You do not need to be a self-proclaimed psychic, skilled Tarot card reader, or identify as Wiccan or Pagan in order to tap into the knowledge of the beyond. That’s right! You, in your jammies, nursing that life-giving cup of coffee, can easily lift the veil between this world and the next and obtain accurate answers to your most burning questions.
PENDULUM DOWSING is an ancient form of folk magick found in cultures across the globe. From chakra healings, finding the gender of an unborn baby, to finding water, the pendulum is a powerful communication tool between us and the All-Knowing. It takes but little practice, and delivers a simple “yes” or “no” answer to any question. Here’s an easy to use primer for those of you who would like to learn how to use this amazing method, or who may be having trouble communicating with a pendulum you already own.
Choosing a Pendulum
There are scads of choices when it comes to picking your pendulum. While pendulums with stone or crystal beads and points can lend powerful assistance to your readings by the nature of their metaphysical properties, any style of pendulum will do the job. Choose materials that speak to you, even if you decide to craft your own. One of the oldest recorded forms of a pendulum is very simply a wedding ring tied to a string or on a chain. You can dowse successfully with nothing more than a bit of twine and a symmetrical stone! Whatever you choose, there are a few guidelines: The chain should be very flexible, and the chain or string should be 6 or 7 inches long. Any more than that, and the weight and tension may interfere with the transmission of the energy vibrations from the spirit world. Conversely, if the chain is any shorter, it becomes too sensitive to the nerve impulses from your hand, which can deliver a faulty reading. Moreover, the chain must be long enough to allow the pendulum to pick up momentum as the answer comes through, which is the means of truly identifying the nature of the answer.
The pendulum itself, be it a stone, crystal point, or ring, should be balanced symmetrically, and one inch, or up to an inch and a half long. More than this becomes unweildly, and too heavy to transfer accurate movement. Less, and the pendulum will not have enough weight to gain momentum.
Making the Connection
In order to communicate your questions, and receive the answers from beyond, you must develop a relationship with spirit. This is the point where most “muggles” give up, believing that you must exhibit paranormal abilities in order to reach through the veil. Nothing could be further from the truth! There are several entities involved in communicating with the pendulum, all of which are around each of us, every moment of every day, regardless of our ability to see or hear them with our human eyes or ears.
The first of these entities are our spirit guides. Yes, you do have at least one! While Hollywood would have us believe that they will appear to us or whisper in our ears, and that you must be a psychic to know them, the truth is that they do not operate out in the open. They are a constant unseen presence, watching out for us, and tugging the strings of time and space to make sure we fulfill our task list for this life. But, it is not enough to ask them to present themselves, or seek them through meditation alone. You must introduce yourself, just as you would to any other person that you need to foster a working relationship with.
Spirit guides need to learn who you are, what your shortcomings are, and how you process the world around you. Without this, they cannot hope to deliver information in a format that you will recognize. Also, their frame of reference is no longer quite human, so we cannot assume that they will understand why we do the things we do. So, find a quiet spot where you will not be disturbed, and speak out loud to them about everything and anything. I pour my heart out to my spirit guides, intimating my deepest fears, my regrets, and my hopes. This allows them to identify the areas in which I require the most assistance, and my choice to make myself vulnerable to them increases their ability to reach the parts of me that have been hurt, and are most in need of sorting out. Chat with them every day! In the car, in those moments just after waking and just before sleep, and in gratitude for the little things. The more they get to know you, the more effectively they can communicate!
The second entity in the chain of communication is Source. The divine consciousness that bore us all knows all things, past present, and future. Hand in hand with Source are the librarians of the Akashic Records, wherein all knowledge is stored for everyone to access. Simply ask that they be present in your reading, and be sure to thank them for delving into such a massive repository for the answers you seek.
And lastly, you must include your higher self. Your higher self, which has purposefully spawned this incarnation, and fashioned this particular aspect of your spirit, is the direct link between you, your guides, Source, and the other side. Your higher self must adhere to the concepts of benevolence, self-love, and love of others, without exception. This means that each question you pose must resonate with those tenets, and your ego must be kept out of the process. Seeking answers with the intent to harm, expose, or to use information as a weapon has no place in this or any divinatory process. Not only will it get little to no response out of your pendulum, it may gift you with an ass-whooping from your guides in order to unfuck your priorities.
I enter this reading with perfect love and perfect trust. I ask that my intentions be purified and aligned with the highest good. I am a clear, perfect channel for the delivery and interpretation of this wisdom. I ask that my spirit guides assist my quest for knowledge, and that the Akashic Librarians access the information of all things past, present and future. I ask for guidance from Source, and I willfully set aside my ego and my limiting beliefs so that I can engage my higher self. This shall be correct and for the good of all.
Cleansing and Charging the Pendulum
All things retain residual energy from previous handlers and their environments. The easiest and most effective cleansers are plain salt (sea salt or table salt,) sunshine, or cold running water. Cover your pendulum in salt for a few hours, leave it on a sunny windowsill, or run it in a clean stream or under your tap. When using water, be sure to give thanks, because our love and gratitude does indeed enhance the purifying and nourishing properties of water. (Consider this next time you drink a glass!)
Next, place the entire pendulum between your hands, and after a moment of silence:
I ask that this tool be the perfect conduit between me and the infinite knowledge of Source. I empower it to serve my highest good, and to help me along my path of growth and enlightenment. And so it shall be this or something better.
