HPB-SB-8-73

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vol. 8, p. 73

H. P. Blavatsky Scrapbooks

from Adyar archives of the International Theosophical Society

vol. 8 (September 1878 - September 1879)

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The Inherent Invisibility of the Spirit World

Has anything from the world of departed spirits ever been made visible to normal eyesight? Probably not.

At the time of our first acquaintance with Spiritualism, spiritual objects were said to have been materialised at stances. To decide this point we for some years made the request at scores of stances:—“Please materialise a flower or something else existing nowhere but in the spirit world, and leave it here as evidence of your power and of your mission.” That request was never granted. Wildly enthusiastic people who heard it made, cheerfully testified that they themselves had once obtained such evidence, but of course from some unfortunate accident had lost possession of the priceless otherworld object, beyond all power of producing it for examination. The spirits, when asked on the spot, we found to be always unable to do this thing, so the request was at last discontinued as hopeless.

But in those early days, living temporarily materialised spirit hands were often seen in one part of a room, while the medium was in another. The fingers of the hands sometimes had rings upon them; the wrists now and then were covered with lace. As materialisation phenomena progressed, and beads, and busts, and full forms were materialised, drapery and ornaments covered them, and at last the time came when the spirits gave away cuttings from their clothing, and the fabric was always found to be machine-made. The manifestations were genuine, but the visible outcome was always in material things, as indeed had been previously indicated by the circumstance that from the first the substances absorbed and reflected light in a way which material substances only could do.

Gradually it became apparent that the spiritual world was one of spiritual conditions; that in acting upon this world it could best do so by controlling a living human organism—the body of a medium; that through that gateway it could get partial control of material things already existing in this world, and by these means communicate by sign and by symbol, not directly, to mortals. At the house of the Rev. Dr. Phelps, they, thirty years ago, built up marvellous images of human beings, by means of articles collected from various parts of his house, and which sometimes had been locked up immediately beforehand under his eyes, to make sure that some invisible power took them from their hiding place. A medium, the son of Dr. Phelps, was on the premises, but the youth was a mesmeric sensitive, the sport of all these powers, not their master.

If this be so; if nothing can be seen in the spiritual world either without a man having his spiritual eyesight opened, or without spirits manipulating common objects to speak by material sign and symbol to normal eyesight, do theorists intend to try to force their own methods upon the phenomena of nature? Do they intend to make the earth rotate upon principles they choose to invent in a back parlour? If they do, the world will still rotate on its axis in twenty-four hours, and the Galileos who give true facts and true theories, must temporarily take the worldly penalty for prematurely revealing the truths of God.

The application of these ideas to occasional events in Spiritualism is clear, and the question is whether the phenomena of nature are to alter to meet the theories of individuals, or whether individuals are to modify their preconceived ideas until they are no longer at variance with what is true?

<Untitled> (Mr. Epes Sargent...)

Mr. Epes Sargent has been selected by the Messrs. Harper to edit their new Cyclopedia of Poetry,—Boston Sunday Herald.

Spiritualism is gaining a strong hold in Mexico, and societies for the study of its philosophy are multiplying.

The Williams-Rita Case

We have received the following document from Mr. Hensleigh Wedgwood, J.P., of 31, Queen Anne-street, Cavendish-square, and Mr. C. C. Massey, Barrister-at-Law, of the Temple:—

“TEST SEANCE WITH MR. WILLIAMS.

“On the 30th October a seance was held at the house of Mr. Volckman, at the instance of one of the Foreign Ministers (who was unable himself to attend on account of the illness of his wife), for the purpose of obtaining a decisive test of the question whether the figures seen and felt at the seances of Mr. Williams are substantive beings, having a distinct existence of their own, or are merely scenic exhibitions of Williams himself, got up with the aid of drapery and properties smuggled by him into the circle. For this purpose Mr. Williams consented to undress entirely in the presence of Mr. Wedgwood and Mr. C. C. Massey, putting on a suit of wholly dark clothing provided by them. They saw that all his own clothes were laid on one side, allowing him no opportunity of taking away anything whatever from them, and then led him to a different room, which they had previously examined, and ascertained that there was nothing in it available for the purpose of the spirit drapery.

“The circle consisted, in addition to the three already named, of Mr. and Mrs. Volckman, Florence Marryat, and Lady—. They sat in the first instance round the table, all holding hands, Mr. Williams being placed between Mrs. Volckman and Lady—.The usual phenomena were copiously displayed. Firefly lights fluttered about; voices were heard in various directions, often at a wide distance from the medium; and on one occasion two were distinctly noted speaking at the same time. Mr. Wedgwood and Mr. Massey were each led up by a warm hand as high as they could reach standing on their chairs. The well-known figure of “Peter” repeatedly showed himself by the light which he carried in his hand, having a headdress of white linen, and the upper part of his body, as far as seen, clothed in loose white drapery. He jerked about as usual, anxiously asking whether we saw him distinctly.

“All the while, it will be observed, Mr. Williams was held by the two ladies between whom he was placed. A change was now made. Mr. Williams took his place in the cabinet, consisting of a curtain drawn across a corner of the room, and after a while Mr. Massey also went within the curtain, passing his hand over the face and body of Mr. Williams, who sat sighing and starting by his side, while Mr. Massey looked out through the opening of the curtain, and, like the rest of us, saw on the outside a white vaporous figure, more or less indistinctly seen, notwithstanding the entire darkness of the room, which appeared and disappeared two or three times.

“Finally, at the suggestion of Mrs. Volckman, Mr. Massey took his place in the circle at the left of Mr. Wedgwood, when the medium was apparently brought out in his chair in a state of trance, and placed in front of Mr. Wedgwood and Mr. Massey, across whose knees he was made to rest, lying on his right side with his head against Mr. Massey’s breast. A strong hand took hold of Mr. Wedgwood’s hands, and placed his right hand on the shoulder of the medium, while his left hand was made to grasp the left hand of the medium as it hung down in front. While the whole body of Mr. Williams was thus securely held by the two across whose knees he lay, the figure of a man with white headdress and drapery (presumably John King) appeared close behind him, showing himself by his own light, which was unusually bright, not being covered with muslin as it commonly is. So lighted up he brought his face within a few inches of the faces of Mr. Wedgwood and Florence Marryat, who sat next him on his right, and in that position proved the vitality of his features by loudly smacking his lips.

“It was impossible to have clearer evidence than we had of the independent existence of Mr. Williams and the stranger who thus appeared mysteriously among us.

“H. Wedgwoon.

“C. C. Massey.

“Postscript by Mr. C. C. Massey.—In subscribing the above as an accurate account, I by no means commit myself to any other opinion of the phenomena we witnessed than that they were most assuredly not produced by Williams himself, or by any agency of his, in the ordinary sense of the words. What the above stated facts may or may not be a proof or test of, beyond this, and on this occasion, every one must decide for himself. So far as I am concerned they are not put forward as conclusive of anything than this, viz., that (granted, of course, the good faith of all as witnesses, and the improbability of an outside accomplice being introduced into the house of one of them) these phenomena do take place in the presence of Mr. Williams without human trickery. One of the other persons named as present is well known to us all as a powerful medium; but I am assured that these visible phenomena described are not characteristic of this lady mediumship,

“C. C. M.”

Mr. A. J. Riko, of 8A, Oude Molstraat, The Hague, after making some remarks about The Medium newspaper which should be sent to that journal for publication, says:—

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Editor's notes

Sources

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  London Spiritualist, No. 324, November 8, 1878, p. 217