ON MEDIUMS.

Mediums of physical effects: Natural mediums.

— Voluntary mediums.

— Writing mediums or psychographers.

Every person who feels, to any degree whatsoever, the influence of Spirits is, for that very reason, a medium. This faculty is inherent in man and, consequently, is not an exclusive privilege. For that very reason, rare are the individuals who do not possess some rudiments of it. It can thus be said that all are, more or less, mediums. Nevertheless, this designation is usually applied only to those whose mediumistic faculty shows itself to be well characterized and is manifested through evident effects of a certain intensity, which then depends on a more or less sensitive constitution. It should also be noted that this faculty does not reveal itself in all persons in the same manner. Generally, mediums have a special aptitude for this or that order of phenomena, from which it results that they form as many varieties as there are kinds of manifestations. (See Mediums in the “Spiritist Vocabulary.”) We shall go into some details concerning those that may lend themselves to essential considerations. Mediums of Physical Effects.

Natural mediums and voluntary mediums.

Mediums of physical effects are those who have a special aptitude for the production of material phenomena. It is in this class that one finds chiefly the natural mediums, those whose influence is exercised against their will. They have not the slightest awareness of the power they possess, and very often whatever abnormal thing takes place around them does not seem to them in any way extraordinary. It is part of themselves, exactly as with persons endowed with second sight who do not suspect it. These individuals are highly worthy of observation, and no one should neglect to gather and study facts of this kind that come to his knowledge. They manifest themselves at all ages and, very frequently, in children still quite young.

This faculty does not in itself constitute an indication of a pathological state, since it is not incompatible with perfect health. If the one who possesses it suffers, that suffering is due to an extraneous cause, which is why therapeutic means are powerless to make it cease. In some cases it may be consequent upon an organic weakness, but it is never the efficient cause. From the hygienic point of view it would, therefore, not be reasonable to be concerned about it. It could only entail inconvenience if, after having become a voluntary medium, one abused it, for then there would be on his part too abundant an emission of vital fluid and, consequently, a weakening of the organs.

One must guard above all against any physical experimentation, always harmful to sensitive constitutions; therein lies the danger, for grave disorders may result to the organic economy [read: to the organism]. Reason rebels at the idea of the moral and bodily tortures to which weak and delicate beings have sometimes been subjected, with a view to making sure that they were not committing fraud. To make such tests is to play with life. The experimenter of good faith has no need to employ such means. Whoever is familiar with these kinds of phenomena knows, moreover, that they belong more to the moral order than to the physical order, and that one would vainly seek their solution in our exact sciences.

For the very reason that these phenomena are of the moral order, one must avoid, with no less scrupulous care, anything that may overexcite the imagination. It is known how many accidents fear can occasion, and far fewer accidents would be committed if all the cases of madness and epilepsy that have their source in tales of werewolves and bogeymen were known. What, then, will not happen if people convince themselves that the agent generating such phenomena is the devil? Those who believe in such ideas do not know the responsibility they assume: they can kill. Now, the danger exists not only for the individual, but also for those around him, who may become terrified at the thought that the house in which they live is a den of demons. It was this disastrous belief that caused so many acts of atrocity in the times of ignorance. Yet, with a little more discernment, they would have concluded that, by burning bodies supposedly possessed by the devil, they were not burning the devil. Since it was the devil they wished to rid themselves of, it was he they would have had to kill. By enlightening us as to the true cause of all these phenomena, the Spiritist Doctrine deals it the coup de grâce. Far, then, from giving rise to that thought, all should — and this is a duty of morality and of humanity — combat it wherever it exists. What ought to be done when such a faculty develops spontaneously in an individual is to let the phenomenon follow its natural course: Nature is more prudent than men. On the other hand, Providence has its purposes, and the smallest of beings can serve as an instrument for the highest designs. It must be admitted, however, that at times this phenomenon assumes proportions that are tiring and troublesome for everyone. Here, then, in all cases, is what it is important to do. n Starting from the principle that spontaneous physical manifestations have for their aim to draw our attention to something, one must seek to know that objective and, for this, one must question the invisible Being who wishes to communicate. On this matter we have already given an explanation in the chapter on manifestations. He may want something for himself or for the person through whom he manifests himself. As we have already said, it is probable that the Spirit will desist from his visits, should he be satisfied. Here, moreover, is another means, based, like the preceding one, on the observation of facts.

