Here is the text from the declassified files.
(Misspelling due to found transcript. Will fix what I can. Diagrams missing - will add later)
Approved For Release 2003/09/10 : CIA-RDP96-00788R001 70021 001 6-5
DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY
US ARMY OPERATIONAL. GROUP
US ARMY INTELLIGENCE AND SECURITY COMMAND
FORT GEORGE G. MEADE, MARYLAND 20755
9 June 1983
SUBJECT: Analysis and Assessment of Gateway Process
TO : Commander
US Army Operational Group
Fort Meade , MD 20755
1. You tasked me to provide an assessment of the Gateway Experience in terms of
its mechanics and ultimate practicality. As I set out to fulfill that tasking it
soon became clear that in order to assess the validity and practicality of the
process I needed to do enough supporting research and analysis to fully understand
how and why the process works . Frankly , sir , that proved to be an extremely
involved and difficult business. Initially/ based on conversations with a
physician who took the Gateway training with me, I had recourse to the biomedical
models developed by Itzhak Bentov to obtain information concerning the physical
aspects of the process. Then j found it necessary to delve into various sources
for information concerning quantum mechanics in order to be able to describe the
nature and functioning of human consciousness. I had to be able to construct a
scientifically valid and reasonably lucid model of how consciousness functions
under the influence of the brain hemisphere synchronization technique employed by
Gateway. Once this was done, the next step involved recourse to theoretical
physics in order to explain the character of the time-space dimension and the means
by which expanded human consciousness transcends it in achieving Gateway's
objectives. Finally I again found it necessary to use physics to bring the whole
phenomenon of out-of-body states into the language of physical science to remove
the stigma of its occult connotations, and put it in a frame of reference suited to
objective assessment.
2. I began the narrative by briefly profiling the fundamental biomedical factors
affecting such related techniques as hypnosis, biofeedback and transcendental
meditation so that their objectives and mode of functioning could be compared in
the reader's mind with the Gateway experience as the model of its underlying
mechanics was developed. Additionally, that introductory material is useful in
supporting the conclusions of the paper . I indicate that at times these related
techniques may provide useful entry points to accelerate movement into the Gateway
Experience .
3. Niels Bohr, the renowned physicist once responded to his son's complaints about
the obtuse nature of certain concepts in physics by saying: "You are not thinking,
you are merely being logical." The physics of altered human consciousness deals
with some conceptualizations that are not easily grasped or visualized exclusively
in the context of ordinary "left brain" linear thinking. So, to borrow Dr. Bohr s
mode of expression, parts of this paper will require not only logic but a touch of
right brain intuitive insight to achieve a complete comfortable grasp of the
concepts involved. Nevertheless, once that is done, I am confident that their
construction and application will stand up to the test of rational critique.
4. Paradoxically, having gone to such great lengths to avoid trying to render
judgements based on an occult or dogmatic frame of reference in the end I found it
necessary to return, at least briefly, to the question of the impact of the Gateway
Experience on common belief systems. I did so because although it was essential to
avoid attempting to render an assessment in the context of such systems, I felt
that it was necessary after having completed the analysis to point out that the
resulting conclusions do not do any violence to the fundamental mainstream of
either eastern or western belief systems. Unless that point is clearly
established, the danger exists that some people will reject the whole concept of
the Gateway Experience in the mistaken belief that it contradicts and is therefore
alien to all that they hold to be right and true.
5. This study is certainly not designed to be the last word on the subject but I
hope that the validity of its basic structure and of the fundamental concepts upon
which it is based will make it a useful guide for other USAINSCOM personnel who are
required to take the Gateway training or work with Gateway materials.
The Gateway Experience: Brain Hemisphere Synchronization in perspective.
1. introduction. In order to describe the Monroe Institute technique for
achieving altered states of consciousness (the "Gateway Experience") involving brain
hemisphere synchronization or "Hemi-Sync", the most effective way to begin is to
briefly profile the basic mechanics which underlay operation of related methods
such as hypnosis, transcendental meditation, and biofeedback. It is easiest to
effectively describe what Gateway is by beginning with a short description of those
associated techniques that share some common aspects with the Gateway Experience
but which are nevertheless different. In this way we can develop a frame of
reference at the outset which will provide useful concepts to explain and
understand Gateway by comparison, as we proceed.
2. Hypnosis. According to the theories of psychologist Ronald Stone and the
biomedical engineering models of Itshak Bentov, hypnosis is basically a technique
which permits acquisition of direct access to the sensory motor cortex and pleasure
centers, and lower cerebral (emotional) portions (and associated pleasure centers) of
the right side of the human brain following successful disengagement of the
stimulus screening function of the left hemisphere of the brain. The left
hemisphere of the brain is the self -cognitive , verbal and linear reasoning
component of the mind. It fulfills the function of screening incoming stimuli by
categorizing, assessing and assigning meaning prior to allowing passage to the
right hemisphere of the mind. The right hemisphere, which functions as the
noncritical, holistic, nonverbal and pattern-oriented component of the braxn
appears to accept what the left hemisphere passes to it without question.
Consequently, if the left hemisphere can be distracted either through boredom or
through reduction to a soporific, semi-sleep state, external stimuli to include
hypnotic suggestions are allowed to pass unchallenged into the right hemisphere
where they are accepted and acted upon directly. The result may involve an
emotional reaction originating in the lower cerebral region, sensory/motor
responses requiring involvement of the cortex, and so on. Both the sensory and the
motor cortices of the right cerebral portion of the brain contain a sequence of
points known as the "homunculus" which corresponds to points in the body (see
Exhibit 1, next page). Stimulation of the corresponding area on the cortex causes
intermediate response in the associated portion of the body. Consequently,
induction of the suggestion that the left leg is numb, if it reaches the right
hemisphere unchallenged and is referred to the appropriate area of the sensory
cortex, will result in an electrical reaction being generated that will induce the
feeling of numbness. Similarly, the suggestion that the person is experiencing a
general feeling of happiness and well being would be referred to the appropriate
pleasure centers located in the lower cerebral portion or in the cortex of the
right hemisphere, thereby inducing the suggested feeling of euphoria. Finally,
suggestions such as one that informs the hypnotic subject that he enjoys enhanced
concentration or powers of memory would be responded to in the right hemisphere by
accessing unused information storage capacity normally held in reserve as a result
of left hemisphere selection and control processes. This aspect will become
significant in the context of the Gateway process when attention is given to
examining the way that hypnosis may be used to accelerate progress in the early
stages of the Gateway Experience.
