“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

(The evening was very hot and humid; it was quite uncomfortable even through it had just rained, and Jane wasn’t sure we would have a session. She didn’t feel that conditions were very good.

(On June 27 Jane had received a letter from Tam Mossman at Prentice-Hall, requesting information on Dr. Instream, Dr. Bernard, both psychologists; and on Ray Van Over. We had talked over the best way to answer the letter, and had made some notes to that end today. But these were unsatisfactory; so much could be said that, once again, answers to what seemed like simple questions could expand with a life of their own.

(Before the session tonight Jane and I discovered during our conversation that each of us had toyed with the idea of asking Seth to answer the letter. This has never been done before by us. Still, we didn’t make any formal request that Seth write such a letter. We sat for the session as usual at 9 PM, waiting to see what developed.

Now. Dr. George Instream is an upstanding and upright man, and a very cautious one. He is so cautious that he allowed Dr. J.B. Rhine to make advances in the field of parapsychology that he could have produced himself, had he been more daring. He holds this against Rhine to this day.

Our results with him were good as far as the tests were concerned, though there was considerable distortion simply because Ruburt’s (Jane’s) abilities had not been sufficiently developed. There were direct hits, in other words, but these results could not be mathematically appraised in terms of the odds against them; and this is was what Dr. Instream was looking for.

(This is the first time Seth has mentioned Dr. Instream to us, since we halted the tests with Dr. Instream. The series of tests, held twice weekly, ran for one year.)

Robert and Jane operated in a vacuum, since he did not tell them anything regarding the tests, negative or favorable. No academic psychologist, including Dr. Instream, will give you a statement to the effect that I am a survival personality. Dr. Instream will give a statement I believe, as to Robert and Jane’s character, the quality of the Seth material itself, and the fact that no fraud of any kind is involved.

We were all complete strangers at the time.

A few of the early factual statements made were unknown, I believe, even to his wife. However, while you may see these files, I will not have any part of showing my own legitimacy by pointing up the weaknesses of a man’s condition. It was not generally known that he was ill, or the circumstances of his illness.

He did not know his wife requested the session, and I do not want it known. He will give you a statement to my benefit, but not the kind of a statement you may want to use. He did attend a session here himself, and you may request a statement on that session.

(“You’re doing all right”)

Give us a moment. You may delete that phrase from the letter. (Leaning forward; confidential and amused, eyes open.)

My material will be published. (Pause.) Probabilities always operate, and free will is always involved. However, I believe that you will be my publishers. I send you my best wishes (long pause), and invite either or both of you here.

Now. The book on the Seth material is not yet an actuality, but the Seth material is, and it is upon the Seth material that the book will be based. Such a visit therefore will allow an examination of the material, if a brief one. This is all that is needed.

You may or may not append that to the letter, as you prefer. (To me:) This will be an exceedingly brief session. Do you have any questions, Joseph?

(For reasons that he has explained to some extent, Seth calls Jane as Ruburt, and me, Joseph.

(Pause; smile, eyes closed.) The unstable elements are not helpful. The electromagnetic components of the atmosphere and of the personality both are in a state of unbalance, that changes very rapidly. On some such occasions these circumstances can work toward excellent communication. As a rule however the conditions are poor.

(Pace speeding up.) Certain chemical and electromagnetic changes occur within Ruburt’s physical system during sessions, and the manipulations are more difficult when there is much instability of environmental elements and physical components.

As a rule body temperature, after certain preliminary stages, is lowered during Ruburt’s trance state. The heat therefore can mitigate against us at times. All communications depend upon inner electromagnetic manipulations in any case, even for example mental images, and body temperature is also related here.

(For the benefit of T. Mossman and Miss Carr: Had I interrupted this data to ask questions, Seth could have explained in detail any of the above general statements. Material of this nature is often gone into deeply in succeeding sessions.)

There is a heat conversion. If the physical temperature is too high however, then there are breaks that occur, particularly in the case of ordinary mental images, and in for example reception of clairvoyant impressions.

The relative stability of the physical system in sleep is one of the reasons why extrasensory perceptions so often make themselves known then. Dreams themselves activate physical temperature however, and all bodily processes. Except in periods of extreme physical heat however, the temperature changes and the resulting electromagnetic alterations, are easily converted into legitimate impressions of a clairvoyant nature, precognitive information, and so forth.

In out-of-body experiences from the dream state however, there is a lowering rather than a heightening of body temperature, even though dream elements are involved.

Little scientific investigative work has been done in these areas. The recent dream experiments are highly superficial in this regard. Until the legitimacy of out-of-body experiences is recognized, no investigative experiments will be carried on, of course.

(End at 10:05. Jane retained a little memory, as before, of the material’s content. Sessions usually run until 10:30 to 11 PM these days, so the early end this evening shows that conditions were not of the best. Jane is personally quite sensitive to heat.

(Seth’s last words, above, really mean that in his opinion Jane had been in trance long enough at this time. He would have continued answering questions had I asked them, but Jane would have found it tiring. As often as not, Seth will suggest we continue with a session when conditions for communication are excellent.

(It is July 2 as I type this. Today Jane wrote to Gene Bernard and to Ray Van Over re statements. Today also she received a card from Gene Bernard’s wife Sarah, who is visiting her brother in Ecuador, South America, for several weeks.)