Spiritism
Encyclopedia
Spiritism is a loose corpus of religious
faiths having in common the general belief in the survival of a spirit
after death
. In a stricter sense, it is the religion, beliefs and practices of the people affiliated to the International Spiritist Union, based on the works of Allan Kardec
and others. Formed in France
in the 19th century, it soon spread to other countries, but today the only country where it has a significant number of adherents is Brazil
.
written by French
educator Hypolite Léon Denizard Rivail under the pseudonym
Allan Kardec
reporting séance
s in which he observed a series of phenomena that he attributed to incorporeal intelligence (spirit
s). His work was later extended by writers like Leon Denis
, Arthur Conan Doyle
, Camille Flammarion
, Gabriel Delanne
, Ernesto Bozzano, Chico Xavier
, Divaldo Pereira Franco
, Waldo Vieira
, Johannes Greber and others.
Spiritism has adherents in many countries throughout the world, including Spain, United States, Canada, Japan, Germany, France, England, Argentina, Portugal and especially in American countries such as Cuba, Jamaica, and Brazil, which has among the largest proportion and greatest number of followers.
in his seminal work The Spirits Book
, are: (i) A belief in the existence of spirits - non-physical beings that live in the invisible or spirit world - and (ii) the possibility of communication between these spirits and living people through mediumship
. There is a clear difference between the terms "Spiritism" and "Spiritualism
":
Although there are many similarities between the two, they differ in some fundamental aspects, particularly regarding man's quest toward spiritual perfection and the manner by which the followers of each practice their beliefs.
Spiritism teaches reincarnation or rebirth into human life after death. This basically distinguishes Spiritism from Spiritualism. According to the Spiritist doctrine, reincarnation explains the moral and intellectual differences among men. It also provides the path to man's moral and intellectual perfection by amending for his mistakes and increasing his knowledge in successive lives. For this reason Spiritism does not accept rebirth in animals as this would be retrogressive.
Finally, unlike Spiritualism, Spiritism is not a religious sect but a philosophy or a way of life by which its followers live by. Its followers have no priests or ministers and do not follow any religious rituals in their meetings. They also do not call their places of meetings as churches, and instead call them by various names such as centers, society or association. Their activities consist mainly of studying the Spiritist doctrine, applying spiritual healing to the sick and organizing charitable missions.
Kardec reaffirmed that on the cover of his "The Spirit's Book". Another author in the Spiritualist movement, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle included a chapter about Spiritism in his book "History of Spiritualism" confirming that Spiritism is Spiritualist (but not vice-versa). As consequence, many Spiritualist works are widely accepted in Spiritism, particularly the works of scientists Sir William Crookes, and Sir Oliver Lodge. Such works are more accepted in anglo-Saxon spiritist communities than in Latin-American ones, though.
In countries like Brazil the movement had spread and became widelly accepted, mostly due to Chico Xavier
's works. Today the official spiritist community has about 20 million adepts, though due to local syncretism, it is accepted and somehow practiced by three times as many across the country.
Allan Kardec refers to Spiritism in What is Spiritism?
as a science
dedicated to the relationship between incorporeal beings (spirits) and human beings. Thus, some spiritists see themselves as not adhering to a religion, but to a philosophical doctrine with a scientific fulcrum and moral grounds. On the other hand, many spiritists don't see any problem about embracing it as a religion as well.
The Spiritist moral
principles are in agreement with the ones taught by Jesus
(according to Kardec). Other moral examples like Francis of Assisi
, Paul the Apostle, Buddha
and Gandhi are also sometimes considered by the spiritists. Spiritist philosophical inquiry is concerned with the study of moral aspects in the context of an eternal life in spiritual evolution through reincarnation, a process believers hold as revealed by Spirits. Sympathetic research on Spiritism by scientists can be found in the works of Sir William Crookes.
, Positivism
and Platonism
.
during his life:
Kardec also wrote a brief introductory pamphlet (What is Spiritism?
) and was the most frequent contributor to the Spiritist Review. His essays and articles would be posthumously collected into the aptly named tome Posthumous Works.
The central tenet of Spiritist doctrine is the belief in spiritual life. The spirit is eternal, and evolves through a series of incarnations in the material world. The true life is the spiritual one; life in the material world is just a short-termed stage, where the spirit has the opportunity to learn and develop its potentials. Reincarnation is the process where the spirit, once free in the spiritual world, comes back to the world for further learning.
, according to Spiritism, is the greatest moral example for humankind, is deemed to have incarnated here to show us, through his example, the path that we have to take to achieve our own spiritual perfection. Therefore, Spiritism claims to be a Christian doctrine, claiming it is based on Jesus Christ's teachings, despite of having a different interpretation for them. The Gospels are reinterpreted in Spiritism; some of the words of Christ or his actions are clarified in the light of the spiritual phenomena (presented as law of nature, and not as something miraculous).
have these natural abilities highly developed, and are able to communicate with the spirits and interact with them by several means: listening, seeing, or writing through spiritual command (also known by Kardecists as psychography or automatic writing
). Direct manipulation of physical objects by spirits is not possible; for it to happen the spirits need the help (voluntary or not) of mediums with particular abilities for physical effects.
. The usual approach to psychography is to relate it to a special ability, innate or developed, called medianimity.
's Mediums' Book
, one of the works comprised in the Spiritist Codification
. Kardec recognises two basic types of psychography: indirect and direct.
board, operated by one or more persons. This type is cumbersome and not useful for large communications, frequently producing gibberish
.
This type depends on medianimity alone and is subdivided into five subtypes, depending on how the spirit's message is committed to paper:
In which the spirit takes control of the medium's arm and writes independently from his awareness (the medium may pass the time paying attention to something else while his arm writes autonomously). Considered to be the most reliable and extraordinary type. Communications thus obtained are thought to be completely free from the interference of the medium's conscience.
In which the medium writes keeps relative control of his limb, but still feels a foreign influence on its movement. Unlike mechanical psychography, the medium knows all that is being written and can stop to rest or to turn the page whenever he sees fit. Reliability is almost as high as in mechanical psychography. Chico Xavier
was purportedly this type of medium.
In which the spirit communicates with the inner self of the medium (subconscious), resulting in him writing what is on his mind, though it is something different from what the medium would normally think. Sentences come formed, but the medium can amend them with richer vocabulary or a better syntax before writing them down. This is the most common type, but is less reliable and is usually marred by the interference of the medium's conscience.
In which the medium receives vague notions in his mind, which he will write in his own words. This type of psychography is very difficult to tell apart from the regular thinking process, especially in people with a literary
talent (a careless analysis would have most writers fall into this category).
by some of its followers because it doesn't endorse formal adoration, require regular frequency or formal membership and claims not to be opposed to science, instead trying to harmonize with it. There are exceptions, though, as in the country of Canada, where The National Spiritist Church of Alberta is a government-recognized religious denomination. For a large part of its followers, the description of Spiritism is three-fold: science, for its studies on the mechanisms of mediumship; philosophy, for its theories on the origin, meaning and importance of life; and religion, for its guidance on a Christian behavior which will bring spiritual and moral evolution to mankind. It should be noted, though, that there's no acceptance to Spiritism in mainstream science
and that its belief system fits with the definition of religion
(that doesn't include regular frequency, membership, formal adoration).
Spiritism is practiced in different types of associations (including a Church format in Canada) formal or not, which can have local, regional, national or international scope.
Local organizations are usually called Spiritist centre
s or Spiritist societies
. Regional and national organizations are called "federations", as the Federação Espírita Brasileira and the Federación Espírita Española, while international organizations are termed "unions", such as the Union Spirite Française et Francophone.
