What To Say Before You Use a Pendulum With a Client

Sometimes when I first share the power of a pendulum with a class there are concerns that it is “voodoo” or some kind of witch craft. That couldn’t be further from the truth and there is a strong scientific backing to how the pendulum works. Whenever a pendulum is used what is actually creating the movement of the pendulum are tiny micro movements in the body. These micro movements will change based on the thoughts of the person holding the pendulum and this is generally known as the “Ideomotor Effect”.

The Ideomotor Effect relies on small, unconscious motor movements caused by the person’s thoughts. These small movements are exaggerated by a weighted pendulum hanging from a chain (Normally 10cm or longer). A minute movement of the finger will lead to a larger movement being made by the pendulum. These micro movements in the finger can be further exaggerated by additionally anchoring the elbow on the surface of a table as you will also have any mico movements in the forearm/arm contributing to the effect (This technique is demonstrated in Confident Future Hypnosis Training Courses). Importantly, the person holding the pendulum must be holding it with minimal tension in their hand/fingers as even the slightest amount of tension will interfere with the micro muscle movements.

Now, you’re probably thinking: But how on earth does a thought create unconscious motor movements? Let me give you some examples: Have you ever started thinking about one of your favourite foods and started to salivate? Or have you ever mistaken a stick that looks like a snake and jumped back in surprise? These are both examples of the Ideomotor Effect. Simply put it when something imagined leads to a movement that happens without thinking about it.

So what a pendulum allows us to guage is whether the unconscious mind is in agreement (YES), or disagreement (NO), when a certain idea is focused upon. Interestingly it is often possible to guage from the movement of a pendulum what someone’s Unconscious Mind is thinking, even if consciously they are confused and unsure of their answer to a question.

With the theory explained I wanted to share what I would normally say to a client before I used a pendulum with them. Keep in mind that a pendulum would normally only be used in specific circumstances and nearly always at the end of a session so it assumes a strong rapport. I would normally pre-frame using the pendulum by saying:

In a moment we are going to do a process together that uses a pendulum. Now, I don’t want you to think that this is voodoo or witch craft. This is a process that uses a phenomenon called the Ideomotor Effect. The basic premise of the Ideomotor Effect is that when you hold a thought in your mind there are tiny changes in the muscles in your body. Those tiny changes in the muscles in your body can be exaggerated by the pendulum so even if your fingers only move a tiny amount we can see that movement more clearly through the pendulum. We aren’t connecting with anything but your Unconscious Mind and this process is easy, simple and quite fun once we get going with it. (Then I would follow the Pendulum Script, setup a Yes and a No signal with the Pendulum and conduct the change work)

Hopefully this blog article has been helpful and allows you to have a greater understanding for how and why a pendulum works. If you have questions or would like further information then please leave a comment below.

Further reading:

1. The Ideomotor Effect Explained (UK Skeptics)
2. Ideo motor response (Wikipedia)

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