Original article: La verdadera casa de los espíritus: El grupo de mujeres que disputó el espacio público desde el espiritismo By Osvaldo Carvajal M. , Academic in the Bachelor of Literature and Doctorate in Applied Humanities at U. Andrés Bello Let’s take a moment to reflect on the recently concluded series The House of Spirits, inspired by Isabel Allende’s 1982 novel, and discuss the real events and figures that influenced it.

In Latin America, magical realism falls short when we dive into the archives… Myriam, bring out the ouija! First, let’s dispel a common misconception. Many believe that “the house on the corner” in the novel was based on the palace in Providencia where Inés Echeverría Bello (Iris) lived.

While spiritual themes were discussed there, there is no evidence that spiritualist sessions were held, as is often claimed. Isabel Allende herself clarified that the true inspiration was the current Italian Embassy, the Maira Morla house. Sound familiar?

Indeed, the Mora sisters in the novel are a fictionalization of three real individuals: Carmen, Ximena, and Wanda Morla Lynch, daughters of a prominent diplomat who passed away early, and Luisa Lynch, a distinguished cultural figure in Santiago. Raised amidst travels across Europe and the United States, the Morla sisters received an elegant education from foreign governesses. And that’s where everything began.

In a letter from 1939, painter María Tupper —thanks to her, we learn about the story behind Stories for Mari-sol— recalls that the sisters had an American governess in New York who tried to communicate with her deceased husband through spiritualism. According to her, this man, from beyond, identified the family’s daughters as «extraordinary mediums. » Thus, lessons began to intertwine with sessions where the girls placed their hands on tables that responded with mysterious knocks.

Iris remembers that after the father’s death and the family’s arrival in Chile, she attended a session where a pencil left on a blank notebook began to write on its own before shooting across the room. When the lights were turned on, one of the attendees recognized the signature: it belonged to a friend who had committed suicide just days earlier. Quite the spiritual atmosphere… Now, what is Isabel Allende’s connection to all this?

Clara del Valle, the novel’s protagonist, is based on her grandmother Isabel Barros Moreira. The author describes her as a «slightly whimsical and marvelous» woman and shares that she heard throughout her life that during her trances, she could make a large oak table dance with just one finger. This led Chabela, among others mentioned, to create Group 7: not the air force one, but a theosophical-spiritualist sisterhood about which we still know little, but where each member had a special name and role.

Ximena and Carmen Morla were Vera and Nadinko, the main mediums; María Tupper was Cirineo, the archivist; Isabel was Lebasi, the guardian. As you can imagine, the Church viewed all this unfavorably, prompting the sisters of 7 to disguise their spiritualism under canonical appearances. Maria Tupper describes the epiphany that laid the groundwork for the community: “Ximena falls into a trance and, completely transformed, speaks with a voice that is not her own, saying it is necessary to set aside this whole business of tables and spiritual sessions, for extraordinary times are coming and there will be a need for soldiers to prepare the path for the Christ of Love whose coming is near.

” This pagan-Christian blend did not remain mere words. Following the Chillán earthquake, Lebasi wrote to Cirineo to organize aid for those affected: “I think the group should maintain a sewing workshop” and gather “money, fabrics, machines, threads, and everything necessary. ” She even contemplated taking care of “20 orphans” in her Agustinas home.

More intriguingly, her work had an anti-war meditation aspect: “the red flower is for war; it can be extinguished by planting white ones of peace. This can be done even if it’s just by talking with each other. ” Moreover, Vera spoke directly about the “army of the peace militia,” which was very much needed because “there’s a lot to do in the trenches, and invisible aids are precious.

” Thus, despite not marching with the large-scale networks and committees of the MEMCH —which they did not engage in— these women found a different way to intervene in public space. Through salons, letters, and “notebooks of life,” which Wenceslao Díaz Navarrete has rescued and published, they built what Macarena Urzúa calls an artistic, affective, and even political network as significant as the Circle of Ladies. Thanks to these researchers, we are closer than ever to reconstructing a spectral archive of spiritualist and theosophist women whose origins trace back to the 19th century and the remarkable figure of Rosario Orrego: Chile’s first novelist and magazine director, and political aunt of… Arturo Prat Chacón.

That ouija, yes, we’ll leave for another session. Osvaldo Carvajal M.