odditiesoflife:In the mid-nineteenth century, Modern Spiritualism became prominent in the United S

odditiesoflife: In the mid-nineteenth century, Modern Spiritualism became prominent in the United States and the United Kingdom. The movement’s distinguishing feature was the belief that the spirits of the dead could be contacted by mediums to lend insight to the lend insight to the living.  The movement was fueled in part by anecdotes of psychic powers. One such person believed to have extraordinary abilities was Daniel Dunglas Home, who gained fame during the Victorian period for his reported ability to levitate to various heights and speak to the dead. As the Spiritualist movement grew other comparable groups arose, including the Theosophical Society, which was co-founded in 1875 by Helena Blavatsky (1831–1891). Theosophy coupled spiritualist elements with Eastern mysticism and was influential in the early 20th century, later influencing the New Age movement during the 1970s. Blavatsky herself claimed numerous psychic powers. By the late twentieth century psychics were commonly associated with New Age culture.  Psychic readings and advertising for psychics was very common in the 1990’s and readings were offered for a fee and given in settings such as over the phones, in a home, or at psychic fairs. -- source link

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