Mystifications and Animism

 
We present in this issue the topic #110 from the Systematized Study of the Spiritist Doctrine, that is being presented weekly, according to the programme elaborated by the Brazilian Spiritist Federation (FEB), structured in 6 modules and 147 topics.

If the reader uses this program for a study group, we suggest that questions proposed be discussed freely before the reading of the text that follows. If you would like to study alone, we ask you to try to answer the questions at first and only then read the text that follows. The answer key can be found at the end of the lesson. 

Questions

1. What is mystification?

2. Is it possible to avoid mystifications in Spiritism?

3. What is animism?

4. Can we say that animism can be a subconscious mystification?

5. What should the Director of medium’s meetings do if animism is present in his group?  

Text

Mystification can be provoked by incarnated spirits and disincarnated spirits

1. To mystify means to perplex (a person) by playing upon the person's credulity; bewilder purposely. Whoever is medium needs to be careful about this matter. The mystification can be provoked by incarnated or disincarnated spirits. In both cases the medium needs to be careful to not let himself/herself to be tricked.

2. The mystifications are, according to Kardec, the most unpleasant thing in Spiritism. Mystification can be avoided easily: it’s necessary to ask from Spiritism only what it can give. Knowing that the goal of Spiritism is moral improvement, rarely we will be tricked if we stick with the same goal. After all, there aren’t two ways of understanding the true moral matters.

3. If we keep in mind that the evolved spirits are always guiding us and teaching us, we will learn to reject any idea of material advantages or immoral actions. We will know that these ideas cannot be given by evolved spirits who want our moral improvement and progress.

4. Bad spirits like to interfere in our life to cause disturbance and influence us to make mistakes through intrigues, mystifications and lies. Sometimes these bad spirits trick us beyond imagination. The way they use to mystify others would be curious if there weren’t unpleasant consequences for the mystifications and they didn’t disturb many people.

In the animism, the cause is the medium himself/herself

5. One of the most frequent ways that bad spirits use to trick the mediums is the one which tests the individual’s greed. For example, the revelation of treasures, unexpected heritage or other ways to obtain money. It should be taken as suspicious some exact dates given and every exact indication of anything related to material interests.

6. It’s necessary to not follow instructions given by spirits when the reasons behind them are not very rational. It’s also important to not be fooled by the names these spirits give to pretend they are someone else when the instructions themselves don’t make good sense. It’s very important to be suspicious of amazing theories and instructions that don’t focus on the moral side only of the communication. These are the ways to avoid mystification in Spiritism.

7. Differently from mystification, which is a trick, a false information given by other spirits, animism is the medium’s soul itself acting. Therefore, it’s not a medium phenomena, it is an animism phenomena. Animism come from the word “anima” which means soul.

8. Our mind being stuck in certain thoughts can be a reason, in the future, for animism. The same way that our thoughts being stuck in the past can create animism phenomena in the present.  

We cannot confuse mystification with animism

9. Many times, what appears to be a medium phenomena, with all the appearances of a spiritual communication, is only the medium’s own experiences from another life. The medium can revive situations from his/her past life which is kept in his subconscious. This can be trigged by the magnetic contact between the medium and spirits who were part of his/her past experience.

10. We cannot confuse mystification with animism. In the first one, we have the lie; in the second one we have the unbalanced psychic. Could we say that animism is a unconscious mystification? Answering this question, the instructor Aulus teach us: “ Many people committed to the Spiritism are using the possibility of animism as an obstacle with no real reason. This is making them lose great opportunities to be useful. Therefore, we shouldn’t consider unconscious mystification or subconscious mystification to name the phenomena.” (Nos Domínios da Mediunidade, de André Luiz, cap. 22, p. 212.)

11. The person who is vulnerable to animism, according to Aulus, is “mentally disturbed needing our attention and support until he/she overcomes this difficulty. To help the medium find his/hers peace, it is not enough to give complicated diagnosis and technical definitions only. It’s necessary to give also moral assistance.”  (Nos Domínios da Mediunidade, de André Luiz, p.213).  

12. In the animism phenomena, the medium express himself/herself as a spirit was really communicating. Therefore, the medium should be treated with the same attention that the spirits are treated in the medium’s meetings. The medium vulnerable to animism is a untrained worker who can be taught and become useful if the Director of the medium’s group knows how to understand and deal with the situation. If the medium vulnerable to animism is not helped, he/she can be victims of obsession and that is why we have to give this subject our full attention.

Answer Key