It was then realized that the basket and the planchette were only extensions of the hand, and that when mediums held the pencil directly, their hand was made to write by an involuntary, almost feverish impulse. In this way, the communications became faster, easier and complete. Nowadays, this is the most common method, and the number of persons endowed with this ability is quite considerable and increases daily. Finally, experience revealed many other varieties of mediumship, and it was discovered that communications could also occur through speech, hearing, sight, touch, etc., and even through spirits writing directly, that is, without using the medium’s hand or the pencil.
This fact having been established, there was still one more essential point to consider: the role of the medium in the responses and the part he or she might play both mechanically and mentally. Two crucial circumstances (which would not escape the attentive observer) make it possible to settle the issue. The first is the way by which the basket moves under the medium’s influence by simply placing the fingers on its rim; an examination will show the impossibility of the medium guiding the basket in any way. This impossibility becomes especially obvious when two or three persons are touching the basket at the same time. It would require a truly phenomenal coordination of movement between them in addition to an extraordinary similarity of thought that would enable them to understand each other and give answers to the questions. Another no less original fact adds to the problem, that being the radical change in the writing according to the individual spirit who communicates; the same writing recurs whenever the same spirit returns. For this to happen, it would be necessary for the medium to have trained him or herself to change writing styles twenty different ways, and furthermore, he or she would have to remember the style of this or that spirit every time.
The second circumstance results from the nature of the responses themselves, which, in most cases – especially when dealing with abstract or scientific questions – are obviously outside the knowledge, and sometimes the intellectual reach, of the medium. Moreover, the medium is usually unaware of what is being written or may not even understand the question, which may be asked mentally or even in a foreign language, with the answer given in the same language. Furthermore, the basket may write spontaneously about some completely unexpected subject, without any question having been asked regarding it.
In some cases, the responses reveal a level of wisdom, depth and timeliness, and the thoughts are so elevated and sublime that they could only have come from a higher intelligence imbued with the purest morality. At other times, they are so flippant, so frivolous and so banal that reason refuses to accept the possibility that they could have come from the same source. Such diversity of language can only be explained by the diversity of the intelligences who manifest themselves. Are these intelligences human or not?
That is the point to clarify, and for which a complete explanation, as conveyed by the Spirits9 themselves, will be found in this book.
Here we are facing obvious effects that are produced outside the circle of our habitual observations. These effects do not occur mysteriously, but in the full light of day; anyone can see and observe them because they are not the privilege of one individual in particular, but are repeated every day by thousands of persons at will. These effects necessarily have a cause, and since they reveal the action of an intelligence and a will, they are outside the purely physical realm.
Many theories have been formulated regarding the matter.
We will examine them briefly and will see if they can render comprehensible all the facts that have surfaced. In the meantime, however, let us accept the existence of beings distinct from humankind – since that is the explanation given by the intelligences themselves – and let us see what they might have to tell us.
9 When the term “the Spirits” with a capital “S” appears in the text, it is referring to the group of highly evolved spirits who were involved in revealing the Spiritist Doctrine, and after whom this work has been entitled (see the Prolegomena) – Tr.
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