by Winafred B. Lucas, Ph.D.
This report covers the first of three extended research sessions with the Mind Mirror. The two further sessions, where the subject matter was extended to include releasement work, recollection of child abuse, and channeling will be reported in a later issue.
Background
The effort to document physiological correlates of inner states is relatively recent. It began with three biofeedback instruments: the temperature meter, the OSE, which measures stress and relaxation through skin resistance; and a simple electroencephalogram. (The first electroencephalographic recordings picked up only one brain wave pattern at a time—the dominant one—and for a while it was not clear that the brain actually produced waves on different levels at the same time). Gradually various feedback devices made it possible to measure and record bodily changes that before that time had been considered unavailable to consciousness. Their measurement and recording opened the door to an expanded understanding of physiological self-control.
In the late 1950’s Dr. Joe Kamiya (1958) took giant steps toward understanding biofeedback research as it relates to meditation. The underlying assumption of biofeedback is that self-observation of a bodily event that can be associated or linked with a specific mental event (including those not usually available to awareness) will lead to control of that state. Alpha had been found to produce a calm state of mind, so he helped subjects to produce alpha by attaching electrodes to subjects’ scalps, and encouraging them to produce the alpha frequency. He asked his subjects to judge whether alpha was present, or not. Subjects became increasingly able to judge this and then proceeded to produce alpha at will. Some subjects who previously had not been meditators, when trained in this primitive biofeedback technique to produce the tranquil alpha state, developed a pattern similar to that found in 20-year practitioners of Zen meditation. In this way Kamiya demonstrated that production of alpha at will achieved the same goal that characterized the meditation techniques of Yoga, Zen, the Sufis, and Transcendental Meditation. Without biofeedback, development of the ability to effect such control requires a long period of effort. Swami Rama, who was a subject of extensive research at the Menninger Clinic, felt that years of training of yogis could be eliminated by the use of biofeedback devices (Green, 1977).
In the early 70’s Drs. Robert Wallace and Herbert Bensen of the Harvard Medical School explored the physical correlates of Transcendental Meditation and found that their studies corroborated the presence of alpha brain waves and borderline theta during the extreme stillness of mind-body in that type of meditation. They found that this meditation produced different patterns from those of sleep or resting and described it as “an alert, hypometabolic state” and thought that it constituted a fourth major state of consciousness.
Meanwhile, in England C. Maxwell Cade, a creative scientist who had studied both medicine and clinical psychology at London University and then carried out 25 years of research in radiation physics, was aware of the Harvard research and was moving ahead on his own. The goal of his research was first, a verification of the health benefits on strictly scientific lines, and second, the development of an acceptable theory of mind-body interaction. At first he measured depth of trance primarily through the ESR and confirmed Kimaya’s finding that the shift from sympathetic nervous system activity to parasympathetic activity (namely, to alpha) resulted in a therapeutic effect. He postulated that much of the beneficial effect of psychotherapy, and even of psychoanalysis, was due to the long periods of deep relaxation on the therapist’s couch! As a result of his studies and those of Kimaya and Benson and others, a consensus of opinion gradually emerged regarding the nature of alpha.
Cade extended the possibilities of biofeedback by developing a new biofeedback device which he called the Mind Mirror. This machine consists of 24 rows of light-emitting diodes arranged in two banks of 12 rows each with each row comprising 32 diodes, 16 on the left bank and 16 on the right. Signals from both the left and right hemispheres of the brain appear on the instrument at the same time. Separate amplifiers record signals in each frequency channel, and an integrated circuit converts these to an illuminated display of the total pattern formation. The instrument uses electrodes attached to the subject’s head to pick up the voltages generated by the brain. The 13th row records muscle monitoring the electrical skin resistance (ESR) and so eliminates the intrusion of unwanted “parasitic” voltages, such as those from facial, jaw, or scalp muscles.
