“Some might say that we have found God or discovered something about His nature. However, we only conducted this experiment in order to prove that the subject of our research can be found in ancient sources like the Bible. This has no bearing on religion itself. However, one may conjecture how wide an impact this phenomenon has had on all human culture and history”
(This is a preliminary report. The full report will be published after all the experiments related to this study have been completed)
By Michael Raduga, founder and head of the OOBE Research Center.
Abstract
Study Objectives
The goal of the study is to substantiate mention of lucid dreaming in the Bible.
Participants
30 volunteers, most without prior lucid dreaming experience (though some had had spontaneous experiences in the past).
Methods
1 – Reproduce a biblical angel encounter as described in 1 Kings 19:4-6 in an experimental setting using the indirect method for achieving lucid dreams.
2 – Calculate the statistical probability of spontaneously experiencing the events described in 1 Kings 19:4-6.
3 – Compare 1 Kings 19:4-6 as well as three other biblical passages with 620 first-time lucid dreaming experience accounts related by modern practitioners in terms of primary and common indicia.
Measurements and Results
15 volunteers were able to reproduce the angel encounter described in 1 Kings 19:4-6 either in part or in full. Statistics show that experiences similar to just the aforementioned biblical account alone will occur spontaneously at least once in the lifetime of one person in 5 thousand. When four biblical accounts are compared with first-time spontaneous lucid dreams, it is observed that the same situations and indicia repeat: the state of awakening or falling asleep, vibrations being felt, sleep paralysis, fear, and full conscious awareness.
Conclusions
It can be asserted with a high degree of confidence that the majority of biblical events occurring at the threshold of sleep were the products of spontaneous lucid dreams (false awakenings).
Key Indexing Terms: dream, lucid dream, lucid dreaming, bible, religious vision.
Introduction
The goal of the study was to substantiate mention of the lucid dreaming phenomenon in a number of Bible passages. The hyper-realistically of lucid dreaming experiences when they occur just before or after sleep served as the impetus for the study (Raduga, 2011). After spontaneously entering a lucid dream, a person often has no way of realizing that everything occurring is not a real experience in the physical world (LaBerge, 1985). This phenomenon has a chance to be the reason of some religious visions in the Bible.
Methods
1. Mass recreation of Prophet Elijah’s angel encounter in the Bible:
30 volunteers (19 males/11 females), most without prior lucid dreaming experience (though some had had spontaneous experiences in the past), were instructed to perform certain procedures during morning awakenings in order to replicate the biblical account 1 Kings 19:4-6. Almost 100 volunteers initially reported to participate in the experiment (UCLA, the US city of Los Angeles, California), but most of them resigned due to fear, religious objections, or other concerns. 30 volunteers include 6 experienced practitioners participating remotely comprised the control group.
The method of cycling indirect techniques developed by the OOBE Research Center over 2007-2011 was employed in order for test subjects to achieve a lucid dream within the shortest frame of time (Raduga, 2011). The method consists in attempting to separate from the body immediately upon awakening. If unsuccessful, the subject then alternates special techniques for 3 to 5 seconds over the course of a minute. If some technique begins to yield results, then the subject should keep with it, intensify the sensations, and once again try to separate from the body.
If a volunteer or practitioner was able to experience the sensation of separating from the body, they were to try to find an angel in their bedroom, and then eat something in order to exactly reproduce 1 Kings 19:4-6 in the Bible (it happened to the prophet Elijah on the way to Beersheba in Judah):
4 But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life; for I [am] not better than my fathers.
5 And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise [and] eat.
6 And he looked, and, behold, [there was] a cake baken on the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again.
This biblical event was chosen from among a multitude of passages relating experiences akin to lucid dreaming due to its straightforwardness and relatively detailed description. Using available techniques, anything could have been reproduced – be it a vision of God, an encounter with an angel, or any other event (Raduga, 2011; LaBerge, 1985). But in terms of verifiable results, angels were the ideal choice as Western culture provides a relatively well-established image for them (wings, white robes, halos, etc).
