Why water and metals should almost always go hand in hand in connection
with this peculiar gift, is not quite clear; but the staff of Hermes,
having probably the form of the divining rod, was always represented as
giving the command over the treasures of the earth, and the Orphic Hymn
(v. 527) calls it, hence, the golden rod, producing wealth and
happiness. On the other hand, the _Aquæ Virgo_, the nymph of springs,
had also a divining rod in her hand, and Numa, inspired by a water
nymph, established the worship of waters in connection with that of the
dead. For here, also, riches and death seem to have entered into a
strange alliance. Del Rio, in his _Disquisitiones magicæ_, mentions thus
the Zahuri of Spain, the lynx-eyed, as he translates the name, who were
able on Wednesdays and Saturdays to discover all the veins of metals or
of water beneath the surface, all hidden treasures, and corpses in their
coffins. There is at least one instance recorded where a person
possessed the power to see even more than the Zahuris. This was a
Portuguese lady, Pedegache, who first attracted attention by being able
to discover subterranean springs and their connections, a gift which
brought her great honors after she had informed the king of all the
various supplies of water which were hidden near a palace which he was
about to build. Shafts were sunk according to her directions, and not
only water was found, but also the various soils and stones which she
had foretold would have to be pierced. She also seems to have cultivated
her talent, for we hear of her next being able to discover treasures,
even valuable antique statues, in the interior of houses, and finally
she reached such a degree of intuition, that she saw the inner parts of
the human body, and pointed out their diseases and defects.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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