Editing Dowsing (section)

===Early divination and religion===
[[File:Georgius Agricola Erzsucher.jpg|thumb|right|Dowsing for metal ore, from 1556 "''[[De re metallica]] libri XII''" book]]
[[File:Divining Rod.jpg|thumb|Use of a divining Rod observed in Great Britain in the late 18th century]]
[[File:Curious Myths p 81 rod.jpg|thumb|right|An illustration of a divining rod]]
Dowsing originated in ancient times, when it was treated as a form of [[divination]]. The [[Catholic Church]], however, banned the practice completely.<ref name="inglis246">Inglis (1986) pp. 246–247.</ref>

Reformer [[Martin Luther]] perpetuated the Catholic ban, in 1518 listing divining for metals as an act that broke the [[I am the Lord your God|first commandment]] (i.e., as [[occultism]]).<ref name="inglis246"/><ref name="ogD4W">''Decem praecepta Wittenbergensi populo praedicta'', Martin Luther</ref>

Old texts about searching for water do not mention using the divining twig, and the first account of this practice was in 1568.<ref name="spooky">{{cite web |last=Hill |first=Sharon A. |author-link=Sharon A. Hill|title=Witching for water |url=http://spookygeology.com/witching-for-water/ |website=Spooky Geology |date=19 March 2017 |access-date=2017-04-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170320072306/http://spookygeology.com/witching-for-water/ |archive-date=2017-03-20}}</ref><ref name="15-credibility">{{cite podcast |url = http://doubtfulnews.com/2017/03/15-credibility-st-13-some-particular-place-to-go/ |title = 15 Credibility Street #13 |website = Doubtful News |host = [[Sharon A. Hill]] |date = 2017-03-26 |access-date = 2017-04-07}}</ref>
[[William F. Barrett|Sir William F. Barrett]] wrote in his 1911 book ''Psychical Research'' that:
{{Blockquote|...in a recent admirable Life of St. Teresa of Spain, the following incident is narrated: Teresa in 1568 was offered the site for a convent to which there was only one objection, there was no water supply; happily, a Friar Antonio came up with a twig in his hand, stopped at a certain spot and appeared to be making the sign of the cross; but Teresa says, "Really I cannot be sure if it were the sign he made, at any rate he made some movement with the twig and then he said, ' Dig just here '; they dug, and lo ! a plentiful fount of water gushed forth, excellent for 'drinking, copious for washing, and it never ran dry.' " As the writer of this Life remarks: "Teresa, not having heard of dowsing, has no explanation for this event", and regarded it as a miracle. This, I believe, is the first historical reference to dowsing for water.<ref name="Barrett_Psychical Research_p171">{{cite book |last1=Barrett |first1=William |title=Psychical Research |date=1911 |publisher=Henry Holt & Co. (N.Y.), Williams and Norgate (London) |location=New York and London |page=171 |url=https://archive.org/stream/psychicalresear00barr#page/n5/mode/2up |access-date=2 January 2018}}</ref><ref name="LaCEG">{{cite book |last1=of Avila, Saint |first1=Teresa of |title=The book of the foundations of S. Teresa of Jesus of the Order of our Lady of Carmel, with the visitation of nunneries, the rule and constitutions |date=1573 |publisher=London, Baker |location=University of Toronto – Robarts Library |page=116 |url=https://archive.org/stream/bookoffoundation00tereuoft#page/116/mode/2up/search/water |access-date=14 February 2018}}</ref>}}

In 1662, divining with rods was declared to be "[[Superstition|superstitious]], or rather [[satan]]ic" by a [[Society of Jesus|Jesuit]], [[Gaspar Schott]], though he later noted that he was not sure that the [[devil]] was always responsible for the movement of the rod.<ref name="IrMOB">[[Michel Eugène Chevreul]], ''De La Baguette Divinatoire du pendule dit explorateur at des table tournants au point de vue de l'histoire, de la critique, and de la méthode expérimentale'', Paris, 1854. "''Le père Gaspard Schott (jés.) considère l'usage de la baguette comme superstitieux ou plutôt diabolique, mais des renseignements qui lui furent donnés plus tard par des hommes qu'il considérait comme religieux et probe, lui firent dire dans une notation à ce passage, qu'il ne voudrait pas assurer que le demon fait toujours ''tourner'' la baguette.''" (''Physica Curiosa'', 1662, lib. XII, cap. IV, pag. 1527). See [https://books.google.com/books?id=kzsAAAAAQAAJ facsimile] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230905184129/https://books.google.com/books?id=kzsAAAAAQAAJ |date=2023-09-05 }} on [[Google Books]]</ref> In southern France in the 17th century, it was used to track criminals and [[heresy|heretics]]. Its abuse led to a decree of the [[inquisition]] in 1701, forbidding its employment for purposes of justice.<ref name="EB1911">{{EB1911|inline=1 |wstitle=Divining-rod |volume=8 |pages=333–334}}</ref>

An [[epigram]] by Samuel Sheppard, from ''Epigrams theological, philosophical, and romantick'' (1651) runs thus:

{{poemquote|title=''Virgula divina''
|Some Sorcerers do boast they have a Rod,
Gather'd with Vowes and Sacrifice,
And (borne about) will strangely nod
To hidden Treasure where it lies;
Mankind is (sure) that Rod divine,
For to the Wealthiest (ever) they incline.}}