I maintain that cosmic religious feeling
is the strongest and noblest incitement
to scientific research.

Albert Einstein 

HIGHER PLANES OF REALITY

CAN A PHYSICS FOR THESE REALMS BE DEVELOPED?

By Robert L. Shacklett, Ph.D.

October 20, 1997

Part 1. Various kinds of information and experiences that need to be considered in formulating a model:

1. Light seems to be basic to the substantive nature of any realm. In this paper I will use the term in a very broad sense, not only to include the EM spectrum of the physical world, but also to refer to analogous phenomena in higher planes or realms.
2. Humans are able to obtain information from various sources regarding a number of characteristics of the higher planes. I believe it is reasonable to try to incorporate such information into any model even though the source may not be “scientific.”
3. Some of this information comes through human “channels” and is likely to be affected or distorted by the unknown biases of the channelers, whether they be conscious or in trance. For this reason, such information needs to be carefully evaluated. Additional information, possibly more reliable because of the non-human interface, has come through electronic means, such as tape recorder, fax, computer, radio, telephone, answering machine, and TV.
4. The above point establishes that inter-level communication is possible through the electromagnetic interaction. The technical development of this technique had to wait until the mid 1950’s and the invention of appropriate electronic apparatus such as magnetic tape recorders. Of course, channeling phenomena have been around throughout recorded history where the human brain, voice box, or hand (as in automatic writing) serves as the receiver of the information. I would presume that even in these phenomena the EM interaction is still the primary means for the connection.
5. The term “vibration” has a long history of use in the psychic, channeling, and occult traditions. This term fits in nicely with a physics vocabulary even though the narrow usage in physics may not correspond exactly to the way it is understood in these other fields. It relates to other wave phenomena and makes it possible to apply corresponding terminology when appropriate, such as frequency, wavelength, amplitude, velocity, etc.
6. Ordinary cameras with glass lenses (opaque to UV light) have been known to record photographic images of ordinary scenes on which ghostly phantoms appear when the film is developed. Such phantoms were not observed when the picture was taken. In contrast to these experiences are those where the phantom can be seen by human observers as well as photographed. And there are reports of phantoms allowing themselves to become visible and then vanishing.
7. There are many reports of manipulations of physical objects by unseen agents, as in the poltergeist phenomena. Rappings, table tipping, and levitation of various objects are other evidences of intervening energies or beings into the physical world that are capable of transforming considerable physical energy into kinetic form. Occasionally there are reports of a chill in the air in the vicinity of such manifestations suggesting that thermodynamic energy may be involved in the energy conversion.
8. Physical mediumship is a lot less common than channeling mediumship. This is where materializations and apports are observed as well as the appearance of the substance called ectoplasm.
9. Ectoplasm is an emanation from the medium and seems to be a temporary conversion of his or her own body material into this substance. Weight loss by the medium has been observed during such occasions. Ectoplasmic voice boxes have been created by the entity and used to speak to the guests in these séances, sometimes with the aid of megaphone-shaped trumpets.
10. Ectoplasm seems to be sensitive to visible light, requiring most séances to be conducted in total darkness. However, infrared light does not destroy the substance allowing IR pictures to be made. The fact that some materializations are stable in ordinary light (such as the objects produced by Sai Baba) suggests that they may be apports instead of matter from a higher plane.
11. Stories written by humans describing their experiences on higher planes are suggestive of some physical characteristics of these planes and may provide additional clues about the physics connecting the planes.
12. A number of sources talk about seven planes of existence. [For example, see Klimo, pg 17] The number seven may have significance for our modeling purposes, since this is the characteristic number for the toroid which we believe may be the underlying geometric shape finding its way into everything from the twistor to the universe itself.
13. Coupling between levels becomes a problem for the physics that we are trying to apply here. We already know that there is coupling between the level of mind and that of the material, since life processes require an ability for consciousness to produce movement of a living organism. As humans, we learn how to make this coupling work at a very early age, practicing from before birth until about 2 years to perfect it. Animals acquire the skill much earlier in their life, relatively speaking. This ability can be extended out of the body to affect matter at a distance from the body, in which case it is called telekinesis or psychokinesis. But this skill is very rare in the human population.
14. The approach we are taking in order to model the mind-matter connection is to assume that there is a mathematical description of the connection inherent in the Penrose twistor, which unites space-time variables with a “twistor space” which is characterized by direction and angular momentum. No distance or time exist in twistor space which makes it very useful when dealing with non-locality issues which permeate the mind level.
