Vol 3:2 (July 2009). ISSN 1938-1719
Exopsychology
Michael Gintowt, M.A.
Abstract
Exopsychology is proposed as a separate discipline to study UFO related phenomena, and the implications raised by the new field of exopolitics. Exopsychology would tap into and integrate the data provided by disparate disciplines, conduct research, and ultimately, develop theoretical models that would help bridge the gap between the objective and subjective worlds. Exopsychology would incorporate findings of nonlocal interactions between humans, and take into account the full range of the UFO related phenomena, including the abduction experience and “high strangeness”. Exopsychology would employ experimental and research designs that are within the established scientific paradigm, and simultaneously attempt to stretch the limits of current scientific thinking and limitations. Indeed, the phenomena under examination demand that we stretch our thinking.
INTRODUCTION
Presented here are arguments for a new branch of psychology. This is in response to cultural manifestations surrounding the UFO and abduction/contactee phenomena, especially exopolitics. There is overwhelming evidence that UFOs are a genuine phenomenon, and that governments have been withholding information about them from the public. This situation gave birth to exopolitics and various grass-roots movements demanding disclosure of secrets. Are people ready for contact with extraterrestrial intelligence? How do we measure readiness? What are the benefits and dangers of disclosure? If disclosure is in the hands of humans, then how and at what rate should that disclosure take place?
Another type of disclosure is a hypothesized gradual disclosure process being implemented by the operators of UFOs1. If this hypothesis proves correct, then we need to ask the question, “How do we evolve our consciousness to handle that reality?” A third disclosure is one hypothesized to be engineered by a secretive human faction, independent of, and perhaps making use of, the grassroots pro-disclosure movement. Exopsychology would seek to inoculate people against the misuse of psychological manipulation.
The discussion, let alone serious research on UFOs, is mostly a taboo subject – a situation that is strange, and alarming, given the potential implications. Underlying the unwillingness of scientists to discuss UFOs and contact with Extraterrestrials (ETs), are at least three explanations:
1. a genetic inability to seriously consider factors for which we are not evolutionarily equipped,2
2. a powerful cultural prohibition3 to discuss what could undermine the foundations of many assumptions and institutions, and
3. a “taboo functionally necessitated by the anthropocentric metaphysics of modern sovereignty.”4
Contact with Extraterrestrial Intelligence would be a paradigm shift more radical than that produced by the discovery of the new World, or the heliocentric reality of the solar system.
Exopsychology
can be tentatively defined as “the study of human readiness for
Extraterrestrial relations.” “Readiness”, in this case, includes preparedness
for various scenarios in which contact could be made, the ability to sustain
contact over time, and the ways that people could become ready for various
degrees and types of contact. Exopsychology is concerned with the evolution
of human consciousness, an evolution that is fundamental to “readiness.”
The preparedness we speak of is one that anticipates not only new information,
but a wholesale dismantling of assumptions, a brutal correcting of
misconceptions, a requirement that institutions and cultures rapidly adapt, a
shift of perspective from the anthropocentric to the Cosmic, and as if that
were not enough, an acceptance of telepathy, new conceptions of time and space,
possible multiple dimensions, a blurring of the subjective and objective
worlds, and of being sent from the top to near the bottom of a Galactic totem
pole. Perceived contact with ETs is transformative, and may have been at the
origin of many religions and spiritual traditions. Not to be dismissed lightly,
such contact has, at the very least, already impacted society, with the
formation of cults, the emergence of what is essentially a new religion, and by
assuming a permanent place in the entertainment industry. Individual contact
with Star People may be part of an agenda to gradually and unobtrusively
prepare mankind for a more widespread contact.
Existing psychological frameworks are able to address many aspects of this cultural phenomenon, but no one branch has the scope of inquiry required to address a comprehensive programme of research. The psychology of cross cultural differences and communication, the sociology of acculturation, racism studies, altered states of consciousness, hypnosis, neuroscience, Jungian perspectives, developmental psychology, ecopsychology, the psychology of persuasion and influence, genetics and quantum physics all have contributions to make; yet exopsychology is more than a multidisciplinary study. If that were the case, then the argument for a new branch of psychology would be premature. Exopsychology would contribute by not only integrating existing knowledge, but by also contributing research findings, concepts and theoretical models.
SCOPE OF EXOPSYCHOLOGY
A discipline requires definition and structure. What follows is a summary of the range of topics that are proposed to be appropriate to exopsychology, and to further delineate what makes exopsychology unique. There are four general areas of inquiry: the psychological, psychosocial, transpersonal and transformative aspects of the UFO and ET contact/abduction experience (UFO Related Phenomena or UFORP). A theoretical framework is proposed that incorporates novel ideas, building upon the essential insights of Leary.2 This theoretical model would incorporate findings from mathematics (chaos theory), physics (quantum field theory), and research on the UFORP. Alternate concepts of time, are especially required for a fully developed theory that would guide research and foster understanding of the various experiences and phenomena being studied.
First, exopsychology is interested in the beliefs and attitudes that people have about UFORP. Psychology has begun to address this issue,5 but almost always from a dismissive, pathologizing base of assumptions. This is partly due to the history of psychology, which is largely a history of trying to “be scientific”, and to distance itself from the metaphysical. Exopsychology begins with the working hypothesis that UFORP are worthy of study, pose worthy challenges, and promise interesting fruit.
Second, UFORP cannot be considered apart from its social context. Individual experiences taken en masse, contribute to culture, and the culture in turn informs, delineates, prescribes and proscribes various individual experiences. Polls tell us that large percentages of Americans believe in UFOs.6
Exopsychology would assess UFORP attitudes globally. A global phenomenon would, by definition, be expected to occur multi-nationally.
The
role of indigenous peoples appears to be central to UFORP. This was highlighted
by Mack,7 when he noticed a shamanic theme among abductees. An early research task for exopsychology
would be, therefore, to confirm, disconfirm, or clarify the notion that
indigenous peoples are central to the UFORP. The Indigenous people of the South
West USA, for example, have an intact belief structure that includes “star
people”; in contrast, one of the largest groups of traditional peoples on
Third, the experience of seeing a UFO, and interacting with alien entities, involves alterations in consciousness that transcend the normal range of experience, and are transpersonal. Even in the absence of altered states, the experience impacts self concept, ego integrity, religious beliefs, sense of safety and predictability. Furthermore, the experience of sighting an unexplainable UFO introduces a range of questions, concerns and concepts that begin to work on the individual at many levels. The experience introduces the Cosmic Perspective. This shift in perspective is potentially a prelude to a more transformative experience. A transpersonal analysis would consider the pre-conditions, experience, and impacts of a Cosmic Perspective.
Fourth, when the Cosmic Perspective is taken
to heart, a transformative process in initiated. Rebecca Hardcastle
appears to have arrived at a similar conclusion: “Framing consciousness within
an extraterrestrial, cosmic context invites creative perspectives of human
abilities.” 8 Exopsychology would study the pre-requisites,
contextual conditions, and processes involved in transformation, with the aim
of assisting people as they undergo processes of awakening. Transpersonal
psychologists write of “spiritual emergency”, a term that applies to
post-experience sequelae reported by many abductees. Experiencers (a term
preferred by many over “abductee” and “contactee”), when they do not deny and
doubt their own experiences, typically undergo psycho-spiritual shifts that
lead to positive changes in career, interests, and relationships. 7
Exopsychology looks upon the transformation of consciousness as a part of evolution, taking humanity to the next level of capacity to process information. Leary elaborated a model whereby eight neuronal “circuits” characterized the scope of human brain capacity and evolution.2 Each circuit has an increasing capacity to process information and increase the range of human interest and involvement, from basic survival at level one, to absorption in the quantum atomic matrix at level eight. His concepts form the starting point for a modernized exopsychology.
The quantum and mathematical aspects of exopsychology are beyond the scope of this introductory paper. For the present, let it be said that nonlocal effects have been observed at the neuronal level 35, and between persons. These findings, coupled with a theoretical framework that invokes chaos theory to support claims of planetary and solar contextual influences on human life mediated at the quantum-neuronal level, form an essential, if more speculative, branch of exopsychology. This work will build upon the seminal work of Timothy Leary, Carl Jung, Arnold Mindell, and others. Rebecca Hardcastle (www.exoconsciousnes.com) conceived of exoconsciousness. She provides an overview of the physics and genetics that are pertinent to the study of consciousness, and that might bridge the previously intractable conceptual gap between the subjective and objective.