Spiritist centres (or Church in Canada) (especially in Brazil) are also often active book publishers and promoters of Esperanto
.
and Western traditions. It is unknown the extent of the influence of Hinduism
, Buddhism
and Shamanism
over the doctrinal aspects of Spiritism, as set by Allan Kardec
because the mentions of such religions are sparse in all his works
. Kardec, however, acknowledges the influence of Socrates
and Plato
, Jesus
and Francis of Assisi
; .
and the phenomenon of the Talking boards. Interest in Mesmerism also contributed to the early Spiritist practice.
(né Swedberg) (January 29, 1688 – March 29, 1772) was a Swedish
scientist
, philosopher, seer
, and theologian. Swedenborg had a prolific career as an inventor and scientist. Then at age fifty-six he entered into a spiritual phase of his life, where he experienced visions of the spiritual world and claimed to have talked with angels, devils, and spirits by visiting heaven
and hell
. He claimed of being directed by God, the Lord Jesus Christ to reveal the doctrines of His second coming.
From 1747 until his death in 1772 he lived in Stockholm
, Holland and London
. During these 25 years he wrote 14 works of a spiritual nature of which most were published during his lifetime. Throughout this period he was befriended by many people who regarded him as a kind and warm-hearted man. Many people disbelieved in his visions; based on what they had heard, they drew the conclusions that he had lost his mind or had a vivid imagination. But they refrained from ridiculing him in his presence. Those who talked with him understood that he was devoted to his beliefs. He never argued matters of religion, and if obliged to defend himself he usually did it with gentleness and in a few words.
Sisters Catherine (1838–92), Leah (1814–90) and Margaret (1836–93) Fox played an important role in the creation of Spiritualism. The daughters of David and Margaret Fox, they were residents of Hydesville, New York. In 1848, the family began to hear unexplained rapping sounds. Kate and Margaret conducted channeling sessions in an attempt to contact the presumed spiritual entity creating the sounds, and claimed contact with the spirit of a peddler who was allegedly murdered and buried beneath the house. A skeleton later found in the basement seemed to confirm this. The Fox girls became instant celebrities. They demonstrated their communication with the spirit by using taps and knocks, automatic writing or psychography, and later even voice communication, as the spirit took control of one of the girls.
Skeptics suspected this was nothing but clever deception and fraud. Indeed, sister Margaret eventually confessed to using her toe-joints to produce the sound. And although she later recanted this confession, both she and her sister Catherine were widely considered discredited, and died in poverty. Nonetheless, belief in the ability to communicate with the dead grew rapidly, becoming a religious movement called Spiritualism, and contributing greatly to Kardec's ideas.
(hence the term "medium"). But, as the process was too slow and cumbersome, a new one was devised, supposedly from a suggestion by the spirits themselves: the talking board.
Early examples of talking boards were baskets attached to a pointy object that spun under the hands of the mediums, to point at letters printed on cards scattered around, or engraved on, the table. Such devices were called corbeille à bec ("basket with a beak"). The pointy object was usually a pencil.
Talking boards were tricky to set up and to operate. A typical séance
using a talking board saw people sitting at a round table, feet resting on the chairs' supports and hands on the table top or, later, on the talking board itself. The energy channeled from the spirits through their hands made the board spin around and find letters which, once written down by a scribe, would form intelligible words, phrases, and sentences. The system was an early, and less effective, precursor of the Ouija
boards that later became so popular.
Allan Kardec first became interested in Spiritism when he learned of the Fox sisters
, but his first contact with what would become the doctrine was by means of talking boards. Some of the earlier parts of his Spirits' Book were channeled this way.
Franz Anton Mesmer (May 23, 1734 – March 5, 1815) discovered what he called magnétisme animal (animal magnetism
) and others often called mesmerism. The evolution of Mesmer's ideas and practices led Scottish surgeon James Braid (1795–1860) to develop hypnotism in 1841.
Spiritism incorporated and kept some practices inspired or directly taken from Mesmerism. Among them, the healing touch
, still in Europe, and the energization of water to be used as a medicine for spirit and body.
in Brazil
´s spiritism movement who wrote more than 400 books and about 10 thousand letters to family members of deceased people, ostensibly using psychography. His books sold millions of copies, all of which had their proceeds entirely donated to charity.
They included books on poetry, novels, and even scientific treatises. Some of which are considered by Brazilian spiritist followers to be fundamental for the comprehension of the practical and theoretical aspects of Allan Kardec's doctrine. One of his most famous, The Astral City, which details one experience after dying, is available free from the Spiritist Group of New York online.
Chico Xavier
appeared on Brazilian television several times, contributing to the rise of spiritism in Brazil.
included a subplot of a young man obsessed by the spirit of his mother's youth lover who had been killed by his grandfather.
, published only two years after The Spirits Book
, includes a long dialogue between his persona and three idealized critics, "The Critic", "The Skeptic", and "The Priest", which as a whole summed up most of the criticism Spiritism has received since then: of being charlatan
ism, pseudoscience
, heresy
, anti-Catholic, witchcraft
, and/or a form of Satanism
. In further books and articles published in his periodical, the Revue Spirite, Kardec kept addressing these and other criticisms until his death in 1869.
Later, a new source of criticism came from Occult
ist movements such as the Theosophical Society
, a competing new religion, which saw the Spiritist explanations as too simple or even naïve.
saw the development of a new form of criticism towards Spiritism: René Guénon
's influential book The Spiritist Fallacy, which criticized both the more general concepts of Spiritualism
, which he considered to be a superficial mix of moralism and spiritual materialism
, as well as Spiritism's specific contributions, such as its belief in what he saw as a post-Cartesian, modernist
concept of reincarnation that is distinct from and opposed to its two western predecessors, metempsychosis
and transmigration.
In Brazil
, Catholic priests Dom
Carlos José Boaventura Kloppenburg and Oscar González Quevedo
, among others, have since the 1960s written extensively against Spiritism from both a doctrinal and parapsychologic perspective. Quevedo, in particular, has dedicated himself to show that Spiritism's claims of being a science are invalid, having not only written books on the subject but also hosted paranormal debunking shows on television, the most recent of which a series that ran in 2000 on Globo
's hugely popular Sunday prime time news show Fantástico
. Brazilian Spiritists, such as Dr. Hernani Guimarães Andrade, have in turn written rebuttals to these criticisms.
Scientific skeptics
also target Spiritism frequently in books, media appearances, and online forums, accusing it of being a pseudoscience
. The ex-spiritist and medium
Waldo Vieira
, accepting this criticism but not the idea that it cannot become a science, left Spiritism to start a new, Spiritist-inspired movement called Projectiology.
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
faiths having in common the general belief in the survival of a spirit
Spirit
The English word spirit has many differing meanings and connotations, most of them relating to a non-corporeal substance contrasted with the material body.The spirit of a living thing usually refers to or explains its consciousness.The notions of a person's "spirit" and "soul" often also overlap,...
after death
Death
Death is the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include old age, predation, malnutrition, disease, and accidents or trauma resulting in terminal injury....
. In a stricter sense, it is the religion, beliefs and practices of the people affiliated to the International Spiritist Union, based on the works of Allan Kardec
Allan Kardec
Allan Kardec is the pen name of the French teacher and educator Hippolyte Léon Denizard Rivail . He is known today as the systematizer of Spiritism for which he laid the foundation with the five books of the Spiritist Codification.-Early life:Rivail was born in Lyon in 1804...
and others. Formed in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in the 19th century, it soon spread to other countries, but today the only country where it has a significant number of adherents is Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
.