3. Transcendental Meditation. On the other hand, transcendental meditation works
in a distinctly different fashion. In this technique, intense and protracted
single minded concentration on the process of drawing energy up the spinal cord
ultimately results in what appears to be creation of acoustical standing waves in
the cerebral ventricles which are then conducted to the gray matter in the cerebral
cortex on the right side of the brain. As a result, according to Bentov, these
waves "will stimulate and eventually 'polarize' the cortex in such a way that it
will tend to conduct a signal along the homunculus, starting from the toes an on
up." The Bentov bio-medical model, as described in a book by Lee Sannella, M.D. ,
entitled: Kun dal ini -Psychos is or Transcendence , states that the standing
acoustical waves are the result of the altered rhythm of heart sounds which are
occasioned by prolonged practice of meditation, and which set up sympathetic
vibrations in the walls of the fluid filled cavities which comprise the third and
lateral ventricles of the brain. In addition, according to Bentov: "The states of
bliss described by those whose Kundalini symptoms have completed the full loop
along the hemispheres may be explained as a self-stimulation of the pleasure
centers in the brain caused by the circulation of a 'current' along the sensory
cortex." Bentov also notes, "that most of the described symptoms start on the
left side of the body means that it is mostly a development occurring in the right
hemisphere." Although normally a period of meditation involving intense
concentration and practice for five years or some is required to "bring up the
Kundalini," Bentov states that exposure to mechanical or acoustical vibrations m
the range of 4-7 Hertz (cycles per second) for protracted periods may achieve the
same effect. Bentov cites as an example "repeated riding in a car whose suspension
and seat combination produce that range of vibrations, or being exposed for long
periods of time to these frequencies caused, for instance, by an air conditioning
duct." He also notes that: "The cumulative effect of these vibrations may be able
to trigger a spontaneous physio-Kundalini sequence in susceptable people who have a
particularly sensitive nervous system. "
4. Biofeedback. The third consciousness altering methodology which will be
briefly described is biofeedback. Biofeedback is somewhat unique in that it
actually employs the self-cognitive powers of the left hemisphere to gain access to
such areas of the right brain as the lower cerebral, motor and sensory cortices and
assorted pain or pleasure centers. Instead of suppressing the left hemisphere as
is done in hypnosis, or largely bypassing and ignoring it as is done in
transcendental meditation, biofeedback teaches the left hemisphere first to
visualize the desired result and then to recognize the feelings associated with the
experience of successful right hemisphere access to the specific lower cerebral,
cortex, pain or pleasure or other areas in the manner needed to produce the desired
result. Special self-monitoring devices such as the digital thermometer are used
to inform the left brain when it succeeds in keying the right hemisphere into
accessing the appropriate area. Once this is done, the left brain can then
repeatedly instruct the right brain to reestablish the pathways involved so as to
produce the same external, objective measures of success. In this way, the
pathways are strengthened and emphasized to such an extent that left brain
consciousness is enabled to access appropriate areas in the right brain using a
conscious, demand mode. For example, if the subject wishes to increase the
circulation in the left leg in order to speed up healing he may concentrate with
his left brain on achieving that result while carefully monitoring a digital
thermometer connected to the left leg. When the concentrated effort begins to
achieve success, the digital thermometer will register an increase in the
temperature of the left leg. At that point, the subject can mentally (left brain)
associate the sensations experienced with the result achieved and can begin to
emphasize, by memory recall, the same process to cause its strengthening by
affirmation and repetition. In this way, pain can be blocked, healing can be
enhanced, malignant tumors can apparently be suppressed and ultimately destroyed,
the body's pleasure centers can be stimulated, and a variety of specific
physiological results may be achieved. In addition, biofeedback may be used to
greatly accelerate achievement of deep meditative states particularly for beginners
who have no experience in meditative techiques and whose progress in that
methodology is enhanced through effective visualization and external, objective
affirmation. Display of the subject's brainwave pattern on a cathode ray tube has
proven to be a laboratory-validated means by which subjects may quickly learn to
place themselves in profoundly relaxed states characterized by the sort of quietude
and singularity of mental focus associated with advanced meditation.
5 . Gateway and Hemi-Sync. Now that we have briefly profiled the basic mechanics
of the principal techniques for altering or expanding consciousness which share
some of the objectives and/or methods employed in the Gateway Experience, we may
proceed to focus on what that technique actually involves. Fundamentally, the
Gateway Experience is a training system designed to bring enhanced strength, focus
and coherence to the amplitude and frequency of brainwave output between the left
and right hemispheres so as to alter consciousness, moving it outside the physical
sphere so as to ultimately escape even the restrictions of time and space. The
participant then gains access to the various levels of intuitive knowledge which
the universe offers. What differentiates the Gateway Experience from forms of
meditation is its use of the Hemi-Sync technique which is defined in a monograph by
Monroe Institute trainer Melissa Jager as, "a state of consciousness defined when
the EEG patterns of both hemispheres are simultaneously equal in amplitude and
frequency." Although Hemi-Sync seems to be rather rare and of only short duration
in ordinary human consciousness, Melissa Jager states that: "Audio techniques
developed by Bob Monroe can induce and sustain Hemi-Sync with the Institute's basic
Focus 3 tapes,..." She also notes that: "Studies conducted by Elmer and Alyce
Greene at the Menninger Foundation have shown that a subject with 20 years of
training in Zen meditation could consistently establish Hemi-Sync at will,
sustaining it for over 15 minutes." Dr. Stuart Twemlow, a psychiatrist and a
research associate of the Monroe Institute, reports that: "In our studies of the
effect of the Monroe tape system on brainwaves, we have found that the tapes
encourage the focusing of brain energy (it can be measured as with a lightbulb, in
watts) into a narrower and narrower 'frequency band’. This focusing of energy is
not unlike the yoga concept of one pointedness, which we may translate in western
terms as a single-mindedness." Dr. Twemlow goes on to observe that as the
individual gets into the tapes beyond Focus 3 , "...there is a gradual increase in
brainwave size which is a measure of brain energy or power.
6. Lamp vs Laser: Melissa Jager uses a metaphor to help clarify the process^
involved in the use of Hemi-Sync in the Gateway Experience. She points out that
the human mind in its natural state may be likened to an ordinary lamp which
expends energy in the form of both heat and light but in a chaotic, incoherent way
which diffuses its energy over a wide area of rather limited depth. On the other
hand, the human mind under the discipline of Hemi-Sync acts after the fashion of a
laser beam which produces a disciplined stream of light. The stream of energy is
projected with total coherence of both frequency and amplitude such that the
surface area of a laser beam contains billions of times the concentrated energy
found in a similar surface area on the sun. Gateway assumes that once the
frequency and amplitude of the human brain are rendered coherent, it is possible to
begin accelerating both so that the human mind is soon resonating at ever higher
vibrational levels. The mind can then bring itself into sycronization with more
sophisticated and rarified energy levels in the universe. The mind, when operating
at these increasingly rarified levels is assumed to be capable of processing the
information thus received through the same fundamental matrix by which it makes
sense of ordinary physical sensory input to achieve meaning in a cognitive
context. Such meaning is usually perceived visually in the form of symbols but may
also be perceived as astonishing flashes of holistic intuition or even in the form
of scenarios involving both visual and aural perception. The mechanics by which
the mind exercises the consciousness function will be addressed in more detail
later in this paper.
7. Frequency Following Response. To achieve synchronization of brain hemispheres,
the Hemi-Sync technique takes advantage of a phenomenon known as the Frequency
Following Response ( FFR) which means that if a subject hears a sound produced at a
frequency which emulates one of those associated with the operation of the human
brain, the brain will try to mimmick the same frequency pattern by adjusting its
brainwave output. Therefore, if the subject is in a fully awake state but hears
sound frequencies which approximates brainwave output at the Theta level, the
subject’s brain will endeavor to alter its brainwave pattern from the normal Beta
to the Theta level. Since the Theta level is associated with sleep, the subject
concerned may progress from a fully awake to a sleep state (provided that he does
not consciously resist) as the brain strives to entrain its wave frequency output
with the one which the person hears. Since these brainwave frequencies are outside
the spectrum of sounds which can be heard in pure form by the human ear, : Hemi-Sync
must produce them based on another phenomenon known as the brain's capacity for
deducing "beat" frequencies. If the human brain is exposed to one frequency in the
left ear which is 10 Hertz below another audible frequency played in the right ear,
rather than hearing either of the two audible frequencies, the brain chooses to
"hear" the difference between them, the "beat" frequency. Thus, availing itself of
the FFR phenomenon, and using the technique of "beat" frequencies, the Gateway
system uses Hemi-Sync and other audio techniques employing the FFR phenomenon to
introduce a variety of frequencies which are played at a virtually subliminal,
marginally audible level. The objective is to relax the left hemisphere of the
brain, place the physical body in a virtual sleep state, and bring the left and
right hemispheres into coherence under conditions designed to promote the
production of ever higher amplitude and frequency of brainwave output. Audible and
perhaps subliminal suggestions by Bob Monroe accompany the various brainwave
frequencies, which are sometimes rolled in together with other sounds such as sea
surf to mask the sound frequencies where desireable. In this way, Gateway
endeavors to provide the subject with the tools by which he may alter his
consciousness based on his own volition over time through the repetitive use of the
tapes so as to access, via intuitive means, new categories of information not
available to ordinary consciousness.
8. Role of Resonance. However, brain coherence through entrainment to "beat"
frequencies introduced via stereo headphones is only part of the reason why the
Gateway system works. It is also designed to achieve the physical quietude
characteristic of deep transcendental meditative states which brings about a
complete alteration of the fundamental resonance pattern associated with the sound
frequencies produced by the human body. Yoga, zen or transcendental meditation, if
practiced long enough, will produce a change in the sound frequency with which the
human heart resonates throughout the entire body. According to Bentov, this change
in resonance results from elimination of what the medical profession calls "the
bifurcation echo" so that the sound of the heartbeat can move synchronously up and
down the circulatory system in harmonious resonance approximately seven times a
second. Bentov describes the roll played by the bifurcation echo as follows:
"When the left ventricle of the heart ejects blood, the aorta, being elastic,
balloons out just beyond the valve and causes a pressure pulse to travel down along
the aorta. When the pressure pulse reaches the bifurcation in the lower abdomen
(which is where the aorta forks in two to go into the legs), part of the pressure
pulse rebounds and starts traveling up the aorta. If in the meantime the heart
ejects more blood, and a new pressure pulse is traveling down, these two pressure
points will eventually collide somewhere along the aorta and produce an
interference pattern." By placing the body in a sleeplike state, the Gateway tapes
achieve the same goal as meditation in that it places the body in such a profoundly
relaxed state that the bifurcation echo slowly fades away as the heart lessens the
force and frequency with which it pushes blood into the aorta. The result is a
regular, rhythmic sinewave pattern of sound which echoes throughout the body and
rises up into the head in sustained resonance. The amplitude of this sinewave
pattern, when measured with a sensitive, seismograph type instrument is about three
times the average of the sound volume produced by the heart when it is operating
normally.
