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¿Animismo O Espiritismo?.Pdf ? ? ANIMISMO O ESPIRITISMO? ¿CUÁL DE LOS DOS EXPLICA EL CONJUNTO DE LOS HECHOS? Ernesto Bozzano Título original en italiano Animismo o spiritismo? Quale tra i due spiega il complesso dei fatti? ÍNDICE PREFACIO 4 CAPÍTULO 1 8 ¿Animismo o Espiritismo? 8 CAPÍTULO 2 40 Los poderes supranormales de la subconsciencia pueden circunscribirse dentro de límites definidos 40 CAPÍTULO 3 54 Las comunicaciones mediúmnicas entre vivos prueban la realidad de las comunicaciones mediúmnicas con difuntos 54 CAPÍTULO 4 133 De los fenómenos de bilocación 133 CAPÍTULO 5 193 No es verdad que el Animismo utiliza las pruebas en favor del Espiritismo 193 CONCLUSIONES 331 PREFACIO Debo, ante todo, informar al lector acerca de los orígenes y de la naturaleza del presente Libro, que no es una obra nueva, en el verdadero sentido del término, y que jamás he tenido idea de escribir. He aquí cómo sucedieron las cosas. El Consejo Director del Congreso Espírita Internacional, de Glasgow, que se reunió en la primera semana de septiembre del corriente año (1937), me escribió invitándome a participar en él personalmente, ofreciéndome el cargo honorífico de vice- presidente de tal Congreso y rogándome le enviase un resumen de mi obra en torno al tema: Animism or Spiritualism: Which explains the facts? (Animismo o Espiritismo ¿Cuál de los dos explica el conjunto de los hechos?) Formidable encargo, puesto que se trataba de resumir la mayor parte de mi obra de cuarenta años. Pero, de súbito, el tema se me presentó teóricamente muy importante. Acepté entonces, sin dudar, la invitación y, como escaso era el tiempo y vasta la tarea, me puse a reunir todas mis publicaciones sobre el tema: libros, monografías, opúsculos, artículos, lanzándome sin demora al trabajo. Del resumen quedó excluida una importante sección de mi obra, porque el desarrollo del tema exigía que yo impugnase, basándome en hechos, la inefable objeción anti- 4 ¿ANIMISMO O ESPIRITISMO? espirítica según la cual, no pudiéndose asignar límites a las facultades supra normales de la telepatía, de la telemnesia, de la telestesia, tampoco será nunca posible demostrar experimentalmente, y por lo tanto científicamente, la existencia y la supervivencia del espíritu humano. Como se sabe, esa gratuita objeción se refiere exclusivamente a los casos de identificación espirítica, basada en los informes personales proporcionados por los difuntos que se comunican, casos que perderían todo el valor demostrativo siempre que resultase fundada la referida objeción, por cuanto, entonces, serían explicables en masa con los poderes de la subconsciencia, los cuales llegarían a extraer los aludidos informes de las subconsciencias de los vivos, que, aunque distantes, hubiesen conocido a los mencionados difuntos (telemnesia). En esas condiciones, si yo quisiera eliminar preventivamente toda posibilidad de crítica a las conclusiones expuestas en el presente trabajo, se haría necesario no tener en cuenta mis investigaciones sobre casos de identificación espirítica de la naturaleza indicada, y tampoco mis laboriosos esfuerzos de análisis comparado acerca de los mensajes en que los difuntos describen el ambiente en que se encuentran. Así es como he procedido, llegando de este modo a hacer emerger, basada en los hechos, una verdad metapsíquica que si bien evidentísima, era míseramente olvidada por los propugnadores de la objeción en causa. Aludo al hecho de que las pruebas de identificación espirítica, fundadas en las informaciones personales proporcionadas por los difuntos que se comunican, lejos de ser las únicas que se pueden conseguir para la demostración experimental de la supervivencia, no son más que simples unidades de prueba, entre las múltiples pruebas que se pueden extraer del conjunto de los fenómenos metapsíquicos, pero sobre todo de las manifestaciones supra normales de orden extrínseco, las cuales, al no depender de nadie, resultan asimismo independientes de los poderes de la 5 ERNESTO BOZZANO subconsciencia. Tales, por ejemplo, los casos de apariciones de difuntos aún en el lecho de muerte y los de las apariciones de los difuntos poco después de la muerte, al igual que otras importantes categorías de fenómenos metapsíquicos que he reunido y comenté en el extensísimo y resolutivo Capítulo 5 del presente trabajo. En otros términos: procediendo de ese modo, logré demoler la única hipótesis de que disponían los opositores para, en cierta forma, neutralizar la interpretación del alto mediumnismo, hipótesis que, aunque absurda e insostenible, parecía embarazosa, visto que por ser indemostrable se convertía en irrefutable. No obstante se verá que, por el contrario, llegué igualmente a demolerla estribándome en los hechos, de suerte que, a la cuestión que me fue propuesta: Animismo o Espiritismo, ¿cuál