Padomancy - fact or fiction?
Recently, a co-worker of mine at the Ministry (pennyclearwater) have been discussing the less practised forms of Divination, such as Astragalomancy and Padomancy. I simply cannot find it within myself to follow such inconsistent forms of magic. Divination has always been a field that I have found to be vaguely unsatisfying. It leaves me feeling rather sceptical, though I do enjoy the enrichment of learning just how these things are done.
Padomancy, for those who are unaware, is rather similar to palmistry. However, the soles of the feet are interpreted. This practise dates back to ancient China, which brings to mind another story (one I will, however, keep to myself). I believe the Muggle fictional book Cat's Cradle was also influenced by the feel of padomancy. In that novel, it is a ritual of the fictional Bokonon faith for man and woman to press the soles of their feet together. Both Miss Clearwater and myself believe that this was influenced by the ancient Chinese practise, and have begun to question whether this was intentionally linked to something in the wizarding world.
In any case, this led to a heated discussion on the matter of padomancy in itself. I, of course, am completely sceptical as to its concretly factual and magical merits. In other words, I think it is actually quite silly; however, Miss Clearwater surprised me by admitting that she feels that it is one of the more relatively accurate forms of Divination. Naturally, I was quite shocked to discover this. Nonetheless, I was also rather intrigued, as I am not wholly unwilling to hear the opinions of those I respect in this community.
Since the whole of this story is a personal one, I shall not shed light upon the details that led me to the following conclusion: the idea of a form of energy having been developed in the soles of the feet is not one held with complete lack of merit.
As it stands, the soles of the feet receive the most weight of our body. When magical charges run rampant, it is the soles of our feet which keep us grounded. Apparently, this is a similar form to that of an electrical charge. I daresay I know little about Muggle electricity, unfortunately.
The famous padomancist Brunhilda Bleakosical invested herself in an interesting project in the late 1800s. The idea was to have those with the strongest magical forces in them (perhaps the Albus Dumbledores of that time) to create pensieves; pensieves with memories drawn only from the soles of their feet. Bleakosical felt that examining these memories would help to predict the future for their owners. However, as it turned out, found within the pensieves were only cobblestone roads, dewy grass, and large-buckled shoes. Sadly, Bleakosical passed on before she could further tweak this project.
Padomancy, for those who are unaware, is rather similar to palmistry. However, the soles of the feet are interpreted. This practise dates back to ancient China, which brings to mind another story (one I will, however, keep to myself). I believe the Muggle fictional book Cat's Cradle was also influenced by the feel of padomancy. In that novel, it is a ritual of the fictional Bokonon faith for man and woman to press the soles of their feet together. Both Miss Clearwater and myself believe that this was influenced by the ancient Chinese practise, and have begun to question whether this was intentionally linked to something in the wizarding world.
In any case, this led to a heated discussion on the matter of padomancy in itself. I, of course, am completely sceptical as to its concretly factual and magical merits. In other words, I think it is actually quite silly; however, Miss Clearwater surprised me by admitting that she feels that it is one of the more relatively accurate forms of Divination. Naturally, I was quite shocked to discover this. Nonetheless, I was also rather intrigued, as I am not wholly unwilling to hear the opinions of those I respect in this community.
Since the whole of this story is a personal one, I shall not shed light upon the details that led me to the following conclusion: the idea of a form of energy having been developed in the soles of the feet is not one held with complete lack of merit.
As it stands, the soles of the feet receive the most weight of our body. When magical charges run rampant, it is the soles of our feet which keep us grounded. Apparently, this is a similar form to that of an electrical charge. I daresay I know little about Muggle electricity, unfortunately.
The famous padomancist Brunhilda Bleakosical invested herself in an interesting project in the late 1800s. The idea was to have those with the strongest magical forces in them (perhaps the Albus Dumbledores of that time) to create pensieves; pensieves with memories drawn only from the soles of their feet. Bleakosical felt that examining these memories would help to predict the future for their owners. However, as it turned out, found within the pensieves were only cobblestone roads, dewy grass, and large-buckled shoes. Sadly, Bleakosical passed on before she could further tweak this project.