9. Brain Stimulation. Bentov's biomedical model shows that this resonance is of
considerable importance since it is directly transmitted to and impacts upon the
brain. The resulting vibration is received and transmitted into the brain itself
via the fluid filled third and left ventricles located above the brain stem. An
electromagnetic pulse is then generated which stimulates the brain to raise
amplitude and frequency of brainwave output, just as Dr. Twemlow observed in his
research on the effects of the Hemi-Sync tapes. Also, the brain is contained in a
tight membrane called the dura which is, in turn, cushioned by a thin layer of
fluid located between it and the skull. As the coherent resonance produced by the
human heart in a state of profound relaxation reaches the fluid layer surrounding
the brain, it sets up a rhythmic pattern in which the brain moves up and down
approximately 0.005 to 0.010 millimeters in a continuous pattern. The
self reinforcing character of resonant behavior accounts for the body's ability to
sustain this movement despite the minimal level of energy involved, in this way,
the entire body, based on its own micromotion, functions as a tuned vibrational
system which transfers energy in a range of between 6.8 and 7.5 Hertz into the
earth's ionospheric cavity, which itself resonates at about 7-7.5 Hertz. Of this
process, Bentov states:
"This is occurring at a very long wavelength of about 40,000 Km, or just about
the perimeter of the planet. In other words, the signal from the movement of
our bodies will travel around the world in about one seventh of a second
through the electrostatic field in which we are imbedded. Such a long
wavelength knows no obstacles, and its strength does not attenuate much over
large distances. Naturally it will go through just about anything: metal,
concrete, water, and the fields making up our bodies. It is the ideal medium
for conveying a telepathic signal."
Consequently, the Gateway process is designed to rather rapidly induce a state of
profound calm within the nervous system and to significantly lower blood pressure
to cause the circulatory system, skeleton and all other physical organ systems to
begin vibrating coherently at approximately 7-7.5 cycles per second. The resulting
resonance sets up a regular, repetitive sound wave which propagates in consonance
with the elecrostatic field of the earth.
10. Energy Entrainment. As the body is turned into a coherent oscillator
vibrating in harmony with the surrounding electrostatic medium, the specific
exercises included in the Gateway tapes enjoin the participant to build up the
energy field surrounding his body, presumably by using energy from the earth's
field which the body is now entraining because of its ability to resonate with it.
This puts the body's energy field into homogeneity with its surrounding environment
and promotes movement of the seat of consciousness into the surrounding environment
partly in response to the fact that the two electromagnetic medians are now a
single energy continuum. Thus, the same process which moves the brain into focused
coherence at steadily higher levels of frequency and amplitude so as to entrain
analgous frequencies in the universe for data collection also promotes enhancement
of bodily energy levels to a point adequate to permit the subject to experience an
out-of-body movement when he is ready to do so(more will be said about this topic
later). In addition, by resonating with the earth’s electromagnetic sphere the
human body creates a surprisingly powerful carrier wave to assist the mind in
communication activity with other human minds similarly tuned.
11. Consciousness and Energy. Before our explanation can proceed any further, it
is essential to define the mechanism by which the human mind exercises the function
known as consciousness, and to describe the way in which that consciousness
operates to deduce meaning from the stimuli which it receives. To do this, we will
first consider the fundamental character of the material world in which we have our
physical existence in order to accurately perceive the raw stuff with which our
consciousness must work. The first point which needs to be made is that the two
terms, matter and energy tend to be misleading if taken to indicate two distinctly
different states of existence in the physical world that we know it. Indeed, if
the term matter is taken to mean solid substance as opposed to energy which is
understood to mean a force of some sort, then the use of the former is entirely
misleading. Science now knows that both the electrons^ which spin in the energy
field located around the nucleus of the atom and the nucleus itself are made up of
nothing more than oscillating energy grids. Solid matter, in the strict
construction of the term, simply does not exist. Rather, atomic structure is
composed of oscillating energy grids surrounded by other oscillating energy grids
which orbit at extraordinarily high speeds. In his book, Stalking the Wild
Pendulum, Itzhak Bentov gives the following figures. The energy grid which
composes the nucleus of the atom vibrates at approximately 10 22 Hertz(which means
10 followed by 22 zeros). At 70 degrees Farenheit an atom oscillates at the rate
of 10 15 Hertz. An entire molecule, composed of a number of atoms bound together
in a single energy field vibrates in the range of 10^ Hertz. A live human cell
vibrates at approximately 10 2 Hertz. The point to be made is that the entire
human being, brain, consciousness and all is, like the universe which surrounds
him, nothing more or less than an extraordinarily complex system of energy fields.
The so called states of matter are actually variances in the state of energy, and
human consciousness is a function of the interaction of energy in two opposite
states(motion vs rest) in a manner described in the following paragraph.
12. Holograms. Energy creates, stores and retrieves meaning in the universe by
projecting or expanding at certain frequencies in a three dimensional mode that
creates a living pattern called a hologram. The concept of the hologram can be
most easily understood by using an example cited by Bentov in which he asks the
reader to visualize a bowl full of water into which three pebbles are dropped. As
the ripples created by the simultaneous entry of the three pebbles radiate outward
towards the rim of the bowl, Bentov further asks the reader to visualize that the
surface of the water is suddenly flash frozen so that the ripple pattern is
p-£- 0 SQ 27 ved instantly. The ice is removed leaving the three pebbles still laying at
the bottom of the bowl. Then the ice is exposed to a powerful, coherent source of
light, such as a laser. The result will be a three dimensional model or
representation of the position of the three pebbles suspended in midair. Holograms
are capable of encoding so much detail that, for example, it is possible to take a
holographic projection of a glass of swamp water and view it under magnification to
see small organisms not visible to the naked eye when the glass of water itself is
examined. The whole concept of holography, despite its scientific implications,
has only been known to the physicist since the underlying mathmatical principles
were worked out by Dennis Gabor in 1947(he later won a Nobel Prize for his work).
Laboratory demonstration of Gabor's work only occurred years later following
invention of the laser. As biologist Lyall Watson explains:
"The purest kind of light available to us is that produced by a laser, which
sends out a beam in which all the waves are of one frequency, like those made
by an ideal pebble in a perfect pond. When two laser beams touch, they produce
an interference pattern of light and dark ripples that can be recorded on a
photographic plate. And if one of the beams, instead of coming directly from
the laser, is reflected first off an object such as a human face, the resulting
pattern will be very complex indeed, but it can still be recorded. The record
will be a hologram of the face."
13. The Part Encodes the Whole. Of further importance is the fact that even if we
dropped our frozen hologram of the ripple pattern on the floor and broke it into a
number of pieces each individual piece would recreate the entire holographic image
all by itself. The smaller the piece, the fuzzier and more distorted would be the
resulting holographic projection but the fact remains that a whole projection would
nonetheless be made. The key to creating any hologram is that energy in motion
must interact with energy in a state of rest (nonmotion). In the foregoing example,
the pebbles represent energy in motion while the water (before its agitation by the
pebbles) represents energy at a state of rest. To activate or, in effect, to
"perceive" the meaning of a holograph, energy (in this case, a coherent light source
such as a laser beam) must be passed through the interference pattern generated by
interaction between the moving energy and the energy at rest. In the simple
example given by Bentov, this requirement was fulfilled by holding the frozen
interference pattern in front of the coherent light to project the three
dimensional holographic image(its "meaning") into space. As Marilyn Ferguson,
editor of the Brain/Mind Bulletin tells us:
"Another feature of a hologram is its efficiency. Billions of bits of
information can be stored in a tiny space. The pattern of the holographic
[photograph] .. .is stored everywhere on the plate."
