Exploring Physical Mediumship: Psychic Photos, Spirit Voices, & Materializations

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Lambek, M. (1998). ‘The Sakalava Poiesis of History: Realizing the Past through Spirit Possession in Madagascar.’ American Ethnologist, Vol. 25, No. 2, pp. 106-127. Peter Wilson, 20 perhaps somewhat naively, disagrees with Lewis’s protest hypothesis on the grounds that within ‘male dominated societies’, in which males and females operate in different spheres, it is not clear that women necessarily feel downtrodden and neglected. Wilson comments that ‘deprivation surely implies withholding that which is due’, and goes on to ask, ‘in what traditionally male dominated society is it ever regarded as a woman’s due that she be granted access to the man’s domain?’ There are of course problems with this statement, but it nevertheless highlights one potential pitfall in Lewis’s theory. More recently, Paul Stoller has suggested that anthropological commentaries on spirit possession have tended towards five dominant explanatory frameworks (excluding the dismissive framework of the earliest anthropologists), which include: ‘functionalist, psychoanalytic, physiological, symbolic (interpretive/textual), and theatrical’ frameworks. 6 These perspectives will be used to structure what follows. Functionalist Interpretations Some of the key cross-cultural features of spirit possession practices can be summarized as follows: According to Cohen, spirit possession practices and beliefs are widespread because they make intuitive sense, owing to their dependence on otherwise normal cognitive processes, such as recognizing agents. She suggests that ‘these concepts spread successfully because they are supported by panhuman mental capacities that are employed in the resolution of everyday, common problems.’ Spirit Possession as Performance and Embodiment

Every medium is unique in the way that they work. Once they have learned the ropes in a mediumship course, their skills and gifts are developed and cultivated through practice and commitment to mastering the technology of mediumship. Despite the broad way in which each medium works, there are generally two categories of medium: The form that many people immediate think off is the figure floating or walking around a room. Some believe it to be the spirit appearing in the Earth plane when called by the sitter. The reality of the experience is a little different, as there is that medium acting as the channel between the two planes. The spirit does not leave the spirit plane and materialise in the room entirely of its own free will. Instead, it communicates with the sitter via that higher frequency, manipulates the etheric energy and forces the ectoplasm to leave the body via one of the measures mentioned above. In the most extreme cases, this is seen in full materialisation of the form. In others, there a moment of transfiguration. What is materialisation? Gomm, R. (1975). ‘Bargaining from Weakness: Spirit Possession on the South Kenya Coast.’ Man, Vol. 10, No. 4, pp. 530-543.Intriguingly, the protocol states that “night vision viewers” are required to be made available “to watch events live during the séance and so have independent witnesses acting on behalf of those present.” I asked David who would be responsible for providing this equipment and who would select the people to use it in each séance?

At the meeting I was met by David Bruton, Judith Seaman, Julia Almond, Simone Key and Tanya Smith, the general manager. Eileen and I were then handed the new protocol. David Bruton stressed that it was not a reflection on my mediumship but a way forward for the College. Turner, E. (1993). ‘The Reality of Spirits: A Tabooed or Permitted Field of Study?’ Anthropology of Consciousness, Vol. 4, No. 1, pp. 9-12.Zingrone, N. (1994). ‘Images of Woman as Medium: Power, Pathology and Passivity in the Writings of Frederic Marvin and Cesare Lombrosso.’ In L. Coly & R.A. White (eds.) (1994). Women and Parapsychology: Proceedings of an International Conference. New York: Parapsychology Foundation. (pp. 90-123). Endnotes Finally, it must be remembered that a physical seance is not an entertainment or a fun show, but provides the opportunity for the intelligent minds of those in the spirit world to provide evidence of their survival in some quite amazing ways.

Hunter, J. (2013). ‘Numinous Conversations: Performance and Manifestation of Spirits in Spirit Possession Practices.’ In A. Voss & W. Rowlandson (eds.) Daimonic Imagination: Uncanny Intelligence. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Press.

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For the first time in its 50-year history the Arthur Findlay College (AFC) has issued a formal protocol governing demonstrations of physical mediumship (PM). By contrast, in the parapsychological literature the term ‘spirit possession’ seldom refers to mediumship, as it carries connotations of involuntary and demonic possession, while mediumship is usually held to be a voluntary and deliberately initiated activity. In principle there should be no seances held in total darkness. Subdued lighting including coloured lights or Natural light is preferable at all times. If there is to be consideration given to ‘Dark Seances’ then the following is required:- It is also clear that the term ‘mediumship’ refers to different phenomena even within the Western context. Indeed, Spiritualist mediumship, as the above definition suggests, can be broadly split into two categories. There is ‘mental mediumship,’ which itself can be split into two distinct forms of clairvoyant/telepathic/clairaudient/clairsentient mediumship, often also known as ‘platform mediumship,’ and trance mediumship, during which the body of the medium is temporarily occupied by an ostensible spirit entity. Physical mediumship can be defined as the ‘purported ability of the medium to channel unknown energies’ to create physical changes in the immediate environment’. 2 It is clear that further research into the phenomenology and neurophysiology of trance states is required. In the context of spirit mediumship, the term ‘trance’ might best be understood as referring to the state of consciousness in which the medium’s personality is purportedly ‘dispossessed by an intruding intelligence’. 88 Conclusion: Cross-Cultural Features