UPDATE: Crashed UFO found?

Following up on this post, it appears as if we may never find out what that strange object on the bottom of the ocean is.

UFO found on ocean floor?

The article says that the team that found the object have no plans to explore it further. If it is actually a crashed extraterrestrial craft it could have incalculable value but if it's just a natural formation then it would probably be a huge waste of time and resources.

It seems that what I was afraid of will be the case: This will be one of those very interesting things that falls by the wayside and that never has any definitive answers, essentially making it a permanent mystery. I'm sure this lack of further exploration will fuel the fires of conspiracy theory.

Benevolent Space Brothers? Maybe not.

Some new tinkering with Drake's equation suggests that we could be alone in the universe.

Are We Alone In the Universe? New Analysis Says Maybe

Can you imagine how profound it would be if we were the only intelligent species in the entire universe? I don't really think we'd ever be able to determine that for certain until we were able to investigate every inch of the universe and I don't think that's likely anytime soon (if ever). Our galaxy alone presents a daunting challenge for anyone hoping to get in touch with other intelligent life. Isn't it still interesting to think about the implications of either outcome though?

I'm not sure if it would have a humbling effect to discover we were the only ones here or if it would push our hubris over the edge.

A Magical Education

I'm going to keep it short today as I would rather you be reading the link I'm about to provide. I came across a lecture called "A Magical Education" by John Michael Greer that I think anyone interested in the magical arts should read at least once.

A Magical Education

Drop me a line.

And if that submerged circular goodness wasn't enough for you this Friday night, I have finally set up an email address for the blog. You can find it in the "Contact Me" section on the right margin but I'll go on and put it here for even more convenience: patentlyparanormal@gmail.com.

So if you have a story you'd like to share, a tip on an interesting paranormal topic, or just need to get in touch with me for some reason you now have a way to do so. I can't promise I'll reply to everything but I'll do my best to stay on top of any mail I get. I look forward to hearing from you.

Crashed UFO found?

Explorers find bizarre, spaceship-like object at the bottom of the Baltic Sea

I really hope that this isn't one of those things that falls by the sidelines and we never find out what the object actually is. The fact that it's circular makes it really interesting as that shape wouldn't be expected to occur naturally. This doesn't mean that it's a crashed flying saucer but, in my opinion, it does make it interesting enough to take a look at up close.

It could even shine some light on the phenomenon of unidentified submerged objects (USOs). These are reported to be similar to UFOs except they are seen in the oceans, sometimes coming out of or going back into the water with seemingly no difficulty at all. USOs add a whole new dimension to the UFO phenomenon. Since this unknown object has tracks leading up to it there is the implication that it has moved at some point.

I really am excited to see what it turns out to be.

The Lizard Man of South Carolina

Searching the Web for "lizard man" will most likely give you The Lizardman, a sideshow performer, or it will give you the Lizard Man, a humanoid cryptid that seems to have resurfaced recently.

The cryptid in question is described as being seven feet tall with scaly skin, glowing red eyes, and three fingers on each hand. Alleged footprints are three-toed. Without going too deeply into the back story (which is explained by the link above) I can't help but see the resemblance to the reptilian humanoids or the Reptilians that pop up a lot in conspiracy theories and UFO lore. As it happens, lizard people pop up rather often in regards to the paranormal as can be seen by this search on paranormal.about.com.

I can't help but find myself wondering if the Lizard Man might be an extraterrestrial or an extradimensional, assuming it's not a hoax or misidentification. Considering how it likes to maul automobiles, the only thing that it could be besides an actual seven-foot-tall lizard would be a bear. I'm not really sure how someone could misidentify a bear to such a degree but I suppose anything is possible in the dark.

If this is a bear, I suppose one would also have to ask why it likes to destroy automobile fenders. Bears and other animals have been known to break into cars to get at some food that's inside, but I'm not sure why a bear would bite through the chrome bumpers or other outlying metal parts of a car. It just seems exceptionally odd to me. Even in the case of a Lizard Man biting the cars it's still very odd.

A humorous bit of speculation I have to offer is that perhaps this Lizard Man is a stranded alien and it is attacking cars in the hopes of salvaging material to repair whatever it used to get here in the first place. Not understanding Earth technology, all it manages to do is result in repair bills and scary stories for the people that encounter it. So then it sulks off, homesick, waiting to try again another night or perhaps hoping that someone will send a damn rescue mission. This is the stuff of science fiction, but if there really is a Lizard Man running around South Carolina and attacking cars in incidents decades apart then why else would it be doing it? I suppose the creature could just not like cars.

