NeuroQuantology | March 2011 | Vol 9 | Issue 1 | Page 1‐4 1 Krippner and Fracasso., Dreams, telepathy, and various states of consciousness Editorial Dreams, Telepathy, and Various States of Consciousness Stanley Krippner and Cheryl Fracasso NeuroQuantology 2011; 1: 1‐4 1 We are pleased to present this special edition In “The Interpretation of Telepathy- on Dreams, Telepathy, and Various States of like Effects: A Novel Electromagnetic and Consciousness. This edition includes a broad Synchronistic Version of the Psychoanalytic array of articles from well-known authors in Model,” Alan Haas introduces an original the field, as well as graduate students whose approach to explain the appearance of work also addresses topics such as telepathy-like effects and presents an anomalous experiences of mediums and electromagnetic version of Freud’s advanced meditators, shamanic experiences, psychoanalytic model. Haas concludes that near-death experiences, experiences related telepathy-like effects may be the to dreams and body wisdom, and the various consequence of disturbances in the normal ways that anomalous experiences can be equilibration or “equilibrated non- conceptualized and categorized. equilibrium” of ordinary human experiences, In “Across Cultural Boundaries: which is substantiated by a review of the Psychophysiological Responses, Absorption literature in the fields of biology, physics, and Dissociation Comparison Between and chemistry that can be tested Brazilian Spiritists and Advanced experimentally. Meditators,” Joan Hageman, Stanley In “BioPhysics at Death: Three Krippner, and Ian Wickramasekera II Hypotheses with Potential Application,” present results of a study they conducted Michael Persinger and Linda St. Pierre with two claimant mediums and one non- present three unique hypotheses to account medium living in Brazil, compared with for various anomalous activities observed at seven advanced meditators living in North the moment of death. They present a review America. Hageman and colleagues used of the literature and conclude that various several instruments to measure peripheral anomalies observed at the moment of death and central autonomic nervous system may be applicable to related activities that activity, and found several physiological are better understood. incongruences in the medium group. They In “Near-Death Experiences and the conclude that this finding is consistent with Possibility of Disembodied Consciousness: previous studies, which suggests that Challenges to Prevailing Neurobiological claimant mediums and medium-like and Psychosocial Theories,” Cheryl Fracasso practitioners may need to create “buffers” to and Harris Friedman provide a brief maintain their physical and emotional well- overview of scientific theories that have been being. presented to account for the occurrence of near-death experiences (NDEs), highlighting their strengths and weaknesses in Corresponding author: Stanley Krippner accounting for all aspects of NDEs – Address: Saybrook University, San Francisco, California, USA e‐mail: [email protected] especially reports that include veridical ISSN 1303 5150 www.neuroquantology.com NeuroQuantology | March 2011 | Vol 9 | Issue 1 | Page 1‐4 2 Krippner and Fracasso., Dreams, telepathy, and various states of consciousness perception. They conclude that the “hard Axial A to Z SEATTLE Classification,” Neppe problem” of consciousness and its relation to presents a multi-axial model to analyze the brain remains unsolved, but the detailed characteristics of various types of occurrence of NDEs provides an important spontaneous and experimental “subjective avenue for understanding a disembodied paranormal/psi experiences” (SPEs). (Like concept of consciousness. Fracasso and most other writers in this field, Neppe uses Friedman provide suggestions to advance the term “psi” to describe anomalies in this area, such as encouraging advocates and communication and influence that seem to counter-advocates of the veridicality of bypass conventional perspectives of time, NDEs to strive toward a consensus on space, and energy.) Neppe concludes that definitions (e.g., as on what meets the SPEs, such as those involving hallucinations, scientific threshold for these experiences to delusions, déjà vu, and temporal lobe be considered scientifically valid), so that symptomatology can be measured and theories that can account for phenomena scientifically phenomenologically subtyped that seem to suggest a disembodiment of with his proposed SEATTLE model. consciousness can be better tested. In “Reflections about In “Shamanism and the Parapsychology and the Philosophy of Evolutionary Origins of Spirituality and Science: Has Parapsychology Progressed as Healing,” Michael Winkelman presents a Science to