Comparing Clairvoyants
Sep 01, 1995 00:08 AM
by K. Paul Johnson
As I previously stated, I just renewed membership in the
Association for Research and Enlightenment, which I first
joined before the TS. The wrangling about the clairvoyance of
Leadbeater and Purucker (and Bailey's clairaudience) in this group
inspired me to reflect why I feel more comfortable with the Cayce
material than any of those more explicitly Theosophical
writers' work.
First, there is the simple fact of honest, open investigation--
research-- rather than promotion of authority. A.R.E. is quite
up front about admitting Cayce's many and big errors, and would
never engage in the kind of deceptive editing JHE has decried.
Neither the Bailey people nor any Theosophical admirers of
alleged clairvoyants seem to have the same commitment to
objectivity and evidence.
Second, there is the sheer volume of relevant evidence
available. Cayce is by far the most convincing example of
paranormal abilities that I can think of. Even a brief reading
of works about him establishes this.
Third, there is the fact of his unconsciousness. To me, this
cuts the Gordian knot of mistrust that people like Bailey and
HPB and CWL cannot cut. That is, if the seer is conscious of
the material and its source, there is abundant opportunity for
mixed motives to pollute the "revelation." Personal gain,
fame, bias, etc. all must be considered. Whereas with Cayce,
there was little or no conscious awareness of the material, and
this far less cause to suspect personal bias or motive. Of
course, the unconscious can bias and contaminate anything
anyone does, but in the case of Cayce we are dealing directly
with the unconscious. This raises the question of archetypal
patterns vs. historical reality (e.g. is Atlantis/Lemuria
really inside the collective unconscious?) rather more directly
than the other teachers mentioned.
The above is not offered in the spirit of "mine's better than
yours" but rather to suggest that we can be receptive to the
work of clairvoyants while remaining skeptical. For example,
how would Cayce's life readings measure up against the Lives of
Alcyone?
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