Anyway, here's a recent article from the Huffington Post that suggests the Lizard Man may be back:

Lizard Man Reportedly Mauls And Bites Through South Carolina Couple's Car

io9 is offering $2000 for authentic cryptid shots.

io9 Offers $2000 Bounty For Authentic Photos Of Cryptids

io9 is looking for submissions of authentic pictures or videos of cryptids and I'm curious to see what they end up getting. They've already put up a few of the submissions for voting and you can find and vote on those here. In my opinion, most of the critters on that page are insects that could probably be identified by a competent expert. Another looks like a decomposing sea turtle to me. Overall, I think that the white cheetah is the most compelling and the reasons for that are outlined in the description accompanying the photo.

The folks at io9 also have a contest for the best fakes that are submitted but all you'll get are some books and DVDs. All of the authentic submissions will be judged by a panel of experts that will make the final decisions. Submissions also have to be original and submitted by the person that shot them. All of these factors should make for some really interesting submissions.

I'm really glad to see a website doing something like this in what seems to be a lighthearted manner. Sure, there may not be any groundbreaking scientific discoveries coming out of it but for those that are interested in cryptozoology this is definitely something to keep an eye on. Is there incentive to try to pass off a hoax as the real deal? Sure. Will it make this entire prospect any less interesting? I doubt it. If anything, I think it will be even more interesting to see if anyone is able to pull one over on the panel of experts.

More Dowsing

Today I used dowsing for a practical application and had some success. I won't go too heavily into why or how dowsing works, just that it worked for me today.

I used my L-shaped rods to pinpoint the location of a water pipe that was leaking, buried approximately three-and-a-half feet underground. We knew the general location of the pipe and the leak, but when digging a hole that deep with a shovel it's a good idea to be as sure as you can be. So, not thinking much of it, I went and got my rods and just walked perpendicular to where we had an idea the pipe was a few times. When I crossed the pipe the rods spread to line up with it, giving me a general idea of where the pipe was. Using this, I was able to determine that the hole we had started was maybe slightly to the side of the pipe, but still suitable.

Not terribly impressive, but it was enough to add a little strange to my day. Later on, after the leak was fixed, I was walking around with the rods and testing them out a little bit. A neighbor mentioned that if the water wasn't running then the rods wouldn't work. I didn't agree with this at the time and I still don't. I did mention to him that some people believe that dowsing can be used to find more than just water; things like minerals, oil, gold, and bodies. Out of curiosity, before going inside I checked the water meter after testing my rods. The meter at the time I checked it showed no water was moving through it, suggesting no moving water in the pipe. Because of this I don't think that water absolutely must be moving to find it through dowsing.

There are a lot of factors that could have played to my relative success with dowsing today, more mundane factors. I acknowledge this. However, the leak was found and repaired and that's all that really matters.

Here is more information on dowsing:

All About Dowsing
How To Practice Dowsing
Dowsing: Subconscious and the Paranormal

Ghost Photos

Photographs of ghosts are perhaps the Holy Grail of ghost hunting. That being so, there are lots of attempts to fake ghost photos. There are also a lot of photos that show natural phenomena that has been misidentified as paranormal. Someone with enough experience in this field can usually pick out when a photo has been tampered with or when the "ghost" is just a trick of light and shadows. For skeptics and believers, knowing how to pick out a fake or misidentification makes it a little easier to determine what is the real deal. To that end, I give you the following link:

Photos That AREN'T Paranormal

To give a taste of what real ghost photos may look like there's this:

The Best Ghost Pictures Ever Taken

And finally, if you're the type that likes to find things for yourself:

How To Photograph Ghosts

I've never been much of a photographer and ghost pictures have never really done it for me, but it's a facet of the larger phenomena that I thought should be explored. Hopefully you find these links interesting, even if all you get out of them is learning how to spot hoaxes or misidentified natural phenomena.

Synchronicity, Destiny, and Free Will

I'm sure all of us have had times in our lives where events come together in a way that makes us look up and take notice. "Hey, that's strange," we might say and then think nothing of it. You're thinking of a particular song and then that song comes on the radio. You're interested in a particular subject and then in the near future a documentary or other show about that subject comes on television. A lot of people will pass these off as just coincidences, but sometimes they stand out so much that it's impossible not to say "Maybe something strange is happening here."