14. The Consciousness Matrix. The universe is composed of interacting energy
fields^ some at rest and some in motion. It is, in and of itself, one gigantic
hologram of unbelievable complexity. According to the theories of Karl Pribram, a
neuroscientist at Stanford University and David Bohm, a physicist at the University
of London, the human mind is also a hologram which attunes itself to the universal
hologram by the medium of energy exchange thereby deducing meaning and achieving
the state which we call consciousness. With respect to states of expanded or
altered consciousness such as Gateway uses, the process operates in the following
way. As energy passes through various aspects of the universal hologram and is
perceived by the electrostatic fields which comprise the human mind, the
holographic images being conveyed are projected upon those electrostatic fields of
the mind and are perceived or understood to the extent that the electrostatic field
is operating at a frequency and amplitude that can harmonize with and therefore
"read" the energy carrier wave pattern passing through it. Changes in the
frequency and amplitude of the electrostatic field which comprises the human mind
determines the configuration and hence the character of the holographic energy
matrix which the mind projects to intercept meaning directly from the holographic
transmissions of the universe. Then, to make sense of what the holographic image
is "saying" to it, the mind proceeds to compare the image just received with
itself. Specifically, it does this by comparing the image received with that part
of its own hologram which constitutes memory . By registering differences in geometric form and in energy frequency, the consciousness perceives (see Exhibit 2,
next page) . As psychologist Keith Floyd puts it:
"Contrary to what everyone knows is so, it may not be the brain that produces
consciousness— but rather, consciousness that creates the appearance of the
brain ..."
15 Brain in phase: The consciousness process is most easily envisaged if we
picture the holographic input with a three dimensional grid system superimposed
over it such that all of the energy patterns contained within can be described in
terms of three dimensional geometry using mathmatics to reduce the data to two
dimensional form. Bentov states that scientists suspect that the human mind
operates on a simple binary "go/ no go" system as do all digital computers.
Therefore, once it superimposes a three dimensional matrix over holographic
information it wishes to interpret and reduces that information mathmatically to
two dimensional form, it can completely process it using its fundamental binary
system just as any computer made by the hand of man can process volumes of data and
make various comparisons between the data and information stored in its digital
memory. Our minds operate in the same way, perceiving by comparison only. Bentov
states the proposition this way: "Our whole reality is constructed by constantly
making such comparisons whenever we perceive something, we always perceive
differences only.” In states of expanded consciousness, the right hemisphere of
the human brain in its holistic, nonlinear and nonverbal mode of functioning acts
as the primary matrix or receptor for this holographic input while, by operating in
phase or coherence with the right brain, the left hemisphere provides the secondary
matrix through its binary, computer-like method of functioning to screen further
the data by comparison and reduce it to a discreet, two dimensional form.
16. Evaluation. To the extent that Gateway succeeds in bringing about a
refinement in energy matrix of the mind, it succeeds in expanding or altering human
consciousness so that it can perceive without recourse to the intercession of the
physical senses such that ever more of the universal hologram(not, of course,
accessible by sense perception) can ultimately be perceived and understood.
Marilyn Ferguson has written that the theories of Pribram and Bohm "appear to
account for all transcendental experience, paranormal events and even "normal"
perceptual oddities...," She goes on to say of Pribram:
"Currently he is proposing a startling, all-encompassing model that is
generating considerable excitement among those intrigued by the mysteries of
human consciousness. His "holographic model" marries brain research to
theoretical physics; it accounts for normal perception and simultaneously
takes the paranormal and transcendental experiences out of the supernatural by
explaining them as a part of nature.
Like certain strange discoveries of quantum physics, the radical reorientation
of this theory suddenly makes sense of paradoxical sayings of mystics
throughout the ages."
17. Self Cognition. To comf>lete our outline of the process by which the mind^
achieves and exercises consciousness, we must also describe the mechanism which
accounts for the aspect of human thought that differentiates it from the
consciousness of plants or animals, i.e. self cognition. Humans not only know, but
they know that they know. They are able to monitor the process of their own
thinking and maintain an awareness of it. Moreover, they can conduct a comparitive
assessment, evaluating the functioning consciousness can do this because
"objective" standards they have adopted.
18. Time-Space Dimensiojj . Up to this fun begins. Gateway
has beeiTrelatively si^e and e«y to * ts of the universal hologram which
involves more than just perception- lime-spacers W e know it. To explain how and
can be accessed in the dimension of t * cend the limitations of time- space
why human consciousness can be do this we must first appreciate what
Is the next task which must be addressed. To do b that they constitute
time and space are in order to "f^^^L^^urement of energy or force in
cTn be transcended. Physicists def cl^ae . However, in ordet for
motion. In other words, it is a measurement^of chang^ ^ ^ confi s of
energy to be in motion it must fir ® b confinement gives it the capacity for
some sort of vibratory Pattern so which is distinguishable from other
being contained at a speci ic confined is force without limit/ wi
locations ( space ) . Energy »“ich rs not oannot move because there
dimension, without the ° therefore outside of the dimension of time,
ic; nothing beyond infinity, and is therer specific energy form is
is "so Seyond space because that conc^ptxjP 1 locations. But if energy
. , . . . a specific location, and is abse "here" to differentiate
Is in the state of infinity, there are ieans energy uniformly extended
from "there", no sense of area. Ene gy loc ation. It is conscious force,
without limit. It has no beginning, no e» - t form/ a st ate of infinite
the fundamental, primal power of . completely at rest and, therefore, cannot
Sing. Energy in infinity is said wbe <£££» It re tains its inherent
generate holograms so long as i ^ can receive and passively perceive ho g
capacity for consciousness i various dimensions which make up
generated by energy in motion o ^ consciousness operating in bh
created universe but it cannot be perc infinity is termed by physicists
active universe. Energy in this of ^ct Between the Absolute
as energy in its absolute state,' or i si our physical existence are
and the "material" universe in which we consciousne ss in altered states of
various intervening dimensionso consciousness may continue toexpan
being may gain access. Th ®°!f until it reaches the dimension of the
Stop/becnuse the Absolute generates „o
holograms of or about itself.• . Vuo ahsolute is conscious energy in
19. intervening dimensions . Since t ^ gvery dime nsion to include the
infinity(i.e. witnour boundaries), x J hvsic al existence but we cannot percei
time-space dimension in which we have P ± gradients or dimensions
IT It overlays everything as do ”y to and from their home
through which the energies of td ™ * To enter these intervening dimensions,
in thi state of infinitylthe Absolute). To^ente that the frequency of
human consciousness must ^ that consciousness! i.e. ^e brainwave outpu^l^
can SeSrftrr the point where the resulting . frequency Pattern, ^ P
an oscilloscope, would ‘perception of non-time-space dimensions
of altered consciousness sets the stage f P ^ planck . s Dl stance.
because of the operation of a principle P Y
This is an aspect of quantum mechanics which applies to the fact that any
oscillating f requency( such as a brainwave) reaches two points of complete rest
which constitute the boundaries of each individual osc illation ( i. e. movement up or
down). Without these points of rest, an oscillating wave pattern would be
impossible since the points of rest are required to permit the energy to change
direction and thus continue vibrating between rigid limits. But it is also true
that when, for an infinitesimally brief instant, that energy . reaches one of its two
points of rest it "clicks out" of time-space and joins infinity (see Exhibit 3, next
page). That critical step out of time-space occurs when the speed of the
oscillation drops below 10 -33 centimeters per second(Planck' s Distance). To use
the words of Bentov: "...quantum mechanics tell us that when distances go below
Planck's Distance, which is 10" 33 CM, we enter, in effect, a new world." To
return to our case in point, the human consciousness wave pattern reaches such high
frequency that the pattern of "clickouts" comes so close together . that there is
virtual continuity in it. Then, a portion of that consciousness is actually
postulated to establish and maintain its information collection function in those
dimensions located between time-space and the Absolute. Thus, as the almost
continuous "clickout" pattern establishes itself in continuous phase at speeds
below Planck's Distance but before reaching the state of total rest, human
consciousness passes through the looking glass of timer-space after the fashion of
Alice beginning her journey into wonderland. The Gateway experience, with its
associated Hemi-Sync technique, is apparently designed, if used systematically and
patiently, to enable human consciousness to establish a coherent pattern of
perception in those dimensions where speeds below Planck's distance apply. This
holds true irrespective of whether the individual is exercising his consciousness
while in his physical body or whether he is doing so after having separated that
consciousness from the physical body(i.e. the so called out-of-body state mentioned
earlier) .
