“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

(The objects for the 57th envelope experiment were two leaves taken from our poinsettia plant. The plant is an old one, and one of our favorites. We see it every day of course but I was sure Jane wasn’t aware of these two specific leaves separately. The plant also has an interesting history, which will be brought out later. I taped the leaves to one of the two pieces of Bristol used in these experiments, sandwiched it against the other piece, then sealed the two in the usual double envelopes. Note that the word “top” is penciled on the back of the Bristol; this was done by me after the experiment, but before Jane saw the objects, as will be shown later.

Before our break I will leave you with a few questions. (Smile, lighting cigarette.) Was there something your future self had forgotten? Did the future self request information, and did this request cause the present self, you see, to make an actual and legitimate projection into the future?

(Jane always sits quietly for a few moments after leaving trance until she is fully oriented. This gave me enough time to once again see that she held the envelope in the same position relative to the floor. I called her attention to this, then marked the outer envelope “top”. Next I marked the inside envelope the same way, then the two pieces of Bristol the same way as Jane watched. The two leaves were sandwiched between the Bristols. Note the top marking in pencil on the back of the object, as indicated on the tracing on page 189.

(Jane had one image which will be mentioned in place. We were able to make quite a few connections, and Seth helped us with one after break. The session was over now however for most practical purposes. Since the object did not originate with us, we were not able to make some connections which we supposed were probably valid. The history of the poinsettia plant which furnished the leaves used as objects will unfold to some extent as we interpret the data.

(Seth goes from round to oval, which is more specific as far as the leaf is concerned, and from square to rectangular, which is more specific as far as the rectangular shape of the piece of Bristol to which I had taped both objects is concerned. The bigger of the two leaves is fairly large as far as the overall size of the piece of Bristol is concerned.

(“Two horizontal lines, rather widely separated from each other.” Since Jane had held the envelope to her forehead in the position above indicated, it can be seen that the “spines” of the two leaves, taped to the Bristol, would be roughly horizontal to the floor and thus to her vision. Provided Seth gives this data in our terms in such cases. We wondered if by horizontal Seth, or Jane, could possibly mean parallel, since the leaves are quite parallel to each other on the Bristol.

(“A small starlike shape, perhaps in the lower right hand corner, holding the object this way.” By now Jane had lowered the envelope to her lap while giving the data, and held it with a short edge up as explained. See my indication of this by use of the word top on the back of the tracing on page 189. I determined this as explained low on page 193. With the object held in this position, it can be seen that the smaller of the two poinsettia leaves would be in the lower right hand corner or the lower left hand corner, depending on whether the piece of Bristol to which the leaves were taped had the leaves facing toward Jane or away from her.

(“A connection with 1961.” The plant from which the two leaves were taken was once the property of our neighbor here in the apartment house, Miss Callahan, an elderly retired teacher. Jane first saw it in Miss Callahan’s apartment at Christmas of 1964, when Miss Callahan received it as a Christmas present.

(“Yellow and red.” The plant I acquired secondhand via Miss Callahan is the only poinsettia we have. The two 1961 plants died a couple of years ago. Oddly enough, none of our three plants have ever bloomed for us. Their blooms are red leaved, of course, with brilliant yellow centers; I have painted poinsettias many times on my job, for greeting card designs. Interestingly enough, Jane used to see our present plant in bloom in Miss Callahan’s apartment, before Miss Callahan disposed of it.

(“A tall tree, exceptionally tall, I believe.” The plant we now have, which furnished the leaves used as objects, is, we have been told, quite old and tall for a poinsettia. Many people have remarked about this. The plant stands perhaps three feet tall; this may have given rise to Seth’s tall data here. The stems have acquired a woody, brown texture. In addition, the day I removed the leaves used as objects from the plant, it stood on our bathroom windowsill. This is quite high; the plant on the sill gave the illusion of reaching almost to the ceiling.

(“The impression of a water connection.” There can be at least two. As stated, today the plant which furnished the leaves used as objects sat on our bathroom windowsill. Due to the architecture of our bathroom this puts it within a foot or so of our sink. Also, since it had been quite a hot day, Jane watered the plant again at supper time—something she usually doesn’t do at that time of day.

(“With something beginning with an M, and something beginning with a G,” We didn’t know, although we speculated that the initials were a distortion of Miss Callahan, or of Merry Christmas, both these ideas being related to the source of the poinsettia plant which furnished the leaves as objects. Seth helps us out on this after break.

(My first question asked Seth for more data about the two horizontal lines. See page 194. “I have the impression of two dark horizontal lines, one rather toward the top and one rather toward the bottom.” [Jane gestures.] It will be remembered that when Seth gave this data the first time, Jane held the envelope to her forehead with its long dimensions horizontal to the floor. As explained, this meant the spines of the two leaves were also roughly horizontal to the floor and her insight. Seth elaborates a bit here now, although Jane now sat holding the envelope in her lap, and with its short dimensions parallel to the floor.

(When the envelope is held in the horizontal position, the spine of one of the leaves is above the other, or one toward the top and the other toward the bottom. They are not dark, however. In poinsettia leaves at least, the central spine is a lighter green color than the rest of the leaf.

(More data follows from the first question: “Both inside, but just an oval shape. Holding the object this way.” [Jane gestured again, the envelope in the same position, short end up.] From this we infer that Seth refers to the spines of the leaves, and not their stems; yet mention is made only of an oval shape, singular.

(I now asked Seth to name the object: “I have the impression, holding the object this way” [gesture in the same fashion as above], “of a rectangular object, a card that is connected with a picture”, resulted in Jane having a mental image here. She saw, she said, the rectangular shape of the Bristol to which I had taped the two leaves. She also had an image of something darker in the center of the rectangle, and interpreted this as a picture instead of “something real.” Upon seeing the object, Jane realized the dark areas of the leaves matched the dark areas she had seen mentally, yet the image hadn’t been sharp enough to see as leaves; it came through in a generalized picture interpretation instead.

(Which leaves us just about where we were—Miss Callahan, Merry Christmas…?)