Dear Auntie Pan Pan,

What is a OUIJA Board? What is it used for? And what/how is the best way to use it?

The History of the Ouija Board

Oh Divination boards never get dull, do they? NOPE! Ouija is linked with 2 particular (maybe 3) forms of divination in one source location all wrapped up in a pretty plastic bow.

Which may be the reason some people are so leery about using one- maybe it’s a super packed divination triple threat.

But I digress.

Thank you Google and Wikipedia for some of my data- the rest comes from other sites linked below.

The earliest beginnings of Divination boards is really not using the board at all, but a form of automatic writing in China around 1100 AD (during the Song Dynasty) but this was actually known as Fuji Planchette writing.

Planchette writing was considered by some as scary because it was viewed as a form of necromancy or speaking with the dead – which was a popular thing to do at the Quanzhen school that was a branch of Taoism that originated in Northern China during the Jin Dynasty (1115 – 1234 AD).

Automatic Writing became FORBIDDEN during the Qing Dynasty from 1644 until 1912 AD. This really put a damper on Taoist writing since the Daozang or Taoist Canon of Faith which consists of over 1000 texts of Taoist transcriptions/writings since 400 AD. Some of the Taoists texts could have been partially aided and written by Taoist monks influenced or assisted by the use of automatic writing. Early forms of automatic writing have been found all across the world in various formats.

AND THEN THERE IS THE SPIRITUALISM MOVEMENT (DAAAH DUMMM DAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!)

Spiritualism is the belief we can speak to the dead from beyond the shroud of death because they are in the spirit world. Humanisticly speaking? Spiritualism seems to become more popular during war times and heightened health or terroristic crises. Whatever trauma where people in lump sums seem to be dying more in droves much higher than necessary – Spiritualism comes to the forefront for those “left behind” still living wanting to talk to those already gone and left us.

Is Spiritualism real or not? That decision is up to every individual to formulate their own opinion.

As the Spiritualist movement began picking up more momentum right after the Civil War ( or also the Victorian age of England ) Mediums “Psychics” just started popping out of the woodwork everywhere getting messages from the beyond. Some individuals claiming to be mediums (whether they were real or not) were making money hand over fist “talking to the dead” in salons/parlors/vanity shows all over the globe…sadly most mediums were really heartless charlatans milking the money machine while they could. This is not to say there weren’t GOOD mediums or psychics out there…but ite like looking for a unicorn sometimes. It was at this time:

OUT POPS THE BOARD

Now at this time, in 1890 the Ouija was born. There was divination or spirit boards all across various spiritualist communes and retreats around America – but one board stands above them all.

The Ouija concept was created by businessman/inventor/lawyer Elijah Bond. He had the brilliant idea of taking a divination board which at the time had NO Planchette. Most divination boards were being used with either a pendulum or a water glass/shotglass.

TRIVIA: Absinthe or Aperitif glassware was the perfect and most popular item to use on a divination board at this particular time in history in Parlors and Salons because they were just the right size to pinpoint only one specific letter or number on the board at a single time.

Talking to the dead and drinking Absinthe? It doesn’t take rocket science to put two and two together that this is a powerful hallucinatory one two punch outcome.

Elijah Bond wanted to merge the divination board with the automatic writing of the Planchette which looks similar to the Ouija Planchette we see today? Instead the Planchette had either a pencil, crayon, or charcoal where the clear eye screen is now located.

So Elijah combined:

• The Divination Board

• The Automatic writing Planchette with implementation of using the Planchette also as a form of Pendulum.

And then he submitted his patent the “Talking Board” combination on May 28, 1890 (HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!) 128 years old this year on Monday. The Patent was received on February 10 1891

And then there’s William Fuld.

William Fuld who had been a varnisher (even though he also was a stockholder of the Kennard Novelty Company as well ) at the Kennard Novelty Company (where after Elijah Bond and a cast of several other Friends/Individuals that wanted to take credit for the boards creation). William Fuld took over the “Talking Board” project in 1901. Fuld started creating his OWN board, but he needed to change the name – something catchy. Kennard Novelty Company was making Fuld Divination Boards…but it needed SOMETHING…

Fuld Called the board : OUIJA.

Or did he?

The word was actually credited to Helen Peter’s Nosworthy who was a fellow associate of Elija Bond.

Fuld stated originally that OUIJA was Egyptian for “Good Luck”. Eventually he changed his tune to the more popular version where OUI – JA is French/German for “YES – YES”.

Ironically Helen Peter’s Nosworthy tells the same tale. It seems that we should credit for the concept is Elija Bond, the name Ouija to Helen Peters Nosworthy, and mass manufacturer to William Fuld.

Time passed and Fuld board became OUIJA and stayed that way.

Just the owners of the game changes. Kennard – William Fuld – Ouija Manufacturing – to Parker Bros. to Hasbro.

William Fuld died by falling off of the roof of his factory backwards while a flagpole was being raised. As the flagpole raised? The man fell, piercing his heart with his own shattered ribs from falling off the building. Sometimes people find this demise a rather mysterious circumstance. Parker Brothers purchased the company in 1966.

At the shop: The Dragon and the Rose, we deal with and speak with many people regarding antique occult items that come from all over. Ouija being one of the most popular topics.

What is it Ouija used for and what’s the best way to use it?

I don’t think that using one alone is best for anyone – especially for anyone desperate for answers from the beyond. Negativity eats and feeds and breeds into desperation. So look at it for what it originally was supposed to be intended for. A parlor board game with two or more friends.

On the other hand… this can be viewed as a tool of divination- with a triple boost of possibility. Is it a doorway to speak to the beyond? I don’t know. I think anyone can do anything to create positive/negative energy work. The only reason to be wary of anything dealing with divination is to not get sucked into the spirit life to the point you no longer are living your own life. I have seen a few horror stories for those dependent on divination boards.

I knew someone that had their own perfume company and was making a profit, had a beautiful shop, a nice home, a happy family and great health.

Then they found a spirit board. They were staying up all night not sleeping just talking to “someone” in the board by themselves.

Within 6 weeks? They were closing up their shop. Their family was going to counseling. Their health was complete crap and not eating. Their teeth were falling out. Their kid almost ran away. They dropped 30 lbs and they were already skinny. They aged twenty years in six weeks. Diagnosed with no actual health issues by medical doctors besides poor hygiene, horrid eating habits and severe dehydration.

Luckily their significant other burned the board. I don’t know what happened after that since they refused to speak to me when I warned them about their personality shift several times… but I DID speak to their one if their kids years later after they moved out, nothing was ever exactly the same.

This is just ONE of my several stories regarding occultcodependency.

Anything can be used for divination however – I’ve seen people even see the future in a Starbuck’s Frappuccino. If you can scry with it – they will come.

If you can scry with it – they will come.

For more information on Ouija boards, visit:

http://www.williamfuld.com

http://www.museumoftalkingboards.com

http://www.mysteriousplanchette.com

Pictures of boards courtesy of Wulfenbahr Arts.

http://www.wulfenbahr.com