Origins and geographic distribution
Spiritism is based on the five books of the Spiritist CodificationSpiritist Codification
Spiritist Codification is the customary name given by spiritists to the set of books codified by Allan Kardec. The books are a compilation of questions made by Allan Kardec and answers allegedly dictated by Spirits, between the years 1857 and 1868...
written by French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
educator Hypolite Léon Denizard Rivail under the pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
Allan Kardec
Allan Kardec
Allan Kardec is the pen name of the French teacher and educator Hippolyte Léon Denizard Rivail . He is known today as the systematizer of Spiritism for which he laid the foundation with the five books of the Spiritist Codification.-Early life:Rivail was born in Lyon in 1804...
reporting séance
Séance
A séance is an attempt to communicate with spirits. The word "séance" comes from the French word for "seat," "session" or "sitting," from the Old French "seoir," "to sit." In French, the word's meaning is quite general: one may, for example, speak of "une séance de cinéma"...
s in which he observed a series of phenomena that he attributed to incorporeal intelligence (spirit
Spirit
The English word spirit has many differing meanings and connotations, most of them relating to a non-corporeal substance contrasted with the material body.The spirit of a living thing usually refers to or explains its consciousness.The notions of a person's "spirit" and "soul" often also overlap,...
s). His work was later extended by writers like Leon Denis
Léon Denis
Léon Denis was a notable spiritist philosopher, and besides Gabriel Delanne and Camille Flammarion, one of the principal exponents of spiritism after the death of Allan Kardec...
, Arthur Conan Doyle
Arthur Conan Doyle
Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle DL was a Scottish physician and writer, most noted for his stories about the detective Sherlock Holmes, generally considered a milestone in the field of crime fiction, and for the adventures of Professor Challenger...
, Camille Flammarion
Camille Flammarion
Nicolas Camille Flammarion was a French astronomer and author. He was a prolific author of more than fifty titles, including popular science works about astronomy, several notable early science fiction novels, and several works about Spiritism and related topics. He also published the magazine...
, Gabriel Delanne
Gabriel Delanne
François Marie Gabriel Delanne was a notable French spiritist, psychical researcher, writer, and electrical engineer. He is best known for his book, "Le Phénomène spirite" .-Life and work:...
, Ernesto Bozzano, Chico Xavier
Chico Xavier
Chico Xavier, born Francisco de Paula Cândido was a popular medium in Brazil's spiritism movement who wrote 413 books, ostensibly using a process known as "psychography"....
, Divaldo Pereira Franco
Divaldo Pereira Franco
Divaldo Pereira Franco is a prominent Spiritist speaker and medium.He represented Spiritism as a delegate to the United Nations August 28–31st, 2000, Millennium World Peace Summit of Religious and Spiritual Leaders...
, Waldo Vieira
Waldo Vieira
Waldo Vieira is a Brazilian dentist and physician who first proposed the theories of and , two closely related nascent sciences which posit that human consciousness is a non-physical phenomenon...
, Johannes Greber and others.
Spiritism has adherents in many countries throughout the world, including Spain, United States, Canada, Japan, Germany, France, England, Argentina, Portugal and especially in American countries such as Cuba, Jamaica, and Brazil, which has among the largest proportion and greatest number of followers.
Claims of philosophy and science status
The fundamental principles of Spiritism, enunciated by Allan KardecAllan Kardec
Allan Kardec is the pen name of the French teacher and educator Hippolyte Léon Denizard Rivail . He is known today as the systematizer of Spiritism for which he laid the foundation with the five books of the Spiritist Codification.-Early life:Rivail was born in Lyon in 1804...
in his seminal work The Spirits Book
The Spirits Book
The Spirits' Book is part of the Spiritist Codification, and is regarded as one of the five fundamental works of Spiritism. It was published by the French educator Allan Kardec on April 18, 1857...
, are: (i) A belief in the existence of spirits - non-physical beings that live in the invisible or spirit world - and (ii) the possibility of communication between these spirits and living people through mediumship
Mediumship
Mediumship is described as a form of communication with spirits. It is a practice in religious beliefs such as Spiritualism, Spiritism, Espiritismo, Candomblé, Voodoo and Umbanda.- Concept :...
. There is a clear difference between the terms "Spiritism" and "Spiritualism
Spiritualism
Spiritualism is a belief system or religion, postulating the belief that spirits of the dead residing in the spirit world have both the ability and the inclination to communicate with the living...
":
Although there are many similarities between the two, they differ in some fundamental aspects, particularly regarding man's quest toward spiritual perfection and the manner by which the followers of each practice their beliefs.
Spiritism teaches reincarnation or rebirth into human life after death. This basically distinguishes Spiritism from Spiritualism. According to the Spiritist doctrine, reincarnation explains the moral and intellectual differences among men. It also provides the path to man's moral and intellectual perfection by amending for his mistakes and increasing his knowledge in successive lives. For this reason Spiritism does not accept rebirth in animals as this would be retrogressive.
Finally, unlike Spiritualism, Spiritism is not a religious sect but a philosophy or a way of life by which its followers live by. Its followers have no priests or ministers and do not follow any religious rituals in their meetings. They also do not call their places of meetings as churches, and instead call them by various names such as centers, society or association. Their activities consist mainly of studying the Spiritist doctrine, applying spiritual healing to the sick and organizing charitable missions.
Kardec reaffirmed that on the cover of his "The Spirit's Book". Another author in the Spiritualist movement, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle included a chapter about Spiritism in his book "History of Spiritualism" confirming that Spiritism is Spiritualist (but not vice-versa). As consequence, many Spiritualist works are widely accepted in Spiritism, particularly the works of scientists Sir William Crookes, and Sir Oliver Lodge. Such works are more accepted in anglo-Saxon spiritist communities than in Latin-American ones, though.
In countries like Brazil the movement had spread and became widelly accepted, mostly due to Chico Xavier
Chico Xavier
Chico Xavier, born Francisco de Paula Cândido was a popular medium in Brazil's spiritism movement who wrote 413 books, ostensibly using a process known as "psychography"....
's works. Today the official spiritist community has about 20 million adepts, though due to local syncretism, it is accepted and somehow practiced by three times as many across the country.
Allan Kardec refers to Spiritism in What is Spiritism?
What is Spiritism?
What Is Spiritism? is a brief introduction to Spiritism written by Allan Kardec in 1859, which is about a quarter of the length of The Spirits Book...
as a science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
dedicated to the relationship between incorporeal beings (spirits) and human beings. Thus, some spiritists see themselves as not adhering to a religion, but to a philosophical doctrine with a scientific fulcrum and moral grounds. On the other hand, many spiritists don't see any problem about embracing it as a religion as well.
The Spiritist moral
Moral
A moral is a message conveyed or a lesson to be learned from a story or event. The moral may be left to the hearer, reader or viewer to determine for themselves, or may be explicitly encapsulated in a maxim...
principles are in agreement with the ones taught by Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
(according to Kardec). Other moral examples like Francis of Assisi
Francis of Assisi
Saint Francis of Assisi was an Italian Catholic friar and preacher. He founded the men's Franciscan Order, the women’s Order of St. Clare, and the lay Third Order of Saint Francis. St...
