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A good new thread?
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I'm never sure that the term "psychic" really means much - but then, I'm never certain where the physical world ends and perception begins. I recall one anecdotal account of a spectacular success in map-dowsing, leading to the discovery of the bodies of two missing people in a pick up truck at the bottom of a lake. They had fallen through the ice. The process was so accurate that the Police launch stopped directly above the vehicle. Whether this is true, and, if so whether exaggerated, I do not know. If such happens, there is still biology involved. There must be wherever an item is held. It comes back to "what is perceived and how". I still find myself unable to speculate with any hope of a level of satisfactory accuracy. In this instance, I don't know even if there is anything about which to speculate.
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Just been doing a bit of reading on this trying to find some research. It’s worth mentioning that while the dictionary doesn’t seem to distinguish between divining, dowsing and radesthesia; I do. I only have experience of physical dowsing: locating pipe work and electric cables - this I would call dowsing. The more psychic uses such as asking questions or map dowsing are beyond my experience. This I would call radesthesia.
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If you discovered that dowsing rods worked usefully ( I can’t claim “accurately” because I can miss by half a pace) say eighty percent of the times you used them; would that answer your question? That is approximately my hit rate. It has taken time to establish the different way that I convert my reaction to tool movement. I once stared at the ground looking for some highly improbable stimulus while my wife laughed. I was standing beneath a power line. I had however realised that the rods were moving strangely. I suspect that successful or consistent repetition might answer your more general inquiry. Indeed😄. The more his muscles were braced against the twig the more effort he would apply to movement. I wonder why no one has done research into the initial stimulus. It’s one of the few science projects that I can think of that could be carried out at relatively low cost, at least to the stage where data is handed over to neuroscience. Unfortunately I do not think there is a PhD to be found in the back yard on this one.
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Anyone can do it - even the most sceptical - I know, because I have a friend who is a Yorkshire man and he is the most sceptical person I have ever met. He held the hazel twigs so tight (he is very strong having been a prop forward for Halifax in his day) that the bark stripped off the twigs as they fought to move in his hands 😄 You should have seen his face!
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That biology is involved is obvious. But whether it is characterised as "what makes it work?", "why does it work?" or "how does it work?", the fact remains the sensing of an unknown variable by an unknown faculty is something I have no hope of guessing accurately, or of testing whether the guess is accurate. So, I will remain steadfastly uninterested in that procedure. That it a physical process that works is sufficient. The point that does intrigue me is the question I asked above - what's the difference between whether it works of is coincidence? In intrigues me in part because I am uncertain as to whether I can even formulate it into a valid thought process. Basically, to what extent does anything work because of a coincidence or series of coincidences? In a large enough data set, there may well be a series of, say, 100 positive results even where "chance" seems to be the in play. Did the process work, or was it "coincidence"? The mind is working on this one, and I still don't know where it is taking me.
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Oh deary dreary me Ellinas. There isn’t any mystery as to how it works. There is a problem with what causes it to work! What makes the rods cross, the pendulum swing and the hazel twig flick is the same thing. I have carefully avoided saying what it is. Not out of any sense of arcane knowledge but because once you know what causes the movement you can’t un-know it and that makes it harder for anyone trying for the first time. Suffice it to say that it is the dowser. What is not known is what sense brings about the dowser ‘s action and that bit of biology interests me a lot. So little biology remains undiscovered at this level. How can I not be intrigued? As for the effectiveness of the rods - well you and I have discussed this before when I told you that I had found Lord Tredegar’s water main before I knew that it existed. For many years watermen were supplied with rods. Indeed when I needed to find a sewer at Tradegar house, the guy from Tech. Services used rods. He’s the guy who taught me!
