place. If the light of the lamp is dim and the flame gutters, it means someone will become one’s enemy or that he or she is about to receive a guest from a distant place. The flame separating into two parts indicates separation within one’s family. A dark red flame means the eldest son will die; the middle of the flame turning red and smoke coming from the wick indicates loss of property, and the lamp going out without apparent reason means death. Spilling of the melted butter stands for the length of an undertaking.

Mirror divination

Performance of Dorje Yudronma mirror divination should be done in a quiet and peaceful place. The mirror is placed inside a container filled with grain, itself standing on top of a clean felt cushion. The diviner then sprinkles vermillion powder (sindura) and recites the mantras of the ritual. In front of the mirror is placed a small crystal stupa or a piece of crystal, and at the back, a five-color flag (representing the Buddhas of the five families) is attached to an arrow. On the right is a ritual cake offering decorated with butter ornaments and on the left a red-color cake offering. Around these are arranged offerings of drink, roasted barley flour (tsampa) mixed with butter, incense and various kinds of wood.

In front of him or herself, the diviner places a vajra, a bell and a damaru (drum), some barley and vermillion powder to sprinkle in the drink, as well as an arrow to which is tied a white scarf. He or she then generates himself or herself as a deity and performs the preliminary ritual for removing obstacles according to the ritual of Tara.

Following this, invocations are made to Dorje Yudronma, one of Tibet’s chief protectors, who holds an arrow with the five colors in her right hand and a white silver mirror in her left. The diviner then requests the goddess to give a correct answer to the questions asked.

The mirror is not read by the diviner, but by a virgin boy or girl no more than fifteen years old. The child, who must be clean and well-dressed, sits on a cushion under which has been drawn a swastika, symbol of stability. He or she is asked to pick up a stone, wrap it in a piece of red cloth and place it under his or her knee and is made to drink the orange-tinted libation. Blessed ears of barley are placed on the child’s head, which is then wrapped in a turban.

The diviner then cleans the mirror and lights the butter lamp. The child looks into the mirror and, depending on the type of divination which has been requested, sees either pictures, like sequences in a film, or letters. Letters require written questions, which have been given to the diviner. The reader of the mirror has no knowledge of the questions asked and the diviner does not see in the mirror; however, they are complementary and mutually dependent for this type of divination. The child’s ability to read the mirror disappears at puberty, and thus the diviner may use different children at different times.