Americans were in love with mesmerism because it was something that you could do in your own home. You could mesmerize or hypnotize your aunt or your mother or your father and people would go into these trance states and you could introduction autosuggestions tot hem or as some people saw it, you could cure them of illnesses.
Mitch HorowitzThere are some people in occult history who warned against using the Ouija Board, who said: "This is a dangerous door to the unconscious. Don't approach this thing."
Mitch HorowitzAmerica became a special source of attraction to people who were fleeing the aftereffects of the 30 Years War and the religious persecution that began to sweep through Europe in the period between the Renaissance and the Enlightenment. And when people got here, very often they succeeded.
Mitch Horowitz