Clairvoyance and Occult Powers, William Walker Atkinson [best book clubs TXT] 📗

is no such thing as an absolute failure possible to anyone who will proceed intelligently, and will practice sufficiently. Sometimes, after many discouraging attempts, the whole thing will flash into one's mind at once, and after that there will be little or no trouble. If you are able to witness the demonstrations of some good mind-reader, professional or amateurs it will help you to "catch the knack" at once.

You will find that these experiments will tend to greatly and rapidly develop your psychic receptivity in the direction of the higher phases of psychic phenomena. You will be surprised to find yourself catching flashes or glimpses of ^higher telepathy, or even clairvoyance. I would advise every person wishing to cultivate the higher psychic faculties, to begin by perfecting himself or herself in these simpler forms of mind-reading. Besides the benefits obtained, the practice proves very interesting, and opens many doors to pleasant social entertainment. But, never allow the desire for social praise or popularity, in these matters, to spoil you for serious investigation and experiment.

THE SECOND STEP OF DEVELOPMENT. The student, having perfected himself in the experiments along the lines of the first class of mind-reading, viz., where there is no actual physical contact between the projector and recipient, but where there is a close relation in space between the two.

Now, the thoughtful student will naturally wish to ask a question here, something like this: "You have told us that there is no real difference between telepathy at a great distance, and that in which there is only the slightest difference in the position of the projector and recipient, providing, always, that there is no actual physical contact. This being so, why your insistence upon the 'close relation in space' just mentioned?—what is the reason for this nearness?" Well, it is like this: While there is no distinction of space in true telepathy, still in experiments such as I shall now describe, the physical nearness of the projector enables him to concentrate more forcibly, and also gives confidence to the new beginner in receiving mind-currents. The benefit is solely that of the psychological effect upon the minds of the two persons, and has nothing to do with the actual power of the telepathic waves. It is much easier for a person to concentrate his thought and will upon a person in actual physical sight before him, than upon one out of sight. And, likewise, the recipient finds himself more confident and at ease when in the actual physical of the person sending the thoughts and will power. That is all there is to it. When the persons have acquired familiarity with projecting and receiving, then this obstacle is overcome, and long distances have no terror for them.

The best way for the student to start in on this class of mind-reading, is for him to experiment occasionally while performing his physical contact mind-reading experiments. For instance, while engaged in searching for an object let him disengage his hand from that of the projector for a moment or so, and then endeavor to receive the impressions without contact. (This should be done only in private experiments, not in public ones.) He will soon discover that he is receiving thought impulses in spite of the lack of physical contact—faint, perhaps, but still perceptible. A little practice of this kind will soon convince him that he is receiving the mental currents direct from brain to brain. This effect will be increased if he arranges to have several persons concentrate their thoughts and will power upon him during the experiment. From this stage, he will gradually develop into the stage of the Willing Game.

The Willing Game, quite popular in some circles, is played by one person (usually blind-folded) being brought into the room in which a number of persons have previously agreed upon some object to be found by him, they concentrating their thought firmly upon the object. The audience should be taught to not only to think but also to actively "will" the progress of the recipient from the start to the finish of the hunt. They should "will" him along each step of his journey, and then "will" his hand to the object itself wherever it be hidden.

An adept in the receiving end of the Willing Game will be able to perform all the experiments that I have just pointed out to you in the contact mind-reading class. In the Willing Game, you must remember that there is no taking hold of hands or any other form of physical contact between projector and recipient. The transmission of the mental currents must be direct, from brain to brain. Otherwise, the two classes of experiments are almost identical. There is the same "willing" toward the object on the part of the projectors, and the same passive obedience of the recipient. All the difference is that the current now passes over the ether of space, as in the case of the wireless message, instead of over the wires of the nervous system of the two persons.

The next step is that of "guessing" the name of things thought of by the party. I can give you no better directions than those followed by the investigators in the Creery children, as related in a preceding chapter of this book. When you become sufficiently proficient in this class of mind-reading, you should be able to reproduce every experiment there mentioned, with at least a fair degree of success. It is all a matter of patience, perseverance and practice.

After you have become very proficient in this class of experiments, you may begin to try experiments at "long distance," that is where the projector is out of your physical presence. It makes no difference whether the distance be merely that between two adjoining rooms, or else of miles of space. At first, however, nearness adds confidence in the majority of cases. Confidence once gained, the distance may be lengthened indefinitely, without impairing the success of the experiments. The long distance experiments may consist either of the receiving of single words, names, etc., or else distinct, clear messages or ideas. Some find it no more difficult to reproduce simile geometrical designs, such as circles, squares, triangles, etc., than to reproduce words or ideas.

