Levitation

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A representation of a person levitating.

Levitation in the paranormal context is the rising of a human body into the air by mystical means. Some parapsychology and religious believers interpret alleged instances of levitation as the result of supernatural action of psychic power or spiritual energy. The scientific community state there is no evidence that levitation exists and alleged levitation events are explainable by natural causes (such as magic trickery, illusion, and hallucination).^[1][2][3][4]

Contents

• 1 Religious views
  • 1.1 Hinduism
  • 1.2 Buddhism
  • 1.3 Hellenism
  • 1.4 Christianity
  • 1.5 Gnosticism
  • 1.6 Theosophy
  • 1.7 Levitation by mediums
• 2 Levitation in photographies
• 3 Popular culture
• 4 See also
• 5 References
• 6 External links

Religious views[edit]

Colin Evans who claimed spirits levitated him into the air was exposed as a fraud.

Various religions have claimed examples of levitation amongst their followers. This is generally used either as a demonstration of the validity or power of the religion,^[5] or as evidence of the holiness or adherence to the religion of the particular levitator.

Hinduism[edit]

• In Hinduism, it is believed that some Hindu gurus who have become siddhas (those who have achieved spiritual powers) have the siddhi (power) of being able to levitate. The power of levitation is called in Sanskrit^[6] laghiman (lightness)^[7] or dardura-siddhi (the frog power).^[8] It is said that Hindu Sadhus have a history of paranormal levitation and that when one progresses on the path of spiritualism levitation comes naturally. Autobiography of a Yogi has accounts of Hindu Yogis who used to levitate in the course of their meditation.

Levitation is said to be possible by mastering the Hindu philosophy of yoga:

• Yogi Subbayah Pullavar, was reported to have levitated into the air for four minutes in front of a crowd of 150 witnesses, June 6, 1936. He was seen suspended horizontally several feet above the ground, in a trance, lightly resting his hand on top of a cloth covered stick. Pullavar's arms and legs could not be bent from their locked position once on the ground.

• Shirdi Sai Baba an Indian yogi is described in the Sri Sai Satcharitra to have mastered the art of levitation while sleeping.

• The Transcendental Meditation movement claim that practitioners of the TM-Sidhi program of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi achieve what they call "Yogic Flying". They say that there are three stages on Yogic Flying – hopping, floating, and flying – and that they have so far achieved just the first stage. Transcendental meditation groups have held annual "Yogic Flying Contests" to see who could hop the farthest or the fastest. Proponents say the hopping occurs spontaneously with no effort while skeptics say they appear to bouncing in the lotus position with the use of their thighs, and no actual levitation has occurred.

Buddhism[edit]

• It is recounted as one of the Miracles of Buddha that Gautama Buddha walked on water by levitating over a stream in order to convert a brahmin to Buddhism.^[5]

• Yogi Milarepa, a Vajrayana Buddhist guru, was rumored to have possessed a range of additional abilities during levitation, such as the ability to walk, rest and sleep, however such were deemed as occult powers^{[citation needed]}.

Hellenism[edit]

• It was believed in Hellenism (the pagan religion of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome) on the testimony of Philostratus that upon his death, Apollonius of Tyana underwent heavenly assumption by levitating into Elysium.^[9]

Stanisława Tomczyk (left) and the magician William Marriott (right) who duplicated by natural means her trick of a glass beaker.

Christianity[edit]

See also: Saints and levitation

• Saint Bessarion of Egypt (d. 466) walked across the waters of a river (Nile).^[10][11]
• Saint Mary of Egypt also walked across a river, according to St. Zosimas.
• Saint Francis of Assisi is recorded as having been "suspended above the earth, often to a height of three, and often to a height of four cubits" (about 1.3 to 1.8 meters).^[12]
• St. Alphonsus Liguori, when preaching at Foggia, was lifted before the eyes of the whole congregation several feet from the ground.^[13]
• St. Joseph of Cupertino (mystic, born 17 June 1603; died at Osimo 18 September 1663; feast, 18 September) reportedly levitated high in the air, for extended periods of more than an hour, on many occasions.^[14]
• St. Teresa of Avila (born in Avila, Spain, March 28, 1515; died in Alba, October 4, 1582) claimed to have levitated at a height of about a foot and a half for an extended period somewhat less than an hour, in a state of mystical rapture. She called the experience a "spiritual visitation".^[15]
• Saint Martín de Porres (December 9, 1579 – November 3, 1639) claimed psychic powers of bilocation, being able to pass through closed doors (teleportation), and levitation.^[16]
• Girolamo Savonarola, sentenced to death, allegedly rose off the floor of his cell into midair and remained there for some time.^[17]
• Seraphim of Sarov (1759–1833) Russian Orthodox saint had a gift to levitate over the ground for some time. This was witnessed by many educated people of his time, including the emperor Alexander I. A young paralyzed man brought into his cell saw Seraphim raised from the ground during a fervent prayer. Likewise, four Diveyevo sisters saw him walking above the grass lifted up from the air.^[18]
• Padre Pio (1887–1968), Catholic saint, who had stigmata, is said to have been able to levitate, as well as being able to bilocate.

"Demonic" levitation in Christianity

• Clara Germana Cele, a young South African girl, in 1906 reportedly levitated in a rigid position. The effect was apparently only reversed by the application of Holy water, leading to belief that it was caused by demonic possession.^[19]
• Magdalena de la Cruz (1487–1560), a Franciscan nun of Cordova, Spain.^[20]
• Margaret Rule, a young Boston girl in the 1690s who was believed to be harassed by evil forces shortly after the Salem Witchcraft Trials, reportedly levitated from her bed in the presence of a number of witnesses.^[21]

Gnosticism[edit]

• Simon Magus, a Gnostic who claimed to be an incarnation of God (as conceived by the Gnostics), reportedly had the ability to levitate, along with many other magical powers.^[22]

Theosophy[edit]

The levitation of Daniel Dunglas Home at Ward Cheney's house interpreted in a lithograph from Louis Figuier, Les Mystères de la science 1887.

