“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

Seth explains exactly how we translate thoughts into physical reality. To our knowledge, this explanation is original with the Seth Material To say the least, the supposition that we actually create matter gives rise to all kinds of questions, and Rob and I have considered many of them at one time or another. Was Seth saying that we created tables and chairs as well as events? And when we were ill, were we creating our own disease? If we create reality to begin with, then can we change it for the better?

Seth answers these questions and many we hadn’t even considered. I thought that the whole subject was fascinating when he began, but I didn’t expect a demonstration in the middle of our living room, which is exactly what happened in the 68th session (July 6, 1964). Seth was describing the intimate connection between expectation and perception—what we see and observe—to Bill Macdonnel, when the incident took place. It was a session none of us would ever forget. Before I give you the high points of that episode, however, here are a few excerpts from immediately previous material:

Session 68 was held on a very warm night. All the windows were open. We were drinking iced coffee, and as the session started, my glass sat on the wooden table. At that time I still paced the room as I spoke for Seth, my eyes open with the pupils dark and dilated. As usual, Seth addressed us by our entity names, referring to me as Ruburt, and Rob as Joseph. Bill Macdonnel he called Mark. (As I mentioned before, these names refer to the whole personalities of which our present selves are only a part.)

Here Seth’s voice really boomed out. Bill was sitting in the rocker in the middle of the room. He moved the chair closer to see better. Rob was taking verbatim notes as usual, and looking up to watch whenever possible.

At the time, no one thought anything in particular about Seth’s last sentence. For one thing, Rob was so busy taking notes that he didn’t really pay much attention to what was being said, beyond making sure he took Seth’s words down accurately. As far as I remember, I wasn’t even aware of speaking them.

Jane’s delivery was unbroken as she paced about the room at a rather fast rate. Her voice was strong and deep, much deeper than usual, yet she spoke without apparent effort.

From my writing table at the right of the entrance to our bathroom, I could easily look at Bill as he sat in our Kennedy rocker, facing the bathroom entrance itself. … As Jane continued her delivery, I noticed that Bill was staring quite consistently into the open bath doorway, yet I didn’t pay any particular attention to this. I just took it for granted that Seth’s remark about using Bill as a guinea pig meant that he was to be a topic of conversation.

As soon as Bill told us he had seen an image, Jane and I both looked into the doorway, of course. But we could see nothing; for that matter, Bill said, the image had vanished during break. Now Jane began dictating again in the same strong and very deep voice. Bill continued working on his sketch, saying that he was not satisfied with it and would try another.

Here Jane, as Seth, pointed at Bill as he sat in the rocker, working on his second sketch. Then she pointed at me. In the meantime Bill kept staring into the open doorway. As before, I could see nothing from my position at the table. The open door completely blocked my vision. I did not want to risk moving around, since I had to continue taking notes to make certain that our record was complete.

From my studio at the back of the apartment came Willie’s cry. He was still stalking about.

Seth-Jane ended the monologue with a laugh at Bill. Now I asked Bill exactly what he had seen. He said that the dark open bathroom doorway turned a foggy white. He then saw the form of Seth’s apparition stand out against this lighter background. The form was mainly a silhouette, Bill said, without strong detail, and yet during the first monologue he got a good look at the face. The effect was rather like that of a photographic negative. Bill added that the face of the apparition was about six feet above floor level. A copy of his sketch is included in the notes [see illustrated section].

Rob’s hands were tired from taking notes; we took a break. I was somewhat bewildered. Bill swore up and down that he had seen the apparition for nearly an hour. It was not as solid as an ordinary body, but it was far from transparent. Seth had made numerous comments about it. Yet I had seen nothing. Rob hadn’t been able to leave his chair, so he had seen nothing. The lights had all been lit, but I just couldn’t accept the idea of an apparition.

“That’s a great thing to say,” Bill said angrily. I was sorry as soon as I’d made the remark.

“Oh, all right.” Suddenly I felt silly. I sort of danced around to the doorway, laughed, and said, “Okay, Bill, now exactly where did you see your man in the doorway?” I clowned about, moving around in the open doorway. “Here? Or was it here?”

“Just don’t move,” Rob said very quietly. I had a tingling sensation, but I saw nothing. I knew something odd was going on from Rob’s and Bill’s reactions, so I just stood still as I was told. And I stopped laughing.

At our request, Jane remained standing where she was. There was no doubt about what we saw. The effect lasted for perhaps a minute or two. The room was well lighted. The change in Jane’s features seemed to take place on a plane an inch or so in front of Jane’s actual physical features. The new set of features might have been suspended on a clear screen of some kind. As I watched them I saw or sensed behind them—or through them—Jane’s real features as I knew them.

We resumed the session, with all kinds of questions in our minds. Bill told us that he still sensed the first apparition, sometimes quite strongly. He had made two sketches, and was still making corrections. Since the session began at nine and lasted until midnight, I won’t attempt to include it all. The deep masculine voice was to last for the entire session, becoming more and more Seth-like as the evening continued.

“There is no more truth and no more falsehood in saying that my appearance in the doorway was caused by suggestion than to say that this room and everything in it is caused by suggestion. … You will understand that it is erroneous to think in terms of one physical universe. You now exist in four different ones at this moment. …”

Seth explained that the apparition’s appearance was distorted by Bill’s own ideas, though. The high forehead represented Bill’s interpretation of great intelligence, for example. Bill interpreted the available data in his own way: this was the Seth that Bill saw, regardless of Seth’s own appearance.

Seth then continued, in a rather amusing fashion, giving “advance information” to Bill concerning a vacation trip he was going to take the following week. He described people and events that checked out perfectly on Bill’s return.

At this time Rob and I were thinking of buying the house mentioned earlier. That very day we had gone to look it over again, and were surprised to find the back door wide open. Now Seth told us that we had opened the door ourselves, using psychic energy to do so, and that this was just one instance of mind influencing matter.

I didn’t know what to think. When he was finished with the discussion, Seth began joking with Rob and Bill and showed such high spirits and vitality that Rob had trouble taking notes—he was laughing so hard.

This material was given while we were still having the Instream tests. Later, when we had dispensed with these, Seth had more time to answer our questions. Rob wanted to know what other parts of the body were responsible for this creation of material—if any. Here is part of the answer we received: