Parawize Talks - Embark on Your Journey to the Truth

An invitation to open your mind to the possibilities.

According to a 2005 Gallup poll, 3 out of 4 Americans believe in the paranormal. Is their belief based upon evidence? Are there any dangers to paranormal belief? Has reality television influenced the public?

On November 12, 2022, Paranormal Daily News (PDN) launched Parawize Talks. These talks were developed to bring open discourse about the paranormal, parapsychology, and Psi to the public. The newly launched Parawize Talks brought together four thought leaders for an impactful and thought-provoking four hours. PDN will bring more thought leaders who are prominent in their fields to deliver more educational content, raise funds for research organizations, and support organizations in the field.

Jock Brocas, is the founder of Paranormal Daily News, an author, and a renowned evidential medium. He explains that these talks were inspired by the PDN team. The idea was to forge a greater relationship between science, academia, and spiritual thought for the public. Together, Jock and Craig created Parawize Talks. The idea is to share an examination of the truth by bringing awareness to various topics in the paranormal, parapsychology, PSI, and the afterlife. This will help bring complicated subjects to the public in easy understandable formats.

This series aims to sow enough seeds in your mind to compel you to keep asking questions. It is so important not just to accept the perceptions proliferated by uninformed voices. It is your invitation to avoid accepting everything at face value. Parawize Talks will offer you different perspectives, even competing ones, that are unified by a commitment to seek knowledge. You will decide the truth for yourself.

Dangers of the Paranormal - Awareness, and Empowerment

Jock Brocas kicked off the sessions. He dove head first into the question: do we need to be cautious when seeking knowledge or becoming involved in the paranormal? In Jock’s opinion, the answer is yes. Through years of experience as an evidential medium. Jock states that many people are driven by curiosity, while others are driven by a need to comfort their fear of death. Despite the underlying motivation. Those who probe into the paranormal are all looking for answers they haven’t been able to find in the material world around them.

During his talk, Jock declared his commitment to serving others and particularly, to helping those in spiritual crisis. Jock also cites cases where the family was left in turmoil and how mediums and investigators have a ‘Paranormal Bias. Jock is the author of the book Deadly Departed. He wrote the book to give awareness and empowerment to anyone working in the paranormal.

He believes that there is a moral and ethical obligation upon all mediums and paranormal investigators. Jock postulates that when they are called in to help those who are in spiritual crisis, the mediums and investigators should operate with the highest of ethics, and integrity. Jock pointed out that often, families who seek help from a medium or a paranormal investigator are sometimes left worse off after an investigation because they have not exercised due diligence nor fulfilled their duty of care. In his opinion; there may be many who are looking only for phenomena to support their next book or television show.

According to Jock, education is the answer to moving safely forward with seekers and practitioners alike.

A Conscious Universe

Craig Weiler, the science editor at Paranormal Daily News, explored the nature of our reality as a conscious universe. Can materialism and idealism coexist? Craig shared his opinion by putting forth an argument that they can’t coexist because the materialism framework has an inherent constraint. In reality, it doesn’t allow for an understanding of the paranormal.

“There is no way at all to prove a truly physical universe without injecting meaning into it… without consciousness.” - Craig Weiler

If we can’t step outside of consciousness to examine the universe. Then it is not possible to prove a material world suggested Craig. He spoke further about a world based on ideas and topped it off with a page out of quantum physics called “entanglement”.

If you want to find out more about the concept of a conscious universe, read Craig’s recent article on PDN: Your reality is in fact, a conscious universe.

Lessons in Humility

Darby Orcutt, professor, and researcher at North Carolina State University is well known for his work where Science meets the Strange.

Professor Orcutt delivered a session that highlighted the need for humility. He encouraged everyone to look at the world through collaborative and alternative lenses, rather than through an egocentric perspective.

“Building our plane as we are flying it.” - Darby Orcutt

Professor Orcutt went on to speak about the current efforts in genomics, parapsychology, and more. These efforts have resulted in key research and development to advance the creation of a microchip that can read and write information to the brain.

