Inkblot divination
So it’s Rorschach and Prozac and everything is groovy.
"The Curse of Millhaven," Nick Cave
Back when parlor games were popular, there was one going around Europe called Klexographie. It involved spilling ink on a piece of paper and folding it in half. The sheet was then passed around among people, with each one telling a story based on what they saw in the image. In the early 1920’s, Swiss psychiatrist and proponent of psychoanalysis Hermann Rorschach was the first to apply the same concept to psychology. The Rorschach test was originally meant to test "perception and apperception" - form, perceived movement, color - rather than imagination. However, its applications soon included using it to probe the subconscious of patients, by seing what kind of images they project on a random splash of color. There are ten official inkblots: five are black ink on white, two are black and red ink on white, three are multicolored, and while the Rorschach Society claims the blots are copyrighted, they should be in the public domain based on when they were first created and how long the creator has been dead. Now, it’s possible to give yourself this classic test in the form of the Klexographie Inkblot Oracle, which works similar to divination by reading tea leaves, coffee grounds, fireplace ashes, or candle wax. Just think of a question and the patterns/symbols in the image should help you with the answer. If there is still something unclear, try another blot. It’s interesting how you can see completely different things in the same image on different days.
The Klexographie Inkblot Oracle has a new web address:
http://oneletterwords.com/inkblot/
Comment by Craig — May 19, 2008 @ 1:51 pm