I asked the question because I taught dowsing at the American Society of Dowsers for over 20 years and always enjoyed meeting people and introducing them to the concept. I always thought it was just for water (my father did that for people). Then I went to a convention and discovered you could dowse for any thing and the race was on. The fascinating thing is that you can dowse for anything WITH any thing. Sticks, rods, pendulums, blade of grass, pencil, etc. we worked with the British Society of Dowsers and others around the world. There was so much to learn. It all gets down to what you believe and don't believe and what and how you were taught. My father would only dowse for water. He didn't get into the other stuff' " as he put it and would refer people to me. Some feel strongly about it religiously but it has been used forever for water from sheep herders to all animals. Some have a natural "instinct" for hunting, water, survival etc. It is fascinating and I love to teach it.

My grandpa dowsed for water and was sometimes called on to do it for other people. It was just a fact of living on a farm and a necessary skill. A Mississippi cousin on my mother's side of the family is retired from working for the
Federal Govt. and is sometimes called on to work with researchers in finding graves or documenting historical sites.

Where I live in a small NW community, water or sewage lines often cross the property of someone else, a leftover from a time when surveyors were seldom used unless there was a dispute when selling property. A city employee saves a lot of time locating these lines by dowsing.

Are you self-taught? I've attended massage therapy classes and seminars, looked around the quiet, hushed room and seen one or two people swinging a pendulum over someone on the table. Very interesting subject you have introduced.

Oh that is so awesome! Everything is energy. We can all learn to feel, sense, read that energy if we develop that sense. Animals do it instinctively. Humans are the only animal that teaches itself to routinely ignore instinct. (how many times have we heard "oh it's all in your head") If an animal does that, it dies.

If you go on that principle then dowsing makes a ton on sense. After all, most of us only use 10% of our brain capacity. I believe energy work is tapping into some of the other 90%. There was a fellow that researched dowsing and pyramids in relation to gardening in the hopes of improving food production to help eliminate starvation. Apparently he had some pretty incredible results and wrote a book on the process and had an educational garden.

I learned from others all over the world. There isn't a thing that I can think of that can't be dowsed. The key is learning what you are, disciple, honesty, to learn how to ask questions for the best results. Every one will do it differently because of their life"s experiences. There are no wrong answers...just wrong questions. Much like any investigation. Again there is nothing you can't dowse. There are some things you should not dowse and that is up to you to determine. If you can't decide how to place a quilt piece or what color to use you can learn to dowse it.
Masseuses use it, some chiropractors use it. Nurses, etc. When I first started eons ago.. water was the venue, then as people became more familiar that other ways were more common and acceptable then it opened up to what it is now and growing. Many people take off with it with no regard to paying attention and treating it like a course not a play thing......not that you can't have fun.....There are doubters as there should be and those that like to control things that (can't) do it because they can't let go. It is really fascinating and can stimulate very interesting topics. A psychic is to same. You can do it with tools and without.

When I was eight my grandparents hired a water witch to find a place to dig a new well. My sibling and cousins followed him around all day. He showed each of us how to hold the fork peach tree branch to find water. I was the only one that could. He said I was a good dowser and I should practice everyday. He said good water dowsers were hard to find. I would hold the fork branch over a bucket of water and almost had burns on my hands from the wood turning while I was holding it back with all my might. My siblings and cousins couldn't do it at all. Later I tried metal to dowse but water is my best. Not much call for dowsers anymore when technology is 100%. I gave my kids forked peach branches and let them practice. My youngest could but my oldest couldn't. My DGD can. It's lots of fun for the kids.

actually water dowsing or oil dowsing is used a lot..the demand has not gone away. Many well drillers use it or have dowsers do it. Then there are those that don't believe it works..

My DD's brother's wife did that and everyone who wanted to drill a water well would have her come with her limb from a willow tree to find out the best places to drill. I remember my DM saying she was almost always right about the best place to drill.

Once when we were trying to have a whole house water treatment system (Rainsoft) installed in our TX house, we had to connect to the water supply from the street but didn't know exactly where the water lines had been laid. The installer said he really didn't want to did up the whole yard looking for them.

So my ex dowsed for them!

I can't remember what he used as the neighborhood was fairly new and most trees were rather small for breaking off a limb. I remember being so surprised he knew how to do that and was worried what in the world our neighbors would think, seeing him out there walking the yard in a grid with his arms out in front of him like that!!

He did find the lines quickly and the installation was done in one afternoon. Loved that Rainsoft water!!

Jan in VA

I don't doubt its authenticity...have never tried it, nor do I personally know anyone who has that talent. But, the stories told in this post are truly interesting. I'm just being silly now....wonder if it would work for buried treasure?

Never heard that term before now. When someone looked for water they used a divining rod, all I remember about it.