table turning
Definition
Noun: - Manipulation of a table during a séance; attributed to spirits: The physical movement, such as tilting, rotating, or levitating, of a table during a spiritualist meeting, which participants believe is caused by the presence or direct influence of spirits or supernatural forces.
Usage
This term is used specifically in the context of spiritualism and paranormal investigations. It describes the phenomenon itself, not the act of causing it. - The most convincing evidence for the medium was the sudden table turning witnessed by all the sitters. - Reports of table turning were common in 19th-century séances.
Advanced Usage
- Attributed Agency: The action is almost always described as something the table ("the table turned") or that ("table turning occurred"), with the implied cause being spiritual forces, rather than human action.
- Historical Context: The term is strongly associated with the Spiritualist movement of the 1800s and early 1900s. In modern usage, it often carries a historical or skeptical connotation.
Variants and Related Words
- Table-tilting (n.): A near-synonym, often used interchangeably with "table turning," though it may emphasize a tilting motion rather than rotation.
- Table levitation (n.): A related phenomenon where a table is said to rise completely off the ground.
- Séance (n.): The meeting or session during which table turning might occur.
Synonyms
- Table-tilting
- Psychokinesis (n.): A broader, more modern term for the movement of objects by supposed mental or spiritual power, which could encompass table turning.
Related Phrases
- To turn the tables (Idiom): This is a completely separate and common idiom meaning "to reverse a situation to gain an advantage." It is unrelated to the spiritualist practice.
Noun
-
manipulation of a table during a seance; attributed to spirits
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