Dowsing and dowsing - Does it really work?

Humanity has always wanted to understand how everything works, and for this they have been created many theories, some more successful than others, and there have been many practices that have often done, and continue to do today, that we wonder what our place is in the universe.

Starting from this, one of those activities is dowsing, which is based on the affirmation that the human body can perceive electromagnetic and electrical stimuli, in addition to the magnetisms and radiation of an emitting body through unstable devices, such as a pendulum, a fork or a rod in the form of L.

What does dowsing mean? And dowser?

If you've never heard these two words before, don't worry. Next we will tell you what they mean:

Dowsing: this word is constructed from two terms: Latin radium what is radiation and greek aesteshia which is perception by the senses. Thus, dowsing could be translated as the supposed ability that some people claim to have to discover the energetic universe that surrounds us.
This word would appear for the first time in the 30s, coming from the French radiésthesie which was created around 1890 by the abbot Alexis Bouly.
Dowser- The dowser, sometimes called a dowser or dowser, is someone who claims that he can detect changes in electromagnetism through the movement of simple objects such as a pendulum or rod. It says it is capable of detecting streams, underground lakes, and minerals.

Origin and history of dowsing

Dowsing is a practice that has been carried out for several thousand years. Already in the Ancient Egypt (about 5000 years ago) it was believed that the human being, and more specifically Pharaoh, had the power to perceive stimuli, since it was believed that he was the son of a God. Archaeological excavations found rods and pendulums in which the eternal resting place for many pharaohs: the Valley of the Kings.

But it was not only made in the Nile Country, but also in China. There, engravings were found showing Emperor Yu, of the Hsia Dynasty, who ruled between 2205 and 2197 BC. C., with two rods.

However, modern practices seem to originate from the XNUMXth century Germany. Back then, dowsers were busy finding metals. Although they did not have it easy: already in the year 1518 Martin Luther considered this activity as an act of witchcraft, and thus he reflected it in his work Decem Praecepta.

Years later, in the 1662, the Jesuit Gaspar Schott affirmed that the practice was nothing more than a superstition that could even be satanic, although later he said that he was not sure that it was the devil who always waved the wand.

Dowsing schools

There are two types of dowsing schools, which are:

School of Physical Dowsing: It is based on the fact that everything emits electromagnetic waves, and that the operator is therefore a receiver of these waves that can perceive them thanks to a rod or pendulum that would help him to perceive them.
School of Psychic or Mental Dowsing: It is the one that considers that dowsing is a phenomenon of the unconscious which produces a neuromuscular reflex that allows a response to be made evident.

As practiced?

Zahori

Although they do not always use elements, normally those who practice it use a vegetable or metal rod, or a pendulum, which serves as a stimulus to perceive the energy of a certain place.

Those who use the tree fork, hold it in the following way:

The head is slightly tilted downwards.
The hands are placed on the ends of the fork.
The arms are inclined, so that the fork is close to the practitioner, above the abdomen.
One leg, usually the left, is bent with the foot on the ground.

What do you think dowsing is used for?

Pendulum dowsing is an alternative medicine technique that intended to be used for diagnosis. But in addition, it claims to have other uses such as find water, lost items, minerals, people or animals; guess numbers and combinations; locate energy radiation points; predict current or future states of living matter or obtain exact measurements.

This discipline is closely related to acupuncture, homeopathy, flower therapy, Reiki, crystal therapy and else. It also supports the Feng Shui and the Tarot.

Does it really work?

The answer is no. Some studies have been done on this and none of them had positive results. Some of them are:

Year 1948. Study published in the New Zealand Journal of Science and Technology 30 in which the ability of 58 dowsers to detect water was evaluated.
Year 1990: A study carried out by Hans-Dieter Betz and other scientists in Munich.
Year 1995. James Randi publishes a book entitled »Paranormal Frauds», from the Tikal publishing house.