In order to replicate the biblical account as faithfully as possible, participants were instructed that if they experienced spontaneous lucid dreams when sleeping, they were to recall the physical body, become present in it, and then experience separation from the body.
Separation from the body usually seems like a completely ordinary movement, as if it were made with the physical body (Raduga, 2011). The practitioner simply stands up, rolls out, or levitates as if he were doing so in reality. It’s easily possible in the proper moment upon awakenings and it is the reason of false awakenings (Raduga, 2011).
2. Calculation of the statistical likelihood of the event described in 1 Kings 19:4-6 occurring
The approximate odds of the average person encountering an angel as in 1 Kings 19:4-6 were calculated using both independently gathered statistical data (Raduga, 2011) and that of other sources (UNFPA, 2011; McEvedy, Jones, 1978). The first step was to obtain the percentage of the total population that has experienced lucid dreams. This data was then further processed to yield the statistical likelihood of experiencing separation from the body and seeing an angel.
3. Comparison of biblical phenomena with first-time lucid dreaming experiences
Four of the most clear-cut and detailed biblical descriptions of what are suspected to be spontaneous and unrecognized lucid dreams were selected: 1 Kings 19:4-6, Samuel 3:2-6, Job 4:12-16, and Genesis 15:12. Those passages were then compared with 620 first-time lucid dreaming accounts collected on aing.ru that belongs to the OOBE Research Center (2011). The comparison was based on common events and indicia: falling asleep or waking up, sleep paralysis, fear, noises, vibrations, the presence of animate objects, etc.
The four selected biblical passages do not relate dreaming. Rather, the protagonists in them are in a state of full conscious awareness. The large number of bible passages detailing visions that occurred during dreams – as is explicitly indicated in the passages themselves – were not taken into account.
Results
1. Mass recreation of Prophet Elijah’s angel encounter in the Bible:
24 of 30 volunteers were able to achieve one or more lucid dreams over the course of 4 weekends (November 11 through December 11, 2011) (Table 1). 15 of those were able to reproduce the angel encounter described in 1 Kings 19:4-6 either in part or in full (Table 2).
Indicators of success in reproducing Elijah’s biblical encounter with an angel (1 Kings 19:4-6) comprised the following: full conscious awareness, awakening/falling asleep, separation from the body, visual contact with an angel, and consuming food. Six subjects were able to complete the task in full (Table 2).
Another 9 participants were able to complete the experiment’s task partially, but still see an angel in one form or another while in a fully conscious state. However, in some cases the angels did not take on a traditional appearance (e.g. wearing white and having wings), although the participants nevertheless identified them as angels (Table 2).
Over its extensive didactic and analytical experience, the OOBE Research Center has developed indicators and procedures for distinguishing real experiences from fabrication and fantasy. No dubious responses were included in the statistics.
2. Calculation of the statistical likelihood of the event described in 1 Kings 19:4-6 occurring
Assuming that Elijah’s encounter with an angel (1 Kings 19:4-6) actually took place during an unrecognized lucid dream (in the form of a false awakening), the probability of having the same experience can be calculated on the basis of the primary indicia contained in that bible passage.
According to the outcome obtained (Table 3), around 12,540 people alive at the time of the biblical event of 1 Kings 19:4-6 would have had an experience similar to it, and 1,463,000 people alive at present (in December 2011) have encountered angels in identical circumstances. In other words, the odds of a person experiencing a false awakening and seeing an angel are 1 in 5,000. And this is despite quite a large number of stringent conditions having to be met. If similar biblical phenomena were to be analyzed in the same way, it might be found that their odds of occurrence are dozens or even hundreds of times higher.
The weakest link in the calculation is the likelihood of seeing angels out of all possible animate objects that may be encountered during spontaneous lucid dreaming experiences, as there is no confirmed data regarding its probability. The calculation uses the approximate minimum percentage of experiences featuring angels, and so the actual probability might vary by several multiples in either direction. The resultant number of people likely to have the experience is nevertheless massive. It may also be postulated that the more religious one is and the more one expects angels (whether consciously or unconsciously), the higher the odds of seeing them. This was partially proven by the experiment’s deliberate contact with angels: volunteers had wanted to see angels, and indeed saw them – though not every time.
