Four Complete Books-Edgar Cayce- Modern Prophet
Mary Allen Carter, 1990, Gramercy Books, New York

Reviewed by Tonya Foust Mead

This tomb of work is a pure masterpiece. Cayce’s work is what served as an impetus for my interest in mysticism, the New Physics, higher frequency vibrations and miracle work. The book begins by painting a rather bleak picture of Cayce’s early life. By age 6, he had visions of conversations with relations who had recently passed. In his early 20s he became a stationary salesman. Perhaps God or the Divine Mind had another profession for him because he began to lose his voice (a necessary tool for any salesperson!) and experienced paralysis of the throat. He turned to conventional doctors who were unable to find a physical cause or a medicinal cure. Cayce also tried hypnosis but this too failed to have a permanent effect.  As a last ditch effort, Cayce begin to enter into a self-induced trance. In this state, medication and manipulative therapy was recommended. After use, his voice was restored.

The extraordinary work of Cayce has appeared on Public Broadcast Television and other major news outlets. It has been said that he counseled United States Presidents in time of war and major conflicts. At the time of Cayce’s death in 1945, it was documented that Cayce had given over 14,000 telepathic-clairvoyant prescriptions to at least 8,000 different people. To date, these readings represent one of the largest records of psychic perception from one person. The answer to every problem, Cayce has said is within oneself. More striking though was Cayce’s lifelong argument that his ‘gift’ is available to anyone. Our ‘birthright’ as he called it was readily obtainable though our dreams. He termed them ‘our own personal prophecy.’

BOOK ONE: ON PROPHECY

How to Develop Psychic Consciousness
Below represents ways in which Cayce reasoned that this ‘gift’ could be realized by all men.

1.The seeker must be well balanced physically, mentally and spiritually.
2.The seeker must understand that there are dangers of using powers for very high development or into destructive forces.
3.The seeker must search to find the ‘self.’ The question to be answered, is it for self development or for selfless development?
4.The seeker should find a spiritual guide to teach the student on the proper use of higher awareness.
5.The seeker must speak often with God and meditate on these words,

'Lord use thou me in that way, in that manner, that I – as thy son/daughter—they servant, may be of greater service to my fellow man and may I know his biddings, Father as  Thou hast promised that if we would hear them Him, that we ask in His Name may be ours. I claim that relationship, Father, and I seek thy guidance day by day.’

6.The seeker will receive guidance from within.
7.The seeker may encounter another who would serve ‘as a guidepost along the way of life,’ and thusly the seeker would know that he had been guided to that person by the Spirit and ‘must walk that road’ learning what that person could teach him.
8.The seeker must ask for the protection of Christ Consciousness for protection and guidance. The highest use of psychic consciousness is to, ‘know ourselves to he His.’

Character Development
Although Cayce prophesied that the ‘gift’ is available to every seeker, he was careful to emphasize the importance of character development. The development of character, he believed should precede extrasensory perception. He advised the seeker to develop one’s character, for ‘as one grows in virtue and patience, one will receive these gifts as a natural result.’

BOOK TWO: ON RELIGION AND PSYCHIC EXPERIENCE

The Cayce View of Psychic Experience
According to Cayce, ‘psychic perception and psychokinesis are advanced forms of creativity.’ Creative Forces (or archtypes) are available to seekers who love others unconditionally and unselfishly. Once this creative force is tapped, he advocated while under a trance enhanced state, seekers could become increasingly capable of giving healing energies to those he sought to love.

Elements of which to Focus to enhance the seekers Creative Forces
Love
Inventiveness
Patience
Integrity
Wisdom

Further, Cayce contended that the development of one’s psychic ability is linked to spiritual growth. He cautioned the seeker to be weary of misusing one’s psychic gifts; these gifts, he argued, should be used in ‘faith, hope and love.’ Misusing one’s gift or failing to use one’s psychic abilities could lead to their disappearance or worse- cause harm to the seeker’s soul.

The Three Levels of Psychic Experience
A common theme throughout the four books is that every man has as his ‘birthright’ some level of psychic ability. In this book, a description of the three levels is provided and follows below.

