Practical Mind Reading
	Higher Phenomena <  Previous Contents

IN THE demonstrations described and explained in the previous parts of this work, the mental impressions travel from one mind to another over the channels of the "telegraphic wires" of the nervous system of the Transmitter and Receiver. In other words the Mind Reading that is employed in the feats and demonstrations given, is akin to the ordinary "telegraphic current" traveling over the wires from sending station to receiving station, the nervous system of the two persons furnishing a very close counterpart to the telegraphic wire, etc. But there is a step beyond this, many steps in fact. While the "Contact Mind Reading" which we have described and explained is surely wonderful enough to attract the attention of all thinking minds, still when the advanced student passes on to the field of the Higher Phenomena he is destined to meet with marvelous results which in some cases almost surpass belief. This Higher Phenomena of Mind Reading, or "Telepathic Mind Reading," when compared to the Contact Mind Reading, is as the "wireless telegraph" when compared to the ordinary telegraph using wires.

In Lesson 1 of this book, we have given you the theories held by scientific men regarding the nature of the waves or currents that proceed from one mind to another, and the mechanism by which these waves are registered. We think it will be interesting to many of you to know that certain Occultists have their own theory regarding this matter, which while not widely known is still of the greatest interest to earnest students of the scientific side of the subject. We allude to what is known as "The Pineal Gland" theory. The Pineal Gland is a small gland, cone-shaped, and of a reddish-gray color, situated in the brain about the middle of the skull, nearly above the top of the spinal column. It is a compact mass of nervous matter, containing a quantity of what has been called "brain-sand" which is composed of very small particles of gritty matter. The anatomists and physiologists confess their ignorance of the function and purpose of the Pineal Gland, and it remains for the Occultists to explain its real nature, which is the receiving and registering of the waves or currents, or vibrations of thought and Will received from another person. This Pineal Gland is, according to the Occultists, the receiving instrument for the "wireless Mind Reading," and in fact it resembles the actual receiver of the wireless telegraph in more than one respect.

In the first place the student who is practicing the experiments given in previous chapters, and who is making the demonstrations given there, will find that at times he is able to do away with the physical contact. He will loosen his hold upon the hand of the Transmitter, and at times will sever the contact entirely, and after the feat is demonstrated he will realize to his astonishment that he has performed the principal part of the feat without contact at all. He may be almost unconscious of this fact, for the reason that he was so much immersed and absorbed in his work that he did not have time to think of these details. At other times he will find that even before he has made the physical contact with the Transmitter, he will receive a flash of mental impression which will enable him to proceed to the selected location, or object, at once.

These experiences will become so frequent and so strong that he may often (in the cases of peculiarly sensitive people) perform the entire feat without the physical contact of the Transmitter and perhaps without any Transmitter at all. In well developed cases the receiver may perform the simple feats, and sometimes some of the more complicated ones, merely by the aid of the Concentrated Will of the audience.

We have known of cases in which a pocket-knife was the selected and hidden object, and when the demonstrator would enter the room he would receive a sudden mental impression of the word "knife," followed by the impression "under the sofa-pillow," etc., and upon going to the designated spot the knife would be found. Every person who carefully practices the demonstrations given in this book will be able to add actual experiences of this kind, of his own, which have been experienced by him during the course of his work.

In order to develop the ability to produce the Higher Phenomena, the best course is for the student to frequently practice the demonstration and experiments of Contact Mind Reading, as this will develop the receptive faculties of the mind. Then the student may occasionally practice with a few sympathetic and harmonious friends, endeavoring to reproduce the demonstrations without physical contact.

He may also try the experiment of having a friend hold a certain number of small buttons, etc., in his hand, and endeavor to will that the student shall "guess" the right number. Some people attain a surprising proficiency in this work, almost from the first. A similar experiment with the pack of cards, the student endeavoring to "guess" the card drawn from the pack, naming color, suit, and number in turn, may afford successful results. A number of these experiments may be thought of by an ingenious person, remembering always that the "guess" is not a guess at all, but an attempt to register the mental impression of the Transmitter.

The well-known "Willing Game" will afford you an opportunity to develop this faculty of "wireless" Mind Reading. Your audience is seated in the room, and you enter blindfolded. An object has been previously selected. You stand in the center of the room, and the audience wills "to the right"; then "forward"; then "a little lower down," etc., until the object is found just as was the case when the Transmitter sends the impressions. The audience should Will only one step at a time, and you should take that one step without thought of the succeeding ones. The mind should be held as receptive as possible, that is, "open" to vibrations. Take your time, and do not let hurry or anxiety enter your mind. It will be well to practice this experiment with members of your family, or with harmonious and sympathetic friends.

