Druidus
Keeper of the Grove
We are so lucky. We are a group of people that are uninhibited by societies need for normal thinking. We are able to practice and develop a skill set that has never been fully confirmed by science before. My grandfather told me that there is no right or wrong so long as you write the rules. The possibilities with Psionics are limitless both good and bad. As with any other breakthrough, there are always the first ones to do it. That time has passed, but let's be the first to do it well!
I often make references to fantasy in my work. Many times an anime I recently watched gave me an idea, or I just read a good book, or even watched Star Trek. It's hard to make a serious point when you use mainstream science-fiction as a comparison. But I feel that fantasy is what drives our ambition of progress. Flying machines and computers were laughable in the 1800's but the few that had the desire to succeed stepped up to the challenge and now we live in a world of double-decker jumbo-jets and pocket computer systems. There are plenty of Psionic related fantasies out there in the world. Advanced Dungeons and Dragons has a very elaborate and strikingly similar system for Psionic-class characters. The big difference is instead of scooting a drinking straw across the table you're devouring the soul of your opponent; or rupturing their body from the inside-out with a Psionic attack. Haha! And don't get me started on the Dragon Ball series
Nevertheless, there is great promise in Psionics and related skills. But a foundation must be laid before we built the house. The vast majority of Psionic how-to articles across the internet provide a bounty of techniques and procedures that can aid any aspiring Psionisist to actual visible results. This was where we all started unless we had some inherent natural ability. The information is very helpful, but they always come up short. As far as I know, an article with complete information has not been written and probably never will be. This is due to the fact that everyone perceives Psi differently. One individual may feel it's an extension of a nebulous aura that surrounds your body and you can manipulate it to perform feats. Another may consider Psi a bio-chemical reaction deep within the nervous system of the body which creates a radiant energy capable of performing tasks. The similarities are almost lost in the description, but they are still there. They went about using it the same way.
Summed up, the most popular way to, say, produce a Psi-ball is this; Gather energy from your source, well it up within your body, visualize it traveling to the spot where you intend to create the ball and pool it there, constantly adding more and more energy to it making it thicker and denser and viola, you have a Psi-ball. No matter what your belief system is, chances are you basically did the same thing.
Using this method, thousands have been able to create constructs of dynamic complexity for tasks like, psychic shields for blocking mental interference, or even constructs that ping you when your soft-boiled egg is ready. This dynamic use for mental energy is exciting and inspiring. The idea that the mind was capable of accomplishing this seemingly magical feat it's beyond comprehension. But there is a problem. There is a wall.
Yes, the wall is a metaphor. There is a great damper on progress that is reached once you begin practice and work your way up through the skills. There is a lack of understanding, a pure understanding of Psi. Most people understand water; if they want it boiled they heat it to 100 degrees Celsius (210 degrees Fahrenheit); if they want it frozen, they cool it to 0 degrees Celsius (32 degrees Fahrenheit); Simple enough. Based on observation, we can understand that frozen water is going to be cooler then 0°C and boiling water is going to be over 100°C. That's how we all work. We understand the behavior of something and can apply it to circumstances involving it. Fire is hot and can burn things, so if you want something burned, use fire! It's so no-DUH that is it odd to read it, but it's just that simple.
Now take Psi into consideration. We currently don't have a solid idea on how it works, or even exactly what it is. It defies convention in almost every respect! But by using observational discovery, we've developed a way to control it. Some have a good idea how it feels in the body, others can even see its soft aura. While some only feel it's there by observing the results they intended; like spinning a Psi-wheel. That's all well and good, but you can only go so far on observation. The more skilled Psions have been attempting to devise an explanation for Psi. This is the next leap from realizing that it's there and doing a few cheap tricks with it, to understanding it and actually controlling it with a sound perception. This is the wall I speak of. Progress made in Psionic skills like Telekinesis and Telepathy have been little more that predictable controlled accidents.
Now, I know that may be a slap in the face for those of you who are skilled enough to scoot drinking straws whenever you like. But think about it; practicing has been a hit-or-miss affair this whole time. You've never really been certain on anything, you know it's there and you know how it feels and you can make it do what you want (for the most part). But you can't honestly say that you have a deep one on one familiarity with the energy. You've always been coaxing and guiding it, but you've left it to your subconscious to fill in the gaps. This is the current limit of mainstream Psionics.