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What's the difference? I've once tested dowsing with a group that were demonstrating it, and was told that the reaction I got with a couple of bent metal rods was in the area of an underground watercourse. I did not grab a spade to verify that as the National Trust would have been unhappy. If I do anything now, it would be with an old key suspended from a length of leather cord. I am as uninterested in how it works as I am uninterested in the innards of my car. I don't need to understand mechanics to drive. When someone works it out, they can tell me.
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Now! I wonder what sort of reply folk here are anticipating from me😄. Well firstly this post is just my own experience and my opinion. Your beliefs and thinking are your own and safe from me. I have dowsed successfully using wires. I have found water pipes and sewers that I did not know existed. My view is that anyone can do it and that it is a biological response to ......... now that I am unsure of as yet. I do not see it as a psychic phenomenon but perhaps that depends upon your definition of psychic. I do not see it as anything connected with the materials used in the dowsing process. I can dowse equally effectively with rods of steel, copper, plastic or wood. On the other hand it may be that for some, the dowser’s awareness of those materials affects their response. In my opinion the dowsing tool has nothing to do with reception of the input stimulus (water, electric current, subterranean metal object etc.). It is the human (mammalian? animus?) dowser that picks up the information. The pendulum, rods, hazel twig are outputs alerting the dowser to a stimulus that they have picked up but of which they are not conscious. In other words: The dowser is the dowsing tool. The response is physical. The pendulum etc. is just an indicator. There are Australian well dowsers making a living from their talent and who do not need any tool at all. They have developed an awareness of their own reaction. It’sa very interesting subject and one which needs further scientific investigation. I am wondering whether mammals (and others) are aware of subtleties in gravity but that is pure conjecture.
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Hi @Skepticalmytic. Welcome to the valley. I've only come across dowsing when used by archaeologists. The ones I've spoken to say that if it's better than nothing, why not give it a go? I don't know if people are inherently good or bad at it, but presumably one has to become sufficiently skilled for the technique to achieve anything. I still imagine that's probably true.
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I don’t believe in spirits or dowsing or psychic phenomena, more like didn’t. I am curious about dowsing ever since I had an experience with it. A friend of mine told that I have extraordinary psychic energy and that I can use it if I ever wanted to. Just to prove her wrong I tried pendulum dowsing with a necklace and pendant. We decided to take a dice and roll it, then use the pendulum to find the number. To my surprise, I was right for all 30 tries and then we decided to predict some future events for fun. I predict certain yes or no events that came true but after a while I was extremely drained. My head was clouded, I felt extended tired as if I had just recovered from a severe flu. This didn’t last long I was totally alright after a warm shower and meditation. Is this normal ?? Can I actually dowse or is this just a coincidence?
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Christine changed their profile photo
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My oldest son refers to folding fitted sheets as witchcraft. It's such a perplexing, frustrating, mysterious task for him that he marvels at me doing it. It is also an internet meem for those of a certain age group. It makes me laugh every time he's impressed at my sheet folding skill. It makes me think about all the skills I've ever been impressed by that seem so magical and mysterious. When I was a child, crochet, and knitting. It seems like magic wands creating something out of basically nothing. Cake decorating, wood carving, and embroidery are all equally enchanting. The world is so full of things that are interesting and full of the possibility of magic. I wish you a sense of awe at something that other people find incredibly ordinary. Maybe it's car repair or how a building takes shape or bread baking or quilting or chopping an onion into perfect little cubes. Marvel in the ordinary, it can be so amazing, if we give it a chance. It can also help us find perspective and inspiration when we badly need it. If you are struggling to connect to everyday magical energy, there are many deities who might help. Brigid is the goddess of smiths, poets, and midwives. Airmid is the goddess of healing herbs and medicines. Hephaestus is the smith god of the Greeks. Anansi, Hermes, Mercury, Loki, and Coyote, all tricksters, are chaotic creators who tend to be upcyclers of the highest order. Read their myths, leave a small offering, and be open to awe. It is the best starting point for inviting magical and creative energies into your life. View the full article