• H.P. Blavatsky described the phenomenon of levitation or "Æthrobacy" in her 1877 book Isis Unveiled. She explained that the earth is a magnetic body, charged with what one could call "positive electricity" while all other forms of matter, including human bodies, produce what could be called "negative electricity." Weight, or gravity, she explains, is "simply the attraction of the earth." Therefore, an individual can levitate by aligning their own electricity with that of the earth, and they would be repelled from the earth in the way two negatively charged magnets repel one another. This can be achieved through human will, a nervous system disease, ecstasy, or other causes.^[23]

Levitation by mediums[edit]

Many mediums have claimed to have levitated during séances, especially in the 19th century in Britain and America. Many have been shown to be frauds, using wires and stage magic tricks.^[24] Daniel Dunglas Home the most prolific and well documented levitator of himself and other objects, was said by spiritualists to levitate outside of a window, however, skeptics have disputed such claims.^[25] The researchers Joseph McCabe and Trevor H. Hall exposed the "levitation" of Home as nothing more than him moving across a connecting ledge between two iron balconies.^[26]
The magician Joseph Rinn gave a full account of fraudulent behavior observed in a séance of Eusapia Palladino and explained how her levitation trick had been performed. Milbourne Christopher summarized the exposure:

“

Joseph F. Rinn and Warner C. Pyne, clad in black coveralls, had crawled into the dining room of Columbia professor Herbert G. Lord's house while a Palladino seance was in progress. Positioning themselves under the table, they saw the medium's foot strike a table leg to produce raps. As the table tilted to the right, due to pressure of her right hand on the surface, they saw her put her left foot under the left table leg. Pressing down on the tabletop with her left hand and up with her left foot under the table leg to form a clamp, she lifted her foot and "levitated" the table from the floor.[27]

”

Gambier Bolton reported that the medium Cecil Husk could levitate but Husk was exposed as a fraud by Will Goldston.^[28][29] The levitation tricks of the medium Jack Webber were exposed by the magician Julien Proskauer.^[30]
Another early psychical researcher and engineer W. J. Crawford (1881–1920) developed the "Cantilever Theory of Levitation" due to his experiments with the medium Kathleen Goligher. His theory was that levitation of tables and objects by mediums occurred due to "psychic rods" of ectoplasm which comes out of the body of the medium to operate as an invisible cantilever.^[31] Crawford later after witnessing a number of séances claimed to have obtained flashlight photographs of the substance, he later described the substance as "plasma". He claimed the substance is not visible to the naked eye but can be felt by the body.^[32] William Fletcher Barrett had also claimed to have witnessed the levitation of a table by Goligher, he was also supportive of Crawford's theory as he believed it was evidence for "an unseen intelligence behind these manifestations".^[33]
Dr. Edmund Fournier d'Albe later investigated the medium Kathleen Goligher at many sittings and arrived at the opposite conclusions to Crawford, according to D'Albe no paranormal phenomena such as levitation had occurred with Goligher and stated he had found evidence of fraud. D'Albe had claimed that the substance in the photographs of Crawford was ordinary muslin.^[34][35] Another psychical researcher Hereward Carrington in his book Story of Psychic Science (1930) wrote that the photographs taken by Crawford look "dubious in appearance" and that "with rare exceptions, no other investigators had an opportunity to check-up his results, since outsiders were rarely admitted to the sittings" however Carrington also stated that some type of genuine phenomena may have been observed by Crawford.^[36] A later report written by the Society for Psychical Research in 1939 concluded that the photographs obtained by Crawford were of pieces of muslin and had supported the conclusions of D'Albe.^[37]

Levitation in photographies[edit]

A person photographed while bouncing may appear to be levitating. This optical illusion is used by religious groups and by spiritualist mediums, claiming that their meditation techniques allow them to levitate in the air. You can usually find telltale signs in the photography indicating that the subject was in the act of bouncing, like blurry body parts, a flailing scarf, his hair being suspended in the air, etc.^[38] Those who practice transcendental meditation (which claims to be able to teach people how to levitate), when quizzed, generally admit they were not actually levitating but bouncing.

Popular culture[edit]

Film

• Regan MacNeil (Linda Blair), the 12-year-old girl possessed by Pazuzu in William Friedkin's The Exorcist (film), exhibits many strange, supernatural powers, including levitation.
• Dana Barrett (Sigourney Weaver) in Ghostbusters levitates when possessed by Zuul.
• In the 1987 horror film, The Gate (film), Glen (Stephen Dorff) levitates while participating in a party levitation game with his sister's teenage friends.
• In Sam Raimi's The Evil Dead, Cheryl Williams (Ellen Sandweiss) becomes a "deadite" and briefly levitates before stabbing Linda (Betsy Baker) in the ankle with a pencil.
• In the 1996 supernatural teen horror film, The Craft (film), Rochelle (Rachel True) levitates while participating in a party levitation game with her coven of witches.

Games

• In World Of Warcraft, "Priests" have the ability to use the spell "Levitate" with the tooltip: "Allows the friendly party or raid target to levitate, floating a few feet above the ground".
• In The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, characters and the player can craft and consume Levitation potions to gain access to normally impossible areas.
• In Street Fighter, the Yoga fanatic Dhalsim has the ability to levitate, which was gained through his Yoga background. He also has other techniques that resemble Siddhi described by Hinduism and Buddhism.
• In Psychonauts levitation is used by the player and several other characters, notably world famous levitator Milla Vodello.

Literature

• In Richard Brightfield's Choose Your Own Adventure gamebook The Secret Treasure of Tibet, the protagonist aims to find a remote Tibetan monastery where monks have learned levitation.
• In Tintin in Tibet a monk suddenly starts levitating in air as Tintin and Captain Haddock prepare their departure from the monastery. The Captain tries to take a photograph, but it is too late. While floating in the air, the monk also has a vision (remote viewing) about Tintin's missing friend Chang Chong-Chen.

Television

• In Star Trek: The Original Series, in the episode "Plato's Stepchildren", the Platonians (the inhabitants of the planet Platonius) have telekinetic powers, including the ability to levitate, from consuming plants containing the fictitious mineral "kironide".^[39]
• In Charmed Phoebe Halliwell has the power to levitate. This was one of her 'active powers'.