, Paul the Apostle, Buddha
Gautama Buddha
Siddhārtha Gautama was a spiritual teacher from the Indian subcontinent, on whose teachings Buddhism was founded. In most Buddhist traditions, he is regarded as the Supreme Buddha Siddhārtha Gautama (Sanskrit: सिद्धार्थ गौतम; Pali: Siddhattha Gotama) was a spiritual teacher from the Indian...
and Gandhi are also sometimes considered by the spiritists. Spiritist philosophical inquiry is concerned with the study of moral aspects in the context of an eternal life in spiritual evolution through reincarnation, a process believers hold as revealed by Spirits. Sympathetic research on Spiritism by scientists can be found in the works of Sir William Crookes.
Beliefs
Spiritism blends together notions taken from ChristianityChristianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
, Positivism
Positivism
Positivism is a a view of scientific methods and a philosophical approach, theory, or system based on the view that, in the social as well as natural sciences, sensory experiences and their logical and mathematical treatment are together the exclusive source of all worthwhile information....
and Platonism
Platonism
Platonism is the philosophy of Plato or the name of other philosophical systems considered closely derived from it. In a narrower sense the term might indicate the doctrine of Platonic realism...
.
Basic books
The basic doctrine of Spiritism ("the Codification") is defined in five books written and published by Allan KardecAllan Kardec
Allan Kardec is the pen name of the French teacher and educator Hippolyte Léon Denizard Rivail . He is known today as the systematizer of Spiritism for which he laid the foundation with the five books of the Spiritist Codification.-Early life:Rivail was born in Lyon in 1804...
during his life:
- The Spirits' BookThe Spirits BookThe Spirits' Book is part of the Spiritist Codification, and is regarded as one of the five fundamental works of Spiritism. It was published by the French educator Allan Kardec on April 18, 1857...
— Defines the guidelines of the doctrine, covering points like GodGodGod is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
, SpiritSpiritThe English word spirit has many differing meanings and connotations, most of them relating to a non-corporeal substance contrasted with the material body.The spirit of a living thing usually refers to or explains its consciousness.The notions of a person's "spirit" and "soul" often also overlap,...
, UniverseUniverseThe Universe is commonly defined as the totality of everything that exists, including all matter and energy, the planets, stars, galaxies, and the contents of intergalactic space. Definitions and usage vary and similar terms include the cosmos, the world and nature...
, ManManThe term man is used for an adult human male . However, man is sometimes used to refer to humanity as a whole...
, SocietySocietyA society, or a human society, is a group of people related to each other through persistent relations, or a large social grouping sharing the same geographical or virtual territory, subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations...
, CultureCultureCulture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...
, Morals and ReligionReligionReligion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
. - The Mediums' Book — Details the mechanics of the spiritual world, the processes involved in channeling spirits, techniques to be developed by mediumsMediumshipMediumship is described as a form of communication with spirits. It is a practice in religious beliefs such as Spiritualism, Spiritism, Espiritismo, Candomblé, Voodoo and Umbanda.- Concept :...
, etc. - The Gospel According to SpiritismThe Gospel According to SpiritismThe Gospel According to Spiritism , by Allan Kardec is a book published in 1864 that relates the teachings of Jesus to Kardecist Spiritism, the moral and religious philosophy that Kardec had been publishing. It is intended to demonstrate that Spiritism clarifies and extends the most important...
— Comments on the Gospels, highlighting passages that, according to Kardec, would show the ethical fundamentals shared by all religious and philosophical systems. This may be the first religious book to acknowledge the existence of life elsewhere in the Universe, based on Jesus' saying "The houses in the realm of my father are many" (John, 14, 1-3). - Heaven and HellHeaven and Hell (Allan Kardec)Heaven and Hell is a book published in 1865 by Allan Kardec, the fourth tome of the fundamental works of Spiritism...
— A didactic series of interviews with spirits of deceased people intending to establish a correlation between the lives they lead and their conditions in the beyond. - The Genesis According to SpiritismThe Genesis According to SpiritismThe Genesis, Miracles and Premonition According to Spiritism was the last book published by Allan Kardec, just before his death...
— Tries to reconcile religion and science, dealing with the three major points of friction between the two: the origin of the universe (and of life, as a consequence) and the concepts of miracleMiracleA miracle often denotes an event attributed to divine intervention. Alternatively, it may be an event attributed to a miracle worker, saint, or religious leader. A miracle is sometimes thought of as a perceptible interruption of the laws of nature. Others suggest that a god may work with the laws...
and premonition.
Kardec also wrote a brief introductory pamphlet (What is Spiritism?
What is Spiritism?
What Is Spiritism? is a brief introduction to Spiritism written by Allan Kardec in 1859, which is about a quarter of the length of The Spirits Book...
) and was the most frequent contributor to the Spiritist Review. His essays and articles would be posthumously collected into the aptly named tome Posthumous Works.
Basic tenets
The five chief points of the doctrine are:- There is a God, defined as "The Supreme Intelligence and Primary Cause of everything";
- There are Spirits, all of whom are created simple and ignorant, but owning the power to gradually perfect themselves;
- The natural method of this perfection process is reincarnationReincarnationReincarnation best describes the concept where the soul or spirit, after the death of the body, is believed to return to live in a new human body, or, in some traditions, either as a human being, animal or plant...
, through which the Spirit faces countless different situations, problems and obstacles, and needs to learn how to deal with them; - As part of Nature, Spirits can naturally communicate with living people, as well as interfere in their lives;
- Many planets in the universe are inhabited.
The central tenet of Spiritist doctrine is the belief in spiritual life. The spirit is eternal, and evolves through a series of incarnations in the material world. The true life is the spiritual one; life in the material world is just a short-termed stage, where the spirit has the opportunity to learn and develop its potentials. Reincarnation is the process where the spirit, once free in the spiritual world, comes back to the world for further learning.
Beliefs about Jesus
JesusJesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
, according to Spiritism, is the greatest moral example for humankind, is deemed to have incarnated here to show us, through his example, the path that we have to take to achieve our own spiritual perfection. Therefore, Spiritism claims to be a Christian doctrine, claiming it is based on Jesus Christ's teachings, despite of having a different interpretation for them. The Gospels are reinterpreted in Spiritism; some of the words of Christ or his actions are clarified in the light of the spiritual phenomena (presented as law of nature, and not as something miraculous).
Evolution and karma
Spiritist doctrine stresses the importance of spiritual evolution. According to this view, humanity is destined for perfection; there are other planets hosting more advanced life forms and happier societies, where the spirit has the chance to keep evolving both in the moral and intellectual sense. Although not clear from Kardec's works, later spiritist writers elaborated on this point further, claiming humanity cannot detect more advanced life forms on other planets, as they are living in a slightly different plane, in the same way the spiritual plane is superimposed over this plane.Mediumship
The communication between the spiritual world and the material world happen all the time, but to various degrees. Some people barely sense what the spirits tell them, in an entirely instinctive way, while others have greater cognizance of their guidance. The so-called mediumsMediumship
Mediumship is described as a form of communication with spirits. It is a practice in religious beliefs such as Spiritualism, Spiritism, Espiritismo, Candomblé, Voodoo and Umbanda.- Concept :...
have these natural abilities highly developed, and are able to communicate with the spirits and interact with them by several means: listening, seeing, or writing through spiritual command (also known by Kardecists as psychography or automatic writing
Automatic writing
Automatic writing or psychography is writing which the writer states to be produced from a subconscious and/or spiritual source without conscious awareness of the content.-History:...
). Direct manipulation of physical objects by spirits is not possible; for it to happen the spirits need the help (voluntary or not) of mediums with particular abilities for physical effects.
