Some people describe experiences of spirit communication from early childhood. They may remember sensing the presence of someone who had died, seeing a figure others could not see, or knowing things they could not easily explain.
Others come to mediumship much later in life. Perhaps they attend a demonstration, experience the loss of someone close, join a spiritual development circle or simply become curious about the possibility of communication with the spirit world.
This raises a question we hear frequently: is mediumship a natural gift that someone must be born with, or is it something that can be learned?
Within the Spiritualist tradition, mediumship is generally understood as a sensitivity that may be developed through practice, discipline and experience. People may begin with different degrees of awareness, but having an unusual experience is not the same as being able to offer clear, consistent and responsible evidential mediumship.
To understand what can be learned, we first need to understand what development actually means.
Are Some People Naturally More Sensitive?
People do not all begin from the same place.
Some describe spontaneous impressions, vivid inner imagery, unusual dreams or a sense of someone's presence from an early age. Others have no such history but become interested in exploring spiritual awareness as adults. Within mediumship traditions, these differences are often understood as variations in natural sensitivity.
However, we should be careful not to assume that every unusual experience is evidence of mediumship. Dreams, intuition, emotions, memory and ordinary perception can all influence what a person experiences and how they understand it. Similarly, someone who has never experienced anything they would call spiritual may still wish to explore the practices and teachings of mediumship.
The important distinction is between an experience that happens spontaneously and an ability that has been developed through repeated practice and thoughtful observation.
A person may have powerful experiences yet find it difficult to communicate clear information in a sitting. Another person may begin with relatively subtle impressions and gradually learn to observe, describe and evaluate them more carefully.
Natural sensitivity may be part of someone's starting point. It does not, by itself, determine the quality of their mediumship.
What Does It Mean to Develop Mediumship?
Mediumship development involves more than learning to recognise inner sensations or unusual impressions.
In evidential mediumship, the medium seeks to communicate information about someone believed to be in the spirit world. This person is commonly called the spirit communicator. The person receiving the communication is called the sitter.
The intention is to bring forward information that the sitter may recognise as characteristic of a particular person: their personality, relationships, memories, habits or experiences. This is where development becomes a discipline. The student begins learning how to notice an impression, remain with it long enough to understand it and communicate it without adding details that were not actually perceived.
An example
In training, students practise recognising these differences, guided by three questions:
- What did I perceive?
- What did I interpret?
- What did the sitter actually recognise?
These questions are central to the development of evidential mediumship.
Psychic Awareness and Mediumship Are Not Quite the Same
One of the important foundations of training is understanding the distinction between psychic awareness and mediumship.
In many spiritual teaching traditions, psychic awareness refers to impressions concerning a living person, their circumstances, experiences or emotional state. Mediumship, by contrast, is understood as communication with someone believed to have died. A person may experience both forms of awareness, but they are not interchangeable.
If a student describes accurate information about a sitter's present life, that may be regarded within the tradition as psychic information. It does not necessarily establish that a spirit communicator has been identified. In evidential mediumship, the student learns to pay particular attention to information associated with the communicator, rather than relying only on impressions about the living person.
This distinction matters because it helps the practitioner describe the experience accurately and avoid making claims that the information does not support.
What Can Be Developed Through Training?
A well-structured mediumship programme offers students opportunities to explore several areas of development.
Spiritual awareness and sitting in the power
Sitting in the power is a recognised practice within many contemporary Spiritualist mediumship development traditions. The student learns to sit quietly, develop steadiness in their awareness and become familiar with the quality of their own attention.
It is not simply an exercise in relaxation, nor should every sensation during the practice be interpreted as spirit communication. Its place in training is to support a more settled approach to awareness and development.
Recognising and describing impressions
Students explore the ways in which impressions may arise, including inner images, words, feelings, sensations or an apparent sense of knowing. They practise describing these impressions clearly rather than rushing to explain them. Over time, the intention is to develop greater familiarity with personal patterns of perception and interpretation.
Building evidential information
An isolated detail is not always enough to identify a communicator. Students learn to explore whether several pieces of information appear to form a coherent picture of a particular person. A communicator's character, relationships and everyday experiences may become more meaningful when the information connects naturally rather than appearing as a collection of unrelated statements.
The aim is not to produce as many details as possible. It is to develop information carefully and allow the sitter to assess what is recognisable.
