Challenger, Professor (Fictitious character) -- Fiction; Spiritualism -- Fiction
The account of Pithecanthropus is taken from the “Bulletin de
l’Institut Métapsychique.” A well-known lady has described to me how the
creature pressed between her and her neighbours, and how she placed her
hand upon his shaggy skin. An account of this séance is to be found in
Geley’s “L’Ectoplasmie et la Clairvoyance” (Felix Alcau), p. 345. On
page 296 is a photograph of the strange bird of prey upon the medium’s
head. It would take the credulity of a MacCabe to imagine that all this
is imposture.
These various animal types may assume very bizarre forms. In an
unpublished manuscript by Colonel Ochorowitz, which I have been
privileged to see, some new developments are described which are not
only formidable but also unlike any creature with which we are
acquainted.
Since animal forms of this nature have materialised under the mediumship
both of Kluski and of Guzik, their formation would seem to depend rather
upon one of the sitters than upon either of the mediums, unless we can
disconnect them entirely from the circle. It is usually an axiom among
Spiritualists that the spirit visitors to a circle represent in some way
the mental and spiritual tendency of the circle. Thus in nearly forty
years of experience I have never heard an obscene or blasphemous word at
a séance because such séances have been run in a reverent and religious
fashion. The question therefore may arise whether sittings which are
held for purely scientific and experimental purposes, without the least
recognition of their extreme religious significance, may not evoke less
desirable manifestations of psychic force. The high character, however,
of men like Richet and Geley ensure that the general tendency shall be
good.
It might be argued that a subject with such possibilities had better be
left alone. The answer seems to be that these manifestations are,
fortunately, very rare, whereas the daily comfort of spirit intercourse
illumines thousands of lives. We do not abandon exploration because the
land explored contains some noxious creatures. To abandon the subject
would be to hand it over to such forces of evil as chose to explore it
while depriving ourselves of that knowledge which would aid us in
understanding and counteracting their results.
* * * * *
_The greatest pleasure in life is that of reading. Why not then own the
books of great novelists when the price is so small_
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account