There is an occult maxim that states "Like attracts like." Perhaps this is how synchronicity works. When we have something in our minds that we are focused on then maybe it will manifest in our external reality through this occult principle. This same idea is seen in sayings like "Misery loves company," and brooding on your misfortunes is likely to send you deeper into despair. Listening to upbeat music will put one in a positive mood. We are more likely to find something that we are specifically looking for. These are just basic examples of like attracting like, but they get the point across.

So, we draw to us what we focus upon. What about things that we focus upon unconsciously? Things beyond our conscious awareness? Perhaps destiny is synchronicity taken to the next level.

If we incarnate on the physical plane to have experiences and to learn things, how can we be sure that we will learn the things we mean to learn when we choose (or when someone else chooses) for us to incarnate? Sure, we may be able to choose where and to whom we are born to get us on the right track, but could we really take into account every permutation of reality and plan accordingly before setting our (re)incarnation into motion? This is where a "higher self" might come into play. If there is a correlation between the unconscious mind and the higher self, the part of us that abides outside of our incarnated state, that part that is our link with the higher realities, then maybe destiny is just synchronicity on a larger, deeper, and more complex scale determined by the focus of our higher self.

In this view synchronistic experiences and destiny may be the same process but just orders of magnitude apart, both designed to attract to us what we are focusing on either consciously or unconsciously. What does this mean for free will? If our overall destiny is determined by a higher aspect of ourselves then are we really in control of our lives? How do we reconcile a higher plan with personal free will? Maybe we're given free reign within certain parameters that are set out for us within this lifetime. Maybe this gentle guiding is why we find some things to be so difficult, maybe impossible, and yet other things are effortless even though they don't vary much in general intensity or difficulty.

An example would be a career path that one just cannot break into, everything goes wrong, and it just does not seem to be feasible no matter how much a person may try or seem to desire it on the surface. However, success at another career (or in another area of life) may be smooth and relatively easy. Maybe this is the nudge of our higher self, the superconscious self, the soul, guiding us through the things that it is focused upon, the things that we need to accomplish in this life to learn the lessons we were placed here to learn. In this case it would seem that the higher self's focus overrides the conscious self's focus. Or maybe we were supposed to fail at this thing as part of our learning experience. Without the benefit of insight it's hard to know whether it's a learning experience in itself or guiding us toward a learning experience. Maybe it's both.


Basically, the big picture would be unavoidable but we would be in control of the details. That is, if any of this holds true. This has just been me musing on synchronicity, destiny, and free will as I find myself in my own life feeling more and more like I'm being guided down a certain path by the things that take place around me and my own strengths and weaknesses. Hopefully you found this interesting and it inspired you to give it all a little thought.

EVP - Electronic Voice Phenomena

Electronic voice phenomena (EVP) are voices that mysteriously appear on recording media and they have been a staple of ghost hunting for years now. The idea is that by giving the dead a conduit to speak through they can imprint their voices on magnetic recording media. EVP is typically undetectable at the time it is being recorded and is only noticeable upon playback. EVPs are also usually low in volume, whispery, and can sometimes warble in and out of audibility depending on the quality of the EVP. The specific mechanism that allows for EVP is unknown.

The practice as we know it dates back to the 1950s. The key players in popularizing EVP were Attila von Szalay, Raymond Bayless, Friedrich Jurgenson, and Konstantin Raudive. In fact, had it not been for Raudive's book Breakthrough: An Amazing Experiment in Electronic Communication with the Dead being translated into English, the phenomenon may have never made it across the Atlantic. Hard to imagine considering how popular EVP is now.

Naturally there are people skeptical of whether these voices are actually the voices of the deceased. There's no scientifically accepted way that the deceased should be able to communicate through audio tape and natural explanations for EVP abound. However, when has that ever stopped me from writing about something before? I'm of the opinion that if the messages have meaning then the hows or whys are not as important and the phenomenon needs to be investigated. Pushing EVP under the rug because it can be explained away naturally is a cop-out, especially when it's something that can be easily tested by anyone with a tape recorder.

