SÉANCES: CONTACT A SPIRIT

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HOW TO TALK WITH SPIRITS: 

SÉANCES • MEDIUMS • GHOST HUNTS 

by 

June Ahern

Available Kindle, Amazon

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More about the book at author's website

Chapter 7 (Excerpt)

SÉANCE

And many of them that sleep in the dust
of the earth shall awake, some of everlasting
life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
– Daniel 12:2: King James Bible
“Authorized Version”, Cambridge Edition –

THE MOST SOUGHT after and common way for communicating with the dead is through a medium (more about mediums Chapter 9) at a séance, which can be a private one-on-one or group session.

Séance is French for “seat, session,” derived from Old French seoir, “to sit.” The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition says, “The older original French meaning referred to “sit” or “take a seat in a meeting.” Perhaps as in a community or political meeting where attendees bored with speakers fell asleep or appeared to be in a trance. It was first recorded in English in 1845. In French, as in English, the word came to be used specifically for a meeting of people to receive spiritualistic messages. Now it means taking a seat where more than one person gathers for the sole purpose of contacting the spirit(s) of the deceased. If a medium is present, she communicates with the spirit and then relays messages from the dead to the living.

Séances can be quite mundane and not as mysterious as most think. For many years, I have been involved with and conducted séances as both a participant and a shared or sole medium. There are usually no peculiar goings on like knocking, banging on walls, howling dogs, levitating tables and chairs or floating ghosts. There can be a sudden drop in temperature or a cool breeze might move through the room. Sometimes the presence of another person in the room, not included of the original group, can be sensed. On a rare occasion, a white light or a translucent, wispy form may appear and, in an even rarer occurrence, an actual physical image of a dead person may manifest.

You may feel something brush pass you or feel as though someone or something is touching you. The hair on the back of your neck or arms may rise up for no apparent reason. You could hear a voice or sound. You may just “know” mentally you are speaking with a spirit. There are many ways to communicate with spirit energy. There are also as many different spirit energies as there are many different kinds of people. What I find interesting and enjoy most in séances is how uplifted the participants are when positive messages come from departed loved ones.

The séances I’ve been involved in range from the more formal seated at a table, holding hands in a semi-darkened room to a lighter, casual sitting around an office or small auditorium with no hand holding. They all included a form of a short introduction of what to expect, quiet time for a meditation, a prayer, and at times, singing. In the séances where I was the medium and after we started, I would announce what spirit had made her/his presence known and with whom the spirit wished to communicate. Sometimes I was incorrect about the participant, but within a moment it was straightened out. Often a name would come through, certainly a physical description even if the spirit came across years younger than the age of death. Sometimes, none of the participants recognized a spirit. Although it didn’t happen often, I’d thank the spirit and return to the séance. Alas, not all spirits come through just because you ask for a message. When I tell people this they are surprised and wonder why. I tell them as in life just because you call or email a person doesn’t mean they will respond. Perhaps the spirit is in a state of peaceful rest and what you are doing is no longer a concern.

At times, spirits the participants hadn’t consciously thought about contacting will appear and make their presence known. This spirit could be a relative such as a long lost cousin or uncle even the participant hadn’t met. It could be a grandparent the participant knew only briefly. I’ve heard from the spirit of neighbors, childhood friends, and a grammar school teacher. At one séance, an Army man appeared to talk to an older gentleman. The gentleman was befuddled. He didn’t recognize this man at all. Luckily, I heard the man’s name clearly and with the information the gentleman lowered his eyes and became still. The Army man was his friend; more like a brother, said the gentleman, in grade school. The Army man moved to another state and they lost touch. The gentleman hadn’t known this friend joined the Army, let alone died in Vietnam, which was the information the Army man gave me. Funny thing, said the gentleman, he’d thought of him off and on and wondered how he was doing.

People wonder why spirits come through if there wasn’t a connection to the person for a long time or at all. The answer is simple. (to be cont'd - purchase the book before 3/15/15 for 99¢, after $1.99)

ABOUT: June Ahern had a successful psychic medium practice before retiring in 2014. She stays connected to her spiritual psychic interests through ghost walks in San Francisco. Video youtubes The Haunted Bay: SF and Beyond and lectures. Learn more about June and her other books at june ahern dot com