Relying on your subconscious can provide fast results as it's your subconscious that has the DIRECT control. It conceivably is capable of doing everything your body can. All you have to do is tell it to. Some even say that you conscious never links to your body, that it all goes through the subconscious. But therein is where the problems lie. The subconscious is not rational; you cannot make decisions with your subconscious. For the computer literate, the subconscious is a bit like the BIOS of the computer and the Operating System is like your conscious. There is a close partnership between the two regions, but the ties are kept narrow. If there was a direct open link, you could stop your heart just as easily as blinking and kill yourself instantly. The body is designed to use the subconscious as an interface to your body ONLY! It is where all the mechanisms are controlled. The different lobes of the brain perform the actual tasks, but the subconscious takes the input and gives the output. It also can make very minor decisions like triggering enzymes for sleep or action. That's based on very basic but sensitive systems that would be foolish and dangerous to tamper with.
To make the computer analogy again, controlling Psi by convincing the subconscious is like formatting a hard drive through the BIOS; you can still erase the data, but you can't make partitions, or write a master boot record. You don't get the precise control you need to accomplish anything fancy or precise. You also use more energy just getting the message to it on the off chance that it might work so then you've made many more steps than is necessary.
Also consider the dangers. Two examples.
When you sleep, the subconscious plays a role in keeping your mind busy while it does the routine-active-maintenance. This is facilitated by dreams. While you're dreaming your senses are disconnected from you body and reconnected to your dream-mind. This is to ensure that you don't wake up from the panic of your body being numb and slowly breathing. I won't get into the dynamics of dreams as that is a very long topic ^__^. But say, you've become quite skilled at using your subconscious to perform TK. You have your subconscious ready to do whatever you want at the mere suggestion of it. Well if your dreams are anything like mine, I'll be dreaming of doing amazing things with Psi and even though you may not be capable of it, you subconscious is ready and willing to try. It could do anything from strain your system to rupture capillaries in the brain. All while you sleep.
Another example; unbridled anger. Emotions are powerful. They are also more closely linked to the subconscious than any other thought. You can do a lot without thinking while you're angry. You can say mean things that you don't mean; you can even physically harm something or someone. Say you can move a pencil with your mind. That's pretty difficult all by itself. What you might not know however, is it takes less force to pinch a blood vessel shut in the brain than it does to overcome the friction of a pencil on a table. You could be angry with your parents. FURIOUS AT THEM! You've never felt such anger! The raw burning hatred is eating away at your stomach lining. You wish they were dead. You don't mean that, but hey, you're pissed. Your subconscious is overwhelmed by the data. Increase adrenalin, constrict arteries, raise heart rate kill parents. And with the powerful suggestive ties you've made to your subconscious fueling the mechanism, you inadvertently burst a blood vessel in their head instantly killing them.
(Eesh. That was hard to write Probably harder to read though )
Emotions are powerful. They can be the worst thing in the world and the best thing. They can inspire love and trigger war. Don't let emotions and the subconscious control Psionics, just as you wouldn't want anger to control the use of a firearm. No matter how much control you THINK you have, the subconscious is not driven by reason only suggestion.
Okay, enough of that grim lecture. Back on track
It is difficult to learn and can almost seem counter-productive, but understanding Psi is the key to controlling it. It requires strong rational thinking and finely tuned cognitive skills. There is a limit to the precision of what you can suggest to the subconscious, but when you're consciously calling the shots, the only limit is the available power and your intellect. This might be the stop where most people get off, but I feel that it is the truth. I have always believed that there was such a thing as mind over matter and that the more intelligent you are the more power you have. I feel you get what you give, but there are intelligent ways to get more. Anything from alternative sources for energy to turning the candy machine's dial just a certain way to allow more candy to fall out. Those require an understanding of the mechanism. Another example is lock-picking; a professional lock-pick knows how the lock mechanism works; that way they can take advantage of flaws in its design or just give it what it wants to pick the lock. Without that knowledge and rational thinking, they'd just be jiggling a pick in a lock for an hour. There's a chance for success, but that's far less than one who knows that they're doing.