If you want to be a citizen scientist and become involved with Professor Orcutt’s work, [find link]

Behind the Scenes - Loyd Auerbach, Keynote Speaker

Professor Loyd Auerbach is known as Professor Paranormal. 40+ years experience in Parapsychology as an investigator, educator, and researcher. He is the author and co-author of 9 paranormal books. Loyd is also the president of the Forever Family Foundation and teaches online for the Rhine Education Center.

Professor Auerbach was born into a life around media, television, radio, and film and spent much of his childhood behind the scenes. This awareness and familiarity stayed with him when he entered the study of parapsychology and into a different type of “behind the scenes.” During his session, he described Parapsychology as studying the experiences of human consciousness inside and outside the laboratory, including ESP, psychokinesis, and other abilities, and evidence for survival of bodily death.

Professor Auerbach describes how apparitions use non-sensory perception to interact with the world while humans connect with apparitions using extra-sensory perception.

“There is a split between what is shown on television and what Parapsychologists know.” - Loyd Auerbach

He directs our attention to how using a piece of technology doesn’t equate to doing a scientific investigation. Further, he reveals that witnesses are the most important part of an investigation, that is, human experiences of whatever is going on.

Reality Television

Professor Auerbach explores how reality television, like ghost-hunting shows, misrepresents how the study of Parapsychology is actually carried out and driven by the desire to entertain and raise ratings. Given the competing objectives between parapsychologists and television shows, he acknowledged that he has turned down and been turned down for shows. Although the shows may be unscripted, they are directed and edited to suit the purposes of television producers and networks.

Professor Auerbach circled back to the need for ethics and a duty of care to the witnesses who are experiencing phenomena. He stresses that there is a risk that a made-for-tv type of investigation could inflict more harm than good on those witnesses. Moreover, these shows may be shaping our beliefs about the paranormal and ourselves. According to Professor Auerbach, “We are a lot more than the media tells us.”

You can watch the Parawize Talks

If you missed the event and would like to watch the talks in your own time, these talks will be available within the new premium para network that will be launching soon. Of course, if you have already purchased the talks, you will be given free access to them, and you can log into the host service to watch the replays.

Join Us For Monthly Parawize Talks

Join us for the next leg of the Parawize journey by signing up for the PDN Newsletter. You’ll be the first to be notified of the next Parawize Talks live and interactive session with an early bird discount.

Urban Legends: The White Dress

My introduction to all that was spooky started with the elementary school book fair and an old cemetery at the back of the playground. Most children that are fascinated with the paranormal have read Alvin Schwartz’s Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark. These dark tales and amazing illustrations were a collection of folk tales, songs, and urban legends. One of the best stories is The White Dress.

A young man invited a young woman to a formal dance. But she was very poor, and she could not afford to buy the evening gown she needed for such an occasion.

"Maybe you can rent a dress," her mother said. So she went to a pawnshop not far from where she lived. There she found a white satin evening gown in her size. She looked lovely in it, and she was able to rent it for very little. When she arrived at the dance with her friend, she was so attractive, everyone wanted to meet her. She danced again and again and was having a wonderful time. But then she began to feel dizzy and faint, and she asked her friend to take her home. "I think I danced too much," she told him.

When she got home, she lay down on her bed. The next morning, her mother found that her daughter had died. The doctor did not understand what caused her death. So he had the coroner perform an autopsy.

The coroner found that she had been poisoned by embalming fluid. It had stopped her blood from flowing. There were traces of the fluid on her dress. He decided it had entered her skin when she perspired while she was dancing. The pawnbroker said he bought the dress from an undertaker's helper. It had been used in a funeral for another young woman, and the helper had stolen it just before she was buried. (The White Gown by Alvin Schwartz)

History

The story always starts with a girl who needs a fancy dress for a special occasion. As one of the earliest US urban legends, it has been told hundreds of times and has many different versions. It has been known may several different titles including, Embalmed Alive, Dressed to Kill, The Wedding Dress, and the poisoned dress.

While the name and some minor facts change throughout the retelling, the premise of the story doesn’t. In all versions, there is a young girl who purchases a dress and then dies from some form of poisoning. Some versions describe this dress as a wedding dress, others say it was a formal dress or a ball gown. Where the dress was purchased varies as well. In many of the versions, the dress is purchased from a secondhand store or a pawn shop. Others say the dress was purchased from a department store and the dress had been returned after the dress was worn for a funeral.