Working with sitter feedback
Feedback is an essential part of responsible development. A sitter may recognise an impression immediately, recognise only part of it or not recognise it at all. Students must learn to remain comfortable with all three possibilities.
The purpose of feedback is not to persuade the sitter or rescue an inaccurate statement. It is to help the student understand how their communication was received and where further discernment is needed.
Learning the structure of a private sitting
Mediumship involves another human being, often someone for whom the subject is deeply personal. Students therefore need opportunities to practise how a sitting begins, how information is communicated, how feedback is received and how the sitting is concluded.
The ability to work with sensitivity, honesty and appropriate boundaries is as important as the impressions themselves.
Why Practice Matters More Than Dramatic Experiences
An unusual or deeply moving experience can be meaningful to the person having it. But it does not automatically establish that someone is ready to offer mediumship sittings to others. A vivid vision, a powerful sensation or a moment of apparent connection is different from the sustained responsibility of communicating with a sitter.
In a training environment, students have the opportunity to practise repeatedly, notice patterns, make mistakes and learn from them. Some exercises may feel clear. Others may be uncertain. A student may occasionally offer information that is strongly recognised and still struggle to understand why another sitting develops differently. These variations are part of what makes careful observation important.
Development is not measured by how extraordinary an experience feels. It is better assessed through the student's growing clarity, discernment, consistency and responsibility.
Even these qualities do not establish scientifically that spirit communication has occurred. They are ways of evaluating practice and conduct within a mediumship training setting.
Does Everyone Develop at the Same Pace?
No. People bring different experiences, expectations and ways of learning into the classroom.
Some are comfortable describing impressions but need help distinguishing perception from interpretation. Others are highly reflective yet hesitant to speak because they are concerned about getting something wrong. There may also be students who discover that their interests and experiences are more closely aligned with psychic development, meditation or another spiritual practice.
It would be misleading to promise that every student will develop evidential mediumship to the same level, or within a particular number of days. A course can provide teaching, exercises, observation, practice and feedback. It cannot guarantee that someone will demonstrate a particular ability or become ready to work independently as a professional medium.
Responsible training should make room for these individual differences rather than pressuring students to produce experiences.
Why Ethics Must Develop Alongside Ability
Mediumship is not practised in isolation from its effect on other people.
A person receiving a sitting may be grieving. They may be hoping to hear from someone they love, carrying unresolved questions or trying to make sense of a difficult loss. This creates a responsibility for the medium.
It is important to avoid leading questions that supply the information the medium is supposed to be receiving. The sitter should not feel pressured to agree, make connections that are not genuinely recognisable or accept the medium's interpretation without question. It is equally important not to promise contact with a particular person, make absolute claims about the afterlife or encourage someone to depend on repeated sittings for reassurance.
Confidentiality, consent and sensitivity to grief are not additional subjects to be considered after technical development. They belong within the foundations of the practice itself. A student may be enthusiastic, sensitive and sincere, but sincerity alone does not protect a sitter from misunderstanding or overstatement.
This is why ethical responsibility must be taught, demonstrated and reinforced throughout mediumship education. Our approach is set out on our Ethics & Safety page.
Can Mediumship Be Learned Without Earlier Spiritual Experiences?
A history of childhood spiritual experiences is not a requirement for beginning mediumship development. What matters more at the outset is a genuine interest in learning, a willingness to practise and an openness to receiving feedback.
Some students arrive with years of spiritual practice. Others are complete beginners. Both may benefit from a structured introduction that explains the traditional understanding of mediumship, the place of evidence and the responsibilities involved.
At the same time, learning about mediumship should not be confused with a guarantee of becoming a medium. The School of Mediumship approaches education as an opportunity to study and practise within a defined tradition, not as a promise that every participant will experience spirit communication or demonstrate evidential results.
What Does Science Say About Mediumship?
Mediumship has been studied and debated for well over a century, including through controlled investigations of mediums who claim to give information about people who have died.
Some studies under blinded conditions have reported that mediums produced information rated as more accurate than expected by chance2,3. Others found no such effect, and critics have raised questions about study design, scoring and blinding1. There is no established scientific consensus that mediumship demonstrates communication with people who have died, and questions remain about the possible roles of ordinary information sources, chance, memory and suggestion.
It is therefore important to distinguish three things: what a spiritual tradition teaches, what an individual reports experiencing and what scientific research has established.