Psychography
Psychography is a technique for "channeling" written messages from what is believed to be a disembodied spiritSpirit
The English word spirit has many differing meanings and connotations, most of them relating to a non-corporeal substance contrasted with the material body.The spirit of a living thing usually refers to or explains its consciousness.The notions of a person's "spirit" and "soul" often also overlap,...
. The usual approach to psychography is to relate it to a special ability, innate or developed, called medianimity.
Types of psychography
The most extensive treatise on psychography is Allan KardecAllan Kardec
Allan Kardec is the pen name of the French teacher and educator Hippolyte Léon Denizard Rivail . He is known today as the systematizer of Spiritism for which he laid the foundation with the five books of the Spiritist Codification.-Early life:Rivail was born in Lyon in 1804...
's Mediums' Book
The Book on Mediums
The Book on Mediums or Mediums and Evokers' Handbook , is a book by Allan Kardec published in 1861, second of the five Fundamental Works of Spiritism — the spiritualist philosophy Kardec had been publishing — being the tome in which the experimental and investigative features of the doctrine were...
, one of the works comprised in the Spiritist Codification
Spiritist Codification
Spiritist Codification is the customary name given by spiritists to the set of books codified by Allan Kardec. The books are a compilation of questions made by Allan Kardec and answers allegedly dictated by Spirits, between the years 1857 and 1868...
. Kardec recognises two basic types of psychography: indirect and direct.
Indirect psychography
This type of psychography depends on a material device, like an OuijaOuija
The Ouija board also known as a spirit/fire key board or talking board, is a flat board marked with the letters of the alphabet, the numbers 0-9, the words "yes", "no", "hello" and "goodbye", and other symbols and words are sometimes also added to help personalize the board...
board, operated by one or more persons. This type is cumbersome and not useful for large communications, frequently producing gibberish
Gibberish
Gibberish is a generic term in English for talking that sounds like speech, but carries no actual meaning. This meaning has also been extended to meaningless text or gobbledygook. The common theme in gibberish statements is a lack of literal sense, which can be described as a presence of nonsense...
.
Direct psychography
Direct psychography is the most conventional type, in which a person, the medium, writes under the alleged influence of the spirit. It is called "direct" because the relationship between the medium(s) and the spirit is not by means of any mechanical device.This type depends on medianimity alone and is subdivided into five subtypes, depending on how the spirit's message is committed to paper:
Mechanical psychography
In which the spirit takes control of the medium's arm and writes independently from his awareness (the medium may pass the time paying attention to something else while his arm writes autonomously). Considered to be the most reliable and extraordinary type. Communications thus obtained are thought to be completely free from the interference of the medium's conscience.
Semi-mechanical psychography
In which the medium writes keeps relative control of his limb, but still feels a foreign influence on its movement. Unlike mechanical psychography, the medium knows all that is being written and can stop to rest or to turn the page whenever he sees fit. Reliability is almost as high as in mechanical psychography. Chico Xavier
Chico Xavier
Chico Xavier, born Francisco de Paula Cândido was a popular medium in Brazil's spiritism movement who wrote 413 books, ostensibly using a process known as "psychography"....
was purportedly this type of medium.
Intuitive psychography
In which the spirit communicates with the inner self of the medium (subconscious), resulting in him writing what is on his mind, though it is something different from what the medium would normally think. Sentences come formed, but the medium can amend them with richer vocabulary or a better syntax before writing them down. This is the most common type, but is less reliable and is usually marred by the interference of the medium's conscience.
Inspirational psychography
In which the medium receives vague notions in his mind, which he will write in his own words. This type of psychography is very difficult to tell apart from the regular thinking process, especially in people with a literary
Literature
Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...
talent (a careless analysis would have most writers fall into this category).
Spiritist practice
Kardec's works do not establish any rituals or formal practices. Instead, the doctrine suggests that followers adhere to some principles regarded as common to all religions. The religious experience within spiritism is, therefore, largely informal. The exception to this is The National Spiritist Church of Alberta. This Church (which is fully recognized by the government as a religious denomination) has a Holy Communion Worship Service and a Marriage Ceremony in addition to the more standard Kardecist study groups.Meetings
The most important types of practices within Spiritism are:- Regular Meetings - with a regular schedule, usually on evenings, two or three times a week. They involve a short lecture on some subject followed by some interactive participation of the attendants. These meetings are open to anyone.
- Medium MeetingsSpiritist séanceSéances are carried on as a part of the regular practice of Spiritism. Although the organisation of Spiritist centres may vary wildly from place to place, most of the time there is a basic core of elements shared by them....
- usually held after a regular meeting, only those deemed prepared or "in need" of it are expected to attend. - Youth and Children's Meetings - once a week, usually on Saturday afternoons or Sunday mornings, are the Spiritist equivalent to Christian Sunday schools.
- HealingSpiritist healingThe cure in Spiritism is based on merit of each person and it also depends of a healing mediums; as described in The Mediums' Book.Spiritism is a science and therefore should always follow the resources of medicine, a person must not leave medicine expecting a miracle, that does not exist in the...
- Lectures - longer, in-depth lectures on subjects thought to be "of general interest" which are held on larger rooms, sometimes at theatres or ballrooms, so that more people can attend. Lecturers are often invited from far away centers.
- Special Meetings - special séances held in relative discretion which try to conduct some worthy work on behalf of those in need
- Spiritist Week and Book fairs.
- Church Services (in the case of The National Spiritist Church of Alberta - in Canada)
Organization
Spiritism is not seen as a religionReligion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
by some of its followers because it doesn't endorse formal adoration, require regular frequency or formal membership and claims not to be opposed to science, instead trying to harmonize with it. There are exceptions, though, as in the country of Canada, where The National Spiritist Church of Alberta is a government-recognized religious denomination. For a large part of its followers, the description of Spiritism is three-fold: science, for its studies on the mechanisms of mediumship; philosophy, for its theories on the origin, meaning and importance of life; and religion, for its guidance on a Christian behavior which will bring spiritual and moral evolution to mankind. It should be noted, though, that there's no acceptance to Spiritism in mainstream science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
and that its belief system fits with the definition of religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
(that doesn't include regular frequency, membership, formal adoration).
Spiritism is practiced in different types of associations (including a Church format in Canada) formal or not, which can have local, regional, national or international scope.
Local organizations are usually called Spiritist centre
Spiritist centre
A Spiritist Centre, also called Spiritist Society or Spiritist House, is the basic unit of organisation of Spiritism, which is a doctrinally and distinct form of Spiritualism....
s or Spiritist societies
Spiritist centre
A Spiritist Centre, also called Spiritist Society or Spiritist House, is the basic unit of organisation of Spiritism, which is a doctrinally and distinct form of Spiritualism....
. Regional and national organizations are called "federations", as the Federação Espírita Brasileira and the Federación Espírita Española, while international organizations are termed "unions", such as the Union Spirite Française et Francophone.
Spiritist centres (or Church in Canada) (especially in Brazil) are also often active book publishers and promoters of Esperanto
Esperanto
is the most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Its name derives from Doktoro Esperanto , the pseudonym under which L. L. Zamenhof published the first book detailing Esperanto, the Unua Libro, in 1887...
.