The Mind Mirror has a sufficiently rapid response time so that the ephemeral brain-mind states can be seen. The patterns remain stable only so long as the state is stable: they scatter the instant the state alters or breaks up. The subject can see not only the pattern of his state but how long he holds it and what it becomes as it retreats. This sensitivity of the Mind Mirror and its wide frequency range (from 1.5 to 40 hertz), combined with the ease of operation and ability to show both cerebral hemispheres at the same time, has made possible a deeper understanding of the brain and its powerful and complex involvement with the body and health.
| Figure 1. Deep Sleep. In this state all brain activity is eliminated except delta. This is not the state where dreaming has been found to take place, but it precedes the REM or dreaming state. | Figure 2. Hypnagogic State. This state, which includes daydreaming, lies just below the surface of alertness and is characterized by symmetrical alpha. |
Because the Mind Minor provided a real-time display that showed both transient patterns and stable states of brain activity, Cade found that it was possible to ascertain that brain rhythms were highly correlated with specific states of consciousness. Deep sleep, dreaming sleep, the hypnogogic state, and the waking state each concentrated in a single band of the EEG frequencies. In contrast, the meditative states appeared to be accompanied by several bands.
Cade found that the alert state (beta) and the meditation state differed from each other in their hemispheric patterns. In the alert state, where attention is focused on the external world, the activities of the two hemispheres differ and the EEG pattern is one of asymmetry. In contrast, because the states of meditators are more internally focused, they manifest more integration, and the patterns of the brain wave levels tend toward symmetry. He found that experienced meditators, no matter what their background training, evidenced the same general pattern during meditation: bilaterally symmetrical alpha, the frequency of which steadily decreased as meditation deepened, and, following this, a steadily strengthening bilateral theta accompaniment.
| Figure 3. Waking State. In this state the left brain shows activity, which may be accompanied by activity in the right brain. | Figure 4. Traditional Meditation. This state shows a significant narrowing of beta waves, large symmetrical bursts of alpha, and smaller symmetrical bursts of theta. As a rule, delta does not occur. |
Cade made studies both of hypnotized subjects and of subjects experiencing guided imagery and found that the depth of the relaxation response was strongly related to the characteristics of the suggested imagery. A brief word picture of about 150-200 words of varied content produced a faster and deeper relaxation response in the majority of subjects than did traditional hypnotic induction.
The level of brain functioning during dreaming (REM) has been controversial. Cade set it in theta, but many researchers place dreaming in low alpha. All seem in agreement that production of dreams follows descent into the delta level of what for a long time was considered to be deep sleep. Although most dream research uses electroencephalograms restricted to the dominant level of brain wave functioning, it is probable that several levels may actually be involved, including a diminished delta. Because investigation of dream states requires complicated laboratory equipment and dreaming is obviously not (at least, as yet) a process responsive to biofeedback training, dream research was not high on Cade’s priority list.
Cade’s exploration via the Mind Mirror of meditation states of skilled meditators (such as long-time practitioners of Zen, Yoga, or Transcendental Meditation) culminated in documentation of the rhythms of a high meditative state. As was usual in meditation, alpha was strong and symmetrical. Theta was rounded and prominent, though not so intense as alpha. To these was added reduced and rounded symmetrical beta (in contrast to the aggressive flares of beta found in the waking state) which led to Cade calling this deep meditative state the Awakened Mind. The increased symmetry of the brain hemispheres, characteristic of meditation, was conspicuously present. Cade used the Mind Mirror as a biofeedback device to help advanced meditators recognize this Awakened Mind state (also called the Fifth State), to enter it at will, and eventually to maintain it.
| Figure 5. The Dream State (according to Dr. Cade). We do not know if this is an extrapolation (what he thought it probably was) or an actual brain recording. | Figure 6. The Awakened Mind (Fifth State). Note the softly rounded beta, the prominent alpha (similar to that in a general meditation state), and the rounded symmetrical theta flares. |
Cade was fascinated by the Mind Mirror patterns shown by successful healers. His early assumption (which turned out to be premature and later jeopardized the use of the Mind Mirror as a research instrument) suggested that the true healer induces in the patient both psychophysiological relaxation and Fifth State consciousness. Because he had observed these exceptionally symmetrical patterns in successful healers, such as leading yogis, swamis, and Zen masters, he was sure that symmetry in brain functioning was another important factor in healing and one central to health in general. Cade hypothesized that the power of the healer seemed to be related to the amplitude, symmetry, and stability of the Fifth State that the healer manifested and that he was able to induce in the patient. The harmonization of the brain hemispheres, along with the Awakened Mind state that flowed from healer to patient, allowed the body to heal itself.
