Mediumship

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Mediumship is a term used mostly in spiritualism to denote the ability to produce psi phenomena of a mental or physical nature.^[1][2] According to spiritualists, mediumship often involves communication between a human instrument and one or more discarnate, spirit personalities.^[3] Spiritualists refer to such a human instrument as a medium.

Spiritualists say that mediumship comes in three main varieties: physical mediumship, in which phenomena such as materialization, movement of objects or lights can occur.^[4][5] Trance mediumship in which a spirit takes over the body of the medium in order to communicate.^[6] And mental mediumship, in which the medium transmits the messages from spirits by means of extra-sensory perception.^[7][8][9] Mediumship is a phenomenon studied in parapsychology.

As with all paranormal phenomena, mediumship is a subject of extreme controversy, and skeptics say it is the result of self-delusion, unconscious influence, or of such magical techniques as cold reading and hot reading.

Contents 1 History of mediumship 2 Modern mediumship 2.1 Types of mediumship 2.2 Mental mediumship 2.3 Physical mediumship 3 Research and supporting arguments 4 Skeptical perspective 5 Fraud in mediumship 5.1 The 1908 Naples Sittings Repeated 6 Well-known mediums 7 Fictional mediums 7.1 Television and movies 7.2 Video Games 8 See also 9 References 10 External links

[edit] History of mediumship

Modern spiritism in the United States dates from the activities of the Fox sisters in 1848. Such notable figures as Andrew Jackson Davis, Daniel Dunglas Home, Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, and Arthur Conan Doyle later became widely known spiritualists. The Society for Psychical Research has carried on investigations with some phenomena, mainly in connection with telepathy and apparitions, in hopes of finding scientific explanations for various spiritualistic occurrences.^[10]

[edit] Modern mediumship

[edit] Types of mediumship

Modern spiritualism defines two distinct types of phenomena that can occur through mediums, the first is communication, known as mental mediumship, and the second is manipulation of energies and energy systems, known as physical mediumship.^[9]

A spirit who communicates with a medium, either verbally or visually, is known as a spirit communicator. A spirit who uses a medium to manipulate energy or energy systems is called a spirit operator.

Mental mediumship is communication, via the varied aspects of thought transference, or telepathy. Mental mediumship takes place within the consciousness of the medium. The results are expressed verbally and must pass through the medium's mouth. Because of its telepathic nature, mental mediumship is sometimes referred to as telepathic mediumship.

In mental mediumship, it is the medium who hears, sees, and feels what the spirit communicators are relating. It is the medium's function to relate the information, with minimum personal influence and prejudice, to the recipient of the message, also known as the sitter. The medium receives this information under various states of control.

Physical mediumship involves the manipulation and transformation of physical systems and energies. The spirit operators, in this case, are said to be causing something to happen upon the Earth plane. What it is that actually happens varies with the style of mediumship involved, but the results can be seen and heard by others.

Communication from the spirit world manifests itself in Mental phenomena (e.g., telepathy, clairvoyance, trance speaking, and apparitions) and in physical phenomena (e.g., levitation, automatic writing, and poltergeist and ectoplasmic activities).

[edit] Mental mediumship

Mental Mediumship has several different aspects, such as Clairvoyance, Clairaudience and Clairsentience, along with prescribed training methods for developing these abilities.^[11] However, some of these terms are defined differently in spiritualism than in other paranormal fields. "Clairvoyance", for instance, is often used by spiritualists to include seeing spirits and visions instilled by spirits, whereas the Parapsychological Association defines clairvoyance as information derived directly from an external physical source.^[12]

Clairvoyance or "Clear Seeing", is the ability to see anything which is not physically present, such as objects, animals or people. This sight occurs "in the mind’s eye," and some mediums say that this is their normal vision state. Others say that they must train their minds with such practices as meditation in order to achieve this ability, and that assistance from spiritual helpers is often necessary.

Some clairvoyant mediums say they can see a spirit as though the spirit has a physical body. They see the bodily form as if it were physically present. Other mediums say that they see the spirit in their mind's eye, or that it appears as a movie or a television programmeor a still picture like a photograph in their mind.

Clairaudience or "Clear Hearing", is the ability to hear Spirit voices from the Spirit World, which are not audible to other people who are even next to the Medium who is hearing the Spirit World. Some Mediums profess to hear as though they are listening to a person talking to them on the outside of their head, it is as though the Spirit is next to or near to the Medium, and other Mediums maintain that they hear the voices within their head/mind as a thought verbalisation of a thought.

