Introduction

A phrase enunciated by most followers of Spiritism is the famous sentence: “We are all mediums”. And, in fact, a series of daily procedures at the Spiritist Center are guided by this basic idea.

However, the mediumistic theme is known to be a highly complex subject just as the mediumistic faculty is known for presenting very particular and distinct nuances from individual to individual. Therefore, it is up to us to question whether this generalization is consistent with reality.

For a better assessment of the topic, we need to question the origin of this paradigm. In fact, this concept is, in principle, derived from a Kardec text. It remains to be seen whether it is being well interpreted and well used as a foundation for the usual practices of Spiritist centers.

The most used Kardec text:

Therefore, let us see the Kardec’s text in question, which is found in item 159 of chapter XIV, entitled "The Mediums", of the Second Part of "The Book of Mediums" (we are using the translation of Professor Herculano Pires):

“Every person who feels the influence of the Spirits, in any degree of intensity, is a medium. This faculty is inherent in man. For this reason, it is not a privilege and there are few people who do not have it, at least in a rudimentary state. It can be said, therefore, that everyone is more or less a medium. Usually, however, this qualification applies only to those who have a well-characterized mediumistic faculty, which translates into overt effects of a certain intensity, which depends on a more or less sensitive organization.

It should be noted, further, that this faculty is not revealed to all in the same way. Mediums generally have a special aptitude for this or that order of phenomena, which divides them into as many varieties as there are kinds of manifestations. The main ones are: physical effects mediums, sensitive or impressionable mediums, auditory mediums, speakers, seers, somnambulists, curators, pneumatographers, writers or psychographers”. (my emphasis)

Let's analyze the beginning of the discussion of the Encoder of Spiritism:

“Every person who feels the influence of the Spirits, in any degree of intensity, is a medium”.

Kardec starts the discussion by establishing that everyone who feels the Spirits “in any degree of intensity” could be considered a medium. However, interestingly, he does not say that everyone, without exception, feels this influence. Furthermore, he seems to suggest that the intensity levels of mediumistic sensitivity are very variable.

"This faculty is inherent to man."

In this sentence, Kardec suggests a generalization for the occurrence of mediumship, or, at least, he wants to indicate a naturalness for the phenomenon. For a text published around 160 years ago, it is reasonable to assume that Kardec was not contradicting himself in relation to the previous sentence, as the emphasis may be on the fact that it is a natural phenomenon and not pathological or wonderful, and this is in fact an important record. Did he want to emphasize that this is a phenomenon experienced by 100% of individuals? Or was he just rejecting the miraculous character normally attributed to mediumistic phenomena, especially at that time? To advance this understanding, we need to continue reading Kardec’s text.

“For this reason, it is not a privilege and it is very rare to find someone who does not have it, even if in a rudimentary state”.

This statement by Allan Kardec seems to clarify the doubt that arose in relation to the previous comment. When the Encoder states "For this reason it is not a privilege...", he is making it clear that the medium should not be treated as a "superman", a "predestined", or an "out of the ordinary", as it is still common in the nineteenth century. Therefore, this placement seems to signal that the previous statement ("This faculty is inherent to man") is much more a prevention against the excessive mysticism that mediumship awakens, than the establishment that such faculty is an occurrence observed in the entire population.

In fact, when Kardec states “...and people who do not have it at least in a rudimentary state are rare...”, he admits that some people might not have mediumship at all (using the word “rare”). Therefore, in principle, the possibility of Kardec claiming that 100% of people are mediums would be excluded. In addition, Kardec seems to suggest that many of those who have it, present mediumship only “in a rudimentary state”, which would be, apparently, something so little expressive that, in practice, it would be as if the individual did not have mediumship.

“It can be said, therefore, that everyone is more or less a medium”.

To simplify the issue, Kardec states that “it can be said that everyone is more or less a medium”. Although this statement by Kardec really gives rise to the statement that “all are mediums”, he builds it almost as if it were a concession (“It can be said...”), that is, a cruder didactic simplification. This is especially evident if we analyze it together with the previous sentence. In fact, Kardec would not fall into such a brutal contradiction, even more into two juxtaposed positions. Furthermore, the “...more or less a medium” suggests that this concession should be used with some caution, as some may be “more mediums”, but many could be “...less mediums”.

“Usually, however, this qualification applies only to those who have a well-characterized mediumistic faculty, which translates into overt effects of a certain intensity, which depends on a more or less sensitive organization”.

Kardec concludes his first paragraph, stating that the term “medium” is commonly used only for those who demonstrate a significant mediumistic “intensity”, “well characterized”, with “overt effects”. Now, it is easy to see that only a very small minority of the population is capable of presenting mediumistic phenomena at this level of intensity.

“It should also be noted that this faculty is not revealed to all in the same way. Mediums generally have a special aptitude for this or that order of phenomena, which divides them into as many varieties as there are kinds of manifestations. The main ones are: physical effects mediums, sensitive or impressionable mediums, auditory mediums, speakers, seers, somnambulists, curators, pneumatographers, writers or psychographers.”

Kardec starts the second paragraph highlighting the eminently personal and variable character of mediumship. Moreover, interestingly, to differentiate mediumistic nuances, Kardec cites as mediumistic types even very rare cases of mediumistic specialty, such as the case of “pneumatographer” mediums. This allows us to infer that we must be careful when using the term “medium”, as it was, in practice, used for someone who was really an intermediary of very representative phenomena.

Therefore, it is important to note that the basic predisposition to the phenomenon, which does not generate any concrete mediumistic perception that can be analyzed in experimental meetings, constitutes, in principle, the condition of most human beings. On the other hand, what is conventionally called “ostensive mediumship” or “action mediumship” constitutes a condition of a micro minority of human beings. Kardec also highlights that this condition "...depends on a more or less sensitive organization", implying that, as it depends on an organic predisposition, there would be limitations in our possibilities to expand it, in a single incarnation, from an organic condition unfavorable to the most striking mediumistic manifestations.

Implications regarding the Spiritist Movement

From the popularization, without further explanation, of the simplistic phrase “all are mediums”, a series of questionable procedures commonly found in our Spiritist movement have been explained or allegedly justified.

Systematic referrals to the mediumistic meeting of a large number of interested or just curious have generated meetings in which the presence of any ostensible or action medium is not noticed. This would not necessarily be a bad thing if the meeting were understood only as a preliminary test, that is, if there was a minimal understanding that the mediumistic exercise might not really generate anything concrete. However, this is rarely the case, implying that the proposition and mainly the maintenance of “mediumistic meetings without mediums” has frequently generated animistic-mystifying processes difficult to be corrected. This occurs due to an exaggerated expectation regarding what the mediumistic meeting can provide and also due to a lack of knowledge of the limitations of mediumistic phenomenology, especially for those who are not “ostensive mediums”.

Initiation courses to the Spiritist Doctrine, with different names, and with greater or lesser emphasis on the study of mediumship, have generated an enormous number of mediumistic or mediumistic development groups. It remains to be seen whether all these groups have at least one ostensive medium per meeting or, at least, whether the meetings that do not have ostensive mediums have, on the part of their participants, a clear notion of the limitations in terms of mediumistic intensity of all components.

This care must be well worked out in advance by directors, indoctrinators, lecturers and students of mediumship in general, in order to avoid the occurrence of meetings in which auto-suggestion and imagination end up being taken as “patent” mediumistic phenomena.