First, loose leaf tea is poured into teacups and drank until only the dregs remain. Next, the cup is swirled three times with the left hand and turned over to drain. Then the shapes of the leaves left in the cup are interpreted by the diviner. The best shape of the cup to be is one with a wide opening at the top and a bottom not too small. Cups with almost perpendicular sides are very difficult to read, as the symbols cannot be seen properly, and the same may be said of small cups.
The ritual to be observed is very simple. The tea-drinker should drink the contents of his or her cup so as to leave only about half a teaspoonful of the beverage remaining. He/she should next take the cup by the handle in his/her left hand, rim upwards, and turn it three times from left to right in one fairly rapid swinging movement. He/she should then very slowly and carefully invert it over the saucer and leave it there for a minute, to get rid of all moisture draining away.
Careful notice should be taken of all the shapes and figures formed inside the cup. These should be viewed in front of different positions so that their meaning becomes clear. It is not very easy at first to see what the shapes really are, but after looking at them carefully they become plainer.
The different shapes and figures in the cup must be taken together in a general reading. Bad indications will be balanced by good ones; some good ones will be strengthened by others, and so on.
