Where does fortune-telling come from?

Where does fortune-telling come from?

Gipsy Fortune Teller by Taras Shevchenko

There is always curiosity, such as knowing unknown things and perceiving things that go unnoticed. Even thousands of years ago, people made such efforts regardless of their geographical location. Lifestyle, nomadism, or settlement did not change that, it just changed the form and type of these processes. In other words, with changes in social lifestyles, the methods of obtaining information about the future have also changed. This curiosity at some point revealed what is called fortune-telling.

Fortune telling in a general sense is an event that uses various irrational methods to make comments about future, that is, to inform about the unknown information. In other words, this is the result of a desire to reach the unknown world. As old as humanity is, so is the fortune-telling. Fortune telling is a practice that still applies today. We are going to take look at some of the popular fortune-telling styles.

Coffee fortune-telling

(Image credit: Everett Collection Shutterstock)

Interpreting coffee grounds, making predictions, and even raising them to the level of predictions seems to be a habit in the Ottoman Empire. Fortune telling can also be described as an interesting act, made through prediction without any evidence or proof. During the reign of Yavuz Sultan Selim, coffee entered Ottoman culture and soon became the most popular drink. There is even an officer in the palace named Coffee Man. In 1615, Venetian merchants of the Ottoman Empire introduced coffee to Europe. The coffee fortune-telling culture that appeared in the harem arose, so that bondwomen could chat comfortably. When the bondwomen turned the coffee cup over to each other, they said it meant nothing in the palace. These conversations then gradually turned into Fortune-Telling.

Horoscopes

Star horoscope is a very popular fortune-telling species in the world. I think the most important effect in this is that many communities are somehow interested in celestial events. Horoscope is the work of extracting the position of the stars and planets on that date and commenting on fate by centering on the day of man’s birth or even the time. In other words, all the expressions we know today, such as the sign of the sun, the rising sign, came out of the horoscope.

On the other hand, horoscope has also shown itself, especially in communities that were professionally engaged in agriculture even at that time, such as corn, and looked at celestial movements to be able to farm healthier, predicting the best planting time or overflow time of the river. As the main place of origin, it is known as Mesopotamia. Its history dates back to about 3000 years ago.

Tarot card reading

Fortune teller, Albert Anker, 1880

Tarot is a deck of 78 cards of playing cards that appeared in the late Middle Ages. Over time, it began to be used for spiritual support purposes and remains current with prophecy and fortune-telling today. Playing cards first entered Europe in the late 14th century, most likely from Mamluk Egypt.

The main purpose of Tarot cards was to play games. A very cursory description of the rules for a tarot-like deck is given in a manuscript written by Martiano da Tortona before 1425. The tarot deck, in its present form, consists of a total of 78 cards, 22 large Arcana, and 56 small Arcana. Central and far Asia is shown as the origin of the tiny Arcana. The Great Arcana originated in Italy in the 14th century under the name Trionfi. The numbers and motifs found on Tarot cards add a mystical air to the cards. By opening Tarot cards, comments are made about past and present cases. Intuition about the future is transferred.

Hope you enjoy🔮:

ASLI DİKEN

References

(n.d.). Ankara Üniversitesi Dergiler Veritabanı. https://dergiler.ankara.edu.tr/dergiler/26/1953/20454.pdf

Fortune-telling. (2002, May 29). Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved May 2, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fortune-telling

Malahay. (2020, May 16). Falların Tarihçesi. Türkiye’nin Etkinlik Platformu – Shall we?. https://www.shallwe.com.tr/fallarin-tarihcesi/

Tarot card reading. (2008, May 16). Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved May 2, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarot_card_reading

Tarot. (2001, November 26). Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved May 2, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarot