séanceArticle Free Pass séance, (French: “sitting”), in
occultism, meeting centred on a medium, who seeks to communicate
with spirits of the dead. Because strong light is said to hinder
communication, a séance usually takes place in darkness or
subdued light. It generally involves six or eight persons, who
normally form a circle and hold hands. Believers assert that
communication has been established when a disembodied voice is
heard, or a voice speaks through the medium, or a ghostly
apparition appears. Sometimes music of unknown source seems to
fill the room, objects appear to move for unnatural reasons, or
a hand, a limb, or an entire body may take shape from ectoplasm
(a peculiar viscous substance said to issue from the medium’s
body). Other alleged means of communication include automatic
writing, trance speaking, or a ouija board or planchette. Many
of the seemingly mysterious phenomena manifested during séances
are effected by the medium to validate his or her claim to
supernatural powers. That some sp