The first printed version of this legend can be found in New York Folk Lore Quarterly and was printed in the Autumn of 1952. Post-WWII in the United States was a pivotal time in history. The country was coming out of a war and a decade-long depression. As rationing ended and the middle class grew, some people were able to spend on small luxuries again.

Deadly Clothing

Urban Legends - The White Dress

Deadly clothing is not a new concept in literature. The Grimm’s Fairy tale of what is today known as Snow White was far from the quaint Disney tale. Snow White was put into a corset that was meant to suffocate her. When that didn’t work there was no poison apple but poisoned hair combs and red-hot iron shoes. The Grimm Brothers often used poisoned or dangerous clothes in their stories and Hercules met his death after donning a poisoned tunic.

Greek mythology warns of other poisoned clothing as well. One of the most famous is the legend of Glauce. Greek poet Euripides tells the story of Medea and Glauce. Medea was in love with Jason, but he is to marry Glauce, daughter of the king, and Medea is banished with her children. In what appears to be a token of good faith, Medea presents Glauce with a wedding gift. The gift is a beautiful crown and a gown, but when Glauce dons the gown it instantly burns her flesh, and she dies instantly.

In the late 1800s they developed a beautiful green clothing dye. It was known as Shelee’s green. This dye contained arsenic, which was the key to giving it a unique green color. Arsenic is a naturally occurring element but in even small levels can be fatal to humans. These dresses became toxic. The wearers rarely had many symptoms due to the limited exposure. Most symptoms ranged from rash to fatigue. However, the seamstresses working with these dresses would cut the fabric, releasing toxins into the air and then breathing them in. Several died of arsenic poisoning.

Urban Legends - Poisoning

Unlike the girl in our story, arsenic poisoning does not cause a quick death and has many symptoms prior to becoming fatal. The first symptoms are mild and include headaches, confusion, diarrhea, and vomiting. Later symptoms can progress into coma and death as the organs shut down.

Social Implications

Why is poisoned clothing so terrifying? It is because a person cannot fight what they cannot see, leaving them defenseless. Clothing is supposed to be protective. It provides warmth, covers nakedness, and provides protection from the elements. Clothing is meant to keep us safe. Being attacked from a point of safety and potential happiness is devastating. In each of these stories, the victim felt safe but shortly succumbed to their own demise.

Clothing can also represent status. Fashion industries paste their logos on their clothing and accessories to show that you can afford the $10,000 purse and shoes. While the homeless are often described as wearing tattered and worn-out clothing. Most versions of this story focus on a girl who cannot afford a new dress to attend and event, so she purchased a secondhand dress instead. This being a representation of social class divide.

These themes are current even in today’s society with events such a homecoming, high school prom, and events such as cotillion. These events require expensive dresses for teens to wear for one night and other expenses such as hair and makeup. This leaves many teens, especially girls being left out.

Medical Science

In all versions of this story, the victim is poisoned by embalming fluid because the dress was once worn by a dead body. As the new wearer’s skin warmed, the embalming fluid seeped through her skin, and died from the poison in the embalming fluid. To your average person, this sounds incredibly scary and possible. Talk of death is taboo in most cultures and not usually discussed, making it scary to most people.

Embalming fluid is made up of many chemicals and is injected into a body after death to preserve the tissues from breaking down while awaiting burial. Over the years the composition of this fluid has changed but the main component has always been formaldehyde. This is the same thing that preserved the frog you dissected in high school. While formaldehyde can be absorbed through the skin, in small doses is not toxic. Formaldehyde is metabolized very quickly in a live human. In order to reach toxic levels, you would have to soak your skin a significantly large quantity of the liquid. Formaldehyde also has a very distinct smell. A dress covered in the embalming fluid would have an odor, especially as the body heats up.

Most urban legends have a grain of truth woven into the fantastic story. While it is possible that a girl died after a social event, especially in the 1950s when medicine was much less sophisticated, but the cause was not due to embalming fluid. Spooky stories such as fables and urban legends use inherent fears to illicit emotion. This story still lives on in both written versions and word of mouth.

References

Alvin Schwartz (2019). Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark.

