Am I experiencing precognition?

[Kthonius]

Before I go into this, let me say that I consider myself a skeptic, albeit an open-minded one. I don't normally look for paranormal or supernatural explanations, and I find myself distrustful of people who claim to possess powers of that nature. However, I find myself at a loss when trying to explain and understand the experiences I am about to describe, and I thought that this would be an excellent place to finally talk about them with other people to get some feedback.

From a very young age, as long as I can remember, I have experienced strange, small coincidences involving thought. It usually works like this: I will be letting my mind wander, and I will imagine some idea or concept. Then, at some point in time very soon afterward, an event will occur that relates to what I had been thinking. For example, I might find myself thinking about an obscure or unusual term or phrase, and then, shortly thereafter, I will overhear someone use the same term or phrase in casual conversation. Now I realize that simple coincidences like this are not of particular significance, but they are only the most common, and in fact their frequency is part of what causes me to wonder.

Less frequently, I think of more-significant events before they occur. I have imagined friends or relatives to have particular injuries or illnesses (I might picture a friend with a limp or in a wheelchair, for instance), and then heard later that they actually suffered the imagined illness or injury after I imagined it (the friend would break his foot or leg). The event typically happens within 24 hours of my imagining it, but it sometimes happens as much as a week later.

There is, of course, more variety to these types of occurrences, not limited to conversations and illnesses. But those two types seem to be the kinds I experience most frequently. The thoughts very rarely come in dreams, but that has happened before (very recently, in fact). I often struggle to recall my dreams, though, so perhaps there is much that I am forgetting.

I am trying to analyze these “coincidences” to see if any patterns are present, since they seem completely random to me. If it is truly some form of precognition (or something else I don't care to mention), there is no way for me to distinguish it from normal thought except in retrospect. That is, if I am “foreseeing” events, I don't realize it until after the events occur and I recall my earlier thoughts.

I have not kept a written log of these “coincidences,” but I estimate that they occur every month or two (at least the ones I notice). It has been happening for as long as I can remember, and I would say it started no later than when I was eight years old.

Has anyone else experienced this or anything similar? Does anyone have any ideas, suggestions, or advice for investigating or experimenting with this phenomenon? Am I overreacting to a normal set of coincidences? I haven't really talked to anyone about this before, so I'm interested in feedback.

[Lord Sidious]

I have had that a lot my whole life and it still continues.
I am told it is a sign of an expansion of your consciousness.

[king anthony]

A standard to aid in concluding your quandary - 'if something occurs once, it is by chance; if something occurs twice, it is coincidence; if something occurs repeatedly, it is by design'. To further aid you, you may wish to begin documenting these things and witness these things with clarity, regardless of what is concluded. Being a 'skeptic before being a believer' is key; however, there will come a time when to distinguish 'real' from 'reality' may be a challenge - when this happens, understand what has taken place.

[johnf]

The one that really convinced me that I could make connections without physical contact or communication was the thinking about someone out of the blue, then running into them or picking up the phone and thinking it was so and so and it was. My present belief is that the universe is made of condensed thoughts that are shared to one extent or another by all of us in it and many outside of it, so this kinda thing seems more natural, but sometimes it takes some convincing and getting over the fears around what it means before people can accept this natural ability.
Try Googling Synchronicity, I read a book on that a long time ago . It helped me believe what I was experiencing more easily

[Kthonius]

Thank you for the replies.

Lord Sidious, have you noticed any patterns, or learned to recognize when you are experiencing thoughts of that nature? Have the experiences changed over time?

king anthony, your thinking is in alignment with my own. I have recently started documenting these occurrences, as you suggest, in order to be able to analyze them.

johnf, that is very similar to what I experience. One or two such occurrences can be attributed to simple coincidence, but as the number and frequency of occurrences increase, it seems that there is some other explanation. My own belief is that conscious thought does not permeate the universe in a mystical way, but is instead discretely contained within individual organisms, in line with traditional neuroscience. That said, the science is incomplete, and there are mysteries to be solved, so perhaps I am wrong in my assumption.

