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The stirring story of coffee grounds
For centuries, Turkish fortune-tellers have been reading the future in coff ee cups. One oracle from Istanbul reveals what lies ahead for Parisians and explains her mystic art.
Did you know that your future is written as clearly at the bottom of your coffee cup as on the palm of your hand ? Apparently, it's a bit like lip reading or sign language. Reading the remains of certain drinks has been a tradition for thousands of years. In China they used to read tea leaves. Elsewhere it was the dregs of a wine bottle. Some say that interpreting coffee grounds started in Persia, but others believe it was in Florence: at the height of the Italian Renaissance it was common to offer a “diviner” a sachet of roasted beans to prepare in little white porcelain cups with no handle or decoration. You simply boil the finely ground beans, called “flour”, in a tin pan and slowly sip the liquid while meditating quietly, leaving a small residue at the bottom of the cup, then cover it with the saucer, and make a wish while turning the cup and saucer upside-down and towards yourself… The grounds should leave traces inside the cup that can be interpreted symbolically. The first written record of this practice dates back to the end of the 17th century when several works about it were published in Central Europe. At the time, this kind of clairvoyance created a sensation, not only in the Russian court of the Tzars and in Persia, but also in the harems of Arab sultans, to the great excitement of the residents.
Nothing concrete emerges from these irregular, unreliable accounts, only theories and coincidences that are patiently collected by those who want to be convinced. Don’t believe in coffee grounds but don’t dismiss them either” says Selda, an architect from Istanbul who has been living in Paris for years. She’s a specialist in Turkish culture and it was almost fate that she became involved in coffee reading. Her mother practised it religiously, but she was a city girl and barely even showed a polite interest.
An art of prediction that was a sensation in the court of the Tsars and among the Sultans of Persia.
She comes slowly towards you with a friendly smile, swirls the cup and examines the signs. They seem to resemble a cloud. I make a wish that she accepts without comment. She’s a seer, not a spy. “At first, I didn’t believe in it. I’m still very surprised when my predictions come true. I don’t try to explain it.” As she talks you learn that reading the cups is rooted in every strata of Turkish society, whether at the top or the bottom.
At 11 o’clock I visit my neighbour and we all take turns to read each other’s future. Recently an important Turkish film producer insisted on reading a cup in the restaurant of a big Parisian hotel. It’s not just some popular hobby, it’s taken very seriously. Sometimes it’s good, sometimes it’s bad. Just like cooking. Last year, a friend invited her to a garden party in the Tuileries to launch the Turkish Season in France. Someone suggested she should take part in a cultural presentation and use her talents to bring another dimension to Turkish coffee.
The idea got out of hand: “I didn’t stop. I did about 40 cups in a single evening. Architects, officials, lots of well-connected people all wanted their turn.” Is it the charm of seeing a formula revealed in images, the fantasy of poetry viewed through the spectacles of Cartesian logic? Or is it that her methodical, straightforward interpretation is appealing compared to some clairvoyants who emphasize the role of fate and search for every sign possible? “Some clients complain that I don’t tell them what they want to hear, but I read the cups, not between the lines."
Whether you believe in it or not, there’s always a certain fear of the verdict, that it will predict bitterness, sharpness, ruthlessness…That’s why this ritual creates a sense of freedom. It is a comforting gesture in a culture where people are used to taking care of their friends. The cup experience leaves a pleasant taste in the mouth.
"At first, I didn’t believe in it. I’m still very surprised when my predictions come true.”
Text : Julien Bouré
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