The Hairpin.  A Dress to die for.

https://www.thehairpin.com/2015/03/a-dress-to-die-for/

#FolkloreThursday: The Poisoned Dress

https://steampunklibrarian.blog/2022/01/27/folklorethursday-the-poisoned-dress/

The last kiss

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/dressed-to-kill/

Vice

The long strange history of women wearing deadly clothing

https://www.vice.com/sv/article/pgwgnv/the-long-strange-history-of-women-wearing-deadly-clothing

Embalmed Alive: A developing Urban Ghost Tale

https://ia804503.us.archive.org/12/items/sim_new-york-folklore-quarterly_autumn-1952_8_3/sim_new-york-folklore-quarterly_autumn-1952_8_3.pdf

Critical First Steps For Psychic Beginners

There are some critical first steps that all beginners need to embrace if they want to expand their psychic abilities. Simply noticing these experiences won’t help someone to cultivate and gain the control they need to put this useful skill-set into action. It takes dedication and direct effort, but where does one begin?

Step One - Exploring The Scientific Foundations

Many budding psychics aren’t even aware of the existence of scientific research regarding psychic-based phenomena. Without this critical knowledge, it can leave them feeling confused and doubtful about the validity of their experiences. By exploring the scientific basics, one can gain a sense of confidence and understanding that will make the developmental process far easier. So where does one find this scientific information?

Despite the lack of mainstream acknowledgement, the academic study of psychic phenomenon is actually considered to have been formally created on February 20th, 1882 when the Society for Psychical Research (SPR) was founded by a group of distinguished scientists, thinkers, and scholars of the time (Irwin & Watt, 2007). In the 1930’s, J.B. Rhine began psychical research in the U.S. while working at Duke University. However, he replaced the use of the phrase ‘psychical research’ with the term parapsychology - meaning above or beyond psychology — and it is this terminology that still defines the field today.

Budding psychics need to know that within the parapsychological field, there is ample research supporting the existence of psi – pronounced as ‘sigh’ and being the scientific term used for psychic functioning. And it is here that the beginner will want to start their pursuit of knowledge. The Society for Scientific Exploration (SSE), The Society for Psychical Research (SPR), The Parapsychological Association (PA), The Institute of Noetic Sciences, and The Windbridge Research Center all provide quality scientific information. They each offer written materials, classes, events, and/or videos - all geared towards the academic understanding of a wide range of psi-based experiences. The Rhine Research Center also regularly offers an excellent course entitled Introduction to Parapsychology. It truly is an outstanding class to help beginners learn the scientific basics.

Step Two - Taking The Initiative

I have encountered countless people who want answers about their psychic experiences, but when asked what they are doing to solve those issues, they admit to having done nothing. This brings us to the second critical step of taking the initiative. There are, however, a variety of good reasons for why someone is not taking the initiative towards their psychic development. For example, fear and confusion are common reasons for not moving forward, as are a lack of time or discipline. In addition, some people are merely curious, putting psychic development far down on their priority list. There’s nothing wrong with this decision. It’s a personal choice. But in reality, without a burning desire along with effort and dedication, one will rarely get far in any area of life unless there is a willingness to truly set aside the time to make things happen.

Psychic Experience Evaluation

In order to evaluate this step, take some time to make a list of all of those issues that are preventing forward momentum in one’s psychic development. And be sure to be brutally honest when making the list. No one else is going to see it. In other words, if ‘lazy’ and ‘unmotivated’ are reasons for not developing, then that’s perfectly ok. This simply indicates, that at least for now, perhaps one’s psychic development needs to go to the wayside.

With a completed list of those issues that are preventing one from taking the initiative, the next step is to tackle one item at a time. For example, let’s look at confusion as this is a commonly reported issue. With confusion as the theme, make a more extensive list of everything that is confusing about psychic development; how to practice, who to trust for assistance, where to find a community, uncertainty about personal skills and experiences, etc. By breaking down the topic of confusion into smaller bites, these then become action steps that can be addressed one at a time. And by doing this, you are now taking the initiative. Yes, perhaps it seems a slow and maybe even irrelevant process, but by getting to the root of any resistance, one starts the path towards resolution.