Further research indicated that Cade’s assumption that a salient characteristic of every healer was the ability to transfer the Fifth State pattern to the subject, with resulting harmonizing of the subject’s nervous system, proved not to be true. Various patterns of healing emerged later where successful healers appeared to blast their patients with energy that produced healing and in no way manifested the symmetrical Awakened Mind pattern. The fact that these healers did not fit into the given pattern led to concern that the Mind Mirror was not measuring what it purported to measure, and Mind Mirror research on healing went into an eclipse, much as research with Kirlian photography on energy fields went into an eclipse after inaccurate negative publicity (Moss, 1979). Gradually it became evident that it was not the Mind Mirror that was at fault but the interpretations that had been put on its data, namely, that there was only one valid pattern of healing. Currently it is not clear what is involved in energy healing, though one pattern has remained relatively constant that pertains to paranormal abilities of all sorts, not only healing of oneself and others and self-control of pain, but telepathy, psychokinesis, etc. The striking common characteristic of all these states is the manifestation of delta, often in strong flares. Usually there is also a progression toward a bilateral and integrated pattern.
| Figure 7. Pattern of a Boy Bending Spoons. Here beta is prominent but round. Alpha is extensive and also rounded, and there are distinctive delta flares. | Figure 8. Pattern of a Subject Performing a Parapsychological Experiment. Here the beta is more assertive, alpha is not so prominent and covers a narrower band, and delta is again dominant and strongly flared. |
The significance of delta thus emerged as a fertile area of investigation. Luria (1973) had reported earlier that delta at times existed in conjunction with beta, phenomenon not understood at the time. Cade added to this his own observation that in healers delta frequencies were often found in diminished form added to their Fifth State. Moreover, he found that in subjects engaged in parapsychological research, delta appeared in surprising flares, along with equally strong flares of beta and variable alpha waves in between. The hypothesis that in some way delta appears linked to the paranormal was also proposed by Dr. Joel Whitton of Toronto (1974). As a result of the accruing evidence, Cade suggested that delta might be interpreted as a reaching out to the “not yet known in a passive way.” Eventually those doing Mind Mirror research hypothesized that delta may be a radar state.
On Cade’s death his work was continued by Anna Wise, an English woman who had worked closely with him during the development of his theories and techniques. In the early 30’s Wise moved to Boulder, Colorado and there established a school for teaching meditation by means of the Mind Mirror. She lectured widely, popularizing the idea of teaching meditation states through the help of biofeedback techniques.
Procedures
In 1985 the Brentwood Psychological Center invited Anna Wise to give a workshop on the Mind Mirror and demonstrate its potentials for inducing and deepening meditation. The clear pattern of brain waves produced in meditation stimulated interest in possible Mind Mirror correlates, and on the final afternoon of the workshop the machine was attached to a member of the group who then underwent a regression. In addition to the expected alpha and theta waves, a surprising pattern emerged that was characterized by the presence of strong delta flares, which were not characteristic of meditation. This opened up the question as to whether the presence of delta was a stable characteristic of the regression process and, if so, what it signified.
In the spring of 1987 our Center invited Peter Morrison, a senior staff member of the Anna Wise Institute, to spend three days with us in further exploration of the pattern that had been produced by the Mind Mirror during the earlier regression. We requested two Mind Mirror instruments so that we could observe the patterns of the therapists as well as those of the subjects. All involved in the research were senior professionals experienced in regression, except three subjects and two therapists who were included to document any differences due to lack of experience. Two of the therapists also functioned as subjects so that differences in pattern in the several roles could be documented. Each therapist regressed at least two subjects in order to determine to what extent their brain waves remained stable or responded to different personalities.