ANCIENT ROOTS
Following is a brief mention of two traditions that inform exopsychology by contributing information and conceptual models. It may seem strange to suggest that ancient traditions could guide modern science, but the time for such notions of “strangeness” has passed. The spirit of science is not bound to dogma and tradition. What counts is the discovery of truth. It is arrogant to assume that essential truths could not have been discovered in times past, by people who were not part of the scientific western tradition. It is also ignorant, because Western Science would not have arisen as it did, without influences from the Arab world, in particular, the Sufis.9
Shamanic concepts reflect exopsychological themes: the importance of altered states of consciousness, legends of entities who came to Earth to teach humankind, multiple dimensions and contact with their denizens, and our co-dependence with Nature. Indigenous people maintain, to this day, ways of seeing and experiencing reality that provide an interesting counterpoint to the dominant Western discursive, rational mode of cognition. Their thinking patterns, expectations, use of metaphor and symbol, awareness of alternate realities and shamanic technologies are of interest not only to the enthnographer, but for anyone wishing to learn how perceptual and mental/emotional structures and processes contribute to to the manifestation of quantum non-local effects in human experience. Mack made a point of emphasizing the link between the abduction phenomenon and shamanic worldview.7
Sufism,
sometimes called “The Science of Man,” speaks to the cosmic origins of mankind,
evolution of consciousness, psychic phenomena that accompany the development of
awareness, and alternate conceptualizations of time and causality.9
Their teaching stories are full of references to beings that travel between
times and places, and who appear in dreams, whirling clouds, visions, and
specific locales – all of which may have bearing upon exopsychology. The Sufis
have an extensive corpus of teaching methods designed to systematically alter
the minds of students, in order to awaken latent “organs of perception”. This
is almost identical language to that used by Dr. Leary, who wrote of awakening
latent neural circuits in order to become aware of our cosmic origins and
destiny. The Sufis also have much to say regarding other areas of
exopsychological inquiry, such as the psychosocial aspect of the UFO
phenomenon. Their understanding of cult formation and maintenance, for example,
sheds much needed light upon the various groups and quasi-religions that have
formed around abductees and UFO researchers.
PSYCHOLOGICAL ROOTS
A brief review of the psychological roots of exopsychology follows. Two of Sigmund Freud's contemporaries, who studied with him as part of his inner circle, were Wilhelm Reich and Carl Jung. They generated concepts pertinent to exopsychology. Jung advanced ideas of the unconscious that were contrary to those of Freud. He considered the unconscious to be not only the repository of repressed desires and conflicts, but the treasure chest of the soul, a source of inspiration and wisdom, gateway to the collective unconscious, a field of awareness shared by mankind, populated by the energetic and symbolic forms called Archetypes. His concepts, largely inspired by Eastern philosophy and alchemy (a Sufi manifestation), presaged ideas commonly thought of as “New Age.” He wrote extensively about the Shadow, a clinically useful identity construct that also informs the study of cultural phenomena. He studied UFOs as early as 1946, and wrote a book, “Flying Saucers” where he considered the phenomenon to be manifestations of the human psyche, the modern equivalent of ancient gods, made manifest as a new addition to the Collective Unconscious, by the elusive mechanism called synchronicity. Invoking alchemical and astrological theory, he wrote that the advent of UFOs presaged a new era in human history. Despite conceptual gaps, his theories still maintain credibility, and are sometimes invoked to explain UFOs and the psychic phenomena that accompany them. Recent work with abductees suggests that his original ideas may not have been far off the mark.
