It is quite possible to insure this-since we are all more or less mediumistic or psychic, and need only to cultivate our powers in order to develop them, and bring them to maturity. Development will differ, according to the character of the phenomena that we desire.
Those who desire physical phenomena must develop in one way; those who desire to obtain automatic writing must develop in another; those who wish to become clairvoyant must develop in still another, and so on.
Spontaneous Phenomena
To begin here a few general hints to those who have experienced spontaneous phenomena in their waking state, or who have experienced remarkable dreams, which they feel signify something-but just what, they do not understand. These spontaneous phenomena are often the simplest types of mediumship, though as a matter of fact they are also an indication of psychic power, having but little to do with true mediumistic messages that is, they are the result of remarkable powers within ourselves.
All who obtain phenomena of this nature should make it a point, first of all, to maintain the physical health at the highest possible standard, so that the energies are not drained, and the body remains healthy and the mind clear in its judgment. It is essential to reduce the amount of any stimulants which may be taken to the lowest possible quantity, or, if possible, omit them altogether. This applies not only to alcohol in all its forms, but also to tea and coffee. These stimulants excite the nerves and the imagination, and often induce "manifestations" which are not true psychic phenomena at all, but merely the results of a disordered nervous system.
The subject should not eat too much meat. On the other hand, fruits of all kinds, particularly acid fruits such as the pear, peach, plum, orange and lemon are especially suitable, since the juices of these fruits act upon the liver
and tend to cleanse the blood. Of course, these precautions are only for those who are serious in their study, and who are determined to obtain the best possible phenomena.
The mind should be exercised in all healthy channels. Do not "introspect" or reflect too much on your own inner, mental conditions. You must learn to live outside your head, so to speak -in the outer world. Do not constantly wonder what is going on within your own brain. If you do, you will surely lead yourself into difficulties later on. In short, you should lead a healthy, active life, and, between those times when you experience phenomena, you should think about them, as applied to yourself, as little as possible.
If you desire to obtain certain manifestations, it is not advisable to sit for them or try and obtain them for longer than twenty minutes to half an hour each day.
At first five or ten minutes would suffice, and this time can gradually be lengthened as you progress. This is especially important; and the neglect of this rule is one of the great reasons for the dangers which mediums experience later on- in their development. Suppose, for example, that some one appeared to you and gave you certain advice as to your course of action. It would certainly be unwise for you to follow this advice in every case, without inquiring whether or not it would be just and sensible, and without using your own judgment when the advice was given. Even supposing that the person who appeared to you were really the spirit it claimed to be, there is always the possibility that this spirit may be mistaken, and the further possibility that some malicious and lying spirit was coming to you, pretending to give advice, while in reality it was only leading you astray. There is this further possibility that the figure you saw was not really a spirit at all, but merely the product of your own subconscious imagination. Often this is the ease, and yet the figure has given true and sound advice! All that we are stating now is that the judgment of the individual who receives such messages, or advice, must always be exercised upon the message received. If you do not cultivate this habit, you will find that messages often become more and more insistent, when they are not followed, and. will sometimes
give untrue or lying information. They may even urge you to do certain things which are against your own welfare. All this can only be settled by the exercise of right judgment, and by asking the advice of those who know how much to believe in these messages. It is for this reason that the counsel and help of one who has had long training and experience in this subject is most desirable, during these early stages of mediumship.
The proper formation of the circle is of the utmost importance, and upon it depends the excellence of the phenomena, and whether or not helpful personalities are drawn into your "aura" and environment. The best results may be obtained by closely obeying the following rules:-
From six to ten persons usually constitute a circle. They should range on an average from twenty to fifty years of age. Of these, half should be gentlemen and half ladies. They should sit alternately round a table, or round the room in case one of the party enters the cabinet. It is desirable to join hands, in order to form a "battery," so-called, and the feet should be kept flat on the floor. The circle should not last more than two hours, and not less than half an hour. An invocation or short earnest prayer should begin the proceedings, followed by slow and quiet music, which may or may not be accompanied by singing, according to the expressed wish of the "controls" or the experience of those forming the circle. The light should be subdued, but absolute darkness should not be permitted unless strict instructions are given to that effect. Avoid dark seances, if possible, at all times!