See also[edit]

• Indian rope trick
• Magic
• Mysticism
• Occult

References[edit]

1. ^ Gordon Stein. (1996). The Encyclopedia of the Paranormal. Prometheus Books. ISBN 978-1573920216
2. ^ Robert Todd Carroll. (2003). The Skeptic's Dictionary: A Collection of Strange Beliefs, Amusing Deceptions, and Dangerous Delusions. Wiley. p. 198 "Levitation is the act of ascending into the air and floating in apparent defiance of gravity. Spiritual masters or fakirs are often depicted levitating. Some take the ability to levitate as a sign of blessedness. Others see levitation as a conjurer's trick. No one really levitates; they just appear to do so. Clever people can use illusion, "invisible string", and magnets to make things appear to levitate." ISBN 978-0471272427
3. ^ Joe Nickell. (2005). Camera Clues: A Handbook for Photographic Investigation. The University Press of Kentucky. p. 177 "Some claims — of levitation, for instance — may be performed either as an illusion for an audience, as a magician's stage trick, or for the camera." ISBN 978-0813191249
4. ^ Jonathan Smith. (2009). Pseudoscience and Extraordinary Claims of the Paranormal: A Critical Thinker's Toolkit. Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN 978-1405181228
5. ^ ^{a b} Schulberg, Lucille Historic India (Great Ages of Man: A History of the World's Cultures) 1968:New York:Time-Life Books Page 69—Stone bas relief depicting the levitation of Buddha
6. ^ Bowker, page 576 Names for levitation in Sanskrit
7. ^ Bowker, page 567
8. ^ Bowker, page 259
9. ^ Hornblower, Simon and Spawforth, Antony, editors The Oxford Classical Dictionary Third Edition Oxford/New York: 1996 Oxford University Press—Article on Apollonius of Tyana Page 128
10. ^ Holy Trinity Russian Orthodox Church. Calendar: St. Bessarion the Great, wonderworker of Egypt (466).
11. ^ Catholic Online. Saints and Angels: St. Bessarion.
12. ^ Montague Summers. (1946). Witchcraft and Black Magic. Grand River Books. p. 200
13. ^ Rosemary Ellen Guiley. (2001). The Encyclopedia of Saints. Checkmark Books. p. 13
14. ^ John F. Michell, Bob Rickard, Robert J. M. Rickard. (2000). Unexplained Phenomena: A Rough Guide Special. Rough Guides Ltd. p. 83
15. ^ Rosemary Ellen Guiley. (1993). Encyclopedia of Mystical & Paranormal Experience. Grange Books. p. 327
16. ^ Rosemary Ellen Guiley. (2001). The Encyclopedia of Saints. Checkmark Books. p. 227
17. ^ Pasquale Villari . (2005). The Life And Times Of Girolamo Savonarola. Kessinger Publishing.
18. ^ Zander. "St. Seraphim of Sarov". Yonkers / New York: Vladimir's Seminary Press, 1975, pp 79–81.
19. ^ Rosemary Ellen Guiley. (1993). Encyclopedia of Mystical & Paranormal Experience. Grange Books. p. 328
20. ^ Gillian T. W. Ahlgren. (1998). Teresa of Ávila and the Politics of Sanctity. Cornell University. p. 21
21. ^ Marilynne Roach. (2004). The Salem Witch Trials: A Day-by-Day Chronicle of a Community Under Siege. Taylor Trade Publishing. p. 442. ISBN 978-1589791329
22. ^ Jørgen Christiansen. (1999). The History of Mind Control: From Ancient Times Until Now. Turtledove Book Company. p. 25
23. ^ H.P. Blavatsky Isis Unveiled: A master-key to the mysteries of ancient and modern science and theology vol. 1, 1877, p. xxx–xxxii Accessed online on 3/5/2012 at Isis Unveiled
24. ^ Ruth Brandon. (1984). Spiritualists: The Passion for the Occult in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries. Prometheus Books. ISBN 978-0879752699
25. ^ Gordon Stein. (1993). The Sorcerer of Kings. Prometheus Books. ISBN 978-0879758639
26. ^ Joseph McCabe. (1920). Is Spiritualism based on Fraud?: The Evidence Given by Sir A.C. Doyle and Others Drastically Examined. London: Watts & Co. pp. 48-50. Also see the review of The Enigma of Daniel Home: Medium or Fraud? by Trevor H. Hall in F. B. Smith. (1986). Victorian Studies. Volume. 29, No. 4. pp. 613-614.
27. ^ Milbourne Christopher. (1979). Search for the Soul. T. Y. Crowell. p. 47
28. ^ Gambier Bolton. Psychic force: an experimental investigation of a little known power 1904
29. ^ Will Goldston. (1942). Tricks Of The Masters. G. Routledge & Sons, Ltd. p. 4
30. ^ Julien Proskauer. (1946). The Dead Do Not Talk. Harper & Brothers. p. 94
31. ^ The Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research: Volume 32 American Society for Psychical Research, 1938, p. 81
32. ^ Bernard M. L. Ernst, Hereward Carrington Houdini and Conan Doyle: The Story of a Strange Friendship Kessinger Reprint Edition, 2003, p. 67
33. ^ Edward Clodd Occultism p. 30
34. ^ George Nugent Merle Tyrrell Science and psychical phenomena 1938, p. 331
35. ^ Julian Franklyn Ed A Survey of the Occult 2005, p. 383
36. ^ Hereward Carrington The Story of Psychic Science Kessinger Reprint Edition, 2003, p. 197-200
37. ^ Proceedings of the Society for Psychical Research, Volume 45 Society for Psychical Research., 1939, p. 10
38. ^ Joe Nickell (2005). Camera Clues: A Handbook for Photographic Investigation (illustrated ed.). University Press of Kentucky. pp. 177–178. ISBN 978-0-8131-9124-9. 
39. ^ Krauss, Lawrence M. Beyond Star Trek:Physics from Alien Invasions to the End of Time New York: Basic Books, 1997, p. 124

• Bowker, John (editor) The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions Oxford, England, U.K.:1997 Oxford University Press Page 259

External links[edit]

• "Ancient Lost Secrets of Levitation"
• Ramtha, Buddha's Neuronet for Levitation, JZK Publishing
• The flying saint: The life of St. Joseph of Cupertino, Gustavo Parisciani, Pax et Bonum (1968)
• The life of Saint Joseph of Cupertino door Christopher J Shorrock, Melbourne : A.C.T.S. Publications, 1985.