Wilhelm Reich, was perhaps too much ahead of the times for the authorities to stomach. Reich (like Leary) was condemned, imprisoned, and ostracised for his work. Reich studied healthy human development, and more significantly to exopsychology, he postulated the existence of “orgone”, a force related to living things, synonymous with prana and other ancient descriptions of the life force. He claimed that this force pervades the universe, could be accumulated in devices, and employed. One of his devices was aimed at a UFO, causing it to react. The link between UFO phenomena and psychic phenomena is established, and Reich's work may shed some light upon the connection. The sexual aspect of many abduction experiences, for example, may be related to the life force (and essence of the orgasm), that Reich investigated with such passion.
Abraham
Maslow, in more recent times, was one of the first “modern” psychologists to
write about healthy human development. His “hierarchy of needs” extended so far
as to include “peak experiences,” which have elements in common with contactee
reports of psychic phenomena, specifically, the personality change that
sometimes occurs, causing contactees to suddenly become interested in spiritual
and ecological affairs. He, along with Carl Jung, generated an influence that
was to later coalesce into the field of Transpersonal Psychology,
devoted to the exploration of the highest potential of human beings, and
involved the study of states of consciousness, spirituality, and the practices
to induce transcendent states. The Transpersonal movement was led by Dr.
Stanislas Grof and Timothy Leary, among others. They undertook a study of
consciousness to explore not only clinical applications, but human development
and evolution.
Dr. Timothy Leary coined the term exopsychology in a book by that title in 1977. The book was reprinted as “Info-psychology” in 1987, when he discarded the extraterrestrial aspects of the original book, to emphasize instead the cybernetic meme. The baggage associated with Dr. Leary is unfortunate, but credit is here given where it is due. He described exopsychology in terms of understanding human consciousness in an evolutionary context, one that extended in the past to the genesis of life on Earth originating in outer space (the panspermia hypothesis), to the return of humanity to the stars in an extraterrestrial migration, to complete the cycle. He wrote about the consciousnesss requirements for extraterrestrial migration. His work is relevant to the study of how people may react to imminent, unequivocal disclosure of ET activity on Earth. He also wrote about shared reality, constructed by language and conditioning – a reality that is the lot of those who have not activated the higher brain circuits, and who are thus stuck at a larval (Pre-migration) stage of human development.
In more recent times, Albert Harrison and Alan C. Elms, not mentioning Dr. Leary, proposed a new field of exopsychology.10 They proposed a range of studies of potential Extraterrestrial Intelligent Species contact and human reaction, including the social and cultural dimensions, ET psychology and perception, decoding of ET radio signals, the impact of technological diffusion, and studies of intelligence. Their proposed study of “Impact” is most pertinent to the exopsychology proposed here. They suggest that we build upon the foundations already established by studies in communication and interpersonal distancing, social perception, and mass media studies. They also point out that ET contact will have a profound impact upon human self concept, among other vulnerabilities, so clinicians should be prepared to provide effective counselling, as well as coaching to negotiators and representatives. Compared to what is proposed here, their scope is limited.
CONSCIOUSNESS STUDIES
Altered States of Consciousness (ASC) crop up repeatedly in accounts of UFO sightings, contact, and abduction experiences. There is a pattern whereby the nearer the sighting, the stronger the alteration of consciousness. Abductees almost universally report ASCs, describing themselves as being “numb”, “buzzed”, “in a fog”, and so on, while they endure their experience.11
The literature on ASCs does not, however, capture the essential experience under consideration. Abductees seem to have been hypnotized, complete with post hypnotic suggestions for amnesia, but hypnosis cannot be described simply as an ASC. The study of consciousness has been beset by problems of definition and lacks a theoretical model that accounts for the full range of phenomena involving consciousness. The topic is at the boundary of psychology, where religion, philosophy and neuroscience all lend opinions and perspectives, with the result that to date, the study of consciousness is still a “work in progress”. We are assembling the pieces of the puzzle, and have not begun to form a coherent whole. The main reason for this is that a truly multidisciplinary approach is required, yet poorly supported by current institutional and educational structures.
Early work on consciousness by William James, for example, focused on the nature of everyday awareness, and speculated on changes induced by ether and nitrous oxide.12 He later questioned the very existence of consciousness, in a prescient anticipation of the problems that were to ensue from studying this elusive phenomenon.13 Philosophers weighed in with new attempts to make sense of consciousness. Ken Wilber, in particular, attempted a more comprehensive understanding with a model including not only individual consciousness, but cultural and ecological dimensions of consciousness. Exopsychology requires a model of consciousness that goes beyond traditional limitations, and the work of Wilber and Dr. Timothy Leary point the way.