I have also considered the possibility (in some cases) that a given stimulus could affect myself and another individual in the same way at the same time, leading us both along similar lines of thinking. (For example, a line of dialogue from a television show might introduce a phrase into my subconscious, and another person might repeat the same line of dialogue shortly thereafter.) But, while this is a possibility in some cases, there are just too many instances in which it could not explain the bizarre "coincidences" I've described.

[Cottage Rose]

Has anyone else experienced this or anything similar? Does anyone have any ideas, suggestions, or advice for investigating or experimenting with this phenomenon? Am I overreacting to a normal set of coincidences? I haven't really talked to anyone about this before, so I'm interested in feedback.

I very much enjoyed hearing about your experiences.

During my life, I have had important dreams predicting future occurences far in advance. For instance, very early in my life I had recurring dreams about living in a cave overlooking a stream and a distant village. I saw the cave perspective both looking in and looking out. From the outside I saw golden candlelight boucing off the cave wall surrounding a natural pool with steaming bubbly water. When inside the cave another person I felt very comfortable with was in the shadows. We had intimate conversations, but I never saw his face. Looking outward while enjoying the warm pond, on many dream occasions I enjoyed the western sunsets and the moon and stars above the large trees. We sometimes went on excursions into the village. (Additional imagery surrounding these excursions to the village sychronized with past endeavors, but I will not mention those here.)

Thirty years later, I found myself residing in this cottage, enjoying a room built leaving one exterior cavelike sandstone wall for an interior one, in a sunken whirlpool, with large windows facing west out to a stream overlooking a residential area in the distance. I observe the sunset from the whirlpool every evening. It serves as my nighttime desk and table. The relationship I now have with my husband has the identical emotional feel of my long ago dream, but he is now out of the shadows. He added this room the year before we met again at a 20 year high school reunion.

I have had other dreams of this caliber, some I feel certain remain as future experiences.

[rainbowhorse]

Can anyone offer me resources to develop or at least understand this type of ability? I have a story, but I need to do some research before I feel comfortable relating it in anyway (this is too much even :Cry:).

[Lord Sidious]

Thank you for the replies.

Lord Sidious, have you noticed any patterns, or learned to recognize when you are experiencing thoughts of that nature? Have the experiences changed over time?


I haven't identified any patterns, no.
The experiences are more often and I just let it happen, I don't think about it.
Let go of the rope, that is my advice to you.

[Selene]

Hello, Kthonius,

Yes, you are indeed experiencing precognition.

And if you are like many of us here, you have probably done so all your life, but now your abilities have naturally reached a point where you have questions about “what is happening to me?” Rest assured you are never alone. There are many good souls in your life who have been there ahead of you and who will help you along the way.

Follow your own instincts in this regard: if a book or lecture appeals to you, read it. Attend it. If someone you know seems to understand you, talk to them about whatever you feel comfortable sharing. Pursue what resonates for you. Each individual’s path is unique.

Learn to trust your own experience. And never be willing to trade your experience for someone else’s opinion, since there are always “experts” who are happy to tell you you’re ‘imagining things’ or ‘borderline’ or whatever they don’t understand. They will want to reduce you to their own level. It’s not their fault that they don’t understand, but they don’t understand.

Pay attention to your inner life. Experience fully your own thoughts, feelings, ideas and whatever chatter your mind babbles on about. Learn to experience your body, your breathing, your energy levels. Don’t try to “change” anything; just learn to observe yourself as you are. And at some point, you will begin to explore your inner life more fully, perhaps through meditation, prayer, a spiritual path or even studying martial arts or fine arts. There’s no “one size fits all.” You are you.

In addition, I’m reposting here some practical comments I made on the thread in the Spirituality section “Question About Intuition?” http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?14794-Question-about-intuition&p=152857#post152857 that may be helpful. Just substitute the word “precognition” for “intuition” below:

I hope this is helpful.


If I may add to these excellent points, from my own experience one of the critical links in the process of improving your intuition is seeking feedback in external reality. That is: you’ve just gotten a ‘ping’ about something that seems genuine – a friend, perhaps? A medical condition? A warning? Tomorrow’s news? What? You will learn much more, much faster about your intuition, if you take the next step and check it out against the apparent external situation.

Write your intuition down. Jot down some quick notes about your intuitive concept without thinking too much. Words? Sketches? Colors? Sounds? Vague ideas? Sometimes, you may discover that you are ‘rolling’ and the ideas seem to flow quickly, far more completely than your original insight. Whew. What’s this?

