Some Personal Psychic Experiences and their Implications
abracad, · Categories: coincidence and synchronicity, paranormal phenomenaThroughout history humans have reported experiencing phenomena that could not be explained by the known laws of nature. There is now a vast catalog of such experiences, and indeed if one raises the topic of the paranormal in any group it's usually the case that at least one member has experienced something strange.
Over the past century or so we have adopted a more systematic approach to the study of the paranormal, from the formation of learned societies for psychical research, through the many experiments and masses of data collected by J B Rhine to modern parapsychological research employing latest technologies. The statistical method of meta-analysis, which allows the results of multiple studies to be combined, reveals the odds against chance for the amassed evidence to be immense.
Despite the overwhelming evidence of the reality of "psi" (a generic term covering various forms of telepathy, clairvoyance, precognition and psychokinesis) the concept is so at odds with the widely accepted scientific paradigm that personal experience remains the most convincing proof. Here I describe a selection of unusual occurrences that have happened to me.
Around the age of 11 or 12 my father always let me pick a line on the football pools (a form of lottery popular in Britain at the time). This particular Saturday was the start of our family vacation - all day long I kept saying "I'm going to win the pools" with a great sense of belief. On checking the results I found I'd won a minor dividend. I've never before or since felt or expressed such confidence in the outcome of a game of chance, and the odds of winning even a minor dividend are relatively small - in doing the pools for over 20 years I have averaged something less than one win a year.
July 2002 - On the day that my grandmother passed away I felt particularly lonely, isolated and depressed. We had been particularly close and she had been like a second mother to me.
That evening, around 10pm, I was staring aimlessly out of the window, wondering where life would take me next. I saw a red circle of light, as might come from a laser-pointer, flitting around on the house opposite. It lasted only a few seconds. A minute or so later I saw the same thing again. I stood
I have no idea where the light came from. It was raining outside and I couldn't see or hear anyone in the street. I know it didn't come from my house. And there was nothing tall behind my house from which it could have come. If it came from any of the neighboring houses why did the person responsible angle the light at the house directly opposite mine and at no other?
Even if there is a "natural" explanation for the light it would still feel like a sign from my grandmother that I should have seen it at just that moment as I have never seen such a light before or since.
Nov 11 2003 - I was travelling on the subway en route to a business meeting just over a month after my father passed away. I read a poem on the advertising board and started humming "all you need is love" in my head. After leaving the subway while walking to the meeting I passed a busker playing "all you need is love".
My most common type of psychic experience is the precognitive dream. In July 2008 I was working overseas on an important project and in contact with my family by telephone. I had a number of interesting experiences, and particularly precognitive dreams, around this time.
Jul 16 2008 - I dreamed: "I'm waiting outside somewhere. My mother comes long. She's going out somewhere. I go with her." My mother had been ill for some time and rarely went out. I found out later that day that my wife had taken my mother out. I hadn't known about this plan beforehand.
Jul 21 2008 - I dreamed: "A new baby is born. Dr/male nurse says 'you have more hair than me.'" Learned from my wife later that day that her friend was pregnant. NB Have no interest in babies and can't recall ever dreaming of babies before.
Jul 26 2008 - I was in the library reading a book on dreams by CG Jung (founder of - synchronicity). Afterwards I went to my usual bar for a beer and sat at my usual table. Newly carved on the table (wasn't there last time) was "I love Jung-in". An example of synchronicity?
Jul 27 2008 - I dreamed: "I'm standing outside my grandmother's apartment. There's a long outdoor landing leading to the stairs and elevator. A small toddler runs towards the stairs." Later that day my daughter told me (without knowledge of my dream) she'd been on the beach and seen a small girl about to jump on the beach from a height.
A few more predictive dream experiences I noted, apologies for not recording the dates.
1) One Wednesday I had a dream I was in the lottery store, deciding how many lines to play. The same day I had a minor win on the lottery (odds about 25 to 1).
