Mesmerism

Mesmerism is a word coined in the 18th century to refer to Franz Anton Mesmer discovery of the "animal magnetism" and its use. This "life energy" or "fluid" is believed to reside in the bodies which all living beings have running through them, and which could be manipulated for healing or other purposes. This magnetism in "animate" beings, is believed to be distinct from the magnetic force shown by some minerals.

In Europe and the United States the theory became the basis for treatment of illnesses based on movements of the hands near the body accompanied by strong intention of the operator. Some of the practices and concepts related to animal magnetism were used in Hypnotism, Spiritualism, New Thought, magnetic healing, and Parapsychological research.

Brief fragment ascribed to H. P. Blavatsky explains the method as follows:

The mesmerizer throws out his own Auric Fluid . . . through the etheric double, on his patient; he may thus, in the case of sickness, regularize the irregular vibrations of the sufferer, or share with him his own life-force, thereby increasing his vitality. For nerve-atrophy there is no agent so curative as this, and the shrivelling cell may clairvoyantly be seen to swell up under the flow of the life-current. The pranic current flows most readily from the tips of the fingers, and through the eyes; passes should be made along the nerves from center to circumference, with a sharp shake of the fingers away from the patient and the operator, at the end of the pass. The hands should be washed before and after the operation, and it should never be undertaken unless the mind is quiet and the health strong. The loss of vitality should be made good by standing in the sun, with as little clothing on as possible, breathing deeply and slowly, and retaining the breath between each inspiration and exhalation as long as is convenient, i.e., not long enough to cause any struggle or gasping. Five minutes of this should restore the pranic balance.

Further reading

• Animal Magnetism at Theosopedia