Scrying is the occult practice of using a reflective surface such as a black glass, crystal ball, or a bowl of water to aid believed psychic abilities such as clairvoyance. Scrying has been used in many cultures as a means of seeing the past, present, or future; in this sense Scrying constitutes a form of divination. Michel de Notre-dame or Nostradamus as he was commonly known, is believed to have employed a small bowl of water as a Scrying aid. Other historical figures include Dr John Dee's assistant Edward Kelley who employed the more familiar form of a small Crystal ball or Shew stone, and later on a less familiar Trapezohedron. The crystal ball and wax tablets used by Dee and Kelly are on display at the British Museum in London.

Scrying is actively used by many cultures and belief systems and is not limited to one tradition or ideology.

Recommended reading

• A Symbolic Representation of the Universe: Derived by Doctor John Dee Through the Scrying of Sir Edward Kelly ~Aleister Crowley, Adrian Axwirthy
• Crystal Gazing: Study in the History, Distribution, Theory and Practice of Scrying ~Theodore Besterman
• Scrying for Beginners: Tapping into the Supersensory Powers of Your Subconscious ~Donald Tyson
• Crystal Gazing: Its History and Practice with a Discussion on the Evidence for Telepathic Scrying ~Northcote W. Thomas