The implications that electronic communication with the dead could have are huge. Being able to communicate with those on the other side of death with no special abilities and very simple equipment could lead us into an era of knowing what's on the other side instead of just blindly believing or inferring it. Imagine what effects that would have on humanity as a species. This would of course require that EVP be accepted by the establishment though, and that may be too tall of an order at this point in time. However, that's no reason we shouldn't try it for ourselves if we have the interest.

I've yet to experiment with EVP but I've been studying the phenomenon and how to do it and I hope to begin trying to pick up voices from the beyond in the next few days. I'd like to say that anything I capture will be put up on this blog but I can't promise that. While I consider myself technically savvy, I just might not have the equipment or expertise to put any EVPs I may get on here. I may, in the future, transcribe sessions or share my experiences if I have any that are relevant but again, I can't promise that. I've avoided putting up some profound experiences I've had on this blog before because I still have a hard time wrapping my mind around them sometimes and, quite frankly, if I read them on some random blog on the Internet I probably wouldn't believe them myself.

I can see myself maybe doing an EVP how-to if I find success with it though, so that might be something to look forward to. Until then I've got some links for you:

Electronic voice phenomena at Wikipedia
Electronic Voice Phenomenon Samples
EVP Samples
Ghost Audio at paranormal.about.com

Armchair Occultism

In my opinion, armchair occultism is a common trap among the mystically inclined. It's easy to move from book to book, absorbing knowledge but not really doing anything with it. Intellectual and scholarly pursuit alone is worth the time for many but when armchair occultists clash with practical magicians it can sometimes get ugly. An armchair magician might say that something has to be done a certain way, no exceptions, because that's what the books they've read have said. How can they say this with certainty if they've never actually attempted it themselves, especially when a more pragmatic occultist has had success going against the grain? The reality is sometimes very different from what the books say.

Study is a necessary part of occult practice because one has to have something to practice in the first place and we learn about this through study. However, knowledge not applied has the same benefit as reading a novel. It can be entertaining, it can make you think, but it usually has no practical benefit. The practical magician, the one that studies to find new things to practice, is going to have the truer and more fulfilling experience. The practical magician is going to have something that the armchair occultist can only wish for: firsthand experience of the mysteries.

This said, it's a good idea to have a firm grasp of your source material and the knowledge of the past. Very few people have ever said "I'll just go practice magic today," without having picked up a book on the subject before. This is how knowledge progresses; we build upon the knowledge of those that came before us. I'll also tell the truth and say that it doesn't hurt your credibility to be able to throw out a few prominent (or even more obscure) examples of occult literature in discussions with like-minded individuals. Knowing where your practices came from can help you progress them. New material sparks new ideas and this requires study.

The gist of what I'm trying to get at with this post is that you should be mindful not to fall into the trap of armchair occultism if you hope to be a practicing occultist. As annoying as armchair occultists can be in discussions, the only true danger is in becoming an armchair occultist practicing solely in your head with what amounts to vague concepts and ontologies when you really wish to be "out there" doing something, applying the knowledge, and having the experiences firsthand. Study and theory have their place but they only have true value when they're applied. The thought of contacting spirits is perhaps more entertaining than the actual process, but it is nowhere near as awe-inspiring.

Firsthand experience should be the goal of occult study. Otherwise we're just accepting whatever dogmas or cosmologies have been laid out. An experiential approach is pure empiricism and the only way you're going to gain any true insight into whatever mysteries you're looking for. Someone has to try things and actually do something in order to write about it and pass it on to the true seekers and armchair occultists alike. Do you want to be someone that reads about the experiences and practices of others or do you want to be having your own experiences? Do you want to find the truth for yourself or accept it at face value?

Dowsing is still kicking.

Divine Business An old-school dowser plies his trade

If only everyone was able to dowse like Vernon G. Bandy then maybe there wouldn't be a water crisis.

I'm keeping this blog post short but expect much deeper material in the near future. Until then enjoy the story of Mr. Bandy and those of you in the United States have a safe and fun Memorial Day weekend.

End of the World?

World will end on May 21 says ex-MTA worker Robert Fitzpatrick, who's putting money where mouth is
2011 end times prediction at Wikipedia.

Those two links should tell you just about everything you need to know about all of this hubbub about the end of the world on Saturday. Technically it's just supposed to be the Rapture, but for most people it'll be close enough. The true end is supposed to be on October 21st.

