Notes on the empirical evidence of the afterlife based on mediumship and psychic research
by Ulysses Castillo, PhD.
(C) 2007 Spirit and Science

The Survival Hypothesis can be empirically tested using standard scientific methods.

Research on Mediumship and After Death Communications (ADC)

The phenomena of Mediumship provides one of the strongest evidence in favor of the afterlife and the survival of consciousness. Mediumship, in essence, is the capacity of some people to act as a channel or communication medium between humans and non-physical intelligences. From the scientific point of view, whether we refer to those non-physical intelligences as spirits, souls of the dead, discarnate entities, or angels, is not as relevant as the reality of the phenomena and the information we can obtain through it.

Mediumship is as old as humanity. However, it was not until the late XIX century when some important researchers began studying this phenomena using rigorous empirical methods. The following notes present a brief summary of the history of mediumship research, including some outstanding scientists and mediums who have made very significant contributions in this area of research in the past as well as in present times. Also in this page we will present other kinds of evidence about the reality of the Afterlife coming from different areas of scientific research like NDE, EVP, Reincarnation and Psychic phenomena in general.      

Sir William Crookes:

One of the first researchers to empirically study the phenomena of mediumship was Sir William Crookes, highly distinguished Physicist and Chemist, discoverer of the element Thallium, inventor of the radiometer and the cathode-ray tube, who meticulously studied the abilities of the famous psychic Daniel D. Home and the materialization medium Florence Cook.

http://www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/researchers/crookes.htm

http://www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/mediums/home.htm

http://www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/mediums/cookflorence.htm

Sir Oliver Lodge:

A world-renowned physicist, pioneer of wireless telegraphy, Sir Oliver Lodge became convinced of the reality of the afterlife after extensive investigation of Leonora Piper, a remarkable American trance medium. Oliver Lodge also researched and verified several extraordinary mediums of the time including Gladys Osborne Leonard and others.

http://www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/researchers/lodge.htm

http://www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/mediums/piper.htm

http://www.fst.org/lodge.htm

The Cross Correspondence of Frederick Myers:
Frederick W. H. Myers was one of the founders of Society for Psychical Research in London. During his life he was particularly interested to find a way of proving that information transmitted through mediums could not have come from their own unconscious. The method he thought up was cross-correspondences —a series of messages to different mediums in different part of the world that on their own would mean nothing but which when put together would make sense. He and his fellow leaders of the Society for Psychical Research felt that if such a thing could be accomplished it would have very high 'probative value' and be a high level of proof of continued existence. After he died in 1901 more than a dozen different mediums in different countries began receiving a series of incomplete scripts through automatic writing signed by Frederick Myers. Later there were scripts signed by his fellow leaders of the Society for Psychical Research, as they too died.
http://www.victorzammit.com/book/4thedition/chapter16.html
http://www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/articles/heywood/cross1.htm
http://www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/researchers/myers.htm

Prof. William James:

Professor of Psychology at Harvard University. He taught Physiology and Philosophy, too. One of the founders of the American Society for Psychic Research (SPR). After a personal investigation of the medium Leonora Piper, he famously declared "she knows things in her trances which she cannot possibly have heard in her waking state." It was William James who coined the adage about "the one white crow that proves that not all crows are black" referring to the genuine mediumship of Leonora Piper.

http://www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/researchers/james.htm

http://www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/articles/james/accomplished.htm

http://www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/articles/james/mediumship.htm

Dr. J. G. Pratt and Dr. J. B. Rhine:

The creation of the Rhine Institute at Duke University, which was the first Parapsychology laboratory, founded by Dr. J. B. Rhine and his wife in 1927, started a new phase in psychic research and imparted a fresh momentum to the investigation of Telepathy, Extra Sensorial Perception (ESP), as well as other anomalous phenomena. The Rhine Institute also researched mediumship. Specially significant was the work of Dr. J. G. Pratt, who studied the abilities of medium Eileen J. Garrett. In these experiments they found that the number of true statements (hits) given by the medium to the sitters was statistically much greater than chance, or what could have been obtained with 'cold reading' techniques typically used by magicians. Eileen Garrett also created the Parapsychology Foundation to promote the impartial research of psychic phenomena. Ms. Garret was also the medium at the center of the R-101 case, one of the most convincing episodes in psychic history that occurred when a British dirigible crashed in France in 1930.