This is where we are today. We all need to develop an understanding of Psionics that relies less on feeling and hit or miss tactics and more on direct control and understanding. But the million-dollar question is how
Well, let's break it down.
We can start with deductive reasoning to get us going. We will be using the example of moving a toothpick floating in a bowl of water. You start by gathering energy and then you manipulate that energy to propel the toothpick Face value, it sounds pretty simple. I'll even bet many of you have succeeded at doing that very feat. But it is at this point that we must tear it apart. This is possible the best example because it is fairly simple and direct.
First component, energy. The energy is what makes this all happen and we all have deemed the energy Psi. Second component, conduit or conductor. This would be the medium of which the energy makes it to its target. And lastly, the Third component, target. In this case the toothpick.
It's still pretty simple. But if we take a look at each of these components closer, we start to see where the complexities lie. Let's look at the toothpick; usually wood, about five to six centimeters long, weighs maybe two or three grams. The only real challenges to moving it are the small surface area, the force needed to move the stationary object and the friction of it resting on a surface. Now, floating it in a bowl of water reduces the surface friction greatly. However water has a unique surface tension so if the water seeps into the toothpick, it can cling to the surface better and make it harder to move as the toothpick is now part of the water's surface tension. Still, that is less friction than it resting on a table ^__^. The force needed to move a stationary object must be equal or greater to the weight of the object itself. The friction of the object on the surface it's resting on can exponentially increase the force needed to break the hold, but once it's moving it will take much less force to keep it moving than it needed to get moving. But luckily we're on water so the point is almost completely moot. The surface area of the toothpick is peculiar though. It's so small that a force must hit it dead on to catch it and move it. This tells us a quality that the force must have. It infers that the force that moves the toothpick must be able to either; one, be dense enough to catch the surface of the toothpick to move it; two, be able to permeate the molecules that make up the toothpick to grab-hold of something to move the toothpick; or three, the force must be able to cause the toothpick's particles themselves to propel itself. Those options can limit the usable methods to physical interaction, a breeze blowing it or if it was a metal pick, magnetism propelling it. In a vacuum, light can even push objects around. That gives us a basic idea of what the toothpick needs to move.
I often make references to fantasy in my work. Many times an anime I recently watched gave me an idea, or I just read a good book, or even watched Star Trek. It's hard to make a serious point when you use mainstream science-fiction as a comparison. But I feel that fantasy is what drives our ambition of progress. Flying machines and computers were laughable in the 1800's but the few that had the desire to succeed stepped up to the challenge and now we live in a world of double-decker jumbo-jets and pocket computer systems. There are plenty of Psionic related fantasies out there in the world. Advanced Dungeons and Dragons has a very elaborate and strikingly similar system for Psionic-class characters. The big difference is instead of scooting a drinking straw across the table you're devouring the soul of your opponent; or rupturing their body from the inside-out with a Psionic attack. Haha! And don't get me started on the Dragon Ball series
Nevertheless, there is great promise in Psionics and related skills. But a foundation must be laid before we built the house. The vast majority of Psionic how-to articles across the internet provide a bounty of techniques and procedures that can aid any aspiring Psionisist to actual visible results. This was where we all started unless we had some inherent natural ability. The information is very helpful, but they always come up short. As far as I know, an article with complete information has not been written and probably never will be. This is due to the fact that everyone perceives Psi differently. One individual may feel it's an extension of a nebulous aura that surrounds your body and you can manipulate it to perform feats. Another may consider Psi a bio-chemical reaction deep within the nervous system of the body which creates a radiant energy capable of performing tasks. The similarities are almost lost in the description, but they are still there. They went about using it the same way.
Summed up, the most popular way to, say, produce a Psi-ball is this; Gather energy from your source, well it up within your body, visualize it traveling to the spot where you intend to create the ball and pool it there, constantly adding more and more energy to it making it thicker and denser and viola, you have a Psi-ball. No matter what your belief system is, chances are you basically did the same thing.