If it were taken into consideration that many people experience both lucid dreaming and out-of-body experiences several times – or even many times – over the course of their lives (Gackenbach, 1984), then the actual odds of seeing angels would be even greater. The probability of seeing an angel could conceivably be at least double that of our calculations. Moreover, those calculations do not account for the superficial and shallow forms of lucid dreaming, out-of-body experiences, and other similar phenomena. Nearly everyone encounters these phenomena in such mild forms, and quite often at that (e.g. false awakenings, unreal movement and sounds upon awakening, half-conscious dreams, etc).
3. Comparison of biblical events with lucid dreaming experiences
Typical indicia of an unrecognized lucid dream include: thoughts before falling asleep match subsequent events, awakening before an unusual event, conscious awareness, and falling asleep before an unusual event.
The Bible, 1 Kings 19:4-6:
4 But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life; for I [am] not better than my fathers.
5 And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise [and] eat.
6 And he looked, and, behold, [there was] a cake baken on the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again.
For comparison, here is an account related by a modern practitioner (First-Time Lucid Dreaming Accounts, 2011):
…I was somewhere between 8 and 10 years old. The alarm clock went off, I was having a hard time getting out of bed. I thought for a few moments about how it was time to go to school… Then I got up out of bed, already wide awake, and went to the bathroom… All of the sudden mom came into the room and asked me to wake up and go to school… And this happened more than once…
Typical indicia of an unrecognized lucid dream include: thoughts before falling asleep match subsequent events, beginning to fall asleep, the presence of conscious awareness, and hearing voices:
The Bible, Samuel 3:2-6:
2 And it came to pass at that time, when Eli [was] laid down in his place, and his eyes began to wax dim, [that] he could not see;
3 And ere the lamp of God went out in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God [was], and Samuel was laid down [to sleep];
4 That the LORD called Samuel: and he answered, Here [am] I.
5 And he ran unto Eli, and said, Here [am] I; for thou calledst me. And he said, I called not; lie down again. And he went and lay down.
6 And the LORD called yet again, Samuel. And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, Here [am] I; for thou didst call me. And he answered, I called not, my son; lie down again.
For comparison, here is an account related by a modern practitioner (First-Time Lucid Dreaming Accounts, 2011):
…Literally just seconds before I fell asleep, it was as if someone was calling me… Please note that I was not yet asleep. At first it was a normal “voice”… then it got bossier, and then it started ordering me about. And then it was as if something was pulling me into the bed…
Typical indicia of an unrecognized lucid dream include: beginning to fall asleep, the presence of conscious awareness, fear, vibrations, and hearing voices:
The Bible, Job 4:12-16:
12 Now a thing was secretly brought to me, and mine ear received a little thereof.
13 In thoughts from the visions of the night, when deep sleep falleth on men,
14 Fear came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones to shake.
15 Then a spirit passed before my face; the hair of my flesh stood up:
16 It stood still, but I could not discern the form thereof: an image [was] before mine eyes, [there was] silence, and I heard a voice, [saying],
For comparison, here is an account related by a modern practitioner (First-Time Lucid Dreaming Accounts, 2011):
…There was a sharp crack, and the feeling of falling down. Someone’s unintelligible whisper in my right ear changed into a scream, which died down for a second, only to blast in again from all sides. I was panicking in mortal fear…
Typical indicia of an unrecognized lucid dream include: beginning to fall asleep, the presence of conscious awareness, fear, and hearing voices:
The Bible, Genesis 15:12:
12 And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror of great darkness fell upon him.
For comparison, here is an account related by a modern practitioner (First-Time Lucid Dreaming Accounts, 2011):
…I was being awoken by an acute fright that had begun while I was dreaming… A wild terror suddenly overcame me. Something started to make a lot of noise in the distance…
Discussion
It is important to point out the fact that biblical accounts of having visions while in subwaking states are not only reproducible and statistically likely to have occurred, but also contain no detail inconsistent with lucid dreaming. That is, not a single feature of 1 Kings 19:4-6, Samuel 3:2-6, Job 4:12-16, or Genesis 15:12 would differentiate those events from spontaneous or deliberate lucid dreams. The full agreement of common indicia points to a high degree of probability that spontaneous lucid dreams lie at the root of those encounters, as well as many others in the Bible.