http://www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/articles/pratt/mind.htm

http://www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/mediums/garrett.htm
The R-101 Case

Chico Xavier:

One medium who exemplified the Spiritist ideal of mediumship as spiritual service and who persuaded millions about the reality of the afterlife was Chico Xavier of Brazil. Although poorly educated and almost blind he was the author of more than 600 spirit-dictated best selling books on a variety of highly specialized and technical subjects in a variety of languages. His sixtieth book, Evolution in Two Worlds, was received in a remarkable way which can be considered another form of cross-correspondence. Chico would go into trance and receive one chapter in automatic writing, and the three days later another medium, Dr Waldo Vieira, who was 250 miles away, would receive the next chapter. Guy Lyon Playfair in his book on psychic phenomena in Brazil The Flying Cow writes: "In this way they produced the book’s forty chapters at alternate sessions between January 15th and June 29th, 1958. Only upon completion of his half did Chico get instructions from his spirit guide Emmanuel to contact Dr. Vieira and put the book together.....It reveals an immense knowledge of several sciences that no ordinary writer, even a qualified scientist, could have assembled without copious research and note-taking, and despite the wide education gap between the two writers, the unity of style is total. One Chapter frequently begins exactly where the previous one leaves off.”
http://www.geae.inf.br/en/articles/news.html

Current Mediumship Research

The study of mediumship phenomena continues today as new experiments are designed and the techniques used are perfected. Among the scientists working on mediumship research nowadays, it is worth noting the contribution of Dr. Gary Schwartz with the Human Energy Laboratory at the University of Arizona. In his works Dr. Schwartz has made significant improvements to previous research protocols by designing and executing double-blind and triple-blind experiments, according to the highest standards desired for this kind of research.

Dr. Gary Schwartz:

Some of the better known research works of Dr. Gary Schwartz are the "HBO Afterlife Experiments", presented in an HBO documentary in 1999 and in his book The Afterlife Experiments : Breakthrough Scientific Evidence of Life After Death, with the participation of some of the most extraordinary mediums at the time: John Edward, George Anderson, Laurie Campbell, Suzane Northrop. These excellent mediums are also known by their work in other programs. For example, Laurie Campbell is currently participating in the "Sensing Murder" program of The Discovery Channel.

http://veritas.arizona.edu/
http://www.explorejournal.com/article/PIIS155083070600454X/fulltext
http://www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/researchers/schwartz.htm

Besides the star group that participated in the HBO Afterlife Experiments, today there are several well known mediums, some of whom have written best sellers books about their experiences, like James Van Praagh, Sylvia Browne, Allison Dubois, Hazel Courteney, Sally Morgan. Some of them have also collaborated with Dr. Schwartz. Specifically, the story of Allision Dubois as Psychic Detective has been presented in the successful NBC show titled "Medium": http://www.allisondubois.com

Recently Dr. Schwartz participated in an A&E (ARTS) documentary "Mediums: We See Dead People", which featured other notable mediums with very different kinds of abilities: John Holland, Pam Coronado, Debbie Martin, Jeffrey Wands, Phil Jordan, Nancy Weber, Annette Martin, and others.  

The mediums mentioned above are an example of a new generation that work professionally in several areas and help the community by using their abilities, and whom slowly but surely are breaking the old stereotypes about people having mediumship skills.