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Levitation_(paranormal)&oldid=571281968"

Categories:

• New Age practices
• Parapsychology
• Paranormal terminology

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Daniel Dunglas Home

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Daniel Dunglas Home
Daniel Dunglas Home
Born	(1833-03-20)20 March 1833 Currie, Scotland
Died	21 June 1886(1886-06-21) (aged 53)
Occupation	clairvoyant, medium, psychic
Spouse(s)	Alexandria de Kroll (m. 1858–1862) «start: (1858)–end+1: (1863)»"Marriage: Alexandria de Kroll to Daniel Dunglas Home" Location: (linkback://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Dunglas_Home) Julie de Gloumeline (m. 1871) «start: (1871)»"Marriage: Julie de Gloumeline to Daniel Dunglas Home" Location: (linkback://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Dunglas_Home)
Children	Gregoire
Parents	William and Elizabeth Home (née McNeill)

Daniel Dunglas Home (pronounced 'Hume') (March 20, 1833 – June 21, 1886) was a Scottish physical medium with the reported ability to levitate to a variety of heights, speak with the dead, and to produce rapping and knocks in houses at will. His biographer Peter Lamont opines that he was one of the most famous men of his era.^[1] Harry Houdini described him as 'one of the most conspicuous and lauded of his type and generation'.^[2] Home conducted hundreds of séances, which were attended by many eminent Victorians.
There were speculations and one recorded eyewitness account by F. Merrifield in the Journal of Psychical Research describing conjuring methods and fraud that Home may have employed.^[3][4][5]

Contents  [hide]  1 Family 2 Early life 2.1 America 3 Fame 4 Europe 5 Personal life 6 Death 7 Critical reaction 8 Notes 9 References 10 Further reading 11 External links

[edit] Family

Daniel Home's mother, Elizabeth ("Betsy") Home (née McNeill) was known as a seer in Scotland, as were many of her predecessors, like her great uncle Colin Uruqhart, and her uncle Mr. McKenzie. The gift of second sight was often seen as a curse, as it foretold instances of tragedy and death.^[6][7] Home's father, William Home, was the illegitimate son of Alexander, the 10th Earl of Home.^[6] Evidence supports the elder Home's illegitimacy, as various payments meant for William were made by the 10th Earl.^[8] Elizabeth and William were married when he was 19-years old, and found employment at the Balerno paper mill. The Homes moved into one of small houses built in the mill for the workforce, in Currie (six miles south-west of Edinburgh).^[9] William was described as a "bitter, morose and unhappy man" who drank, and was often aggressive towards his wife.^[9] Elizabeth had eight children while living in the mill house: six sons and two daughters, although their lives were not fully recorded. The eldest, John, later worked in the Balerno mill and eventually managed a paper mill in Philadelphia, Mary drowned in a stream at 12-years old in 1846, and Adam died at sea at the age of 17 while on route to Greenland, which Home says he saw in a vision and reportedly confirmed five months later.^[10][11]

[edit] Early life

Daniel Home was Elizabeth's third child, and was born on 20 March 1833. He was baptised by the Reverend Mr. Somerville three weeks after his birth at Currie Parish Church on 14 April 1833.^[12] The one-year old Home was deemed a delicate child, having a "nervous temperament", and was passed to Elizabeth's childless sister, Mary Cook. She lived with her husband in the coastal town of Portobello, 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Edinburgh.^[13] According to Home, his cradle rocked by itself at the Cooks' house, and he had a vision of a cousin's death, who lived in Linlithgow, to the west of Edinburgh.^[14][15]

[edit] America

Home pondering a skull. A staged studio photograph typical of the era.

Sometime between 1838 and 1841, Home's aunt and uncle decided to emigrate to the United States with their adopted son, sailing in the cheapest class of steerage as they could not afford a cabin.^[16] After landing in New York, the Cooks travelled to Greeneville, near Norwich, Connecticut.^[17] The red-haired and freckled Home attended school in Greeneville, where he was known as "Scotchy" by the other students.^[18] The 13-year old Home did not join in sports games with other boys, preferring to take walks in the local woods with a friend called Edwin. The two boys read the Bible to each other and told stories, and made a pact stating that if one or the other were to die, they would try and make contact after death.^[18] Home and his aunt soon moved to Troy, NY, which is about 155 miles (249 km) from Greeneville, although Home in his own book stated it was 300 miles (480 km) away.^[19] Home lost contact with Edwin until one night when Home, according to Lamont, saw a brightly lit vision of him standing at the foot of the bed, which gave Home the feeling that his friend was dead. Edwin made three circles in the air before disappearing, and a few days later a letter arrived stating that Edwin had died of malignant dysentery, which was three days before Home's vision.^[20]
A few years later Home and his aunt returned to Greeneville, and Elizabeth Home emigrated from Scotland to America with the surviving members of the family to live in Waterford, Connecticut, which was 12 miles (19 km) away from the Cook's house.^[21] Home and his mother's reunion was short-lived, as Elizabeth appeared to foretell her own death in 1850. Home said he saw his mother in a vision saying, "Dan, 12 o'clock", which was the time of her death.^[10][21] After Elizabeth's death Home turned to religion.^[22] His aunt was a Presbyterian, and held the Calvinist view that one's fate has been decided, so Home embraced the Wesleyan faith, which believed that every soul can be saved.^[23] Home's aunt resented Wesleyans so much that she forced Home to change to Congregationalist, which was not to her liking, either, but was more in line with her own religion.^[24] The house was reportedly disturbed by rappings and knocking similar to those that occurred two years earlier at the home of the Fox sisters. Ministers were called to the Cooks' house: a Baptist, a Congregationalist, and even a Wesleyan minister, who all believed that Home was possessed by the Devil, although Home believed it was a gift from God.^[25] According to Home, the knocking did not stop, and a table started to move by itself, even though Home's aunt put a bible on it and then placed her full body weight on it.^[26][27] According to Lamont, the noises did not stop and were attracting the unwanted attention of Cook's neighbours, so Home was told to leave the house.^[28]

[edit] Fame

William Cullen Bryant, a poet, and editor of the New York Evening Post, who witnessed one of Home's séances.