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Time passes. How we mark it, as individuals and as society says a lot about us. I'll leave you to contemplate what you think is being said. Most years, I take some comfort in the cycles of the year. January is quiet and new. March is busy. May is social. August and October are crazy with things that revolve around kids and my husband's job. This year, of course, feels weird. March stood still and became, somehow, September. October is disappearing too fast and not fast enough at the same time. Regular things happened in strange, new ways. It's all very odd as if the rhythm has stumbled or stopped. In response to all of this, I became a little obsessed with calendars. I'm trying to figure out how to build a miniature stone circle calendar on my patio. I eyed perpetual calendars for weeks, coveting, critiquing, desiring. Finally, I made one of my own. It's three circles of stretched canvas, watercolor paint, and a few other odds and ends. It isn't, currently, anything fancy, but it has reconnected me with the idea of a rhythmic, cyclical year. I may update it later. I may indulge myself and buy a fancy wooden Waldorf calendar with moon phases and seasons to accompany the days and months we normally obsess over. If this year has cut you off from your usual rhythm, I hope you find a way to reconnect to it. Reconnecting doesn't mean you have to get over this year and all of its stresses, but it can give you hope that next year can be something else, regardless of when you mark the changing year. Plan your garden, make a calendar, craft something that reminds you that this will pass and that someday, life will feel a bit more normal. Whatever it is, I am wishing you all you need to move forward with hope and curiosity. View the full article
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2020 has been hard on my creativity, and it is straining my coping strategies. One day I'm fine with distance learning, a small living space, and taking each day as it comes, and other days, I'm raging and crying. Scattered between the two are a few days of creativity or joy or productivity, but mostly the frustrations of my two main modes of being. A couple of weeks ago, my daughter got sad that she doesn't have a TK classroom like in her books and shows. An understandable disappointment for a little one. The same day, I had been haunting Pinterest looking for Halloween ideas that didn't revolve around trick-or-treating (health officials here were early and clear that we needed to come up with alternate Hallowe'en plans- which was nice). I saw pumpkin dioramas, which were varied and cute. I immediately ordered some supplies for pick up from Michael's, thinking I'd be lucky to do the project over the weekend. They texted me twenty minutes later that my stuff was ready for pick up, and the little one and hopped in the car after her distance learning ended and picked them up. We started by tinting the pumpkin a soft, warm shade of pink. then I cut a hole in the side (I used an X-acto knife, but looking back, I had a Dremel tool attachment that would have made it take two minutes instead of half an hour). We hot glued a variety of mosses down to create faery carpet and wall decorations. An old steel can lid that I had painted with nail polish for a different project was glued to a champagne cork to make a table. We added more corks for chairs. Tiny glass bottles with glitter glue were glued to the table. Polymer clay was flattened into a blackboard, and some alphabet stamps and a piece of paper made turned into an ABC banner. A string of lights, a couple of tiny signs, and we had Miss Twinkle's Faery Kindergarten. It took us from early afternoon to dusk. My sons drifted out to the patio to watch and comment, and my daughter got to tell me what she thought about how she learns and how faeries learn and how we make things. A week later, we shared pictures with her teacher over e-mail. Her teacher shared them with the class. My daughter got to tell everyone about her crafting adventure. This week, another little girl in the class shared her Faery classroom. When moments of inspiration strike, try to go with it, even if you doubt your skills or it will make a mess. The experience might become more than the sum of its parts, especially as we feel lonely and isolated and disrupted in the days of Covid-19. I might give you a sense of accomplishment, open the door for a conversation, or it might connect you to someone else. All of those could be exactly what you need, but don't know what you need. I bless you today with a breath of fresh air that carries on it an idea. I bless you with a little time and exactly what you need to be creative. View the full article
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My son has one of those, though I've never seen it on his wrist. Some years ago I went to a Roman military reconstruction (might have been Ermine Street Guard or British Historical Society, as I've seen both). Someone there had, as part if his kit, a sundial in a form similar to a pocket watch. It was quite impressive. Anyhow, that wrist watches are still in common use is witnessed, I think, by the number that are displayed in jewellers' windows.