After Death Communication (ADC) Project:

The site of Hello From Heaven presents a book and the related research about spontaneous after death communication occurring in regular people, not necessarily mediums, under certain conditions. The website offers many testimonies, articles, references, and many other resources on this topic.
http://www.after-death.com/

Near Death Experiences (NDE)

The NDE phenomena is another kind of evidence for the survival of consciousness. One of the most fascinating aspects of NDE is in the information brought by people that have experienced a near death episode. People having NDE clinically die, that means they have no pulse, no breath, no electrochemical activity can be registered in the brain (flat liners), but they are resurrected after a period of time that can be from several minutes to even days in extreme cases. This phenomena has no explanation within orthodox medicine because in NDE cases, even with a 'brain dead' condition, patients have extraordinary extrasensory experiences while in that state, and when they come back, they have suffered no noticeable damage in their brains. And in some exceptional cases they can even bring valuable information and new psychic abilities they did not have before.
http://www.near-death.com/experiences/evidence07.html
http://www.near-death.com/experiences/research08.html

Dr. Raymond Moody, NDE research pioneer, published the results of his NDE work for the first time in his book Life After Life, where he studied several cases of patients that were resurrected thanks to modern medical resurrecting technology available today. Today these cases are considered classics of NDE.
http://www.lifeafterlife.com
http://www.near-death.com/experiences/experts03.html
The following portals feature other important NDE researchers:
http://www.nderf.org/
http://www.near-death.com/

Dr. Allan Botkin, continuing a line of research that takes into consideration the potential clinical value of communication with the afterlife, has developed a method for the treatment of grief, which so far has proven to be more efficient that standard therapy and medications. This new method is called Induced After Death Communication (IADC) and it is based on a version of EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing).
http://www.induced-adc.com/
http://www.emdr.com/

Notable cases of NDE:

Dannion Brinkley. Three times experienced a near death episode.  The first time was clinically dead for 28 minutes. He resurrected in the way to the morgue. After resurrecting he described an extraordinary experience where after passing through a 'dark tunnel' and making a 'life revision', he met some 'light beings' whom revealed to him some information about events that would happen in the near future.
http://www.near-death.com/experiences/evidence11.html
http://www.dannion.com/main.htm

Joe McMoneagle. After an episode of NDE he developed an exceptional ability of 'Remote Viewing', naturally and spontaneously. The Remote Viewing ability allowed him to work in a CIA project called Stargate to obtain military intelligence using this psychic technique. Today much of the information about Remote Viewing in the CIA has been declassified and its participants have been able to write books about their experiences in the Stargate Project.
http://www.remoteviewer.org/remoteviewing/mcmoneagle.htm
http://www.mceagle.com/remote-viewing/stargate/index.html

Pam Reynolds. Her brain surgery required bringing the body temperature down to 60 degrees, stop the heart beating and breathing, and draining all blood from the brain, so she was clinically dead during the whole operation. After removing the aneurism she was resuscitated back to life. During the operation she felt as she left her body and was able to see, and later describe, the details of the surgery process, including the tools used by the surgeons; showing that it is possible to have an  an Out of Body Experience (OBE) even with a brain dead condition.
http://www.near-death.com/experiences/evidence01.html

Edgar Cayce. Has been called the American Sleeping Prophet because of the clairvoyance ability he showed in estate of hypnotic trance. Cayce, who is accredited with more than 14,000 medical diagnosis and psychic readings, was also able to self induce a trance state similar to an NDE episode.
http://www.near-death.com/experiences/cayce01.html
http://www.EdgarCayce.org

Electronic Voice Phenomena (EVP) and Intrumental Trans Communication (ITC)

A new way of communicating with the afterlife has been developed in recent years. The new way is completely objective and scientific. It is called Electronic Voice Phenomena (EVP) and it is based on the use of standard electronic recording equipment over a white noise background. From the initial attempts carried out by great inventors like Thomas Edison and John Logie Baird (inventor of the first TV system), to the breakthrough of Dr Konstantin Raudive and the experiments of Peter Bander and George W. Meek, the history of the development of EVP is a fascinating one.
http://www.victorzammit.com/book/4thedition/chapter04.html

Interestingly enough, it is a little known fact that the Vatican has supported the EVP research since its beginnings because several of the earliest researches were Catholic priests. Clearly the Catholic Church has seen the spiritual value of this kind of research. As one of the most prominent theologian said in an interview:

According to the modern catechism, God allows our dear departed persons who live in an ultra-terrestrial dimension, to send messages to guide us in certain difficult moments of our lives. The Church has decided not to forbid any more the dialogue with the deceased with the condition that these contacts are carried out with a serious religious and scientific purpose (printed in the Vatican newspaper Osservatore Romano—cited in Sarah Estep's American Association Electronic VoicePhenomena, Inc Newsletter, vol 16 No, 2 1997 )

The Scole Experiments

One of the most amazing demonstration of psychic phenomena occurred in the late 1900's in the village of Scole, Great Britain. Several very respectable scientists attended and participated in theses experiments, which later were reproduced in other locations. These experiments included materializations based on a new energy form that is different from the 'ectoplasm' known from previous materialization phenomena.
The Scole Experiments (links)

Past Lives and Reincarnation Research

The study of the afterlife is obviously related to the study of past lives. The main methods currently used to research past lives are Hypnotic Regression, the study done by Dr. Ian Stevenson and others of cases of children who can remember their past lives, as well as the study of Xenoglossy and Birth Marks. For more information about the research on past lives, please visit our page Reincarnation: A Forgotten Truth.

Survival of Consciousness Theories

The basic paradigm behind any theory of survival of consciousness after death is the fact that the human mind cannot be reduced to the biological body, which is to say that the self (with its memory and personality) cannot be reduced to the brain. For a summary of the physiological and physical evidence that supports this non reductionist paradigm of the human mind and consciousness, please visit our pages The Human Mind and Quantum Theory.

There is also another kind of approach to the question of survival based on the General Theory of Systems. This approach explains all known psychic phenomena and even predicts new ones. The theory is based on the concept of Enformy, which is the fundamental capacity of nature to self organize at different levels having new natural laws emerging at each organization level.
http://www.enformy.com/tesintro.htm.

Recommended Books on Survival Evidence and Afterlife Research

For a deeper analysis of the survival evidence we recommend the books Immortal Remains by Stephen E. Braude, professor and chair of the philosophy department at the University of Maryland, and Is There an Afterlife? by David Fontana, professor of Transpersonal Psychology at John Moores University in Liverpool. Also very recommendable is Mediumship and Survival by Alan Gauld.

Best Evidence Cases

The Survival Files Top 40 website presents a summary of the best evidentiary cases demonstrating the survival of the human personality after the demise of the physical body. Cases are listed in order of their ranking by the Evidence Scoring System.
The Survival Files Top 40

Additional References in Social and Physical Sciences

The following page contains a list of additional links and references about the reality of life after death and its relationship to mediumship and paranormal research.
Scientific Support in Social and Physical Sciences

Mediums Training, Spiritualist Churches and Spiritist Centers

Spiritualist Communities and Churches are religious organizations with a long experience on mediumship and mediums training, including certification programs for mediums. Many of them offer public services given by Church Ministers as well as private personal readings. Some of these communities have been active for more than a century since the beginning of the Modern Spiritualist Movement. Examples of these communities are Lily Dale in New York and Cassadaga in Florida.
http://www.lilydaleassembly.com/
http://www.cassadaga.org/

Spiritist Centers are non religious, not for profit organizations, dedicated to the study of the philosophy of Spiritism, which also have significant experience in medium training for spirit communication and charity work. For a listing of these centers please visit our section of Spiritist Centers or continue here:
Spiritist Centers

Conclusion

The amount of evidence we have today about the survival of conciousness provides more than ample room for a rational person, if she wants, can believe in the afterlife on the basis of evidence.

Appendix: Organizations currently working on Psychic Research, Survival, Mediumship and EVP.

Arthur Findlay College:
http://www.arthurfindlaycollege.org/

International Survivalist Society:
http://www.survivalafterdeath.org.uk/

Academy of Spirituality and Paranormal Studies:
http://www.lightlink.com/arpr/

Society for Scientific Exploration:
http://www.scientificexploration.org/

Institute of Noetic Sciences:
http://www.ions.org/

American Association of Electronic Voice Phenomena:
http://aaevp.com/

The Windbridge Institute:
http://www.windbridge.org/