SEANCES – AN EXPERIMENT IN GROUP PERCEPTION

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I think for the most part, a majority of people who know or have heard of a séance obtain their information and its ritual from television and movies.  Everyone holds hands, candle in the center, and select a particular famous person in which to contact.

A real séance (and those that choose to perform them) know that you can focus on one individual, but you can also focus on a location, or specific event that occurred in the past, etc.  The secret really is to make sure all who are in the group are focused and open to reception and non-judgmental about images and impressions you might obtain during the séance.

I have seen séances within a circle holding hands, I have seen them in large groups without holding hands.  I have seen where most of the people in the séance are merely spectators and one or two are the mediators. 

A good friend, author Janie Oberding for example, when she holds séances, she sits the group in a large circle and does not require anyone to hold hands (unless they wish to).

She will lead the séance with a location, or individual, but she never rules out contact with anyone else whom may make a connection.  She asks that everyone in the circle participate if they receive an impression of a person, an incident, a color, smell, etc.  The overall intention is to share with the group.  I think her goal is that the information that is received could collectively be used to corroborate with history to compare to see how close we can come to an actual event in history, or maybe by an individual, by collecting the images and impressions of all that attend, and not just one séance leader.

I think this is a smart practice, and while I have seen her hold a number of séances in this fashion, I completely agree on the practice and method she chooses.  Some of the information may not be relevant or have any connection to the subject of location of the séance, but down the road in historical research, it might indeed have relevance, it just may not have presented itself during the actual séance.

To me personally, séances are like Ouija boards, you will get of it what you bring to it.  If you are not focusing, or if you expect nothing but demons and monsters, then that is what you will receive.  I don't put much weight personally into Ouija or spirit boards, as I think superstition takes hold more than common sense and reality, but I also think there are times where it could be genuine.

We do plan to hold a live séance on air on our show tonight (see podcast link above to listen when available a day or so after the show goes live) to contact any survivors of the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake, as we are housed (the station) inside the old Odd Fellows building, while the original 1800's building was destroyed by the fire department in an effort to put out other fires around Market street, the original brick foundation remains intact where the new building was constructed after 1906. 

Verna, Linda and I plan to touch the wall of brick for a few minutes in order to have actual physical contact with a structure that was standing and remained after the devastation that took so many lives of women, men and children.  This will help us when we proceed to hold the séance after the 9:00pm hour live on air to see if anything or anyone comes through.

Join us at home and hold your own séance as we try to reach into the distant past of one of our cities largest tragedies and see whom we can communicate with.

- Anthony Anderson