Like most end of the world claims this one will be pretty easy to test. We just have to wait and see. In all likelihood nothing will happen. I'm by no means a scholar of Christianity but I do seem to remember there being something in the Bible about no man knowing the day or time of the end. I guess we'll find out in a couple of days. I mostly feel sorry for the people that have spent their life savings advertising for this.

Now, for your enjoyment:

If ETs are coming to Earth then where are they?

I've brought up the similarities between UFO sightings and older, more magical phenomena like fairies before. I have been thinking for a while that these phenomena are one and the same and the extraterrestrial explanation is just our modern take on something that has been happening for a very long time. Pondering the Fermi Paradox earlier today it occurred to me that the evidence of intelligent extraterrestrials visiting us (or existing at all) is severely lacking. Sure, there are lots of things that could be interpreted as evidence for extraterrestrials, but there doesn't seem to be anything really concrete that says "All of these things are caused by aliens."

No doubt the UFO phenomenon is real. People see strange and unidentifiable objects in the skies all the time. Unidentified does not necessarily mean extraterrestrial though. That we jump to the extraterrestrial hypothesis as an explanation for UFOs tells how much our collective thinking has been affected by the times we live in. Science fiction influences aside, we assume that since we can travel into space that an advanced alien civilization should be able to travel much farther into space, bend space and time itself, and generally defy the laws of physics as we know them.

That's the real rub of it: the defying of the laws of physics. To get here from another star in a timely manner, as well as to remain undetected by humans, these aliens would have to have technology that resembled magic to us simply because it would defy all understanding that we have of how the universe works. We're talking faster-than-light travel, wormholes, unimaginable energy sources, etc. Thinking about this, there's little wonder some ufologists have looked at the magical descriptions of strange things in the past and decided that they must be the product of extraterrestrial technology.

There is another possibility though, just as incredible but for some reason treated as infinitely less likely. What if all of these unexplained UFO sightings, alien abductions, messages channeled by contactees, etc. are the product of spirits? I should probably clarify what I mean by spirits here. I mean beings from beyond the physical plane of existence. More modern terms might be extradimensionals or ultraterrestrials. I am not referring to ghosts or the souls of deceased humans, but beings that have never been human at all.

Grimoires of magical knowledge such as the Keys of Solomon discuss at length how to contact non-human spirits. To most people this will seem impossible, but once you've accomplished it for yourself it seems a lot more believable. Beings capable of moving between planes of existence, in some cases capable of affecting events on the physical plane, seem to be on par with how we think of extraterrestrials; especially in some New Age circles and UFO cults. There are also parallels between spirit channeling and the channeling of extraterrestrials. When looking at the similarities, extraterrestrials and spirits could be interchanged in most narratives and the story would remain the same.

The more I ponder this subject the more I think that it's likely that we aren't being visited by extremely advanced flesh-and-blood intelligent extraterrestrials. The odds against them existing, finding us, having enough interest to interact, and then having the ability to get here are just staggering. But what about beings (spirits) that are capable of moving between planes of existence, not bound by the limitations of time or space, that have been interacting with humans since the dawn of our species? Is that any more likely? It bypasses several of the problems in the extraterrestrial hypothesis at the cost of invoking a mystical view of reality that is extremely distasteful to some people.

Personally, after the experiences I've had, I'm more inclined to believe in spirits than extraterrestrials visiting us. I would even go so far as to say that those claiming to have encounters with extraterrestrials through channeling or abduction may actually be contacting non-human spirits (if they are contacting anything at all). Again, it is our modern mindset that prohibits us from believing in spirits but allows us to accept extraterrestrial visitation as a possibility. If UFOs and other phenomena ascribed to extraterrestrials are actually caused by spirits then that could explain why we can't seem to find these mischievous aliens; they simply aren't sticking around on the physical plane long enough to be caught. Not being native to the physical plane, they may even be incapable of truly being "caught" as we might catch an animal in order to study it.

Whether a strange being is an alien or a spirit may ultimately be totally up to the perceptions and beliefs of those encountering it. These are just my ongoing observations and musings on the subject; take them as you will.

To Be Silent

Occultism has never really been in the public eye. However, in this day and age we have the luxury of not being terribly persecuted for an interest in the paranormal or the occult even if it should be made public. We will most likely not be burned at the stake or banished from the community. Even with this relative security there are still reasons why the occult remains a hidden thing.