Attaching therapist and subject to the machines was a painstaking task that provided time for the two to discuss a focus for the upcoming regression. Following the attachment of the electrodes, Morrison worked to determine proper amplitude for both therapist and subject and established a baseline. Videotaping began with the induction of the subject. The video record was supplemented by Morrison’s extensive notes on each person and his series of Mind Mirror drawings made at intervals during the regression in order to freeze different patterns. Following each regression he spent about 20 minutes commenting on the Mind Minor records and these comments were videotaped and recorded. In spite of the artificial situation—the attachment to electrodes and the presence of the video camera—the regressions were reported as meaningful and therapeutic by those involved.
Results
Beta
The first striking difference from the usual meditation pattern lay in the presence of flares of beta, especially in the therapists’ patterns but also in those of most subjects. This beta had an aggressive character, especially in the therapists, not softening or diminishing, which would have suggested a more peaceful and relaxed type of guidance. This pattern distinguished it from that of ordinary meditation, where beta is absent, and from the Awakened Mind state, where beta is softer and more rounded. In the small number of therapists who had practiced meditation for a number of years, the beta did at times become more rounded, which brought the total pattern into closer congruence with the Fifth State. Most subjects, also, showed strong beta, suggesting that beta is necessary for the constant processing that goes on in a therapeutic regression. Such strong beta in the subject may suggest why many subjects do not feel that they are in an altered state but instead often insist that they are “just making things up.” Apparently it is possible, even easy, to be in a deep altered state and still retain energetic control.
| Figure 9. A Therapist’s Profile Showing the Presence of Aggressive Beta. Note the flickering of alpha and theta and the strong flares of delta. | Figure 10. A Therapist’s Profile Showing Direct Progression from Beta to Delta. Alpha and theta are largely bypassed. |
No definitive data could be found in the literature regarding subjects in deep hypnotic trance who, following hypnosis, are not able to remember the events of the regression. The inference is that beta, and possibly high alpha, are blocked in such cases. Apparently the assumption that deep trance must involve a blocking of beta is incorrect, according to the Mind Mirror. In fact, the Awakened Mind state strives to attain just that: a bonding of clear beta awareness with imaging and with perceptions from the unconscious.
The impression of the importance of beta, especially for the therapist, emerged early and remained consistent. Evidently the regression therapist controls the process with a strong hand. Morrison, accustomed to consider reduction of beta as characteristic of an altered meditation state, was disturbed in the beginning by this assertive beta but by the end of the research had conceded that flared beta appeared to be characteristic of the regression process.
Alpha
Nearly all subjects and most therapists rapidly developed strong, rounded, and usually symmetrical alpha, which often started as high amplitude alpha and gradually moved downward to include lower amplitudes as well. Strong symmetrical alpha is characteristic of the meditation state also.
| Figure 11. Typical Profile of a Subject in Regression. Note broad spectrum beta, strong alpha and theta, and flares of delta. | Figure 12. A Subject Showing a Modified Pattern of Rounded and Diminished Beta, Strong Alpha, Tentative Theta, and Delta Flares. |
Alpha seems to serve two purposes: reliving of emotional situations seems dependent on the production of alpha waves, and alpha is also an imaging state. As material is brought up from the unconscious (theta and possibly delta) into images in low alpha, it percolates up through higher amplitude alpha into conscious perception in beta.
Theta
Theta appeared along with alpha in most subjects and in those therapists who entered altered states with their subjects. Theta is assumed to indicate contact with the personal unconscious, but is the emerging of alpha and theta states in therapist and subject necessary for a successful regression? It would seem not. Several therapists and one patient manifested minimal alpha and theta, suggesting that these levels are not indispensable. Some subjects may feel more comfortable working within the altered state of alpha and theta and may even need them to bring up images and experience emotions, but other patients may not feel such a need and may not want such experiences and may yet recover past-life memories. It is possible, also, that some patients do not trust themselves in an altered state characterized by alpha and theta. Some therapists seem to go into alpha and theta through the entire regression process, while others touched on them at specific times. There is the possibility that the therapist’s involvement with alpha and theta makes the patient feel empathy and support and helps with deepening and recovery of material, but the data in this study were too limited to consider this more than a possibility.