It is advisable to have flowers in the game room, whenever possible, as their presence is said to attract spirits in a peculiar manner. The "spirits" say that they see these flowers as "lights." Plenty of fresh air should be allowed to enter the seance room. If any member of the circle be ill, he or she should not be permitted to sit in the circle until well again.
A developing circle should meet in the same room, since this room tends to become "maximised," or soaked with magnetic influences, given off by the
sitters. The chairs on which the members of the circle sit should be wood or cane-bottomed; the use of upholstered chairs is generally inadvisable. The table round which the members of the circle sit should be free from metal. The chair on which the medium sits must be cane or wood, and, as already said, free from all cushions or upholstery.
Atmospheric changes play a great and important part in all mediumistic conditions. The dryer the atmosphere, the better the phenomena, as a rule. On damp, rainy days, little can be obtained. During a thunder storm, startling phenomena occasionally take place. High, rarefied air is better than that of lower levels, and for that reason a house on the side or even the top of a high mountain should be selected, if possible, in which to hold seances. Failing this, select a house which has as high an altitude as possible.
One member of the circle must, by universal consent, undertake to conduct the proceedings; to converse with the "spirits" when they appear; to arrange the sitters in their proper places, to adjust the amount of light required, etc. His word must be followed at once, and without question; otherwise the necessary "harmony" will be destroyed, and the circle will fail to obtain as good results.
Excitement in all its forms should be avoided. If one of the circle develop mediumistic power, he should be placed next to a more fully developed medium unless instructions are received not to do so. In this way the power is concentrated and focused at one point.
Never attempt to use psychic-power for worldly purposes! If you do, you will invite mischievous and lying intelligences to your circle, and the medium will possibly lose what mediumship he already possesses.
Do not sit too frequently. Every other night, at most, should sittings be held, or even twice a week. See that the room is not too cool and is not unduly heated. As soon as the first manifestations have been received, encourage the
"spirits" by talking to them in a natural tone or voice, as you would if they were visibly present in the room. Speak to them as you would if they had returned to earth in bodily form. Be natural, in fact! You will get the best results in this way.
Many of those who are interested in spiritualism are so situated that they cannot join circles, but wish to develop alone. This is as a rule unwise, unless some one is present who understands the phenomena which are likely to develop and who can help and can give good advice when required. You may do so if the following instructions are kept carefully in mind. If you can provide yourself with a "cabinet," it would be very advisable to do so. Sit inside the cabinet on a comfortable chair and relax yourself thoroughly. Note whatever impressions come to you. Pay particular attention to your bodily feelings, no less than to your mental states. Do not exaggerate here, or let your imagination have too free play. If your legs should happen to tingle or the chair to creak, do not put these down to spiritual influence. They may be due to perfectly normal causes.
Symptoms of Oncoming Mediumship For the first few evenings you will probably notice nothing much of interest, though very psychic persons begin to develop almost at once. A peculiar lightness and buzzing is sometimes experienced in the head, together with a sense of numbness in the hands and arms, and sometimes in the feet and legs. The respiration seems to become slower, and so does the heart. Tiny lights and spots and light, or dark spots, appear in the air at a distance of one or two feet in front of the subject. A peculiar pressure is sometimes experienced on the top of the head or on the base of the brain, or in the solar plexus; "swishing" sounds, as of the sea breaking upon the sea-shore, may be heard and a sensation that something inside of the head is going round and round in spirals. The head, the hands and sometimes the whole body break out into a profuse perspiration at this point.
These are the first sensations of oncoming mediumship. Very often they are not pleasant for the first few weeks, but if this period be passed, the unpleasant sensations will as a rule vanish, and the subject will then develop true mediumship of one character or another.
Getting the Best Results
Just here it is advisable to state that the would-be medium should not at first sit for the express purpose of cultivating any particular phase of mediumship. He may desire to obtain materialization, but unless he is naturally endowed in this matter, he might sit for ever and obtain nothing; whereas if he developed whatever phenomena presented themselves, he might very soon develop into a striking medium in some other line.
To return, however, to the early development of mediumship: Soon after these early impressions have been noticed, the subject may note for the first time that his mind is peculiarly susceptible to influences of all kinds. He feels as if his mind has been "skinned," so to speak, and that he is now exposed to the psychic breezes from every direction! He may become erratic and irritable and develop "moods" which he himself cannot understand. Peculiar buzzings in the head are sometimes heard, sometimes cloudlike masses seem to form in space before him, twisting and turning and moving up and down, and round about with a very irregular motion. As a rule, these clouds appear to be of the consistency of vapour, though they may in time become more and more solid, until they become built up into definite forms. Of this however later.
