Sitters can see the form in a surprising amount of detail. Again, detail will depend on the strength and quality of the energy and ectoplasm. In many cases, a clear physical representation of the spirit will emerge and sitters will be able to recognise relatives. This can occur to a high level of detail. There isn’t just a rough approximation where the willing mind of the sitter is forced to fill in the gaps and assumes that it is correct. Some of these materialisations will show facial features, scars and other defects that are true to the relative as they were known to the sitter. If Granddad lost an eye or gained a scar in the war, it is likely to be visible. The diversity and clarity of these materialisations is clear from some of the images that have been captured during sessions. How does transfiguration differ from materialisation? TherapeuticsOne of the social functions of spirit possession practices is often therapeutic. They may be therapeutic for both mediums and sitters. Literature Halloy, A. (2010). ‘Comments on “The Mind Possessed: The Cognition of Spirit Possession in an Afro-Brazilian Religious Tradition” by Emma Cohen.’ Religion and Society: Advances in Research, Vol. 1, pp. 164-176.

Every medium is unique in the way that they work. Once they have learned the ropes in a mediumship course, their skills and gifts are developed and cultivated through practice and commitment to mastering the technology of mediumship. Despite the broad way in which each medium works, there are generally two categories of medium: Cross-culturally, spirit possession practices share a distinctively somatic component. 65 The body is the physical means of expression for non-physical entities, and as such must be used in a variety of very specific ways. Methods for recognizing the presence of spirits within mediums vary across cultures, with each culture having its own distinct means of discernment. 66 Consciousness and its Alteration This explains why there are such variations in the look and quality of the images seen during these sessions. There will be some manifestations that are faint and dull, either due to a poor connection or the ill health of the medium. Ill health and fatigue will play their part on the result. A medium exhausted from one sitting my struggle to replicate the experience soon after. Others will see a much brighter, clearer image with more distinct features. This occurs with that stronger communicative link and the greater abilities and health of the medium. So how does this ectoplasm enter the room and become visible to the sitters in the session? Our concept of the ASC is, therefore, built upon this foundational perception of a generalized productive waking consciousness. ASCs from this perspective are modes of experiencing the world through forms of consciousness different to our ‘everyday waking consciousness’. Of course there is a wide range of these alternate modes of consciousness, including everything from early morning drowsiness and caffeine rushes to dreams, trances, ecstasies and psychedelic states. Another pathological interpretation of spirit possession that was, until relatively recently, popular in the anthropological literature is the ‘nutrient deficiency hypothesis’. This essentially suggests that instances of spirit possession, particularly in women, occur as a result of – and in response to – extended malnourishment. 42 Kehoe & Giletti write:Now that we have a better idea of what ectoplasm is, and how this etheric energy is manipulated by the spirits, we need to understand more about these physical phenomena that occur. If spirits use this ectoplasm to create a physical, visible manifestation of their form, how does this occur? The interpretive framework employed by early commentators such as Frazer tended to be dismissive. Frazer referred to this ‘temporary inspiration’ as an ‘abnormal state,’ 4 indicating a pejorative attitude. According to this perspective, spirit possession practices represented little more than delusion or folly. In the words of Frazer’s contemporary EB Tylor, it is merely a surviving remnant of primitive mentality. Yet it is interesting to note that, despite Tylor’s public dismissal of spiritualism, he was nevertheless perplexed by the phenomena he witnessed with some of the Victorian era’s great Spiritualist mediums. 5 Other Approaches

Cohen, E. (2008). ‘What is Spirit Possession? Defining, Comparing and Explaining Two Possession Forms.’ Ethos, Vol. 73, No. 1, pp. 101-126. Seligman, R. (2005). ‘Distress, Dissociation and Embodied Experience: Reconsidering the Pathways to Mediumship and Mental Health.’ Ethos, Vol. 33, No. 1, pp. 71-99. Senior MediumshipTutor Anthony Kesner likens the way that a medium works to tuning a radio. He says that we need to dial into the exact right frequency, otherwise all we'll hear is white noise. A medium is able to tune into that right frequency, and is therefore able to receive communications fromthose in spirit. There are a few components that support the ways a medium works. These include:

Physical Mediumship Categories of Manifestations

Budden, A. (2003). ‘Pathologizing Possession: An Essay on Mind, Self and Experience in Dissociation.’ Anthropology of Consciousness, Vol. 14, No. 2, pp. 27-59.

Mediumship is a complicated discipline with many different areas of interest and expertise. The one that captures the interest of many sitters and clients is that of physical mediumship, as it offers the chance to see greater physical proof of the presence of spirits and connect with them on another level. Here we will look at what it really means to be a physical medium, the way that the medium and spirit communicate and the different types of physical manifestation that are produced. We will also look at some of the issues regarding scepticism over these abilities and phenomena, as well as the rarity of these physical mediums.The medium or chairperson at a seance must give a pre-seance briefing to the sitters with details of what can and can’t be done during the seance, tailored to the individual medium who is working during the seance. b) night vision viewers are made available to watch events live during the seance and so have independent witnesses acting on behalf of those present. With these conditions in use there would be no need to secure a medium to the chair with cable ties. In spite of this, the concept of altered states of consciousness is still a useful tool in the study of mediumship, enabling us to develop a continuum of states of consciousness and to place the ASCs associated with spirit mediumship and possession within the broader context of human consciousness. There is a danger, though, that the scholarly use of the ASC concept lends itself to a reduction of the phenomena of spirit possession to the simple formula of ‘spirit possession is just an altered state of consciousness, and as such has no basis in reality.’ This kind of interpretation is inherent in Western culture’s general monophasic attitude to consciousness. Another view is that altered states of consciousness should be thought of as preconditions for the experience of spirit possession, not necessarily as its cause. We might say therefore that ‘spirit possession involves the use of altered states of consciousness, but is not necessarily synonymous with them.’ Trance