Step Three - Documenting Psychic Events

The third critical step for psychic beginners is to pull out a pen and paper and to document any and all potential events. No matter how silly they might seem, if there’s something odd, extraordinary, synchronous, or weird that occurred, then just make note of it. It only takes a few minutes each night to jot down anything that took place during the day. Or, document it as soon as it happens. Either way, do this regularly for a few weeks, ideally a month, until there are a fair number of documented experiences.

Use a Psychic Journal

Remember to list as many details as possible for each event. These can be helpful later – indicating patterns and uncovering tendencies towards certain psi-based experiences and/or skills. By its nature, psi is often incomplete, symbolic, and deeply intimate in nature. This means discerning personal meaning and deciphering one’s unique way of psychic functioning. For example, some individuals are very prone to seeing colors with each of those colors having unique meanings just for them. Others may hear song lyrics or movie titles or see animals or designs. These symbolic psi-based impressions will have different meanings for different people, so finding the clues and patterns as they pertain to YOU is all that matters. This involves documenting and making note and discovering insight over time - as well as patience!

In addition, a willingness to embrace psi enhances its frequency! By documenting and journaling, you are not only noticing psi but also encouraging it to take place. This notion is supported by the work of Gertrude Schmeidler who demonstrated through her research that belief in psi created positive results, while disbelief actually discouraged results – even above statistical chance. She coined this variable as ‘the sheep-goat effect.’ So, by embracing psi, even through something as simple as journaling, you can start to pull in more experiences to help hone-in on your particular psychic skill-sets.

Step Four - Learn The Psychic Language

The fourth critical step towards psychic awareness is to learn some basic terminology and language as it relates to psychic functioning – ideally from reliable resources. As previously discussed in step one, parapsychological organizations are a great place to start. There are, however, two drawbacks to these scientific organizations. First, since they are so academically oriented, some of their material can be rather confusing and overwhelming to the general layperson. Secondly, they observe and study psychic experiences from the outside looking in. This means they provide a very important objective look at psychic experiences but may be lacking in actual personal experience. For these reasons, it can also be very helpful to search out reliable paranormal resources as well as qualified psychics and mediums who have an understanding of parapsychology.

A well-trained paranormal group should understand the scientific basics surrounding parapsychology. This allows them to help someone wade through their confusion, offering clarity, resources, and guidance for further education. I won’t address the various aspects of finding a good paranormal group at this time. Just remember to ask them about their experience and training and how they plan to offer assistance. Far too many groups base their techniques and assistance on methods developed from television and know nothing of parapsychology. However, there are also plenty of quality field investigators out there. These folks can be very helpful in providing education and awareness for those having psychic experiences.

The Use Of Psi

In the same way, a well-qualified and experienced psychic or medium can also be extremely helpful. These folks offer personal experience and insights that academics often just can’t provide. Because psychics and mediums have ‘walked-the-walk,’ they can be a great resource for honing-in on what is psi and what isn’t, what it feels and looks like, explaining fears and resistances, discussing spirit visitations from an experiential perspective, as well as offering a basic vocabulary. It is important to explore not just the science, but also from those who are already utilizing the skill themselves.

While the ability to verbalize and speak the psychic language may not seem relevant to development, try to think of it this way. Let’s say that someone goes to school to learn how to work on cars. Before they can succeed they need to learn the various car parts, the way the parts function, and the tools that are required for working with those parts. This means learning the language and tools of the trade in order to become successful. The same applies to the psychic world as well - learning the language and tools of the trade leads to success.

Put it together

Summary: Put together, these four steps are all designed to help individuals get started on exploring, understanding, and expanding on their psychic experiences. Perhaps they don’t seem very glamourous, but learning the science, taking initiative by identifying resistances and finding solutions, documenting personal psi-based events, and then learning the psychic language and tools of the trade from a variety of reputable resources will all go a long way towards making the process unfold.

References

J.B. Rhine History & Background Psi Encylopedia

Gertrude Schmeidler Psi Encylopedia

An Introduction to Parapsychology, 5th Edition, Harvey J Irwin & Caroline Watt, 2007

Photos Courtesy of Unsplash Cover Pic 1 Pic 2 Pic 3 Pic 4