15. Any detailed description of the contents and structure of the mind level is not possible at this stage of development of the model. Suffice it to say that archetype, memory, possibly “akashic records,” morphogenetic fields, and any other non-physical entity closely identified with brain function or psychic phenomena are likely candidates for inclusion in this realm.
16. The etheric level is a challenge to our physics. [See Brennan, chap 5] It is supposed to surround and be a part of every particle of matter, but cannot be seen with ordinary vision. It may be associated with what is commonly called the aura, which is a glowing emanation from living beings, again not seen with ordinary vision. It seems that more information is available about the astral level than about the etheric. This is the source of a lot of the channeled and electronic communication we get from humans who have passed over and are now residing at the “3^rd astral plane.” TV pictures from this level are especially interesting, for they show living conditions which are very much like those on earth, suggesting a physical environment on a planet with gravity and many other features that might be found on earth.
17. It would appear that our physics problem centers on the properties of light. The only light energy that physics knows anything about is the EM radiation that travels at the finite speed of 3x10 to the 10^th cm/sec in a vacuum. “Physical” light could be a special form of a much more general kind of radiation that interacts selectively with each level of reality. If so, we might have a way to account for the “invisibility” of these various realms. The sense of sight that goes with each level “resonates” with the vibration rate of the light at that level, in much the same way that our eyes are adapted to that special octave of EM radiation in the visible spectrum.
18. The anthropic principle holds that the physical constants of the universe are of such a magnitude that the physical substance of which the universe is made can support living forms. In other words, consciousness can be embodied in matter. If we assume that this principle can be generalized beyond the physical plane and be made applicable to the higher planes as well, we might have a way of making the physics of these planes become a little more tangible.
19. The velocity of light, the permeability and permittivity of the vacuum, the gravitational constant, the Planck constant, and the 2 quantities defining the Planck realm (the Planck length and the Planck mass), are taken by physics as Universal Constants and play a fundamental role in the determination of all the other constants of physics. These constants are all inter-related to one another through various equations that involve physical phenomena of one kind or another. Taken as a whole, the constants embody the physicality of the material realm. We could say that just as the human body represents the manner that consciousness has clothed itself in form, the table of physical constants represents the stability of the matter aspect of this form.
20. By analogy, we can propose that any level of reality that has a matter component, such as the astral plane, is also characterized by a set of constants, which includes a velocity of light. The constants would be self-consistent; that is, they would all be compatible with a state of matter unlike that of the known universe but supportive of living and non-living matter in a similar or parallel universe.
21. The realms of mind and spirit have already been acknowledged to be non-material and beyond space and time. We would presume that on the astral plane, for example, thought processes take place in much the same way as they do here. There is an astral body and brain with appropriate coupling to a mind level which enables the people on that plane to operate their bodies just like we do.
22. EM coupling seems to connect the astral and earth planes, at least at the earth side of the connection. This is evidenced by the channeling and electronic communication that can take place between the planes (points 3 and 4 above). This is certainly not “tight coupling,” since human brains are not normally sensitive to input from this level.
23. The complete description of earth-astral coupling is a lot more complex if “light” at the astral is a different speed than earth-plane light (point 20). We would presume that distance presents no obstacle, since esoteric information teaches that all levels superimpose on one another. The problem reduces to describing the interaction between two different kinds of “light.” That this is not a trivial matter is evidenced by the fact that the astral plane scientists in the “Timestream” research group have only recently developed their technology to a point where electronic contact is possible.
24. We return to point 16 and the consideration of the etheric plane. As implied there, this level challenges our physics more than anyplace else, since etheric phenomena are right here “in our back yard” and yet invisible to our usual physics probes. Some qualitative information about this level can be found in a number of references such as:

B. Brennan, Hands of Light: A Guide to Healing Through the Human Energy Field (Bantam Books, New York, 1987) chapters 5 and 6.

V. Kulvinskas, Survival into the 21^st Century: Planetary Healers Manual (Omangod Press, Woodstock Valley, CT, 1975).

H. Motoyama, Theories of the Chakras: Bridge to Higher Consciousness (Theosophical Publishing House, Wheaton, IL, 1981).

V. Hunt, Infinite Mind: The Science of Human Vibrations (Malibu Publishing Co., Malibu, CA, 1995).

M. Samuels and N. Samuels, Seeing with the Mind’s Eye: The History, Techniques and Uses of Visualization (Random House, New York, 1975).