soulman

Ladies and Gentlemen: I just don't think I can have a civil discussion here under your rules, since as I explained, I'm presenting evidence on the continuing widespread occurrence of metaphysical phenomena -- which I identify as all having a spiritual connection -- and science's reaction to it, as presented in the daily news, 100 years of books, 4,000 years of history, and a wide array of holy documents. I contend this is all evidence of some higher source, a contention which science ignores and/or debunks. We disagree, and your rules make this discussion intolerably difficult for me, since I'm reporting popular and mainstream sources, not the original lab results and analysis you want. Here's one last shot, and I'll end my association with this forum. © Awakening The Soul: The Trilogy: "Convincing mainstream science to change its 400 years of denial will not be easy. As author Michael Talbot noted in Beyond the Quantum: “Many scientists are so convinced that paranormal functioning does not exist that no amount of evidence, no matter how substantiated or credible, will ever persuade them that it does. For example, (physicists Hal) Puthoff and (Russell) Targ report that in submitting one article on remote viewing, one response they received from an ‘expert’ ... was, ‘This is the kind of thing that I would not believe in even if it existed.’” "So deep is the doubt of mainstream science, that a 1988 study of parapsychology, conducted for the U.S. Army by the prestigious National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences entitled Enhancing Human Performance concluded: “The Committee finds no scientific justification from research conducted over a period of 130 years for the existence of parapsychological phenomena.” This damning judgment was rendered without a complete review of those same studies. At the same time, the government was continuing to fund secret experiments in remote viewing, which proved remarkably accurate.231" You folks do need someone to joust with you and keep you aware of alternative realities, but I don't have the time. Adios, Soulman

No I don't, for I know there are flawed tests out there that deserve debunking. However, there are far more that are unfairly debunked. If the shoe fits, wear it.

Moontan: I fully reported that mainstream science has rejected all aspects of reported metaphysical/paranormal phenomena, often without fully examining the data, and explained why this occurred: "Church suspicion and hostility toward science began soon after the founding of the Church. From the 4th Century BC to the founding days of modern science in the 16th Century AD – a span of 2,000 years – there was only one primary version of science, the Greek science of Aristotle and Plato. In fact, it was Aristotle who first coined the word, “science.” Greek science included three broad segments: the study of physics  the study of things that change; the study of mathematics  the study of abstract quantity, and the study of metaphysics  defined as the study of “being.”45 "This last category became – de facto – the Church’s domain, for everything considered metaphysical was, in fact, being expressed through our consciousness or seemed “miraculous” in some way. This territory the Church claimed as its own, and thus science and scientists avoided all things metaphysical for fear of inviting Church scrutiny. That set the stage for today’s skeptical avoidance of all things metaphysical by a broad body of mainstream science, which ridicules all such claims as bogus or delusional. The Church co-opted one of the three primary branches of scientific study, and science has never reclaimed it." © Awakening The Soul: The Trilogy Mainstream science has never fully investigated metaphysics, just ignored it or debunked it Bill (Soulman)

Ladies and Gentlemen: I am not a scientist attempting to introduce a new scientific theorem here, I'm an investigative journalist reporting the widespread evidence for the reality of metaphysical phenomena. As I stated in my ATS books: "Since I am neither theologian, scientist, philosopher, historian, nor psychologist, I sought the findings and opinions of learned men and women in these various fields to authenticate the premise of this book. I quote them extensively throughout, letting their words make the case that is presented." © You'll have to check in with my sources to get the proof you demand. You are intent on refuting their findings, which I simply collected and presented. If so many expert men and women (many of them scientists themselves) throughout the world are convinced of this reality, you are challenging them, not me. Here's another ATS excerpt, to demonstrate this point: "Nobel laureate Dr. Charles Richet, honored for his discovery of allergic shock, felt the wrath of criticism when he began studying clairvoyance: “I didn’t say it was possible,” he retorted. “I only said it was true.”221 The same thing happened to physicist Robert Jahn, dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Science at Princeton University, and a noted authority on aerospace through years of work with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the Department of Defense. His work with psychologist Brenda Dunne produced significant results in the field of OBE remote viewing. “Did his colleagues applaud his pioneering spirit?” asks author Richard Broughton in his 1991 book, Parapsychology: The Controversial Science. “Not exactly. They as much as said he was crazy and a disgrace to science and the university.” Jahn was ousted from his dean’s post for his “unconventional” research. Subsequent analysis of Jahn and Dunne’s work revealed the likelihood their results were due to chance was 1 in 100 billion." © More food for thought .. Soulman

