Observations placeholder

Dr V Ramachandran, Phantoms in the Brain

Paul was the 32 year old assistant manager of a local Goodwill store, he was an epileptic

'I had my first seizure when I was 8 years old' he began 'I remember seeing a bright light before I fell on the ground and wondering where it came from'.  A few years later, he had several additional seizures that transformed his whole life.  'Suddenly, it was all crystal clear to me, doctor' he continued 'there was no longer any doubt anymore'.  He experienced a rapture beside which everything else paled.  In the rapture was a clarity, an apprehension of the divine – no categories, no boundaries, just a Oneness with the Creator.  All of this he recounted in elaborate detail and with great persistence, apparently determined to leave nothing out...................

… there was a strange light in Paul's eyes.  He clasped his hands and stroked his chin with his index fingers.  'There's one other thing I should mention' he said 'I have these amazing flashbacks'

'What kind of flashbacks?'

'Well the other day, during a seizure, I could remember every little detail from a book I read many years ago.  Line after line, page after page word for word'

'Are you sure of this?  Did you get the book and compare your memories with the original?'

'No, I lost the book.  But this sort of thing happens to me a lot.  It's not just that one book'

I was fascinated by Paul's claim.  It corroborated similar assertions I had heard many times before from other patients and physicians.