The 18-year old Home stayed with a friend in Willimantic, Connecticut, and later Lebanon, Connecticut. Home held his first séance in March 1851, which was reported in a Hartford newspaper managed by W. R. Hayden, who wrote that the table moved without anyone touching it, and kept moving when Hayden physically tried to stop it.^[29][30] After the newspaper report, Home became well known in New England, travelling around healing the sick and communicating with the dead, although he wrote that he was not prepared for this sudden change in his life because of his supposed shyness.^[31]
Home never directly asked for money, although he lived very well on gifts, donations and lodging from wealthy admirers. He felt that he was on a "mission to demonstrate immortality", and wished to interact with his clients as one gentleman to another, rather than as an employee.^[32][33] In 1852, Home was a guest at the house of Rufus Elmer in Springfield, Massachusetts, giving séances six or seven times a day, which were visited by crowds of people, including a Harvard professor, David Wells, and the poet and editor of the New York Evening Post, William Cullen Bryant. They were all convinced of Home's credibility and wrote to the Springfield Republican newspaper stating that the room was well lit, full inspections were allowed, and said, "We know that we were not imposed upon nor deceived".^[34] It was also reported that at one of Home's demonstrations five men of heavy build (with a combined weight of 850 pounds) sat on a table, but it still moved, and others saw "a tremulous phosphorescent light gleam over the walls".^[35] Home was investigated by numerous people, such as Professor Robert Hare, the inventor of the oxy-hydrogen blowpipe, and John Worth Edmonds, a Supreme Court judge, who were sceptical, but later said they believed Home was not fraudulent.^[35][36]
In his book, "Incidents in My Life", Home claims that on August 1852, in South Manchester, Connecticut, at the house of Ward Cheney, a successful silk manufacturer, he was reportedly seen to levitate twice and then rise to up to the ceiling, with louder rappings and knocking than ever before, more aggressive table movements and the sounds of a ship at sea in a storm, although persons present said that the room was badly lit so as to see the spirit lights.^[37][38]

The reported levitation at Ward Cheney's house interpreted in a lithograph from Louis Figuier, Les Mystères de la science 1887

New York was now interested in Home's abilities, so he moved to an apartment at Bryant Park on 42nd street. His most verbal critic in New York was William Makepeace Thackeray, the author of Vanity Fair. Thackeray dismissed Home's abilities as "dire humbug", and "dreary and foolish superstition", although Thackeray had been impressed when he saw a table turning.^[39] Home thought that Thackeray was "the most sceptical inquirer" he had ever met, and as Thackeray made his thoughts public, Home faced public scepticism and further scrutiny.^[40] Home travelled between Hartford, Springfield, and Boston during the next few months, and settled in Newburgh by the Hudson River in the summer of 1853.^[41] He resided at the Theological Institute, but took no part in any of the theological discussions held there, as he wanted to take a course in medicine. Dr. Hull funded Home's studies, and offered to pay Home five dollars a day for his séances, but Home refused, as always.^[42] His idea was to fund his work with a legitimate salary by practicing medicine, but he became ill in early 1854, and stopped his studies. Home was diagnosed with Tuberculosis, and his doctors recommended recuperation in Europe. His last séance in America was in March 1855, in Hartford, Connecticut, before he travelled to Boston and sailed to England on board the Africa, at the end of March.^[43]

[edit] Europe

Home's name was originally Daniel Home, but by the time he arrived in Europe he had lengthened it to Daniel Dunglas Home, in reference to the Scottish house of Home, of which his father claimed to be a part.^[44] In London Home found a believer in spiritualism, William Cox, who owned a large hotel at 53, 54 and 55 Jermyn Street, London. As Cox was so enamoured of Home's abilities, he let him stay at the hotel without payment.^[45] Robert Owen, an 83-year-old social reformer, was also staying at the hotel, and introduced Home to many of his friends in London society.^[46] At the time Home was described as "tall and thin, with blue eyes and auburn hair, fastidiously dressed but seriously ill with consumption". Nevertheless, he held sittings for notable people in full daylight, moving objects that were some distance away.^[47] Some early guests at Home's sittings included the scientist Sir David Brewster (who remained unconvinced), the novelists Sir Edward Bulwer-Lytton and Thomas Adolphus Trollope, and the Swedenborgian James John Garth Wilkinson.^[32][48] As well as Brewster, fellow scientists Michael Faraday and Thomas Huxley were prominent contemporary critics of Home's claims.^[49] It was the poet Robert Browning however, who proved to be one of Home's most adamant critics. After attending a séance of Home's, Browning wrote in a letter to The Times that: 'the whole display of hands, spirit utterances etc., was a cheat and imposture'.^[50] Browning gave his unflattering impression of Home in the poem, "Sludge the Medium" (1864). His wife, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, was convinced that the phenomena she witnessed were genuine and their discussions about Home were a constant source of disagreement.^[51] Frank Podmore writes of a Mr Merrifield's first-hand account of experiencing Home's fraudulence during a séance.^[50]

Robert Browning, who wrote "Sludge the Medium" about Home.