Moontanman: I'm going to deal with your assertion that there is no evidence with a section from my book which deals with this very issue. It cites further case by case refutations as well. I would also suggest you read Michael Talbot's "The Holographic Universe," Dr. Dean Radin's "The Conscious Universe," and Damien Broderick's "Outside the Gates of Science: Why it's time for the paranormal to come in from the cold." The ATS excerpt © Awakening The Soul: The Trilogy: Scientists were so intimidated by the Church’s ban that it was not until the late 19th Century before science broke the Church’s embargo on investigating spiritual “phenomena,” when the London Dialectical Society appointed 33 members in 1869 to form a committee to study such phenomena. The more formal and dedicated British Society for Psychical Research was founded in 1882 for its own investigations. The lateness of this formal inquiry is directly due to the Church’s complete suppression of such “phenomena” and the fact that the Inquisition officially ended only two generations before, in 1816. Three Nobel laureates and a number of prestigious scientists helped create the Society, with Cambridge University philosophy professor and noted psychical skeptic Henry Sidgwick as its first leader. Members included Sir Oliver Lodge, the eminent physicist from Liverpool University; Sir William Barrett, professor of physics at the University College of Dublin, Frederic Myers, lecturer at Trinity College, Cambridge, and Henry Balfour, later to become British prime minister. Other esteemed scientific minds of the era – including physicists Albert Einstein, Max Planck and Erwin Schrodinger, psychologist William James and psychiatrists Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung, as well as radiation researcher Madame Curie – tracked the Society’s impressive work investigating a broad range of spiritual experiences. This led to the establishment of an American branch of the society in 1885, which began making inquiries into “inexplicable” (spiritual) occurrences in the U.S. This in turn spawned a series of extensive, serious studies of “paranormal” experience, including those of Frederick Myers (1903), William James (1885-1909), J.B. Rhine (1927-1966) at Duke University, Dr. J.G. Pratt (1933) and numerous others joining the field after the 1950’s. These extensive investigations conducted millions of tests, using thousands of volunteers, proving the validity of a number of “paranormal” (literally, “beyond normal”) human abilities. The mere fact that testing was this extensive indicates – at the very least – there was something valid to test. “Between 1880 and 1940, 145 empirical ESP (extra-sensory perception) studies were published which used 77,796 subjects who made 4,918,186 single trial guesses,” writes psychotherapist Dr. Jeffrey Mishlove. “These experiments were mostly conducted by psychologists and other scientists. In 106 (of 145) such studies, the authors arrived at results which exceeded chance expectations.”170 Since 1940, the studies of out-of-body and near-death experiences, reincarnation, and a host of other fields, prove the validity of personal spiritual experience. Despite the fact that spiritual experiences such as telepathy, out-of-body remote viewing, precognitive insight and intuitive visions are spontaneous more often than not, lab testing has repeatedly verified their reality. As metaphysical researcher Renee Haynes states: “Many spontaneous instances of the paranormal ... have been checked and verified by standards of evidence acceptable in a court of law.”171 Metaphysical researcher Jeffrey Iverson, in his 1992 book In Search of the Dead, confirms the validity of the experimentation for proof of metaphysics: “... There is hard scientific evidence, from hundreds of repeatable laboratory tests, computer analyzed, suggesting such things may be possible. Most scientists who dismiss psi (spiritual) phenomena out of hand as superstitious nonsense have almost certainly never read Charles Honorton’s analysis of 15 years of Ganzfeld tests in 14 different laboratories. His statistical conclusion to this vast series of remote viewing tests is that the odds against the high success rate due to chance or lucky guesses are ‘trillions to one’.” He also notes, “Most scientists who concede the possibility of the paranormal do so from some personal experience and not because of the strength of the evidence.”172 The late Prof. Hans Eysenck of London University’s Institute of Psychiatry noted the absurdity of dismissing all these tests as bogus: “Unless there is a gigantic conspiracy involving 30 university departments all over the world, and several hundred highly respected scientists in various fields, many of them hostile to the claims of psychical researchers, the only conclusion the unbiased observer can come to must be that there does exist a small number of people who obtain knowledge, existing either in other people’s minds or in the outer world, by means as yet unknown to science.”173 Food for thought ... Soulman