If a biblical figure had been in a sitting or reclining position before and after having a religious vision, then it can be asserted with a high degree of confidence that a spontaneous, unrecognized lucid dream had taken place. When a lucid dream occurs just before or after sleep, realism of perception is often indistinguishable from that of everyday waking life (Raduga, 2011). Meanwhile, the content of the lucid dream is tightly interwoven with the physical world. This can all easily lead to a mystifying experience. The same can be assumed not only for other biblical visions, but also for any unusual and realistic experiences that begin and end while in a relaxed physical posture.
Considering that the approximate odds of an average person experiencing something similar to 1 Kings 19:4-6 are 1 in 5,000, it may be confidently postulated that such events have happened to a multitude of people over the past millennia, including the Old Testament era. Depending on levels of awareness and general interests, such an experience could have been interpreted in a whole variety of ways. Undoubtedly, religious people could have interpreted such experiences as bona fide validation of their beliefs, with this subsequently finding expression in texts like the Bible.
The prophet Elijah, often mentioned in the Bible and the Koran, is one of the most significant figures in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. Nevertheless, this study has shown that he may have encountered the phenomenon of lucid dreaming, which also served as the cause of some of the religious experiences in his life. Judging from it all, the same can be said for some other biblical figures.
Conclusion
Even the complex vision described in 1 Kings 19:4-6 was reproduced with relative ease by people without prior lucid dreaming experience. No substantive differences separate that biblical event from what was experienced by experiment participants. The experiment, statistic results, and comparison of experiences make it possible to conclude that the Bible indeed mentions the phenomenon of lucid dreaming on many occasions. Meanwhile, the subject matter of the lucid dreams was determined by general interests or thoughts before falling asleep, and not external stimuli. A comprehensive investigation of this possibly found no fact indicating that this was not the case. Indeed, nearly every indication and fact supports this conclusion.
References
Blackmore, Susan J. (1982). Beyond the Body: an Investigation of Out-of-the-Body Experiences. Portsmouth: Heinemann
First-Time Lucid Dreaming Accounts (2011). Retrieved December 21, 2011, from http://aing.ru/for/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=507
Gackenbach, J. I. (1984). An estimate of lucid dreaming incidence. Lucidity Letter
LaBerge S. (1985). Lucid Dreaming. New York: Ballantine
LaBerge S., Levitan L. (1991). Other Worlds: Out-of-Body Experiences and Lucid Dreams. Nightlight
McEvedy, C., & Jones, R. (1978). Atlas of world population history. New York: Viking
OOBE Research Center (2011). General Statistic of First Phase Experiences. Retrieved December 21, 2011, from http://research.remspace.net/general-statistic-of-first-phase-experiences/
Raduga M. (2011). School of Out-of-Body Travel. A Practical Guidebook. Los Angeles: Lulu Enterprises Inc.
