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How did occultism differ from Spiritualism according to many 19th-century occultists?

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Oil painting The Witches' Sabbath by Francisco de Goya shows a group of figures in dark robes gathered around a crouching person, with eerie creatures flying in a moonlit sky. — Witchcraft *El conjuro* or *Las brujas* (“The Conjuring” or “The Witches”), oil on canvas by Francisco Goya, 1797–98; in the Museo Lázaro Galdiano, Madrid.

During the 19th and early 20th centuries, many self-described occultists sought to distinguish their identity and practices from Spiritualism, a movement that had gained widespread popularity after emerging in the United States in the 1840s.1

While Spiritualism was primarily focused on contacting the spirits of the dead through mediums, many occultists viewed this activity as inherently dangerous. They argued that the practice of mediumship left individuals vulnerable to influence or possession by malevolent entities.1

In contrast to the Spiritualist focus on spirit communication, occultists often identified themselves with the study and practice of ancient esoteric traditions, such as ceremonial magic, Kabbalah, and the tarot. Figures like Éliphas Lévi and Helena Blavatsky promoted occultism as a means to access a purported universal tradition of spiritual wisdom, which they believed could bridge the divide between science and religion.1