Parapsychology: How Science is Proving that Psychic Experiences are REAL

By Phillip J. Watt

Guest Writer for Wake Up World

Quantum physics illustrates that the classical, manifested world is illusory by its very nature, yet the daily routine of waking up as an individual human being who is separated from the rest of the external world remains our ordinary experience. Every now and again, however, we experience extraordinary feats of consciousness and extra-sensory perception (ESP) which blow our minds and hearts out of this world, with profound and ongoing impacts in our lives.

These feats may occur in many different guises and in a very personal way. Some believe these experiences to be genuinely extraordinary, whilst others explain them away as ‘coincidence’ or ‘figments of the imagination’. Regardless of our personal beliefs, unexplained occurrences and psychic phenomena such as extra-sensory reception, telepathy and even psychokinesis have been recorded throughout the history of all tribal and traditional civilizations, so it’s not just a modern marvel. What is fresh about this phenomenon is the development of a discipline called ‘Parapsychology’, which is essentially a scientific framework designed to study the ‘psi’ or ‘psychic’ experiences of humanity.

Extraordinary Experiences of the Human Mind

Parapsychology as a field of enquiry is still considered as pseudoscience by the scientific orthodoxy, however there is no justifiable or truly scientific reason why this is the case. There is plenty of compelling evidence that demonstrates that the human mind can and does impact and connect with the world around it, including numerous peer-reviewed journal publications on psi research. It is nothing but scientific bias to overlook it. Simply, the scientific establishment is behaving unscientifically and therefore has a lot to answer for; especially because these are very robust experiments of legitimate scientific methodology that have produced statistically significant data-sets as a result.

The reason psi phenomenon is not taken seriously by the academic community is because philosophical materialism – which is the unproven and dogmatic ‘belief’ that matter is the fundamental stuff of reality – has hijacked modern-day science. Essentially, this misplaced interpretation of a strictly mechanical universe is the model upon which any accumulating evidence is compared, and if certain data doesn’t fit into the limited paradigm of what science already understands, it is arrogantly and unscientifically rejected and explained away as pseudoscience.

Ironically, this prejudicial dismissal of evidence is itself the definition of pseudoscientific behaviour.

However, not all scientists have fallen victim to the materialist rhetoric. For example, in 2014 a team of over 100 prominent scientists and academics from around the world called for an open, informed study of all aspects of consciousness. These scientists included Daryl Bem (Professor Emeritus of Psychology, Cornell University), Irving Kirsch (Professor of Psychology, University of Plymouth, and Lecturer in Medicine, Harvard Medical School) and Brian Josephson (Emeritus Professor of Physics, University of Cambridge, who is also a Nobel Prize winner for his work in the field of physics). Another example in the same year was the creation of a “Manifesto for a Post-Materialist Science … to visualize what an emerging scientific view may look like”. The Manifesto was developed by eight respected scientists, including Rupert Sheldrake, a biologist and author best known for his theory of morphic fields and morphic resonance. Simply, both groups of scientists have called upon the scientific community to face their hypocrisy and transcend their philosophical bias toward the science of psi phenomenon.

(An interview with Sheldrake was featured in my previous article, 3 Scientific Fields That Are Helping to Evolve Humanity’s Worldview.)

Much of the dogma that makes up this charade has been reinforced by so-called skeptics who have been proven not to have investigated the evidence objectively; a fact that websites like Skeptical About Skeptics have made embarrassingly clear. In addition, over time this blind ‘faith’ in the completeness of modern science has (d)evolved into ‘scientism’ — the same kind of fanaticism for which many people who are heavily indoctrinated into scientific materialism hypocritically dismiss religious people. The irony would be hilarious if it wasn’t so harmful to our collective mindset, especially our value systems, which have been rotted from the inside by such narrow materialistic and individualistic ideologies.

Notably, despite the stance of materialistic science, extra-sensory perceptions are not considered to be pseudoscience by the majority of average people. In a 2002 CBS News poll, 57% of people surveyed believed ESP to be real.

The reality is that parapsychological studies have accumulated mountains of sound scientific data that provides strong evidence for ‘extra sensory’ perceptions of the human mind. As stated in the Manifesto for a Post-Materialist Science :

“Studies of the so-called “psi phenomena” indicate that we can sometimes receive meaningful information without the use of ordinary senses, and in ways that transcend the habitual space and time constraints. Furthermore, psi research demonstrates that we can mentally influence — at a distance — physical devices and living organisms (including other human beings). Psi research also shows that distant minds may behave in ways that are nonlocally correlated, i.e., the correlations between distant minds are hypothesized to be unmediated (they are not linked to any known energetic signal), unmitigated (they do not degrade with increasing distance), and immediate (they appear to be simultaneous). These events are so common that they cannot be viewed as anomalous or as exceptions to natural laws, but as indications of the need for a broader explanatory framework that cannot be predicated exclusively on materialism.”

