Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Pagan
Receiving a Divination Gift

Receiving a Divination Gift

Last updated on: April 3, 2022 at 10:28 am by Bader Saab

Receiving a Divination Gift 2022-04-03T10:28:33-04:00 Bader Saab

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

It hasn’t been so long since I experienced Al-‘Uzza healing love, something I keep thinking about now and then, maybe not consciously, but always keep in my mind. Recently, I experienced something for the first time in life: all of a sudden, I was capable of reading coffee grounds, a form of divination known as tasseography and that has been popular in the Arabic world, and has some acceptance in my family.

“I told one of my friends that I would expect something in line with the areas she’s most commonly associated with, and he reminded me that a deity is not limited to a square box”. Photo by Engin Akyurt (Pexels)

After another heartbreak, a possible relationship that seemed to go perfectly fine, until I was ghosted, and felt miserable for not having a reason, once again I thought about my Goddesss, and how she helped me before. I didn’t get a cinematic vision in technicolor like before, but I did get something that left me speechless.

I was with my mom and a friend of us, they were using an app to read the coffee grounds, and out of curiosity, just like I’ve done many times before, I got one of the mugs, took a look, and understood what I was seeing. The images I could identify were easy to interpret, as if I had been studying tasseography for a while. For those unfamiliar with it, it’s a form of divination that can be done with coffee, tea leaves, or even wine, and for the record, I have never, ever, studied it.

For a moment, I just said “hey, I know what this thing here means, and this one, and this means…” They basically let me do my thing, we had a good time, and then I got the second mug. However, when I did half of the reading with this one, I got distracted in some way, and when I looked back to the grounds I couldn’t understand anything. I remember there’s a woman who does this form of divination, a friend of the family, that experienced the same: she needs people to let her speak and be done before she does something else, otherwise she won’t be able to finish.

What I found strange at first was that a divination gift would come from Al-‘Uzza, the pre-Islamic goddess of War, Protection, and Healing. I even thought “since when do I know how to read coffee grounds?”, I told one of my friends that I would expect something in line with the areas she’s most commonly associated with. His first response was that “since you opened yourself up to your Goddess… duh…”, and he reminded me that a deity is not limited to a square box.

It’s true that it would have been easier to understand that a divination gift would come from Manat, The pre-Islamic Goddess of Time, Fate and Death, or much easier if it was from Hubal, the pre-Islamic God of Poetry, Divination and Revenge, who has already helped me in past readings. However, I thought that if it came from Al-‘Uzza, or any other deity, then I would receive and honor such a gift, which also means I have some books to read and practice to be done.

I’ve felt so lonely these days that I struggled with many things. My friends know how miserable I’ve felt in the past. I even thought “what’s wrong with me? What do I have that no one wants to be with me?” And doubted my worth many times before, because if I’ve been alone for such a long time, then something must certainly be wrong with me. It’s no secret to any of my friends what a complicated history I have with love. That’s where my Goddess comes in, the second time She helps me heal and feel better after such a bitter time.

It would be impossible to know for sure what will happen from now on, but I do want to think I’ve been doing things the right way if I got this gift. In the early stages of this possible relationship, I got the impression that I would be left alone, I fell from cloud 9 quickly, and then said to myself that if it would happen then I would enjoy my time until then.

Looking back, all I can do is smile. Maybe Al-‘Uzza has behind that, maybe not, but I’m thankful for that glimpse into the future. I know now my worth is not determined by having a partner or not, I certainly would feel better, but it doesn’t define how “good” I am. Someone already reminded me for the second time.

About Bader Saab

I’m an Arabic witch and journalist, also with a master’s degree in digital research. I have worked as a book reviewer and written about pre-Islamic folklore. You can connect with me by Private Message on Instagram: @saab.bader. You can read more about the author here.

Previous Post

March 22, 2022

Restarting a Practice

Next Post

April 11, 2022 What's in a name? What Does Bader Saab Mean?

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Ancestors Book review Books Deities Divination Folklore History news Practice Spirits Uncategorized Wellbeing witchcraft Writing

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 July 2026 March 2026 December 2025 November 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 February 2025 January 2025 September 2024 July 2024 March 2024 February 2024 November 2023 September 2023 July 2023 May 2023 April 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

I was beautiful and cunning, leading a rebellion against my father by stealing the hearts of Israel. Who am I?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Solomon Adonijah Amnon Absalom