One reason to keep occult operations a secret is to ensure that they are effective. Letting everyone who will listen know about your recent projects introduces new variables that could cause failure. These people might begin thinking about your occult experiment, they may doubt you or your abilities, or they may even doubt the possibility or existence of anything occult or paranormal. This will not work in your favor as they are essentially devoting attention and intention to your failure, much as you devoted the same to the success of your goal. At best you will still succeed, but this added influence is unnecessary and could cause an operation to be less than effective. I see no reason to risk it.

Another reason to keep your occult interests secret might be the lingering stigma of looking into the "dark arts." Most people will either think you're working with the Devil and going against God or that you're indulging in superstition or dangerous cult activities. This could hurt your social standing and as any outcast will tell you, social standing can be very important depending on what you want to do in your life. To avoid social stigma it may be for the best to keep occult interests a secret from those that don't need to know. Those that do need to know is something you will have to decide for yourself based on your circumstances.

It's important to note that the secrecy surrounding occult pursuits is a big reason why they have to be kept secret from people that think in the above ways in the first place. If these pursuits were not generally hidden then more people would know and understand them and there would potentially be less of a stigma around them. However, not everyone is comfortable with occult teachings and practices and, as I mentioned earlier, telling people about what you're doing can work against you. Esoteric teachings are esoteric because most people are not willing to accept them and are not ready to learn them.

As unfortunate as it may be that not everyone can accept and take advantage of occult knowledge, the relative secrecy around occult knowledge is necessary. Another advantage of living in this day and age is that those ready to seek out the occult can easily find what they're looking for at their local bookstore or on the Internet. I think this shows that the part of the Hermetic Quaternary the title references (To Be Silent) is useful and also not a great barrier to knowledge or understanding for those genuinely seeking it.

Breaking Down the Barriers of Doubt

Breaking down the barriers of doubt is a very important process for anyone hoping to achieve paranormal or occult feats. Do not get me wrong; doubt is a very important thing to have. However, as anyone that has ever applied for a job or tried out for a team can tell you, doubt can work against you. This is especially true in the field of the paranormal. Doubt can keep us from even attempting anything at all, let alone actually achieving substantial results.

Complete confidence and belief are a prerequisite for many occult and paranormal pursuits, belief in both the sought phenomenon and in one's own abilities. This really isn't that different than more mundane pursuits like shooting a basketball or jumping a hurdle though. However, like with shooting hoops and jumping hurdles, one has to start at the beginning when it comes to the occult. Many traditions and paths have basic exercises designed for new initiates and future techniques build upon these basic exercises. One has to walk before they can run and this applies to occult pursuits just as much as it applies to everyday pursuits.

I bring this up because not only do these beginner exercises build necessary skills (in both occult and mundane examples) but they also build confidence. These exercises or techniques become easy and the practitioner comes to have little doubt in the possibility or in their own ability to perform a given task. To use an occult example, a neophyte will most likely have doubts about the possibility of and their own ability to perform a physical evocation of a Goetic spirit. If they can push their doubts aside long enough to actually attempt the evocation they will likely fail.

More than one seeker has been stopped in their tracks when a spell they attempted failed or they couldn't perform a certain exercise successfully. This causes people to give up on the occult and move on to some other interest. Those that stick with it come to learn why their initial attempts failed and in my opinion it is because the beginner is likely to try to perform a task that is outside of their capability, both in ability and in belief. They have not done much occult work prior and therefore have not loosened the fetters of doubt through experience of occult phenomena. This doubt causes them to fail because they do not really believe it can be done or do not believe that they are capable of doing it.

I am not just referring to conscious doubt either. Conscious doubt is usually pretty easy to dispel. Subconscious doubt is the tricky thing that one has to deal with. Subconscious doubt plays a very prominent role in the occult as the occult is a primarily mental field. Even with all the wands and robes, the human mind is still the center of all magic and mysticism. If your own mind is working against you then you will surely fail at a mental pursuit. How do we get past subconscious doubt then? As the saying goes, "Seeing is believing."

We do the beginner exercises, we build our skills brick by brick. Greater skills lead to more profound experiences and profound experiences lead to the erosion of the subconscious barriers of doubt. The more "impossible" phenomena we experience, the more we weaken that barrier of doubt that has been built up in our minds and thus the more we open ourselves to more impressive experiences. This is why it is important to start at the beginning and build your skills from the ground up.