The invisible beings who reveal their presence through perceptible effects are, in general, Spirits of an inferior order, who can be dominated by moral ascendancy. It is the acquisition of this ascendancy that should be sought. Far, then, from showing ourselves submissive to their caprices, one must oppose to them the will and constrain them to obey, which does not prevent one from complying with all the just and legitimate requests they may make. Besides, everything depends on the nature of the Spirit who communicates; he may be inferior, but benevolent, and come with good intention. It is of this that we must make sure, which will be easily recognized by the nature of the communications. But do not ask him whether he is a good Spirit; whatever he may be, the answer is certain. It would be like asking a thief whether he is an honest man. To attain this ascendancy, it is necessary that the individual pass from the state of natural medium to that of voluntary medium. There is then produced an effect analogous to what occurs in somnambulism. As is known, natural somnambulism generally ceases when replaced by magnetic somnambulism. The emancipating faculty of the soul is not halted; it is given another direction. The same happens with the mediumistic faculty. For this, instead of hindering the phenomena, which is rarely achieved and not always without danger, one must urge the medium to produce them at will, imposing himself upon the Spirit. By this means the medium succeeds in controlling him and, from a dominator at times tyrannical, makes a submissive and often docile being. A fact worthy of note and justified by experience is that, in such a case, a child has as much, and sometimes more, authority than an adult — fresh proof in favor of this capital point of the Doctrine, namely, that the Spirit is a child only in body; that it has by itself a development necessarily prior to its present incarnation, a development that may give it ascendancy over Spirits inferior to it. Voluntary mediums.

Voluntary mediums are those who are conscious of their power and produce Spiritist phenomena through an act of the will. This faculty, although inherent in the human species, is far, as we have already said, from existing in all to the same degree. But if there are few persons in whom it is practically nil, those who are capable of producing the great effects, such as the suspension of bodies in space, aerial transport and, above all, apparitions, are still rarer. The simplest effects are those of the rotation of an object, those of the raps struck by the lifting of that object or within its own substance. Without attaching capital importance to these phenomena, we urge that they not be despised; they can give rise to interesting observations and aid conviction. n But it should be noted that the faculty of producing material effects rarely exists in those who have more perfect means of communication, for example, writing or speech. Generally it diminishes in one direction in proportion as it develops in the other. Writing mediums or psychographers.

Of all means of communication, writing is the simplest, the most convenient and, above all, the most complete. Toward it all efforts should converge, for it permits one to establish with the Spirits relations as continuous and regular as those that exist among ourselves. We should apply ourselves to this process with all the more eagerness, since it is through it that the Spirits best reveal their nature and the degree of their perfection, or of their inferiority. By the ease they find in expressing themselves, they reveal to us their most intimate thoughts and thus put us in a position to judge them and appreciate their worth. For the medium, the faculty of writing is, moreover, the most susceptible of being developed through exercise.