2) I take a regular medication, but don't give it much thought. I dreamed I was taking the medication but it looked or tasted different. Next day I picked up a repeat prescription, the medication came in different packaging to usual.
3) I dreamed about someone totally insignificant to me who I rarely see or hear about and who never enters my mind. Next day I heard something about the person.
Feb 7 2010 - I dreamed: "I'm in my grandmother's kitchen, someone looks in the window. A few seconds later something comes through the door. I hear him trying the bell but it doesn't work. I go outside but he is gone. There is someone else along the landing." That day my daughter saw our neighbor through the window. She had something to give him so we went outside to look for him. He was gone but there was someone else in the distance.
Feb 11 2010 - My mother was in hospital awaiting heart surgery so this was an extremely stressful time for me. I was watching a TV illusionist to try to relax. He asked a lady to choose 3 numbers from 1 to 39 to open a lock. She chose 1 first. Then before she chose the 2nd, the number 24 came to me, which she chose. Before she chose the 3rd, the number 13 came to me, which she also chose. I calculate the odds against this to be 1/(38x37) = 1/1406. I interpreted it as a sign that my late father was with me to offer reassurance.
Dec 18 2010 - I was channel-hopping and for some unknown reason watched a horse race nearing its end (I have no interest in horse racing, never bet on horses, or watch horse racing on TV). Just got a feeling the horse in 4th place of 5 would win, which it did at odds of 5 to 1.
Mar 26 2011 - A day of coincidences. 1) In the car with my wife and daughter I happened to mention a relative, M, who was married to a Scottish lady. I only ever met M briefly in childhood and haven't seen/heard from him in around 40 years! 3 days later I had news that M had passed away. 2) Walking through a market I happened to notice mood rings for sale. Later that afternoon my daughters friend gave her a mood pendant. 2 Days after I watched a movie in which a mood ring featured quite prominently.
Apr 18 2011 - I dreamed: "I'm walking in my home town looking for a cash machine & singing Buddy Holly's True Love Ways to myself and thinking 'it was my first song'. I try to get a bus back but it takes a different route and I'm lost. I go into a library (not my home town one). The clerk says 'F***** Hill is that way but I've never been there.' I look in the yellow pages for a map to find my way back". Two days after I had occasion to find myself in a place I'd never been before. I tried to find my way from the station with a map but couldn't so asked in a store that appeared to be marked on the map as Library / Post Office. The clerk said he didn't know the area and suggested I ask another customer. As I walked I continued to struggle to read the map. While having lunch in a bar Buddy Holly's True Love Ways was played, a song over 50 years old that I hadn't heard in years.
On the very night of drafting this article I dreamed I was walking past the house of an acquaintance, W, and her daughter and heard a phone bleep as I did so. I don't recall ever dreaming of these people / their house before. The following day I had occasion to walk to the store for my mother, following a route which took me past their house, a chore I knew in about in advance and a route I follow about twice a week though I hardly ever see W (much less than 10% of times). On this occasion I met W walking her dog.
Update
In 2012 I had grown disillusioned with my work arrangement of the past few years. Over this time I was trying to develop my business as well as looking for employed work (even though previous experiences of employment suggested it was not always comfortable for me).
I regularly attend two Spiritualist Churches. On April 29 I was given a message at Church A (supposedly) from my father saying “don’t work too hardâ€, and to the effect of “people say hard work never did any harm, they are wrongâ€.
On April 30 I found an apparently suitable job ad and decided to apply for it, seemingly against Dad’s "advice". The job was advertised as full-time which meant I would be required to quit my existing work, which I was completely prepared to do.
I was offered the position on a part-time basis on June 29, meaning I could try it without “burning my bridges†by giving up my existing work and income that at least covered my living expenses. I arranged to start work from July 18.
