Ufology and Spiritism

Daniel Salomão

Recently, reports of experiences with alien beings have multiplied, both in and outside of Brazil, once again bringing to the forefront discussions that have fluctuated in significance since the 1950s. In the press, on social media, in well-produced documentaries, and even in testimonies given at public institutions, people have claimed to have had contact with individuals from other planets and to have observed ships and lights in the sky moving in ways incompatible with our technology. Some even go so far as to suggest the possibility of an invasion by more advanced human-like species that could contribute to the improvement of the planet.

Naturally, many have ridiculed this kind of discourse, dismissing it as mere fantasies or hallucinations—which may well sometimes be present. Moreover, fraud is always a possibility. However, given the significance that many individuals have attributed to these records, we find it important to reflect on the plausibility of such ideas, both from a scientific perspective and within the perspective of Spiritism. In this regard, the aim of this text is to provide an introductory reflection on the similarities and differences between Ufology—as a non-scientific field of investigation—and Spiritism, in relation to possible extraterrestrial visits.

The first question we must ask is: according to Spiritism, do extraterrestrial beings exist? Even in the foundational works of Spiritism, we find several references to this subject. In The Spirits’ Book, the instructors state that “all the globes spinning through space inhabited,” although by beings with “different physical organization” and “conditions of existence” than our own. Among these beings, there are naturally Spirits at various levels of evolution, as affirmed in the subsequent reflections on “incarnation in different worlds.”

In a note to question 188, Kardec even provides brief information about the condition of planets within our solar system. It seems that the most striking difference between physical bodies in various worlds lies in their degree of materiality, depending on the purity level of their inhabitants. In some cases, there is no need for any external covering other than their own perispirits.

As a second question, we must ask ourselves whether these inhabitants of other planets can visit Earth and under what conditions. Based on what was previously presented, one possibility is through reincarnation. Spirits develop through experiences in various contexts of existence in their evolutionary process, which includes progressively incarnating in worlds with different degrees of intellectuality and morality. Thus, it is natural that individuals who once inhabited other planets may be reborn on Earth, some even with the missionary purpose of assisting us. Kardec even describes great migrations of Spirits as possible, in fact justifying expectations of cultural and moral renewal on Earth. The idea of planetary transition, which has been prominent in Spiritist discussions over the last few decades, originates from this concept. However, unless a better judgment is made, we do not have access to details on how this process of Spirit transportation happens.

Another way of visitation, also attested by Kardec, is through disembodied spirits or in a state of soul emancipation, which can be perceived mediumistically. In the same note mentioned before, he informs that Spirits who were famous on Earth claimed to be reincarnated on Jupiter, and that a certain evoked Spirit stated to have been incarnated for six months in a world whose name is unknown to us. Also, in the The Spiritist Review, we see a lot of similar descriptions. This interplanetary transit, when it involves more evolved Spirits, seems to occur with a certain ease; after all, for them, the distance separating worlds is less than that which, on this planet, separates continents.

It is noteworthy that there is an almost complete absence of such records in the multiple Brazilian mediumistic works, where Spirits prioritize descriptions of spiritual regions of the Earth itself. An important exception is found in the work Renunciation, by Emmanuel, psychographed by Chico Xavier, which presents a brief reference to another planet. However, without denying the possibility of mediumistic communication between worlds, one question seems valid: in some of the cases recorded by Kardec, could we not have communicants describing the spiritual plane while believing they were describing another world? Or, considering the influence of the medium in the mediumistic reception, could there not be a projection of a contemporary expectation for interplanetary contact? This is unknown.

A third form of visitation, closer to the expectations of Ufology, involves their own bodies, incarnated, in spaceships or not. Many individuals describe encounters with extraterrestrials, visions, or even visits to their ships in a very concrete manner. Technically, from a spiritual perspective, there is nothing that contradicts these reports. Emmanuel’s well-known position regarding the “benefit” of the isolation of planet Earth should not sound like a form of impediment to “physical” contact between humanity of distant worlds, but rather that the vast distances between planets have their reason for being. In any case, it seems that other explanations are also plausible and find a good foundation in Spiritism.