Check it out. Act on it. That’s right: rustle up your gumption and call that friend. Be casual, joking, even. ‘Just thinking of you.... How are you doing...?’ And sit and listen. Probe gently if necessary. Be self-deprecating. ‘I had this silly impression that...’ You don’t need to say how, exactly. You may be very surprised to discover how very much your friend will welcome your concerns.

Sometimes your friend will draw a blank, at first. They’ll deny your suggestion. That’s okay, too. But in future days or weeks they may very well get back to you with ‘You know what you said about...? Well, yeah...it...’ Happens a lot. Don’t be discouraged by their first response. Just let it ride.

Or you’ll discover you were ‘pretty close’, but misunderstood your own information. That happens a lot. What else can you find out?

Learn from your feedback. You’ve had a ‘hit’, in one form or another. So: recall the circumstances of that intuition. Contemplate what, and where and how you were feeling when you had the intuition. How were you breathing? What were you doing? Eating? Sleeping? Thinking? Etc. As you contemplate that state, enter into it again. Recreate it. Feel it. Experience it. What are the special qualities here?

Or you were ‘off’. Were you, really? Or did you simply misinterpret something? Sometimes, I’ve found that what I ‘saw’ was true enough, but would not happen immediately – or even for years. That can be very confusing, but tuck those notes away anyhow. You never know when you might want to consult them again and say Aha!

Your inner language and signals are personal to you. Most of all, learn to recognize your own inner landscape, your own inner voice or imagery, your own radar. Observe yourself. What clicks for you? Rely on your own experience, not other people’s opinions.

As you progress, and you continue to seek real-world feedback for your insights, your confidence in your intuition will grow – as will its usefulness to you and those around you.

I hope this is helpful.

All my best wishes,

Selene

[moais]

I were on a shopping lunching and thinking , then the name came moulin rouge, ok so after the lunch I went to buy a book on design, went into the cashier line and saw the guy behind me had a dvd, guess what .... yes, moulin rouge, starting to undrestand a little of french, dunno why, coincidence or not, dont know, but my life is getting better, I think so....

The precog ability.... is a little dangerous, you may think something may happen but the thinking of this might lead you to that because unconciously you may want to make that happen because then you can say you were in the right place, to find yourslef or to be right is something even my mind wants, but is dangerous.

Also, if someone can foretell the future, is this because the future was already made, or because it is the highest probability to happen, so this precog power may be in reality a power fo the higher self being lent to us.... dunno

oracle, it always shows the worst possibility, and we in fear make it happen, the future will only be good in acceptance,

sorry for stating the obvious

some ideas

[delaware]

thank you all for your posts, really all interesting and to the point, I have had precognition too, it´s a normal ability of humans once you put aside fear and religuous constraints

[Tom Sawyer]

Добро пожаловать, Kthonius!

Through my life I've experienced emotions of like you are being helped in doing something. I don't mean cooking your potato with beacon but something that
was very important in your life. On the opposite - something that you wish the most at the moment to happen didn't or is achieved with such an enormous
efforts that I was almost MAD about the situation. Then when I grew a bit I started to understand that it wasn't a coincidence. Some time after I've heard about
the "The Language of the Magicians". Well, it was not about magic - it's about being sensitive to circumstances. It's about following the flow. If you feel the
counteraction or a barrier - don't get mad, keep going a bit other way, etc. It really helps me. I feel when I'm going to have problems in the future by having too
much of counteraction in present. But problems can be avoided if we can rein our ego and turn on the senses to find the flow.
That's something about me.

TS
P.S. Очень рад увидеть соотечественника на этом форуме. Если не думать о тех, кто
просто читает не публикуя, то теперь нас двое. Искренне приятно.

[LightningResistor]

I have similar experiences almost daily. It seems to have picked up over the past few years, and has been happening more and more frequently. I think this is just due to my increased awareness of it. The thing that I've always wondered is, am I picking up on something that will happen in the future, or am I transmitting the thought and causing it to happen? Am I the cause, or am I foreseeing an effect?

[johnf]

Добро пожаловать, Kthonius!

