Strange but true story: Using a small iron bar, thread and gravel to find underground water

Take the pulse to find water

We arrived at the house when Mr. Tran Cong Huong had just returned from Dak Lak, after a trip to "find water" for the people of K'rong Ana district.

Taught experience by his father and with a little special ability, over the years, Mr. Huong has used his talent to help people everywhere find underground water for daily life and production.

Tran Cong Huong, Mr. Hoang's seventh son, is the successor to the profession of finding underground water. He determines the depth of the water veins using a wristwatch and pebbles. Photo: Thanh Phuc

Mr. Huong said: “This special ability to “search for water” comes from my grandfather, Tran Trach. In the past, he used 10 coins, strung them together on a string, then tied the string to his wrist, dragged the coins on the ground, if there was a water vein underground, the coins would be pulled in that direction. This method is quite accurate but elaborate and time-consuming. By the time of my father, Mr. Tran Huy Hoang, there was a simpler, faster and more accurate way to find water veins.”

The way Mr. Hoang finds underground water is by using two small, L-shaped iron bars about 50cm long, hooking the two iron bars on his index finger, keeping the iron bars balanced, when there is an underground water vein, the two iron bars will gradually move evenly, his job is to adjust the person walking in the direction of the iron bars' movement, until he finds the right water vein, immediately the iron bars stand still, no longer shaking back and forth.

When he was alive, Mr. Hoang, Mr. Huong's father, traveled to the North and South to find underground water to help people. Photo: Tan Bao

At first, he only helped his relatives and villagers find water sources for daily life. Later, his reputation spread far and wide, and people in the South and the North came to him to ask him to find water sources. Although he was in poor health (heart disease, blood pressure), whenever someone needed him, he did not mind the long distance, nor did he care about public benefits, but only thought of doing good deeds to help people.

People in drought-stricken areas such as Yen Thanh, Nghia Dan, Quy Hop, Que Phong, Tuong Duong… all know his name and are grateful to him for helping them find a source of water for daily use, which for a long time, when hiring drillers and diggers, they were helpless. He also accepted an invitation from the leader of an industrial park in Dong Van (Ha Giang) to find a source of water for daily use for tin miners; to find a source of water for irrigation in the Central Highlands, the dragon fruit growing area in Binh Thuan, and for daily use for military units in Hoa Binh.

Mrs. Nguyen Thi Thuan, his wife, said: "In nearly 30 years of working in the water-finding profession, my husband has helped thousands of families, units, and groups have water for daily use. He does not calculate the cost. People send as much as they receive. For families in too much difficulty, that is fine. Consider it as helping them... Until now, it has been nearly 2 years, but his reputation has still spread, many people still call his phone number with the hope of him helping them find water."

Keep the profession to help people

Currently, 2 of Mr. Hoang's 7 children, Mr. Tran Cong Huong (7th son) and Ms. Tran Thi Hoa (youngest daughter, currently living in Saigon) have special abilities like their father. The remaining children, although their father passed on their experiences, tried to practice and did it many times, their accuracy is not high.

Mr. Huong said: “Diagnosing the water source requires experience, requires the person doing it to have a high level of concentration and a calm mind to achieve the highest accuracy. Because each time looking for water, it consumes a lot of energy and spirit. According to my father's explanation, because the water vein is underground, it has not passed through the air, so it attracts the iron rod to move. If there is concentration, effort and mind, the water vein will be determined exactly where the water vein is. When my father passed away, his will was that someone would keep the profession, find a way to measure the depth of the water vein to help people when needed…”.

That is also the reason why Mr. Huong tries to maintain and develop his profession even though his business is very busy. “After my father passed away, we still kept his phone number, many people in different rural areas often called him urgently asking him to find water sources. Hearing their pleas, understanding their urgency and need when lacking water for daily use, I arranged my business and went to find underground water sources to help them.”

The joy of people when they have water for daily use thanks to the help of Mr. Hoang and his son. Photo: TP

Through the process of experimenting and experimenting, Mr. Huong finally found a way to accurately measure the depth of the water vein. He used a wristwatch tied to a long thread, then wound the thread around his hand, when he brought it to the point where there was an underground water vein, the watch would rotate, drop pebbles into the palm of his hand with the watch tied until the watch stopped rotating, count the number of pebbles in his hand, each pebble corresponds to 1 meter. The number of pebbles in his hand is the number of meters deep the water vein is.

Associate Professor - Doctor Doan Van Canh - Chairman of the Vietnam Hydrogeological Association explained: Mr. Tran Huy Hoang's ability in Nghe An is real. Here, Mr. Hoang used 2 iron bars, while in other cases, he used other means such as rubber sticks, analog clocks, coins... to identify the location of underground water veins. But until now, as a hydrogeological researcher for decades, we have not been able to confirm the scientific basis of that method. That is a special ability of a person. With these methods, helping people find water sources for their lives, that is something that should be encouraged.