the clairvoyant sense. While in this condition, they obtained startling results; but the next time they tried, they failed to awaken the astral sense, and, therefore, had to depend entirely upon the physical telepathic sense, and, consequently, their results were comparatively poor.
You will understand the difference and distinction between physical-sense telepathy, and astral-sense telepathy, if you will carefully consider the nature of each, as I shall now present it to you. I ask your close attention to what I shall have to say on this subject in the remaining pages of this chapter. Do not pass over these explanations as "dry," for unless you have a clear fundamental understanding of the thing, you will never be able to get the best results. This is true of every phase of learning, physical as well as psychical—one must get started right, in order to obtain the best results.
In the first place, every thought process, every emotional activity, every creation of ideas, is accompanied by a manifestation of force—in fact, is the result of the manifestation of a force. Without entering at all into the question of what mind is, in itself, we may rest firmly on the natural fact that every manifestation of mental or emotional activity is the result of an action of the brain or nervous system, manifesting in a form of vibrations. Just as in the case of the manifestation of electricity in which certain chemical elements are consumed, or transformed, so in the case of mental or emotional activity there is a consuming or transformation of the substance of which the nervous system is composed. When I say "nervous system" in this connection, I include the brain, or brains of man—for these are but a part of his great nervous system in which all emotional or mental activity is manifested.
Moreover, just as there is no real destruction of matter in any of Nature's processes—all seeming destruction being but a transformation—so in the case before us there is a transformation of the energy released in the thought or emotional process. We may grasp this idea more clearly if we consider what takes place into transformation of electrical energy. For instance, transmit a strong current of electricity over a fine wire, or filament of carbon, and lo! the current is transformed into light. Use another kind of channel of transmission, and the current is transformed into heat. Every electric light, or electric heating apparatus is proof of this. In the same way, the electric current is sent into space in the form of wireless waves. These waves coming in contact with certain forms of apparatus are transformed into forms of force which are registered and interpreted by the wireless operator.
In the same way, the telepathic waves of energy are sent forth by the activity released by the thought or emotion state. These waves travel in every direction, and when they come in contact with physical apparatus sufficiently sensitive to register them, they may be reproduced or retransformed into thought or mental states similar to those which originally sent them forth. You talk into the receiver of the telephone, and the sound waves are transformed into waves of electricity. These electric waves travel over the wires, and on reaching the other end of the telephone circuit are again transformed into sound-waves which are heard by the ear of the listener. Well, then, when your brain sends out thought waves, these travel until they are received by the apparatus in the brain of another person, when they are re-transformed into thoughts of the same kind that originally caused the thought-waves. I will have much more to say on this subject in the next chapter. I will pause here to point out the difference between the phenomena of this form of telepathy, and the higher form which is really a phase of clairvoyance.
Now, in the case of what may be called a clairvoyant-telepathy, or astral telepathy, the ordinary thought-waves play but a small part. Instead of these, there is a transmission of force along the channels of the astral plane. It is almost impossible to describe the phenomena of the astral plane in the terms of the physical. I may illustrate the matter, in a general way, by saying that is something like your astral self actually extending itself out until it touches the astral self of the other person, and thus actually "feels" the astral activities there, instead of it being a case of something like waves travelling along space between brain and brain. Do you get this clearly? This is about as near to it as I can explain it to you at this place. Telepathy is simply a matter of the transmission and receiving of waves of vibratory force which have travelled along the ether between two persons. But clairvoyance or astral-telepathy is something like your mind being extended out until it actually touches the mind of the other person and sees what is there.
I shall have much to say regarding the working out of the processes of clairvoyance, as we proceed. I have merely given the above explanation for the purpose of distinguishing between ordinary telepathy and clairvoyance, so as to prevent you from falling into a common error. Now let us consider the phenomena of ordinary telepathy—this is very wonderful in itself, although it is on a lower plane of activity than its astral or clairvoyant counterpart.
LESSON III.
TELEPATHY EXPLAINED
Telepathy, meaning Thought-Transference, bears a misleading title. Literally translated, it means "suffering at a distance," or, perhaps, "feeling pain at a distance." The name should really indicate "knowing at a distance," in order to be properly descriptive. But as the term has acquired a forced meaning by reason of years of usage, it will probably be continued in popular favor. After all, names do not count, so long as the meaning is accepted and understood.
While the term itself has been generally used in the sense of conscious and deliberate sending and receiving of thought-waves, there is a far wider field of phenomena really covered by it, viz., the unconscious sending and receiving of mental and emotional vibrations. I shall take up this phase of the subject in a moment, after I have called your attention to the mechanism whereby the waves of thought and emotion are transmitted.
In the last chapter, you will remember that I called your attention to the fact that there is a manifestation of energy or force (in the form of vibrations) in every mental or emotional state. This is true not only in the case of deep thought or vivid feeling, but also in the case of general mental "feelings," and emotional states. During such manifestations there is a radiation of mental or emotional vibrations from the brain or nervous centres of the system, which flows out in all directions just as do light and wireless electricity. The principal seats or centres of these radiations are (1) the several brains of man, viz., the cerebrum, cerebellum, and the medulla oblongata, respectfully; and (2) the several great centres of nerve substance in the human system, called the plexi, such as the solar plexus, etc.
The vibrations arising from emotional excitement are sent out principally from the plexi, or great centres of the sympathetic nervous system. Those arising from the more strictly mental states emanate from certain centres and points of the brain, or brains, of the person manifesting them. Certain forms of these vibrations constitute the real essence of what is generally called "human magnetism," which will be treated upon in the proper place in these lessons.
I do not think it advisable to go into the technical details of the generation and mechanism of transmission of these thought and emotional vibrations, in these lessons. To understand the same would require a technical knowledge of physiology and organic chemistry, which is not possessed by the average person. Moreover, such details are neither interesting nor instructive to the general student of occultism. But, I think it proper to give at least a brief description of the receiving of such vibratory-waves by other individuals.
In the first place, every great plexus, or groups of nerve ganglia, in the human system is a receiving station, as well as a sending station. A person manifesting strong emotional excitement tends to awaken similar states in the nervous centres of other persons in whom the conditions are favorable. This explains why the vibrations of anger, fear, panic, are so contagious. It also explains the strong effect of the vibrations emanating from the nerve centres controlling the reproductive system, in certain cases of strong sexual excitation. Each human sympathetic nervous system contains many receiving stations where emotional vibrations are received, and where they tend to be transformed into similar feeling in the receiving system, unless neutralized by other mental and emotional states in the person.
When
