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The Spiritist Review - Journal of Psychological Studies - 1860 > June
June
Bulletin of the Parisian Society of Spiritist StudiesNotice:
Starting from next July 15th, the office of The Spiritist Review as well as
Mr. Allan Kardec’s residence will be transferred to Rue Sainte-Anne, 59 –
Passage Sainte-Anne.
Friday, May 4th, 1860
(Private Session)
Minutes from the April 17th session were read.
By suggestion and proposal of the Committee, and after the reading of
the minutes, the Society accepts among full members:
1st – Mr. Achille R…,
employed in Paris;
2nd – Mr. Serge de W…, from Moscow.
2nd – Mr. Serge de W…, from Moscow.
MULTIPLE COMMUNICATIONS:
1st – Letter from Mrs. P…, medium from Rouen, stating that several suffering spirits who were evoked at the Society have spontaneously gone there to say thank you for prayers on their behalf. Since she has recovered her mediumistic faculty, she has only worked with suffering spirits. She was told that her mission is mainly to alleviate their pain.
1st – Letter from Mrs. P…, medium from Rouen, stating that several suffering spirits who were evoked at the Society have spontaneously gone there to say thank you for prayers on their behalf. Since she has recovered her mediumistic faculty, she has only worked with suffering spirits. She was told that her mission is mainly to alleviate their pain.
2nd – A spontaneous essay received by Mrs. L…, a medium
member of the Society, about vanity given by a familiar spirit was
read. To be published below.
3rd – Letter from Mr. Bénardacky, from Brussels, with a communication
received about the formation of Earth by incrustation
from several planetary bodies, and the state of catalepsy of Earth’s
first inhabitants and other living creatures. This communication
occurred regarding a phenomenon of voluntary catalepsy that
seemingly took place with some inhabitants of India and Central
Africa. The phenomenon consisted of certain individuals being
buried alive, in exchange for a payment of a certain amount of
money, and after several months they were retrieved from the grave,
returning to life.
Mr. Arnauld d’A…, member of the Society and old friends
with the counselor to the late King of Abyssinia, who has resided
for a long time in that country, mentions two facts of his
knowledge, one of which occurred in England and the other in
India, that seem to confirm the possibility of voluntary catalepsy
of short duration, but he informs us that he has never heard
about facts similar to those described by Mr. Bénardacky. Mr.
d’A… who was familiar with the habits and language of those
countries, and observed them as a scientist, is impressed by the
facts and surprised that such information would not have come
to his attention; from what one can assume there might have been
exaggeration.
STUDIES:
1st – A question is raised about the possible evocation of Mr. JulesLouis
C…, who died at the Val-de-Grace hospital, in exceptional circumstances, already evoked on February 24th (see number from
April 1860, Bulletin of the Society, February 24th, Studies #2). The
question was motivated by the presence of one person of his family
who is very interested in the evocation and in the consideration of his
current state of progress. St. Louis informs us that the spirit prefers to
be called in a more intimate session.
2nd – Questions about the theory of the formation of Earth
and about the cataleptic state of the living beings in their origin,
regarding the communication from Mr. Bénardacky. A large
number of observations are made by several members.
3rd – Study about the phenomenon reported in the previous
session, of a dog that recognized his evoked owner. The spirit
Charlet intervenes spontaneously in the subject and develops a
theory about why this might happen based on the facts. This is
published below.
Friday, May 11th, 1860
(General Session)
Minutes of May 4th session were read.
MULTIPLE COMMUNICATIONS:
1st – Letter from Mr. Rabache, sent from Liverpool, in which
he reports a spontaneous communication given to him by Adam
Smith, without any evocation; he then shows the conversation
that follows with answers given in English, while the questions
were framed in French. In the conversation Adam Smith criticizes
the point of view that served as basis for his economic theory.
He says that if he were to write his book, The Theory of Moral
Sentiments today, he would give these, as a general principle: innate
conscience, having for motive, exceptional love.
2nd – A letter from Mr. Bénardacky, complementing the communications
obtained about catalepsy.
Note: St. Louis in a private session and once questioned about
the value of such communications, confirms several parts, but
adds the following through the medium Mr. T…:
“You can study these things but I advise you not to publish
it yet. Several other texts, which will be given to you later,
brought by the circumstances, are necessary. You take the risk
of making serious mistakes by publishing it now, mistakes that
you will have to reconsider later and that would be embarrassing
and cause harm to Spiritism. Thus, be very sensible with respect
to anything that is related to scientific theories since that is exactly
what you have to fear from the pseudo-wise and imposter
spirits. Remember what has been often said to you: the spirits do
not have the mission of bringing you a finished science or to unveil
all things before it is time, something that must result from
the individual’s work and ingenuity. Concentrate on your own
betterment. God shall take your heart and your humbleness into
account rather than a knowledge that is frequently covered by
curiosity in its most part. It is by practicing God’s laws, practicing
them, understand it well, that you shall deserve to be favored
by communications from the truly superior spirits, who are never
mistaken.”
It is impossible to ignore the profoundness and the elevated
wisdom of such advice. That language, simultaneously simple
and sublime, marked by extreme benevolence, shows a significant
contrast to the callous and arrogant or the swagger of spirits who
want to impose themselves.
3rd – Reading of news sent by Mr. T…, with the description
of a very superior world, to which his spirit was transported during
sleep. It seems that such a world has many analogies with
those attributed to Jupiter, but to an even higher degree.
STUDIES:
1st – Two spontaneous essays, one received by Ms. Parisse and
signed by Louis, and another received by Mr. Didier Junior,
signed by Gérard de Nerval.
2nd – Questions related to Mr. T… vision, addressed to St.
Louis. The vague and incoherent answers indicate the evident interference
of a deceiving spirit.
3rd – Evocation of Adam Smith, regarding his letter to Mr.
Rabache. Questions about his current positions compared to those
found in his books. He confirms what he said to Mr. Rabache,
relatively to the error in the principle which served as basis for his
moral considerations.
Friday, May 18th, 1860
(Private Session)
Reading of the minutes and works of previous session.
Under the advice and proposal from the Committee, and after a verbal
report, the Society accepted as members: 1st – Mr. B…, merchant in
Paris; 2nd – Mr. C…, trader in Paris.
MULTIPLE COMMUNICATIONS:
1st – Reading of the following communication, received in a private
session, with respect to the works of the previous session,
through the medium Mrs. S…:
• Why didn’t St. Louis communicate last Friday through Mr.
Didier, allowing a deceiving spirit to speak?
• St. Louis was present but did not want to speak. As a matter
of fact, haven’t you recognized that it was not him? That is enough. You were not deceived since you recognized the
imposture.
• Could you ask him? He is here.
• St. Louis, could you give us the reason for your abstention?
• You are upset with what happened but you must know that
nothing happens without a reason. Sometimes there are
things whose objectives you don’t understand; that seem evil
to you, at first sight, because you are very impatient, but you
shall acknowledge its wisdom later. Hence, remain calm and
do not be upset with anything. We can distinguish those who
are sincere and we take care of them.
• If it was a lesson that you wanted to give us I would understand
it when we are in our small group; but in the presence
of strangers, who then had a bad impression, it seems to me
that evil prevails over good.
• You are mistaken by seeing things that way. Evil is not what
you think and I assure you that there were people to whom
that backlash was a proof of your good faith. In reality, sometimes
good comes out of bad. When you see a gardener cutting
beautiful branches of a tree you deplore the fact that the
greenery has been sacrificed and it seems bad to you. However,
once those parasite branches are cut-off, the fruits blossom even
more beautiful and tasty. That is the good. You then realize
that the gardener was wiser and more cautious than you supposed.
By the same token, if a limb is cut-off from a patient, the
loss of the member is bad; but, if the patient gets better after
the amputation, that is the good since it may have saved a life.
Give some serious thought to that and you will understand.
• That is very fair. But how come after we appeal to the good
spirits, in order to have the imposter spirits kept away, our
appeal is not attended?
• It is attended, have no doubt! However, are you sure that
such appeal is originated from the bottom of the heart of all attendees, or that there isn’t someone that out of a less charitable
or malevolent thought may attract bad spirits to your
environment, by desire? That is why we tell you incessantly:
Be united, good and benevolent to one another. Jesus said:
Whenever you gather in my name, I will be among you. Do you
think that it is good enough to pronounce his name for that?
