Research source

Is it like the light of a candle or the light of the sun which radiates equally into space in every direction…

Date of account: Published 1897
Source: Hours with the Ghosts or, Nineteenth Century Witchcraft Illustrated Investigations into the Phenomena of Spiritualism and Theosophy
Reference: Hours with the Ghosts or, Nineteenth Century Witchcraft Illustrated Investigations into the Phenomena of Spiritualism and Theosophy · selected passage 15
Rights: public_domain
Language: English
Record updated: 2026-08-24

Record summary

Is it like the light of a candle or the light of the sun which radiates equally into space in every direction at the same time?

Published source text

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Source passage

Source text · mention only

Is it like the light of a candle or the light of the sun which radiates equally into space in every direction at the same time? If it is, it must obey the law--at least, we should expect it to obey the law--of all other forces which so act through a non-absorbing medium, and its effects must diminish inversely as the square of the distance. It must, so to speak, get beaten out thinner and thinner the further it gets removed from its original source. But is this so? Is it even credible that the mere thoughts, or, if you please, the neural changes corresponding to these thoughts, of any individual could have in them the energy to produce sensible effects equally in all directions, for distances which do not, as far as our investigations go, appear to have any necessary limit? It is, I think, incredible; and in any case there is no evidence whatever that this equal diffusion actually takes place. The will power, whenever will is used, or the thoughts, in cases where will is not used, have an effect, as a rule, only upon one or two individuals at most. There is no appearance of general diffusion.

Historical context

Contextual commentary · mention only

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Modern context

Contextual commentary · mention only

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