Coffee Cup Reading

Latest in our ‘Would you learn this in India’ series?

Coffee Cup Reading
Ever wondered what the bottom of your cup would reveal if it could talk? Probably not. However, millions of people claim that your future lies there. They can tell your fortune by looking at the coffee stains that remain in the cup. This occult art/science of reading coffee grounds (or tea leaves or wine sediments) is called Tasseography.

Coffee cup reading is an ancient art that took birth in the oldest civilizations of the world. It means reading of coffee grounds from the cup of the drinker. The basic premise is that when we drink a cup of coffee, the caffeine in it releases the information locked in our subconscious mind. It is also believed that our subconscious mind stores all the information of our past lives and future as well. This information appears in the cup in the form of symbols. The coffee cup reader is able to interpret these symbols to tell the future and also to convey important messages to the inquirer.

Coffee Cup Reading – the process
Black coffee is prepared from a few specific kinds of coffee grounds (you can’t use any brand of instant coffee available in the market). About half a cup of black coffee is offered and some is required to be left in the cup. While having the coffee, you will be asked to think about any question or concerns that you have. After you’ve had your coffee, the coffee cup reader will place a saucer over it, shake the cup with the remaining coffee and then turn it upside down. The cup is allowed to dry for 10-15 minutes in that position. This leaves the stains in the coffee cup which appear like certain symbols to coffee cup reader. Each of these symbols is supposed to have some meaning that is used for fortune telling.

Coffee Cup Reading – history
The origins of coffee cup readings come from the ancient Chinese art of reading tea leaves which has been practised for centuries. This was originally done by monks who ceremonially drank tea in bell shaped cups. These monks earlier used to read patterns formed on the internal part of bells in temples and hence reading similar shaped tea cups was a logical progression.

When coffee beans were introduced in the Middle East, this art was adapted by the Arabs to coffee grounds. This art was practiced for thousands of years in the Middle East and is still hugely popular in Turkey. Almost everywhere in Turkey, whether it is the capital city Istanbul or small towns, you will notice people having coffee with their friends and family and reading their coffee cups trying to predict their future. This art is as common in Turkey as palm reading is in India.

Coffee Cup Reading – courses in India
There are a few coffee cup readers in India but most of them would shy away from sharing this secretive art. We’ll be glad to include someone you know who conducts coffee cup reading classes in India.

Coffee Cup Reading – books
‘Your fortune in a coffee cup’ by Sahar Huneidi