Make no mistake and be convinced that Jesus goes nowhere
unless invited by pure hearts, together with those who practice
his precepts, because these are the ones who truly gather
in his name. He does not go to the proud ones, or the ambitious,
or hypocrites, or those who gossip about their brothers.
These are the ones that he means when he says: shall not enter
the Kingdom of God.
• I understand that the good spirits leave when their advice
is not listened too. However, if there are ill-intended people
among the attendees, is that a reason to punish the others?
• I am surprised by your persistence. It seems to me that I have
explained it very well to someone that wishes to understand.
Do I need to repeat that you must not bother with these things
which are negligible before the great edifice of the Doctrine
under construction? Would you believe that your house is
about to collapse because a tile has fallen from the roof? Do
you have any doubt about our power, our benevolence? No!
Let us then act and rest assured that every thought, good or
bad, has an echo in the heart of the Eternal.
• You said nothing about the general invocation we make at the
beginning of each session. Could you give us your thoughts?
• You must always appeal to the good spirits; the format, as you
know, is insignificant. Thought is everything. You are surprised
by what happened. However, have you examined well the faces
of those who hear you when you make such invocation? Haven’t
you seen a sarcastic smile from certain lips, more than once?
Which spirits do you think such persons may carry along? These are spirits that, like them, laugh at the most sacred things. That
is why I tell you not to receive the first person to show up; avoid
the curious ones and those who do not come to learn. Everything
shall happen in due course and nobody can prejudge God’s designs.
I truly tell you that those who laugh at these things today
shall not laugh much longer.
St. Louis
2nd – A note addressed by Mr. Jobard, from Brussels, about the
evocation of Mr. Ch. de Br…, deceased not long ago.
3rd – Reading of a communication received by the medium
Ms. L…, member of the Society, with interesting explanations
about the story of the spirit and the little dog. To be published
below.
4th – Another spontaneous essay by the same medium about
sadness and grief.
5th – Letter from Mr. B…, science professor, about the theory
given to him of fixed times for the manifestation of the spirits.
Such theory is considered by all, without exception, as the result
of an obsession by spirits who are systematic and ignorant.
Experience and reason demonstrate to the exhaustion that it does
not deserve a serious examination.
6th – Report of a curious fact, related to a portrait painted
under the influence of a natural intuitive mediumship. Mr.
T…, artist, who had lost his father at an age where he could
not have kept any memory of his features. Together with other
members of the family he regretted the fact of not having any
picture of his father. One day in his studio a vision appeared
to him, or even better, an image was formed in his mind; he
then reproduced it on the canvas. It took him several sessions
to accomplish the execution and the image came back to him
on every occasion. He then had the intuition that it was the
image of his father but he spoke to no one. When the portrait was finished he showed it to his relatives who recognized his
father without hesitation.
STUDIES:
1st – Four spontaneous essays received simultaneously: first by
Ms. Huet, from the spirit that began to write his memories; the second
by Ms. S…, about The Fantasy, by Alfred de Musset; the third
by Ms. Stephanie S…, from a familiar spirit deceased a few years
back, whose name when alive was Gustave Lenormand. That is a not
much advanced spirit, joyful and witty, but very good and obliging,
considered as a friend of the house by several families that he visits.
One day he said that he would come to hunt down the bad spirits.
The fourth essay by Ms. Parisse was signed by Louis.
2nd – Evocation of Mr. B…, professor of science that we mentioned
above, a living person designated by another spirit as capable
of providing information about Francois Bayle, a seventeenth
century doctor that some people want to write his biography. The
result of the evocation tends to demonstrate that Bayle who is
dead and Mr. B…, who is alive, are both the same person. In
fact the latter gives the required information and provides several
explanations of the highest interest. To be published.
Friday, May 25th, 1860
(General Session)
Reading of the minutes and works of previous session.
MULTIPLE COMMUNICATIONS:
1st – Letter from Dr. Morhéry, with an appreciation, from a scientific
point of view, about the medication employed by Ms. Désirée
Godu under his supervision. Published below.
2nd – Reading of a spontaneous essay by the medium Ms. L…,
about human misery.
3rd – Reading of a series of very remarkable communications
received by several members of the Russian W… family in private
sessions. To be published.
4th – Reading of a private evocation carried out in a private
session from the medium Ms. Duret, deceased on May 1st, in Sétif,
Algeria. It contains important consideration about the mediums.
STUDIES:
1st – Evocation of Ms. Duret; series of communications.
2nd – Evocation of Charles de Saint-G…, mentally challenged,
age 13. It contains interesting revelations about the state of that
spirit, before and during his incarnation. To be published below.
3rd – Study about Mr. V…, a Navy officer, still alive, who has
kept a precise memory of his life and death in the period of St.
Bartholomew. To be published.
Spiritism in England
In the beginning Spiritism found a resistance in England that rightfully
surprised us. We cannot say that, like everywhere else, it has found isolated
support but its progress was infinitely slower than in France. Would
it be the case, as some have claimed, that the English, colder, more positive
and less enthusiastic than us, are less carried away by imagination?
Would they be less attracted to the supernatural? If that were the case,
we should be surprised and with more reason that Spiritism has had its
main focus in the United States, where the positivism of material interests
rules completely. Wouldn’t it be more rational that it had appeared in
Germany, but at the same time, doesn’t it seem that Russia takes the lead
as the classical land of legends?
The opposition found by Spiritism in England has nothing to do with
the national character but with the influence of religious ideas of certain
dominating sects, more strictly attached to the letter than to the spirit of
their dogmas. They were shaken by a doctrine that at first sight, seemed
to be contrary to their beliefs. However, this could not have lasted long in
the minds of a critical, enlightened nation, where free examination finds
no obstruction and the freedom of assembly is an absolute right. They
had to surrender before the evidence of facts. Well then, it was precisely
because the English have judged and appreciated it cold-bloodedly and
without enthusiasm that they have understood its full reach.
When the fundamental truth was observed, that spiritist ideas are
founded on Christian ideas and far from contradicting, they continue to
corroborate, explain to one another, completely satisfy religious scruples;
having accommodated the conscience, there was nothing else opposed
to the progress of the new ideas, which propagated with incredible speed
in that country. There as elsewhere, it is still in the enlightened echelon
of society that the larger number of followers and most zealous adepts
are found. This is an irrefutable argument, which cannot be disputed.
Mediums multiply and numerous centers are created, to which high clergy
members associate themselves, openly proclaiming their convictions.
Will the adversaries say that the fever of the supernatural has triumphed
over the English composure? Be it as it will, there is a notorious fact: their
ranks get enlightened daily, despite their sarcasm.
The development of the spiritist ideas in England gave rise to specialized
publications. They now have a very interesting monthly periodical
published in London since May 1st under the title: The Spiritual Magazine,
from which we extracted the report below.
A Talkative Spirit
Spending a few weeks in Worcester I casually found a lady at the house
of a local banker, from whom I heard such an impressive story that I
needed more than one witness to give her credit. I questioned the banker
about that lady that he knew for more than thirty years. “She is so truthful,
he added, and her righteousness is so very broadly known that I have
no doubt about the authenticity of her story. This lady enjoys a spotless
reputation, of irreproachable behavior, having a strong and intelligent personality,
highly educated.” He then thinks that it is impossible that she
would try to deceive others or that she would be mistaken. He had heard
her telling the story multiple times, always in a precise and clear way, so
much so that he felt embarrassed. He refused to admit such facts but, on
the other hand, he dared not to doubt her good faith.
My own observations led me to confirm everything that I learned
about that lady. There was in her manners, her air, even the sound of
her voice, something that seemed incapable of deceiving, carrying the
conviction of truth. Thus, it was impossible to me to consider her dishonest,
even more so when she spoke about these things with an evident
distress. The banker had warned me that it would be very difficult to
make her talk about the subject since, in general, she was used to the
fact that people would laugh rather than believe in her. It must be said
in addition, that neither her nor the banker knew about Spiritism or had
heard about it.
Here are the facts reported by the lady:
“Around 1820 we left our Suffolk house and moved to …, a sea port
in France. Our family consisted of my parents, a sister, a twelve-year-old
brother and an English butler. The house was located in an isolated region,
far from the city, in the middle of the beach. There was no other
house or construction nearby. One night my father saw a man wrapped in
a large overcoat, sitting on a fragment of rock, a few yards from the door.