Clairsentience or "Clear Sensing", is ability of extra feeling, or having an impression of what is being communicated by a spirit, it is said to be received by the Medium from the higher vibrational plane of Spirit.

Clairsentinence or "Clear Feeling"', this is an ability where the Medium is said to take on the ailments of the person who is now in the World of Spirit, feeling the same problem of that person they had whilst they were here on the earth plane. If they had pains in their joints when they were on this side of the veil the Medium will feel it. As they will if the link in Spirit suffered with heart problems, cancer, stomach problems, loss of a limb, tumour on the brain. These feeling go when the Medium acknowledges the Spirit being there.

Clairalience or "Clear Smelling" is the alleged phenomenon where sensitive people can smell the odour of the person who is not on the earth plane. They can sometimes smell their pipe tobacco, cigarette tobacco, food smells, different spices as though they are coming from a kitchen. Some Mediums profess to smell the places where the deceased person worked like a chemical factory, the docks, the places to be reminded of for the recipient of a message off the platform in the church or meeting place or in a development Circle.

Clairgustance or "Clear Tasting", this is where the Medium can apparently taste the foods, liquid and anything that goes into the mouth of the deceased person, it is tasted by the Medium. This is given by those in Spirit to confirm it is the correct person being contacted. Taste within the mouth can at times be strong as though the medium/sensitive has taken it in their mouth this is “objective” clear tasting. “Subjectively” is when it is put as a thought in the mind.

Claircognizant or "Clear Knowing", is the ability of knowing a message is correct or something about a person or situation is correct without getting a clairvoyant, clairaudient, or clairsentient message from Spirit, it is when you just know. It is more than a clairsentient feeling.

[edit] Physical mediumship

Spiritualists say that the physical phenomena of mediumship encompass such things as levitation, automatic writing, and poltergeist or ectoplasmic activities. Ectoplasm is the substance which produces spirit materializations, telekenisis and other forces from the “other world”.^[13] Closely related to the concept of ectoplasm is the aura, a subtle field of luminous multicolored radiation surrounding a person or object as a cocoon or halo,^[14] which can be perceived by the medium. By noting variations in the hues of a person’s aura, a medium can describe his personality, needs, and illnesses. For example, the "shriveling" of the aura is considered a sign of impending death. In what is known as "solar plexus voice mediumship", a spirit appears to speak through a medium’s body.

Mediumistic automatism is the automatism associated with a medium receiving supernatural messages from ghosts, spirits or the like, the expression of such messages (in speech, writing or drawings) lacking conscious control or intervention by the medium.

[edit] Research and supporting arguments

In some cases, individuals have produced personal information (allegedly told to them by a spirit) to their clients well above guessing rates according to an article in The Journal of the Society for Psychical Research.^[15]

VERITAS Research Program of the Laboratory for Advances in Consciousness and Health in the Department of Psychology at the University of Arizona was created primarily to test the hypothesis that the consciousness (or identity) of a person survives physical death.^[16] Their studies are conducted within a University of Arizona laboratory and have been approved by the University of Arizona Human Subjects Protection Program and an academic advisory board.

[edit] Skeptical perspective

Skeptics dispute the existence of genuine mediums, arguing that individuals who claim to possess this ability are either self-deluded or charlatans who engage in cold or hot reading.^[17]

Practitioners of mediumship are eligible for the James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF) Paranormal Challenge through March 2007 and may be eligible after that date under certain conditions. The challenge offers a million US dollars to anyone who can provide proof of the paranormal as defined by JREF.^[18][19] A "million dollar challenge" has also been offered by Victor Zammit, but in this case the prize is "offered to any skeptic who can rebut the evidence for the existence of the afterlife" (including mediumship) by convincing a panel of paranormal experts "beyond any doubt" that all the evidence of their field is flawed.^[20]

Harry Houdini was a famous magician who became a debunker of mediums later in life and, indeed, even in death, because he left a ten-word passphrase with his wife that a medium should say in order to prove they were channelling him. Although many people did claim to channel Houdini, no-one was able to reproduce the passphrase.^[21]

Critics contend that Director of the VERITAS Research Program Dr. Gary Schwartz past studies such as The Afterlife Experiments have not provided competent scientific evidence for survival of consciousness or that mediums can actually communicate with the dead. They charge that the research he presented is crucially flawed and deviated from accepted norms of scientific methodology.^[22]