Thunderbird: Thanks for comparing my "Awakening The Soul" to the works of Castenada, Deepak Chopra and Wayne Dyer (one of my personal heroes) but I think the similarity ends pretty much with the subject matter. I've read the works of all of these authors, and ATS goes far beyond all of them. (I don't want to discount any of their work, however, for each is a vitally important piece of the puzzle, and each influenced me. ATS, however, deals with some very different concepts that can't be directly compared to their work, while acknowledging all of their work. I quote a lot from Dyer's "Your Sacred Self.") You stated: "The main contention of the author appears to be.., and correct if I’m wrong, is that we do not seek this personal development because organized religion has programmed us not to because we are boomed (doomed?) if we do not follow someone else's special experiences instead of following our own." Correction: We seek this personal spiritual development because it has been denied us by our religions (most of them, anyway) for much of the last 2,000 years. The books don't provide individual guidance in any particular dogma, as much as they provide spiritual knowledge and tools to introduce you to your own spiritual nature, and thereby to learn from your own special, individual spiritual experiences. You're not following someone else, but creating your own path. You are quite correct about the perversion of Christianity, because every single one of the spiritual talents/abilties/traits that St.Paul cited in his Letters to the Corinthians were later denied by the church as "demonic," "heretical," "evil" or somehow off-limits. Now we are taking these powers back. You said: "Get to know you’re higher self though practicing self awareness after throwing off social programming though fear." Righteous on! That's it exactly. Thanks for the encouragment. The Force is with me. Namaskara, Bill (Soulman)

Galapagos: As noted earlier, I'm not a metaphysical performer, although I have experienced a number of metaphysical abilities and traits. I'm very familiar with The Amazing Randi and his challenge, which I will leave to the performers. (Although personally, I think Randi's anti-spiritual convictions would drive him to discount any metaphyscial or paranormal abilities.) I'm here because I believe there is a higher message in my books for those with open minds. I don't cater to the gullible or the naive, but to those spiritual seekers who want answers to the many unanswered questions humanity faces. If I can help in that regard, it's worth the effort it takes.

Pamela et al: Thank you for the moral support, even though you retain your skepticism. I don't blame you, I'd be skeptical too. But believe me, there is a lot more truth here than most would admit. However, I don't "believe" this; but rather, I "know" this, because I have directly experienced many of the things we've talked about. I don't profess to be a metaphysical performing talent, I just happen to know a great deal about it, in all likelihood a lot more than my detractors. You can't debunk something across the board without investigating, experimenting, and activating as I have done. It was part of my learning process, and my accrued knowledge led me to an understanding that has been fundamentally transforming. Those of you with a scintilla of curiosity could benefit by expanding your knowledge horizons. Remaining in denial over the entire field doesn't allow for much of a learning curve. Soulman

My point exactly. (The abundance of spiritual self-help books, evidence of the great demand for this knowledge.)

Thunderbird: You've got it. (Except for the UFO's, which are outside of ourselves.) Thanks for the Teilhard quote, to whom I dedicated (in part) my book series. Namaskara, Soulman

Pyro: If you expect me to say, "levitate over tall buildings in a single bound," you will be disappointed. But I suspect you guys just don't get it. It's not what you can "do" with this knowledge that it is important. Learning about your spiritual traits and abilities is just an introduction to the real you. What is important is that you get to know your own internal spiritual guidance system and how it operates, which most people are totally out of touch with. As you get to know this spiritual side of yourself, you grow in finally understanding who you really are. You will develop greater spiritual talents as you grow with them, but that is just the learning process, not the goal. I do have enhanced spiritual perception, which has greatly enhanced my intuition and internal guidance system. This is guiding me into the future with the assurance that I will be able to cope with the coming chaos (the economic landslide is only half-way down the hill, and is accelerating) that we have already begun experiencing. (That is one reason why I live in southern Mexico). There is a great demand for this knowledge, evidenced by the 60 million adult Americans who profess no religion. Most of these people are still trying to make sense out of life, through a variety of alternative spiritual paths, and I provide an explanation no one else has provided to date. I don't expect to ever "get rich" from my chosen path in life, but I'm confident I'm on the right path. Soulman

Pamela: Interesting link. I've looked it over, and will return for a more thorough read. It seems to dovetail with the findings I cited earlier. Soulman

There are a number of things I could do with the knowledge I have accrued, aside from writing books. I could easily go on the lecture/seminar circuit (which I have done before) for there is great demand for this knowledge now in this time of awakening. But I don't feel like travelling, and writing is my passion, so I will stick with it for the meantime. I've got one more book in production. I do have one invitation pending for a seminar in Dublin, Ireland, this summer which I may do, however, since my family is from Ireland. Soulman

Is immaturity a sign of insecurity?