Pierini, E. (2014). ‘Becoming a Spirit Medium: Initiatory Learning and the Self in the Vale do Amanhecer.’ Ethnos, Vol. No. , pp. 1-25. Physical mediumship is not practiced much today. One reason might be that these phenomena brought on quite a bit of skepticism, as well as the exposure of many fraudulent physical mediums. Seances are still popular today, and the necessity of a physical medium is no longer a requirement. People have turned more to mental mediumship, psychic mediums, and evidential psychic mediums ? to assist in their connections with the spirit world. When I sat for the spirit world, guidance was given that it would be unwise at this moment of my unfoldment to interfere by bringing modern technology into the sanctuary of my home circle.

The beauty of this gift is that you don't necessarily need to do anything with it besides embrace it, develop it to the point where you’re aware of it, and then let it enrich your life in whatever way you want it to. Stoller, P. (1994). ‘Embodying Colonial Memories.’ American Anthropologist, Vol. 96, No.3, pp. 634-648. Traditionally, and with no confirmed exceptions in the Western world, this rare form of mediumship has undergone much of its development in the dark. The reason for this is that ectoplasm – a substance exuded from the physical medium’s body, is extremely sensitive to light. Many are the physical mediums who have sustained injuries because the sudden and unexpected introduction of light has caused the ectoplasm to return violently to the medium’s body, resulting in burns and bleeding. Recently Scott Milligan himself suffered a burn after an illuminated rope was thrown close to his body when ectoplasm was present in the room. More recently, Paul Stoller has suggested that anthropological commentaries on spirit possession have tended towards five dominant explanatory frameworks (excluding the dismissive framework of the earliest anthropologists), which include: ‘functionalist, psychoanalytic, physiological, symbolic (interpretive/textual), and theatrical’ frameworks. 6 These perspectives will be used to structure what follows. Functionalist InterpretationsZingrone, N. (1994). ‘Images of Woman as Medium: Power, Pathology and Passivity in the Writings of Frederic Marvin and Cesare Lombrosso.’ In L. Coly & R.A. White (eds.) (1994). Women and Parapsychology: Proceedings of an International Conference. New York: Parapsychology Foundation. (pp. 90-123). Endnotes More recent research, however, has demonstrated that the distinction between the ideal shaman as a controller of the spirits, and the ideal medium as entirely under the control of the spirits, is often blurred. 86 Wilson has also criticised the classically assumed distinction between spirit mediumship and shamanism, and has proposed that spirit mediumship, and in particular Euro-American Spiritualist mediumship, can be thought of as a variety of shamanism, with mediumship development seen as a form of shamanic apprenticeship. 87 It is also clear that the term ‘mediumship’ refers to different phenomena even within the Western context. Indeed, Spiritualist mediumship, as the above definition suggests, can be broadly split into two categories. There is ‘mental mediumship,’ which itself can be split into two distinct forms of clairvoyant/telepathic/clairaudient/clairsentient mediumship, often also known as ‘platform mediumship,’ and trance mediumship, during which the body of the medium is temporarily occupied by an ostensible spirit entity. Physical mediumship can be defined as the ‘purported ability of the medium to channel unknown energies’ to create physical changes in the immediate environment’. 2 Barrett, William. ON SOME PHYSICAL PHENOMENA COMMONLY CALLED SPIRITUALISTIC, Journal 2, 1886, pp. 218-24. Barrett describes sittings with two amateur mediums and the professional medium Eglinton, in which at least some of the phenomena appeared genuine. slate writing/physical mediumship

The passing of the great materialisation medium Alec Harris in 1974 seems to have marked a watershed in physical mediumship. Since then, there has been no reported instance of full materialisation in light, a mystery over which many of us have puzzled, including our physical mediums. It was clear to me at the end of the session the medium was tired. There were approximately 12 people in the group. Of course, when he got to me Saint Germain immediately showed up. I am a public person so he could have easily looked me up on the Internet ahead of time and known that I am a spiritual medium myself working with Saint Germain. I don’t believe that was the case because of what Saint Germain said to me afterwards. I’ll share that in a few moments.

Fact-checking and Ethical Concerns

Thankfully, there are perks, different kinds, and different ways you can use the gift.Mediums are good at reading the energy of a room, artistic creations, and can be very energetic. In principle there should be no seances held in total darkness. Subdued lighting including coloured lights or Natural light is preferable at all times. If there is to be consideration given to ‘Dark Seances’ then the following is required:- Our concept of the ASC is, therefore, built upon this foundational perception of a generalized productive waking consciousness. ASCs from this perspective are modes of experiencing the world through forms of consciousness different to our ‘everyday waking consciousness’. Of course there is a wide range of these alternate modes of consciousness, including everything from early morning drowsiness and caffeine rushes to dreams, trances, ecstasies and psychedelic states. Materialization and Dematerialization are the appearance and disappearance of the full form of a spirit as it was in the past or as it is now in the spirit realm. It has been reported that the spirit actually walks, sits or touches the sitters in the room or around the table. Through direct voice it is also able to speak directly to them. To begin the process, sometimes the physical medium will sit in a draped area known as a cabinet to facilitate and draw in the energies of the spirit. The spirit materializes via the physical medium (some people believe this is accomplished using ectoplasm) and becomes visible to the group. It is also believed by some people that the spirit remains attached to the medium by way of a cord of ectoplasm. Laughlin, C.D. (2013). ‘Dreaming and Reality: A Neuroanthropological Account.’ International Journal of Transpersonal Studies, Vol. 32, pp. 64-78.

The Freudian psychoanalytic perspective treats spirit possession as a form of culturally shaped hysteria, which itself refers to an ‘irrational emotional state caused by repressed oedipal desires in the unconscious’. 25 Other psychoanalytic interpretations of spirit possession emphasize ‘past traumatic and distressful experiences’ 26 in the lives of the possessed, and suggest that the behaviours and psychological sensations associated with the possession state are symbolic symptoms of the unconscious repression of such experiences, converted from the psychological to physical symptoms through a process known as ‘conversion’ or ‘somatization’. 27

As any medium seeking to develop their ability knows, it is the other world that unfolds our mediumship. I asked what safeguards were to be put in place to protect me if the camera damaged my mediumship or my health when used in a séance. No answer was given. they must be filmed with infrared cameras. It would be invaluable if the AFC invested in a video system that uses multiple cameras that could be linked not only to a recording device but also to a monitor outside the seance room. The medium or chairperson at a seance must give a pre-seance briefing to the sitters with details of what can and can’t be done during the seance, tailored to the individual medium who is working during the seance.