Using this method, thousands have been able to create constructs of dynamic complexity for tasks like, psychic shields for blocking mental interference, or even constructs that ping you when your soft-boiled egg is ready. This dynamic use for mental energy is exciting and inspiring. The idea that the mind was capable of accomplishing this seemingly magical feat it's beyond comprehension. But there is a problem. There is a wall.
Yes, the wall is a metaphor. There is a great damper on progress that is reached once you begin practice and work your way up through the skills. There is a lack of understanding, a pure understanding of Psi. Most people understand water; if they want it boiled they heat it to 100 degrees Celsius (210 degrees Fahrenheit); if they want it frozen, they cool it to 0 degrees Celsius (32 degrees Fahrenheit); Simple enough. Based on observation, we can understand that frozen water is going to be cooler then 0°C and boiling water is going to be over 100°C. That's how we all work. We understand the behavior of something and can apply it to circumstances involving it. Fire is hot and can burn things, so if you want something burned, use fire! It's so no-DUH that is it odd to read it, but it's just that simple.
Now take Psi into consideration. We currently don't have a solid idea on how it works, or even exactly what it is. It defies convention in almost every respect! But by using observational discovery, we've developed a way to control it. Some have a good idea how it feels in the body, others can even see its soft aura. While some only feel it's there by observing the results they intended; like spinning a Psi-wheel. That's all well and good, but you can only go so far on observation. The more skilled Psions have been attempting to devise an explanation for Psi. This is the next leap from realizing that it's there and doing a few cheap tricks with it, to understanding it and actually controlling it with a sound perception. This is the wall I speak of. Progress made in Psionic skills like Telekinesis and Telepathy have been little more that predictable controlled accidents.
Now, I know that may be a slap in the face for those of you who are skilled enough to scoot drinking straws whenever you like. But think about it; practicing has been a hit-or-miss affair this whole time. You've never really been certain on anything, you know it's there and you know how it feels and you can make it do what you want (for the most part). But you can't honestly say that you have a deep one on one familiarity with the energy. You've always been coaxing and guiding it, but you've left it to your subconscious to fill in the gaps. This is the current limit of mainstream Psionics.
Relying on your subconscious can provide fast results as it's your subconscious that has the DIRECT control. It conceivably is capable of doing everything your body can. All you have to do is tell it to. Some even say that you conscious never links to your body, that it all goes through the subconscious. But therein is where the problems lie. The subconscious is not rational; you cannot make decisions with your subconscious. For the computer literate, the subconscious is a bit like the BIOS of the computer and the Operating System is like your conscious. There is a close partnership between the two regions, but the ties are kept narrow. If there was a direct open link, you could stop your heart just as easily as blinking and kill yourself instantly. The body is designed to use the subconscious as an interface to your body ONLY! It is where all the mechanisms are controlled. The different lobes of the brain perform the actual tasks, but the subconscious takes the input and gives the output. It also can make very minor decisions like triggering enzymes for sleep or action. That's based on very basic but sensitive systems that would be foolish and dangerous to tamper with.
To make the computer analogy again, controlling Psi by convincing the subconscious is like formatting a hard drive through the BIOS; you can still erase the data, but you can't make partitions, or write a master boot record. You don't get the precise control you need to accomplish anything fancy or precise. You also use more energy just getting the message to it on the off chance that it might work so then you've made many more steps than is necessary.
Also consider the dangers. Two examples.
When you sleep, the subconscious plays a role in keeping your mind busy while it does the routine-active-maintenance. This is facilitated by dreams. While you're dreaming your senses are disconnected from you body and reconnected to your dream-mind. This is to ensure that you don't wake up from the panic of your body being numb and slowly breathing. I won't get into the dynamics of dreams as that is a very long topic ^__^. But say, you've become quite skilled at using your subconscious to perform TK. You have your subconscious ready to do whatever you want at the mere suggestion of it. Well if your dreams are anything like mine, I'll be dreaming of doing amazing things with Psi and even though you may not be capable of it, you subconscious is ready and willing to try. It could do anything from strain your system to rupture capillaries in the brain. All while you sleep.