Natural
At this level, hunches, premonitions and glimpses of auras operate to warn the seeker of threats to himself and loved ones and to alert him, guide him  to opportunities of which he is presently seeking.

Elevated
Elevated psychic abilities can be obtained by concentrated effort, shock or trauma.

Highest
The highest level of psychic abilities occurs when the seeker’s soul turns to the ‘Christ Sprit’ to reunite with the Christ Consciousness.’ The Christ Spirit through his example will guide the seeker to live his life in ways in which he could ‘reflect’ the purity, goodness and inventiveness of God to man.

The Process for Achieving Psychic Experience
According to the Cayce source, (1) active desire, (2) concentration, (3) attunement or harmony with the Christ Spirit, and (4) service are needed to bring about a psychic experience.  As an example, to produce intricate carvings, a carpenter may rely upon his natural talent, design ideas in his mind, a catalog of memories of previous works, and past experience of various stroke techniques. He draws upon his concentration and will to serve others through the beauty of his work.  A seeker goes through a comparable process to achieve a psychic experience. Without a similar natural flow of energy, ‘through disuse or inexpertness’ psychic forces will have difficulty manifesting.

The process then for achieving psychic experience included the intention first and foremost, to ‘turn within’ or  seek the still small voice of God. Cayce explained in elaborate detail the in physiological terms, the sequence of human states of consciousness that occur when experiencing psychic phenomena.

The Body
1.Invisible Force Field that surrounds each cell of the human body
2.Seven Chakra Wheels that correspond to the endocrines glands in the body
3.Kundalini or the optimum interaction of the creative energy of the seeker’s body

Moreover, Cayce impressed upon the reader that lack of rest, imbalance, anxiety, tension and poor diet reduces one’s psychic ability.  

The Mind
1.The body can not function without the Mind.
2.The Mind could serve as an aid to focus one’s psychic ability or block the physic process (worries, rapid and racing thoughts, etc).

The Spirit or Soul
1.Purity of heart, soul and intention

The Conditions Required for the Practice of Effective Psychic Experiences
Prior to this point in the book, references to religion was not as extensive as one might have assumed, given that becoming closer to Christ has been the major goal of organized Christianity heretofore.  The Cayce Source identified the traditional religious practices conducive to improving one’s psychic abilities.

1.The use of myths, symbols to increase ‘attunement’ with God,
2.Organized religion could be a vehicle for increasing one’s service to his fellow man, and
3.Rituals such as holy sacraments, processions were developed to concentrate the seeker’s energies in alignment with God.
4.Religious principles welcomed the use of daily prayer and meditation to regulate to the still small voice of God.
5.Religious dogma argued for the guarding of one’s speech, thoughts and the working through of ideals.
6.World religions advocated for training oneself to see the best in others, to ‘do unto others as you would have done unto you.’

In addition to the aforementioned mainstream religious practices of the Western world, the Cayce Source at other times also supported lessons in breathing exercises, methods for enhancing one’s concentration, astrology, gemology, visualization and healing through touch.

Organized Religious and Spiritual Groups
So far, Cayce stressed that the individual could best develop his psychic abilities from the inside out versus the outside in. Pure intentions, desire, concentration and so on were factors to be worked upon on an individual level. In this section, though Cayce emphasized that belonging to one another and cooperation were also vital to the improvement of one’s psychic experience. Cayce sought to answer the age old question,

‘What does it mean to be a church, a Chosen People, a Buddhist; Sangha, a Jewish kibbutz?’

Cayce recognized that mere membership was not enough. He felt that it ‘availed man nothing in itself except to get man moving, and might be dangerous.’ The key then one must be in the mindset to use group membership as a means by which one might convene with God. By congregating with religious or spiritual groups one might access the extrapersonal energy and universal intelligence of Christ. The Cayce Source constantly reminded seekers that ‘Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am in the midst of them.’

Another added benefit to the individual seeker for participating in organized religious groups was the opportunity afforded to share personal experiences, to  encourage, heal and to bless other likeminded seekers as they embark upon their own personal journeys toward union with God. Group meetings provide a plethora of occasions to say something positive, actively listen to other’s problems, to volunteer assistance, and to overlook another’s failures. And finally, prayer—organized group prayer, prayer schedules and prayer for individual members by the group was constantly stressed. Out of these shared disciplines, the group would grow to become ‘of one mind’ and the mind of Christ.