My father approached to greet him but since he received no answer back,
he then returned. Before coming inside he had the idea of looking back
again but to his amazement there was nobody there. He got even more
surprised when he went back and carefully examined the surroundings,
near the rock, finding no vestige of the stranger who was sitting there a
moment earlier, and there was no shelter where he could have hidden.
When my father came to the house he said: - “My children, I have just
seen an apparition”. We of course laughed our heads off, as one can easily
understand.
Nevertheless, that very night and in several others which followed,
we heard strange noises at several places of the house: sometimes it was a
moaning coming from below our windows, on other occasions it seemed
that someone was scratching the windows, or even that several persons
were climbing on the roof. Several times we opened the windows, asking
out loud: Who is that? But we never got an answer. A few days later we
heard noises in the bedroom where my sister and I were sleeping. She was
twenty years old and I was eighteen then. We woke everybody up in the
house but nobody listened to us. We were censored and called crazy. The
noises ordinarily sounded like knocks; they would sometimes last twenty
or thirty minutes; sometimes one per minute.
In the end, our parents, who were forced to admit that it was not our
imagination, also heard the noises outside as well as inside. They then remembered
the apparition. In any case we were not that scared and ended
up getting used to all the noise.
One evening when there was the usual knocking, I had the idea of
asking: - if that is a spirit then knock six times. I immediately heard six raps, one by one. The noises became so familiar with time that we not
only were no longer afraid but they also became more pleasant.
I will now tell you the more curious part of the story, and I would
hardly do that if all members of my family had not witnessed that thing.
My brother who was then a boy and is now a renowned professional can
attest it to you if necessary, in all its details.
Besides the raps in our bedroom we began hearing something like a
human voice, mainly in the living room. The first time we heard it my
sister was playing the piano; we were singing a love song when the voice
started following us. You can imagine our surprise. We could not doubt
the reality because shortly later the voice started to talk to us, clearly and
intelligibly, meddling into our conversation from time to time. It was a
low voice, with a slow, very solemn and distinct tone. The spirit always
spoke in French. He said his name was Gaspard but never responded when
we wanted to question him about his personal story; he never explained
why he had established communication with us either. We thought he was
Spanish but I cannot remember where we got such an idea. He used to
call every member of the family by their given name; he sometimes recited
poems and constantly tried to get feelings of Christian morality across to
us, never going into issues of dogmas though. He seemed to want to make
us understand the grandiosity of virtue, the beauty of harmony among
the members of a family.
One time, my sister and I had a slight argument, we then heard the
voice saying: M… is wrong; S… is right. Since we knew him he always
gave us advice. On one occasion my father was very distressed because
he thought that he had lost certain documents that he needed to find.
Gaspard told him where the documents were placed, in our old house
in Suffolk. The papers were sought and found exactly where he had
indicated.
Things continued to be like that for another three years. Every member
of the family, including the servants, had heard the voice. The presence
of the spirit, since we had no doubt about it, was always a reason for
great joy among us; he was simultaneously considered a companion and a protector. One day he said: I will not be with you for a few months. In
fact his visits stopped for several months. One evening we heard that dear
voice saying: I am here with you. It would be difficult to describe our
happiness.
Up until that point we had heard but never seen him. One evening
my brother said: Gaspard, I would like very much to see you. And the
voice responded: I will satisfy you. You shall see me if you please, go to
the other side of the square. My brother left but soon returned saying:
I saw Gaspard; he wore a large overcoat and a wide brim hat; I looked
underneath the hat and he smiled. – Yes, said the voice entering the conversation,
it was me.
He suddenly left us but in a very kind way. We returned to Suffolk
and there, like in France, Gaspard continued to talk to us for several
weeks after our arrival. One evening he said: I will leave for good; a disgrace
would come upon you if I stayed by your side in this land where our
communications would be badly understood and misinterpreted.
Since then, the lady added with a sad tone, like from someone speaking
of a loved one who had departed by death, since then we have no
longer heard Gaspard’s voice.”
There you have the facts as we were told. All those things make me
think and perhaps they do to your readers too. I don’t intend to give any
explanation, any opinion. I will only say that I thoroughly trust the good
faith of the person from whom we heard it, and I subscribe with my name
below it, as a warrantor of the accuracy of the report.
S.C. Hall
The Spirit and the Little Dog
(Society, May 4th, 1860 – Medium Mr. Didier)
Mr. G. G… from Marseille transcribes the following fact to us:
“A young man died eight months ago and his family, in which
there are three sisters who are mediums, evoke him every day, using
a basket. Every time that the spirit is called, a dog, which the young
man was very fond of, hops on the table, smells the basket, and yelps.
The first time it happened the basket wrote: “My brave little dog that
recognizes me.”
“I have not witnessed the fact myself but the persons from whom I
heard the story did see it and those are good spiritists and very serious
people, so I cannot doubt their honesty. I asked myself if the spirit had
kept sufficient material particles to reach the dog’s sniffing capability or
if the dog was able to see the spirit. It is a problem that seems useful to
investigate further in case it is not solved yet.”
1. Evocation of Mr. … deceased eight months ago, who was just
mentioned above. – A. I am here.
2. Do you confirm the fact relative to your little dog, which comes
to smell the basket which is used for your evocations, apparently
recognizing you? – A. Yes.
3. Could you tell us what is it that attracts the dog to the basket? –
A. The extreme subtleness of the senses that may lead the dog to
guess the presence of the spirit or even see it.
4. Does the dog see or feel you? – A. The smell above all and the
magnetic fluid.
Charlet
Observation: Charlet, the painter, gave a series of remarkable
communications to the Society about animals, which we will
publish soon. That was certainly the reason why he had spontaneously
interfered with the present communication.
5. Since Charlet wants to intervene in the current issue we ask him
to provide us with some explanations about it. – A. Gladly. The
fact is perfectly trustworthy, and consequently natural. I speak in
general because I don’t have the details of the case you are discussing.
A dog is endowed by a very particular organization. They
understand humans: that is enough. They feel them, following
them in all of their actions, bearing the curiosity of a child; they
love humans and even dedicate entirely to them – and you have
examples to confirm what I am saying. Dogs must be – I am not
positive, please understand that well – but they must be one of
those animals which come from a more advanced world to support
humans in their sufferings, serve and protect them. I have
just mentioned moral qualities that dogs certainly have. As for
their sensitive faculties these are extremely delicate. Every hunter
knows the subtleness of a dog’s sniff. Besides that quality the dog
understands almost all actions of humans; understands the meaning
of their death. Why wouldn’t they perceive the presence of
their soul or even see them?
Charlet
The next day Mrs. Lesc…, a medium also member of the Society,
received the following explanation about the same subject:
“The fact cited at the Society is true; although once the spirit is
disconnected from the body it does not have any of its odors. The dog
sniffed the presence of its owner. When I say sniffed I mean that its
organs detected his presence but the nose did not feel or the eyes did
not see; however, the whole dog’s body was somehow warned about the
owner’s presence, and that warning was passed to the dog mainly by
the will expressed by the souls of those who evoked the dead person.
Human wishes reach and warn the instinct of the animals, particularly
of the dogs, before any exterior sign reveals those wishes. The dog is in
direct communication with us, the spirits, through their nervous fibers,
almost as much as they are with men. The dog perceives the apparitions;
it is aware of the difference between them and the real or Earthly things,
and they are very afraid of them. The dog howls to the moon, according
to the vulgar expression; it also does so when it feels death coming. In
these two cases, and in many others, the dog is intuitive. I shall add that
its vision is less developed than its sensations. It sees less than it feels.
The electric fluid penetrates the dog almost routinely. The fact which
served me as a starting point, therefore not surprising, since at the time
when the wish for calling his owner was out, the dog felt his presence
almost as quickly as the spirit heard it and responded to the call which
was addressed to him.”
George, a familiar spirit
The Spirit of an Idiot
(Society, May 25th, 1860)
Charles de Saint-G…, is a living thirteen year old mentally challenged
boy, whose intellectual faculties are so much inexistent that he does
not even recognize his parents and can barely feed himself. All his organs
have completely stopped from any further development. Some people
thought that this could be an interesting subject for a psychological study.
1. (to St. Louis) – Could you tell us if we can evoke the spirit of that
child? – A. Yes you can evoke him as if he were dead.
2. Your response makes us suppose that we can make the evocation
at any time. – A. Yes, his soul is attached to the body by material
links but not by spiritual links. His soul can always disengage.