PARAPSYCHOLOGY
Dr.
J.B. Rhine of
Remote viewing (RV) is
the ability to sense objects, scenes, people and events at other places and
times, through use of the mind. RV attracted the interest of the
Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research (PEAR) Professor Robert G. Jahn, spent decades researching interactions between consciousness and machines. His group conducted over 650 RV trials. They accumulated vast amounts of data that breathe new life into the field. More recently, interesting work from the University of Milan15 and a theoretical model of “supraliminal communication” proposed by Thaheld16 have injected new impetus and credibility to the field of parapsychology, that will contribute to a comprehensive model of the UFO experience, human evolution, and readiness for contact.
SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
Social psychology studies groups and interactions. Festinger, Reicken and Schacter, for example, infiltrated a UFO group to study group formation, and why people believe in things that have no apparent validity.18 In the UFO group they infiltrated, the members believed a prophecy that the end of the world would arrive at a certain date, and that they would be saved by aliens. When the date came and went without consequence, they thought up reasons to explain and justify their belief, and their affiliation with the group was strengthened, not weakened, by the failed prophecy. Their study resulted in the book, When Prophecy Fails. Many studies expanded and replicated their work, and especially the concept of cognitive dissonance, which is the feeling one has when holding an idea that is inconsistent with the facts.
There has been research on general attitudes and prevalence of belief, but considering the extent of the phenomenon, the amount of research is minimal.19,20,21 A recent study (Swami, Furnham, Hauber, Stieger and Voracek, 2009) looked deeper into the social structure of beliefs.22 They confirmed, for example, in their sample of British and Austrians, that political right and high religiosity scorers tend to not believe in Extraterrestrial life. They found evidence that belief in extraterrestrial life does not translate into a belief that Extraterrestrials have visited Earth. Such a finding, if replicated on a large scale, would have significant bearing upon the question of how and when to disclose an ET presence.
UFO groups have proliferated, especially because of the internet. A wide range of interests are represented, groups and individuals become conflictual, online UFO-related schools appear and attract students, and UFO phenomena get mixed with other paranormal interests and commercial enterprises. Many enthusiasts are caught up in internet based communications, and participate in congresses and assemblies where the latest UFO finds are made public. Apart from the mercenary predators and agents provocateurs, everyone involved is sincerely interested in UFOs. That does not insulate them from harmful group dynamics. Groupthink, for example, is a tendency for insular groups to make poor decisions because the need to maintain group cohesion is stronger than the need to learn the truth of a matter. This well known phenomenon was articulated by Irving Janis, who defined it as "a deterioration of mental efficiency, reality testing, and moral judgment that results from in-group pressures." 23 The felt need to “prove” that UFOs really exist, that the government is engaging in a cover-up, that there is life on Mars, or that Disclosure by the government is imminent, can sometimes lead to elevated anxiety, disturbed judgment, and when in a group context, groupthink. Other groups become quasi-religious, sometimes crystallizing around a central figure, usually an abductee, or someone who promises access to powers and information that come from aliens. The means to identify those trends, and take remedial action, ought to be more widely disseminated.
The
social psychology of the media is another facet of the experience. Ever since
the radio broadcast of War of the Worlds in 1938, there has been a
heightened awareness of the capacity for media to influence the population.
That event is still cited as a rationale for continued secrecy and restraint
from disclosing secrets putatively held by world governments.
Public awareness and belief in UFOs and secret government agendas is at an all time high, judging from the American television shows that feature UFOs. The media aspect has already been a focus of study,24 and whenever possible, their findings should be incorporated into an exopsychological synthesis.