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Wristwatches? I still wear mine. Not sure how smart it is. It’s polished, does that count?
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Don’t worry SH I can digress in touch wood too. i collect touchwood whenever I come across it. It is a very fine powdery fibre that sometimes results from rotting birch branches. It even comes wrapped in a waterproof package of thin bark. It makes the most wonderful tinder for my Kelley Kettle. It will catch fire in a rainstorm. Should my very superstitious mother bash her elbow she would always bash the other one. I have no idea why even in the dubious logic of the superstitiously paranoid. Is it my generation that sometimes use an army salute to acknowledge compliance? I did see a (younger) friend use a glancing American salute as a form of sarcastic dismissal. i used to use the cheque signing gesture to request a bill. I’d be very doubtful about a gesture indicating the insertion off a card.
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Probably moreso now with smart watches etc. I think the reference was to those strange and alien "young people" who have never worn a watch but use the gesture in any case. I remember with double-decker buses, the two storeys were refereed to as "inside" and "on top", which I always imagined came from the open top buses that come out in the summer in some places. Apparently, though, it's a survivor from the days of trams, but I wonder if it came from stagecoaches before then. Apologies for the digression ED - this has very little to do with "touch wood". I see pagan references almost everywhere but perhaps not in the way that the parts of buses get named.
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I believe wristwatches are still reasonably common. "Touch wood" was often used by my father. He would only touch his head if there was no wood to hand. I have no idea of its origin. I have used it, but rarely Is the technical equivalent of obsolete gestures the requirement to click, in order to save a document, an image of a floppy disc?
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There was something on the radio this morning or yesterday about outdated signs, including looking at one's wrist when talking about what time it is and miming signing a cheque when asking for a bill. (I'd never heard of the latter but apparently people do it.) It reminded me of someone pointing out that kids who have never seen a steam train move their arms like the old wheel bars (whatever they're called) when being a train. I had an aunt, Hampshire born and bred, who always said that. I say it partly in her memory. I have an Irish colleague who still says it quite a bit and tells me it's distinctively Irish.
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I have always understood that to touch wood averts malevolent forces / entities who might frustrate a stated and hoped for outcome. Even in my Anglican household it was generally understood that benevolent nature spirits dwelled within the natural material and would counter the malevolence. Tapping ones head, as I interpreted it, indicated that the head in question was also made of wood. Gestures seem to prevail beyond their origins. Most of my life, rotating an imaginary handle beside the head indicated a telephone call. I’ve no idea whether it persists yet. The rotating operator call handle was obsolete three generations before mine never mind yours. While working in forests near Oban it was quite usual to hear any statement of future activity followed by the caveat, “If I’m spared,” frequently accompanied by a furtive glance upward even by those to whom any threat was likely to come from the opposite direction.
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Doesn't everyone tap their head when they say "touch wood"? For some strange reason, my favourite donkey-themed pub name comes to mind - the Ass and Elbow
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I'd always assumed it was from a children's game, as the article ED linked to says near the end. They're often called "truce words", of which "barley" is very common. In and near Southampton, the dialect word used to be "cribs". Where I part company with the article is right at the end where it says: "But for anyone who may be superstitious, we're sure knocking on wood is no child's play." The implication is that child's play is somehow divorced from paganism, whereas I would suggest the opposite. Child's play would be a very good place to look for vestiges of old beliefs and practices.
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There may well be pagan origins to the use of the phrase "touch wood" - usually spoken after referring to a preferred outcome that may be in the offing. Where do you think the saying might come from? A few ideas are found in this article . I always remember the joke whereby one touches one's temple as a substitute 😄 Do you use it and if so are there any beliefs that might be tapped into consciously or subconsciously?