Delta
The presence of delta, which had been observed in the subject’s pattern two years earlier, was strongly confirmed. Delta appeared in the therapist’s pattern also, although usually with less intensity. The delta of experienced therapists in our research appeared to be somewhat more intense than that of the two inexperienced therapists, but with so small a sample this could only be earmarked for additional research.
A number of questions arise concerning the nature and functioning of delta in regression work:
- What is the function of delta in the regression process?
- Can past lives be retrieved without delta?
- Is delta necessary for therapist as well as subject or only for the subject?
- Is the presence of delta in the therapist a way of inducing the subject into a past life? Is it a form of tuning in to the subject?
- Do skill and experience in the therapist increase the capacity to produce delta?
Anomalies
The pattern that has been described was characteristic of all but two of the participants. Both of the exceptions were subjects who had been long-time meditators. During the induction they immediately entered the general meditation state—expanded symmetrical alpha plus symmetrical theta—and remained there. Beta disappeared and there was no occurrence of delta. The GSR fell to a low level and remained stationary, even during events that could have had emotional implications. Although apparent “past lives” were narrated, there was little affect. Details—and even major threads of narrative—were modified under questioning, something that did not occur in the other regressions. These two subjects seemed little involved with their material, and closure produced minimal impact and insight. Both the therapists of these subjects manifested strong beta and delta, and one therapist appeared to be struggling to dislodge her subject from the stuck position, as was manifested by the therapist’s intense but unstable pattern.
Discussion
The strong presence of beta in the therapist in regression work is easily understood as reflecting the need to keep the regression process under control. The presence of beta in the subject suggests the awareness necessary to do effective processing for understanding, evaluating, and reframing his material. He must use conscious processes that are separate from altered states, even though of necessity they take place at the same time. It is doubtful if transformational work could be done to any extent in the older form of hypnosis where beta was often blocked so severely that memory was not retained. This points up the gap between recovering a past life and dealing with it therapeutically.
Flared beta, especially in conjunction with altered states of considerable depth (strong alpha and theta) and the inclusion of delta, produced an unusual pattern that had formerly been observed primarily in conjunction with paranormal functioning. The emerging concept of delta as a radar state especially associated with paranormal functioning raises many questions as to the nature of past-life memories tapped by this radar and also regarding the method of their storage and retrieval. That the mind does not exist within the brain is a hypothesis that is appearing more frequently in scientific investigations. The mind is beginning to be conceptualized as an energy field, a series of computer programs which the brain, acting as a more or less efficient computer, brings into actualization.
The existence of such mind fields was researched at Yale for many years by Dr. Harold Saxon Burr, who published ninety-five research papers and finally summarized his findings in The Fields of Life (1972). He and his colleagues at the Yale University School of Medicine felt that all living things have electrodynamic fields—the “fields of life” or L-fields—that can be measured and mapped with fine voltmeters. Burr claimed that “these field properties are not mysterious phenomena: they are measurable characteristics, not only of the universe but of the immediate environment of the earth.” He concluded that the behavior of living systems is a consequence of the pattern of organization of the L-fields.
Even before the publication of Burr’s book, his concepts were communicated to and further developed by one of his colleagues, Edward R. Russell, who, in his Design for Destiny (1973) added supportive evidence to Burr’s work on the L-fields by making available the impeccable research on thought fields by L. L. Vasiliev, a Professor of physiology at the University of Leningrad (1973), even before Vasiliev’s book had been published. Russell not only reinforced evidence for the existence of Burr’s L-fields but took the hypothesis further by proposing that there is compelling evidence that thought is independent of the physical brain and exists in another kind of field, the T-field. This important concept provided a rational explanation, according to Russell, for the existence of the idiosyncratic ongoing component of a person. In other words, it insures a permanent storehouse for experiences over lifetimes.
