ANOMALOUS EXPERIENCE:

An unusual or strange experience, seemingly paranormal that cannot be explained in terms of current scientific knowledge.

 

CLAIRVOYANCE:

French term for clear sight, a psychic visual perception in the medium's mind of spirit, people, objects and scenes in the past, present or future, and near or at a distance. (See also Remote Viewing). Even though clairvoyance is perceived only by the medium, it can still be subjective or objective. In subjective clairvoyance, the medium sees internally, while in objective clairvoyance, the medium sees spirit externally in her surroundings.

 

CLAIRAUDIENCE:  

A psychic auditory perception in the mediums mind of spirit voice, spirit music and other paranormal sounds with her inner ear. Clairaudience is subjective when the mediums hear internally, or objective when the medium hears sounds in her surroundings.

 

CLAIRSENTIENCE:

A psychic perception of feeling or sensing spirit, their physical characteristics and personality traits. Physical impressions often accompany this ability. It is akin to empathy.

 

CRYPTESTHESIA:

Literally hidden sensation. A term used in parapsychology to describe the subliminal (below the threshold of consciousness) perception of occurrences not normally perceived by the ordinary senses, such as clairvoyance and clairaudience.

 

DEVELOPMENT CIRCLE:

A class for mediumship development.

 

DISSOCIATION:

A term used in parapsychological to describe the process or state in which awareness of perceptions, memories and physical sensations become blocked from the main consciousness as in trance-speaking, automatic writing, etc.

 

ECTOPLASM:

A substance that emanates from the body of the medium and that spirit manipulates to create ectoplasmic rods for levitation and movement of objects or ectoplasmic voice boxes for direct voice phenomena or to produce partial or full materialization of spirit faces or figures (spirit forms). Ectoplasm is the essence of physical phenomena. The term was coined by Dr. Charles Richet, Nobel Prize winner and psychical researcher.

 

EXTRASENSORY PERCEPTION OR ESP:

A term in parapsychology popularized by Dr. Joseph Rhine as an abbreviation of extrasensory perception or perception by other means than the five senses. ESP includes telepathy, remote viewing (clairvoyance at a distance) and precognition(foreknowledge). A recent addition to ESP studies is clairaudience.

 

INDEPENDENT PHYSICAL PHENOMENA:

Phenomena produced by spirit without a mediums involvement, such as independent or direct writing (slates, signatures or other scripts on walls or paper, etc.), independent or direct painting (art precipitated on canvases or paper), independent or direct voice (voices heard in the surrounding space with or without the aid or a trumpet or an ectoplasmic voice-box), and spirit lights.

 

PARANORMAL:

A term in parapsychology and now more widely used that chooses experiences beyond the normal occurrences or sciences current ability to explain. ESP and PK are paranormal abilities.

 

PARAPSYCHOLOGY:

A field of study concerned with the scientific investigation of psychic or paranormal phenomena. Evolved from 19th-century psychical research, parapsychology is now studied in university laboratories and private institutions. The primary objective of parapsychology is to gain a scientific understanding of ESP-related studies, such telepathy, clairvoyance, remote viewing, precognition, psychic healing, and PK or psychokinesis, as well as states of consciousness and survival studies.

 

PHYSICAL MEDIUMSHIP PHENOMENA:

The type of phenomena produced in physical mediumship, through spirit utilizing the ectoplasm produced by a medium. Physical phenomena are objective and can be seen, heard, smelled, and even felt by the sitters in the séance room. They can be classified as visual, audible, olfactory, or tangible.

 

1) VISUAL PHENOMENA:

 

• TELEKINESIS:

A term in parapsychology that describes the movement of objects without human intervention. Sometimes used interchangeably with Psychokinesis or PK, although this actually means the movement of an object by mind influence (mind over matter). In Spiritualism, telekinesis is achieved by spirit creating ectoplasmic rods for the purposes of levitation, movement of objects, table-tipping, and raps. Telekinesis also applies to apports.

 

• APPORTS:

Physical objects that spirits de-materialized in one location and re-materializes in the séance room.

 

• AUTOMATISM:

Physical phenomena produced by the spirit while the medium is in trance or in an altered state of consciousness, but using his/her hands as in automatic writing, automatic drawing, automatic painting, and automatic musical composition.

 

• MATERIALIZATION:

Partial ectoplasmic replicas of hands, faces, etc. or a full-form ectoplasmic figure of the spirits former physical body. Full -form materialization is the most impressive of physical phenomena.

 

• TRANSFIGURATION:

An ectoplasmic spirit face superimposed over the mediums face.

 

• INDEPENDENT OR DIRECT WRITING:

Spirit scripts and signatures that appear on slates, walls, or paper without human intervention.

 

• INDEPENDENT OR DIRECT PAINTING:

Paintings and drawings precipitated by spirit onto canvas or paper without human intervention.

 

• INSTRUMENTAL TRANSCOMMUNICATION or ITC

(see Technology Assisted Phenomena).

 

• SPIRIT LIGHTS:

Various light phenomena created by the spirit that can be seen in the surrounding space.

