Divine power in the Pyrenees

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With energy prices rising and climate change becoming an increasing concern, many people in the south-west of France are turning towards alternative technologies to heat their homes. But, as Genevieve Bicknell discovers, some of these technologies depend upon a much older and more mystical profession.

Stephane Di Caro stood in my parents' garden, his eyes closed.

The Pyrenees mountains extend for about 267 miles (430km)Across the valley, the peaks of the Pyrenees glistened with snow. The air was cold but the breeze carried the scent of earth, warmed by the winter sun.

Stephane, however, was sensing something else. In each hand he held a thin metal rod bent in the middle like a shelf bracket. He held these out before him as he moved slowly towards us.

As he approached, the rods wavered and then smoothly turned inwards to meet, their points touching.

Stephane stopped, took out a can of spray paint and drew a large red X onto the mud.

Deep heat

Stephane is a "sourcier", or water diviner. My parents had hired him to find out if there was an underground stream in our garden. If so, it could be used to heat the house.

Stephane Di Caro has been a 'sourcier' for two yearsKnown as water-source heat exchange, this method of heating is becoming increasingly popular as it is very efficient and consumes minimal electricity.

The principal is simple - underground water has a fairly constant temperature. A pump and some refrigerant are used to extract heat from the water and transfer it to the home. It works like a fridge, but in reverse.

The system depends on there being an underground stream, deep enough and powerful enough to provide a constant supply.

Divination

Living in the French Pyrenees, which is criss-crossed with such streams, there was a good chance we had one. In order to find it though, the heating company told us, we needed a sourcier.

"A what?" my mother asked.

"A sorcerer," my father explained, mistranslating.

"No, a sourcier. Someone who finds water," the representative replied.

Water divining Water divining is also known as dowsing and water witchingTerm describes practices to find water and metal through the fluctuation of the divining rod or device Devices for water divining include Y-shaped rods, pendulums and twigs Divining has existed for thousands of years. Amongst its earliest uses were divining the will of the gods, foreseeing the future and divining guilt or innocence during trials "Oh, with ultra-sonic equipment?" my mother asked.

"No, usually with a hazel branch or a pair of rods."

My mother looked uncertain. My father beamed, considering himself proved correct.

And so the divination began.

The first diviner, his hands gripping the forks of his hazel branch, palms pressed downwards, paced the length of the garden but found nothing.

"Is there no water?" my father asked.

"No, I'm just no good at this," he replied.

The second diviner felt his hazel branch tug downwards a few yards from our well.

"La." There, he declared.

It seemed a reasonable place for a stream, but since he was associated with a drilling firm, charging around 1000 euros (£791) to drill the hole, we decided to get a third, independent opinion.

Third time lucky?

As Stephane leapt out of his van, my first impression was that he was a bit young for a diviner. He had only been divining for two years, he admitted.

Tuzaguet is in the Hautes-Pyrénées department of the countryHe started his exploration by wandering around the garden getting a feel for the terrain. Ducking under fruit trees and negotiating raspberry bushes, he jotted down notes on his clipboard.

After narrowing down the area to search, Stephane used his rods - or "baguettes" as they are known in France - to pin-point streams, indicating their locations with his spray-can. Soon our garden was covered with red Xs.

Stephane then calculated the streams' depths. He focused his mind on a stream and held his rods above it, his body tense with concentration.

As the rods swung together, he counted the time they took to touch, his lips moving silently as he trod on the spot to mark the seconds.

One stream, near the side of the house, was sufficiently deep. We just needed to know its strength. Stephane held out his rods.

"Is it strong enough?" we asked, our faces turned expectantly towards his.

"Probably not," he replied.

A ubiquitous alternative

For some reason his negative conclusion dissolved my doubt. Of course it could be that Stephane did not know the stream's strength and, without digging, we will never know if he actually found any streams.

But the fact that he did not feel the need to prove that he could find water convinced me of his genuineness. I felt much more comfortable believing that the right stream did not exist.

Maybe for a sceptic, belief in inexistence comes more naturally.

So, did these investigations help us to heat the house?

Well, a system is now installed. It works by heat exchange but instead of using water, it uses air.

Air-source systems are not as efficient, but air, does at least have the advantage of being everywhere.

From Our Own Correspondent was broadcast on Thursday, 30 October, 2008 at 1102 GMT on BBC Radio 4. Please check the <a class="inlineText" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/7143833.stm">programme schedules </a>for World Service transmission times.