The ready-made L-fields as proposed by Burr are conceptualized as being always available in a common pool and can start to organize an embryo as soon as conception has taken place, provided the right molecular conditions are present. This may explain why human bodies are similar and have not altered their general design for a hundred thousand years. The T-fields, working in conjunction with the L-fields, are permanent electromagnetic fields that mold the ever changing material of the cells and maintain the idiosyncratic patterns of bodies and brains and store their experiences. Russell defines a T-field as “a field in space originating with—or the result of—a thought that can produce effects at a distance without any visible intervening means on any person or object that is receptive to its forces or influences.” (This is actually a definition of what many theoreticians call the mind field, though Russell rejects this term because he finds it ambiguous). The T-fields are individual and through them individual differences are passed on from one entity experience (or lifetime) to another.
Dr. Hiroshi Motoyama has been involved in Japan for some years in an exploration of what he calls the “subtle bodies.” He is convinced that the mind is an energy field (1978). One of his strongest supporters in this point of view is Dr. William Tiller of Stanford University who proposes that consciousness can surpass its physical (sensory dependent) limitations (1974). Motoyama’s discussion of chi and Chinese acupuncture meridian systems throws light on the energy pathways of the individual mind field that are so puzzling to Western medicine. Using different instrumentation Dr. Thelma Moss developed a similar concept of energy fields in her work at UCLA (1985).
The mind field theory with the most implications for understanding the nature of delta and its radar qualities lies in the concepts proposed by Rupert Sheldrake, a biologist at the University of London. In his books A New Science of Life: The Hypothesis of Formative Causation (1981) and The Presence of the Past: Morphic Resonance and the Habits of Nature (1988) he postulated a morphogenetic field resembling Burr’s L-fields but able to be influenced and changed in a way similar to Russell’s T-fields. His assumption of a mind field in which experiences can be stored is relevant for understanding the nature of the material tapped by the delta (radar) contact. He feels that everything that is done and thought feeds into this morphogenic field and in turn influences what is done and thought. This morphogenic field is a reality, not just a concept, though Sheldrake doubts that it is electromagnetic in nature.
Roger Woolger (1987) has extended the concept of a perpetuating mind field for each individual to include a differentiation of various aspects of the mind field. The physical or etheric aspects, which he considers the model according to which the physical body is formed, influence what happens physically to the individual. This can also be influenced, for better or for worse, by what happens in this lifetime and by the choices made, such as reframing an old perception or a change in attitude toward one’s body. There is an ongoing emotional energy constellation that influences emotional events in this life but which, as in the case of the body, can also be modified by emotional changes and reframing. Likewise, mental scripts that we have made for ourselves during previous lifetimes influence us strongly in this one but in turn can be modified and transformed by both conscious and unconscious intervention. All these levels of functioning seem to be able to be contacted and mediated in regression work (which ostensibly includes delta functioning) and are easily understood in terms of Sheldrake’s interactive morphic resonance.
The question as to whether it is possible to contact past lives without delta remains open. Were the experiences of the two subjects who seemed to remain stuck in the alpha-theta meditative state equally valid regression experiences? Subjectively they had a different quality and appeared to carry lesser impact, but more extensive data are needed before the significance of differing states (including others not manifested in this report) can be evaluated.
Conclusions
The pattern of brain functioning, as registered on the Mind Mirror, suggests an explanation for the recovery of past-life material. Memories may be stored in a mind field and retrieved through a radar mechanism in the delta state. Material so recovered is brought up usually (but not always) into the personal unconscious (theta) and then is further propelled into alpha, where it manifests as images and is imbued with feeling. From there it is drawn up into high alpha and beta where it is remembered and recognized and evaluated and transformed.
This research must be considered exploratory. Documentation of many more cases is needed to confirm the pattern and explain the anomalies. Some sort of quantification of the data is needed: this early work has been limited to impressions of patterns. In addition, the validity of the Mind Mirror itself must become established by comparison of its data with data from similar and even more sensitive machines.