In the documentaries mentioned, it can be found descriptions of instantaneous appearances of these possible aliens, followed by disappearance; beings floating, with colors and anatomical differences from humans; floating and flickering objects and lights; and groups of witnesses attesting to the same phenomenon. Well, all of this can be explained as a mediumistic phenomena.

The apparitions may be experiences of clairvoyance or even materializations of Spirits (from this or other worlds), as explained by Kardec. In these cases, the emergence in enclosed environments, the floating/levitation, as well as the instantaneous disappearance are explainable. Anatomical differences can also be justified as alterations in the perispirit, already attested by Kardec and popularized in Brazilian mediumistic works. Or, if indeed dealing with Spirits from other planets, they may simply reflect their own constitutions.

The possibility of the existence of spaceships or any structures in the spiritual plane, even temporarily tangible to us, also aligns with descriptions of the spiritual world—incipient in Kardec but well developed later on. As for the flickering lights, the foundation is the same.

An interesting work that describes similar phenomena is Manifestações Luminosas by Rafael A. Ranieri. On several occasions, alongside certain mediums, the author observed the materialization of globes of light that floated, spun, made small “leaps in the air,” and then disappeared.

In summary, we understand that Spiritist doctrine well establishes the plurality of inhabited worlds; the possibility of Spirits’ migration between these worlds for numerous reasons, particularly through reincarnation; and also the potential for spiritual visits during erraticism or in moments of unfolding, even between physically distant planets. Regarding visits from incarnate extraterrestrials to Earth in spaceships or similar means, there is no theoretical objection from a Spiritist point of view, nor sufficient spiritual information to confirm them. Concerning this, we believe terrestrial science can contribute further with serious observation and investigation.

Ultimately, we identify points of convergence between the expectations of ufologists and Spiritist theory, even if we retain the freedom to believe or not in extraterrestrial ships and alien visits. However, there is nothing that fundamentally opposes Spiritism to Ufology.

1. CNN Brasil. Are they among us? Remember celebrities who have reported UFO experiences. Available at <cnnbrasil.com.br/internacional/eles-estao-entre-nos-relembre-famosos-que-ja-relataram-experiencias-com-ovnis/>. Accessed on February 15, 2025.
2. Extraterrestrial Encounters. Directed by Yon Motskin. Production: Netflix et al., 2023 (cf. Alien Investigation, Top Secret: UFOs etc.).
3. WATCH. US congressional hearing questions secrets surrounding UFOs. Available at <veja.abril.com.br/ciencia/audiencia-no-congresso-americano-questiona-segredos-em-tornode-ovnis>. Accessed on February 15, 2025.
4. KARDEC, Allan. The Spirits’ Book. Rio de Janeiro: FEB, 2010, q. 55 to 58 (similar descriptions appear in the other works of the Codification, as well as in the more consensual subsidiaries).
5. Idem, q. 172 to 188.
6. Idem, q. 181.
7. Idem, q. 186.
8. KARDEC, Allan. The Gospel according to Spiritism. Rio de Janeiro: FEB, 2010, c. 3.
9. KARDEC, Allan. The Spirits’ Book. Rio de Janeiro: FEB, 2010, q. 175 and 178.
10. KARDEC, Allan. Genesis. Rio de Janeiro: FEB, 2009, c. 11, i. 37; c. 18; KARDEC, Allan. The Spirits’ Books. Rio de Janeiro: FEB, 2010, q. 1019.
11. KARDEC, Allan. The Spirits’ Book. Rio de Janeiro: FEB, 2010, q. 401.
12. Idem, note to q. 188.
13. Idem, note to q. 495.
14. COSTA, Vínicius L.; SILVA, Daniel S.; COELHO, Humberto S. Diálogos Espíritas. By the Spirit Ivon. Juiz de Fora: Ed. Primavera, 2019, q. 115.
15. XAVIER, Francisco C. The Comforter. By the Spirit Emmanuel. 26. ed., Rio de Janeiro: FEB, 2006, q. 74.
16. KARDEC, Allan. The Mediums’ Book. Rio de Janeiro: FEB, 2008, 2. p., c. 6 and 7.