Quick Specs
- Publisher: U.S. Games Systems
- Designers: Judas Knight and the VanDyke family
- Includes: 16×16 inch spirit board, pendulum with 12-inch chain, 84-page guidebook
- Best for: Spirit communication, divination, mediumship practice
Tabula Mortem: A Spirit Board with Pendulum and Guidebook
The Tabula Mortem is a modern spirit board produced by U.S. Games Systems that goes substantially beyond the standard Ouija layout. Designed by Judas Knight and the VanDyke family, it adds a system of 22 cave runes to the standard letters and numbers. The authors describe the runes as received through visionary sessions, as predecessors to the 22 Major Arcana of the tarot, and as ancient communication symbols predating written language.
The 84-page guidebook included with the set covers the history of spirit boards from the Spiritualist movement of the 1800s, practical instructions for opening and closing sessions, and full descriptions of all 22 cave rune symbols. Most spirit boards ship with no instruction material, leaving users to navigate the practice alone. The Tabula Mortem addresses this directly and provides a structured approach that experienced practitioners find credible.
Working with the Tabula Mortem Safely and Effectively
Serious practitioners consistently emphasize the importance of working with intention and clear boundaries when using spirit boards of any type. The Tabula Mortem guidebook instructs users to invoke only named, known spirits rather than issuing an open invitation, and to formally close each session by returning the pendulum to the Goodbye position and stating that the session has ended. This kind of boundary-setting is common in mediumship work, where specificity of invitation is considered a basic safety measure.
Beyond the standard letter and number layout, the board communicates through the 22 cave rune positions, which allows for more nuanced responses than a simple yes or no. The included pendulum serves as the planchette and can also be used independently as a dowsing tool.
How to Use the Tabula Mortem Spirit Board
Step-by-step guidance for working with the Tabula Mortem Spirit Board.
- Prepare and Cleanse the Board
Before your first session, cleanse the board by passing it through incense smoke and set a clear intention for only named, invited spirits to communicate. Read the 84-page guidebook fully so you understand all 22 cave rune symbols first.
- Conduct the Session
Place the board on a stable surface, light a candle, and use the pendulum to move over the letters and cave rune symbols. Ask specific questions of a named spirit or ancestor, not an open invitation to any entity that might be present.
- Close and Store Properly
After each session, formally close by saying goodbye and moving the pendulum to the Goodbye position. Store the board wrapped in cloth and separate from the pendulum to clearly signal that the communication session has properly concluded.
The Tarot Fellow Standard
I carry the Tabula Mortem because it is the only commercially produced spirit board I have found that includes a substantive guidebook and a practical pendulum tool in one package. It treats the practice seriously rather than as a novelty. For complementary divination tools, browse my tarot and divination collection, and for altar supplies to support spirit board sessions browse my candles collection.
Frequently Asked Questions
The set includes a 16-by-16-inch fold-out spirit board, a pendulum with a 12-inch chain that functions as a planchette, and an 84-page guidebook covering spirit board history and the 22 cave rune symbols on the board.
The cave runes are 22 symbols on the board that the authors describe as received through visionary work. The runes correspond conceptually to the 22 Major Arcana of the traditional tarot deck.
Beyond the standard letters and numbers, the board carries 22 cave rune symbols, which allow more nuanced responses than a simple yes or no. The guidebook gives a full description of each of the 22 symbols.
The Tabula Mortem was produced by U.S. Games Systems and designed by Judas Knight and the VanDyke family.
Have not had a lot of time to work with the planchette but it works very well with my pendulum.
Booklet was cool. The board itself has a big groove in it that would interfere with planchette movement; if it ever did anything l, that is. Maybe I’ll try it with a friend.
That’s a fair assessment, the folding design creates a center groove. One workaround the designers suggest is using the planchette as a pendulum.
I love the board I am a ouija board collector and I dabble with them