Further research to increase our understanding of delta is especially needed. We have little understanding of the appearance of delta in the field of the therapist. Is delta helpful to the therapist in inducing the subject into a delta state? In the area of healing, Cade (1979) found that if the healer manifested a strong Fifth State, the subject would begin to produce this state, even though he had never previously shown it. Thelma Moss’s results with Kirlian photography (1985) showed that the brilliant flares from the healer’s fingers traveled to and engulfed the patient’s imprinted fingers. Perhaps the therapist’s delta, although not actually necessary, facilitates the recovery of past-life memories and deepens the understanding of their significance. Or perhaps delta makes it possible for the therapist to experience, at least to some extent, what the subject is experiencing and thus to be more effective in questioning and support. Another consideration that emerges concerns the nature of the material produced by a subject who remains in a meditation state of amplified alpha and theta with no beta and no delta. Can the Mind Mirror distinguish between regression memories and active imagination?
Certainly the current exploration suggests a more appreciative evaluation of beta, which has been considered by meditators to be chattering source of distraction. Now it can be honored as a necessary hard-working servant in the transformation process.
The Mind Mirror may also be able to give important information in the areas of dreaming and healing. It is theorized currently that a dream has to manifest through images in alpha or theta, but possibly the actual retrieval comes during the delta state that precedes the dreaming state (REM) and then is brought up to where it can be felt and experienced. It is more likely that alpha, theta, and delta are continuously present in dreaming but in different intensities, so that when delta is dominant, it is what is registered on the conventional electroencephalogram, and this leads to the assumption that it indicates deep sleep. Similar conclusions are drawn regarding theta and alpha. In the current pursuit of lucid dreaming, beta may be added to the other levels of brain waves, just as beta is now a conspicuous characteristic of the past-life retrieval process. There is also a possibility that many dreams are not pulled from the mind field but may turn out to be connected with alpha and theta processes independent of delta. Similar considerations involve the field of healing. Granted that there are many healing states, ranging from vigorous beta blasting to the serene Awakened Mind state, do they all involve delta and, if so, what does this mean in terms of the source and nature of healing?
The ease with which delta is obtained by an increasing number of people is a recent phenomenon. If there is a mind field, it is becoming rapidly more available. No longer is it limited to the elite in the Mystery Schools, nor is it necessary for a skilled Yoga meditator to work for years to retrieve a past lifetime, as was true in the 1920’s, as documented by Paul Brunton (1937) when he reported that remembering former embodiments required years of concentrated meditation using a technique of going backward in memory. We do not know how many people currently can retrieve past lives, but they are increasing in number. The Mind Mirror demonstrates how far we have come in being able to make beta and delta waves at the same time. Perhaps this is an earmark of the evolution of consciousness.
References
Brunton, Paul. A Hermit in the Himalayas. New York: Dutton, 1937.
Burr, Harold. The Fields of Life. New York: Ballantine, 1972.
Cade, C. Maxwell and Nona Coxhead. The Awakened Mind. New York: Dell Pub., 1979.
Green, Elmer and Alyce. Beyond Biofeedback. New York: Delta (Delacorte), 1977.
Kamiya, Joseph. “Conscious Control of Brain Waves,” Psychology Today. April 1968.
Luria, A. R. The Working Brain. New York: Basic Books, 1973.
Moss, Thelma. The Body Electric. Los Angeles: Tarcher, 1979.
Motoyama, Hiroshi. Science and the Evolution of Consciousness. MA: Autumn Press, 1978.
Russell, Edward. Design for Destiny. New York: Ballantine, 1976.
Sheldrake, Rupert. A New Science of Life: The Hypothesis of Formative Causation. London: Blond and Briggs, 1981.
Sheldrake, Rupert. The Presence of the Past: Morphic Resonance and the Habits of Nature. New York: Times Books, 1988.
Whitton, Joel. “Ramp functions in EEG Power Spectra during actual or attempted Paranormal Events,” New Horizon. Vol. 1, No. 4, July 1974.
Woolger, Roger. Other Lives, Other Selves. New York: Doubleday, 1987.