Home's fame grew, fuelled by his ostensible feats of levitation. William Crookes claimed to know of more than 50 occasions in which Home levitated "in good light" (gas light) at least five to seven feet above the floor.^[52] Home's feats were recorded by Frank Podmore: "We all saw him rise from the ground slowly to a height of about six inches, remain there for about ten seconds, and then slowly descend."^[53] In the following years Home travelled across continental Europe, and always as a guest of wealthy patrons. In Paris, he was summoned to the Tuileries to perform a séance for Napoleon III. He also performed for Queen Sophia of the Netherlands, who wrote: "I saw him four times...I felt a hand tipping my finger; I saw a heavy golden bell moving alone from one person to another; I saw my handkerchief move alone and return to me with a knot... He himself is a pale, sickly, rather handsome young man but without a look or anything which would either fascinate or frighten you. It is wonderful. I am so glad I have seen it..."^[54]
In 1866, Mrs Jane Lyon, a wealthy widow, adopted Home as her son, giving him £60,000^[55] in an attempt to gain introduction into high society. Finding that the adoption did not change her social situation, Lyon changed her mind, and brought a suit for the return of her money from Home on the grounds that it had been obtained by spiritual influence. Under British law, the defendant bears the burden of proof in such a case, and proof was impossible since there was no physical evidence. The case was decided against Home,^[56] Mrs Lyon's money was returned, and the press pilloried Home's reputation. Home's high society acquaintances thought that he behaved like a complete gentleman throughout the ordeal, and he did not lose a single important friend.^[57]
Home met one of his future closest friends in 1867; the young Lord Adare (later the 4th Earl of Dunraven). Adare was fascinated by Home, and began documenting the seances they held. The following year, Home was said to have levitated out of the third storey window of one room, and back in through the window of the adjoining room in front of three witnesses (Adare, Captain Wynne, and Lord Lindsay).^[58]

[edit] Personal life

Home married twice. In 1858, he married Alexandria de Kroll ("Sacha"), the 17-year-old daughter of a noble Russian family, in Saint Petersburg, his Best Man was the writer Alexandre Dumas.^[59] They had a son, Gregoire ("Grisha"),^[59] but Alexandria fell ill with tuberculosis, and died in 1862.^[60] In October 1871, Home married for the second, and last time, to Julie de Gloumeline, a wealthy Russian, whom he also met in St Petersburg.^[61] In the process, he converted to the Greek Orthodox faith.^[62]

[edit] Death

At the age of 38, Home retired due to ill health; the tuberculosis, from which he had suffered for much of his life, was advancing and he said his powers were failing. He died on the 21 June 1886, and was buried in the Russian cemetery of St. Germain-en-Laye Paris.^[62][63]

[edit] Critical reaction

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who says he witnessed Home's mediumship and detailed the four individual types he felt that Home possessed.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle stated that Home was unusual in that he had four different types of mediumship: direct voice (the ability to let spirits audibly speak); trance speaker (the ability to let spirits speak through oneself); clairvoyant (ability to see things that are out of view); and physical medium (moving objects at a distance, levitation, etc., which was the type of mediumship in which he had no equal).^[64] Home was suspicious of any medium who claimed powers he himself did not possess, particularly the materializing mediums (such as the Eddy Brothers), who claimed the ability to produce solid spirit forms, and he marked these as fraudulent.^[64] Since materializing mediums always work in darkened places, Home urged that all séances be held in the light.^[64] In his 1877 book Lights and Shadows of Spiritualism, he detailed the conjuring tricks employed by false mediums.^[65]
Lord Adare stated that Home "swung out and in" of a window in a horizontal position:

"He came in [through the window] again, feet foremost, and we returned to the other room. It was so dark I could not see clearly how he was supported" [outside of the three story window].^[66]

Outside the house there is an extending ledge connecting the balconies of each described window.^[67] Frank Podmore recorded that Home had a constant companion that sat opposite of him during his séances.^[68] A lady acted as a medium and used to help Home during the seances attended by Henrietta Ada Ward.^[69]
Between 1870 and 1873, chemist and physicist William Crookes conducted experiments to determine the validity of the phenomena produced by three mediums: Florence Cook, Kate Fox, and Home. Crookes' final report in 1874 concluded that the phenomena produced by all three mediums were genuine, a result which was roundly derided by the scientific establishment.^[70] Crookes recorded that he controlled and secured Home by placing his feet on the top of Home's feet.^[71] Crooke's method of foot control later proved inadequate when used with Eusapia Palladino, as she merely slipped her foot out and in of her sturdy shoe. In addition, Crookes' motives, methods, and conclusions with regard to Florence Cook were called into question, both at the time and subsequently, casting doubt on his conclusions about Home.^[72][73] Alexander von Boutlerow, Professor of Chemistry at the University of St. Petersburg and Home's brother-in-law, also obtained positive results in his tests of Home.^[74]
Frank Podmore and Milbourne Christopher provide a source of speculation on the ways in which Home could have duped his sitters.^[75][76][77] Some testimony suggests that he often conducted his demonstrations in dim light. For example, there is this report from a witness: "The room was very dark...Home's hands were visible only as a faint white heap".^[78] The light conditions during Home's most famous feat of levitation were disputed, but some witnesses recorded that it was quite dark. Gordon Stein speculated on the deception of Crookes' testing devices (with diagrams) and gave a third-hand account of Home being caught with a vial of oil of Phosphorus. During a Crookes test when Home "is not touching with his hands." there are objects just lying beneath his hands that his fingertips are touching, a small match box and a small bell. The measuring arm of Crookes' gauge does not exactly "move." It trembles.^[79][80] it was reported by sitters and Crookes that Home's accordion played only two pieces, Home Sweet Home and The Last Rose of Summer - both contain only one-octave. Home played his accordion with only one hand beneath a table ^[80] In 1869, at the residence of Miss Douglas, Crooke's assistant watched Home play the accordion, enclosed in a cage, while he watched beneath the table. He saw nothing suspicious.^[81] Skeptic James Randi stated that Home was caught cheating on a few occasions, but the episodes were never made public, and that the accordion Home is supposed to have played was a one-octave mouth organ that Home concealed under his large moustache. Randi writes that one-octave mouth organs were found in Home's belongings after his death.^[82] According to Randi 'around 1960' William Lindsay Gresham told Randi he had seen these mouth organs in the Home collection at the Society for Psychical Research.^[83] Eric Dingwall,^[84] who catalogued Home's collection on its arrival at the SPR does not record the presence of the mouth organs, and Lamont speculates that it is unlikely Dingwall would have missed these or not made them public.^[83] The accordion in the SPR collection is not the actual one Home used; a duplicate is displayed. ^[85]

