Taken from Chapter 2, Intuition, Psychics, and Mediumship, of Psychic integrity, the Respected Practice of Modern Day Mystics
What Is Mediumship?
Mediumship is being aware of the vibrations of spirit beings, and receiving messages from them. It is the communication of a deceased loved one through an intermediary. The information is then given to those who are grieving the loss of the loved one.
Connecting with the crown chakra (or seventh energy center) at the top of the head, a bridge is built to the higher levels or planes of existence. By building this bridge, an association is made with visions, imagination, and spiritual awakening. The main purpose of mediumship is to provide recognition of continuing life after the physical death, and to transmit love and encouragement.
By working through the crown chakra, the medium’s spiritual path is empowered and opens to integrity in becoming responsible in communication dealings. Association with the higher realms also plants a firm foundation for the connection with finer vibratory entities and spirit teachers. Mediums do not usually attract lower-level energies, as long as the connection is established with higher vibrations.
Another reason spirit beings open communication with the living is to give evidential information that can be acknowledged by those still in the body. They create physical activities often recognized as paranormal activity, and perceived by humans in a physical manner.
Mediumship involves cooperation between a living person and a person in the spirit realm. This entails either communication of some kind or physical manipulation of energies. Mediumship is divided into two categories: mental (communication) or physical (energy manipulation).
Mental mediumship is communication by thought transference from the spirit to the medium. Mental information is communicated, and then spoken by the medium. Information is brought to the medium as feelings, words, thought forms or impressions.
How clearly the information is relayed depends on how deep the medium is under control: the deeper the control, the purer the information. Mediumistic control has to do with the connection made by the spirit with the medium, using a combination of mental and physical energy. The bond or link is made by the two through the consciousness of the medium. It can be a strong link or very light. The control is determined by the strength of the link.
If the link is a good one, practiced over time, different levels of trance can be manifested. Since spirit information flows through a living mind, with personal emotions, it could become clouded with personal influence by the medium.
Mediumship, or communication with deceased loved ones, can be very healing to those of us who are left here on earth. The person going through a grieving process may need evidence to prove there is life after death, and reassurance that the loved one really is alright. There is a re-uniting of what appeared to be separated. Then closure begins.
The spirit also has a real need to connect with their living loved one to let them know all is well. There is a reaching out by both parties to recognize that the bond has not been broken, just transformed.
Then the deceased loved one has an opportunity to share the experience of transition. This gives comfort with the knowledge that death does not end life, but creates a new expansion of what life really is.
Physical mediumship is accomplished by using physical energy, under control as in the mental mediumship, but usually from a much deeper trance. The spirit manages the transformation of energy into physical objects, movement or sounds. A paranormal event occurs in the physical, and can be felt, heard or seen by the living.
This physical form of mediumship is probably the most unusual demonstration of what a spirit entity can do through medium control. Unfortunately there have been far too many contrived and deceitful examples of the séance event. Because of that, many people discredit the entire concept of mediumship.
The spirit entity in control of the evidential séance uses both mental and physical energies of the medium to create a physical manifestation, something all those sitting in the séance as participants in the experience can witness. The physical medium has an abundance of electromagnetic and etheric energy (human energy field, part of the aura which is rich with human emotions) emanating as part of their aura/energy field. Usually, while the medium is in a deep trance state, the spirit being uses this etheric energy and creates ectoplasm.
If you have ever seen the movie “Ghostbusters” or any ghostladen, scary program, you have seen a filmy or cloudy emanation around or coming from an entity, spirit being or ghost. This is the best representation of ectoplasm available. Although the medium’s etheric energy is the main source for the event, usually more is gathered from the sitters (séance participants). If the energies are plentiful, a large amount of ectoplasm is formed to work with. The use of personal auric energy is the main ingredient for this operation to be successful. It requires the full attention of everyone in the séance. This is why the sitters in the séance not only experience the event, but actually become part of it. It can be a very dramatic demonstration of energy manipulation by spirit.
The Trance State: A deep control by the spirit will produce a trance state of consciousness with the medium. A lighter trance is used for mental mediumship, and a deeper trance is used for physical mediumship.
Indicators for the trance state are similar to those for deep meditation. Trance can be recognized by the slowing down of many of the medium’s automatic physical body processes which are generally controlled unconsciously: heart rate, breathing and body temperature. It is not the same as the sleep state, but could be confused with it. For all intents and purposes, the medium is unconscious.
Since spirit speaks directly through the consciousness of the medium in the trance condition, the voice will sound much different from the person’s usual voice. This is considered more accurate information and is often called direct voice.
Channeling is a mild form of trance, in which the medium is usually still awake and aware of the information coming through. It deals with spiritual teachings coming from the higher realms. As I see it, if you are unaware of the information coming through, you are in deep trance. If you are given a trail of information as a conversation, a lecture or a class, then you are channeling.
The medium gives consent to be used by the spirit being, by going into the trance state. The spirit is now in control of the energy transformation and can manipulate the ectoplasm to produce phenomena.
A medium can facilitate physical phenomena because there is an abundance of this etheric ectoplasm. This is a part of the subtle energy body that allows us to operate as humans. In a physical medium, this subtle body is more loosely attached than in most people. {More on this in chapter 3 “How You Can Talk to Heaven (and How You Can’t)”.}
There is no limit to what can be done through physical mediumship, as long as the proper conditions are held in the séance room. These physical phenomena can range from rapping, levitation of objects or people, flickering lights, independent writing/painting, direct voice, and partial or full materialization of spirit bodies. As a witness in many séances during my years in the work, I have seen a light show that would rival any rock concert! I have seen apports (objects materialize out of thin air) in full view during the daylight. It truly is amazing what can be done during spirit control.
Why is it important to have physical phenomena? If the spirit mind (and we all have a spirit mind) can transform matter, then the same intelligence can transform other areas of life to manifest the world we know we could have. Information is being shared by many metaphysical teachers about the Law of Attraction and Manifestation. Physical phenomenon is another form of evidence to validate manifestation.
Psychic Integrity, the Respected Practice of Modern Day Mystics, by Melissa Leath
The Go Between: Psychics, Mediums and Integrity by Melissa Leath 