At The School of Mediumship, evidential practice is taught within the mediumship tradition. The term evidence refers to information a sitter may recognise; it should not be mistaken for a claim that every sitting scientifically proves survival after death. This distinction allows people to study the subject seriously without being asked to abandon their critical judgement.
How We Approach Mediumship Development at The School of Mediumship
At The School of Mediumship, established by Soul Consciousness Lab®, our starting point is that mediumship development deserves time, guidance and thoughtful practice.
Our Evidential Mediumship Level 1 programme introduces students to the foundations of spirit communication as understood within the Spiritualist tradition. Dr. Rashhi Sharma and Prabhat Sharma teach through practical exercises, partner work, observation and constructive feedback. Students explore spiritual awareness, evidential information, the distinction between psychic and mediumistic perception, and the structure and responsibilities of personal sittings.
Rather than encouraging students to collect impressive experiences, we place importance on understanding what occurs during practice and learning to communicate it responsibly. The guiding principle is simple:
Let the evidence come first.
That means allowing information to develop before interpreting it, respecting the sitter's recognition or lack of recognition, and remaining honest about uncertainty. It also means understanding that development continues beyond an introductory course. Training provides a foundation, not an automatic declaration of professional readiness.
So, Is Mediumship Born or Learned?
Within the Spiritualist tradition, the answer is not necessarily one or the other.
Some people appear to begin with experiences they interpret as natural mediumistic sensitivity. Others encounter mediumship later and explore it through formal training. But early experiences are not a qualification, and training alone does not guarantee evidential ability.
What can be taught is the discipline of development: how to approach spiritual awareness, work with impressions, seek recognisable information, receive feedback and communicate with sensitivity and responsibility.
The question is therefore not only whether someone has an ability. It is also how they learn to understand it, how responsibly they practise and how carefully they distinguish what they perceive from what they believe it means.
That is where meaningful mediumship education begins.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can anyone learn mediumship?
Within the Spiritualist tradition, mediumship is understood as a sensitivity that most people can develop to some degree through practice, feedback and supervision. People begin from different places, and no course can guarantee that a particular student will become a medium.
Do I need to have had spiritual experiences as a child?
No. Childhood experiences are not a requirement. A genuine interest in learning, a willingness to practise and openness to honest feedback matter more at the start.
How long does it take to develop mediumship?
There is no fixed timescale. Development continues for years and varies from person to person. A foundation course provides structure and practice, not an automatic readiness to work professionally.
What is the difference between psychic awareness and mediumship?
Within the tradition, psychic awareness concerns impressions about a living person, such as their circumstances or feelings. Mediumship concerns communication with someone believed to have died. Training teaches students to tell the two apart.
Does completing a mediumship course make me a medium?
No. A course can provide teaching, exercises, observation and feedback. It cannot guarantee spirit communication, a particular level of ability or readiness for independent professional practice.
About the authors
Dr. Rashhi Sharma, PhDFounder and Lead Trainer of The School of Mediumship. She studied mediumship with Suzanne Giesemann in the United States and in person at Arthur Findlay College and The College of Psychic Studies in the United Kingdom. Full profile
Prabhat SharmaTrainer at The School of Mediumship. He studied mediumship in person at Arthur Findlay College and The College of Psychic Studies in the United Kingdom, and co-teaches every day of Level 1. Full profile
Continue Exploring
- Evidential Mediumship ExplainedHow recognisable evidence, the spirit communicator and the sitter's role come together in a sitting.Read the guide →
- Types of MediumshipThe distinctions between different forms of mediumship and their place within spiritual traditions.Read the guide →
- Evidential Mediumship Level 1The School's six-day residential foundation programme in Bengaluru, open to beginners.Explore Level 1 →
Sources
- O'Keeffe, C. & Wiseman, R. (2005). Testing alleged mediumship: Methods and results. British Journal of Psychology, 96(2), 165–179.
- Kelly, E. W. & Arcangel, D. (2011). An investigation of mediums who claim to give information about deceased persons. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 199(1), 11–17.
- Beischel, J., Boccuzzi, M., Biuso, M. & Rock, A. J. (2015). Anomalous information reception by research mediums under blinded conditions II: Replication and extension. EXPLORE: The Journal of Science and Healing, 11(2), 136–142.
- Society for Psychical Research, Psi Encyclopedia. Modern Mental Mediumship Research (Overview).