History
Spiritism shares its roots with many other religions and denominations, mainly ChristianityChristianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
and Western traditions. It is unknown the extent of the influence of Hinduism
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
, Buddhism
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
and Shamanism
Shamanism
Shamanism is an anthropological term referencing a range of beliefs and practices regarding communication with the spiritual world. To quote Eliade: "A first definition of this complex phenomenon, and perhaps the least hazardous, will be: shamanism = technique of ecstasy." Shamanism encompasses the...
over the doctrinal aspects of Spiritism, as set by Allan Kardec
Allan Kardec
Allan Kardec is the pen name of the French teacher and educator Hippolyte Léon Denizard Rivail . He is known today as the systematizer of Spiritism for which he laid the foundation with the five books of the Spiritist Codification.-Early life:Rivail was born in Lyon in 1804...
because the mentions of such religions are sparse in all his works
Spiritist Codification
Spiritist Codification is the customary name given by spiritists to the set of books codified by Allan Kardec. The books are a compilation of questions made by Allan Kardec and answers allegedly dictated by Spirits, between the years 1857 and 1868...
. Kardec, however, acknowledges the influence of Socrates
Socrates
Socrates was a classical Greek Athenian philosopher. Credited as one of the founders of Western philosophy, he is an enigmatic figure known chiefly through the accounts of later classical writers, especially the writings of his students Plato and Xenophon, and the plays of his contemporary ...
and Plato
Platonism
Platonism is the philosophy of Plato or the name of other philosophical systems considered closely derived from it. In a narrower sense the term might indicate the doctrine of Platonic realism...
, Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
and Francis of Assisi
Francis of Assisi
Saint Francis of Assisi was an Italian Catholic friar and preacher. He founded the men's Franciscan Order, the women’s Order of St. Clare, and the lay Third Order of Saint Francis. St...
; .
Precursors
Developments leading directly to Kardec's research were the famous Fox sistersFox sisters
The Fox sisters were three sisters from New York who played an important role in the creation of Spiritualism. The three sisters were Leah Fox , Margaret Fox and Kate Fox . The two younger sisters used "rappings" to convince their much older sister and others that they were communicating with...
and the phenomenon of the Talking boards. Interest in Mesmerism also contributed to the early Spiritist practice.
Swedenborg
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
scientist
Scientist
A scientist in a broad sense is one engaging in a systematic activity to acquire knowledge. In a more restricted sense, a scientist is an individual who uses the scientific method. The person may be an expert in one or more areas of science. This article focuses on the more restricted use of the word...
, philosopher, seer
Clairvoyance
The term clairvoyance is used to refer to the ability to gain information about an object, person, location or physical event through means other than the known human senses, a form of extra-sensory perception...
, and theologian. Swedenborg had a prolific career as an inventor and scientist. Then at age fifty-six he entered into a spiritual phase of his life, where he experienced visions of the spiritual world and claimed to have talked with angels, devils, and spirits by visiting heaven
Heaven
Heaven, the Heavens or Seven Heavens, is a common religious cosmological or metaphysical term for the physical or transcendent place from which heavenly beings originate, are enthroned or inhabit...
and hell
Hell
In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
. He claimed of being directed by God, the Lord Jesus Christ to reveal the doctrines of His second coming.
From 1747 until his death in 1772 he lived in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, Holland and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. During these 25 years he wrote 14 works of a spiritual nature of which most were published during his lifetime. Throughout this period he was befriended by many people who regarded him as a kind and warm-hearted man. Many people disbelieved in his visions; based on what they had heard, they drew the conclusions that he had lost his mind or had a vivid imagination. But they refrained from ridiculing him in his presence. Those who talked with him understood that he was devoted to his beliefs. He never argued matters of religion, and if obliged to defend himself he usually did it with gentleness and in a few words.
Fox sisters
Skeptics suspected this was nothing but clever deception and fraud. Indeed, sister Margaret eventually confessed to using her toe-joints to produce the sound. And although she later recanted this confession, both she and her sister Catherine were widely considered discredited, and died in poverty. Nonetheless, belief in the ability to communicate with the dead grew rapidly, becoming a religious movement called Spiritualism, and contributing greatly to Kardec's ideas.
Talking boards
Just after the news of the Fox affair came to France, people became even more interested in what was sometimes termed the "Spiritual Telegraph". In the beginning, a table spun with the "energy" from the spirits present by means of human channelingMediumship
Mediumship is described as a form of communication with spirits. It is a practice in religious beliefs such as Spiritualism, Spiritism, Espiritismo, Candomblé, Voodoo and Umbanda.- Concept :...
(hence the term "medium"). But, as the process was too slow and cumbersome, a new one was devised, supposedly from a suggestion by the spirits themselves: the talking board.
Early examples of talking boards were baskets attached to a pointy object that spun under the hands of the mediums, to point at letters printed on cards scattered around, or engraved on, the table. Such devices were called corbeille à bec ("basket with a beak"). The pointy object was usually a pencil.
Talking boards were tricky to set up and to operate. A typical séance
Séance
A séance is an attempt to communicate with spirits. The word "séance" comes from the French word for "seat," "session" or "sitting," from the Old French "seoir," "to sit." In French, the word's meaning is quite general: one may, for example, speak of "une séance de cinéma"...
using a talking board saw people sitting at a round table, feet resting on the chairs' supports and hands on the table top or, later, on the talking board itself. The energy channeled from the spirits through their hands made the board spin around and find letters which, once written down by a scribe, would form intelligible words, phrases, and sentences. The system was an early, and less effective, precursor of the Ouija
Ouija
The Ouija board also known as a spirit/fire key board or talking board, is a flat board marked with the letters of the alphabet, the numbers 0-9, the words "yes", "no", "hello" and "goodbye", and other symbols and words are sometimes also added to help personalize the board...
boards that later became so popular.
Allan Kardec first became interested in Spiritism when he learned of the Fox sisters
Fox sisters
The Fox sisters were three sisters from New York who played an important role in the creation of Spiritualism. The three sisters were Leah Fox , Margaret Fox and Kate Fox . The two younger sisters used "rappings" to convince their much older sister and others that they were communicating with...
, but his first contact with what would become the doctrine was by means of talking boards. Some of the earlier parts of his Spirits' Book were channeled this way.
Franz Mesmer
Animal magnetism
Animal magnetism , in modern usage, refers to a person's sexual attractiveness or raw charisma. As postulated by Franz Mesmer in the 18th century, the term referred to a supposed magnetic fluid or ethereal medium believed to reside in the bodies of animate beings...
) and others often called mesmerism. The evolution of Mesmer's ideas and practices led Scottish surgeon James Braid (1795–1860) to develop hypnotism in 1841.
Spiritism incorporated and kept some practices inspired or directly taken from Mesmerism. Among them, the healing touch
Faith healing
Faith healing is healing through spiritual means. The healing of a person is brought about by religious faith through prayer and/or rituals that, according to adherents, stimulate a divine presence and power toward correcting disease and disability. Belief in divine intervention in illness or...
, still in Europe, and the energization of water to be used as a medicine for spirit and body.
Chico Xavier
Francisco Cândido Xavier was a popular mediumMediumship
Mediumship is described as a form of communication with spirits. It is a practice in religious beliefs such as Spiritualism, Spiritism, Espiritismo, Candomblé, Voodoo and Umbanda.- Concept :...
in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
´s spiritism movement who wrote more than 400 books and about 10 thousand letters to family members of deceased people, ostensibly using psychography. His books sold millions of copies, all of which had their proceeds entirely donated to charity.
They included books on poetry, novels, and even scientific treatises. Some of which are considered by Brazilian spiritist followers to be fundamental for the comprehension of the practical and theoretical aspects of Allan Kardec's doctrine. One of his most famous, The Astral City, which details one experience after dying, is available free from the Spiritist Group of New York online.