UNFPA (2011). State of the World Population report for 2011. Retrieved December 21, 2011, from http://foweb.unfpa.org/SWP2011/reports/EN-SWOP2011-FINAL.pdf
Appendices
Table 1 Volunteers and Results | ||||
Name | Lessons | Attempts | Lucid dreams/OBEs | Results |
| Alexander N. | 3 | 5-10 | ||
| Ally C. | 1 | 1-5 | 1 | Angel, food |
| Andrew L. | 1 | 5-10 | ||
| Anna B. | 1 | 1-5 | 2 | Angel |
| Ben R. | 2 | 20-25 | 3 | Angel |
| Debbie H. | 3 | 15-20 | 2 | Angel, food |
| Dominic A. | 1 | 5-10 | 2 | Angel, food |
| Eugene I. | 4 | 10-15 | ||
| Fatima D. | 4 | 10-15 | 2 | |
| Gary B. | 1 | 1-5 | ||
| Henry H. | 2 | 15-20 | 2 | |
| Hollis J. | 2 | 10-15 | 3 | |
| Ilyas S. | 3 | 5-10 | 2 | |
| Jose D. | 1 | 5-10 | 3 | Angel, food |
| Mariela O. | 2 | 5-10 | ||
| Mariya S. | 4 | 10-15 | 2 | |
| Maxton S. | 1 | 5-10 | 1 | |
| Mitra M. | 1 | 1-5 | 1 | Angel |
| Rhett S. | 2 | 15-20 | 1 | |
| Sherman T. | 1 | 1-5 | 1 | |
| Sophie B. | 1 | 1-5 | ||
| Tony S. | 1 | 5-10 | 1 | |
| Viktoriya S. | 3 | 1-5 | 1 | Angel |
| Yuri O. | 3 | 15-20 | 3 | Angel |
| Experienced Practitioners | ||||
| Anna A. | 0 | n/a | n/a | Angel, food |
| Anonym | 0 | n/a | n/a | Angel |
| Anton M. | 0 | n/a | n/a | Angel, food |
| Arlindo B. | 0 | n/a | n/a | Angel, food |
| Michael R. | 0 | n/a | n/a | Angel, food |
| Yaroslav K. | 0 | n/a | n/a | Angel, food |
Table 2 Recreation of Prophet Elijah’s angel encounter in the Bible | |
Indicators of success in reproducing Elijah’s biblical encounter with an angel (1 Kings 19:4-6) | Voluteers |
| Full conscious awareness, awakening/falling asleep, separation from the body, visual contact with an angel, and consuming food | (Debbie H.)…When I woke a second time and was doing this, it definitely felt like something different happened. The vibrations were very strong and I know my breathing got heavier and deeper. I tried levitation and I got flashes of being out of my body. I thought, “This is it,” and immediately went to look for the angel. In the corner of my bedroom, it definitely felt like it was there… I asked the angel for any information, and it said it was Gabriel! It was a fairly traditional looking angel – large and with wings. I then went to look for food, found an apple in the kitchen, and took a bite… (Yaroslav K.) I awoke in a half-awake state, and immediately separated from my body by standing up. I was in my room, it was night outside the window, and a light shone in the kitchen. I grabbed an open can of corn from the refrigerator, and then went towards the balcony. I put my right hand back behind me, trying to feel for an angel. As soon as I had touched it, I turned around. The angel was hovering three feet off the floor right in front of me. He was bright white, had wings, and was about one and a half feet tall. He was looking at me. I felt a slight sense of shock and surprise. He disappeared after a few moments, and so I ate the corn and then went off to complete the rest of my plan of action… (Ben R.) …I sat back in my favorite chair for out-of-body experiences, did the exercises, and got in the “phase” almost immediately… However, I set my mind to the task of seeing an angel… At one point, engulfed in a yellow glow, a bright white light appeared in the center, and the image of an angel began to manifest. It quickly morphed to have a more demonic appearance and bat-like wings. I “wiped” the image and tried again. For a brief instant, I saw a perfect, beautiful angel at a distance… I decided to focus on the second task of getting something to eat, and so I manifested some pastries… I was, however, able to keep an apple pie clearly in my vision. I grabbed a slice and took a bite. I could not actually taste the flavor of the apple pie, but I was overcome with the sensation of eating something good… (Anton M.) I left my body, and then summoned my “guide”, and he came in the form of an angel. I asked him for some cookies and water. He gave them to me readily. I ate everything up, experiencing every taste sensation and the feeling of satiation. I returned to my body and fell right back asleep… (Michael R.) I lay down in the evening to catch a little sleep. I soon awoke in order to try to take off my headphones, but quickly realized that they actually weren’t there… I rolled out of my body to the right-hand side right then and there – and found myself standing at the door. I focused my attention on there being an angel behind the door, and opened it abruptly. The angel wasn’t there – but my grandma was, sleeping on a chair. I turned my back and tried to imagine an angel being there instead of grandma, and then turned back around… Now facing the room again, I still saw grandma there sleeping, but with large gray wings pressed between her back and the chair… I quickly made for the kitchen and grabbed