3. Evocation of Ch. de Saint-G… – A. I am a poor spirit, bounded
to Earth like a bird held by the foot.
4. In your present condition as a spirit, are you aware of your almost
nullity in this world? – A. Certainly. I feel my imprisonment well.
5. When your body sleeps and your spirit is free are your thoughts
as lucid as if you were in your normal state? – A. When my unfortunate
body is asleep I am a little bit freer to elevate to heavens
to which I aspire.
6. Do you have a painful feeling as a spirit with respect to your corporeal
condition? – A. Yes because it is a punishment.
7. Do you remember your previous existence? – A. Oh, Yes! That is
the cause of my current exile.
8. What was that existence? – A. A libertine youngster at the time
of Henry III.
9. You said that your current condition is a punishment. Then, you
have not chosen that? – A. No.
10. How can this present existence serve to your progress considering
your oblivious state? – A. It is not oblivious to God who has
imposed that to me.
11. Can you foresee the duration of the present existence? – A. No; a
few years more and I will return to my homeland.
12. What have you done as a spirit between the previous and current
existences? – A. Since I was a frivolous spirit, God imprisoned me.
13. In your waking state, are you aware of what goes on around you,
despite the limitation of your organs? – A. I see and understand
but my body does not see or understand.
14. Can we offer you with anything useful? – A. Nothing.
15. (to St. Louis) – May the prayers for an incarnated spirit have the
same efficacy as those in favor of an errant spirit? – A. The prayers
are always good and pleasant to God. In the current position of
this unfortunate spirit they cannot serve; they will be useful later
since God puts them in reserve.
Observation: Nobody can neglect the elevated moral teaching that
results from this evocation. Besides, it also confirms what has always been
said about the mentally challenged. Their moral handicap does not mean
a handicap of the spirit that, apart from their material body, enjoys all its
faculties. The limitation of the organs is just an obstacle to the free manifestation
of the faculties; it does not annihilate them. It is like a strong
man whose limbs are tied up by a strong rope. It is a well-known fact
that in certain regions, far from being a reason for neglect, the mentally challenged are surrounded by careful benevolence. Wouldn’t such a feeling
be originated from the intuition of the true state of these miserable
creatures, deserving more attention, the more their spirit which understand
their condition, must suffer by seeing themselves as an outcast of
society?
Family Conversations from Beyond the Grave - Mrs. Duret
Writing medium, deceased on May 1st, 1860 in Sétif, Algeria, evoked
first at the house of Mr. Allan Kardec on May 21st, then at the
Society, on May 25th.
1. Evocation. – A. I am here.
2. We know each other by name, but not in person, since we have
never met. Do you recognize me? – A. Oh! Very well.
3. Have you come to visit me after your death? – A. No, not yet, but
I knew that you would call me.
4. As a medium and already perfectly acquainted with Spiritism,
I thought that you could give us instructive explanations, better
than others, about different points of the science. – A. I will
respond the best I can.
5. This first evocation, in a certain way, aims only at establishing
our relationship and to put us in touch. As for the questions, since
they are of general interest, I prefer to address them to you at the
Society. Thus, I ask you if you could kindly attend the invitation to come. – A. Yes, gladly so. I will respond and ask God to illuminate
me.
6. There are five mediums here. Is there anyone who you might have
preference for in order to act as your interpreter? – A. That is indifferent
to me as long as it is a good medium.
7. Have you ever been deceived by spirits as a medium in your communications?
– A. Ah, often! There are only a few mediums that
have not, more or less.
Note: Next day Mrs. Duret manifested spontaneously and revealed
disappointment for not having been asked a higher number
of questions the night before.
8. If I did not do that, as I said, I was reserving them for the Society.
I just wanted to make sure that I could count on you. – A. What
is done in your house is also useful to the Society. It is sometimes
convenient to take advantage of the moment when the spirit
wants to communicate since the circumstances are not always favorable
to them.
9. Which circumstances may be favorable to them? – A. There are
many that are of your knowledge but you need to know that it
does not always depend on the spirit. Sometimes the spirit may
need to be assisted by others who may not be always available at
the moment.
10. Since you have come spontaneously, I must understand that you
are in one of those adequate moments and I will use you, if you
wish so. You said that you were often deceived as a medium. Do
you see now the spirits that deceived you? – A. Yes. I see them
very well. They wanted to interfere here too but I see them clearly.
I am no longer a toy in their hands. Hence I repel them.
11. You also said that there are only a few mediums that have never
been deceived. What does it depend on? – A. It depends a lot on
the medium and on the one who interrogates.
12. Kindly explain it more clearly. – A. I mean that it is always possible,
whenever there is the will, to be undisturbed by the bad
spirits and that the first condition for that is not to attract them
by weaknesses or faults. How much could I tell you about it! Ah!
If the mediums only knew how much harm they are in when they
give opportunity to the malevolent spirits!
13. Is it only in the spiritual world that they are doing harm? – A. Yes,
and also in the world of the living ones.
14. What harm can they do to them in the world of the living
ones? – A. There are many ways. To begin with, they become
the prey to evil spirits, who abuse them and push them around,
stimulating every germ of defect that they can find, particularly
pride and jealousy. God punishes them later though,
through the penalties of life.
Observation: We have more than one example of mediums endowed
by the most remarkable faculties who have been chased
and subsided by disgrace, after having allowed themselves to be
dominated by evil spirits.
15. Wouldn’t it be better not to be a medium then, since that faculty
may drag us to such serious inconveniences? – A. Do you
really believe that the bad spirits attack only the mediums?
Mediumship, on the contrary, is a precious means of recognizing
and forearming against them. It is the remedy that God, in His
benevolence, places together with the illness. It is the warning of
the good father who loves his children and wants to keep them
from danger. Unfortunately those who enjoy that gift don’t want
to or don’t know how to use it. They are like the unwise person
who harms oneself with the weapon that should be used for one’s
own defense.
16. Is that you yourself, Mrs. Duret, giving the answers? – A. It is
I giving you the answers, I testify in God’s name. However, I believe that if I had been left on my own I would be incapable.
The thoughts come to me from above.
17. Do you see the spirit who gives you inspiration? – A. No. There
is a crowd of spirits here before whom I bow, and whose thoughts
seem to irradiate upon me.
18. Thus, a spirit may receive inspiration from others, like when incarnated,
and serve them as an intermediary? – A. Have no doubt
about it. The spirit frequently thinks that the answers are his
when in fact he is just an echo.
19. Whether the thoughts are yours or suggested by others, we don’t
care since they are good and we thank the good spirits who suggest
them to you. However, I would still ask why those spirits
don’t answer directly? – A. They would do it if you had interrogated
them. It was me that you have evoked. They want to answer
and then they use me for my own enlightenment.
20. A spirit who has obsessed a medium in life, can he obsess that medium
after death? – A. Death does not free a person from the obsession
of bad spirits. It is the image of the devil, tormenting the
suffering souls. Yes, those spirits pursue him after death and cause
him horrible sufferings. This tormented creature feels embraced
by a power from which he cannot be released. On the contrary,
the one who has been freed from the obsession when he was alive
is strong and the bad spirits pay him with fear and respect. They
found their superior.
21. Are there many mediums that are really good, in the thorough
meaning of the word? – A. There is no lack of doctors but of good
doctors. The same applies to the mediums.
22. Which signs can be used to identify the communications of a
trustworthy medium? – A. The communications from the good
spirits have an unmistaken character when we take the burden of
studying them. As for the medium, the best one would be the one
who has never been deceived because that would be the proof that
the medium only attracts good spirits.
23. But aren’t there mediums endowed by excellent moral qualities
who are still deceived? – A. Yes, the bad spirits may make attempts
and do not triumph but through weakness or excessive
confidence of the medium who then allows deception. But that
does not last and the good spirits always win when there is strong
will-power.
24. Is the mediumistic faculty independent of the moral qualities
of the medium? – A. Yes. It is sometimes given in high degree
to vicious people in order to help their correction. Don’t ill
people need more medication than healthy ones? The bad spirits
sometimes give them good advice without their knowledge;
the good spirits leads them to that. Those people however, do
not take advantage of that and out of pride they don’t follow
the advice.
Observation: This is perfectly accurate and one sometimes see
inferior spirits giving tough lessons, in hard ways; we see them
pointing out defects and exposing caprices to ridicule, more or
less skillfully, according to the circumstances, and occasionally in
a very witty manner.
25. Can good spirits communicate through bad mediums? – A.
Imperfect mediums may sometimes obtain lovely communications
that can only come from good spirits. However, the wiser
and more sublime those communications, the guiltier the mediums
are for not using them. Oh! Yes. They are very guilty and
will suffer penalties for their blindness.
26. May the good faith and personal qualities of the person that interrogates
the bad spirits, attracted by an imperfect medium, ensure
good communications? – A. The good spirits appreciate intention,
and when they consider useful they can utilize any kind of
medium according to their objectives. In general, the more serious
the qualities of the medium, the safer the communications.
27. Since all people are imperfect, does it follow that there aren’t perfect
mediums? – A. Some are as perfect as allowed by Earth’s humanity.
These are rare but they do exist; they are God’s favorites
and prepare themselves for great joy in the spiritual world.
28. What are the defects that give more access to the bad spirits? – A.
I told you: pride and also jealousy, which is a consequence of pride
and egotism. God loves the humble and punishes the arrogant.
29. From the above, one can conclude that the medium who is not
humble does not deserve any trust? – A. Not in absolute terms.
However, if you recognize pride, jealousy and lack of charity in a
medium, then you are more prone to be deceived.
Observation: What causes failure to many mediums is the fact of
considering themselves the only ones capable of receiving good
communications, neglecting those from others. They judge themselves
as prophets but they are not more than interpreters of clever
spirits that entrap them in their nets, persuading them that everything
they write is sublime and that they no longer need advice.
The belief of certain mediums in the infallibility and superiority
of their communications is such, that to them it is almost a profanity
to touch those communications; it is a blasphemy to doubt
them; even more, one is exposed to turning them into enemies
for it would be better to tell a poet that his verses are poor. The
spirits who assist those mediums and make sure that they inspire
in them the desire to stay away from anyone who can give them
good advice feeds such a feeling, whose evident origin is pride.
Hence, anything that is not good, in the absolute sense, cannot
come from a good spirit. Consequently, every advice given, or every
inspired thought which reflects the minor bad feeling is bad,
and hence it comes from a suspicious source, irrespective of the
qualities or redundancy of style, as a matter of fact. A sign no less
characteristic of that origin is flattery, which is abundantly employed
by the bad spirits towards certain mediums. They know how to praise their physical or moral traits, massaging the mediums’
secret inclinations, exciting their ambition and greed, even
criticizing pride and advising humility, stimulating vanity and
self-love. One of the methods they use is to persuade the mediums
of their superiority as mediums, placing them as apostles of missions,
which are at least doubtful and for which the first required
quality would be humbleness, added to simplicity and charity.
Dazzled by the names of revered beings, from which they judge
themselves to be the interpreters, they don’t see the bad intentions
transpired by the false spirits, since it would be impossible for inferior
spirits to simulate completely every quality that they don’t
have. The mediums will not really be free from the obsession that
victimizes them until they can understand this truth. It is only
then that the bad spirits for their part, will understand that they
are wasting their time with people that they cannot catch in a
faulty situation.
(Society, May 25th, 1860)
30.
As it seems, your husband has the faculty of clairvoyance. Is that
true? – A. Yes, positively.
31. He says that he saw you twice after your death. Is that true? – A.
Yes, it is true.
32. Are the clairvoyant mediums subjected to be deceived by the imposter
spirits as much as the writing mediums? – A. They are
deceived less frequently than the writing mediums but can also be
by false appearances, when they are not inspired by God. Didn’t
the false prophets make miracles that deceived the people under
the Pharaoh, during Moses’ time? It was only Moses who was not
mistaken since God inspired him.
33. Can you now explain to us your sensations when entering the
world of the spirits? Besides the more or less lengthy disruption which always follows death, was there a time when your spirit
lost completely its self-awareness? – A. Yes, as always; it cannot
be different.
34. Did that absolute loss of awareness start before the instant of
death? – A. It began in the agony.
35. Did it persist after death? – A. For a very short time.
36. In all, how long might it have lasted? – A. About 15 to 18 of your
hours.
37. Is such a duration variable, according to the individuals? – A.
Certainly. It is not the same to all people. It depends a lot on the
kind of death.
38. Were you aware of what was happening to the body while the
phenomenon of death was taking place? – A. Absolutely not.
God, who is good to all His creatures, wishes to spare the spirit of
the anguishes of that moment; hence He removes every memory
and sensation.
Observation: That fact, which has always been confirmed to us,
is analogous to what happens to the spirit when returning to the
corporeal world. It is well known that at the time of conception
the spirit that was designated to inhabit a body that is to be born
is taken by a disruption which progressively increases along with
the tightening up of the fluidic links that unite it to the matter,
up until close to birth. At that moment the spirit equally loses
self-awareness, only recovering it at the moment when the child
breathes. It is only then that the union between the spirit and the
body is complete and definitive.
39. How was the moment of awakening? Did you suddenly recognize
yourself or there was a period of semi-consciousness, that is, an
emptiness of thoughts? – A. I was in that state for some time, then
I gradually recognized myself.
40. How long did it last? – A. I am not exactly sure, but it was short.
Perhaps a couple of hours.
41. Was your sensation pleasant or painful during that kind of
half-sleep? – A. I don’t know. I had almost no awareness of myself.
42. While the ideas became clearer, were you sure about the death of
the body or, for a short time, you believed that you were still in
this world? – A. In reality, I did believe it for a few moments.
43. When you were positive about your death, were you sad? – A. No,
absolutely not. The loss of life is not to be deplored.
44. Where were you when you acknowledged yourself and what was
the first thing that you saw? – A. I was with spirits that surrounded
me, helping me to leave that disturbance. It was the change
that shocked me.
45. Are you close to your husband? – A. I hardly leave him. He sees
and evokes me, and that replaces my poor body.
46. Have you gone back immediately to revisit your friends: Mr.
Dumas and the other spiritists from Sétif? – A. Not immediately.
I thought they would evoke me. I had left them not long ago and
it seemed that I had known them and had not seen them for centuries.
I was a medium and spiritist. Every spirit that I had evoked
came to see me. It was touching. If you only knew how nice it is
to meet again our friends in this world!
47. Has the world of the spirits seemed something new and strange
to you? – A. Oh! Yes.
48. This answer surprises us considering that this is not the first time
that you are in the spiritual world. – A. There is nothing surprising
about it. I was not as advanced as I am now. And besides, the
difference between the corporeal and the spiritual world is such
that we are always surprised.
49. Your explanation could be clearer. Wouldn’t that be because every
time that we return to the spiritual world the achieved progress
gives us new perceptions, allowing us to see it under different aspects? – A. It is positively so. I told you that I was not as advanced
as I am today.
Observation: The following comparison allows the understanding
of what happens in such a circumstance. Suppose a poor peasant
that comes to Paris for the first time: he will take part in a
society and live in an area compatible with his situation. After a
few years of absence, during which he becomes wealthy and acquires
certain education, he returns to Paris and finds himself in
an environment completely different from the first time, which
will seem new to him. He will understand and appreciate a number
of things that had hardly caught his attention the first time
around. In a word, he will have difficulty recognizing his former
Paris but it will always be Paris, but seen in a different way.
50. How do you see now the communications given in Sétif: are they
generally more good than bad? – A. They are as everywhere else:
there are good and bad ones, true and false. People frequently get
involved with things that are not serious enough and don’t always
go well. Nevertheless, they don’t believe that they are doing bad
things. I will make sure to correct them.
51. We thank you for your kindness in coming and giving the explanations.
– A. I also thank you for having thought of me.
Intuitive Medicine
Plessis-Boudet, May 23rd, 1860
Dear Sir,
In my last letter I provided you with a bulletin of the cures
obtained through the medication given by Ms. Godu. I still have
the intention of keeping you informed about current events, but
today I find it more beneficial to talk about her means of treatment.
It is good to have people aware of that because we receive
patients from far away with a false idea of that kind of medication,
exposing themselves to a useless trip or a trip of pure curiosity.
Ms. Godu is not somnambulistic. She never gives consultation
at a distance, not even in my house, unless under my direction
and control. When we agree, which is something that almost
always happens as I am now in a better condition to appreciate
her medication, we start the agreed treatment and Ms. Godu
continues with the application of balms, prepares the infusions,
acting like a nurse, but a topnotch nurse, with an incomparable
keenness, in our modest makeshift clinic.
Is she endowed by a purifying fluid, through which she obtains
such precious results?
