A phenomenon of spiritualism in which poltergeists or noisy spirits are heard to rap on tables to attract attention, or more frequently a method by which spirits of the dead answer questions posed to them. Table rapping or table tilting is a very laborious way of consulting the spirit world and works rather like the Ouija Board. Several people sit at a small round table with their fingertips upon it, their thumbs touching, and their little fingers stretched out toward their neighbor on either side. Traditionally, the questions posed to the spirit were spelled out with one rap or tilt for letter A, two for B, and so on, but today it is usually speeded up by stating the problem verbally. Questioning usually begins with “Is there anybody there?” and then goes on to more specific queries. The answers come with one rap or one lilt indicating yes, two indicating maybe or don’t know, and three meaning no.
Critics of spiritualism do not believe that there is any way of communicating with the dead and point to the confession of Margaret Fox, the elder of the two Fox sisters from Hydesville, New York, who first started the 19th-century spiritualist craze. Her confession came at the end of her long career as a medium, at the age of 81, when she explained how she had fooled people, making spirit raps by cracking the first joint of a big toe.