“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

(Jane had felt for several days that Seth would address the session to Dr. Instream, and so he did. Jane’s eyes remained closed for the entire session. She began the session while sitting down. More or less as I had anticipated, she began speaking too rapidly for me to take notes effectively, although at times during the session I was able to keep up with her. Peggy Gallagher also took notes. Thus this session is taken from the tape itself, largely, and necessitated replaying it several times.

Therefore it is not overplaying the point to say that all psychic phenomena is caused by suggestion. For my dear doctor, without suggestion, without automatic and continuous suggestion, no human being would breathe one breath. I am indeed happy to be able to speak to you in this manner. There are several points that I would like to cover this evening, for I have you here now, you see, where you cannot talk back to me.

This is necessary. I have no qualms with this, but it is possible, and in this stage of your evolution it is necessary, that the human personality learn to become flexible, to change the focus of awareness so that other realities can be perceived. There are indeed as I have said, effects that I can show you, and I will. Effects that will at least be of some import; but you must remember the table in our analogy of the man in the trance state.

Those who will not see, they will not see. I will do my best. However, such effects will appear in the middle of quite ordinary sessions. For again, only spontaneity will give us any results at all.

(Break at 9:35. Jane was well dissociated as usual. Her eyes had remained closed, she had remained seated. Her voice had been strong and expressive, if somewhat on the same keel throughout the session so far. The voice effects began to show themselves after this break. Footage at break was 552, Mono One, Side One.

(During this paragraph Jane’s voice really grew in strength and volume, although it was to become stronger later on. She began to approach the volume of the voice used in the 158th session. When these effects came on, Jane usually stood upright, with her head back to some degree; this made me think of a trumpet. Strangely enough however her mouth did not open more than an inch. And of course during these effects she displayed no evidence of strain. This voice is not a shouting voice, but simply an innately stronger voice.

(The massive voice effects continued from now on in greater or lesser degree; they will not all be listed. One will have to listen to the tape of this session to really achieve any idea of the voice range Jane displayed.)

Again, if I stood clear as day in the middle of a meeting room, with twenty fine and sturdy, respectable fuddy-duddies, what would this prove? They would swear that they were under the effects of suggestion. I will, I will for my own amusement, give you in the future many—not one but many—clairvoyant effects. Again, for my own amusement.

You see now, I forget. I become involved with the very personal relationship between us both, but I have been asked to give voice effects, and so indeed I shall comply (louder, briefly) out of the goodness of my heart, and because of the amusement which it affords me. However I take this encounter with utmost seriousness, and I may presume that your attitude is the same.

Indeed, I should not be harsh, and I do not mean to be. This voice which I adopt forces a certain meaning upon me, through inflection, which sometimes is not intended. Ruburt, who cooperates with me so well, still is not certain that I am I. So indeed, how shall I blame others? I am hampered indeed, for whenever I speak in tones of ordinary conversation, then indeed I cause these poor people hours of notetaking. You may not know it, but you will help us out in these matters in the future.

(Jane’s voice again climbed the scale in volume. It became very loud and strong, rising and falling. During some passages, up until break time, the volume of sound she produced made my ears ring. I would say that in these passages she exceeded the effects produced in the last part of the 158th session. It will be remembered that the Gallaghers were witnesses to the first part of that session.

And may I also say that if voice effects are necessary in order that you read my material, then my dear doctor voice effects galore shall you receive. (Very loud.) For I am above all things, once again, an educator, and as such like all educators I am sly, and you shall receive whatever effects you require in my good time. And you will therefore be intrigued enough to read the material which I have presented, and I will get my point across.

(Break at 10:40. Jane was dissociated as usual, she said. She had remained standing until break, with her eyes closed. She felt no fatigue from the voice effects. Her pace of dictation had been somewhat slower and I had been able to keep up with her. Footage at 412, Mono One, Side Two.

I say this only to let you know that I understand any innermost doubts that you might have concerning the possibility that others would so take such advantage. I thoroughly enjoyed our brief meeting. Our conversation indeed was most beneficial. I appreciated the give and take. This may not sound like a very scientific document, yet in many ways it may be more scientific than you imagine, for its effects will indeed be felt.

I am concerned because I want the theoretical material to be widely distributed. I am not primarily concerned with giving effects or proofs of my existence. I know that I exist as you know that you exist. How would you feel if someone asked you to prove your existence? If you answer this question honestly, then you will see that I am far from being as irascible as it may appear. I bend over backward to understand. I bend over backward, and this is most difficult for me. (Strong.)

(Jane’s voice had been slowly growing in volume since last break. Seth now pulled out more stops than ever before, I believe. The voice display now became deafening. My ears rang, off and on, for the next few paragraphs. I saw Peggy and Bill blinking. Jane merely stood in front of her chair, head thrown back. As stated before she exhibited no strain in producing these stunning effects. The electric eye on the recorder closed, meaning that it was recording, as far as I know, at maximum volume.)

I will then give my due respects to Doctor Instream, and also ask for his understanding as I make certain points quite emphatically, in order to make certain that they are made at all. We will, between us, come to an understanding; and those effects which he desires, in time can be given.

(I joked with Seth about the great voice effects, and Seth agreed that he had not yet reached the peak in voice effects, at least as far as volume went. Whereupon Jane rose to her feet again and treated us to a voice display that in my opinion exceeded to some small degree the voice effects we had taped this evening. This was a prolonged display that lasted more or less for the balance of the session, and seemingly could have continued until dawn without effort on Jane’s part, just as Seth said. The volume of sound hurt my ears at times.

(Seth said again that he considered such effects childish, but that it would be a small sacrifice to make if it helped to get the material across. Again he dwelt upon the difficulty of proving immortality. No matter what he did, people would say it was trickery. He still maintained that he could offer proof that would be sufficient, in time. He repeated again that he could not play on Dr. Instream’s desire for immortality in order to arouse his interest in the material.