Spirituality and the Capricious, Evasive Nature of Psi
📄 Original study📌 Appears in:
Plain English Summary
Kennedy reviews a massive 800-page book called 'Irreducible Mind' and argues it could be a game-changer for parapsychology — the study of psychic phenomena. Instead of endlessly debating whether lab experiments prove psi (psychic ability) is real, this book takes a bigger swing: it tries to understand consciousness itself. Drawing on ideas from F.W.H. Myers's 1903 classic 'Human Personality,' the book examines near-death experiences, mystical states, genius, and mind-body healing as evidence that the brain-equals-mind view falls short. Kennedy loves this broader approach but flags two gaps. First, how does biological evolution fit into the picture? Second — and this is the really fascinating part — psi is maddeningly slippery and unreliable. Rather than treating that slipperiness as a problem to fix, Kennedy suggests it might actually be a clue pointing toward spiritual dimensions of consciousness with motivations completely unlike our everyday survival-driven instincts.
Research Notes
Kennedy's review of the landmark 'Irreducible Mind' volume positions this book as a potential turning point for parapsychology—a serious effort to understand mind and consciousness rather than merely cataloging experimental controversies. Published in Journal of Parapsychology Vol. 70, pp. 373-377. Kennedy's discussion of psi's capricious, evasive nature builds on his earlier theoretical work (kennedy_2001_psi_elusive, kennedy_2003_capricious_psi, kennedy_2004_proposal) and suggests this characteristic may be evidence for spiritual dimensions of consciousness rather than a methodological nuisance to be overcome. Important for understanding the theoretical framework connecting psi research to consciousness studies and spirituality. The review notes that Irreducible Mind includes a CD with F.W.H. Myers's 1903 'Human Personality' volumes.
Book review of 'Irreducible Mind: Toward a Psychology for the 21st Century' by Kelly et al. (2007), an 800-page work attempting to understand consciousness and psi through F.W.H. Myers's concept of the subliminal mind. Kennedy endorses the book's approach of moving beyond narrow laboratory controversies toward a broader theoretical framework. The review examines the book's coverage of near-death experiences, mystical experiences, genius, automatism, and psychosomatic phenomena as evidence against materialistic models of consciousness. Kennedy identifies two areas needing further development: the role of biological evolution in consciousness/psi, and the implications of psi's capricious, evasive nature for understanding spiritual realms. The capricious nature of psi may reflect motivations fundamentally different from materialistic evolutionary drives, offering insight into profound aspects of consciousness.
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📋 Cite this paper
Kennedy, J.E (2006). Spirituality and the Capricious, Evasive Nature of Psi. Journal of Parapsychology.
@article{kennedy_2006_spirituality,
title = {Spirituality and the Capricious, Evasive Nature of Psi},
author = {Kennedy, J.E},
year = {2006},
journal = {Journal of Parapsychology},
}