|
What is a
mystification
and how to avoid
it |
Astolfo
O. de
Oliveira
Filho |
As we pointed
out in the book
20 lessons on
Mediumship,
chapter 14,
published at the
end of 2003 by
Leopoldo Machado
publishing,
mystification
means to deceit,
cheat, scam, and
abuse someone’s
credulity.
The
Spiritualistic
practice is not
free of
mystification,
given that we
learn with the
study of
spiritual
rankings that
there are
frivolous,
ignorant,
malicious,
thoughtless and
mocking Spirits,
who get involved
in all subjects
and answer
everything
without caring
for the truth.
“They enjoy
causing little
griefs and brief
joys,
intriguingly and
maliciously
inducing to
error, by means
of
mystifications
and trickery.”
(Book of
Spirits,
question no
103.)
Those Spirits
may be
incarnated or
disincarnated,
meaning the
mystification
can come from
the medium,
which is not
very common
within a serious
Spiritualistic
environment.
Alan Kardec
claims that
mystification is
easy to avoid.
It takes,
however – so
teaches the
Decoder- not to
demand from
Spiritualism
what it cannot
give, which is
the moral
improvement of
Mankind. “If you
don’t step away
from it, you
will never be
cheated”, warned
us the Spirit of
Truth, who at
the same time
clarified:
“Spirits come to
teach and guide
you in the path
of good and not
in the path of
honors and
fortune, or to
serve your cheap
passions. If you
don’t ask again
any questions
that are futile
or outside their
attributions,
you’d never give
voice to
deceiving
Spirits; whence
you can conclude
the mystified
only gets what
he deserves.”
(The Book of
Mediums, chapter
XXVII, item 303,
1st
question.)
In the same work
and the same
item, the Spirit
of Truth states
that “God allows
mystifications
to test the
perseverance of
the real
followers and
punish those who
make
Spiritualism an
object of
entertainment”.
(L.M. chap.
XXVII, item 303,
2nd
question.)
Animism and
Mystification
are different
things
– The
mystifications
experienced by a
medium, so
explains
Emmanuel, always
carries a useful
purpose, which
is to drive him
away from
self-love,
sluggishness
when learning
about his own
needs, his own
vanity or the
excess of
confidence in
himself, reason
by which a
mystification
doesn’t happen
without the
knowledge of a
medium’s most
elevated
mentors, who,
only thus, lead
him to the
necessary
vigilance and
the
accomplishment
of humility and
prudence in
their subjective
world. (O
Consolador,
question no
401.)
In this sense,
having a perfect
notion of the
pitfalls of the
medium practice,
those who
renounce
Spiritualism
because of a
disappointment,
such as the
occurrence of a
mystification,
prove only that
they don’t
understand and
don’t see the
serious part of
it. (The Book
of Mediums,
chap. XXVII,
item 303, 2nd
question.)
By behaving this
way, such people
show that
they’ve never
been true
Spiritualists;
they are in
fact, like
leaves that the
wind blows away
easily.
Kardec, when
commenting the
subject, states
that one of the
most common ways
Spirits use to
deceive is to
stimulate our
greed and our
interest towards
fortunes or
material gain.
We should also
be alert of
predictions of
specific dates
and avoid any
provisions
prescribed or
suggested by
Spirits, when
the purpose is
not evidently
rational. Let us
not be
mesmerized by
the names taken
by Spirits in
order to give
their words an
aspect of truth
and be
suspicious of
“theories and
risky scientific
systems” and “of
everything that
drives us away
from the moral
objective of the
manifestations”.
(The Book of
Mediums, chap.
XXVII, Kardec’s
observation
after the 2nd
question of item
303.)
We must,
however, not
confuse
mystification
with animism.
Animism is a
phenomenon
produced by the
soul of the
medium, who is
not always aware
of what happens.
We suggest the
reader to get
acquainted with
the subject
animism reading
the book
Medium, who is
and who is not,
by Demétrio
Pável Bastos,
chapters XX and
XXI, published
by Institute
Maria, from Juiz
de Fora, MG.
