VESTA CANDLE READINGS
For Questions Big and Small… or Just for Fun
Divination is found in all civilizations and cultures around the world, both ancient and modern. It’s a part of our psyche and a part of our societies. Whether through the cryptic sayings of a revered oracle or the readings of an online astrologer, we seek to know the unknowable and to discover the answers to life’s most pressing questions, from romance to finances. To the ancient Romans, divination wasn’t as much about predicting the future as it was about looking for signs from the gods to determine their divine will… which perhaps amounts to something similar. Because if the gods will it, if the Fates will it, it will be. They therefore had very strict methods of performing divination.
Candle reading—studying the wax flow of a melting candle—is another form of divination, and it is used in various cultures and capacities. The method that I use is uniquely suited to honoring Vesta. That’s important, since I’ve often been asked “How can I connect with Vesta? Is there a structured ritual I can use?” Candle reading can achieve this. It can help you connect with the goddess, receive her guidance, and develop your own relationship with her.
About this “ancient” method of candle reading
While writing my novels on the Vestal Virgins, I quickly recognized that the priestesses would have had a very formal and ritualized way to divine the will of Vesta by reading the movement of the eternal flame in the temple’s hearth, as well as the shifting of the wood and even the smoke that rose up from the fire. Yet because so much of what they did was performed in secret within the inner sanctum of the temple, and because any documents outlining this process would have been lost or destroyed in antiquity, we do not have any primary sources detailing this method.
To bring the Vestals and the temple to life, I therefore had to fill in the blanks. To do so, I did a deep dive into the practices and principles of ancient Roman religion and emerged with a structured method of fire reading that was based on this information, one that I believe conforms to the methodology the Vestals would have used.
That done, it was a fairly simple matter to transfer this ancient methodology to candle reading.
This method doesn’t just incorporate ancient rituals and practices. It also taps into the natural allure of fire. No doubt you feel it when you look into a flame… the sense of comfort and wellbeing, the beauty of the flame, and the pull toward self-reflection.
Fire is the symbol of the soul. It’s the symbol of eternity. It’s the oldest form of spiritual expression known to humankind, and for as long as we’ve gazed into the flame, we’ve wondered about the mysteries of life—not just Life in the largest sense, but also our own lives. Because every flame is a little light that our lives orbit around, just as the planets in the cosmos orbit around the sun. There is something very spiritual about that. When we are faced with questions about our past, present and future, when we are faced with questions about the universe and our place in it, we light and candle and reflect.
Candle reading offers a structured way to do this.
Finding Peace and Answers in Vesta’s Flame
A Candle: The Modern Altar Fire
An Introduction to My Method of Candle Reading:
While I am always adding new aspects and elements to this Vesta candle-reading method, you can nonetheless learn the most basic foundations in my book Divining Your Life: Candle Readings With the Flame of Vesta. It’s a good introduction to the practice.
Whether your questions are big or small, serious or irreverent, candle reading with Vesta’s illuminating flame can help you tap into your own intuition and discover the answers.
Connect with Vesta via the ritual of candle reading
Once you have a structured way to “read” a candle—especially one rooted in ancient customs—you will find this practice becomes an integral part of your life. Candle reading offers a way to connect with the goddess through ritual, and to feel both her presence and her guidance in your life in a real-world way. Use it to establish a communion and relationship with Vesta, one that can last a lifetime.
Free Gift: This Pair of Devotional Cards to Vesta
These stylish devotional cards each express a simple sentiment to Vesta in Latin (Latin to English translation key also provided). To me, there is something very special about speaking to Vesta in her first language. This pair of cards comes as a high resolution PNG zip file download (best for professional printing on 12 point gloss).