Some suggest that there is a campaign to
disclose UFO related secrets, a campaign to keep secrets covered up, and a
campaign to keep the illusion alive that there are UFO secrets. Each has their
convictions fuelled by various documents. Rarely does anyone study the
phenomenon as a whole, to try and make sense of it from a dispassionate
perspective, without any prior hypothesis. Vallee and Davis, attempting to
include the psychic factors of UFORP, make the plea for better data: “...we
need much better investigations, a great upgrading of data quality, and a more
informed analysis not only of the object being described, but of the impact of
the observation on the witnesses and their social environment.”25
Exopsychology could tease out the prejudices, yearnings, blind spots, paranoias and expectancies that give rise to the claims and counter-claims. If, however, there is indeed a psychological operations (PsyOps) underway to mislead the public about UFOs, one way or another, then exopsychology would have to face constraints not normally encountered in scientific enterprises. The fact remains that there is no persuasive (consensual reality) evidence of anything related to UFOs. We can still conclude that:
1) UFOs exist, in physical form, as well as energetic forms. Their behaviour and flight patterns are not explainable as natural or man-made. Physical traces and photographic evidence abound.26b
2) Governments do keep secrets, mislead the public and withhold UFO-related information. 26,27,28 See also, for example, the scanned but blacked out FOI documents available at www.theblackvault.com
3) Paranormal phenomena are real, and have been demonstrated in laboratory settings. 29,30,31
Besides that, we have testimony (some of it very persuasive, but in the final analysis, only words), and more testimony. When an individual sees a UFO, however, the experience is such that all doubt vanishes. Exopsychology would concern itself with the psychology of paranoia, military psychological operations, and witness credibility.
As Hardcastle pointed out, “Witness testimony, contact experiences, and whistle-blower statements are heavily subjective, often void of the necessary objective information needed to satiate scientific appetites.”8 We could assign more credibility to intuition, thus by-passing the need for credible evidence that would be accepted by rational thinkers, but that would only work when the intuitions of many unrelated people (professional intuitives) were in perfect accord. Otherwise, we run the risk of falling into serious traps that could lead us down false paths. Leary 2, Hardcastle 8 and Mack 7 all point out that scientific reliance upon the artificial boundary between the subjective and the objective, useful as it has been, seems to have approached a point of diminishing returns. It is our hope that a multidisciplinary approach, including exopsychology, will find way to surmount, integrate or otherwise create bridges that retain the usefulness of the distinction, while not entering into chaotic, unstructured processes.
EXOPOLITICS
Exopolitics
(coined by Alfred Webre) is a new field that arose in response to mounting
pressure for governments to disclose what they know about UFORP. According to
Dr. Michael Salla, “Exopolitics is the study of the key political actors,
institutions and processes associated with the UFO phenomenon and the
extraterrestrial hypothesis.”32 Exopolitics begins with the working
hypothesis that the Extraterrestrial Hypothesis (ETH) is the correct one.
Demonstrating that exopolitics has not made assumptions regarding the ETH,
Salla introduced the concept of “celestials,”33 in order to account
for phenomena, first emphasized by Jacques Vallee1 that are not
easily explained by the ETH. This openness to alternate hypotheses takes
exopolitics into areas even further removed from “ordinary” politics; this
excursion invites a multidisciplinary association with psychological
disciplines. Exopsychology would be congruent with exopolitics in that both the
ETH and other hypotheses would be considered, and not presumed to be mutually
exclusive. The search for truth requires an open mind, one that has not wed
itself to an answer, then strives to confirm the answer that has been selected.
There are several areas where the exo-political and psychological areas
overlap, and where they can be mutually beneficial.
First, the previously mentioned risk-laden group dynamics that UFO groups are subject to can be monitored and corrected, to ensure that enquiry does not stray into premature assertions of findings and conclusions. Second, should exopolitical efforts begin to bear fruit, the questions of how, when and where to disclose, and how much to disclose, at what rate, and how to measure the impact of disclosures, and how to correct for unintended effects (damage control), would become paramount. Outside the closed circle of UFO enthusiasts and researchers, public readiness for disclosure is far from being verified, and even if fears about public panic are being artificially fuelled by disinformation specialists, there are good reasons to believe that panic or disruption would be the result. The question becomes, how much disruption can humanity handle, and is the disruption worse than that we can expect if we do nothing, and continue on our path of ecological devastation? How could we prepare for and counter an agenda to purposely instil social unrest as a prelude to exert authoritarian control? The findings of exopsychology would hopefully have some bearing on those decisions. If notions of mind control and scalar technologies being misused are substantiated, then any information that would empower ordinary citizens to protect themselves would be essential for a disclosure to take place without it being spun and misused for nefarious political purposes. Exopsychology and related disciplines could, being one step removed from the exopolitical scene, provide an objective sounding board and add to a multidisciplinary strength of diversity that would help ensure exopolitics' successful navigation of treacherous political waters.