Speaking from experience, I know that this is not always easy when you first pick up a book on magic or occultism and decide that the basic exercises are boring or stupid. I had this attitude for a long time and that amounted to my becoming little more than an armchair occultist in many respects because nothing seemed to feel right or work right. When I went back and started at the beginning I began to have a lot more success. As I have more successes my doubt erodes, both my doubts in the possibility that these things exist and my doubts in my own abilities to do these things.

These ingrained doubts are no one's fault. Our subconscious mind manages our reality. It keeps track of our everyday concerns, sorts our thoughts and feelings, and makes it so we can function in our mundane lives. Most people are caught up in their everyday societal pursuits and their subconscious minds become attuned to this. Anything paranormal is out of the ordinary and there is a deep reflex to reject these things as they seem to have no place in our everyday reality as we understand it. If you want to become adept at paranormal or occult pursuits then you need to get rid of your doubt, both on the surface and deeper down.

You do not do this by having blind faith or deluding yourself; you do it by having genuine paranormal experiences. This is empiricism in its purest form, an experiential approach to the paranormal (and reality for that matter). Start from the beginning of the book and learn the basics. Do the beginner exercises until you are confident in your abilities. Only then will you be able to progress to truly amazing experiences.

Good luck to all of you out there that are brave enough to try these things for yourselves and get your own proof.

Dr. Rupert Sheldrake is a hero.

Dr. Rupert Sheldrake, a biologist and a well-known figure in the field of parapsychology, recently did an interview at Skeptiko.com.  The interview at first deals with the controversy surrounding Richard Wiseman's latest book and his attempts to misinform the public.  However, the truly interesting stuff is in the discussion that stems from talking about the controversy in which Dr. Sheldrake goes on to give a beautiful and poignant observation of a huge problem in modern science.  What is that problem?  Dogmatic materialism and how it has stifled progress.  Dr. Sheldrake says it so much better than I ever could so I'll just link you to the interview.

Dr. Rupert Sheldrake on the Persistence of Richard Wiseman’s Deception

You can read the transcript, you can listen to the interview, or you can even download the interview to listen to later.  Whichever way appeals to you, I highly recommend that you take a look at this if you love science as well as the paranormal.  It's like Dr. Sheldrake took everything I've had floating around in my head on the subject and laid it down neatly and plainly for all to see.  He is a hero for saying what few seem to be willing to say and he has my respect for that.  I only hope that by writing about this interview here that his views and work get the attention they deserve and we can all move on to finding real answers and truly exploring reality without the limits of a particular philosophical stance smothering us.

I think it's suiting that this will be my one hundredth blog post.  It's the fact that people from all over the world are reading what I write that has kept me going with this experiment for so long.  It's my love for all of the subject matter that I cover that inspired me to start this blog in the first place and I'm very happy that I've kept writing about it.  This blog is for everyone that wonders about the strange things out there and those that want to find answers for themselves instead of just buying a ready-made explanation.  Thanks to all of you that keep coming back to read my thoughts and opinions.

What an apocalypse survival bunker looks like.

When the Aliens Touch Down, Make for This Missile Base

I think that aliens are one of the more unlikely things to cause an apocalypse but this makes me wonder:  If civilians are working on projects like this then what might the government have already?  Continuity of government is something that we know the government takes very seriously and they already have facilities suited to this purpose.

Do these types of facilities tie into the mysteries surrounding Denver International Airport?  I think that they might.  There have been rumors for a while that the elites and governments of the world know something that the general public doesn't know about a future cataclysm and that they are preparing for it.  Are facilities like the one in the above article just the tip of the iceberg?  Are there far more extravagant facilities built by the rich and powerful that will allow them to survive impending disaster?  I think that it is a very real possibility.

The 2012 hype has people buying into projects like the one above; I don't see why the elite of society wouldn't be doing the same, especially if they know something we don't.  Thinking about it, a global catastrophe may not be the biggest of their worries.  Civil unrest has been on the rise around the world and the faltering economies in many countries have a lot of people on edge.  What would happen to the haves if the have-nots began to turn against them?  Maybe that's the scariest possibility that they can imagine.  Regardless, survival bunkers like this seem to be up to the task of protecting people from just about anything.  Let's hope that no one ever has to use them.

Worms Falling from the Sky

It's raining worms: Schoolchildren's lesson interrupted by creepy crawlies falling from sky

It's not quite a rain of frogs or fishes but I have a feeling that Charles Fort would have found this fascinating.