Through my life I've experienced emotions of like you are being helped in doing something. I don't mean cooking your potato with beacon but something that
was very important in your life. On the opposite - something that you wish the most at the moment to happen didn't or is achieved with such an enormous
efforts that I was almost MAD about the situation. Then when I grew a bit I started to understand that it wasn't a coincidence. Some time after I've heard about
the "The Language of the Magicians". Well, it was not about magic - it's about being sensitive to circumstances. It's about following the flow. If you feel the
counteraction or a barrier - don't get mad, keep going a bit other way, etc. It really helps me. I feel when I'm going to have problems in the future by having too
much of counteraction in present. But problems can be avoided if we can rein our ego and turn on the senses to find the flow.
That's something about me.

TS
P.S. Очень рад увидеть соотечественника на этом форуме. Если не думать о тех, кто
просто читает не публикуя, то теперь нас двое. Искренне приятно.

Well said Tom! The coincidences I notice these days seem to be pointing out what path of action fits me the best and leads away from old habit and into new patterns, areas of exploration that result in growth. Often the path of least resistance in the world is the path of greatest resistance as far as my emotions are concerned. OMG what is going to happen ,If I'm not being what I have been for so long, who will I be? This is not only the higher purpose of these experiences it leads us into our higher purpose in the world
and often that is not all glamor and attention but it is more joy, serenity etc.

[Kthonius]

Thank you again to everyone who has replied so far! I have enjoyed reading your responses. I would like to respond to a few.


Cottage Rose, thank you for that wonderful story! It is encouraging and exciting to hear that other people experience the same phenomenon. I wish more of my experiences were visual. They are usually more abstract.

rainbowhorse, it sounds like your situation is similar to my own. I would be very interested in hearing your story when you are comfortable sharing it. I recommend keeping a journal of events, if you experience them, as I think becoming more conscious of the things you experience can become a catalyst for expanding your own mind. In fact, as I mentioned before, I often have difficulty recalling my dreams, but about a year ago, I started keeping a dream journal, and I noticed that I almost instantly began remembering my dreams. Unfortunately, I have since stopped keeping a journal, and my recollection has suffered as a result. Perhaps I should begin again, as I also keep a log of the other experiences I've mentioned.

Selene, thank you for the affirmation and encouragement. Your advice is sound. Hopefully, I will soon be able to recognize my intuition, if that's what it is. The problem now is that whatever this is, it not currently possible for me to recognize it until later. But even so, much of your advice is already applicable.

moais, your story is similar to some of the common less-significant occurrences I experience. Cause and effect certainly do become confused when precognition enters the mix. Fortunately, my own precognition (if that is indeed what it is) is not strong enough for me to cause problems. Perhaps that is part of the reason...

Здравсте Том! I will PM you soon. Your advice is also wise and applicable to all. The "Language of the Magicians" sounds very interesting. Is it essentially as you've described, or is there more to it? I am interested in hearing more if there is more to tell.

LightningResistor, I wonder the same thing! I didn't want to mention it before, but since you already have, the thought has crossed my mind that perhaps I am somehow accidentally influencing future events. I think that such a phenomenon is much less likely than "simple" precognition, but if it is possible, there are many very serious ramifications. I almost hope it's not true.

johnf, you have identified something important. At the risk of sounding mystical, I think the key is to find a way to align your corporeal physical existence with your spirit (that does sound mystical, but I simply mean your internal self, your mind, your deepest consciousness); if the two are in alignment, then they will not be in conflict.

Thank you again, everyone. I hope to hear more from you, and from more of you!

[ponda]

One way of looking at it might be is that the universe is giving you a nudge and something to think about.

Maybe there are no coincidences

cheers

[Sir Eltor]

I have had that a lot my whole life and it still continues.
I am told it is a sign of an expansion of your consciousness.

Hi Kthonius , as you can see you're not alone with this as I too share these experiences ( obscure thoughts > randomly hearing outloud> minutes/ hours later) Had two yesterday and now I came across your post , funny how that works.

Lord Sideous put it best for me , In both his posts.

[rainbowhorse]

Thank you a lot, Selene and Kthonius. Made my night. I'm going to work with your suggestions.

[rainbowhorse]

Your suggestions have already proven to be very, very helpful. Thank you very much.