The Ouija board is an American, 19th century invention belonging to the field of the paranormal sciences that hold modern rationalism in contempt. Nicole Edelman describes the origins of the Ouija board in the journal L’Histoire. In the extracts from the article that are published here, the protagonists of the story are a family of methodists, a haunted house and the “spirit” of a murdered peddler. The two Methodist girls leave home and go to another state, however the spirits keep in touch with them. The spirits advise the girls to use a table, or board to communicate with them. They become famous, and the practice spreads to Europe where however the board used in the séance is triangular. This method of prediction of the future, or oracle is however very old. Tertoulian, Apollonius Tyaneus and Buddhist monks all testify to this.