Crystal-gazing (also known as crystal-seeing, crystallism, crystallomancy, and spheromancy) is a method for seeing visions achieved through

trance Trance is a state of semi-consciousness in which a person is not self-aware and is either altogether unresponsive to external stimuli (but nevertheless capable of pursuing and realizing an aim) or is selectively responsive in following the dir ...

induction by means of gazing at a

crystal A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macro ...

. Traditionally, it has been seen as a form of divination or

scrying Scrying, also known by various names such as "seeing" or "peeping", is the practice of looking into a suitable medium in the hope of detecting significant messages or visions. The objective might be personal guidance, prophecy, revelation, or in ...

, with visions of the future, something divine etc., though research into the content of crystal-visions suggest the visions are related to the expectations and thoughts of the seer.

Methods and materials

The term crystal gazing denotes several different forms of a variety of objects, and there are several schools of thought as to the sources of the visions seen in the crystal gazing trance. Crystal gazing may be used by practitioners—sometimes called "readers" or "seers"—for a variety of purposes, including to predict distant or future events, to give character analyses, to tell fortunes, or to help a client make choices about current situations and problems. With respect to the tool or object used to induce the crystal-gazer's trance, this can be achieved with any shiny object, including a

crystalline A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macros ...

gemstone or a convex

mirror A mirror or looking glass is an object that reflects an image. Light that bounces off a mirror will show an image of whatever is in front of it, when focused through the lens of the eye or a camera. Mirrors reverse the direction of the im ...

—but in common practice, a

crystal ball A crystal ball, also known as an orbuculum or crystal sphere, is a crystal or glass ball and common fortune-telling object. It is generally associated with the performance of clairvoyance and scrying in particular. In more recent times, the cry ...

is most often used. The size of ball preferred varies greatly among those who practice crystallomancy. Some gazers use a "palm ball" of a few inches in diameter that is held in the hand; others prefer a larger ball mounted on a stand. The stereotypical image of a Romani woman wearing a headscarf and telling fortunes for her clients by means of a very large crystal ball is widely depicted in the

media Media may refer to: Communication * Media (communication), tools used to deliver information or data ** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising ** Broadcast media, communications delivered over mass e ...

and can be found in hundreds of popular books, advertising pages, and films of the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries. The pervasiveness of this image may have led to the increased use of fairly large crystal balls by those who can afford them. Books of instruction in the art of crystal gazing often suggest that the ball used should be perfectly spherical (that is, without a flat bottom) and should be supported in a wooden or metal stand. If made of glass (e.g.

lead crystal Lead glass, commonly called crystal, is a variety of glass in which lead replaces the calcium content of a typical potash glass. Lead glass contains typically 18–40% (by weight) lead(II) oxide (PbO), while modern lead crystal, historically als ...

), it should be free from air bubbles but may be colored. If carved from natural crystalline stone (such as

quartz Quartz is a hard, crystalline mineral composed of silica ( silicon dioxide). The atoms are linked in a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon-oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall chemical ...

beryl Beryl ( ) is a mineral composed of beryllium aluminium silicate with the chemical formula Be3Al2Si6O18. Well-known varieties of beryl include emerald and aquamarine. Naturally occurring, hexagonal crystals of beryl can be up to several ...

, calcite, obsidian, or amethyst), it may display the natural coloring and structure of the mineral from which it was fashioned. Some authors advise students to place a

sigil A sigil () is a type of symbol used in magic. The term has usually referred to a pictorial signature of a deity or spirit. In modern usage, especially in the context of chaos magic, sigil refers to a symbolic representation of the practitioner ...

, seal, or

talisman A talisman is any object ascribed with religious or magical powers intended to protect, heal, or harm individuals for whom they are made. Talismans are often portable objects carried on someone in a variety of ways, but can also be installed perm ...

ic emblem beneath a clear sphere, but most do not. Most authors suggest that the work of crystal gazing should be undertaken in a dimly-lit and quiet room, so as to foster visions and more easily allow the onset of a trance state. Some practitioners claim that crystal gazing engenders

visionary A visionary, defined broadly, is one who can envision the future. For some groups, this can involve the supernatural. The visionary state is achieved via meditation, lucid dreams, daydreams, or art. One example is Hildegard of Bingen, a 12th- ...

experiences and

preternatural The preternatural (or praeternatural) is that which appears outside or beside (Latin: '' præter'') the natural. It is "suspended between the mundane and the miraculous". In theology, the term is often used to distinguish marvels or deceptive t ...

and/or supernatural

insight Insight is the understanding of a specific cause and effect within a particular context. The term insight can have several related meanings: *a piece of information *the act or result of understanding the inner nature of things or of seeing intui ...

