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Da Vinci, Leonardo – Notebooks – And the theory of water veins, domes of water and springs
Identifier
025441
Type of Spiritual Experience
Background
A description of the experience
Smith, Robert (ed.) / The Wisconsin engineer Volume 69, Number 1 (October 1964)
The dowser believes that shallow underground water occurs in "veins", like the veins in your body. These veins may vary in magnitude from the size of a pencil to underground rivers. In his Notebooks, Leonardo da Vinci, hundreds of years ago, insisted again and again that underground water flowed in veins everywhere.
The dowser's task is to locate one of these veins. From ancient times the only real innovation to this theory of underground veins is the "discovery" by Mr. Gross of "domes" of water which come up vertically from deep underground reservoirs and feed water into veins that branch off the domes.
Gross and Roberts explain that domes are "single spouts of water rising from deep underground", which may occur on high land, "far above the so-called water table". From these domes emerge veins of flowing water which spread out in all directions. The veins may flow through a layer of gravel, or a geologic fault, or apparently, just about anything. A vein that comes to the surface is a spring. A vein may be crushed by pressure from above; when this happens, the water turns off and makes a new channel in another direction. It may be pushed out of its course by the concussion of a drill, but this diversion is only temporary as the flow supposedly resumes its original course with the first heavy rains. This vein crushing idea causes some temporary failures and may damage the reputation of the dowser. It is also used as an excuse for failures.