Is it by the frequency of application of her infusions or by the
confidence that she inspires?
Finally, is it through a well-known and applied system of
medication that makes her successful?
Such are the three questions that I often ask myself.
At this point in time, I don’t want to get into the first question
because it requires an in-depth study and a scientific discussion
of first order. This shall come later.
As for the second question, today I can answer positively,
since Ms. Godu is in the same condition of every doctor, nurse or
technician who is capable of raising the patient’s moral, inspiring
a healthy trust.
Regarding the third question, I no longer hesitate to answer it
positively. I am convinced that Ms. Godu’s medication constitutes
a whole and very methodic system. The system is theoretically
simple but in practice it varies to infinity, and it is in its application
that it demands thorough attention and every skill possible.
The most skillful professional finds it difficult to understand, at
first sight, the mechanism and the series of never ending changes,
depending on the progress or decline of the disease. They become
obfuscated and confused but with time the medication and its
effects are better understood.
It would take too long to enumerate the details to you, and
“currente calamo” it is a whole new medical system to us, although
and no doubt, very old relatively to the age of human beings
on this planet. Here are the foundations of that system which
rarely moves away from manipulative medicine.
In the majority of the cases Ms. Godu applies a topic extract
composed of one or two elements, found everywhere, from the
hut to the castle. That extract has such an energetic effect that it
produces results incomparably superior to every known composite,
not excluding the current cautery and the moxas. Sometimes
she limits herself to the application of vesicants, when an energetic
effect is not indispensable. The skill consists on the application of adequate doses of the remedy to the illness; on keeping a constant
and varied suppuration, and that is what she obtains with such
a simple combination that one cannot consider being a medication.
One can say that these are similar to the simple cold-creams
and even poultices, however that balm definitely produces effects
which are extremely variable: here, the calcareous salts are on top
of the bandages; for those in the state of edema, it is water; for
those with mood disorders, it is an abundant suppuration, sometimes
clear, sometimes thick; in the end, the effects of the balm
vary greatly in a way I have not understood yet and that, as a
matter of fact, it must be part of the investigation of the first question.
That is regarding the exterior part. Later I will send you a
word about the internal medication that I can easily understand.
One must not think that the illness is removed by the hand. As
always, time and perseverance are needed to radically cure rebellious
diseases.
Yours sincerely,
Morhéry
A Seed of Madness
The Journal de la Haute-Saône has recently reported the following fact:
“People have seen dethroned kings buried in the ruins of their palaces;
unfortunate gamblers renouncing their life after losing fortunes; however,
an owner committing suicide in order not to outlive the expropriation of a
field, that is perhaps something which we have never been seen before the
following case. A landowner of Saint-Loup received a communication indicating
that one of his fields would be expropriated on May 14th by the East
Railroad Company. The information touched him profoundly. He could
not bear the idea of losing his field. This situation caused him to show
signs of mental insanity. He left his house on May 2nd at three o’clock in the
morning and drowned in the river Combeauté.”
It is a difficult fact to see people committing suicide for such a futile
cause. Such an unreasonable act can only be explained by a mental derangement.
But what has produced that derangement? Certainly it was
not the belief in spirits. Was it the expropriation of the field? In that case
why don’t all of those who face dispossession go mad? Some may say that
it is because not everyone has such a weak mind. You then admit a natural
predisposition for madness. It could not be different since the same
cause does not always produce the same effect, and we have already said
that often, when responding to those who accuse Spiritism for provoking
madness.
They should explain if there were mad people before dealing with
spirits and if there are mad people only among those who believe in spirits!
A physical cause or a violent moral commotion will only produce instantaneous
madness. Beyond that if we examine the antecedents there will
always be symptoms that a fortuitous cause may develop. Madness then
assumes the character of main concern. The mad person talks about his
concerns but the cause of madness is not that concern; it is, somehow, a
form of manifestation.
Thus, when there is a predisposition for madness, the one who is concerned
with religion will have a religious madness; love will produce a
passionate madness; ambition will produce the madness of honors and
wealth, etc. In the case mentioned above it would be absurd to see anything
other than a simple effect that any other cause would have produced,
since there was predisposition. Now, we go further: we say out loud that if
that landowner, so sensitive to his field had profoundly incorporated the
principles of Spiritism he would not have gone mad or drowned. Two disgraces
would have been avoided, as shown by many examples. The reason
for that is obvious. A relative moral weakness is the primary cause of madness,
yielding the individual incapable of resisting the shock of certain impressions,
among which and at least in three quarter of the cases, sorrow,
despair, disappointment and all tribulations of life. Providing people with
the necessary strength to see these things with indifference is the same
as mitigating people’s most frequent cause of madness and suicide. Well,
such strength is found in a well-understood Spiritist Doctrine.
Facing the greatness of the future that Spiritism patently demonstrates
and unveils before our eyes, life tribulations become so ephemeral
that they slide over our souls like the water over the marble, leaving no
trace behind. The true spiritist is not more attached to matter than required
by life’s needs. However, if he lacks something he shows resignation
since he knows that he is there in-passing and that a much better fate
waits for him. Thus, he is no more upset by that than if he had found a
stone on his path. If the gentleman above was instilled by these ideas what
would had become of the field before his eyes? The annoyance would be insignificant or null and an imaginary disgrace would not have dragged
him to a real disgrace. In summary, one of the effects, and we can say one
of the benefits of Spiritism, is to give the soul the strength that it lacks in
many circumstances, and that is how it can reduce the causes of madness
and suicide.
From the above, one can see that the simplest fact may be a source of
teaching to anyone willing to give thought to that. It is by showing the applications
of Spiritism in the most vulgar cases that one shall understand
its whole sublimity. Isn’t that the true philosophy?
Muslim Tradition
The following text was extracted from the clever and remarkable book
by Mr. Géraldy Saintine, published under the title “Three years in
Judea”.
“When the Sultan of Babel Bakhtunnassar (Nebuchadnezzar) was
sent by God to punish the children of Israel, who had abandoned the doctrine
of unity, he stripped the temple from all precious objects which were
there. He kept for himself the throne of Solomon with its supports, the
two pure golden lions animated by witchcraft and defending the gates,
and then distributed the rest of the pillage to the several kings of the
court. The King of Roum received Adam’s costumes and Moses’ stick;
the King of Antakie got the throne of Belkis and the wonderful peacock
whose stoned tail formed a rich dossal around the throne; the King of
Andalucía received the golden table of the Prophet. A stone safe containing
the Torah was among the treasures but nobody paid any attention to
that, although it was the most precious of all assets. It was then left behind
to the caprices of bandits from around town, stealing everything in their
path; and the repository of God’s word disappeared in that huge chaos.”
“Forty years later, after the wrath of God had been appeased, he
decided to reestablish his inheritance to the children of Israel and gave
rise to the prophet Euzer (Ezra), – peace be upon him! – Predestined
by God’s will to a glorious mission. He had spent his whole youth in
prayers and meditation, neglecting human sciences to fully dedicate to the contemplation of the Infinite Being, separated from the world, at the
bottom of a cave around the sacred city. That cave is still called el Azerie.* Obeying God’s order he left his refuge and came to join the children of
Israel, telling them how they should reconstruct the temple and reestablish
the honor of the former rituals.”
“However, the people did not believe in the prophet’s mission. They
declared that they would not submit to the law; that the construction
work of the temple should stop and they would inhabit other lands, if the
book of Lord Moses – God bless him! – had consigned all religious prescription
given to him at Mount Sinai. The book had vanished and every
attempt to find it proved useless.”
“Hence, Euzer, in this big predicament, fervently prayed to God to
alleviate his suffering, and preventing the people from persisting on a path
to ruin. He was sitting under a tree, sadly contemplating the ruins of the
temple, around which an unruly crowd agitated, when a voice from above
commanded him to write. He obeyed immediately, although he had never
had a pen in his hand. He continued to write everything that the heavenly
voice dictated to him, from after the mid-day prayer to the same time on
the following day, fasting and grounded to the sacred soil, he did not hesitate
for a minute or stop at night because a supernatural light illuminated
his spirit and an angel guided his hand.”
“All children of Israel were stunned and quietly contemplated that divine
manifestation of power. However, when the prophet finished his miraculous
copy, the Imams, who were envious of the particular favor done
to him, they then pretended that the new book was a diabolical invention
and that it had no similarity with the former book.”