Early Signs and Experiences
At this phase of the development the subject may feel cool breezes blowing upon his hands and face from various directions-breezes which appear to be perfectly physical in character. He may also experience a peculiar sticky sensation on his hands and face as though cobwebs were applied over the bare skin which is exposed. This cobwebby sensation is very common, and is not limited, as many think, to mediums who obtain materialization.
In the early stage of the development, mediums very often see colours of various shades and hues in space before them. They are unable to tell whether or not these colours have any definite shape or outline; they seem to possess an odd, irregular shape of their own; something like a large blot of ink. At
this stage also many psychics see faces of friends and relatives, either living or dead, just as they are falling asleep or as they are awakening in the morning-more usually the former. They also see many strange faces. These may be mere vague images or clearly outlined. Instead of the faces they may hear voices, speaking-and the first thing which these voices generally say is the name of the subject himself. After this the voices may become more and more clear and intense, but such phenomena should be permitted only at stated times, because if they are allowed to develop whenever they may be experienced, trouble may result. Many odd and grotesque figures and shapes may present themselves to the mind's eye at this stage of development. These shapes may be highly coloured or may be almost colourless, seeming to be made of the air itself, yet somehow separated from this in outline. Many of these images are symbolic, though as a rule a few of them are recognizable. More often they represent curious patterns and figures, such as roses, circles, outlines of patterns such as may be seen on the wallpaper and occasionally weird and horrible images flash into the mind, to be gone again the next instant.
If these manifestations develop an unpleasant character at this time they should be checked instantly. The subject may do this in several ways. First of all he should build up his physical health. Second, he should see to it that he obtains plenty of sleep. Third, he should exercise his brain as little as possible on anything of this unpleasant character. Fourth, he should keep busily occupied in material, practical things and leave himself no time to ponder and dwell upon these unpleasant occurrences. Fifth, he should avoid by all means day-dreaming and never allow the mind to become passive or absent-minded. He should cultivate his objective attention and interest, in short, and focus his whole personality, as it were, between his eyes, so as to have it under thorough control. If he does this, and refuses to sit for development for a short time, he will find that these early unpleasant symptoms (should they develop) will soon wear off; and this advice holds good at any stage of the development of mediumship.
Exaggeration and Imagination
Many of those who develop psychic phenomena are inclined to exaggerate the importance of the manifestations they receive during the early stages of their mediumship. Everything seems so new and strange to them, so remarkable, so unaccountable, so beyond the experience of the average person, that they feel bound to tell it to every one they meet and usually it loses nothing in the telling! They fail to realize that every medium who has been developed has gone through these same early stages, but has progressed beyond them years before! In observing these phenomena in yourself you must be very careful to distinguish between the facts which really occur, and the phantasies of your own excited imagination, which is inclined to extend and amplify these facts beyond all recognition. Thus, suppose a blurred outline of a face presents itself to you; the next day you meet your cousin on the street. You instantly come to the conclusion that the face you saw was that of your cousin while, as a matter of fact, it might not have borne the least resemblance to him. This is a very simple case, but will serve to explain the point in question.
If you obtain such phenomena, you must be very careful not to exaggerate them, for if you do you will quite possibly lose the real sensitiveness that you are beginning to acquire, and this will be replaced by the products of an overexcited imagination.
This is a truth, well known, as you may see by the following quotation from a work which appeared in 1813, entitled "Animal Magnetism" by Deleuze, for in it he says:
"Do not press the somnambulist too much, for if you do you will gain nothing; you will even lose the advantages which you might derive from his lucidity. It is possible that you could make him speak upon all the subjects of your personal curiosity, but in that case you will make him leave his own sphere and introduce him in yours, he will no longer have any other resources than yourself, he will utter to you very eloquent discourses, but they will no more be dictated by the external inspirations, they will be the product of his
recollections or of his imagination. Perhaps you will also rouse his vanity and then all is lost, he will not re-enter the circle from which he has wandered. The two states cannot be confounded."
The student, who cultivates mediumship should, therefore, be careful to preserve a clear head and a modest estimate of his own phenomena. If he does, he will doubtless progress rapidly and favorably.
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