Chico Xavier
Chico Xavier
Chico Xavier, born Francisco de Paula Cândido was a popular medium in Brazil's spiritism movement who wrote 413 books, ostensibly using a process known as "psychography"....
appeared on Brazilian television several times, contributing to the rise of spiritism in Brazil.
Spiritism in popular culture
Despite being little known by the American population at large; many works or art contain allusions to facts, circumstances and concepts that resemble some spiritist beliefs:Films
- GhostGhost (film)Ghost is a 1990 romantic drama film starring Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore and Whoopi Goldberg. It was written by Bruce Joel Rubin and directed by Jerry Zucker.-Plot:...
, with Demi MooreDemi MooreDemi Guynes Kutcher , known professionally as Demi Moore, is an American actress. After minor roles in film and a role in the soap opera General Hospital, Moore established her career in films such as St...
and Patrick SwayzePatrick SwayzePatrick Wayne Swayze was an American actor, dancer and singer-songwriter. He was best known for his tough-guy roles, as romantic leading men in the hit films Dirty Dancing and Ghost, and as Orry Main in the North and South television miniseries. He was named by People magazine as its "Sexiest...
was perhaps one of the earliest depictions of an after-life moderately similar to Spiritist teachingSpiritist doctrineThis article discusses parallels between the Gospel of Jesus and Spiritism as presented in the works of Allan Kardec, especially in The Spirits Book and The Gospel According to Spiritism.-The teachings of Jesus:...
. Swayze plays the role of a man that is killed by a petty thief, leaving his wife (Moore). He, as a ghost, makes contact with a "psychic" played by Whoopi GoldbergWhoopi GoldbergWhoopi Goldberg is an American comedian, actress, singer-songwriter, political activist, author and talk show host.Goldberg made her film debut in The Color Purple playing Celie, a mistreated black woman in the Deep South. She received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress and won...
and manages to help his wife before finally leaving earth. - The Sixth SenseThe Sixth SenseThe Sixth Sense is a 1999 American psychological thriller film written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. The film tells the story of Cole Sear , a troubled, isolated boy who is able to see and talk to the dead, and an equally troubled child psychologist who tries to help him...
, starring Haley Joel OsmentHaley Joel OsmentHaley Joel Osment is an American actor. After a series of roles in television and film during the 1990s, including a small part in Forrest Gump playing Tom Hanks' title character’s son, Osment rose to fame with his performance as Cole Sear in M...
and Bruce WillisBruce WillisWalter Bruce Willis , better known as Bruce Willis, is an American actor, producer, and musician. His career began in television in the 1980s and has continued both in television and film since, including comedic, dramatic, and action roles...
, is perhaps the better known film approaching the theme of Spiritism. Cole Sear (Osment's role) is a child medium facing the disbelief of everyone. - ShutterShutter (Thai film)Shutter is a 2004 Thai horror film by Banjong Pisanthanakun and Parkpoom Wongpoom; starring Ananda Everingham, Natthaweeranuch Thongmee, and Achita Sikamana...
depicts a passably accurate situation of obsessionObsession (Spiritism)Obsession, also known as spirit obsession, is a technical term within the Spiritist belief and practice defined by the author Allan Kardec as the interference of a subjugating spirit with a weaker spirit...
, complete with physical manifestations and materialization of a spirit. - The OthersThe Others (2001 film)The Others is a 2001 psychological horror film by the Spanish-Chilean director Alejandro Amenábar, starring Nicole Kidman. It is inspired partly by the novella The Turn of the Screw....
(2001) depicts what happens to spirits who do not realize that they are actually in spirit form, resembling Spiritist doctrine. - PassengersPassengers (film)Passengers is 2008 thriller film starring Anne Hathaway and Patrick Wilson, and directed by Rodrigo García. It was released in the United States by TriStar Pictures on October 24, 2008.-Plot:...
(2008) with Anne Hathaway and Patrick Wilson. Very similar to "The Sixth Sense" in spiritist themes. - Sole SurvivorSole Survivor (1970 film)Sole Survivor is a TV movie written by Guerdon Trueblood and directed by Paul Stanley. It starred Richard Basehart, William Shatner, and Vince Edwards...
, a 1970 TV-film starring Vince Edwards and Richard Basehart, begins with a B-25 bomber crashing in the Libyan desert during WW2 and all crew members on board dying. Decades later, the wreck is spotted and an Air Force team is sent to investigate the crash site. The spirits of the dead bomber crew, unaware of their disincarnate condition, are still there, waiting for a salvage expedition to find them. The behaviour of the dead in this story is in accord with Kardecist teachings and Spiritist theory. - Chico Xavier, Brazilian movie, casting Nelson XavierNelson XavierNelson Xavier is a Brazilian actor. He has appeared in 80 films and television shows since 1959. He starred in the 1964 film Os Fuzis, which won the Silver Bear Extraordinary Jury Prize at the 14th Berlin International Film Festival....
and Ângelo Antônio. It was a box office success in Brazil. It tells history of the most famous Brazilian medium Chico Xavier. - Nosso larNosso Lar (film)Nosso Lar is a 2010 Brazilian drama film directed by Wagner de Assis, based on the book of the same name by Francisco Cândido Xavier. It is distributed by 20th Century Fox and features a soundtrack composed by Philip Glass....
, Nosso Lar ("Our Home") is a 2010 Brazilian drama film directed by Wagner de Assis, based on the novel of the same name by Francisco Cândido Xavier. The movie is about the spiritual life after death and our home in another world. Distributed by 20th Century Fox and with a soundtrack composed by Philip Glass.
Television
- Medium, a medium helps a District Attorney solve crimes.
- Ghost Whisperer, a medium helps spirits with 'unfinished business' 'cross over'.
Soap operas
In Brazil four soap operas have used the concepts of Spiritism. Terra NostraTerra Nostra
Terra Nostra is a Brazilian telenovela, which was produced by and broadcast on Rede Globo in 1999.The story is set in the late 19th century and takes place at a time when slaves were freed in Brazil and there was a need for workers, especially on the coffee fazendas of Brazil...
included a subplot of a young man obsessed by the spirit of his mother's youth lover who had been killed by his grandfather.
- "A Viagem" (The Journey), produced in 1976/77 by the extinct Tupi TV had a complex plot involving mediumship, death, obsession, reincarnation, etc. It was remade by Globo TV in 1994.
- "Alma Gêmea" (Soulmate), produced in 2005/06 by the Rede Globo. This soap tells the story of a woman that dies and is reborn to find her soulmate again.
- "O Profeta" (The Prophet), produced in 1977/78 also by Tupi TV and also remade by Globo TV (2006/07) included spiritism as one of the philosophies trying to explain the main character's gifts, including being able to predict the future.
- "Duas Caras" (Two-Face), aired by Rede GloboRede GloboRede Globo , or simply Globo, is a Brazilian television network, launched by media mogul Roberto Marinho on April 26, 1965. It is owned by media conglomerate Organizações Globo, being by far the largest of its holdings...
in 2007/8, includes a character, named Ezekiel, who is a born-again ChristianPentecostalismPentecostalism is a diverse and complex movement within Christianity that places special emphasis on a direct personal experience of God through the baptism in the Holy Spirit, has an eschatological focus, and is an experiential religion. The term Pentecostal is derived from Pentecost, the Greek...
challenged by manifestations of his mediumshipMediumshipMediumship is described as a form of communication with spirits. It is a practice in religious beliefs such as Spiritualism, Spiritism, Espiritismo, Candomblé, Voodoo and Umbanda.- Concept :...