“Euzer reached out to the Infinite Goodness again and yielding to
a subtle inspiration he walked to the spring of Siloam, followed by the
crowd. At the spring he raised his hands to the skies and prayed a long
prayer with his heart and the people prostrated before him. A flat stone
suddenly appeared on the surface of the water, floating as if sustained by
an invisible hand. The trembling Imams recognized in the stone the long lost sacred arc. Euzer took it with deference. The arc then broke open by
itself. Moses’ Torah came out as if alive and the new copy, leaving the
prophet’s hands, rested inside the sacred box.”
“There was no more doubt. The sacred man, however, demanded that
the Imams had the two exemplars confronted. The Imams obeyed, despite
their confusion. After a long examination they testified in a loud
voice that not a word, not a single accent showed the minor difference
between the book written by Euzer and the one given by Moses. As they
had paid that tribute to the truth, God then punished them for their first
mistakes, blinding their eyes, throwing them into eternal darkness.”
“That is how the children of Israel were driven back to their forefather’s
faith. The place where their God given leader sat since then was
called “Kerm ech Cheick” (Sheikh’s pen).
Who would not acknowledge in that report several spiritist phenomena
that the mediums reproduce before our eyes and have nothing do to with
the supernatural?
__________________________________________________
* Arabic name for the cave known as Lazarus’ Grave.
Language Mistake by a Spirit
We received the letter below regarding a fact reported in the May issue
of The Spiritist Review, in the article entitled “Pneumatography
or Direct Writing”:
“Dear Sir,
It was only today that I read the May issue of The Review,
finding the report of an experience of direct writing, carried out
in my presence at Ms. Huet’s house. It is a pleasure to confirm
the report with the exception of a small inaccuracy that escaped
the storyteller. What we found in the piece of paper was not God
loves you but God love you, that is to say, the verb love without the
s, which was not in the third person. Thus, it should not be translated
as God loves you (in French) unless presumed the existence
of a particle “what” giving the phrase an imperative or subjunctive
form. This observation was made in the following session to
the spirit Channing (considering that it was Channing since you
know me and please excuse me for keeping my doubts about the
absolute identity of the spirits); the spirit did not explain it very
categorically and even criticized us a little, if I remember well, for
giving importance to one letter “s” as compared to a more or less
remarkable experience. “Regarding that friendly criticism by the
spirit of Channing, I thought it was my duty to inform you about my observation about the way the word love was written. The
honorable Mr. E. de B… that kept the piece of paper can show it
to you and he will show it to many people and among those there
could be some who would have read the article from The Review.
Well then, it is important – and I am sure you agree with my
opinion – that the highest fidelity be given to the report of the so
strange and marvelous facts that we obtain.”
Yours sincerely…
Mathieu
We had noticed perfectly well the mistake indicated by Mr. Mathieu and
promptly corrected it, knowing from experience that the spirits give little
importance to these typos, with which the more enlightened have no
qualms about; or are we not surprised at all by Channing’s observation
to something, as he said, a fact far more crucial. The accuracy in the reproduction
of facts is, no doubt, something essential. But the importance
of such facts is relative and we must confess that if we were supposed to
always follow the French orthography of the invisible ones then the grammarians
on duty would have fun, treating them as cooks, even if the mediums
had passed those subjects. We have a lady medium at the Society
full of academic titles, and whose communications, sometimes written
very calmly, have several of those mistakes. The spirits always tell us: “Pay
attention to the message not the form; the actual thought is everything
to us; the form is nothing. Modify the form, if you like. We leave that to
you.”
If the form is mistaken we don’t maintain it unless it can provide a
teaching. Well, that was not the case in the situation above, in our opinion,
because the meaning of the statement was obvious.
Spontaneous Essays and Spiritist Dissertations
Vanity
(Received by Mrs. L, medium)
I want to talk to you about vanity that is blended into all human activities. It stains every delicate thought; it penetrates the heart and the mind. A bad plant which suffocates the germ of goodness; all qualities are annihilated by its poison. To fight against it, prayer is needed; only prayer can give us strength and humility. You incessantly forget God, ungrateful people! To you God is only the desperate help in affliction, never the friend invited to the feast of joy. God gave you the glorious radiation of the Sun to illuminate the day and the stars, golden flowers, to break the darkness of night. Everywhere, in all elements needed by humanity, God touched the creation with beauty. God has treated you like a generous host would do with his guests. God multiplies the splendor of God’s dwelling and the abundance of the banquet. What do you do in turn; you that only have your heart to offer God? Far from decorating it with happiness and virtues, far from offering God with the premises of your hopes, you deprive God, you don’t invite God into your heart, unless harmed by sorrow and bitter deceptions. Ungrateful! What are you waiting for to love your God? Disgrace and abandonment! Before that, offer God your painless heart; stand up and offer God your fearless love, but not like slaves on their knees, and when the time of danger comes God shall remember you who did not forget Him at the time of happiness.
(Received by Mrs. L, medium)
I want to talk to you about vanity that is blended into all human activities. It stains every delicate thought; it penetrates the heart and the mind. A bad plant which suffocates the germ of goodness; all qualities are annihilated by its poison. To fight against it, prayer is needed; only prayer can give us strength and humility. You incessantly forget God, ungrateful people! To you God is only the desperate help in affliction, never the friend invited to the feast of joy. God gave you the glorious radiation of the Sun to illuminate the day and the stars, golden flowers, to break the darkness of night. Everywhere, in all elements needed by humanity, God touched the creation with beauty. God has treated you like a generous host would do with his guests. God multiplies the splendor of God’s dwelling and the abundance of the banquet. What do you do in turn; you that only have your heart to offer God? Far from decorating it with happiness and virtues, far from offering God with the premises of your hopes, you deprive God, you don’t invite God into your heart, unless harmed by sorrow and bitter deceptions. Ungrateful! What are you waiting for to love your God? Disgrace and abandonment! Before that, offer God your painless heart; stand up and offer God your fearless love, but not like slaves on their knees, and when the time of danger comes God shall remember you who did not forget Him at the time of happiness.
Georges, a familiar spirit
Human Misery
(Received or read in sessions of the Society)
Human misery is not in the uncertainty of the events that sometimes cheer you up and sometimes knock you down. It is entirely in the greedy and insatiable heart that always wants to receive, complaining of others aridness and never noticing its own drought. That unhappiness, always aspiring above one’s head, is never satisfied by the dearest joys. That unhappiness, I tell you, is what constitutes human misery. Why bother with the brain, with its most brilliant faculties, if it is always overshadowed by the insatiable and bitter desire for things that are always beyond reach? Just as a shadow floats close to the body then happiness floats close to the soul, always unachievable. You must not, however, be sorry or smear your fate for that shadow, that wave-like fleeing and moving happiness by the intensity and anguish confined in your heart as it gives us the proof of divinity imprisoned with humanity. Thus love likes pain and its vivifying poetry that vibrates your spirit through the memory of the eternal homeland. The human heart is a cup full of tears; but the breaking dawn shall drink the water from your hearts; it shall be the amazing life to your eyes, blinded by the darkness of the corporeal prison. Courage! Each day is liberation. March the painful path; march and keep your eyes on the mysterious star of hope.
Human misery is not in the uncertainty of the events that sometimes cheer you up and sometimes knock you down. It is entirely in the greedy and insatiable heart that always wants to receive, complaining of others aridness and never noticing its own drought. That unhappiness, always aspiring above one’s head, is never satisfied by the dearest joys. That unhappiness, I tell you, is what constitutes human misery. Why bother with the brain, with its most brilliant faculties, if it is always overshadowed by the insatiable and bitter desire for things that are always beyond reach? Just as a shadow floats close to the body then happiness floats close to the soul, always unachievable. You must not, however, be sorry or smear your fate for that shadow, that wave-like fleeing and moving happiness by the intensity and anguish confined in your heart as it gives us the proof of divinity imprisoned with humanity. Thus love likes pain and its vivifying poetry that vibrates your spirit through the memory of the eternal homeland. The human heart is a cup full of tears; but the breaking dawn shall drink the water from your hearts; it shall be the amazing life to your eyes, blinded by the darkness of the corporeal prison. Courage! Each day is liberation. March the painful path; march and keep your eyes on the mysterious star of hope.