In long distance experiments, it is well for the projector to write down the word or thought he wishes to transmit, and for the recipient to write down the impressions he receives. These memoranda will serve as a record of progress, and will, moreover, give a scientific value to the experiments.

Some experimenters have been quite successful in experiments along the lines of Automatic Writing from living persons, produced by means of long distance telepathy. In these cases the recipient sits passively at the hour agreed upon for the experiment, and the projector concentrates intently upon a sentence, or several sentences, one word at a time—at the same time "willing" the other person to write the word. The famous investigator of psychic phenomena, the late W.T. Stead, editor of a London newspaper, who went down on the "Titanic," was very successful in experiments of this kind. His written records of these are very interesting and instructive.

You will, of course, understand that in all cases of long distance telepathic experiments there should be an understanding between the two persons regarding the time and duration of the experiment, so as to obtain the best results. Personally, however, I have known of some very excellent results in which the receiving of the message occurred several hours after the sending—thus showing that telepathy is in a measure independent of time, as well as of space. But, as a rule, the best results are obtained when the two persons "sit" simultaneously.

Do not rest content with accepting the reports of others regarding these things. Try them for yourself. You will open up a wonderful world of new experiences for yourself. But, remember always, you must proceed step by step, perfecting yourself at each step before proceeding to the next.

LESSON VI.

CLAIRVOYANT PSYCHOMETRY.

The word "clairvoyance" means "clear seeing." In its present usage it covers a wide field of psychic phenomena; and is used by different writers to designate phases of psychic phenomena differing widely from each other. The student is apt to become confused when he meets these apparently conflicting definitions and usages. In the glossary of the Society for Psychical Research, the term is defined as: "The faculty or act of perceiving, as though visually, with some coincidental truth, some distant scene; it is used sometimes, but hardly properly, for transcendental vision, or the perception of beings regarded as on another plane of existence."

Mrs. Henry Sidgwick, a distinguished writer on the subject of psychic phenomena, in one of her reports to the Society for Psychical Research, says: "The word clairvoyant is often used very loosely and with widely different meanings. I denote by it a faculty of acquiring supernormally, but not by reading the minds of persons present, a knowledge of facts such as we normally acquire by the use of our senses. I do not limit it to knowledge that would normally be acquired by the sense of sight, nor do I limit it to a knowledge of present facts. A similar knowledge of the past, and if necessary, of future facts may be included. On the other hand, I exclude the mere faculty of seeing apparitions or visions, which is sometimes called clairvoyance."

The above definitive explanation of the term clairvoyance agrees with the idea of the best authorities, and distinguishes between the phenomena of clairvoyance and that of telepathy, on the one hand; and between the former and that of seeing apparitions, on the other hand. I, personally, accept this distinction as both scientific in form, and as agreeing with the facts of the case. You will, of course, see that the acceptance of the existence of the astral senses throws light on many obscure points about which the psychic researchers are in doubt, and reconciles many apparently opposing facts.

All scientific authorities, as well as the best occultists, divide the phenomena of clairvoyance into several well-distinguished classes. The following classification is simple, and indicates clearly the principal forms of clairvoyant phenomena:

(1) Simple Clairvoyance, in which the clairvoyant person merely senses the auric emanations of other persons, such as the auric vibrations, colors, etc.; currents of thought-vibrations, etc.; but does not see events or scenes removed in space or time from the observer.

(2) Clairvoyance in Space, in which the clairvoyant person senses scenes and events removed in space from the observer; and, often also is able to sense such things even when they are concealed or obscured by intervening material objects.

(3) Clairvoyance in Time, in which the clairvoyant person senses scenes and events which have had their original place in past time; or scenes and events which will have their original place in the future.

I shall describe each of these three classes, with their many variations, as we reach them in their proper places in these lessons. Before doing so however, I wish to explain to you the several methods by which clairvoyant vision is usually induced. These methods may be designated as follows:

(1) Psychometry, or the method of getting en rapport with the astral plane by means of some physical object connected with the person, thing, or scene about which you desire to be informed.

(2) Crystal Gazing, etc., or the method of getting en rapport with the astral plane by means of gazing into a crystal, magic mirror, etc.

(3) Clairvoyant Reverie, or the method of getting en rapport with the astral plane by means of psychic states in which the sights, sounds and thoughts of the material and physical plane are shut out of consciousness.

I shall now proceed to give the details regarding each one of these three great classes of methods inducing clairvoyant vision, or en rapport conditions with the astral plane.

Psychometry. Psychometry is that form of clairvoyant phenomena in which the clairvoyant gets into en rapport relation with the astral plane by