the first thing that appeared on the table: an egg and some meat. I immediately stuffed them into my mouth. The egg turned out to be hard-boiled and rotten. I almost couldn’t keep it down. Nevertheless, I decided to behold an angel that was the real thing, and so I went back to my grandmother. Immediately after stepping in, she appeared in all white, was now blond, and radiant in a way. The abrupt transformation somewhat frightened me at first, but I then started to relax, as I had finally completed the task. I gradually found myself back in my body. (Anna A.) I awoke, immediately got up from my body, and remembered that I needed to deepen the experience. I began palpating the dishes and other random objects – in a word, I “deepened”. Then, I began feverishly recalling what I had to do next. That’s when the figure of an angel in a white robe appeared, saying, “Have some pastries…” The taste of the pastries turned out to be way more realistic than in real life. They were so filling that I couldn’t even look at the pantry for a week afterwards…
|
| Seeing an angel in one form or another while in a fully conscious state. | (Victoria S.)…. I woke up. It was dark in my room. I got up and went into the hallway, where there was light. I stood in the middle of the hallway and looked through the large window there… I saw one of my yellow-eyed cats, but now her eyes were blue. That’s when I realized that this wasn’t real life. It dawned upon me that I needed to look for an angel. I ran through the hall and thought about whether to go outside or out on the balcony. I went for the balcony. I stepped out on it, and it was dark outside. Right then, an angel came out from the darkness. It was a man in all white, with white wavy hair reaching to just below his shoulders. I could even make out his face. Once he came closer to me, I saw the large wings on his back. I greeted him and said that I had been looking for him. He told me, “Congratulations, you’ve found me.” I couldn’t have been happier. I left the balcony and then turned back around, but he was no longer there… (Dominic A.) …I went back to sleep and woke up. This time, I just listened as the ringing got louder and starting vibrating in my head until it was in my whole body and it felt like it popped me out. I looked around until I thought to myself, “I want to see my guardian angel”. Then, a man appeared who seemed more alien than angelic, and I told him I was sorry for troubling him. He smiled and put his arm around me. I asked him if he knew where I could get food that I could eat that would help the pain in my back and the stress in my life. He asked me what I wanted to eat, and said whatever I wanted I could have. Then, a cheesecake appeared. I only had a bite of it, and I don’t remember it tasting like cheese cake, just that it was the best thing I’ve ever tasted… (Jose D.) I rested on my bed and started to meditate after waking up in the morning. I got up without my body about 5 minutes in. I walked around my room and started looking for angels. I found a small angel! At first I thought it was a small statue but he turned to look at me and moved his neck, head and hands. He was probably about 2 feet tall. I forgot to eat something after that because I was very excited that I could fly around and travel around the world. I managed to keep the experience going for longer that 5 minutes and after that I fell into a dream state… (Anonym) After leaving my body, I tried dozens of times to summon an angel through the front door of my apartment. One time, a six-foot tall being in white clothing appeared. It stooped in low through the entrance. Its wings were quite impressive: they were darkish and so large that their ends brushed against the walls of the entranceway, rustling like real feathers would. I had been holding raw eggs that I had taken from the refrigerator, and crushed one out of surprise. A vase with flowers stood nearby. I looked at it, and was pulled back into my body. (Anna B.) …I woke up in a cave I had imagined, and did not turn around to see my body, but felt that it was there. Meanwhile, all feeling was in my new body that had just jumped out. I was in a cave, and knew that the cave was in a forest. It smelled like pine. I heard something, and started walking towards the sound. I realized that the gravity was not as strong as in real life, and my steps where almost bounds. I was moving faster as well. I made a turn into a tunnel, and it got a bit darker inside. Only in an opening on the side did I catch sight of a sun beam. I looked to the side and saw 2 angels: male and female. It was a blond female and brunet man. I was standing right next to them, but they did not see me… (Arlindo B.) …That’s when it dawned on me to ask myself if I was dreaming… I called