George, a familiar spirit
Sadness and Sorrow
(Received by Mrs. Lesc…, medium)
It is wrong to frequently give in to sadness. Make no mistake. Sorrow is a firm and honest feeling that hurts people right in the heart or in their interests, but the vile sadness is no more than the physical manifestation of the slow or the torrent blood that follows its course. A lot of weakness and selfishness is covered up in the name of sadness. It debilitates the yielding spirit. Sorrow, on the contrary, is the bread of the strong; the bitter food that feeds on the faculties of the spirit, reducing the animal influence. Do not seek the martyrdom of the body, but eagerly seek the martyrdom of the soul. People understand that movement is needed to maintain life but don’t understand that suffering is needed to exercise moral qualities. Happiness, or simply joy, is such a brief guest of humanity that you cannot withstand it without having been crushed, however slight it may be. You were cut to suffer and incessantly dream of happiness because you are wingless birds, grounded, looking to the skies and longing for the infinity.
George, a familiar spirit
Observation: These two communications undoubtedly contain beautiful thoughts and images of great elevation, but they seem to have been written under the influence of somewhat somber and pessimistic ideas. They seem to carry the expression of a broken heart. The spirit that dictated them died a few years ago; he was good friends with the medium when alive, becoming a familiar spirit after his death. He was a talented painter, leading a calm and serene life. Who knows if that was also the case in his previous existence? Nonetheless, all of his communications attest depth and wisdom. One could say that they reflect the medium’s character. Mrs. L is undoubtedly a very serious lady, in many aspects above the vulgar, and that is what attracts the sympathy of the good spirits to her, apart from her mediumistic faculties. However, the following message received at the Society demonstrates that she can obtain communications of much varied characters.
It is wrong to frequently give in to sadness. Make no mistake. Sorrow is a firm and honest feeling that hurts people right in the heart or in their interests, but the vile sadness is no more than the physical manifestation of the slow or the torrent blood that follows its course. A lot of weakness and selfishness is covered up in the name of sadness. It debilitates the yielding spirit. Sorrow, on the contrary, is the bread of the strong; the bitter food that feeds on the faculties of the spirit, reducing the animal influence. Do not seek the martyrdom of the body, but eagerly seek the martyrdom of the soul. People understand that movement is needed to maintain life but don’t understand that suffering is needed to exercise moral qualities. Happiness, or simply joy, is such a brief guest of humanity that you cannot withstand it without having been crushed, however slight it may be. You were cut to suffer and incessantly dream of happiness because you are wingless birds, grounded, looking to the skies and longing for the infinity.
George, a familiar spirit
Observation: These two communications undoubtedly contain beautiful thoughts and images of great elevation, but they seem to have been written under the influence of somewhat somber and pessimistic ideas. They seem to carry the expression of a broken heart. The spirit that dictated them died a few years ago; he was good friends with the medium when alive, becoming a familiar spirit after his death. He was a talented painter, leading a calm and serene life. Who knows if that was also the case in his previous existence? Nonetheless, all of his communications attest depth and wisdom. One could say that they reflect the medium’s character. Mrs. L is undoubtedly a very serious lady, in many aspects above the vulgar, and that is what attracts the sympathy of the good spirits to her, apart from her mediumistic faculties. However, the following message received at the Society demonstrates that she can obtain communications of much varied characters.
The Fantasy
(Medium Mrs. Lesc…)
You want me to talk about fantasy; she was my queen, my mistress, my servant. I served it and I was dominated by it. Nevertheless, although always subjected to her adorable fluctuations, I was never unfaithful. It is her that still drives me to speak or other things: about the easiness, with which one heart may be split between two loves, easily misunderstood and strongly criticized. I consider it absurd, this criticism from the good bourgeois who like their little vices resolved, which is even more annoying than their virtues. They only admit what their pruned brains, fenced by hedges like the garden of a priest, can understand. You are afraid of what I say; relax; Musset has his own fangs; he cannot be asked to show the kindness of little trained dogs. One needs to bear and understand his jokes. There is the truth in their frivolous appearance, saddness in their merriment, and laughing in their tears.
Alfred de Musset
Observation: One person that had only heard this communication when it was first read said in a private session that it seemed of little significance to him. The spirit of Socrates who was taking part in the conversation responded to this observation, spontaneously writing: “No, you are mistaken; read it again; there are good things; it is very smart and it has its good side. They say that this is how one can get to know man. In fact, it is easier to prove the identity of a spirit from your time than from mine. To certain people it is useful to have communications of this kind from time to time.” The other day and in a conversation about mediums, referring to the character of Alfred de Musset accused by one of the participants of being very material, he spontaneously wrote the remarkable communication below, through one of his favorite mediums.
Observation: One person that had only heard this communication when it was first read said in a private session that it seemed of little significance to him. The spirit of Socrates who was taking part in the conversation responded to this observation, spontaneously writing: “No, you are mistaken; read it again; there are good things; it is very smart and it has its good side. They say that this is how one can get to know man. In fact, it is easier to prove the identity of a spirit from your time than from mine. To certain people it is useful to have communications of this kind from time to time.” The other day and in a conversation about mediums, referring to the character of Alfred de Musset accused by one of the participants of being very material, he spontaneously wrote the remarkable communication below, through one of his favorite mediums.
Influence of the Medium onto the Spirit
(Received by the medium Mrs. Schmidt)
It is only the superior spirits that can irrespectively communicate with all mediums, keeping the same language in all circumstances. But I am not a superior spirit, thus I am sometimes a little bit material. However, I am more advanced than you may think.
When we communicate through a medium the emanation of the medium’s nature reflects more or less upon us. For example, if the medium is of that type in which the heart prevails; of those more advanced creatures capable of suffering for their brothers and sisters; finally, of those devout, great souls, turned strong by unhappiness and purified by the torment, then their reflex does good, in the sense that we are spontaneously corrected and our language interacts. However, if on the contrary, we communicate through one of those mediums of a less elevated nature we are then merely served by a faculty as someone is served by an instrument.
That is when we become what you call a little bit material. We talk about spiritual things, if you want, but we leave the heart aside.
Q – Are the educated, cultured mediums, more apt to receive elevated communications than those who are not?
– A. No, I repeat. It is only the essence of the soul that is reflected upon the spirits, but the superior spirits are the only ones invulnerable.
(Received by the medium Mrs. Schmidt)
It is only the superior spirits that can irrespectively communicate with all mediums, keeping the same language in all circumstances. But I am not a superior spirit, thus I am sometimes a little bit material. However, I am more advanced than you may think.
When we communicate through a medium the emanation of the medium’s nature reflects more or less upon us. For example, if the medium is of that type in which the heart prevails; of those more advanced creatures capable of suffering for their brothers and sisters; finally, of those devout, great souls, turned strong by unhappiness and purified by the torment, then their reflex does good, in the sense that we are spontaneously corrected and our language interacts. However, if on the contrary, we communicate through one of those mediums of a less elevated nature we are then merely served by a faculty as someone is served by an instrument.
That is when we become what you call a little bit material. We talk about spiritual things, if you want, but we leave the heart aside.
Q – Are the educated, cultured mediums, more apt to receive elevated communications than those who are not?
– A. No, I repeat. It is only the essence of the soul that is reflected upon the spirits, but the superior spirits are the only ones invulnerable.
Alfred de Musset
Bibliography
In an article above we spoke of a new periodical publication about
Spiritism, in London, under the title The Spiritual Review. Italy does
not fall behind the movement that elevates the ideas to the invisible world.
We received a flyer from a newspaper published in Genoa, called L’Amore
del Vero, periodico de scienze, literature, belle arti, magnetism animale,
omeopatia, elettro-telegrafia, Spiritismo, etc. Sotto la direzzione dei signori
D. Pietro Gatti e B. E. Maineri. This journal is published three times per
month, in a notebook of 18 pages.
Dr. Gatti, director of the Genoa Institute of Homeopathy, is an enlightened
adept of Spiritism, and we have no doubt that the matters related to this
science are handled by him with the talent and sagacity that characterize him.
The Story of Joan of Arc dictated by herself to Ms. Ermance Dufaux,
whose reprint we just announced, is now available and can be found in the
Ledoyen bookstore. We referred to this remarkable work in the January
issue of The Review, 1858. Since then our opinion did not change regarding
its importance, not only from a historical point of view but as one of
the most curious facts of spiritist manifestations. The reprint was strongly
demanded and we don’t doubt that it will have as great a success as the
number of adepts of the new science who are today in larger number since
the time of the first publication.
Allan Kardec
Allan Kardec