 

2) AUDIBLE PHENOMENA:

 

• PERCUSSION:

The physical phenomena that spirit creates by rapping. The raps produced by the spirit of Charles Rosna on the night of March 31st, 1848, in the Fox family cottage in Hydesville, New York State, mark the beginning of the Spiritualist Movement.

 

• INDEPENDENT OR DIRECT VOICE PHENOMENA:

Spirit voices heard in the séance room without a visible source. For this to occur, spirit creates an etheric voice box or larynx from the ectoplasm produced by the medium. If the energy is insufficient, a trumpet is used to amplify the voices.

 

• TRUMPET:

An aluminum collapsible cone with a luminous band around the base through which spirit voices are heard in the séance room. Spirit lifts the trumpet in the air and uses it to augment the volume in independent or direct voice phenomena.

 

• SPIRIT MUSIC:

Harmonious sounds heard in the surrounding space or music played by flying instruments in the séance room.

 

• ELECTRONIC VOICE PHENOMENA or EVP

(see Technology Assisted Phenomena).

 

3) OLFACTORY PHENOMENA:

Spirit fragrances or other odours that permeate the surrounding air.

 

4) TACTILE PHENOMENA:

Spirit breezes or touches that can be physically felt.

 

PSI:

A term coined by biologist Berthold P. Wiesner and used in parapsychology to define the unknown factor present in ESP (extrasensory perception) and PK (psychokinesis) that cannot be explained by physical or biological methods. PSI is categorized: psi-gamma or extra sensory perception and psi-kappa or psychokinesis.

 

PSYCHICAL RESEARCH:

The study of phenomena that appear to be caused by a non-physical agency and mental perceptions by means other than the five physical senses. The Society for Psychical Research was founded in England in 1882 by Cambridge scholars for the purpose of studying psychic phenomena. These studies included thought-transference (telepathy), mesmerism, Spiritualistic phenomena and mediumship, the Odic Force (Reichenbach's vital energy or life-force), apparitions and haunted houses. The studies of mediumship and its related phenomena were conducted in the séance room. In 1911 and, more specifically, in 1930, psychical research became the domain of university laboratories under the name of parapsychology.

 

PSYCHOKINESIS or PK:

A term used in parapsychology to describe paranormal action or the movement of an object by mind influence (mind over matter. PK and ESP are the main categories of PSI, the unknown factor that is studied in parapsychology.

 

PSYCHOMETRY:

Greek for soul measuring. A term coined by Joseph Rodes Buchanan, a 19th physician, who proposed the idea that all things give an emanation. He described it as the past entombed in the present. In Spiritualism, psychometry is a method of obtaining mainly clairsentient information from an object through touch. Psychometry can also trigger clairvoyant and clairaudient perceptions and is often used in development circles for that reason.

 

REMOTE VIEWING:

Terms introduced by parapsychologists Russell Targ and Harold Putoff to denote knowledge obtained by paranormal means of distant things and events in the past, present or future. Governments have shown interest in remote viewing.

 

SPIRIT PHOTOGRAPHY:

 The appearance of a spirit extra in a photograph, produced when spirit uses etheric energy and ectoplasm on photographic film. Although many fraudulent opportunists pretended to be spirit photographers, there were enough genuine ones that, through their abilities, captured images of recognizable spirits and provided excellent proof of survival.

 

TECHNOLOGY ASSISTED PHENOMENA:

Also known as Technology Augmented Phenomena, it is the effect that spirit creates by using equipment, such as cameras, camcorders, tape recorders, television or computer monitors, computer printers, etc. These phenomena are highly evidential of survival and include spirit photography, Electronic Voice Phenomena (EVP) and Instrumental Transcommunication (ITC).

 

• ELECTRONIC VOICE PHENOMENA (EVP):

Tape recordings of spirit voices. The late Sarah Estep, founder of the American Association of Electronic Voice Phenomena, rated the spirit voices recorded as Class C or very faint, Class B or louder and clearer voices that sometimes can be heard without headphones, and Class A or clear voices heard without headphones and that can be duplicated onto other recorders.

 

• INSTRUMENTAL TRANSCOMMUNICATION (ITC):

A term coined by Ernst Senkowski in the 1970's and that refers to any type of spirit communication received through computer or TV screens, video recorders, fax machines, telephones, etc. These technology-based communications have provided consistent evidence of the afterlife consistent with established scientific methods.

 

TELEPATHY:

The ability to communicate mentally, as in the mind-to-mind blending between two people or between spirit and medium.

 

TRANCE:

A state that a medium achieves when he or she disconnects from everyday consciousness and allows a spirit to manifest. Trance is not the possession of the medium's body, but rather, a mental process of mind blending between spirit and medium. The trance can be light, in which the medium is partially detached from normal consciousness and is aware of what is being said. Spirit speaks through the mediums own voice, imparting personal thoughts, and using characteristic expressions. Inspired phenomena, such as speaking, writing, or drawing, are expressions of light trance. Deep trance is reached when the mediums detach him or herself completely from consciousness and are unaware of what takes place. Spirits own voice is heard. Through the trance state, a spirit is able to speak, teach, write, paint, compose music and heal. Although considered mental mediumship, some physical phenomena, such as levitation, movement of objects, materialization, and automatism were produced in a deep trance. Healing has been transmitted in a deep trance state, as well as in a normal conscious state.