TIMOTHY LEARY
Dr. Leary coined the word
“exopsychology”, and proposed concepts that are only now being re-invented and
explored in depth.2 In the decades since his book, evidence has
accumulated that organic matter from outer space regularly falls to earth, and
his starting premise, that life on Earth was seeded from space, has not been
disproved. Based on that premise, he proposed a psychology that was
all-encompassing and wholistic, bearing upon human development through the life
cycle and evolution, political affairs, consciousness, cultural manifestations,
genetics and quantum processes of the mind. 
He suggested that our destiny is to complete
an evolutionary cycle by returning to the stars, thus completing a destiny that
is encoded in our genes. He claimed that “histone-capped DNA” (now called “junk
DNA”) is actually our future genetic code, in the same way that a caterpillar
DNA contains the blueprints and operating instructions for a butterfly.
Presaging Raymond Kurzweil34 by decades, Leary asserted that
humanity was destined for a genetic transformation that would result in an
entirely new human form. Also like Kurzweil, Leary embraced technology,
suggesting that it was key to the transformation. Contrary to popular
conceptions, Leary was dismissive of “hippies”, characterizing them as
“wingless larvae”, evolved to a point, but unable to make the full transition
to the fifth circuit. He saw that generation as a first, but failed, attempt at
evolution. Leary's system of eight circuits of consciousness is an attempt to
integrate Eastern mystical and Western scientific thinking. A description of
the eight circuits is beyond the scope of this paper; it should be said,
however, that a proposed resurrection of exopsychology would not necessarily
adopt his eight circuit model. It is based upon the premise that life
originated and is destined to return to the cosmos - which is a leap of
thinking that this writer is not yet ready to accept as even a working
hypothesis. The notion that we would forever leave our beautiful Earth is
simply too much to grasp. Such an incapacity is evidence, Leary would say, of
larval (pre-migration) thinking. There may be equally robust and wide-scoped
cosmologies that do not involve leaving Earth, and that would still enable us
to adopt many of his concepts. Sufi cosmologies, for example, have the status
of being enduring over time, as well as accommodating alternate realities,
different worlds, new technologies, and evolution of consciousness.
CONCLUSION
Exopsychology is a multi-disciplinary and cross-discipline branch of psychology that seeks to answer questions that arise when contemplating human evolution and readiness for extraterrestrial relations. Building upon the seminal work of Timothy Leary, exopsychology would integrate findings from both within and without psychology, conduct research, develop theoretical models, and, especially if disclosure efforts bear fruit, synergistically interact with the related discipline of exopolitics.
***
About
the Author. At age 13, Michael Gintowt won first
prize at a science fair, for a project on parapsychology, thus setting the
tone for a lifetime of interest in paranormal phenomena.
He trained as a psychologist, both experimental and clinical, and has a Masters degree in psychology, having
studied at the Centre for Studies in Behavioral Neurobiology, at
REFERENCES
1. Vallee, Jacques. 1979. Messengers
of Deception: UFO Contacts and Cults. Ronin Publishers,
2. Leary, Exopsychology. 1977. Starseed/Peace Press,
3. Hall, Robert L. “Escaping the Self or Escaping the Anomaly?” Psychological Inquiry, Vol. 7, No. 2.
4. Wendt, Alexander and Duvall, Raymond. 2008. “Sovereignty and the UFO.” Political Theory, Vol 36, No.4 607-633.
5. Baumeister, and Newman, Toward an Explanation of the UFO Abduction Phenomenon: Hypnotic Elaboration, Extraterrestrial Sadomasochism, and Spurious Memories. Psychological Inquiry 7:2
6. Gallup, G. H. (Ed.). 1997. The
Scholarly Resources.