out, “Angel… angel of mine, come to me,” and an emergent speck of light in the distance gradually revealed more detail as it grew and lent the illusion of a translucent object approaching. I gazed at what was before me. My angel was a hooded figure with wings sprouting from its back. I asked the hooded angel who he was. There was no reply. The silence was eerie, and his authoritative stance, with folded arms and an inflated chest, conveyed a certain degree of impatience. Not wasting any time, I requested to be fed and decided not to specify any type of food. The angel’s body language was still uncompromising, but he proceeded to pull out diminutive bunches of bananas from under his robe and hurl them my way. The bananas displayed a tenuous coloring, and were somehow partially lit in the dark spatiality where the encounter took place. I caught every single bunch with ease, and enjoyed eating the bananas without having to peel their skin. They were deliciously sweet and fresh and met my expectations of what good bananas should taste like… (Ally C.) …It happened on my second attempt when I was semi-awoken by my roommate. Making the attempt was surprisingly easy. I realized I was conscious, and immediately tried the “rotation method”. I felt myself rotating faster and faster, and suddenly felt myself lurch out of my body with relative ease. I got up, didn’t see my body in the bed, and walked into the living room of my apartment. It looked more or less the same. There was a plate of sour cream and onion chips on the table, and I ate some. Then, I went to the refrigerator and had a peanut M&M. I was looking for angels… There was, however, an African-American man who I did not recognize in one of the rooms. He was soft spoken and kind, and in retrospect, maybe this was my “angel”. I don’t remember what we talked about specifically, but I do remember him telling me it was time to go, and I instinctively walked back to my room, lay down, and went to sleep… (Yuri O.) Before falling asleep at night, I imagined how I would try to leave my body in the morning and search for an angel. As mulled this for a few moments, I suddenly realized that I was already standing in front of my couch. A white angel lay on it, spreading his hands down his back. I was so surprised that I didn’t know what to do next, and that’s when everything ended. (Mitra M.) …. I awoke and began to try doing “rotation”. I soon began feeling that I was actually rotating, and realized that it was time to separate from my body. I got up and found myself in my bedroom… I remembered that I needed to look for an angel, and began searching around me… An ethereal vision of an angel hanging in the air appeared in front of me. At one point, the image became quite distinct… |
| Note. The accounts have been truncated to excerpts illustrating only the above indicators. In some cases the angels did not take on a traditional appearance (e.g. wearing white and having wings), although the participants nevertheless identified them as angels (descriptions have been truncated to excerpts describing key indicators). The term “out-of-body experience” (OBE) is used sometimes to refer to the sensation of having left the body, and not a real exit of some essence from the physical body – although this is just the impression often had by test subjects. Actually, OBEs and lucid dreams are one and the same phenomenon, or different methods of achieving the same phenomenon (LaBerge,1985). | |
Table 3 Odds of Having an Encounter Like that in 1 Kings 19:4-6 of the Bible | ||||
Indicium | Likelihood of experiencing indicium | Likelihood of all indicia being experienced simultaneously | Share of world population at moment of biblical event (60 million people/9th century BCE)(McEvedy, Jones, 1978) | Share of current world population (7 billion/2011 CE) (UNFPA, 2011) |
| Lucid dreaming (Gackenbach, 1984) and out-of-body experiences (Blackmore, 1982). These are different terms for essentially one and the same phenomenon, thus these percentages ought to be combined (LaBerge, Levitan,1991) | 64.9% (57.5% and 17.5%) | 64.9% | 38,940,000 | 4,543,000,000 |
| Recognized or unrecognized separation from the body during first-time lucid dreaming and out-of-body experiences (Raduga, 2011) | 63.3% | 41% | 24,600,000 | 2,870,000,000 |
| Encountering animate objects during first-time lucid dreaming and out-of-body experiences (Raduga, 2011) | 51% | 20.9% | 12,540,000 | 1,463,000,000 |
| Approximate percentage of encounters with inanimate objects featuring angels during first-time lucid dreaming and out-of-body experiences | 0.1% | 0.0209% | 12,540 | 1,463,000 |
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(Mass Alien Abduction Experiment)
(NDE Simulating Experiment)
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