Observations placeholder
Custance, John - Wisdom, Madness and Folly - A prophecy which does not come true
Identifier
005153
Type of Spiritual Experience
Background
A 'prophecy' that did not come true ......
A description of the experience
Wisdom, Madness and Folly - John Custance
Another symptom is the ability to see [hallucinations …and] distortion of visual images. This power is proportionate to the acuteness of the mania. At the present time I am seeing no ‘visions’. In periods of acute mania they can appear almost like a continuous cinema performance, particularly if there are any complicated and variable light-patterns with which my optical mechanism can play the necessary tricks. These visions generally appear on the walls of my room, if these are shiny enough to reflect light.
They are infinitely varied, and bear a close relation to the processes of thought passing in my mind at the time. They are obvious products of the Unconscious, which in this state is of course largely in control of my mind. It is quite impossible to give a catalogue of them, ………... Ancestors, historical characters and friends, both dead and alive have appeared to me in this way; I have seen future historical events such as, for example, the trial of Joseph Stalin after World War III (which may, of course, be wishful thinking); there have been visions of Heaven and Earth of gods and goddesses and devils, and so on.
The technique of seeing these illusions is a sort of relaxation of the focusing of my eyes.