Experiments of "wireless" Mind Reading or Telepathy may be tried between friends at long distances, space apparently presenting no obstacle to the passage of the thought waves. Pick out some friend with whom you have established a strong rapport condition by means of his having acted as your Transmitter in your Contact Mind Reading experiments, and by having practiced Rhythmic Breathing, as heretofore described. Have the transmitter sit in his room at the appointed time, gazing intently at some small simple object, such as a knife, a glass, a cup, a book, etc., and endeavoring to make a clear mental picture of it, which picture he should also Will to be reproduced in your mind. Remember he should think of the looks or appearance of the object not merely of its name. He should think of the shape, etc., of the book, instead of thinking the word "book." At the same time you should sit quietly in your room, placing yourself in the same passive, receptive mental attitude that you have acquired and practiced in your Contact Mind Readings. Then wait patiently for impressions. After a while, if successful, you should get the mental picture of a book, or whatever object was thought of by the Transmitter.

This experiment may be varied from time to time, the principle being the same in all cases. It will be well for both the Transmitter and the Receiver to keep a written record of the time of each experiment, and the objects thought of. Several objects may be thought of at a sitting of say five minutes apart, a careful record being kept by both parties of the time, and object, so that a later comparison may show the result of the experiments. In case of the two people being in different cities, they may mail each other copies of their record for comparison.

Another way of conducting experiments along the lines of the Higher Phenomena of Mind Reading, is akin to the "Automatic Writing" known to all students of Occultism. The Transmitter concentrates his thought and Will in the usual manner, while the Receiver places himself in the usual receptive, passive state of mind, and awaits the impressions. But instead of the Receiver merely sitting as usual, he draws his chair to a table, having a soft pencil in his hand and a pad of paper on the table before him. He holds the pencil lightly between his fingers, with its point touching the paper and then awaits the impressions. Under good conditions, after waiting a time, the pencil will begin to twitch and move feebly. The hands and fingers should allow it full and free motion. After a few moments of indecision the pencil will often begin to write out words. In many experiments the word or object thought of by the Transmitter will be written out, or drawn in full by the hand of the Receiver acting automatically. Some experimenters succeed much better with this plan than with the more common method.

Mr. W.T. Stead, the well-known London editor and investigator of Psychic Phenomena, discovered this method while he was experimenting along the lines of Automatic Writing from disembodied souls. He found that he was really coming in contact with the thought-waves emanating from the minds of the living, instead of the dead. He persisted in his experiments along these lines, and after a time was able to write out full letters embodying the thoughts in the minds of persons of his acquaintance, and others. Other investigators have reproduced his experiments with marvelous results. There is a great field here, awaiting investigation, and it may be that some of the students of this work are destined to add to the scientific testimony on the subject. The above simple directions are all that are necessary, in order to conduct the scientific experiment.

There is a great difference in the degree of rapport existing between different people, and as the degree of success depends upon the degree of rapport, it is of the greatest importance that you find some person with whom you are in harmonious vibration, in order to try these experiments in the Higher Phenomena.

We will not burden the student with recitals experiments to perform in this Higher Phenomena demonstration. He may readily devise experiments for himself, from the examples given in connection with the Contact Mind Reading. The Transmitter may think of a card; an object; a name; a place; a scene; a thought; a feeling, etc., etc., without limit. And it makes no difference in the nature of the experiment or test, whether it be tried at long-range, or in the same room, without contact. The feat is the same, the principle is the same.

As a further suggestion to the student, we would refer him to Lesson 2 of this work, to the report of the experiments with Mr. Smith and Mr. Blackburn. If you will carefully read this report again, you will find a wealth of suggestions regarding the forms of demonstrations. But, bless your hearts, the experiments may be varied without end - the principle is the same in each case. The underlying principle is that the Transmitter thinks intently upon the appearance of the object or thing, or else upon the feeling connected with it if it be a feeling instead of an object; and the Receiver endeavors to receive the impression. The Transmitter manifests an Active Will to transmit the mental image, while the Receiver assumes a passive, receptive desire to receive the impression. The one is all Will, the other is all Desire.

Concluding this chapter on the Higher Phenomena of Mind Reading, we would say to the students that very few of them will have the perseverance to continue their experiments beyond the point of Contact Mind Reading, or perhaps the simplest forms of the Higher Phenomena. Contact Mind Reading is far more satisfactory to the average person, for its results are very constant indeed, and comparatively little labor, time and trouble are necessary to make the demonstrations. While on the contrary the results of the demonstrations of the Higher Phenomena are less constant except in the cases of very highly developed Receivers, working with Transmitters in almost perfect rapport, and harmony. Then the average experiments along the lines of the Higher Phenomena, some days will prove highly successful, while other days will be almost barren of result. In fact there seems to be a sort of spontaneous action in the production of the Higher Phenomena, and the degree of success depends more or less upon some conditions of the mental world, not as yet fully understood by science. But to those who wish to push into the Unknown as far as they may do so, this field of the Higher Phenomena of Mind Reading offers a fascination and attraction difficult to express to those who have not experienced it.