, while other practitioners and researchers assert that the visions arise from the

subconscious In psychology, the subconscious is the part of the mind that is not currently of focal awareness. Scholarly use of the term The word ''subconscious'' represents an anglicized version of the French ''subconscient'' as coined in 1889 by the psycho ...

mind of the crystal gazer. Some authors note that the two positions are not mutually incompatible, and that the possibility of showing the gazer's subconscious mind does not preclude the possibility of seeing the future or other supernatural insight.

Research

Crystal gazing has been an active topic of research. Organisations like the

Society for Psychical Research The Society for Psychical Research (SPR) is a nonprofit organisation in the United Kingdom. Its stated purpose is to understand events and abilities commonly described as psychic or paranormal. It describes itself as the "first society to co ...

has published research on the topic. While there is no doubt that many people see visions in crystal balls, there is no scientific evidence to suggest that visions have any

clairvoyant Clairvoyance (; ) is the magical ability to gain information about an object, person, location, or physical event through extrasensory perception. Any person who is claimed to have such ability is said to be a clairvoyant () ("one who sees cl ...

content. The psychologists Leonard Zusne, Warren H. Jones in their book ''Anomalistic Psychology: A Study of Magical Thinking'' (1989) have written: The psychologist

Millais Culpin Millais Culpin FRCS (6 January 1874 in Ware, Hertfordshire – 14 September 1952 in St Albans, Hertfordshire) was an English physician and psychotherapist. He appears as a character in the ''Casualty 1907'' and ''Casualty 1909'' television serie ...

wrote that crystal gazing allows a form of

self-hypnosis Self-hypnosis or auto-hypnosis (as distinct from hetero-hypnosis) is a form, a process, or the result of a self-induced hypnotic state. Frequently, self-hypnosis is used as a vehicle to enhance the efficacy of self-suggestion; and, in such case ...

with fantasies and memories from the unconscious of the subject appearing as visions in the crystal. Analysis of the content suggest they are a kind of

hallucination A hallucination is a perception in the absence of an external stimulus that has the qualities of a real perception. Hallucinations are vivid, substantial, and are perceived to be located in external objective space. Hallucination is a combinati ...

that visualizes things in memory or of expectations, for example a subject who was told to expect to see soldiers, saw exactly this when gazing in a crystal ball. The subject had previously experienced hallucinations when looking at reflective surfaces, something which tends to be true of most people who experience visions when gazing at crystals. Researcher Edmund Parish believed that crystal-visions were experienced in a state of full consciousness whiles others think it requires a trance-like state.

The C.G. act

Some stage magicians use a crystal ball as a prop and crystallomancy as a line of patter in the performance of

mentalism Mentalism is a performing art in which its practitioners, known as mentalists, appear to demonstrate highly developed mental or intuitive abilities. Performances may appear to include hypnosis, telepathy, clairvoyance, divination, precognitio ...

effects. This type of presentation is sometimes referred to as a "C.G. act"—"C.G." standing for "crystal gazing".Nelson, Robert A. ''Nelson Enterprises 25th Anniversary Catalogue No. 21''. Columbus, Ohio. 1946 Perhaps the most famous expositor of the C.G. act during the 20th century was Alexander The Crystal Seer, billed as "The Man Who Knows".Beckmann, Darryl, ''The Life And Times of Alexander, The Man Who Knows, A Personal Scrapbook,'' Rolling Bay, Washington, Rolling Bay Press, 1994.Charvet, David. ''Alexander - The Man Who Knows''. 2nd revised and enlarged edition, September 2006. Another stage magician and mentalist who was also a crystal gazer was Julius Zancig, but he did not perform a C.G. act in public—rather, he used the

in his work as a spiritual counsellor for private clients.

Methods and materials

Research

The C.G. act

See also

References

Further reading