[edit] Notes

1. ^ Lamont, Peter (2005). The First Psychic: The Extraordinary Mystery of a Notorious Victorian Wizard. Abacus. ISBN 0-349-11825-6., pxiii
2. ^ Houdini, Harry (2011). A Magician Among the Spirits. Cambridge University Press. p. 38. ISBN 978-1-108-02748-9. http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=aNUo2iJ5wZIC&pg=PA38&dq=one+of+the+most+conspicuous+and+lauded+of+his+type+and+generation&hl=sv&ei=-K1tTqyDAcSK4gSWj7mJBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCYQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false.
3. ^ F.W.H. Meyers and W. Barrett,D.D. Home, His Life and Mission, Journal of the Society fo Psychical Research 4(July 1889) Appendix D, pages 121-122
4. ^ .Merrifield statement appears as A Sitting With D. D. Home, Journal of the Society for Psychical Research 11 (May 1903): pages 76-80
5. ^ The Sorcerer of Kings by Gordon Stein, Ph.D, Prometheus Books, pages 101-102 and page 126
6. ^ ^{a b} Lamont 2005 p5
7. ^ Home “Incidents in my Life” 1863 p22
8. ^ Journal of the Society For Psychical Research, vol 70, no.4, 246-48
9. ^ ^{a b} Lamont 2005 p6
10. ^ ^{a b} Home “Incidents in my Life” 1863 p20
11. ^ Home “Incidents in my Life” 1863 p30
12. ^ Lamont 2005 pp6-7
13. ^ "Altered Dimensions". SparTech Software. http://www.spartechsoftware.com/dimensions/mystical/DanielHome.htm. Retrieved 2008-01-03.
14. ^ Lamont 2005 p8
15. ^ Home “Incidents in my Life” 1863 p17
16. ^ Lamont 2005 p13
17. ^ Hoare, Philip (2005-09-10). "A talent for ectoplasm". The Guardian. http://education.guardian.co.uk/higher/books/story/0,10595,1566310,00.html. Retrieved 2008-01-05.
18. ^ ^{a b} Lamont 2005 p14
19. ^ Home “Incidents in my Life” 1863 pp18-19
20. ^ Lamont 2005 p15
21. ^ ^{a b} Lamont 2005 p16
22. ^ Fodor, Nandor. "News and articles on Mediumship Psi and survival". Survival after death. http://www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/mediums/home.htm. Retrieved 2008-01-05.
23. ^ Lamont 2005 pp16-17
24. ^ Lamont 2005 p17
25. ^ Lamont 2005 p18
26. ^ Lamont 2005 p19
27. ^ Home “Incidents in my Life” 1863 p25
28. ^ Lamont 2005 p20
29. ^ Lamont 2005 pp28-29
30. ^ Home “Incidents in my Life” 1863 pp26-27
31. ^ Lamont 2005 pp29-30
32. ^ ^{a b} Doyle “The History of Spiritualism” volume 1, 1926 pp186-190
33. ^ Home “Incidents in my Life” 1863 p62
34. ^ Lamont 2005 pp30-31
35. ^ ^{a b} Lamont 2005 p31
36. ^ Griffin, A. M.. "Experiences of Judge J. W. Edmonds, in Spirit Life. With a Poem, "The Home of the Spirit."". Mrs. Cora L. V. Tappan, 1876. http://www.assumption.edu/whw/Hatch/EdmondsInSpiritLife.html. Retrieved 2008-01-06.
37. ^ Lamont 2005 pp31-33
38. ^ Home “Incidents in my Life” 1863 pp62-63
39. ^ Lamont 2005 p37
40. ^ Lamont 2005 pp34-35
41. ^ Lamont 2005 p35
42. ^ Home “Incidents in my Life” 1863 pp70-71
43. ^ Lamont 2005 p36
44. ^ Lamont 2005 pp36-37
45. ^ Lamont 2005 p43
46. ^ Lamont 2005 pp43-44
47. ^ Doyle “The History of Spiritualism” volume 1, 1926 pp188-192
48. ^ The North British review. 39. 1863. p. 175. http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=SSYaAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA175&dq=dunglas+home&hl=en&ei=bZimTdTWN96M4gaaw8iICg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCsQ6AEwADgK#v=onepage&q=dunglas%20home&f=false.
49. ^ The North British review. 39. 1863. pp. 186–187. http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=SSYaAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA186&dq=dunglas+home&hl=sv#v=onepage&q&f=false.
50. ^ ^{a b} Podmore, Frank (2003). Newer Spiritualism. Kessinger Publishing. p. 45. ISBN 978-0-7661-6336-2. http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=g__q8K3uhkAC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Newer+Spiritualism&source=bl&ots=K-xJVvFchC&sig=VSgAJJOjEjpGavEeCHSb6GtC9js&hl=en&ei=JZ-mTbbpEs22hAfg69XQCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBYQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false.
51. ^ Lamont 2005 p50
52. ^ Doyle “The History of Spiritualism” volume 1, 1926 p196
53. ^ Podmore “Mediums of the Nineteenth Century, Part 1.” 2003 p254
54. ^ Een Vreemdelinge in Den Haag, Hella Haasse, 1984
55. ^ Amy Lehman (2009). Victorian women and the theatre of trance: mediums, spiritualists and mesmerists in performance. McFarland. p. 145. ISBN 0-7864-3479-1.
56. ^ The Bar Reports, VII, London: Horace Cox, 1868, pp. 451–457, http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=easDAAAAQAAJ
57. ^ Doyle “The History of Spiritualism” volume 1, 1926 pp207-209
58. ^ Doyle “The History of Spiritualism” volume 1, 1926 pp196-197
59. ^ ^{a b} Christiansen (2000) p.142
60. ^ Christiansen (2000) p.147
61. ^ Christiansen (2000) p.154
62. ^ ^{a b} Christiansen (2000) p.156
63. ^ Lamont, 2005 p. 222-223
64. ^ ^{a b c} Doyle “The History of Spiritualism” volume 1, 1926 pp204-205
65. ^ This book contains no discussion of the making of raps and fire-proofing oneself. Explanations for creating raps and fire-proofing oneself can be found in Revelations of a Spirit Medium by Harry Price and Eric J. Dingwall, Arno Press, 1975 reprint of 1891 edition by Charles F. Pidgeon. This rare, overlooked, and forgotten, book gives the "insider's knowledge" of 19th century deceptions.
66. ^ Adare “Experiences in Spiritualism” 1976 p83
67. ^ "ESP Extrasensory Perception", Chapter 5, Spiritualism, Spirits and Mediums, photograph page 63, by Simeon Edmonds, Wilshire Book co, 1975
68. ^ Podmore “Mediums of the Nineteenth Century, Part 1.” 2003 p45
69. ^ Memories of Nintey Years by Mrs E. M. Ward (Henrietta Mary Ada Ward), Henry Holt,2nd edition, 1925, page 102
70. ^ Doyle “The History of Spiritualism” volume 1, 1926 pp230-251
71. ^ Crookes 1874
72. ^ Irwin, Harvey J.; Watt, Caroline (2007). An Introduction to Parapsychology (fifth ed.). McFarland. pp. 18–19. ISBN 0-7864-3059-1. http://books.google.com/books?id=E3EzxyOufbgC&lpg=PP1&dq=An%20introduction%20to%20parapsychology&pg=PA18#v=onepage&q=William%20Crookes&f=false. Retrieved August 1, 2011.
73. ^ Hall, Trevor H. (1963). The spiritualists: the story of Florence Cook and William Crookes. Helix Press.
74. ^ Lamont 2005 p222
75. ^ Christopher “ESP,Seer & Psychics: What the Occult Really Is” 1971 pp174-187
76. ^ Doyle “The History of Spiritualism” volume 1, 1926 p207
77. ^ Milbourne “ESP,Seer & Psychics: What the Occult Really Is” 1971 pp174-187
78. ^ Podmore “Mediums of the Nineteenth Century, Part 1.” 2003 p233
79. ^ The Sorcerer of Kings by Gordon Stein, Prometheus Books, 1993
80. ^ ^{a b} The Spiritualists: The Passion for the Occult in the Nineteeth and Twentieth Centuries by Ruth Brandon, Alfred A. Knopf, 1983,
81. ^ Music and Spiritualism by Melvyn J. Willen, Journal of the Society for Psychical Research, Vol. 62, No. 848, page 45
82. ^ Randi, James. "An Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds, and Hoaxes of the Occult and Supernatural". James Randi Educational Foundation. http://www.randi.org/encyclopedia/Home,%20Daniel%20Dunglas.html. Retrieved 2008-01-05.
83. ^ ^{a b} Lamont 2005 p 302
84. ^ Gale Encyclopedia of Occultism & Parapsychology: Eric John Dingwall
85. ^ "ESP Extrasensory Perception", Chapter 5, Spiritualism, Spirits and Mediums by Simeon Edmonds, Wilshire Book co, 1975

