{"collection":"Spiritualism & Psychical Research","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/archive_org_MiraclesOfTheMindReview/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/archive_org_MiraclesOfTheMindReview","id":"archive_org_MiraclesOfTheMindReview","license":"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/","rights_basis":"archive_org_open:open_license:http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/","source":"archive_org","source_url":"https://archive.org/details/MiraclesOfTheMindReview","summary":"Reviews \n\n\nSept. 1966] \n\nof trance states, telepathic elements in dreams. Sleep patterns \nwere recorded by the use of rapid eye movements (R.E.M.).","tags":["Spiritualism"],"text":"Reviews \n\n\nSept. 1966] \n\nof trance states, telepathic elements in dreams. Sleep patterns \nwere recorded by the use of rapid eye movements (R.E.M.). \n\nIndividual researchers were encouraged and supported in the \n\nU.S.A. and all over the world \u2014 to mention only a few of their \n\nnames-\u2014 Dr and Mrs Nash, Fraser Nicol and Betty Nicol, Dr \n\nHolleran, Dr William Roll, Dr S. G. Soal, Langdon Davies, Dr \n\nEric Dingwall, Professor Chari, Dr K. R. Rao, Dr D. J. West, and \n\nvery many others. In qualitative studies Dr Ian Stevenson \n\ncollected the empirical evidence for reincarnation. A special grant \n\nfacilitated a journey to India and Ceylon to study the evidence on \n\nthe spot. At Cambridge Dr A. R. G. Owen undertook a historic j \n\nand contemporary survey of alleged poltergeist experiences. The \n\nlate C. L. Gregory and Anita Kohsen investigated memory and f \n\nhallucinatory images. For details of these and many other | \n\nenterprises one must study the numerous books, monographs and | \n\nreports published by the Foundation since its establishment (see \n\np. 1 12) and, in addition, refer to the records of the no less than \n\nfourteen International Conferences organized by the Foundation \n\nbetween 1953 and 1965, dealing with all manner of the aspects \n\nand problems of the phenomena we associate with psi. There have j \n\nbeen conferences on Unorthodox Healing; on the Relation of Psi \n\nto Philosophy; on Psychedelics; on Psi and Pharmacology; on \n\nPrecognition; on Psycho-physiological Correlates of Paranormal | \n\nStates; on Religion, etc. Truly a wonderful story of much effort \n\nand achievement. i \n\nIt has been said \u2018one new idea can change a whole world of \nthought\u2019. It is the continuing task and desire of the Foundation \nto encourage new concepts, no matter how daring and revolutionary. t \n\nIf the pattern of the first decade is followed in the second, who \ndare say we shall not reach even \u2018beyond the utmost bound of ' \n\nhuman thought\u2019 ? I think we must rise again and give three cheers \nfor the Parapsychology Foundation. \n\nG. W. Fisk ' J \n\nMiracles of the Mind: An introduction to Parapsycho- \nlogy. By Simeon Edmunds. Charles C. Thomas, Spring- \nfield, Illinois. 1965. 216 pp., 6 illustrations. $7.75. \n\nThis is a useful introductory text to give to someone who wants \nto know what sort of material is dealt with by parapsychologists. \n\nThe examples are interestingly presented, and although the critical \ndetails of concern to specialists are sometimes lacking, sensibly \ncritical opinions are maintained. For instance, it is pointed out \nthat the outstanding mediums discussed in this book, Mrs Piper, \n\n37i \n\n\n2B \n\n\nJournal of the Society for Psychical Research \n\n\n[Vol. 43, No. 729 \n\n\nMrs Leonard and Mrs Garrett, are by no means typical of the \nrun-of-the-mill spiritualist practitioner, in whose performances \n\u2018a wide variety of non-psychic factors are far more in evidence than \nany genuine paranormal ability\u2019. \n\nIn this kind of book an author must choose between presenting \na complete account of just a few cases, or giving the gist of a larger \nselection. The latter policy has been adopted, with the result that \nreaders who know the original reports cannot but notice points \nomitted which they personally would have thought merited \ninclusion. In discussing modern ESP research the \u2018star\u2019 subjects \nof Rhine\u2019s earliest card experiments are mentioned without \nreference to the difference in conditions at these and the later \nexperiments, which generally gave much less spectacular results. \nSome incidents reported by Harry Price are quoted fairly fully, \nbut without mention of the serious doubts about his reliability as a \nwitness to the paranormal. Trevor Hall\u2019s theory about Crooke\u2019s \ndishonest motives in supporting the fraudulent medium Florence \nCook is quoted without reservation, but perhaps the counter- \narguments since published by Medhurst and Goldney were not \navailable at the time of writing. \n\nMr Edmunds gives prominence to some less well known cases \nthat certainly deserve to be more widely known and discussed. \nOne such case concerns the extraordinary correspondence dis- \ncovered between the details of an imaginary disaster to a liner \ncalled Titan, published in a novel, and the actual disaster to the \nTitanic which took place fourteen years later. While some may see \nin this an instance of precognition, others may prefer to regard it as \none of those natural coincidences which should put one on guard \nagainst dismising too readily the chance coincidence hypothesis when \nevaluating reports of the fulfilment of paranormal impressions. \n\nTwo chapters are given to a discussion of the reliability of \ntestimony. This topic is of common interest to psychologists, \njurists, and parapsychologists, but it has been quite scandalously \nneglected in recent years. Mr Edmunds draws attention to the \nwide range of problems involved, from the willingness of news- \npapers to print and readers to accept quite unsubstantiated stories, \nto the surprising limitations of human perception and recollection \nunder unfamiliar physical conditions or unexpected circumstances. \n\nD. J. West \n\nThe Journal of Parapsychology. Durham N.C. Dec. 1965. \nxxix+4pp. \n\nAn editorial by J. B. Rhine discusses the kinds of interest in \nparapsychology that he met on his recent visit to Europe. He \n\n372","title":"Miracles Of The Mind Review","tradition":"Spiritualism & Psychical Research","translated_text":null,"word_count":838}