In the chapter where we dealt with the various modalities of communication, we explained the different ways in which writing is obtained. We saw that the basket and the planchette are nothing more than appendages of the hand: it is a longer pencil-holder, that is all. One would arrive at the same result by placing the pencil at the tip of a stick. These contrivances have the advantage of offering a writing more characteristic than that obtained with the hand, but they have the inconvenience of requiring, almost always, the collaboration of a second person, which may be troublesome. For this reason we advise those interested to apply themselves, preferably, to direct writing. The process is one of the simplest. It consists solely in taking paper and pencil and placing oneself, without any other concern, in the position of a person who is writing; but, in order to achieve good success, several recommendations are indispensable. Since, after all, it is through the influence of a Spirit that one writes, this Spirit will not come if he is not called. It is, therefore, necessary to evoke him in thought and to ask him, in the name of God, to deign to communicate. It is not necessary to employ any sacramental formula. Whoever intends to use one runs the risk of being called a charlatan: thought is everything, form is nothing. One should call a Spirit who is congenial, and this for two reasons: one is that he will come willingly if he is attached to us; the other is that, by reason of that affection, he will be more disposed to second our efforts to communicate with us. Preferably, therefore, it will be a relative or a friend. But it may happen that this relative or friend is in a position in which he cannot answer our call, or that he does not have sufficient power to make us write. This is why it is always useful to evoke also one's familiar Spirit, whoever he may be, without its being necessary to know his name, since he is always with us; then, one of two things: either he answers, or he goes to seek another; in any case, he lends his support. An aspect neglected by almost all beginners concerns the question. It is evident that the evoked Spirit cannot answer if nothing is asked of him. He could, no doubt, say something spontaneously, as happens at every moment with experienced mediums; but with one who is still beginning, the Spirit has to overcome a first mechanical difficulty; it is necessary, then, to simplify it as much as possible, and this is the effect produced by a question that elicits a precise answer. To begin with, care will be taken to frame the question in such a way that the answer may be simply yes or no. Later, this precaution becomes unnecessary. The nature of the question is not indifferent; in itself, it need not have any real importance. On the contrary, the simpler it is, the better. At the beginning, it is only a matter of establishing a communication; the essential thing is that it not be frivolous, that it not bear upon matters of private interest and, above all, that it be the expression of a benevolent and congenial sentiment toward the Spirit to whom we address ourselves. A thing no less essential is calm and recollection, allied to an ardent desire and a firm will to obtain the spiritual communication. And by will we do not here understand an ephemeral sentiment, acting in fits and starts and interrupted every minute by other preoccupations, but a patient, persevering will, sustained by the prayer addressed to the evoked Spirit. Recollection is favored by solitude, by silence, and by distancing oneself from everything that may cause distractions. There then remains only one thing to do: to wait without impatience and to repeat the attempts daily, for ten minutes or a quarter of an hour at most each time, and this for a fortnight, a month, two months and more, if need be. It was for this reason that we said that a patient and persevering will was needed; it was also for this reason that the Spirits, consulted on the aptitude of this or that person, have almost always said: “With will you will succeed.” It is, then, possible that the communication may be obtained the first time, just as it is also possible that one may have to wait a longer or shorter time. But, in all cases, if at the end of three months absolutely nothing is obtained, it will be almost useless to continue. It should be noted that the Spirits, when questioned on the matter of knowing whether a person is or is not a medium, almost always answer affirmatively, which does not prevent the mediumistic trials from being, very often, fruitless. This is naturally explained. When a general question is put to the Spirit, he answers in a general manner. Now, as is known, nothing is more elastic than the mediumistic faculty, since it can present itself in the most varied forms and very different degrees. Someone may be a medium without realizing it, and in a direction different from that which we think. To this vague question, Am I a medium? the Spirit may answer yes; to this other, more precise one, Am I a writing medium? he may answer no. One must also take into account the nature of the Spirit who is questioned. There are some so frivolous and ignorant that they answer at random, like true scatterbrains. A means that generally gives a good result, whether by hastening the result or even for making a person write who, without this, would not succeed in doing so, consists in employing, as a momentary auxiliary, a good writing medium or another already developed. If he places his hand or his fingers upon the hand that is to write, it is rare that this latter does not do so immediately. One understands what takes place in this circumstance: the hand holding the pencil becomes, in a certain way, an appendage of the medium's hand, as a basket or a planchette would be; but this does not prevent this exercise from being very useful, when one can employ it, for, repeated frequently and regularly, it helps to overcome the material obstacle and provokes the development of the faculty.

Sometimes it suffices to magnetize strongly the arm and the hand of the person who wishes to write. Often the magnetizer limits himself to placing his hand upon the shoulder of the subject, and we have seen the latter write promptly under such influence. The same effect may also be produced without any contact whatsoever, and merely by the action of the will. In this case it is necessary to second the efforts of the Spirit, encouraging him with words. It is easily understood that the confidence of the magnetizer in his own power must here play a great part, and that an incredulous magnetizer would exercise little or no action.

The power that permits one to develop in others the faculty of writing constitutes a variety of mediums whom we call developing mediums. And what may perhaps seem strange is that this faculty exists in persons who do not write by themselves. Their assistance is, very often, useful to beginners, even with regard to those who have a natural aptitude. Frequently, small precautions are not taken into account, to the detriment of the rapidity of the progress achieved, which an experienced guide points out, whether by the material arrangement or, above all, by the nature of the first questions and the manner of putting them. His role is that of a teacher, whom we dispense with as soon as we judge ourselves sufficiently competent. n Faith in the apprentice medium is not an absolute condition. No doubt it seconds the efforts, but it is not indispensable; desire and goodwill suffice. Perfectly incredulous persons have been seen to be greatly astonished at writing against their will, while sincere believers do not succeed in it, which proves that this faculty depends on an organic disposition.

As a material disposition, we recommend avoiding everything that may hamper the free movement of the hand. It is even preferable that the hand not rest completely upon the paper. The point of the pencil should bear down sufficiently to write, but not so much that it experiences resistance. All these precautions become unnecessary once one has succeeded in writing fluently, for then no obstacle could halt the hand; they are only the preliminaries of the apprentice.