In later chapters of his book, the Cayce source provided ample readings for the benefits of group organization. Repeatedly the Cayce insisted that the way to make lasting social change was that ‘each new idea or way of living must come first to the individual, then to the group, then to the classes, then to the masses.’ Often in our impatience, man strives to hop to influencing others after having been converted to a convincingly bright idea.Cayce stressed that in order to change the minds and hearts of others, each individual must experience the change, nurture and support the change of heart and behavior in small groups, and celebrate the change in small groups. In time, the general public or leaders of large institutions may heed the call to change as well.

Hunches, Intuition and Dreams
In today’s times, the power of the mind is widely accepted truth. However in the early 19th century, Cayce’s assertion that ‘thoughts are things’ represented an unorthodox way of thinking. The Cayce source insisted at the time, ‘Thoughts are deeds, and may become miracles or crimes’ depending upon which frequency of energy was used. Cayce further insisted that a constant flow of energy produced ‘fields of force that acted autonomously upon the thinker, and even others.’ The fact that thought fields represented the creative power of the subconscious, Cayce implored seekers to think of ‘whatsoever things are true, beautiful, just, or good report.’The rationale for guarding one’s thoughts was that the subconscious mind would build upon whatever it was consistently offered.

Additionally, Cayce argued that dreams represented an opportunity for the human psyche to ‘right itself’, to interpret the underlying meanings of the previous day’s events and to warn or alert man to keep the ‘personality functioning in its biological and social spheres.’

Careful to prepare the seeker to overzealous interpretations of his readings, Cayce forewarned them that the flow of intuition or hunches might be impaired by over reliance upon instinct when common sense or reason would have been more prudent.

In addition to hunches and intuition, the Cayce source paid much attention to the work of the psyche in dreams. Cayce was so convinced in the precognition ability of dreams that he asserted that ‘nothing important ever occurred to a person without being previewed in a dream.’ Cayce largely considered that in dreaming, the psyche has the chance to right itself and to re-interpret the meaning of each day’s experiences.

One way to tone the accuracy of dreams, hunches and intuition was to study, work and research the laws pertaining to the field in which one wants to deepen one’s awareness. For instance, Cayce advised that if a person wanted hunches on investments and stocks, one ‘ought to student and work with stocks.’ Cayce further reasoned that, ‘the quick mind could be quickened to do its job even better, while the stumbling mind [will have] difficulty in securing impressions. Whilst he advocated for the active seeking of hunches, Cayce felt that the seeker should study in the spirit of cooperation and not the exploitation of one’s gift. Exploitation sets the seeker at odds with his own best Self.

Another way, Cayce advised to seekers for advancing intuition was to read William James,  Varieties of Religious Experience, Ouspensky’s, Tertium Organum and The Law of Psychic Phenomena, by Hudson.

Self Analysis and Continual Prayer
While the Cayce source placed cooperation or covenanting with others as the foundation for making a solid connection to the Universal Mind, analysis of the self was stressed as a method for overcoming ignorance. It has been documented in the Venture Inward Project X study by Hugh Lynn Cayce, through the eager seekers who had sought to rush into the psychic experience, opening the door to the unconscious was far easier than closing it. Neurotic and psychotic material can be found alongside psychic material. Mental breakdowns occurred when seekers did not analyze themselves, their motives, their states of consciousness, their drives nor their energies prior to or during the undertaking of the Project. Moreover, in regular periods of prayer and meditation, the seeker often comes to grips with his own personal evil, its cure, and improving his discernment of fears. Cayce argued that evil in man was misplaced good that should be raised to higher levels of effectiveness. Evil, Cayce felt was a manifestation of fear and doubt that kept man away from and separate from God. The drive to do evil could be harnessed for effective expression if only man would turn to God, which was all ‘too often obscured by fear.’

Unbinding the hold in which one’s fears, doubts and evil tendencies (cravings for lust, power, position and possessions), has on the psyche, according to Cayce, is a crucial step toward unification with the God Source.

