Fortune Telling Techniques
Featured in their anime profiles, Hotaru and Chibiusa both have a preference for fortune telling. Hotaru's favourite way is through Anthomancy, while Chibiusa's is Cartomancy. Since I was unfamiliar with these types of fortune telling, I thought others would be curious as well. So, with some research, I've gathered some information on each of these types.Anthomancy comes from the Greek anthos, which translates to (a) flower (so literally "Divination using flowers"). This is a modern term referring to the practice of plucking petals off a flower and uttering alternately "She/he loves me" for one petal, and "She/he loves me not" for the next. Whichever sentence is utter for the last petal on the flower is the answer. It is not specified if a certain type of flower must be used, as long as the flower itself has pluckable petals. This is a classic activity that is still very popular among school children (mainly little girls) during recess.
Cartomancy is a combination of Latin carta, which means papyrus paper, and Greek manteia, which means prophecy. This is a method of fortune telling, which uses a traditional deck of playing cards to forcast a person's future. Some may wonder, aren't you mistaken? Tarot cards are used for fortune telling, not regular playing cards. Well, the 52 cards we use today are believed to be directly related to the 56 cards of the Minor Arcana found in traditional tarot card decks. The four suits in a traditional pack of cards correlate to the four astrological elements (Clubs-Fire, Diamonds-Earth, Spades-Air, and Hearts-Water). The twelve court cards correspond to the twelve sun signs of the zodiac, while the thirteen cards in each suite are linked to the thirteen lunar cycles in each year. "Pip cards" refer to the numbered cards in a deck, and provide an indication of events and circumstances. In addition to fortelling the future, a traditional deck of playing cards can also be used to interpret past events.