[edit] References

• Adare, Viscount (1976). Experiences in Spiritualism With Mr D D Home. Ayer Co Pub. ISBN 978-0-405-07937-5.
• Christiansen, Rupert (2000). "The psychic cloud: Yankee spirit-rappers". The Victorian Visitors. Atlantic Monthly Press. pp. 130–158. ISBN 0-87113-790-9.
• Christopher, Milbourne (1971) ESP,Seer & Psychics: What the Occult Really Is. Thomas Y. Crowell Company ASIN: B000O8Z6AC
• Crookes, William (1874), "Notes of an Enquiry into the Phenomena called Spiritual during the Years 1870-1873", Quarterly Journal of Science, http://www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/books/crookes/researches/notes.htm
• Doyle, Arthur Conan (1926). The History of Spiritualism, Volume 1 Volume 2. New York: G.H. Doran. ISBN 1-4101-0243-2.
• Home, Daniel Dunglas (2005). Incidents in My Life. Adamant Media Corporation. ISBN 978-1-4021-5929-9. http://archive.org/details/cu31924031207503.
• Home, Daniel Dunglas (2007). Lights and Shadows of Spiritualism. Cosimo Classics. ISBN 978-1-60206-817-9. http://archive.org/details/lightsshadowsofs00homerich.
• Lamont, Peter (2005). The First Psychic: The Extraordinary Mystery of a Notorious Victorian Wizard. Abacus. ISBN 0-349-11825-6.
• Oppenheim, Janet (1988). The Other World: Spiritualism and physical research in England, 1850-1914. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-34767-9. http://books.google.com/books?id=VcBs8enYCCcC&pg=PA10&lpg=PA10&dq=%22daniel+dunglas+home%22&source=web&ots=XJJYTWTl_m&sig=Xh8zxth_v7GFufiEyA_DaKfPCqU#PPP1,M1.
• Podmore, Frank (2003). Mediums of the Nineteenth Century, Part 1. Kessinger Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7661-2853-8.
• Podmore, Frank (2003). The Newer Spiritualism (reprint of 1910 ed.). Kessinger Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7661-6336-2.

[edit] Further reading

• Afterlife: an Investigation, by Colin Wilson, 1987.
• Mediums, Mystics and the Occult by Milbourne Christopher, Thomas Crowell, 1975
• Learned Pigs and Fireproof Women by Ricky Jay, Villard Books, 1987; See pages 37–42, Photos on page 40.
• Revelations of a Spirit Medium by Harry Price and Eric J. Dingwall, Arno Press, 1975 reprint of 1891 edition by Charles F. Pidgeon. This rare, overlooked, and forgotten, book gives the "insider's knowledge" of 19th century deceptions
• Ghost Hunters: William James and the Search for Scientific Proof of Life After Death by Deborah Blum, Penguin Press, 2006; Briefly discusses Home's career and the scientific investigation of his abilities, in the larger context of the 19th century and the scientific inquiry into life beyond death.

[edit] External links

• Experiences In Spiritualism with D. D. Home - Lord Adare's report of Home's seances, sadly incomplete, PDF format
• Home, Daniel Dunglas - An Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds and Hoaxes of the Occult and Supernatural James Randi
• The Strange Case of Daniel Dunglas Home Andrew Lang, Chapter 8 of Historical Mysteries (1904)
• Daniel D. Home, the Celebrated Medium
• Map location of Currie and Balerno, near Edinburgh

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