[edit] Fraud in mediumship

In 1908, the Society for Psychical Research appointed a committee of three to examine Eusapia Palladino in Naples. This committee consisted of Mr. Hereward Carrington, investigator for the American Society for Psychical Research and an amateur conjurer; Mr. W. W. Baggally, also an investigator and amateur conjurer of much experience; and the Hon. Everard Feilding, who had had an extensive training as investigator and "a fairly complete education at the hands of fraudulent mediums." They were completely fooled and were convinced Palladino possessed unusual powers.^[23]

The investigation committee concluded that

It is understating the case to say that the vast majority of these modern wizards and witches are the merest charlatans - yet sometimes, indeed, there are masters who deceive mechanical and scientific apparatus with extreme ingenuity, as a rule relying merely on the simplest devices, with an insolent confidence in the avid simplicity. These masters use the personal pride of their investigating dupes against themselves. Their dupes erroneously believe they are in control of the situation. They are professionals, often persons of science. They cannot possibly be fooled, but they are. When it comes to the art of deception they are out of their league. Their limited life experiences have not prepared them for the wiles of the opportunist, the professional confidence artist, who lives by their cunning, wits and street sense. This is an unknown world where the investigators are willing saps. And rather than admitting to an advance inclination to what the investigator wanted to see and believe, which colored perception, they prefer to deceive themselves. These masters must possess something beyond the production of illusion and deceit, astonishing abilities that are impossible to dismiss. This supports and flatters the investigator's ego.^{[24][25][26][27]}

[edit] The 1908 Naples Sittings Repeated

In 1910 psychic investigator Everard Fielding returned to Naples, this time without Hereward Carrington and W.W. Baggaly. Instead, he was accompanied by his friend, William Marriott, a conjuror of some distinction who had exposed psychic fraud in Pearson's Magazine. His plan was to repeat the famous earlier 1908 Naple sittings with Palladino. Other members of the Society for Psychical Reaseach had called attention to the failings of Fielding's 1908 notes. Unlike the 1908 sittings which had baffled the investigators, this time Fielding and Marriot detected her cheating, just as she had done in the USA. Her deceptions were obvious. When one knows how a feat can be accomplished and what to look for, only the most skillful performer can maintain the illusion in the face of such informed scrutiny. Fielding saw the second visit as totally worthless. He wanted to believe. Note: In August 1906 Everard Fielding and his brother Basil were boating. The boat capsized and Basil drowned. It was at this period Everard became noted in the affairs of The Society for Psychical Research.^[28][29]

[edit] Well-known mediums

Name	Birth/Death	Known for
Derek Acorah	27 January 1950
Sylvia Browne	19 October 1936	author, church leader
Kuda Bux	1906 - 5 February 1981
Edgar Cayce	18 March 1877 – 3 January 1945
Jeane Dixon	5 January 1918 – 26 January 1997
Allison DuBois	24 January 1972
John Edward	19 October 1969	Claiming to talk to dead relatives
Daniel Dunglas Home	20 March 1833 - 21 June 1886	Claimed to levitate
Esther Hicks	unknown	author
Colin Fry	1962	Television host
JZ Knight	16 March 1946
Joseph Kony	1962	Leader of Lord's Resistance Army
Jane Roberts	1929-1984	"channeler"
Sathya Sai Baba	23 November 1926	Indian guru
David Wells	20 May 1963	Television guest
Lisa Williams	Unknown	Television guest
James Van Praagh	23 August 1958	author and television host

[edit] Fictional mediums

[edit] Television and movies

• Medium is an American television series about a woman (played by Patricia Arquette) who acts as a research medium for the Phoenix, Arizona district attorney's office. The series is based on the life of Allison DuBois, who claims to use her psychic ability allowing her to contact the dead to help the local law enforcement agency.
• Ghost Whisperer is an American television drama-fantasy-thriller starring Jennifer Love Hewitt as a young woman who can communicate with the spirits of the dead.

[edit] Video Games

• In the 2004 video game Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, the player meets The Sorrow, a mysterious dead medium who battles and also assists the player.

• In the Ace Attorney series, Maya, Pearl, and Mia Fey are spirit mediums who have the ability to allow spirits to take over their bodies temporarily and at the same time alter their appearance, although Mia Fey never does so in the games.

• Yoshino Somei in Spriggan uses her necromancy skills to act as a medium, allowing the dead to speak to any living human.

[edit] See also

• Automatic drawing
• Cold reading
• Faith healer
• Séance
• Spiritualist Church
• Spiritualism
• The Spirits Book
• The Book on Mediums

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• After Death Communication Research Foundation, Jody A. Long, J.D. and Jeffrey P. Long, M.D.
• The Scientific Proof of Survival After Death