Mystification-
as we stated at
the beginning of
this article –
presupposes
lying, cheating,
trickery and may
occur, as
previously seen,
with the
knowledge of
Spiritual
mentors, like
the time when,
in the Parisian
Society of
Spiritualistic
Studies, a
deceptive Spirit
used the name of
St. Louis, a
spiritual leader
of the Society,
when he himself
was present.
Nothing,
absolutely
nothing happens
by accident. The
ones who are
dedicated to
mediumship must,
therefore,
remain vigilant
and never ignore
the warning made
by Erasto, in
chapter XX, item
230, of the Book
of Mediums:
“It’s better to
repel 10 truths
than to admit
one single lie,
one single false
theory”. “False
communications,
received by a
medium from time
to time,
according to
Divaldo P.
Franco -, are
warnings
intended to make
him not see
himself as
infallible and
not grow proud
(Molding the
Third Millenium,
from Fernando
Worm, chap. 7,
page 62.)
Ways to avoid
mystification
– Besides the
warnings and
recommendations
already
mentioned, Allan
Kardec provides
us with safe
orientations
about the theme
on chapter.
XXIV, item 268
of The Book
of Mediums,
from which we
extracted the
following
excerpts:
a)
among
Spirits, few
posses names
known on Earth,
thus most times
they decline to
provide one;
b)
as men,
almost always,
want to know the
name of the
communicator, a
high-ranking
Spirit may take
up the one of
someone revered
on Earth in
order to satisfy
them. That does
not mean it is a
mystification or
a fraud. It’d be
if they did it
in order to
trick us, but,
when it’s for
the good, God
allows spirits
of the same
category to
proceed this
way, for among
them, there’s
solidarity and
analogy of
thought. It
happens that,
many times the
evoked Spirit is
not able to
descend and
sends an agent,
who will
represent him in
the meeting;
c)
when
Spirits of low
moral standards
adopt names of
respected
figures to
induce us to
error, it’s not
with the
permission of
such wrongly
named Spirits.
Deceivers shall
be punished by
this fault. Rest
assured,
however, that if
we weren’t
imperfect, we
would be
surrounded by
nothing but good
Spirits. If we
are fooled, we
are the only
ones to blame;
d)
there are
people in whom
the high-ranking
Spirits are
interested, and,
when they find
appropriate, are
spared from the
threat of lies.
Deceivers are
completely weak
against these
people.
High-ranking
Spirits are
interested in
those who
accurately use
the ability to
discern and
seriously work
towards
self-improvement.
They give them
their preference
and support;
e)
high-ranking
Spirits have no
other means to
make themselves
recognizable,
besides the
superiority of
their ideas and
their language.
Material signs
can be easily
imitated. On the
other hand,
inferior Spirits
cheat in so many
ways, that you’d
have to be blind
to let yourself
be fooled.
Spirits only
deceive those
who want to be
deceived;
f)
There are
people who are
seduced by
emphatic
language, and
appreciate more
words rather
than ideas and
who, in many
instances, take
false and vulgar
ideas for
sublime. How can
these people,
who are not fit
to judge the
work of men,
judge the work
of Spirits?;
g)
when
people are
humble enough to
recognize their
inaptitude, they
don’t rely only
on themselves;
when, out of
pride, believe
they are more
capable than
they really are,
bring within
themselves the
sentence of the
foolish vanity
that they feed.
Mystifiers know
perfectly who to
address. There
are simple
people with
little education
who are easier
to deceive than
others, who are
refined and
knowledgeable.
By flattering,
they do whatever
they want with
men.
The Day a Spirit
stole St. Louis’
name
On May 11th,
1860, at a
session carried
out at the
Parisian Society
of
Spiritualistic
Studies, Allan
Kardec addressed
a few questions
to St. Louis,
spiritual mentor
of the Society,
about a case of
vision that took
place with Mr.
T… The answers
were otherwise
vague and
incoherent,
which indicated,
according to the
Decoder himself,
“the evident
interference of
a cheating
Spirit”.
(Spiritualistic
Magazine from
1860, page 171.)
At the following
session, which
took place on
May 18th,
Kardec inquired
why St. Louis
allowed, in the
previous week,
that a
mystifying
Spirit spoke in
his name.
-
St. Louis was
present but did
not want to
speak – one of
the Spirits
present said.
-
Why didn’t he
want to speak? –
inquired Kardec.
