DIV-401 Lessons

The Divination lounge was brightly lit as the fourth years filed in for their lesson.  The sun shone through the open window, a beacon of light and discovery. Upon each desk was a small, hand-held mirror, turned mirror side down.  Some of the students picked up the mirrors to adjust their hair or to check for blemishes on their skin. As the bell chimed in the castle signaling the start of the lesson, Professor Cattercorn entered and flicked her wand at the upturned mirrors, forcing them to return to their resting position on the table before addressing the class.

Welcome back, seers! If you’ve made it this far it means that I managed to keep your interest as we got through the basics of hand reading. Hopefully, with further practice and research, you will all become masters of that very fine art. I know that it seems like hand divination has consumed much of this year, but it is, after all, one of the most important parts of body divination. As promised, today we will be leaving behind the subject of hand divination and moving on to other parts of the body, more specifically metoposcopy and moleosophy.

Marco! Molo!
As you all know, each of us are unique individuals. We have marks on our bodies that are visible on the face, whether they be scars, moles, freckles, wrinkles, lines, etc. You will come to find that these marks are not just randomly placed, but hold meaning. Hold onto your hats, ladies and gents, we still have much to get through before the end of the year. Before we get started, please review the definitions below:

Metoposcopy is a branch of divination in which the diviner examines lines in the forehead of an individual in order to ascertain characteristics, personality, and the destiny of the individual that they are reading for.

Moleosophy is the study and interpretation of the existence and position of moles, specifically on the face. This art is also known as moleomancy.

Metoposcopy: A Very Brief Introduction
This form of divination is primarily outlined in a book called the Zohar, part of a more famous ancient Hebrew text known as the Kabbalah. Because this text, as well as the others that make up the body of work called the Kabbalah, was written before the International Statute of Secrecy was imposed, it reflects a time when Muggles and magical folk mingled, and sometimes even shared their knowledge. Metoscopy is one such intermingling of magical and mundane.

 Later on, in the 16th century, metoposcopy was fully fleshed-out by an Italian astrologer and mathematician, Gerolamo Cardano, He was very likely a seer as well, though records are not complete enough to state this with complete certainty. He is credited with popularizing and further developing the practice.  It is thought that palm reading has close associations with this form of divination as it too is concerned with reading lines except, of course, that metoposcopy is concerned with the lines on the individual's forehead instead.

As a person ages, they develop more wrinkles and lines in the forehead. It is important to keep in mind that a reading of this nature done ten years ago would be much different than a reading of that same exact individual today, because forehead lines and wrinkles are ever-changing. Because of this, metoposcopy is a very imprecise and difficult branch of divination. Even the more veteran seers do not claim to be one hundred percent accurate, so be careful. Below you will see a sample chart pulled from Metoposcopia, Gerolamo Cardano’s work, as well as a second set of figures.

As you can tell from the excerpt, this is just a random selection of figures. Will we be going over all of the different types of lines in class? I’m afraid the answer is no. We simply don’t have time, and the nature of such readings, as stated above, can often be very imprecise and downright inaccurate. There is, of course, truth to be found in them on occasion. For both of these excerpts, it may behoove you to expand or “zoom in” on the image to read the text below if this intrigues you.

There are a lot of different analyses of lines and wrinkles in a person’s forehead that you can interpret. If this sort of divinatory practice interests you, I would suggest grabbing yourself a copy of the Zohar or checking out our copy in the library and studying up on it! However, do make sure to get the English versions as it is used primarily as a Jewish text. It is interesting that so many different cultures intertwine with regards to this practice: it is described in a Jewish book of esoteric knowledge, was popularized by an Italian philosopher and mathematician, and now studied by you and I as part of Hogwarts’ curriculum. It is certainly food for thought, but for the sake of time, let us move on to our longer discussion for today, moleosophy. We will learn more about the head in particular in our future lesson on phrenology, don’t worry.

Moleosophy
A lot of different seers are dubbed with having come up with this ancient practice, most notably amongst them - the famous seer Melampus. There was an archaic manual on the practice from ancient Greece said to be written by the aforementioned famed seer and soothsayer. Although no one can really agree on the practice’s true origins, it remains a viable theory and is worth mentioning. Let us delve into the different positions of moles that we can see on the face, as we will see on the diagram.

