“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

No physical matter is without this electromagnetic reality, and no thought exists which does not exist within this reality. Again, I am not speaking symbolically, but quite practically. Emotions, having their own reality within this system, do not affect physical matter indirectly, but cause specific electromagnetic changes within the physical organism.

This, and all such effects, represent one of the most basic ways in which one action causes another action to change. These definite fields operate as channels for inner communications. They may be formed instantly, sweeping out into other directions. They open through attraction. This attraction may originate as an emotional one, but the emotional feeling has its own electromagnetism, and the attraction is in direct proportion to the force of the emotion itself, or to the charge that the emotion may carry.

These dreams go unrecognized by the conscious ego; but they do not go unrecorded by the inner self, and they therefore exist, and they form electromagnetic channels of their own to which—make that by which—the physical body itself is affected. The physical organism is constantly changed by all stimuli, whether or not the ego is aware of the stimuli. And it is affected by stimuli, whether or not science realizes that the particular stimuli even exists. Therefore, the physical organism reacts to this continuous unconscious mental activity in the form of continuing dream experiences, whether or not the individual is awake or asleep. All of these realities go into the formation of the personality, and unless they are all understood the personality itself will remain a mystery.

(Many sessions ago also, Seth told me that my Christmas doldrums stemmed from something that happened to me many years ago. I have forgotten the incident, he said. Seth promised to go into it but we became sidetracked on other matters last year. This fall I will make an effort to clear up the matter up before December.)

It should be emphasized however that dream experiences can have a more lasting and vital effect upon the personality than many so-called physical experiences, for the dream experiences are not blocked nearly as much as waking experience is blocked. The suggestion that also occurs within the dream state works even more effectively upon the whole personality than any suggestion works under ordinary circumstances. And dreams certainly do contain suggestions, and they are reacted to by the personality, not only on a subconscious basis and a psychological basis, but they affect the whole system.

These dream activities have a pulsing quality that could be compared with the pulsing of heartbeat, and that are quite as vital to the human system. So much telepathic communication is received at this level that the lines of individuality are not as brilliant. Yet individuality does exist here, but it takes a strong organizing system, with amazing powers of discrimination, to handle such data; and it takes the human personality to stand firm upon its own identity while it is, on this other dreaming level, open to so many communications that are not its own.

It is the ego, practically speaking, who attempts to do the distinguishing here; but the inner core of the self, the inner ego of which we have spoken, manages the basic chore. The setting up of the ego represented at once the necessity of boundaries, represented a cutting apart from, a divorcing, and a rigid limiting function. Initially this was necessary while this new sort of creature learned to maintain itself as a separate unit.

But the ego also grows and learns and evolves, and it can assimilate more and more, and accept more, as a portion of its own identity. It is only because your scientists overestimate the physical that it seems to them that man has not evolved to any great degree in the last million years.

A disturbance of sorts occurred today. He received a letter from a person whose name begins with M. There was a phone call at dinnertime—that is, the night meal. I believe that his office is going to be changed or redecorated or perhaps repainted; some change of this sort in the near future, if it has not already been done. But this is a rearrangement of some sort, that could involve furniture arrangement.

But the office is not the same now, or very shortly will not be as it was when we were there. The change may also involve another person. Dr. Instream may grumble about being routed out, though this might be only temporarily while the rearrangement is being done. (Pause at 10:11.)

A foundation of sorts. A path or road shape not directly centered, with an upward incline. An initial, an area of color, window shapes having to do with two people, but connected with several circumstances, and with a package, perhaps sent from this address.

(Jane told me she was nervous, however, when it came to our own envelope test. She did not think I had a test for her. She said it was hard to say exactly when she became nervous, but that it was probably as I handed her the test envelope.

(Seth’s impressions do appear to be far-ranging, in connection with the old bureau and its label. Jane and I can make some connection with some of the material, but in the light of what follows we decided to wait. We will also try to verify some of the impressions through our landlord, Jimmy Spaziani. We do not know how much he can help, since he has owned our apartment house but a few years.

We will speak but briefly. Originally the bureau belonged to a woman to whom it was delivered at this address. She left your town and went to Florida, and left the chest.

(After Bill left Jane and Peggy sat talking while I read. As she talked Jane jotted down her impressions. I interrupted my reading to put myself into a light trance state, and then wrote down four more impressions. Three of these proved to be correct. I used the trance state rather casually, and later wished I had written down more impressions; but I was interested in getting back to my reading.