de los dos explica el conjunto de los hechos?, se me hizo fácil contestar, en los términos siguientes: Ni uno ni otro logran, por separado, explicar el conjunto de los fenómenos supra normales. Ambos son indispensables a tal fin, y no pueden separarse, puesto que son efectos de una causa única y esta causa es el espíritu humano que, cuando se manifiesta, en momentos fugaces, durante la encarnación, determina los fenómenos anímicos; y cuando se manifiesta mediúmnicamente durante la existencia desencarnada, determina los fenómenos espiríticos. Ésta, y únicamente ésta, es la solución legítima del gran problema, dado que se presenta como resultante matemática de la convergencia de todas las pruebas que advienen de la recopilación metapsíquica contemplada en su conjunto. Considero, por tanto, haber producido una labor proficua a servicio de la causa de la Verdad, labor cuyo desarrollo se revela prácticamente más formidable que todo cuanto había imaginado, pues no tardé en apercibirme de que las argumentaciones y los comentarios sobre los casos, en la forma 6 ¿ANIMISMO O ESPIRITISMO? especial dada por mí, no se adaptaron a un trabajo de síntesis, general. De suerte que tuve que volver a manipularlos, a manipularlos nuevamente un poco por todas partes. Ahora bien, rehacer es más difícil que hacer. Como quiera que fuese, ahora que he concluido, mucho me alegra que el Consejo Director del Congreso de Glasgow me haya llevado a resumirme a mí mismo, por cuanto la síntesis de muchas publicaciones mías, largas, breves, de ocasión, condensadas en un libro de pequeño porte, resume incontestable la solución espírita del misterio del ser. 7 CAPÍTULO 1 ¿ANIMISMO O ESPIRITISMO? Las facultades supra normales subconscientes dependen de la ley de evolución biológica. Fue en el año de 1891 – fecha para mí memorable – cuando por vez primera me puse en contacto con las investigaciones psíquicas y eso ocurrió por obra del profesor Ribot, director de la Revue Philosophique, el cual espontáneamente me envió el primer número de los Annales des Sciences Psychiques, en el cual se hablaba de telepatía. Esa fortuita coincidencia decidió para siempre acerca de mi futuro de escritor y de pensador. Una vocación predominante me había, en vez de eso, conducido a ocuparme exclusiva y apasionadamente, de la filosofía científica y Herbert Spencer era en aquel tiempo mi ídolo. Durante dos años, sin interrupción, yo había estudiado, anotado, clasificado con inmenso amor todo el contenido de su imponente y enciclopédico sistema filosófico, para a continuación lanzarme en cuerpo y alma a las luchas del pensamiento, empeñándome en polémicas con quien osase criticar los argumentos e hipótesis que mi venerado Maestro había formulado. He había convertido en apóstol de mi ídolo, lo cual significa que en todo pensaba y sentía como Herbert Spencer y la concepción 8 ¿ANIMISMO O ESPIRITISMO? mecánica positivista del Universo era mi profesión de fe. Añádase que, al tiempo que admiraba la suprema sabiduría del gran filósofo, que intencionadamente se había apartado del grosero materialismo imperante en su tiempo, dedicando la primera parte de sus First Principies a la teoría de lo Incognoscible y afirmando con ello su propio agnosticismo en presencia del enorme misterio del ser; al tiempo – digo – que admiraba la suprema sabiduría de aquel que así se comportaba, la síntesis conclusiva de mis concepciones filosóficas gravitaba decisivamente, no obstante, en las órbitas de los Buchner, de los Maleschott, de los Haeckel, que negaban la existencia de un Ente Supremo y la supervivencia humana. En conformidad con ello, defendía yo en las revistas filosóficas ese punto de vista con apasionado ardor, correspondiente en todo al que más tarde vendría a demostrar en defensa de una causa diametralmente opuesta, pero infinitamente más reconfortante. Me ha parecido oportuno empezar recordando ese período de mi pasado filosófico, porque el vigor con que ahora defiendo la causa espiritista a algunos se les figura indicio manifiesto de que la firmeza de mis convicciones, lejos de expresar la síntesis de profundas investigaciones en torno a los fenómenos supra normales, es debida a la invasión de un misticismo congénito, perturbador de todo juicio sereno. Nada más distante de la verdad: no existe, ni ha existido nunca en mí, indicio alguno de misticismo, y el fervor con que defiendo mis presentes convicciones filosóficas es tan solo expresión de mi temperamento de escritor. Tanto es así que, cuando militaba en las filas de los pensadores positivistas-materialistas sostenía con igual ardor apasionado mis convicciones filosóficas de entonces. Establecido esto, entro sin más en materia. Como he dicho, hace cuarenta años que me dedico a investigaciones psíquicas; sin embargo, en los primeros nueve 9
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