The chart above maps a total of twenty-five different mole positions on the human head that we can look for. Some of the positions can be off slightly, and other positions, although different, can mean the same thing! If there is a mole that isn’t directly in the same position as the chart above, we use the number association closest to the position of the mole. Easy enough, right?

Some of the moles listed below bring the owner of the mole bad news, while some indicate good fortune. Some of the moles can be removed to alleviate such “curses” while others cannot. Those that can be removed will be stated in the section of their corresponding position. In order to save us all a little bit of time, I have decided to list only a few of the possible positions; however, I will provide a link to a website that contains all of the positions indicated in the diagram above. The lesson and link to the other website will help you with your homework in today’s lesson.

Let’s take a look at the first three positions. They are located on the center of the forehead in a vertical line. Individuals who possess a mole in any of these three positions tend to be very artistic and creative. They like to be given the opportunity to do things their own way. This way, they feel like they can succeed more easily, rather than being so restricted they cannot express themselves. They were often rebellious as children and perhaps were viewed as a bit of a trouble maker.

The sixth mole position is indicative of a creative and intelligent soul. It is said that many artists may possess this mole and it heralds great success if the possessor pursues a career in the arts! They work well, magically, when paired with a wand made of pine wood.

A mole in the eighth position is an indicator of possible gambling problems. Those who possess this mole tend to overspend and then gamble the rest of their money in an attempt to make up for what they have spent on. It can also indicate a person who is too trusting of others and may suffer many heartbreaks before finding the “right” one for them.

A ninth position mole is a bearer of great misfortune. It indicates struggles in both the relationship and financial aspects of an individual's life. It is said that you may have this mole removed to alleviate the curse that comes along with this mole.

A mole in the tenth position is indicative of an individual who will always be surrounded by family. They are often happy-go-lucky people. They will have a very long and fulfilled life, both in familial and material wealth! It is interesting to note that those who possess this very lucky mole are also typically exceptional at charm work.

Like some of the other moles, a mole in the eleventh position can bring the possessor much strife in their life. It is seen as a bad omen for serious illness that the individual may be suffering from or may develop later on in their life. This, unfortunately, can not be combated by simply removing the mole as some of the others can. However, if the individual is or has a friend or family member that are proficient in potion making, most illnesses can be treated in this way.

An individual who possesses a mole in the thirteenth position is said to have boundless patience and compassion, especially for their offspring. The more troubling factor here is that their children are typically wild and rebellious and often take advantage of this calm and patient demeanor.

Circle, Circle, Dot, Dot
So what now?  I have set a bit of time aside in our class to have a little discussion between the differences of freckles and moles so that you do not confuse the two and give false readings. No one wants to be the “seer who cried wolf”. This can lead to ridicule and/or embarrassment. So what are the differences?

Both are tiny patches of pigmented skin on the body and their colors can be any shade of black, brown, gray, or even red.

However, freckles are defined as small, flat pigmented spots on the skin, which are not present at birth but develop over the years. They are more common on those who have a pale shade of skin. Moles, on the other hand, are typically raised (though, annoyingly, can also be flat, though rarely) and are often present at birth, though more can be developed as the individual ages. Another good rule of thumb is that freckles typically come in clusters and not one at a time. For a few visual hints, take a look at the various pictures to the right, all of which are examples of moles. If you are still concerned about incorrectly identifying these features, it may be best to assume something is a freckle, unless it is raised (in which case it can only be a mole).

Closing
I’m afraid that’s all the time we have for today. As promised, here is the link to the remainder of the mole placings. If you have any questions or issues with the site, please contact me and I will do my best to help out! Moleosophy Extra Reading. I certainly hope that you have enjoyed it and took plenty of notes. I do not wish to burden you with a lot of assignments for this lesson, so I will just give a very short essay, with no quiz. If you have any questions about either practice assignments, please owl me and I will direct you to certain resources for said material so that you can learn more on the subjects. Next week we will be moving on to phrenology and briefly discussing the ancient practice of cephalonomancy. Until then, study those moles and, of course, fair fortune!

Original lesson written by Professor Otto Umbridge
Image credits here, here, here, and here