Mediums of History: Daniel Dunglas Home By Travis Sanders

By Travis Sanders

Daniel Dunglas Home (pronounced Hume) was a delicate and often sickly young man, born in Scotland in 1833. His father, William, was a drunk, who claimed to be the illegitimate child of a noble, and his mother Elizabeth McNeal, was said to have the gift of Sight.

Allegedly because of his frail health, he was sent to live with his Aunt Mary McNeal at the age of 9, around 5 years after the time his own visions began. His Aunt’s family, along with Daniel, moved to Connecticut, USA, where Daniel began to be visited by Spirits, including the Spirit of his sister who had passed, and a friend who died around the age of 12.

Around his 17th year, Spirit Rappings, and supernaturally moving objects began to manifest in Daniel’s presence, very similarly to the phenomena that took place with the Fox sisters in Hydesville, a couple years prior. Distraught by what was perceived as unnatural or ungodly, Home, was turned away from his his family home, and began staying with many spiritualist, living somewhat of a nomadic lifestyle, eventually ending up in Europe, where he continued to conduct seances for people from all walks of life.

One of the phenomenas that DDH is most famed for are his levitations. The first occurring in 1852, where he floated to the ceiling, and circle members where unable to hold him down. Home  was also know for trance, elongation, and handling hot coals without being burnt. Often times in his seances musical instruments were levitated and played by Spiritual forces.

In 1855 while spending an extended period of time in Florence, Italy, Home was stabbed three times, and nearly killed by a man who accused him of sorcery and believed his “powers” were evil. Not long after, he fled to Paris, and in February of 1856, Spiritualists delivered a message to him from the Spirit world, that he would be without this Spirit power for the period of a year, and true to word, Home was without his remarkable talents for exactly a year, after which he went back to performing Seances, this time for Napoleon the 3rd at royal court.

Napoleon the 3rd was not the only Royal enamored with Home’s mediumship. He also held seances for the King of Naples, the Queen of Holland, The German Emperor, and Russian Royalty.

Home’s most famous seance and feat of levitation occurred in London in 1869. During his seance (which were held in natural light) Home horizontally levitated out of an open window 70 feet up from ground level, into the adjacent window of the next building, the distance between windows being about 8 feet apart. Not only was this observed in clearly lit conditions, but the window itself was only opened about a foot, and yet a stiff and entranced Home glided between buildings and through windows with grace and speed.

In 1871 Daniel married a Russian noble woman, much to the surprise of many, as Home was a handsome but effeminate man, and rumors of homosexually followed him throughout his career.

In 1871 Home wrote the book “Lights and Shadows of Spiritualism”, and in 1886, passed away at the age of 53 from tuberculosis, the same condition that his wife died from. He is buried in St Germain, Paris. His headstone reads: ” To Another, Discerning of Spirits.”

Resources:

The Spirit Book: Buckland
Spirit Guides & Angel Guardians: Webster
Time Life’s Mysteries of the Unknown: Spirit Summonings

 

Advertisement

Did I lose my Gift? By Travis Sanders

By Travis Sanders

Ive been working since 2007 as a psychic, and since 2012 as a medium, providing evidence and spirit communication from loved ones to sitters. I have excelled as a psychic, and I considered myself a pretty good medium, enough so to make a living at it.

However, recently, I had a sitting where I was unable to connect with Spirit communicators for my clients…no biggie, it happens on occasion. But then it happened in the next reading, and the next. The psychic reads were always fine, but it seemed that my connection to the other side was diminishing.

Now, “fuzzy” periods happen in mediumship. All mediumship is experimental, and often subject to conditions of the medium, the sitters, the Spirit Communicators, and sometimes even the environment. Sometimes it may be a day or so when things don’t seem to be working, and then its back to business. But when this fuzzy period didnt seem to be ending…I began to panic.  How would I work? It’s my livelihood, how would I pay my bills? I couldn’t wait it out any longer, I couldn’t not see clients.

As a reader, I like to give my clients the best of me. So I found myself avoiding appointments that indicated they were interested in Spirit Communication. For the first time since my teens, I found myself wondering if I should give it all up, or drop “Medium” from my title and simply work as a Psychic. I felt defeated.

When I asked my own guides and helpers about this in meditation, the answer was that I had to work with it, to work through it. See, as mediums, getting No’s can really be our Kryptonite. One no or two is standard, we can misinterpret things, but when we get several no’s it really makes us loose confidence in ourself, and we find ourselves dropping out of the Power.

My message was that I had to learn to work with the No’s, to get back into accuracy. To learn to be grateful for being wrong, so I could work out why I was wrong, and focus on working with Spirit to be right in my message work. So I did. I gave several sitings that seemed rocky…but even if the client didnt understand what I perceived from Spirit I stuck with my guns and powered my way through the readings. I once heard from a Lily Dale medium tell a class of us that often times readings go wrong when we don’t set the stage of what to expect (or not expect) for the client.

This medium has a rule…the client can be honest and say, “I do not understand” “Im not sure” “Doesn’t ring any bells, but I’ll keep it in mind” but they can’t say the word NO. Not because his ego can’t handle it, but because even if a piece of information isn’t understood, if its not explored or dismissed as wrong, further information behind or linked to that initial impression could be missed. And sometimes the insight behind or linked to that information can help make sense of the initial impression to begin with.

I had mentioned that often times success in mediumship also depends on the conditions of the medium. Prior to this “dead period” happening I experienced the end of a long term relationship, a relocation, and a re-homing of a dear pet. So many changes in such a short period of time really rocked my world. Not to mention coinciding with this I was obsessed with learning new spiritual information and technique, soaking up new areas of metaphysical interest like a sponge.

When we go through change or transition, as uncomfortable as it may be, we GROW. And sometimes the guides and helpers that worked with us at one level or at the rate of vibration, shift and change to reflect the new vibration or energy that we work from. It may be a new guiding presence, or guides that have always been there, but step back while others step forward who are better suited for the next leg of our journey. Its like this- the shoes you wear before puberty would not fit your feet after puberty, your feet change, and you need different shoes that are a better fit.

During the process, especially if you don’t recognize it when its happening, we may feel disconnected because new guides, and new energy means a new way of perceiving, and a new way of working. Its like an life long HP user suddenly switching to Mac. While the technology is still there and usable, you have no idea what the hell you’re doing or how systems operate, but in time you get familiar with it, and you’re back and better than you were before.

Luckily I am feeling like myself again, and my mediumship seems to be on the up and up! But remember, if you’re a medium and you begin to feel like you’re loosing your touch:

*Your gift is a part of your soul, no one or nothing can take it from you.

*Be gentle with yourself

*Learn from your No’s

*Dont avoid working in fuzzy periods, engage the challenge, it’s how you learn your new way of working. 

*Know that it is the nature of the beast, you will go through phases were you are sharper, and phases where you are not as clear. It will wax and wane.

*The better self care, the easier you will acclimate. 

*Dont be afraid to “Do the work” in bettering yourself- work on your lessons, and strive to be the best person you can be. 

*Know that you’re human, you will make mistakes, but they are blessings and opportunities to learn. 

*And probably most importantly- Never take your Mediumship for granted!