Clairvoyance and Occult Powers

by William Walker Atkinson

Some recipients are, of course, far more proficient than are others; but each and every person—any person of average intelligence—will be able to secure more or less proficiency in these experiments, provided that patience and practice are employed. There 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.