The Gate of Remembrance: The Story of the Psychological Experiment which Resulted in the Discovery of the Edgar Chapel at GlastonburyBond, Frederick Bligh
Religion
The Gate of Remembrance: The Story of the Psychological Experiment which Resulted in the Discovery of the Edgar Chapel at Glastonbury
Bond, Frederick Bligh
Glastonbury Abbey -- Miscellanea; Parapsychology and archaeology -- England -- Glastonbury -- Case studies; Spirit writings
It is a fact well known to those who are called upon to speak in
public, or who are engaged in literary work, that unless the attention
be fixed and concentrated on the subject in hand, the brain will
act mechanically, causing repetition of any word recently impressed
on the mental tympanum, and such word may easily be substituted for
another. Where there is fatigue, this may happen very easily. In the
case of automatic writing, the mind is relaxed, and there is probably
a predisposition to such errors. The example given seems a proof of
it. It seems, indeed, a matter for surprise that such mistakes are not
more numerous in the script obtained by us. On the contrary, another
phenomenon has been frequently observed in connection with it. This
is, that at the commencement of a sitting the thread of a former
communication, broken by the termination of a previous séance, would be
resumed almost as though no interval of time had elapsed.
It had been intended in the present work that only the veridical matter
concerning the Edgar Chapel should appear in print; but the scope
was enlarged by the inclusion of Johannes, whose personality seemed
attractive. Later, it was decided to allow the remarkable reminiscence
of the "Loretto" Chapel also to see the light of day, in anticipation
of further knowledge. But readers will understand that nothing like a
wholesale reproduction of the script in the author's possession would
be possible. At the same time it may be clearly stated that in what
is reserved there is nothing which contradicts or negatives the value
of what is given, and of this the fact that the author has been able
with success to follow out the indications given may be held sufficient
warrant.
No apology seems needed for the quality of the "Latin" in the script,
which is very much what one might imagine to be the colloquial jargon
of illiterate members of the community, whose knowledge of the tongue
would be chiefly confined to the service-books, or what they understood
of them.
The author would here record his indebtedness to his friend J.A., not
only for that cordial interest and co-operation without which the new
line of research could not have been undertaken, nor this work have
seen the light of day; but also for the verses he has written on the
subject of Plate III., and on the final Envoi. His thanks are also due
to Miss A. M. Buckton for her sonnet (Plate I.) and for many valued
suggestions; to Mr. T. H. Felton for his permission to use material
from the Cannon MS.; to the Council of the Somerset Archæological
Society for loan of several blocks (including Plate II.); and to Mr.
Edward Everard for the loan of Coney's and Stukeley's plates; also to
Mr. Everard Feilding for his constant interest in the work and many
helpful suggestions.
NARRATIVE OF THE WRITINGS
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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