20. Subatomic Particles. The behavior of subatomic particles provides an
interesting example of the phenomenon of "clicking out" discussed in the preceding
paragraphs. In an article prepared for Science Digest magazine, Dr. John Gliedman
mentions the way in which subatomic particles communicate with each other once
their energy fields become entrained as a result of colliding with each other. The
communication concerned is, of course, postulated to be occurring during the "click
out phase" in the oscillation of the energy fields comprising the subatomic
particles concerned. It is this cause which accounts for the cross-communication
at what in terms of time-space velocities, would seem to involve speeds in excess
of light. In reality Einstein's Theory of Relativity is not being invalidated but,
rather, the communication concerned is taking place outside the dimension of
time-space to which the Theory of Relativity is strictly confined. Specifically,
Dr. Gleidman tells us: "Quantum theory postulates a kind of long range Siamese
twin effect whenever two subatomic particles collide and then go their different
ways. Even when the particles are halfway across the universe from each other, it
says, they instantaneously respond to each other's actions. And in so doing, they
violate relativity's ban on faster than light velocities." Indeed, regarding
attempts to quantify what is known about the behavior of energy in dimensions
apparently outside of time-space, Bentov speaks about, "...courageous physicists
who are working on hypothetical particles, called 'tachyons, which can move at
speeds higher than light. The speed of tachyons starts just above the speed of
light and ranges all the way to infinite velocities."
21. Dimensions In-between. Now that we have postulated the legitimacy of the
assertion that the energy forms which compose consciousness can move beyond the
time-space dimension, we need to turn our attention to the energy forms which
inhabit those dimensions between time-space and the Absolute. In so doing, we may
better perceive the form that "reality" assumes when we encounter it m those
intermediate dimensions. In this context, Bentov tells us that:
"The causal relationship between events breaks down; movements become jerky
rather than smooth. Time and space may become "grainy" or "chunky." Perhaps
a piece of space can be traversed by a particle of matter in any direction
without necessarily being synchronized with a piece of time. In short, a pair
of events will occur in either time or space, the pair not being connected
causally but by a random fluctuation."
What Bentov means is that inside the dimension of time-space where both concepts
apply in a generally uniform way there is a proportional relationship between
them. A certain space can be covered by energy moving in either particle or wave
form in a certain time assuming a specific velocity virtually anywhere in the
time-space universe. The relationship is neat and predictable. However, in t e
intermediate dimensions beyond time-space the limitations imposed on energy to put
it into a state of oscillating motion are not uniform as they are in our physical
universe. A myriad of various distortions and incongruities are thus likely to be
encountered such that our nice neat assumptions concerning the relationship between
time and space as we know it in this dimension do not apply. But even more
important, access is opened to both the past and the future when the dimension of
current time-space is left behind.
22. Special Status, Out-of-Body Experience. Although human consciousness can,
with enough practice, move beyond the dimension of time-space and interface with
other energy systems in other dimensions, the entire process is appreciably
enhanced if that consciousness can be detached in large measure from the physical
body before such interface is attempted. Once an individual becomes proficient in
the technique of out-of-body movement and then reaches the point where he is a e
to break out of time-space while out of his body, he gains the advantage of
"clicking out" part of his enhanced consciousness while starting from a base
located much closer to the dimensions with which he wishes to communicate. In
other words, since he is starting from a point much "higher up", to use an analogy
from the time-space context, that part of his consciousness involved in "clicking
out" will have that much more time to interact in dimensions beyond time-space
because less time is required to traverse the intervening layers. Moreover, once
the individual is able to project his consciousness beyond time-space, that
consciousness would logically tend to entrain its frequency output with the new
energy environment to which it is exposed, therein greatly enhancing the extent to
which the individual's altered consciousness may be further modified to achieve a
much heightened point of focus and a much refined oscillating pattern. As a
result, a self-reinforcing process should ensue whereby the farther consciousness
in the out-of-body state can be projected beyond the time-space dimension, the more
its level of energy output would be enhanced, thus promoting the potential for
still further travel. The tentative conclusion to be drawn is that the out-of-body
state may be regarded as an extremely effective way of accelerating the process of
enhancing consciousness and of interfacing with dimensions beyond time-space. If
the practitioner of the Gateway technique has a choice of concentrating on
achieving and exploiting the out-of-body experience as opposed to concentrating his
full efforts on expanding his consciousness exclusively from a physical base, the
former would appear to promise much faster and more impressive successes than does
the latter .
23 . Absolute in Perspective. It may be helpful at this point to pause and recap
the major aspects of our intellectual journey from time-space to the realm of the
Absolute. We have spoken at some length concerning the incredibly complex hologram
which is created by the intersection of energy patterns generated by the totality
of all dimensions of the universe, time-space included. We have noted that our
minds constitute energy fields which interact with various aspects of this hologram
to deduce information which is ultimately processed through the left hemisphere of
our brains to reduce it to a form that we employ for the process we call thinking.
We have implied that this hologram is the finite embodiment in active, energy form
of the infinite consciousness of the Absolute. It is the title we assigned to that
vast pool of energy in a state of perfect rest over which the physical universe is
layered, and from whence it comes. Incidentally, to describe this, Bentov uses the
analogy of a very deep sea, comparing the still depths of the sea to the dimension
of the Absolute while assigning the storm-tossed waves above to represent the
physical universe with which we are familiar. The slightly agitated currents of
the sea to be found in between the turbulent surface and the totally still depths
represent energy in the process of either going into rest(i.e. approaching
infinity) or coming out of rest.
24. From Big Bang to Torus, working from the widely accepted "Big Bang" theory
Bentov presents a conceptual model to depict the process of time-space evolution
the relative position of the universal hologram. That hologram is often called a
"Torus" because it is thought to have the overall shape of an immense,
self-contained spiral. Basing his thesis on recent studies concerning the
distribution of quasars ( quasi-stellar objects), and operating on the premise that
in the universe smaller processes tend to be mirror images of larger ones(i.e. the
pattern of electrons around the nucleus of an atom mirrors the way planets orbit
their suns, and so on) Bentov postulates the following scenario. Taking his cue
from the observed capability of quasars to eject enormously concentrated beams of
matter from their interiors in a controlled, non-concentric version of the
"Big-bang" he envisages a similar process occurring in the generation of the
universe(see Exhibit 4, next page). Noting that those galaxies located to the
north of our own galaxy are moving away faster than those located to the south, and
that those to the east and west are demonstrably more distant, Bentov regards this
as substantive evidence that the jet of matter which expanded into our universe has
turned back upon itself, eventually forming an ovoid or egg shape. He sees
"matter" in our universe entering the ovoid pattern following ejection from a
nucleus composed of extremely compressed energy through a "white hole." At the end
of its trip to the far end of the ovoid, he sees it departing via a "black hole .
In such a model, time is observed to be a measure of the change which occurs as
energy evolves into new, more complex forms as it progresses along the distance
from the white hole side of the nucleus, around the shell of this "cosmic egg"
until it enters the black hole. In other words, as energy— expelled from infinity
and confined within limits by the conscious of the Absolute achieves form and
motion following ejection from the white hole at the top of the egg, time begins as
a measure of the cadence of this evolutionary movement as "reality" goes around the
shell of the egg on its journey to the black hole at the far end.
25. Our Place in Time. The observed distribution of galaxies suggests that our
particular universe is located near the top of the egg at the point where matter
begins to fall back on itself, thus explaining the reason why the galaxies to the
north are seen to be moving away more rapidly as they are caught up in the downturn
of the stream of matter towards the far end of the cosmic egg (see Exhibit 5, next
page) . Layered over this cosmic egg is the Absolute which sustains the radiating
nucleus from which the original jet of matter issued forth. As the stream of
matter moves around the ovoid towards its destination at the black hole where it
will be reabsorbed into the radiating nucleus and then the Absolute, it generates
the interference pattern within the cosmic egg which constitutes the universal
hologram or Torus. Since the Torus is being simultaneously generated by matter in
all the various phases of "time", it reflects the development of the universe in
the past, present and future (as it would be seen from our particular perspective m
one phase of time). By reflecting on this model, it becomes possible to "see" how
human consciousness brought to a sufficiently altered(focused) state could obtain
information concerning the past, present an future since they all exist in the
universal hologram simultaneously ( In the case of the future because all of the
consequences of the past and present can be seen coming together in the hologram
such that the future can be predicted or "seen" with total accuracy). Moreover, it
is possible to see how the implosion of energy patterns would cross and recross to
create an incredibly complex four dimensional hologram or Torus, in spiral shape in
reflection of the multi-dimensional developing pattern of evolution. All of the
movements of the energies which comprise the universe leave their mark and hence
tell their story throughout time.
