Michael Cremo - Human Devolution - A Vedic Alternative To Darwin's Theory

Pierre and marie Curie

Marie curie and her husband Pierre curie are famous for their discoveries in physics, which resulted in two nobel Prizes for Marie and one for Pierre. But their extensive research into paranormal phenomena is far less well known. In the late years of the nineteenth century, Pierre curie was investigating the mysteries of ordinary magnetism and simultaneously became aware of the spiritualistic experiments of other European scientists, such as charles Richet and camille flammarion, whose work we shall consider later in this chapter. Pierre curie initially thought that systematic investigations into the paranormal would help him with some unanswered questions about magnetism (Hurwic 1995, p. 65). He wrote to his fiancée Marie, whom he married in 1895, “I must admit that those spiritual phenomena intensely interest me. I think that in them are questions that deal with physics” (Hurwic 1995, p. 66). Pierre curie’s notebooks from this period show he read many books on spiritualism (Hurwic 1995, p. 68).

Ten years later, Pierre curie’s interests had turned, under the influence of his wife, from magnetism to radioactivity. He again thought that spiritualism might provide some insight into some of the problems of physics, and the couple started going again to séances. Historian Anna Hurwic noted in her biography of Pierre curie, “He thought it possible to discover in spiritualism the source of an unknown energy that would reveal the secret of radioactivity. for this reason, probably, he used the same experimental methods for studying spiritualism that he used all the time in radioactivity, especially the measure of ionization of atmospheric air in a room. . . . curie did not go to séances as a mere spectator, and his goal certainly was not to communicate with some spirits. He saw the séances as scientific experiments, tried to monitor the different parameters, took detailed notes of every observation. He was really intrigued by Eusapia Paladino” (Hurwic 1995, p. 247).

About some séances with Eusapia, Pierre curie wrote to physicist Georges Gouy in a letter dated July 24, 1905 (Hurwic 1995, p. 248): “We had at the Psychology Society a few séances with the medium Eusapia Paladino. It was very interesting, and truly those phenomena that we have witnessed seemed to us to not be some magical tricks—a table lifted four feet above the floor, movements of objects, feelings of hands that pinched you or caressed you, apparitions of light. All this in a room arranged by us, with a small number of spectators all well known and without the presence of a possible accomplice. cheating would only be possible if the medium had extraordinary abilities as a magician. But how to explain the different phenomena when we are holding her hands and legs, and the lighting of the room is sufficient to see everything going on?”

curie kept elaborate notes on the séances, which Marie also attended. About a séance on July 6, he wrote, “The table goes four feet in the air for one second, then falls down violently” (Hurwic 1995, p. 249). On April 6, 1906, he noted (Hurwic 1995, p. 250): “Table lifted up four feet. . . complete control [of Paladino] by myself. . . . lateral movements of the table without contact; excellent observation on both sides.” Hurwic wrote (1995, p. 250): “We can judge to what extent he was believing in those phenomena by the fact that he thought to include them in his official research program.”

On April 14, 1906, Pierre wrote to Georges Gouy: “We are working, M. curie and me, to precisely dose the radium by its own emanations; it does not seem much work but we have been at it for many months and only now starting to get some results. We had a few new ‘séances’ with Eusapia Paladino (we already had séances with her last summer). The result is that those phenomena exist for real and I can’t doubt it any more. It is unbelievable but it is thus, and it is impossible to negate it after the séances that we had in conditions of perfect monitoring” (Hurwic 1995, pp. 263–264). He then went on to describe how the medium had manifested bodily limbs, in addition to the other phenomena described above. Pierre curie then told Guoy, “I would like you to witness some séances of this kind and I don’t doubt that after a few good séances that you will be also convinced” (Hurwic 1995, p. 264). Like Rayleigh, curie admitted that the phenomena could not always be reproduced, but he was hopeful that a determined program of research would yield more results. He concluded (Hurwic 1995, p. 264), “There is, according to me a completely new domain of facts and physical states of space of which we presently have no idea,” Hurwic herself noted (1995, p. 263), “coming from an experimental scientist, it is a surprising judgement.”

Pierre curie’s interest in spiritualism continued to the time of his death in a road accident on April 19, 1906. Recollecting events on the day before her husband’s death, Marie described a talk between french mathematician Jules Henri Poincaré and Pierre: “At one point, Eusapia was the subject of the conversation and the phenomena that she produces. Poincaré was objecting with a sceptical smile, curious of new things, while you (Pierre) were pleading the reality of the phenomena. I was looking at your face while you were talking, and once more I was admiring your nice head, your charming words, enlightened by your smile. It was the last time that I was hearing you express your ideas” (Hurwic

1995, p. 262).

Camille Flammarion (astronomer)

camille flammarion (1842–1925) was a french astronomer, famous for his work on double stars and the topography of Mars. In 1861, he joined the Society for Psychologic Studies, beginning a long career of investigation into paranormal phenomena. In 1870 he was invited to submit a report to the dialectical Society of London, which had convened a commission to study “phenomena alleged to be spiritual manifestations” (flammarion 1909, p. 289). In his letter to the commission, flammarion (1909, p. 302) admitted that investigations into the paranormal were complicated by fraud and the capricious nature of the phenomena. But such investigation was also hampered by those who considered such things impossible. flammarion said that any scientific investigator free from such prejudice could assure himself of their reality. He himself had verified them through personal observation.

In the second volume of his masterpiece Death and its mystery (1922) , flammarion documented evidence for apparitions of persons living as well as on the verge of dying. flammarion (1922, p. 37) explained: “It would seem that we are here concerned with a transmission of images by psychic waves between two brains harmoniously attuned, one serving as a wave-transmitter, the other as a receiver.”

flammarion (1922, p. 47) gave the following account of an apparition of a living person. The report originally appeared in English newspapers, including the Daily news of May 17, 1905. A member of parliament, Major Sir carne Raschse, was stricken with influenza, and he could not come to an evening session, although he very much desired to be there to support the government on a crucial vote. Sir Gilbert Parker, a friend, was surprised to see him. Sir Gilbert said, “My gaze fell upon Sir carne Raschse, seated near his usual place. As I knew that he had been ill, I waved to him in a friendly way, and said: ‘I hope you are better.’ But he gave me no sign of recognition, which greatly astonished me. His face was very pale. He was seated, his head resting, motionless, on one hand; the expression of his face was impassive and hard. for a moment I wondered what I had better do; when I again turned toward him, he had disappeared. I regretted this, and at once went to seek him, hoping to find him in the vestibule. But Raschse was not there, and no one had seen him.” Sir Arthur Hayter claimed also to have seen Raschse, pointing him out to Sir Henry Bannerman. flammarion (1922, p. 48) noted that Raschse himself “did not doubt that he had really gone in spirit to the House, for he had been extremely preoccupied with the thought of attending the session for a debate which interested him particularly.”