Another example; unbridled anger. Emotions are powerful. They are also more closely linked to the subconscious than any other thought. You can do a lot without thinking while you're angry. You can say mean things that you don't mean; you can even physically harm something or someone. Say you can move a pencil with your mind. That's pretty difficult all by itself. What you might not know however, is it takes less force to pinch a blood vessel shut in the brain than it does to overcome the friction of a pencil on a table. You could be angry with your parents. FURIOUS AT THEM! You've never felt such anger! The raw burning hatred is eating away at your stomach lining. You wish they were dead. You don't mean that, but hey, you're pissed. Your subconscious is overwhelmed by the data. Increase adrenalin, constrict arteries, raise heart rate kill parents. And with the powerful suggestive ties you've made to your subconscious fueling the mechanism, you inadvertently burst a blood vessel in their head instantly killing them.
(Eesh. That was hard to write Probably harder to read though )
Emotions are powerful. They can be the worst thing in the world and the best thing. They can inspire love and trigger war. Don't let emotions and the subconscious control Psionics, just as you wouldn't want anger to control the use of a firearm. No matter how much control you THINK you have, the subconscious is not driven by reason only suggestion.
Okay, enough of that grim lecture. Back on track
It is difficult to learn and can almost seem counter-productive, but understanding Psi is the key to controlling it. It requires strong rational thinking and finely tuned cognitive skills. There is a limit to the precision of what you can suggest to the subconscious, but when you're consciously calling the shots, the only limit is the available power and your intellect. This might be the stop where most people get off, but I feel that it is the truth. I have always believed that there was such a thing as mind over matter and that the more intelligent you are the more power you have. I feel you get what you give, but there are intelligent ways to get more. Anything from alternative sources for energy to turning the candy machine's dial just a certain way to allow more candy to fall out. Those require an understanding of the mechanism. Another example is lock-picking; a professional lock-pick knows how the lock mechanism works; that way they can take advantage of flaws in its design or just give it what it wants to pick the lock. Without that knowledge and rational thinking, they'd just be jiggling a pick in a lock for an hour. There's a chance for success, but that's far less than one who knows that they're doing.
This is where we are today. We all need to develop an understanding of Psionics that relies less on feeling and hit or miss tactics and more on direct control and understanding. But the million-dollar question is how
Well, let's break it down.
We can start with deductive reasoning to get us going. We will be using the example of moving a toothpick floating in a bowl of water. You start by gathering energy and then you manipulate that energy to propel the toothpick Face value, it sounds pretty simple. I'll even bet many of you have succeeded at doing that very feat. But it is at this point that we must tear it apart. This is possible the best example because it is fairly simple and direct.
First component, energy. The energy is what makes this all happen and we all have deemed the energy Psi. Second component, conduit or conductor. This would be the medium of which the energy makes it to its target. And lastly, the Third component, target. In this case the toothpick.
It's still pretty simple. But if we take a look at each of these components closer, we start to see where the complexities lie. Let's look at the toothpick; usually wood, about five to six centimeters long, weighs maybe two or three grams. The only real challenges to moving it are the small surface area, the force needed to move the stationary object and the friction of it resting on a surface. Now, floating it in a bowl of water reduces the surface friction greatly. However water has a unique surface tension so if the water seeps into the toothpick, it can cling to the surface better and make it harder to move as the toothpick is now part of the water's surface tension. Still, that is less friction than it resting on a table ^__^. The force needed to move a stationary object must be equal or greater to the weight of the object itself. The friction of the object on the surface it's resting on can exponentially increase the force needed to break the hold, but once it's moving it will take much less force to keep it moving than it needed to get moving. But luckily we're on water so the point is almost completely moot. The surface area of the toothpick is peculiar though. It's so small that a force must hit it dead on to catch it and move it. This tells us a quality that the force must have. It infers that the force that moves the toothpick must be able to either; one, be dense enough to catch the surface of the toothpick to move it; two, be able to permeate the molecules that make up the toothpick to grab-hold of something to move the toothpick; or three, the force must be able to cause the toothpick's particles themselves to propel itself. Those options can limit the usable methods to physical interaction, a breeze blowing it or if it was a metal pick, magnetism propelling it. In a vacuum, light can even push objects around. That gives us a basic idea of what the toothpick needs to move.