26 . Quality of Consciousness. We noted earlier that the out-of-body state
involves projection of a major portion of the energy pattern that represents human
consciousness so that it may move either freely throughout the terrestrial sphere
for purposes of information aquisition or into other dimensions outside of
time-space, perhaps to interact with other forms of consciousness within the
universe. Consciousness is the organizing and sustaining principle that provides
the impetus and guidance to bring and keep energy in motion within a given set of
parameters so that a specific reality will result. When consciousness reaches a
state of sophistication in which it can perceive itself (its own hologram) it
reaches the point of self cognition. Human beings have this form of elevated
consciousness as does the Absolute but in case of the latter, it is a function of
energy and its associated quality of consciousness in infinity (omniscience and
omnipotence in perceptual unity). When energy returns to a state of total rest
within the Absolute, it returns to the continuum of consciousness in the pool of
limitless, timeless perception that resides there. Thus, the more complex an
energy system in the "material" state, the more consciousness it possesses to
maintain its reality. Our consciousness, therefore, is that differentiated aspect
of the universal consciousness which resides within the Absolute. It accounts for
the organization of the energy patterns which constitute our physical body but is
distinctly separate from and superior to it. Since consciousness exists quite
apart from and outside of reality, beyond the bounds of time-space, it, like the
Absolute, has neither beginning nor end. Reality has both a beginning and an end
because it is bounded within time-space, but the fundamental quantum of energy and
its associated consciousness is eternal. When reality ends, its constituent energy
simply returns to infinity in the Absolute.
27 . Consci ousness in Perspective. Having ascertained that human consciousness is
able to separate from physical reality and interact with other intelligences in
other dimensions within the universe, and that it is both eternal and destined for
ultimate return to the Absolute we are faced with the question: "So what happens
then?" Since memory is a function of consciousness and therefore enjoys the same
eternal character as the consciousness which accounts for its existence it must be
admitted that when consciousness returns to the Absolute it brings with it all the
memories it has accumulated through experience in reality. The return of
consciousness to the Absolute does not imply an extinction of the separate entity
which the consciousness organized and sustained in reality. Rather, it suggests a
differentiated consciousness which merges with and participates in the universal
consciousness and infinity of the Absolute without losing the separate identity and
accummulated self-knowledge which its memories confer upon it. What it does lose
is the capability for generation of independent thought holograms , since that can
be done only by energy in motion. In other words, it retains the power to perceive
but loses the power of will or choice. In exchange, however, this consciousness
participates in the all-knowing infinite continuum of consciousness which is a
characteristic of energy in the ever present. Consequently, it is accurate to
observe that when a person experiences the out-of- body state he is, in fact,
projecting that eternal spark of consciousness and memory which constitutes the
ultimate source of his identity to let it play in and learn from dimensions both
inside and outside the time-space world in which his physical component currently
enjoys a short period of reality.
28. Gateway Method. Having put the Gateway Experience in context by postulating a
structural outline of how and why it seems to work, and haying shown what it is
designed to achieve, the time has come to examine the specific techniques which
comprise the Gateway training process. These techniques are designed to enable the
user of the Gateway tapes to manipulate the high energy states which can^be
achieved if the user continues to work with the tapes over a period of time. The
amount of time required to reach advanced energy states and to fully exploit the
techniques varies with the individual. The sensitivity of his nervous system, his
general state of mind, and the extent to which he may have previously developed
facility in related techniques such as transcendental meditation are all pertinent
factors affecting the speed at which he may expect to progress. The Gateway
process begins by teaching the individual participant to isolate extraneous
concerns in a visualization device called an "energy conversion box. Next, the
participant is introduced to a method of encouraging his mind and body to strive to
achieve a state of resonance through utterance of a single tone, a monotonous,
protracted humming sound that sets up a feeling of vibration particularly in the
head. He engages in this "resonate tuning" as it is called by humming along with a
chorus of such sounds that are contained on the Gateway tape. Following this, the
participant is exposed to the Gateway affirmation, and is encouraged to repeat it
to himself as he hears it repeated on the tape. This affirmation is a statement to
the effect that the individual realizes that he is more than merely a physical body
and that he deeply desires to expand his consciousness.
29. Hemi-Sync Introduced. After that, he is exposed for the first time to the
Hemi-Sync sound frequencies, and is encouraged to focus on and develop a perception
of and appreciation for those feelings which accompany the synchronization of
brainwaves that results. Next comes the technique of progressive and systematic
physical relaxation while the Hemi-Sync frequencies are expanded to include
additional forms of "pink and white" noise designed to put the physical body at the
virtual threshhold of sleep as well as to calm the left hemisphere of the mind
while raising the right hemisphere to a state of heightened attentiveness. Once
all of this is achieved, the participant is invited to envisage creation of an
"energy balloon" comprised of an energy flow beginning at the center of the top of
the head and extending down in all directions to the feet. The energy involved in
this flow then proceeds up through the body and back out into the balloon pattern
again The "energy balloon", which sets up a pattern very reminiscent of the
cosmic egg discussed earlier, not only enhances bodily energy flow and encourages
early achievement of a suitable resonant state but it is also designed to provide
protection against conscious entities possessing lower energy levels which the
participant might encounter in the event that he achieves an out-of-body, state.
It serves a precautionary purpose in the unlikely event that the participant s
first out-of-body experience involves direct projection outside the terrestrial
sphere .
30. Advanced Techniques. Having reached Focus 10, the participant is now^ready to
endeavor to achieve a state of sufficiently expanded awareness to begxn actually
interacting with dimensions beyond those associated with his experxence of physical
reality. This state is called Focus 12 and involves conscious efforts on his part
while additional forms of "pink and white noise" enter the sound stream being
directed into his ears from the Gateway tape. Once the participant has achieved
this state of greatly expanded awareness, he is ready to begin employing a series
of specific techniques or "tools" as the Monroe Institute characterizes them which
enable him to manipulate his newly found expanded awareness to obtain practice ,
useful feedback of value for promoting self-discovery and personal growth. T
specific techniques involved are described individually below.
A Problem Solving. This technique involves identifying fundamental Problems
which the individual wishes to see solved, filling his expanded awareness with his
perception of these problems and then projecting them out into the universe. In
this way, the individual enlists the assistance of what Monroe Institute Bealls his
"hiqher self", in other words his expanded consciousness, to interact wit e
universal hologram to obtain the information required to solve the problem This
approach may be used to solve personal difficulties, technical problems in the
realm of physics, mathmatics, etc., practical administrative problems, and so on
Responses to the problem solving technique may be received almost immediately, but
often they come based on developing intuition over the next two to three days.
Frequently the response comes in the form of a sudden, holistic perception m which
the individual suddenly finds that he simply knows the answer in all of its
ramifications and completely in context, sometimes without even being able to put
his newly found perception into words, at least initially. In some cases, the
response may even arrive in the form of visual symbols which the individual
will" see" with his mind while he is in the Focus 12 state and which he will have to
interpret after he returns to normal consciousness.
B. Patterning. This technique involves use of the consciousness to achieve
desired objectives in the physical, emotional, or intellectual sphere. It mvo ves
concentration on the desired objective while in a Focus 12 state, extension of t
individual's perception of that objective into the whole expanded consciousne ,
and its projection into the universe with the intention that the desired objective
is already a matter of established achievement which is destined to be realized
within the time frame specified. This particular methodology is based on the
belief that the thought patterns generated by our consciousness in a state of
expanded awareness create holograms which represent the situation we desire to
bring about and, in so doing, establish the basis for actual realization of that
goal. Once the thought-generated hologram of the sought after objective is
established in the universe it becomes an aspect of reality which interacts wit
the universal hologram to bring about the desired objective which might not, under
other circumstances, ever occur. In other words, the technique of patterning
recognizes the fact that since consciousness is the source of all reality, ou
thoughts have the power to influence the development of reality in time-space as it
applies to us if those thoughts can be projected with adequate intensity. However,
the more complicated the objective sought and the more radically it departs from
our current reality, the more time the universal hologram will need to reorient ou
reality sphere to accomodate our desires. Monroe trainers caution against
attempting to force the pace of this process because the individual could succeed
in dislocating his existing reality with drastic consequences.
