CONTENTS

Editorial Note II Preface 1

PART ONE:

DISTINCTIONS AND NECESSARY PRECISIONS

1. Definition of Spiritism 9 2. The Origins of Spiritism 16 3. Beginnings of Spiritism in France 28 4. The Modern Character of Spiritism 36 5. Spiritism and Occultism 52 6. Spiritism and Psychism 64 7. Explanation of Spiritist Phenomena 78

PART TWO:

EXAMINATION OF SPIRITIST THEORIES

1. The Variety of Spiritist Schools 107 2. The Influence of the Milieu 114 3. Immortality and Survival 125 4. Representations of the Afterlife 133 5. Communication with the Dead 154 6. Reincarnation 166 7. Reincarnationist Extravagances 191

8 The Limits of Experimentation 208 9 Spiritist Evolutionism 231 10 The Question of Satanism 253 11 Seers and Healers 277 12 Antoinism 294 13 Spiritist Propaganda 307 14 The Dangers of Spiritism 327 Conclusion 339 Index 345