Article · 15 August 2024
Over time, society has explored many paths in order to understand, name and frame the manifestations of the invisible. Words have evolved, their meanings have shifted, and successive interpretations have sometimes sown confusion. Among the essential notions that need to be distinguished are "perceptibility" and "mediumship." In parallel, recognizing the role of the "Psychist" and of "psychism" allows for a better grasp of the whole of these phenomena. The aim is to restore to each concept its true dimension and to account for the extraordinary complexity of the relationship between our visible world and the subtle realities that surround it.
Perceptibility designates a refined human sensitivity, allowing an individual — called a "perceptible" — to perceive invisible realities without losing consciousness or personality. The perceptible person senses subtle things, whether unexpressed emotions, energetic imprints, invisible presences or latent thoughts. Some go further: the Psychist is a perceptible person who not only senses this information, but also knows how to direct, influence, orient and harmonize the energies perceived. They thus become both transmitter and receiver, a conscious actor of the subtle world. This mastery of psychism allows one to navigate the invisible while retaining lucidity and discernment. Works such as L'Échelle de la réincarnation and Les Dialogues quintessentiels, as well as the documentary Le Visible & l'Invisible, describe this phenomenon and show how perceptibility and psychism operate within a constructive dynamic.
The word "medium," for its part, became established in the 19th century thanks to Allan Kardec, who sought to demonstrate that contact with the invisible did not fall under the authority of a religious institution. A medium, in the original sense, is an involuntary channel: they lose consciousness and identity for a short period of time, allowing another entity to express itself through them. Their voice may then change, strange physical phenomena may occur, but this state cannot last for hours, as it is so exhausting. It is not a balanced exchange, but an external takeover, often brief and destabilizing.
Nowadays, public events during which a practitioner speaks for one or two hours, remaining conscious and lucid, with no loss of personality nor extreme phenomena, are sometimes described as "stage mediumship" or "contact with the deceased through a medium." In these cases, it is most often perceptibility (and sometimes psychism, if the person also directs the energies perceived) rather than mediumship. Indeed, the practitioner picks up information already present in the energetic sphere or in the psyche of the audience, senses the presence of deceased people still linked to the earthly dimension, interprets and relays this data. But they do not undergo an involuntary takeover by a higher entity. This is therefore not mediumship in the strict sense of the term, but rather a subtle and mastered exercise of sensitivity.
It sometimes happens, however, that a perceptible person or a Psychist finds themselves, for a brief moment, overwhelmed by an energy stronger than themselves, temporarily surrendering control. This situation can resemble a brief mediumistic episode. Generally, this intrusion serves a general or spiritual interest, aiming at a purpose that goes beyond that of the perceptible person themselves. However, this incursion remains occasional and does not amount to a long public session of so-called "mediumship." Likewise, a deceased person still linked to the earthly sphere may attempt to dominate a perceptible person or a Psychist in order to accomplish their own designs, whether benevolent or malevolent. This domination is nonetheless not mediumship, since it emanates from a being still very close to the material world, pursuing personal intentions. Original mediumship involves a more constant and vaster energy, linked to a transcendent and immaterial purpose, allowing the deceased of another dimension to express themselves briefly, within a context of evolution and higher understanding, without trivial finality.
Moreover, it is generally accepted that the world of energies influences our consciousnesses, our thoughts and our life path, even if this often escapes us. What we call "chance" can sometimes result from the discreet action of invisible presences, of the deceased, or of universal consciousness. These influences guide us, sometimes without our being aware of it, toward certain events or experiences. "Paranormal" evenings and other sensitive gatherings testify to this entanglement between the visible, the invisible, the perceptible, the Psychist, and the energies that surround us. Far from being passive, the perceptible person or the Psychist then becomes a craftsman of the link between worlds, an active and enlightened witness.
Ultimately, re-establishing these distinctions clarifies our understanding of the subtle gradation between the conscious sensitivity of the perceptible person, the energetic mastery of the Psychist, and the involuntary trance of the authentic medium. The perceptible person senses, the Psychist directs energy in addition to perceiving it, while the medium, in rare and brief moments, loses control in favor of an outside entity. Most contemporary events presented as "stage mediumship" actually fall under perceptibility or psychism, rather than an original mediumship — occasional and energetically taxing. Various references, ranging from ancient traditions (Rishis, shamans, oracles, Egyptian priests) to the works of Allan Kardec and of the Society for Psychical Research, as well as the testimonies of figures such as Gerard Croiset, Jozef Rulof, Prentice Mulford, Walter Russell, and the philosophical legacy of René Descartes, converge toward this nuanced understanding. Thus the phrase "paranormal event with possible mediumship" seems more appropriate, as it acknowledges the complexity of the phenomena, the diversity of the intentions, and the multiplicity of levels of perception. The roles, states and influences at play are thereby clarified, honoring the complexity of the relationship between the visible and the invisible, between the individual and the energies that surround them, between the human and the divine.
Mischa Harmeijer
I see the invisible. I explain it rationally. — Founder of Centre EPÉU
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