The Way Forward?

An interview with Dean Radin

Dean Radin is the Chief Scientist at the Institute of Noetic Sciences and a leading researcher in the field of parapsychology. For around three decades he has developed and implemented robust scientific models for experimenting with and capturing data of a range of psychic experiences. He has also written a number of highly successful books, including ‘The Conscious Universe: The Scientific Truth of Psychic Phenomena’, ‘Entangled Minds: Extrasensory Experiences in a Quantum Reality’ and ‘Supernormal: Science, Yoga, and the Evidence for Extraordinary Psychic Abilities’.

In this interview, Dean explores the various experiments that can occur in parapsychological studies, as well as some of the results they have derived. He also discusses the field of quantum mechanics and why it can potentially explain how psi phenomena occur. In addition, Dean talks about solutions to the failing scientific paradigm — in particular, the philosophical shift that needs to occur in ‘mainstream’ science so that it can embrace its inevitable future as a discipline that finally deals with the greatest challenge it has ever faced: what consciousness actually is, and its relationship to reality itself.

The Verdict: Officially Open Science to Consciousness Studies and a Post-Materialist Worldview

A worldview beyond the dogma of the materialist metaphysics is finally making a convincing comeback into the consensus of human rationale. The scientific model that will clearly explain the mysterious phenomena observed in parapsychological research is still excitingly unclear. However, in a post-materialistic world, it is likely to be elucidated through some form of quantum or energetic field theory, as Radin suggests.

In addition, the impending demise of materialism has been reinforced not only by its own contradictory evidence, but also its epic failure to explain what consciousness actually is, at what point matter becomes ‘alive’ and why the human mind and its intangibilities have a direct impact on the external world (including the human body).

Humanity’s understanding of our universe is currently transforming into a worldview that is actually a rebirth of ancient philosophical wisdom. In very simple terms, the emerging understanding of our universe accepts that consciousness or ‘the mind’ plays a fundamental role in co-creating our interconnected and ‘life-full’ reality.

Since ESP experiences are a genuine ability of the human mind, as parapsychological data indicates, then a truly scientific mind must wonder: Why don’t they happen more often? Take a moment to think about the mental conditioning that occurs from birth, leading us into our inherited cultural and societal belief systems. Through the passing down of existing beliefs and limitations, we are literally programmed into our ‘normal’ state of mind; that is, until some people fully embrace their innate (not taught) capacity and challenge those beliefs and experiences.

Conversely, if we raise our children around information that supported and encouraged the development a natural human ESP ability, then we would be neurologically wiring our brains and conceptually designing our minds to not just be more open to it, but amplify it too. Put another way, if given a supportive environment, the human brain would not just increase its awareness of what we would now know to be an ‘ordinary’ ability, but also increase its capacity to undertake these feats on a consistent, daily basis. Unfortunately today, embedded in a limited inherited understanding of our universe, we dismiss without a second thought the common behavior of un-conditioned babies and toddlers, and indeed other animals, who seem to talk and interact with ‘thin air’.

Ultimately, when we evolve our philosophy and experience of life beyond the limits of the illusory, partitioned material world, we perceive the intimate interconnection we have with the world through such misunderstood experiences as synchronicity, symbolism and psi phenomena — regardless of what science tells us. But that doesn’t mean that the scientific community shouldn’t be forced to catch up. Rather, modern science has a responsibility to become the objective, unbiased and unadulterated snapshot of reality that they so loudly proclaim themselves to be, and work to provide an authentic opportunity for humanity to collectively explore the mystery and power of unity consciousness.

Previous articles by Phillip J. Watt:

• Permaculture – Reconnect with Nature, Supply Your Own Resources
• Local Economies and Happy Communities
• The Awakening Of Society Is Just As Important As The Awakening Of Our Self
• The Ego is the Source of Suffering AND Contentment
• The Orchestra of Reality – a Journey through Science, Spirituality & Symbolism
• 8 Emotional Patterns That Can Disturb Our Inner Peace
• Finding Our Peace: The Art of Loving Our Experience
• A Day in the Life of Mindfulness
• Permaculture – What Is It and Why Is It Important?
• Matter vs. Spirit – A Guide to Participating in the Greatest Debate Ever

About the author:

Phillip J. Watt lives in Sydney, Australia. He identifies as a ‘self-help guide’ as he has long focused on his physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health and then shares those lessons with his clients and readers. His written work also deals with topics from ideology to society, as well as self-development.

Phil has a degree in Social Science and Philosophy and has been trained extensively in health services. He assists adults, children and families as a mentor, relationship mediator and health and life teacher. He also provides online support services for personal healing and growth, assisting his clients to grow their skills and knowledge in life management and adventure.

Follow him on Facebook or visit his website www.vitalityguidance.com where you can reach him for a personal appointment.