Coffee Grounds

About this reference

Coffee Grounds is a reference to the symbols that readers find in the sediment at the bottom of a cup. It is a companion to a Telegram bot that reads cups from a photograph.

What is on the site

For each symbol the site gives a short meaning, the way different traditions read it, the points where the sources disagree, the combinations with other signs that the sources describe, and answers to common questions. The How to read and Traditions pages explain the ritual and the sources.

How the pages are written

All texts are written in the site's own words. The books by Cicely Kent and Highland Seer are on Project Gutenberg, which distributes them as not protected by US copyright. The other sources are retold, apart from two short Turkish sayings. Source tags sit next to each description, and the list at the bottom of this page explains them and links to each source. The box labeled "How our bot reads it" shows the short meaning the bot uses, and that meaning can differ from the sources. Where the sources say nothing, the page says so.

For entertainment

Reading grounds is a game and a reason to talk. The site makes no forecasts and gives no advice, and its pages do not replace the decisions that readers make for themselves.

The Telegram bot

The bot @mysoorch_bot accepts a photo of a cup with grounds, finds the symbols in it and reads them. Each page of the reference links to it.

Sources

All symbols

What is in your cup?

Send the bot a photo of a cup with grounds. It finds the symbols in it and reads the cup.

Read my cup in Telegram