Peter von Maltitz, aka Zanemvula (Bringer of Rain), comes with a wooden case of bottles, a pendulum, and his own sort of largeness. A geniality which spreads itself around in silences punctuated by bursts of laughter. Almost everything one says sparks off merriment in this big person, with his dimpled cheeks and his green cotton beanie.
I have, he says, meaning me, an aggressive person inside me which he is able and willing to expel if I want. He goes over me with his pendulum and says further that I have problems with my kidneys, which is a surprise. He goes over Lionel too and tells him that he has a very strong heart.

I am given a small bottle of muti to hold. Am I feeling more relaxed? Sure, I am. I have been rushing all day and now I am sitting in my armchair. He puts a small bottle on Lione's lap. Is he feeling more relaxed? No, says Lionel, I have a cup of tea getting cold in the study and the radio is on. (He decides to go and deal with these things.)

While he is away, Peter comes to kneel beside me and puts his hand on my shoulder. A very warm hand. I close my eyes. Then I feel his fingertips somewhere below my collar bone, just touching and the hand on the shoulder again. I remain with my eyes closed, mentally allowing what wishes to happen, to happen. But nothing does for a bit, so I half open my eyes and all at once I am looking down the wrong end of a telescope and everything looks black and white as it does when one feels faint.

I see Peter, very small, sitting back on his heels with his hand held up to his shoulder as if pulling something held in his fist, and at the same time I feel as though part of me is being pulled away. I see a net or river of transparent filaments streaming out from me and towards him. I am feeling an alarming loss of physical control so I shut my eyes hard and call on my angel to oversee this process and let no harm happen. The panic subsides and everything calms down. I am left feeling drained of every bit of energy but quite all right and peaceful.

I want to be able to describe that pulling out from my neck and shoulder more exactly. It was maybe like the skin coming off a snake. I thought perhaps that what I saw was part of the etheric body but Peter said no, it was a handful of nasties of some kind which he sent down into the earth. The force of the pulling seemed as strong and overwhelming as the acceleration in an aircraft when one's seat pushes against one's back.

This is the second time I have had a demonstration of the supersensible: firstly in England when we were girls at school moving a table B but that was definitely some lower form of elemental activity, and now this in Africa, when the general feeling afterwards was benign. Whatever else, perhaps the sceptic half of my mind can retire.
Already five hours later the memory is less precise and I am frightened that I will embellish it with details that weren't really there to make a better story. Now, nearly 10 pm, I am floating towards sleep.