“Can I? May I? Shall I?,” these are the hallowed words that Gerry Cremin uses to initiate every divining session, before ‘grounding’ himself using his trusted copper rods to etch out an invisible shield of protection around his form to ward off untoward attention from malign sources.
These questions are offered up to the void but are considered essential in channeling the energy required to perform the ancient ritual.
Cremin is an established dowser and member of the Irish Society of Diviners, who spoke with Agriland to provide insight into diving as an ancient practice and to help distinguish myth from magic.
Divining, otherwise known as dowsing, is a type of divination traditionally employed to locate ground water and is entirely devoid of scientific apparatus.
Instead, a diviner wields two metal rods, copper predominantly, or in some cases, twigs, to guide them to the source of the substance sought.
Its application has evolved over the years to extend to uncovering precious metals, as well as other worldly spectres too.
Once considered a form of witchcraft and punishable by burning at the stake, divining has persevered, despite its questionable origins.
To date, the practice has defied science, therefore inviting its fair share of scepticism from those who question the absence of a logical explanation.
“It is to do with energy, there’s no doubt about that. But why or where the energy comes from is a mystery.
“It has nothing to do with the power of the person that’s holding the rods – when I use the rods, I don’t have any control over them, there is something else out there which has unreal force.
“I mean, there’s no way you can control it, there’s no way you can stop it. If it was coming up, it would hit you in the forehead, there’s nothing you can do about it. It would take the skin off your hands if you tried to stop. It is just phenomenal,” Cremin said.
Water divining
Cremin believes that anyone can learn to divine, insisting that the practice relies on skill and an open mindset, rather than on an innate talent or disposition.
“It’s so obscure that people think they can’t do it or that it’s too difficult, but anybody can do it,” he said.
According to Cremin, not only can dowsing pinpoint the location of a water source, it can also define the quality of the water, the depth at which it stands, and the volume of it can produce.
Therefore, it can be used to determine whether the water is suitable for domestic use and to assess if the supply is adequate for agricultural or industrial settings.
However, the practice has waned in recent years due to the advent of technology which has largely replaced traditional means of sourcing water.
“Obviously, it’s a lost art. It’s something that probably isn’t that necessary anymore, but years ago it was life or death in a lot of cases,” he said.
Nowadays, it is most commonly used as a means of identifying paranormal activity or as a tool for healing.
“It has gone into lots of different realms now such as healing, most people probably are not even involved in water anymore, however they wouldn’t be in our society, they would be independent,” he added.
Cremin, alongside his fellow society of diviners, have dedicated themselves to preserving the art and are willing to teach anyone interested in learning the skill.
The society, which currently stands at approximately 100 members strong, hold frequent zoom meetings and social gatherings to regenerate interest in the tradition.
However, the group lacks younger practitioners and the mean age of attendees, Cremin hastens to admit, would be over the age of 50 years.
“Children are natural diviners, but there’s very few young people doing it. It’s not the thing to be seen doing if you’re a young teenager I suppose, you might be conscious of what people might think of you,” Cremin added.
Despite the declining numbers, Cremin is steadfast in his belief that the ritual will prevail in spite of changing times and modern technological advances.
“I don’t think it will ever die out,” he said.