|
More on Mesmer
and |
The practice of magnetism is not
a new technique invented by Spiritists, but rather has its roots in the study
and practices of Franz Anton Mesmer (1734-1815), a scientist of the 18th century
who coined the term “animal magnetism.” Influenced by the writings of the
English physician, Richard Mead (1720-1792), and of the 16th century mystic
physician, Paracelsus (comment: Theophrastus Philippus Aureolus Bombasuts von
Hohenheim) (1493-1541), Mesmer believed in the theory of a subtle, invisible
fluid that penetrated the whole cosmos (including living organisms), flowing in
gravitational tides, thereby acting as an agent through which the planets
exerted an influence on the human body.
At this time, magnets, due to their properties of polar attraction and repulsion- which could theoretically then act in the same way as gravitation- were being used (though controversially) by some doctors to affect the influence of the gravitational tides in human beings (believed to run through the bloodstream and nerves). Maximilian Hell (1720-1792), an astronomer, Jesuit priest, and friend of Mesmer, influenced Mesmer experiment with the healing powers of the magnet, and had some magnets of different shapes and sizes made up for him.
Mesmer did find the practice to be effective, but soon realized that the actual magnets were unnecessary- for other objects made of cloth or wood worked just as well- and that their only role was to channel the flow of the cosmic fluid. Mesmer realized that those objects were effective only because he himself was touching them, whereby he was acting as an ‘animal magnet’, acting on objects and people in similar way to a mineral magnet acting on metal. This phenomena, in which the body was analogous to a magnet in the channeling of the cosmic fluid and the fluid- having the capability to be stored, concentrated, and projected, and which ebbed and flowed according the laws of magnetic attraction, was termed by Mesmer as animal magnetism.
Mesmer continued to experiment with animal magnetism and it’s healing abilities and with much success, was able to cure numerous patients of their illnesses. He conducted individual as well as group sessions- in the latter he used his own hands to channel the fluid as well as other material aids that he had magnetized prior to the sessions. He did experience periods of popularity for his cures, mixed with criticism and opposition. Finally, in 1784, King Louis XVI of France had a commission of distinguished doctors and academicians (including Ben Franklin, American ambassador to France at the time) investigate and evaluate Mesmer’s practice. Though it did not deny the efficacy of Mesmer’s cures, they concluded that because they could not physically perceive this ‘cosmic fluid’, it must not exist, and they attributed the cures to the influence of the patients’ own imaginations.
This negation did not stop the intellectual individuals, or “magnetizers” that followed Mesmer and continued the study of animal magnetism. By way of experimentation and observation, they developed techniques, theories, and recommendations for “what works well and what doesn’t” based on the effects of the variation in techniques. Magnetism is still used today under different names and varying forms of practice. Likewise, it has been adopted, studied and utilized by the followers of the Spiritist Doctrine, the teachings of which brings additional understanding of its mechanism and the additional element of spiritual magnetism.
Side Note: What about hypnotism? Isn’t this associated with Mesmer and the “mesmeric trance”? Is it the same as animal magnetism?
Mesmer’s practices are often today associated, and sometimes erroneously equated with, the practice of hypnotism. Animal magnetism, however, is not the same thing as hypnotism. During the time that Mesmer conducted his therapeutic sessions, some patients (especially those with more serious symptoms) experienced what was called the “Mesmeric crisis”, which was a nervous trembling, nausea, and sometimes delirium or convulsions. Mesmer believed this to be a normal and necessary part of the process in order to break through “an obstacle” to the flow of fluid, which he believed caused the disease, and then restore the patient’s body to a state in which it responded harmoniously to the natural flow of the fluid through all of nature. Later, after having practiced his method for some considerable time, he discovered the mesmeric trance, which he used as a method for inducing this “crisis.” A follower of Mesmer later discovered that it was possible to communicate with people in trance, whereby they would answer questions, remember forgotten events, and even act under outside suggestions, hence, the development of hypnotism as we know it. Therefore, it is probably more accurate to say that Mesmer’s methods, while at a later point included a hypnotic trance, were not identical to it.
Sources (note: the following sources are not Spiritist sites):