The first indication of a disposition to write is a kind of trembling in the arm and the hand: little by little the hand is carried along by an impulse it cannot master. Often, at first, it traces only insignificant scrawls; then the characters are drawn ever more clearly, and the writing ends by acquiring the rapidity of ordinary writing. In all cases, it is necessary to abandon the hand to its natural movement and to employ neither resistance nor propulsion.

The writing is sometimes very legible, the words and letters perfectly distinct; but, with certain mediums, it is difficult to decipher, except by the person who writes: one must acquire the habit. In general it is composed of large strokes; some words sometimes fill an entire page. The Spirits do not economize paper. When a word or a sentence is barely legible, one asks the Spirit to begin again, which he generally does willingly. When the writing is illegible, even for the medium, the latter almost always succeeds in obtaining a more correct one through frequent and regular exercises, employing in this a strong will and ardently entreating the Spirit to be more intelligible. If it is our intention to preserve the answers, it is well to transcribe them immediately, as well as the questions, while we have them in memory, because, later, this would become practically impossible. Some Spirits, before beginning an answer, make the hand execute various evolutions and trace a quantity of insignificant scrawls. They say it is to exercise themselves, to loosen the hand, or to establish the contact; at times they are emblems, allegories, the explanation of which they give afterward. Often they adopt conventional signs to express certain ideas, which come into use in the habitual gatherings. To show that a question displeases them and that they do not wish to answer it, they will make, for example, a large stroke or something equivalent. When the Spirit has finished what he had to say, or no longer wishes to answer, the hand remains motionless, and the medium, whatever his power or his will, is incapable of obtaining one more word; it is a sign that the Spirit has withdrawn. On the contrary, as long as he has not finished, the pencil moves on without it being possible for the hand to stop. If he wishes to say something spontaneously, the hand convulsively grasps the pencil without being able to resist it.

Such are the most essential explanations we have to give concerning the development of psychography. Experience will make known through practice certain details that it would be useless to relate here, and for which the general principles will serve as a guide. If many were to try, hardly a family would be found that did not have a writing medium among its members, even if it were a child.

Whoever has received the gift of writing with ease, under the influence of the Spirits, possesses a precious faculty, for he becomes the interpreter between the visible world and the invisible world; it is, very often, a mission he receives for good, but from which he should draw no advantage, for this faculty may be withdrawn from him if he makes ill use of it, or may even turn against him, coming to write evil things and having at his disposal only evil Spirits.

He who, in spite of his efforts and his perseverance, does not succeed in possessing it, should draw no unfavorable conclusion against himself from this: it is that his physical constitution does not lend itself to it, but he is not, for that reason, disinherited from the Spiritist communications. If he does not receive them directly, he can obtain them, as beautiful and as good, through an intermediary. In compensation, he may, moreover, have other faculties no less useful. Almost always, the privation of one sense is compensated by another more developed sense.

[1] One of the most extraordinary facts of this nature, by the variety and singularity of the phenomena, is, without dispute, the one that occurred in 1852, in the Palatinate (Rhenish Bavaria), at Bergzabern, near Wissembourg. It is all the more notable because it brings together, in the same individual, all kinds of spontaneous manifestations: rumblings that shook the house, overturning of furniture, throwing of objects to a distance by invisible hands, visions and apparitions, somnambulism, ecstasy, catalepsy, electric attraction, cries and aerial sounds, instruments playing without contact, intelligent communications, etc., and, what is not of lesser importance, the verification of these facts, over nearly two years, by countless eyewitnesses worthy of belief on account of their learning and social position. The authentic account of the phenomena was published at that time in several German newspapers, and, especially, in a brochure today out of print and exceedingly rare. In the Spiritist Review of 1858 is found the complete translation of that brochure, with the necessary commentaries and explanations. As far as we know, this is the only French publication that was made of that brochure. Beyond the surprising interest aroused by such phenomena, they are eminently instructive, from the point of view of the practical study of Spiritism. [2] Its theoretical explanation may be found in the Spiritist Review, the issues of May and June 1858.

[3] We shall take pleasure in giving, personally and without any interest, whenever this may be possible, the counsels of our experience to persons who may wish to develop themselves as writing mediums, provided they have already previously acquired the theoretical knowledge of the Spiritist science, and this so that we shall not have to teach them its elements.