Interpreting Answers
Charts and grids abound when it comes to pointing to answers from Spirit. Yes/No charts, ones with signs of the Zodiac, and even the Ouija board with its letters and numbers all have prominence in this task. Unfortunately, they rarely deliver accurate results. (Gasp!) The reason why is simple. You don’t tell a pendulum how to answer you, you ask it to show you. You’re a channel and translator, not a director. You must let go of your need to be in control of the process, and commit to being a cog in the mechanism. Your ego will just have to learn to like it, and you cannot succumb to the sense of power that can comes with knowing things that elude the five senses. This does not make you special in any way, because anyone can do it. What it does make you is a steward of this knowledge, and one who is privileged to communicate with the unseen. Do not abuse it under any circumstances, because you can easily be relieved of it.
Hold the pendulum at the end of the chain, with the point an inch or two above the table. Rest your elbow on the table, make sure your fingers touch no part of the chain except the end, and rest your other hand only on its own side of the area. If your free hand is your left, for example, rest it on your left leg, or flat on the left side of the table. Do not allow it to cross you.
Clear your mind, and steady your breath. Commit to being a channel, not an influence. Pull the pendulum up, and then relax your wrist in order to put it into motion. A pendulum asked to deliver an answer from a point of zero-movement will take forever, and will fatigue your hands. Ask the pendulum, “Show me a yes answer,” and wait patiently for it to choose a direction and gain momentum. When the pendulum has enough momentum that it would not change direction without your interference, that indicates the true answer. Say “Thank you,” and note the movement that indicates yes. Steady the pendulum, gently flick your wrist to set it in motion, and ask “Show me a no answer,” and again, wait for the pattern of movement. Repeat for an “I do not know or I will not answer” response. Because the patterns will be different for each user, you can see how grids and charts can impose frustrating limits on Spirit’s means of communication.
For me, my pendulum swings in a front-to-back motion for yes, a circular motion for no, and makes little or no movement for I will not answer.
Testing the Connection
When the pattern of answers has been established, test your interpretation by asking questions only you know the answer to. “Was I born in 19xx,” “Was my Grandmother’s name ____,” but be sure to mix true and false questions. Asking questions that are all true, for example, does not give the pendulum a chance to confirm the pattern of movement for “no” or “I will not answer” responses.
Phrasing is Everything
As any lawyer will tell you, how you phrase a question is directly related to the quality of the answer you receive. Keep your questions only a few words in length, keep them to the point, and keep your preconceived ideas out of it. If you’re looking to unravel a complicated issue, start with simple questions about things that happened in the beginning, and build your subsequent questions from there. Writing your questions down first is key, because it helps clarify your objective, and is a tremendous reference as you move toward understanding the situation.
Troubleshooting
Maintaining a clear channel, and communicating effectively with Spirit takes practice. Stress, impatience, and misaligned intent will impede your efforts at every turn, so make it a habit to set aside a few minutes each day to keep your skills fresh. But, sometimes, even with the most careful preparations, we cannot connect. Don’t panic.
Spirit doesn’t have to answer you. I said it. Just like a neighbor is not obligated to answer the door when you knock, Spirit is under no contract to entertain your frivolous questions about winning the lottery, bedding down your crush, or being famous. The pendulum is a tool for enlightenment, not entertainment. Choose your questions accordingly.
Your self-doubt is in the way. Easier said than done, but you have to steadfastly believe in your connection to Source and Spirit. Without faith, Spirit knows you’re either just entertaining yourself, or waiting for some huge burning bush type of sign, which you’ll probably explain away anyhow. To quote the late, great Dr. Wayne Dyer, “You’ll see it when you believe it.” It doesn’t work the other way around.
You’re not walking the talk of your Higher Self. Asking for knowledge in the name of what is good for all, but using it to soothe your ego, or even worse, planning to use it as ammo, is fooling no one but yourself. Spirit and your Higher Self see right through the discrepancies of your intent, and will cut the phone line without haste. Get right and do right.
You’re second-guessing the answers. What the correct answer is and what you think it should be are two very different things. Your perspective is an impediment here. Your point of view on the issue is just a hair-fine thread compared to the massive tapestry of time, circumstances, choices, and free will that actually brought the situation into being. Do not be disappointed when the pendulum does not give you the answer you’re looking for. Use the unexpected information to deepen your line of questioning and gain an expanded understanding of the issue, because clearly, you’ve got the wrong end of the stick right now.
What Can I Ask?
Everything and anything, so long as it comes from an authentic place of good intent and a wish for enlightenent! Enjoy being the student, because you’re definitely going to get schooled! I have used my pendulum to divine the sex of unborn babies, find lost objects, (and people,) sort out the hidden agenda behind a few people who have hurt me deeply, communicate with deceased loved ones, and solve the mystery of the Lizzie Borden murders. (Which was an exhaustive session, with dozens of fiddly details, but absolutely incredible!) What burning questions do you have for Spirit? How will you use the pendulum to help you navigate the waters of your life?
As always, Seekers, my love and blessings travel with you wherever you go! Keep in touch, and share your spiritual adventures by liking me on FaceBook on Instagram and visiting with me at www.wiccanhighpriestess.com.
wiccanhighpriestess 