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The Mediumship of Attila von Szalay – Raymond Bayless [from Experiences of a Psychical Researcher]

Mr. von Szalay insists that he is capable of "astral projection" and has described his out-of-body excursions for as many years as I have known him. His descriptions fit into the classical patterns established by Dr. Robert Crookall, the author of that monumental and extraordinarily valuable series of books including The Study and Practice of Astral Projection, More Astral Projections, The Supreme Adventure.

I had these claims verified in a very dramatic way at 6:15 p.m. on February 5, 1955, when I was seated on a couch in my bedroom tying my shoelaces. I saw a flickering motion before me, and I looked away thinking it was my cat, looked back, and saw a curious shadow in front of me which was trapezoidal in shape.

Roughly the height of a man, it leaned from the perpendicular at an angle of about twenty-five degrees to my right, and "floated" in the air. It had a space of about one foot between it and the floor. I watched it in astonishment and, as I did, the shadow rushed out of the room through two open glass doors into the front room and immediately disappeared.

After this incident I drove into Hollywood to Mr. von Szalay's studio, about eleven miles from my home, and knocked at the door. He answered and I said, "Guess what happened to me." These were my exact words, an important point inasmuch as they show that no leading remarks were made. He replied, "You saw me."

We then discussed the happening and he described how he had deliberately "projected" to my house so I could see him. It is quite true that, if one wishes to make a great effort, other theories than projection can be invoked to explain this incident, but they are so labored, so far-fetched, and clearly miss the obvious that they can be dismissed. I think that von Szalay proved his point well, and in a most dramatic manner.