Susan Blackmore
Beyond the Body:
An Investigation of Out-of-the-Body Experiences
(London: Heinemann, 1982)
(Chicago: Academy Chicago Publishers, 1992
--reprint of the 1982 edition with a new postscript)
Dream-like experiences in which the self seems to travel
while the body remains in bed are reported in many cultures,
with different interpretations in each culture.
Careful analysis shows that these experience are dreams,
because they are conceptual in nature.
As in all dreaming, these experiences recombine elements
of thought and memory already present in the brain of the dreamer.
No alleged out-of-the-body experience has ever been able to discover
some fact of the 'place' to which the dreamer believes
he or she has traveled that was not already known to the dreamer.
Out-of-the-body experiences move quickly thru time and space
because thoughts can change more quickly than bodies can move.
Reading this book will take you out of your body.
But when you put the book down, there you are,
back in your body, returned from your mental trip.
This book is a must read for everyone interested
in alleged out-of-the-body experiences.
To discover other books critical of paranormal claims,
search the Internet for the following exact expression:
"OCCULTISM AND SCIENCE".
James Leonard Park, skeptic.