St. Louis
himself
manifested and
clarified:
-
You were upset
about what
happened, but
you should know
that nothing
happens without
a reason. Often,
there are things
whose purpose
you don’t
understand; that
at first sight
look evil, for
you are very
impatient, but
whose wisdom
you’ll later
recognize. Stay
calm and don’t
worry about a
thing; we know
how to recognize
the sincere ones
and watch over
them.
(Spiritualistic
Magazine from
1860, page 172.)
-
In the follow-up
to the
conversation
between Kardec
and St. Louis,
the Decoder
inquired why
even after
appealing to the
good Spirits to
steer away
impostors, the
request was not
heard.
St. Louis
explained:
-
It was heard, no
doubt about it.
But make sure
the appeal comes
from the bottom
of the hearts of
all the
assistants, or
aren’t there
among you some
who, by evil
thought or by
desire, attracts
evil Spirits to
your
environment?
-
To sum up the
clarification,
St. Louis then
revealed to
Kardec something
that never, by
any means, the
Decoder thought
could happen
there, when more
than once,
according to the
director of the
Spiritualistic
Society of
Paris, “a
sarcastic smirk
could be seen on
the faces of the
people who
surrounded him”
in the intimacy
of those
meetings
(Spiritualistic
Magazine from
1860, page 173.)
-
What kinds of
Spirits do these
people bring? –
inquired the
spiritual
mentor.
And he answered:
-
Spirits who,
like them, laugh
at the most
sacred things
(Spiritualistic
Magazine from
1860, page 173.)
The
mystification
that took place
in the previous
session was
aimed at those
people, who were
not up to the
works done by
the Home that
the Decoder
himself founded
and directed.
A
case of
mystification
without a happy
ending
Disincarnated on
May 1st,
1860 and evoked
by the Decoder
of Spiritualism
himself, the
writing medium
Mrs. Duret
revealed to
Kardec that, in
her activities
of mediumship,
she had been
cheated be
Spirits and
there are few
mediums who
aren’t to some
extent.
(Spiritualistic
Magazine from
1860, page 183.)
Such fact,
explained Mrs.
Duret, depends a
lot on the
medium and who
is enquiring,
but it’s always
possible, if you
wish, to be
safeguarded from
evil Spirits.
“And it is a
must not to
attract them by
their weaknesses
and defects.”
(Quoted work,
page 184.)
We find it
important to
remind of the
warning of Mrs.
Duret, as an
introduction to
the following
account of
events.
In a respectable
spiritualistic
institution in
an important
Brazilian city,
a Spirit
manifested
itself using the
language of a
child.
Taken in with
sympathy by the
team of mediums,
the Spirit
revealed it had
prepared a gift
for the group:
an account of
its own history,
which could
later, when
finished, be
published as a
book.
In the following
week, it came
back and started
the narrative,
which extended
for many weeks,
taking advantage
of the
psychographic
abilities of one
of the mediums
of the group.
At the end of
every meeting,
the chapter
transmitted was
read and then
corrected and
typed by the
director of
activities.
Some time later,
when every
member of the
group of mediums
was happy with
the outcome of
events, a
notable medium,
trusted by the
leader of the
group, comes to
town and is
invited to watch
one of the
meetings as a
mere observer.
The meeting took
place as usual,
channelling
manifestations
happened as
always, and,
towards the end,
the Spirit
started the
automatic
writing, making
use of the same
medium as
before. He
certainly,
didn’t notice
the visitor in
the premises,
someone equipped
with
clairvoyance and
owner of great
knowledge in the
Spiritualist
practice.
As soon as the
automatic
writing started,
the visitor
whispered to the
director of the
meeting, warning
that the Spirit
was, in fact, a
mystifier who
had been wasting
time during the
session and, in
secrecy, rejoice
in the credulity
of the members
of that group.
Once found out,
the Spirit
itself confirmed
the hoax,
putting an end
to the dictation
of the supposed
book.
The director,
however,
oblivious to
Kardec’s lessons
about
mystifications
and their
purposes,
departed from
the
Spiritualistic
realm for many
years, certain
that the team
lead by him
lacked a greater
protection from
the so-called
protectors and
spiritual
guides.
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