Flame messages (technically known as pyroscopy) are a form of spirit communication popular at several Spiritualist communities. This is a variation on lampadomancy, which consists of divining by the form, color, and various movements of the light from a candle or lamp. Flame reading, as used in spirit communication, deals more with interpreting the smudge left on a sheet of paper by the burning wick of a candle than it does on the actual burning of the flame itself.
Before using any candle, many people like to “dress” or “bless” the item. This is done using pure olive oil. The dressing is done from the center of the candle outward to the ends. Hold the candle at one end and rub it with oil from the center out toward the far end, using just enough oil to very lightly coat the candle. Then take hold of that other end and rub from the center out toward the other end, so that the entire candle has been rubbed with the olive oil. See the illustration on the next page.
At the time you are doing this “dressing,” concentrate your thoughts on the person in spirit with whom you wish to connect.
When the candle is ready, sit and meditate for a few more moments on that person and then light the candle. Take a sheet of paper—any size will do, though a regular 8½" x 11" is good—and hold it against your body, over your heart. Hold the paper by the top and bottom edges. If you have any particular question you want to ask, then concentrate on that question.
Now take the paper and hold it over the candle flame with the side that was against your body downward in contact with the flame. Move the paper around, back and forth, and in circles . . . you’ll need to keep it moving so that it doesn’t catch fire. You should also hold it down close enough to the flame that a black, or grey, mark is left on the paper. Do this for a few moments and then remove the paper, turning it over so that you can see the image, and examine it.
What you will see, at first glance, may seem to be just a jumble of sooty lines that are quite arbitrary. But the more you study them, the more you will discover. There will be actual faces and figures in the swirls; letters and numbers may be there. Give your imagination full range. Turn the paper around and view it from all directions. Make a note of everything you see, no matter how irrelevant it may seem. Many times what comes through—as in so much of spirit communication—is symbolic. A knowledge of, or reference to, a book on dream symbology can be a great help (see also pages 48–70 in this book). What you see and can make out will be connected in some way with spirit, perhaps tying in with spirit’s early life, profession, hobbies, friends, or the like. It will be typical of the evidential material found in other forms of spirit communication.