C.
Color Breathing. The next technique is called color breathing and is
designed to use the expanded awareness and highly focused attentiveness associated
with the Focus 12 state to imagine various colors in a particularly intense and
vivid manner so as to use them to resonate with and in turn to activate the body s
own energies. Fundamentally, in terms of practical application it is a healing
technique which is designed to restore the body and to enhance its physical
capabilities by balancing, revitalizing and retuning bodily energy flows. It is
predicated on the principle that the body's electromagnetic field is capable of
altering its resonance pattern so as to entrain energy from the earth's
electrostatic field for its own use. The various colors envisaged in the
imagination as part of the technique cue the mind as to which frequencies and what
specific amplitudes are desired in connection with this entrainment and the
subsequent alterations in bodily energy flow patterns. That color has the capacity
to affect the human mind is well known, and the effectuality of color in certain
kinds of healing is a demonstrable fact. For example, application of an intense
blue light to an area of physical tumescence leads to relatively rapid and easily
observable reduction in the swelling while red, and to a lesser extent, yellow have
quite the opposite effect. However, in the Hemi-Sync application of the technique
external light sources are not involved but, rather, the mind is the sole agent of
the healing and revitalization.
D. Energy Bar Tool. Magic wands and enchanted sceptors have been part of the
folklore and occult practices of many cultures. The scepters, staffs and maces
carried by monarchs and high priests alike occur with such frequency in the history
of bygone eras as to suggest that at the very least these items are aspects of some
type of archtypical symbol which the human mind seems to appreciate, perhaps quite
subliminally . In any case, the energy bar tool technique involves envisaging a
small, intensely pulsating dot of light which the participant charges in his
imagination with enormous energy until it is virtually pulsating. The participant
then extrudes the dot into the shape of a sparkling, vibrating cylinder of energy
which he then uses to channel force from the universe to selected parts of his body
for purposes of healing and revitalization*
E. Remote Viewing. In addition, the energy bar tool is used as a portal for
initiating a follow-on technique called "remote viewing." In this context, the
participant turns his bar of energy into a whirling vortex through which he sends
his imagination in search of new and illuminating insights. The apparent purpose
of the symbolism involved in the vortex seems to be to cue the subconscious and
convey to it instructions as to what the participant wishes to do but in terms of
nonverbal symbols which the right hemisphere of the mind is capable of
understanding .
F. Living Body Map. This technique provides amplification for application of
the energy bar tool as a means of healing specific areas or systems of the human
body. The configuration of the participant’s body is imagined and then the various
major systems such as the nervous and circulatory systems are envisaged in
appropriate colors within the confines of the outline being held in the
imagination. The energy bar tool is then applied to energizing, balancing and
healing in whatever manner the participant desires. In the process, the
participant visualizes various streams of colored energy flowing out of the tool
into the organ system or area upon which the revitalizing or healing application is
being made. Since colors are the result of differing wavelengths of light, which
is to say energy at various frequencies, this technique operates on the assumption
that as the human body is composed of energy it can be vitalized and healed through
the additive application of additional energy provided that the energy is applied
in the appropriate form.
G. Focus 15: Travel into the Past. All of the preceding techniques are
conducted at the level of expanded awareness known as Focus 12. However, the
technique of time travel into the past involves further expansion of consciousness
through the inclusion of additional levels of sound on the Hemi-Sync tapes. Some
of the sound is probably merely an intensification of the basic Hemi-Sync
frequencies, being designed to further modify brainwave frequency and amplitude.
Other aspects of the added sound patterns appear to be designed to provide subtle,
almost subliminal suggestions to the mind as to what is desired by way of further
expanded consciousness so as to support the verbal suggestions and instructions
being visualized as a huge wheel in the universe with various spokes each of which
gives access to a different part of the participant’s past. Focus 15 is a very
advanced state and is extremely difficult to achieve. Probably less than f ive .
percent of all participants in any given Gateway Experience actually fully achieve
the Focus 15 state during the course of the approximately seven days of training.
Nonetheless, Monroe Institute trainers affirm that with enough practice, .eventually
Focus 15 can be achieved. They also state that not only the individual's past
history is available for examination by one who has achieved Focus 15 but other
aspects of the past with which the individual himself has had no connection may
also be accessed,
H. Focus 21s The Future. The last and most advanced of all the Focus states
associated with the Gateway training program involves movement outside of the
boundaries of time-space as in Focus 15 but with attention to discovering the
future rather than the past. The individual who has achieved this state has
reached a truly advanced level. Except in unusual circumstances, it is probably
not attainable except by those who have conditioned themselves through long
application of meditation or by those who have practiced long and hard through use
of the Hemi-Sync tapes for a period of months if not years.
31. The Out-of-Body Movement. This remarkable phenomenon has been saved for
discussion in detail until last because of the interest which it occasions and
special circumstances involved in its attainment. Monroe Institute stresses that
the Gateway program was not established solely for the purpose of enabling
participants to obtain the out-of-body state nor does the program guarantee that
most participants will succeed in doing it during the course of the training at the
Institute. Only one tape out of the many which make up the Gateway Experience is
devoted to the techniques involved in the out-of-body movement. Basically, these
techniques are merely designed to make it easier for the individual to achieve the
out-of-body state when his brainwave pattern and personal energy levels have
reached a point that he is in apparent harmony with his surrounding electromagnetic
environment such that he feels that he has reached the threshhold where separation
is a possibility. To facilitate achieving the out-of-body state, Bob Monroe, the
founder of Monroe Institute, is quoted in a recent magazine article as saying that
in order to assist the participant the particular Hemi-Sync tape concerned with
that technique employs Beta signals of "around 2877.3 CPS ."( cycles per second).
Since 30 to 40 CPS is considered to be the normal range for Beta brainwave
signals (those associated with the wakeful state), it is apparent that the Monroe
Institute is convinced that the same heightened state of brainwave frequency output
which promotes altered states of consciousness is also an important consideration
in assisting in achievement of out-of-body states. The actual techniques employed
for separating from the body involve such simple maneuvers as rolling out, lifting
out after the fashion of a telephone pole wherein the individual separates in a
rigid, headfirst manner (such that he finds himself standing at attention at the
foot of his physical body) and sliding out through either end of his body.
32. Role of REM Sleep. It is interesting to note that Bob Monroe informed the
Gateway class that finished 7 May 1983 that an ex-trainer of his operating in
Charlottesville, Virginia found that he could guarantee out-of-body movements by
bringing participants down into a rapid eye movement (REM) state of sleep and then
use the Hemi-Sync tape technique. This may well be a function of the fact that
most if not all people reputedly go into an out-of-body state during REM sleep.
REM sleep is the deepest possible level of ordinary sleep and involves complete
disengagement of the body’s motor cortex functions from the neck down and nearly
complete suppression of consciousness in the left brain hemisphere. The effect of
this is to put the body in a state of complete stillness so far as the skeletal
muscle structure is concerned, thereby further promoting the state of deep rest
needed to eliminate the bifurcation echo. In addition, it leaves the right
hemisphere of the brain free to respond to the instructions and suggestions
contained on the Gateway tape. However, use of the Hemi-Sync tapes at this point
may be less a factor in actually achieving the out-of-body state than it is a
matter of focusing the brain enough so that a residual memory of having naturally
achieved an out-of-body state is carried into the waking state. Indeed, it may
even be postulated that some dreams associated with deep levels of sleep are in
fact functions of the same kind of altered consciousness involved in interaction
with the universe that plays a role in all of the Focus 12, 15 and 21 states
described above. The difference between those states and the condition of the mind
in REM sleep seems to be that the left hemisphere is almost totally disengaged m
the latter experience such that memory of what was achieved in the altered states
of consciousness cannot usually be retrieved by conscious desire because the left
hemisphere has no knowledge of its existence or its location in the right
hemisphere. Admittedly, some people can be trained to remember their REM state
dreams through intense conditioning in the waking state but even that may be more a
function of establishing pathways in the right hemisphere which the left hemisphere
can access following reentry into the wakeful state than it is an indication of any
specific left hemisphere conscious involvement in the process during REM sleep. In
any event, the three apparent conditions required for voluntarily inducing an
out-of-body state in most individuals seems to be: (1) achievement of a state of
profound quiet in the body such that the bifurcation echo fades and resonance at
approximately 7 Hertz is established, (2) synchronization of the two brain
hemisphere wave patterns, and (3) subsequent stimulation of the right hemisphere
of the mind to attain a state of heightened alertness( which, of course, interferes
with brain hemisphere synchronization but not until a sufficient level of enhanced
frequency range has first been established to help achieve the out-of-body state).
