Recommendation: Try swinging a pendulum

There are hundreds of books on pendulum dowsing. This type of oracle is widely used because it is easy to learn, and above all it can provide answers to yes/no questions. Its popularity has grown as its use has spread from party fun to a serious pursuit, and demand has increased.

Pendulums can be bought everywhere, including online, in bookshops, and in esoteric shops. In most cases, they are usually objects hanging on a chain and can be made of any material. Semi-precious stones, metals, wood, clay and plastic are all common materials. The same applies to books, which are often sold with a pendulum, or vice versa.

In earlier times, people used a wedding ring or a similar weight on a string. Pendulum swinging is related to divining, a technique used to detect water veins, energy currents or lost items. This can also be done with a much smaller pendulum, though this is rarely used for this purpose.

If you would like to try this technique, it is worth noting that you do not need an expensive pendulum consisting of a rock crystal on a gold-plated chain. You can start with a simpler model. Of course, you can use a finger ring and a woollen or twisted thread – it doesn't really matter. The important thing is to familiarise yourself with the technique and find out whether it 'fits'.

With some practice, you will find that the weight on the thread seems to have a life of its own. The thread is usually held between the thumb and index finger, kept steady at a length of between ten and fifteen centimetres. Opinions are divided on whether to rest your elbow or not – it is certainly easier for an inexperienced person to do so.

The instructions usually recommend specifying the assignments for the pendulum movements in advance. To avoid confusion, make sure you understand the difference between swinging and circular movements. These are quite variable and not 'regulated'.

You can ask the pendulum to display 'YES – NO – UNCONFIRMED – WRONG QUESTION' or 'What is YES, NO?'. Even sceptics will be able to see a direct reaction. This seemingly simple object can develop a kind of life of its own and answer questions.

However, be careful. There may be a temptation to cheat, but it's not as easy as critics would have you believe. Try the experiment by imperceptibly controlling the movement of the pendulum, so that even a good observer would not notice. As you will see, this is quite difficult. Besides, there is no reason to try to influence the result, as this would be deceiving yourself and closing doors that might otherwise open. This is no different to Tarot or other forms of divination.

But what really happens when the small medium stabilises automatically in response to a particular movement? What causes this? There are many theories about this, ranging from spirits to our own subconscious. Let's leave other entities out of the equation, unless we want to personify them. When I ask the pendulum, I am actually asking myself. We know a lot more about our environment and the people we interact with than we realise.

Imagine you come home from a big birthday party. You probably won't remember all the details. Some of the things we only half-heard or marginally perceived have slipped through our filter and ended up in the 'archives' – in some recess of our memory that we never access. At least, that's what we think, but this knowledge does exist – you just have to look for it.

Our subconscious definitely knows everything that has happened around us. If we can establish contact with it, this normally ungenerous 'archivist' will provide the information. So, if we have the knowledge, we can retrieve it by activating the appropriate channel.

One way of communicating with the subconscious is by swinging a pendulum. At least, that's one of the many theories. When someone discovers information that they could not possibly have known, people often ask: 'How is this possible?' For example, a lost key was finally found using a pendulum after days of searching. You didn't consciously hear the soft clunk when the key fell out of your jeans, but your subconscious has a much more sensitive 'ear'.

Sensitive people can react to water veins and other natural phenomena – they just need a translator. Things that lie in the future are often the sum of what is happening right now. This means that our inner vision can extrapolate this information and create a kind of trend forecast. This happens extremely quickly, without us having to do anything. Besides, who could argue that, as humans who can look back into the past, we should not occasionally be granted a glimpse of the future?

The pendulum can be an excellent instrument for raising awareness and communicating with oneself, and can therefore be very helpful in recognising things.

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Read more:
– Explore the wisdom of the Rider-Waite deck
– Mistakes when dealing with Tarot cards: The right way to use the Tarot
– How to interpret the hidden significance of Tarot cards: The Major Arcana
– Cards of the Major Arcana: The Magician – The High Priestess – The Empress

© 'Recommendation: Try swinging a pendulum to communicate with your inner self': An article by Pressenet (translated by Izabel Comati), 08/2025. Image credit: Pendulum moves across a card, CC0 (Public Domain Licence).