the Point Where Science can findings from cross-cultural and cross- Include Psi and Transpersonal Views in its species research that provides a basis for Hard Core?,” Jalmir Freire Brelaz de Castro describing shamanism, its relation to human evaluates the relationship of scientific nature, and its deep evolutionary origins. He criteria to parapsychology and argues that concludes that the evolutionary roots of the most effective ways for the discipline of shamanism are found in the capacity for parapsychology to progress are: 1) to ritual, which provides the most important confront psi as a conceptual problem, 2) to communication and integrative processes in combine several approaches to psi lower animal species, and that the evolution phenomena in their essence, and 3) to build of shamanism can be deduced from these psi “hard core” through a theoretical bases, highlighting the similarities between approach to resolving and clarifying the shamanic practices to the rituals of problems raised. De Castro concludes that in chimpanzees. order for parapsychology to enter the Next are two articles by Vernon scientific mainstream, it is necessary to Neppe, who presents two different models to establish a hard core of psi-related evaluate anomalous experiences and out-of- constructs, beliefs, and assumptions that are body experiences (OBEs). In “Models of the more operational, where the problem of Out-of-Body Experiences: A New Multi- ascertaining effectiveness is the focus of Etiological Phenomenological Approach,” inquiry. Neppe compares several models of OBEs and In “The Antique Roadshow: How presents a new multi-etiological Denier Movements Debunk Evolution, phenomenological model that could Climate Change, and Nonlocal accommodate the multiplicity of causes and Consciousness,” Stephan Schwartz describes different subpopulations among OBE how each of what he describes as “denier experiencers. He concludes that this movements” is actively engaged in trying to approach includes analyzing form, content, debunk and impede the free development of circumstance, and predisposed populations science. He concludes that “deniers” are like using a predominantly pranksters who put up false direction signs biopsychofamiliosociocultural approach that that waste precious resources and time, and differentiates experiencers into five possible even worse – poison the atmosphere of groups. scientific inquiry, serving not truth, but bias. In “Ensuring Homogenous Data Following this, in “Visions, Collection for Present and Future Research Hallucinations, and Dreams in the Context on Possible Psi Phenomena by Detailing of Body Wisdom and Chaos Theory,” Ken Subjective Descriptions Using the Multi- Bausch suggests that dreams, hallucinations, ISSN 1303 5150 www.neuroquantology.com NeuroQuantology | March 2011 | Vol 9 | Issue 1 | Page 1‐4 3 Krippner and Fracasso., Dreams, telepathy, and various states of consciousness and visions are some of the ways that bodies telepathy, and various states of move unconscious knowledge into conscious consciousness for the reader to ponder from (i.e., language-related) reality. He concludes various perspectives. It is our hopes that the that the imaginal realm is the workshop reader will find this issue engaging and where our egos tap into unconscious body enjoyable. wisdom and construct the narratives that become people’s lives. About Stanley Krippner Next, in “Addicted to Bliss: Looking for Ecstasy in all the Wrong Places,” Stanley Krippner and Dustin Dunbar take the position that addiction is a social construct that differs from culture to culture. They conclude that bliss is a desirable human condition, but addiction to ecstasy and similar feeling states can become a serious mental disorder for many people who seek these ecstatic feelings through addictive type behavior. To conclude the Altered States of Consciousness section, in “Intuition, Telepathy, and Interspecies Communication: A Multidisciplinary Stanley Krippner, Ph.D., is professor of Perspective,” Deborah Erickson presents psychology at Saybrook University, and has research on intuition and telepathy. She served as president of the International concludes that telepathic interspecies Association for the Study of Dreams, the communication may be facilitated by Association for Humanistic Psychology, the utilizing specific meditation techniques that Parapsychological Association, and two quiet the mind, and shift consciousness to a divisions of the American Psychological level outside of time and space. Association. He is the co-author of Personal Mythology, The Mythic Path, Spiritual In the Opinion and Perspectives Dimensions of Healing, Dream Telepathy, section, Sultan Tarlaci, Editor-In-Chief, has Extraordinary Dreams and How to Work selected