33. Information Coll ection Potential. The information acquisition potential
associated with the out-of-body state seems to attract the most attention from the
standpoint of developing practical applications for the Gateway technique.
Unfortunately, although the out-of-body state can apparently be achieved by many
people without excessive expenditure of time or effort, the purposes to which it
can be put are currently limited by the fact that although individuals in that
state may travel anywhere on an instantaneous basis in either the terrestrial or in
other spheres, information distortion in the former context remains a major
concern. To date, according to one of the trainers at Monroe Institute, numerous
experiments have been conducted involving persons moving from one coast to the
other in the out-of-body state to read a series of ten computer generated numbers
in a university laboratory. Although most have aquired enough of the digits to
make clear that their consciousness was present none have ever succeeded in getting
all ten correct. This seems to be a function of the fact that physical reality in
the present is not the only holographic influence which the individual may
encounter in an out-of-body state. There are also energy patterns left by people
or events occurring at the same physical site being viewed, but from the past
rather than the present. In addition, since thoughts are the product of energy
patterns, and energy patterns are reality, it may also be possible that individua s
encounter thought forms while in an out-of-body state which mingle with physica
reality and are not easily differentiated. Finally, as Melissa Jager writes, there
is another potential problem area in the sense that holograms can be viewed
pseudoscopically, that is to say inside out or backwards just as well as they can
be seen in proper perspective. Some of the distortions occurring may ultimately
prove to be traceable to this cause because in the out-of-body state an individual
may perceive the holographic energy patterns given off by people or things
interacting in time-space reality in a somewhat distorted form.
34. Belief System Considerations. In 1967, Alexandra David-Neel and Llama Yongden
wrote a book entitled Secret Oral Teachings in Tibetan Buddhist Sects , from which
the following quote is taken:
"The tangible world is movement, say the Masters, not a collection of moving
objects, but movement itself. There are no objects "in movement," it is the
movement which constitutes the objects which appear to us: They are nothing
but movement.
This movement is a continued and infinitely rapid succession of flashes of
energy( in Tibetan "tsal" or "shoug"). All objects perceptible to our senses
all phenomena of whatever kind and whatever aspect they may assume, are
constituted by a rapid succession of instantaneous events."
The classic description of the universal hologram is to be found in a Hindu sutra
which says:
"In the heaven of Indra there is said to be a network of pearls so arranged
that if you look at one you see all the others reflected in it."
I have cited this quotation because it shows that the concept of the universe whic
at least some physicists are now coming to accept is identical in its essential
aspects with the one known to the learned elite in selected civilizations and
cultures of high attainment in the ancient world. The concept of the cosmic egg,
for example, is well known to scholars familiar with the ancient writings of the
eastern religions. Nor are the theories presented in this paper at variance wit
the essential tenets of the Judeo-Christian stream of thought. The concept of
visible reality (i.e. the "created" world) as being an emanation of an omnipotent
and omniscient divinity who is completely unknowable in his primary state of
being. The Absolute at rest in infinity is a concept straight out of Hebrew
mystical philosophy. Even the Christian concept of the Trinity shines through the
description of the Absolute as presented in this paper. The description of energy
totally at rest, in infinity fits the Christian metaphysical concept of the Father
while the infinite self-consciousness resident in that energy providing the motive
force of will to bring a portion of that energy into motion to create reality
corresponds with the Son. This is so because in order to attain
self-consciousness, the consciousness of the Absolute must project a hologram of
itself and then perceive it. That hologram is a mirror image of the Absolute in
infinity, still exists outside time and space, but is one step removed from the
Absolute and is the actual agent of all creation(all reality). And, the eternal
thought or concept of self which results from this self-consciousness serves the
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37 . Motivational Aspect. It is a step by step procedure which involves repetitive
practice of the techniques concerned, using each new insight as a means of
penetrating farther during the next practice session. But the rate of progress is
so much faster with the Gateway approach than it is with transcendental meditation
or other forms of mental self-discipline and its horizons seem to be so much wider
that the discipline needed to practice it would seem to be within the means of even
the impatient, result oriented, skeptical pragmatist of our society. Unlike yoga
and other forms of eastern mental discipline, Gateway does not require the infinite
patience and total personal subservience to and faith in a system of discipline
designed to absorb all the individual's energies over most of a’ lifetime. Rather,
it will begin to produce at least minimal results within a relatively short time
such that enough feedback is available to motivate and energize the individual to
continue working with it. Indeed, the speed with which an individual may expect to
progress seems less a function of the number of hours spent practicing than it is a
question of the speed with which he or she is able to use the insights gained to
release anxieties and stresses within both the mind and the body. These points of
energy blockage seem to provide the principal barriers to achieving the Enhanced
energy states and focus of mind needed for rapid progression. The more compulsive,
the more "uptight" the individual may be at the outset the more barriers he or she
will initially encounter to achieving a deep or immediate experience, but as the
insights begin to come and the blockages begin to dissolve, the way ahead becomes
increasingly clear and the value of Gateway moves from the status of a matter of
intellectual assessment to one of personal experience.
38. Conclusion. There is a sound, rational basis in terms of physical science
parameters for considering Gateway to be plausible in terms of its essential
objectives. Intuitional insights of not only personal but of a practical and
professional nature would seem to be within bounds of reasonable expectations.
However, a phased approach for entering the Gateway Experience in an accelerated
mode would seem to be required if the time needed to reach advanced states of
altered consciousness is to be brought within more manageable limits from the
standpoint of establishing an organization-wide exploitation of Gateway's
potential. The most promising approach suggested in the foregoing study involves
the following steps:
A. Begin by using the Gateway Hemi-Sync tapes to achieve enhanced brain focus
and to induce hemisphere synchronization.
B. Then add strong REM sleep frequencies to induce left brain quiescence and
deep physical relaxation.
C. Provide hypnotic suggestion designed to enable an individual to induce
deep autohypnotic state at will.
D. Use autohypnotic suggestion to attain much enhanced focus of concentration
and motivation in rapidly progressing through Focus 12 exercises.
E. Then repeat steps A and B following use of the autohypnotic suggestion
that an out-of-body movement will occur and be remembered.
F. Repeat step E to achieve facility in gaining out-of-body state under
conscious control. Alter hypnotic suggestion to stress ability to consciously
control out-of-body movement and maintain it even after REM sleep state ends.
G. Approach Focus 15 and 21 objectives ( escape from time-space and interact within new dimensions) from the out-of— body perspective.
H. Use multi-focus approach to solve problem of distortion in terrestrial
information gathering trips. This approach involves the use of three individuals
in the out-of-body state, one viewing the target object here, in time-space, one
viewing it at Focus 15 as it slips into the immediate past, and one viewing it at
Focus 21 as it slips from the immediate future. Debrief all three and compare data
gathered from the three points of view. If care is taken to insure that the three
all go out-of-body together, in the same environment, their consciousness energy
systems should resonate in sympathetic oscillation. They can tune in to the same
target on different planes (dimensions) with greater effectiveness.
I. Encourage pursuit of full self knowledge by all individuals involved in
the foregoing experiments to enhance objectivity in out-of-body observation and
thinking, and to remove personal energy blockages likely to retard rapid progress.
J. Be intellectually prepared to react to possible encounters with
intelligent, non-corporal energy forms when time-space boundaries are exceeded.
K. Arrange to have groups of people in Focus 12 state unite their altered
consciousness to build holographic patterns around sensitive areas to repulse
possible unwanted out-of-body presences.
L. Encourage more advanced Gateway participants to build holographic patterns
of successful attainment and rapid progress for advanced colleagues to assist them
in progressing through the Gateway system.
If these experiments are carried through, it is to be hoped that we will truly find
a gateway to Gateway and to the realm of practical application for the whole system of techniques which comprise it.