On July 8 at Church A I was given my Dad’s name (Ron) along with the months of a number of significant anniversaries. The following week, July 15, at Church B I was also given my Dad’s name along with the names of Dad’s brothers and father (George, William, Tom, Leonard), my Mum (Maureen - on earth) who is being given healing (much needed) and a connection with something related to my new job.
I estimate I have attended Spiritualist churches well over 300 times prior to 8 July, receiving messages on average around 30% of attendances, without my Dad’s name ever being given before or since these 2 occasions.
After starting my new job I found it to be unsuited to me and preferred to remain with my existing work.
I believe Dad initially warned me against applying for employed jobs in general, and especially this one, the kind of advice he often offered in life. When I did not heed his warning I believe he somehow influenced matters so that the job was offered on a part-time basis and did not cause me to throw away my financial security, and that his name was given twice at this time as a sign that he had done this.
Every Saturday morning my wife drives my daughter to her 10am piano lesson (about 45mins from our home). On the morning of Nov 17 2012Â my daughter said she was feeling slightly unwell but decided to go to her lesson anyway and my wife and daughter left as usual at 9:15.
At 10am I was having breakfast and planning my morning's tasks when my daughter's name suddenly came into my mind. About a second after this my daughter came back, saying she had felt car-sick on the way. It seemed like my thought had been a glimpse into the very near future.
NB: Although I knew that my daughter was slightly unwell as they had been out 45 minutes I assumed that they had made it to the lesson. My daughter regularly travels by road and I'm not aware of her ever abandoning a journey due to car-sickness before.
Feb 13 2013 - I dreamed (among other things) being at home and an envelope coming through the door saying my daughter has won a prize in a competition. That day 2 letters came, one was a small prize (unexpectedly) won by my daughter.
Around 22 May 2013 I dreamed I was driving and swerved to avoid something but hit something to the left that produced a loud bang. On Sun 26 May 2013 while driving in a narrow road I swerved left (I live in England) to let an oncoming car pass and clipped the curb quite hard causing a bang (& costing me a new tyre!) NB: I often dream of driving, but rarely if ever of hitting things.
Feb 2015 - In the week of my Mom's birthday she received a (junk mail) letter that carried the correct address but a completely different name (Mom is Mrs M F*****), ie: Ms H T*******. Mom has lived there for over 20 years, during which time no one of the name of T******* has resided there, neither was it the name of the previous owner or any of her neighbors, nor does she generally get incorrect mail. Strange thing is, Ms H Thompson was my late Nan's (Mom's Mom) former name at the time Mom was born. A birthday greeting from Spirit?
January 2017 -Â My mother sadly passed away in January after suffering from dementia for several years. A couple of days after she passed I was feeling very down and remarked to my partner, while waiting for lunch to cook, that I did not believe in any kind of non-material spirit. At that very moment the oven suddenly turned off, blowing a main fuse. It transpired that the oven element had blown. The oven was only 2 years old and only had normal domestic use, the house and wiring are modern. So either a very unlikely coincidence, or a sign from mom that her spirit was indeed real and present.
Conclusions
Considered alone most of these events may not seem particularly interesting or significant, but taken together they appear to suggest some small but important effect suggesting an aspect of reality that stands outside scientific law and even the physical universe of space and time as we know it.
All of my psychic experiences have happened either in my dreams or in wakefulness without any conscious effort, particularly when my mind is blank. Indeed, if I actually try to be psychic the results are stubbornly in line with chance. The experiences tend to (but not exclusively) happen when I'm under stress, as though they're reassuring me by saying "don't worry, there is some greater power watching over you."
Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could use psi to win at games of chance, or even the lottery? But despite the apparent reality of this faculty, profiting from it doesn't happen too often, if at all. Might it be that human psychic abilities are indicative of a greater reality that is "intelligent"? And this intelligence limits our psi to offering glimpses of that reality while preventing its usage from interfering with our broader purpose, eg by winning the lottery.
See also Synchronicity, Cause and Effect
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Filed in: coincidence and synchronicity, paranormal phenomena
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