Dowsing

Origin and history

Searching for water with rods is a millennia-old practice. There are Egyptian engravings of figures with rods in their hands. In medieval and Renaissance Europe (especially in mining Germany of the 16th century, with Georgius Agricola), the use of forked branches to find subterranean veins of water and minerals was widespread. The practice was called in French "sourcerie" ("source seeking") and the practitioners sourciers.

The term "radiesthésie" ("sensitivity to radiations") was coined in 1930 by the French abbot Alex Bouly to describe modern theoretical practice: it postulates that all bodies emit subtle radiations, and the practitioner detects these radiations through the involuntary movement of a pendulum or rods, amplifying small unconscious neuromuscular movements (the so-called ideomotor effect).

Tools and techniques

The pendulum is the most popular tool: a weight (crystal, metal, wood) hanging from a thin chain. The practitioner holds it with relaxed hand and asks. Movement codes are previously calibrated: "Show me the YES" (e.g. clockwise), "Show me the NO" (counterclockwise), "Show me the do not know" (still). Then specific questions are asked.

The L-rods are two L-shaped metal rods, held loosely. They are used especially for detecting underground water, telluric energies of a place, lost objects on a piece of land. The rods cross or open according to what is detected. The traditional Y-rod (forked rod, ancient) is used principally for water search in fields.

Practical and oracular use

Modern dowsing is used in different fields: practical (water searching for wells, locating underground installations, healthy food selection, energetic cleansing of houses) and oracular (yes/no questions about decisions, health, spiritual matters). It also has applications in alternative therapies (locating energy blocks, evaluating compatibility of remedies, scanning chakras). Always with humility: it is a tool to access intuitive information, not a guaranteed exact science.