7. Mack, John E. 1999. Passport to the Cosmos, Crown
Publishers,
8. Hardcastle, R. 2006. “Exoconsciousness. Beyond the Brain a Second Chance.” Exopolitics Journal, 1:2 January.
9. Shah,
Idries. 1964, The Sufis, Doubleday.
10.
11. Fiore, Edith. 1989. Encounters,
12. James, William. 1892. The Stream of Consciousness,
13. James, William, “Does Consciousness Exist?” First published in the Journal of Philosophy, Psychology and Scientific Methods, 1, 477-491, now found at http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/James/consciousness.htm
14. Smith,
Paul H. 2005 Reading the Enemy's Mind:
Inside Star Gate --
15. Pizzi, R.,
Gelain, F., Fantasia, A. Rossetti, D., and Vescoivi, A., 2004. Nonlocality in
biological systems? An experimental approach. CIFA News Jan-June, 16-18
(www.cifa-icef.org/news35.pdf)
16. Thaheld, F. H. 2006. Controllable vs uncontrollable nonlocality: Is it possible to achieve superluminal communication? http://arxiv.org/ftp/physics/papers/0607/0607124.pdf
17. Frietas, Robert J. Xenology: An Introduction to the Scientific Study of Extraterrestrial Life, Intelligence, and Civilization, published online at http://www.xenology.info/Xeno.htm
18.
Harper & Row.
19. Biasco, F., & Nunn, K. 2000. College students’ attitudes toward UFO’s. College Student Journal, 34(1), 96–99.
20. Chequers, J., Joseph, S., & Diduca, D. 1997. “Belief in extraterrestrial life, UFO-related beliefs, and schizotypal personality.” Personality and Individual Differences, 23, 519–521
21. Patry, A., & Pelletier, L. 2001. “Extraterrestrial beliefs and experiences: An application of
the theory of reasoned action.” The Journal of Social Psychology, 141,
199–201.
22. Swami, V., Furham, A., Haubner, T. Stieger, S. and
Voracek, M. 2009. “The Truth is Out There: The Structure of Beliefs About
Extraterrestrial Life Among Austrian and British Respondents.” Journal of Social Psychology, 149(1), 29-43.
23. Janis,
24.
25. Vallee, Jacques and Eric W. Davis, Eric W. 2003. “Incommensurability, Orthodoxy and the Physics of High Strangeness: A 6-layer Model for Anomalous Phenomena,” 15.
26. Good, Timothy. 2007. Need
to Know: UFOs, the Military and Intelligence. Pegasus,
26b. Good, Timothy. 1988. Above
Top Secret. McClelland & Stewart,
27. Blum, Howard, 1990. Out
There. Simon and
28. Salla,
Michael, 2008. “GALACTIC COINTELPRO – Exposing the Covert Counter-Intelligence
Program against Extraterrestrial Contactees.” Exoploitics Journal, January
29. Standish, Johnson, Kozak and Richards, 2003.
30. Duane and Behrendt, 1965.
31. Dunne, Brenda, Nelson, Roger, Jahn, Robert, 1988. “Operator- Related Anomalies in a Random Mechanical Cascade.” Journal of Scientific Exploration, Vol.2, No.2, pp 155-179
32. Salla,
Michael, 2005. “The History of Exopolitics,” Exopolitics Journal 1:1 (October).
33.
Salla, Michael, 2009. “Are Celestials Assisting Humanity in Relations with
Extraterrestrial Life?” Exopolitics
Journal 3:1 January
34. Kurzweil,
Raymond, 2005. The Singularity is Near-When Humans Transcend Biology.
Viking Penguin,
35. Pizzi, R.,
Gelain, F., Fantasia, A. Rossetti, D., and Vescoivi, 2003. “Nonlocal
correlations between separated neural networks.” (http://www.cs.nps.navy.mil/people/faculty/baer/CompMod-phys/PizziWebPage/pizzi.pdf)
36. Wackerman,
J. Seiter, C., Keibel, H., Walach, H., 2003. Correlations between brain
electrical activities of two spatially separated human subjects. Neuroscience
Letters 336, 60-64.