Method of finding things, often hidden or underground, with a simple device such as forked stick or a pendulum. The dowser holds the tool and watches or feels for movement that indicates the sought material or object. Perhaps most commonly known as a way to find underground water sources, dowsing has also been used to find petroleum, gas, and other minerals; lost objects; locations of secret treasures or mines; and even missing people although most dowsing is performed for nonliving things. The common image of a dowser is that of a man holding out before him, by its forks with stem pointing ahead, a Y-shaped stick or “divining rod,” and walking around until the stick quivers and points downward. The place pointed to is where the water or other object of the search may be found. Good dowsers are said to be able to tell how deep the water is and to gain a general impression of quantity from the way in which their stick moves.
Not all dowsers use forked sticks. Some use a pendulum suspended from a thread or chain. The pendulum is allowed to hang straight down and is often held over a map. When the pendulum begins to move, it leads the dowser to his or her object. Other things may also be used as dowsing tools; it is thought that the power of the technique rests not so much in the tool as in the user. Some dowsers use no tool at all.