These personal fears, to the Cayce source represented crosses with which the seeker could through the ‘Christ Spirit’ turn it into a crown. Each curse or evil tendency could be made a blessing for others. ‘Stumbling blocks’, said Cayce, ‘must be turned into stepping stones.’ Each person can become true to himself by recognizing his personal faults and failures. Through this process of self analysis, he can ‘most effectively aid his fellows [when he has learned] he himself had to struggle the most; man’s weaknesses were not simply to be overcome, but made slowly into his wonders, his points of greatest strength and love and understanding.’

Another method for self knowledge according to Cayce was first, introspection and second, experimentation. Through experimentation, Cayce surmised, ‘man had to act, to serve, to love, to dare, if he were to know himself.’ A quick rule of thumb was to examine the effect one has upon others. If they were ‘glad to see thee come and sorry to see thee go,’ one might ascertain that one was well on the path to spirituality. Projection, the psychoanalytical tool of rejected conscious material, hypothesized the Cayce source, represented the third method for attaining self knowledge. The very traits one despised in others, represented the trait one could not accept in oneself.

With regard to facing the hated shadow within oneself, Cayce explained that through continual prayer and quiet communion with the Spirit, the seeker could rely upon the divine within ‘to stir him, guide him, to strengthen him.’ ‘Faith’, he often said, ‘was a gift from the Throne, implanted in the soul.’ This fourth aid then, through cultivation one would (a) analyze oneself, (b) remember the help of others, (c) seek personal weaknesses that would block the flow of faith, (d) ask the One through faith for the next step in dealing with these weaknesses.

Continual prayer, quiet focus on the Bible or personal affirmations enabled the seeker, reasoned the Cayce source, to distinguish between acting on behalf and in unison with the will of God or acting for one’s selfish and personal motives. Some argue that prayer represents merely a one way communicative tool for communing with God or Divine Mind. Prayer, though according to the Cayce source is much stronger than sheer one-way communication. Prayer is the method by which the seeker communicates to God and God likewise communicates to the seeker. To hasten, purify the message, Cayce stressed that prior to prayer, the seeker must cleanse the body, as well as his thoughts from distractions and worries.

Steps to Effective Prayer
1.Approach prayer in a relaxed bodily state.
2.Focus one’s energies on the positive creation.
3.Sit up or lie straight in a flexible, non-rigid posture.    
4.Pray at the same time and same place daily.
5.Share with the God both the personal sins that need to be forgiven and thank God also for one’s blessing with gratitude. Share also the longings of the heart.
6.Make statements of positive affirmations.

Cayce also referred to breathing exercises of the Eastern tradition as well as chanting, incense, gongs, instrumental music, and candles—all of which may work for some according to their beliefs.

Faith
The evidence of things unseen, or faith is the source of psychic abilities, articulated the Cayce source. Cayce stipulated to seekers the following:

1.Pause briefly before making a decision involving the future.
2.Listen to the still, small voice within.
3.Attune with good or the Godly Spirit
4.Pray for the ‘Spirit of Christ’ to put him in touch with the information one needs to know.
5.Attempt to crush one’s fears through faith.

BOOK THREE: ON MYSTERIES OF THE MIND
In the Introduction, Chapter’s One and Two; the author, Henry Reed, under the editorship of Charles Thomas Cayce does much to convince the reader of the power of the subconscious mind. Reed guides the reader through a few experiments to evidence this power. It wasn’t until Chapter Three that my interest was sparked. Reed provides an image of the concept of Universal Mind as depicted by the Cayce source.

Conclusion

Cayce was not without detractors, in 1936, Cayce, his wife and his personal secretary, Gladys Davis was arrested in Detroit for practicing medicine without a license. Though the trial ended favorably for the Cayce’s there were months of uncertainty feelings of persecution and doubt.  As a result, Cayce suffered psychically and mentally.

Every page of this book served as a resource and constant source of referral. While reading the book, almost on every page (628 pages), contained within each paragraph was a line, or sentence worthy of reflection.

Dr. Mead, PhD, MBA, MA http://www.ishareknowldge.com/ is a consultant specializing in human behavior, school and social psychology. She can be contacted at: tonya@ishareknowledge.com