Spiritual showmen: the 1920s occult

Raphael Cormack explores the lives of mystics Tahra Bey and Dr Dahesh, whose occult performances reflected the anxieties of the 1920s

Published: May 26, 2025 at 7:00 AM

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Tahra Bey became a celebrity with his apparent ability to control his pulse, stab himself without pain and even bury himself alive. Dr Dahesh, meanwhile, was a spiritualist who sparked an entire religious movement. Speaking to Lauren Good, Raphael Cormack explores the lives of these two figures who made a name for themselves in the occult scene of the 1920s – and what their stories can reveal about the anxieties of the age.

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Raphael Cormack is the author of Holy Men of the Electromagnetic Age: A Forgotten History of the Occult (C Hurst & Co, 2025).

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Authors

Lauren GoodSenior content producer

Lauren Good is a senior content producer at HistoryExtra

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