. - "Escrito nas Estrelas" (Written in the Stars), ongoing as of July 2010, possesses numerous spiritist themes: reincarnation, spirit evolution, and mediumship.
Before World War I
Spiritism began attracting criticisms almost immediately once formulated. Kardec's own introductory book on Spiritism, What is Spiritism?What is Spiritism?
What Is Spiritism? is a brief introduction to Spiritism written by Allan Kardec in 1859, which is about a quarter of the length of The Spirits Book...
, published only two years after The Spirits Book
The Spirits Book
The Spirits' Book is part of the Spiritist Codification, and is regarded as one of the five fundamental works of Spiritism. It was published by the French educator Allan Kardec on April 18, 1857...
, includes a long dialogue between his persona and three idealized critics, "The Critic", "The Skeptic", and "The Priest", which as a whole summed up most of the criticism Spiritism has received since then: of being charlatan
Charlatan
A charlatan is a person practicing quackery or some similar confidence trick in order to obtain money, fame or other advantages via some form of pretense or deception....
ism, pseudoscience
Pseudoscience
Pseudoscience is a claim, belief, or practice which is presented as scientific, but which does not adhere to a valid scientific method, lacks supporting evidence or plausibility, cannot be reliably tested, or otherwise lacks scientific status...
, heresy
Christian heresy
Christian heresy refers to non-orthodox practices and beliefs that were deemed to be heretical by one or more of the Christian churches. In Western Christianity, the term "heresy" most commonly refers to those beliefs which were declared to be anathema by the Catholic Church prior to the schism of...
, anti-Catholic, witchcraft
Witchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
, and/or a form of Satanism
Satanism
Satanism is a group of religions that is composed of a diverse number of ideological and philosophical beliefs and social phenomena. Their shared feature include symbolic association with, admiration for the character of, and even veneration of Satan or similar rebellious, promethean, and...
. In further books and articles published in his periodical, the Revue Spirite, Kardec kept addressing these and other criticisms until his death in 1869.
Later, a new source of criticism came from Occult
Occult
The word occult comes from the Latin word occultus , referring to "knowledge of the hidden". In the medical sense it is used to refer to a structure or process that is hidden, e.g...
ist movements such as the Theosophical Society
Theosophical Society
The Theosophical Society is an organization formed in 1875 to advance the spiritual principles and search for Truth known as Theosophy. The original organization, after splits and realignments has several successors...
, a competing new religion, which saw the Spiritist explanations as too simple or even naïve.
Interwar period
The interwar periodInterwar period
Interwar period can refer to any period between two wars. The Interbellum is understood to be the period between the end of the Great War or First World War and the beginning of the Second World War in Europe....
saw the development of a new form of criticism towards Spiritism: René Guénon
René Guénon
René Guénon , also known as Shaykh `Abd al-Wahid Yahya was a French author and intellectual who remains an influential figure in the domain of metaphysics, having written on topics ranging from metaphysics, sacred science and traditional studies to symbolism and initiation.In his writings, he...
's influential book The Spiritist Fallacy, which criticized both the more general concepts of Spiritualism
Spiritualism
Spiritualism is a belief system or religion, postulating the belief that spirits of the dead residing in the spirit world have both the ability and the inclination to communicate with the living...
, which he considered to be a superficial mix of moralism and spiritual materialism
Spiritual materialism
Spiritual materialism or spiritual narcissism are terms used to describe mistakes spiritual seekers commit which turn the pursuit of spiritualism into an ego building and confusion creating endeavor. This is based on the idea that ego development is counter to spiritual progress...
, as well as Spiritism's specific contributions, such as its belief in what he saw as a post-Cartesian, modernist
Modernity
Modernity typically refers to a post-traditional, post-medieval historical period, one marked by the move from feudalism toward capitalism, industrialization, secularization, rationalization, the nation-state and its constituent institutions and forms of surveillance...
concept of reincarnation that is distinct from and opposed to its two western predecessors, metempsychosis
Metempsychosis
Metempsychosis is a philosophical term in the Greek language referring to transmigration of the soul, especially its reincarnation after death. It is a doctrine popular among a number of Eastern religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Druzism wherein an individual incarnates from one...
and transmigration.
Post–World War II
In the Catechism of the Catholic Church (paragraph 2117) one can read that "Spiritism often implies divination or magical practices; the Church for her part warns the faithful against it".In Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, Catholic priests Dom
Don (honorific)
Don, from Latin dominus, is an honorific in Spanish , Portuguese , and Italian . The female equivalent is Doña , Dona , and Donna , abbreviated "Dª" or simply "D."-Usage:...
Carlos José Boaventura Kloppenburg and Oscar González Quevedo
Oscar González Quevedo
Father Óscar González Quevedo, born in Spain and now of Brazilian citizenship, is a Jesuit priest. He is an investigator in the field of parapsychology.-Life:...
, among others, have since the 1960s written extensively against Spiritism from both a doctrinal and parapsychologic perspective. Quevedo, in particular, has dedicated himself to show that Spiritism's claims of being a science are invalid, having not only written books on the subject but also hosted paranormal debunking shows on television, the most recent of which a series that ran in 2000 on Globo
Globo
Globo may refer to*Organizações Globo, media conglomerate*Rede Globo, a television network in Brazil*Radio Globo, a radio station in Honduras...
's hugely popular Sunday prime time news show Fantástico
Fantástico
Fantástico is a Brazilian weekly television newsmagazine broadcast on Sundays by Rede Globo.-Format:The show's first episode was on August 5, 1973 in black-and-white. It began as a variety show featuring music, dance numbers, teletheater, humor, mixed with a small amount of news. The following...
. Brazilian Spiritists, such as Dr. Hernani Guimarães Andrade, have in turn written rebuttals to these criticisms.
Scientific skeptics
Scientific skepticism
Scientific skepticism is the practice of questioning the veracity of claims lacking empirical evidence or reproducibility, as part of a methodological norm pursuing "the extension of certified knowledge". For example, Robert K...
also target Spiritism frequently in books, media appearances, and online forums, accusing it of being a pseudoscience
Pseudoscience
Pseudoscience is a claim, belief, or practice which is presented as scientific, but which does not adhere to a valid scientific method, lacks supporting evidence or plausibility, cannot be reliably tested, or otherwise lacks scientific status...
. The ex-spiritist and medium
Mediumship
Mediumship is described as a form of communication with spirits. It is a practice in religious beliefs such as Spiritualism, Spiritism, Espiritismo, Candomblé, Voodoo and Umbanda.- Concept :...
Waldo Vieira
Waldo Vieira
Waldo Vieira is a Brazilian dentist and physician who first proposed the theories of and , two closely related nascent sciences which posit that human consciousness is a non-physical phenomenon...
, accepting this criticism but not the idea that it cannot become a science, left Spiritism to start a new, Spiritist-inspired movement called Projectiology.
Websites
- Spiritism Center Videos and articles on basic questions about spiritism.
- Spiritism Books offers books on spiritism.
- Spiritism Forum
- Explore Spiritism Website on spiritism, psychography, mediumship, spirits, reincarnation and life after death
Books
- The Spirit's Book by Allan Kardec (PDF file)
- The Book on Mediums by Allan Kardec (PDF file)
- The Gospel According To The Spiritism by Allan Kardec (PDF file)
- The Spirits' Book in HTML format, translated by Anna Blackwell
- Allan Kardec's books and other related works.
Skeptical views
- Channeling - at the Skeptics' Dictionary;
- Medium - at the Skeptics' Dictionary;