If you haven’t already read this, you may find it interesting. It’s a NY Times article: Out-of-Body Experience? You’re Brain is to Blame

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/03/heal...0&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss

What’s of particular interest in one of these experiments is the patient’s perception of a “shadow” figure, or double, that appears to have its own intention (e.g. wouldn’t allow the woman to read).

Another fascinating video related to this is NOVA “Secrets of the Mind”

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/mind/

Of the individuals features in this episode had survived a car accident, but afterwards suffered from a delusion where he believed his parents where imposters (which I believe was the Capgras delusion).

Pmp:you are exactly right. I completely have my metaphors mixed up with this which means that right now my unconscious intentions are all freaking scrambled as well. Which is no kind of ground from which to operate magically.

I recorded a podcast about all this last night exploring these various themes. I dont have an answer to the question yet but it helped me process through some of these different elements

i’d be clear on that first because some of those metaphors could be disastrous if mixed unconciously.

Also, while I have your ear, do you have any particular recommendations of gnostic texts that deal heavily with the double/twin element?

Sure, the Pistis Sophia. Here’s a little work I did on a pertinent chapter:
http://www.snant.com/fp/archives/pistis-sophia-book-3-chapters-9-12/
Here’s my favorite story from the PS about the “counterfeit spirit.” It’s Mary (Jesus’ Mother) speaking to the risen Christ:

“When thou wert little, before the spirit had come upon thee, whilst thou wert in a vineyard with Joseph, the spirit came out of the height and came to me in my house, like unto thee; and I had not known him, but I thought that thou wast he. And the spirit said unto me: Where is Jesus, my brother, that I meet with him?’ And when he had said this unto me, I was at a loss and thought it was a phantom to try me. So I seized him and bound him to the foot of the bed in my house, until I went forth to you, to thee and Joseph in the field, and I found you on the vineyard, Joseph propping up the vineyard. It came to pass, therefore, when thou didst hear me speak the word unto Joseph, that thou didst understand the word, wert joyful and saidest: ‘Where is he, that I may see him; else I await him in this place.’ And it came to pass, when Joseph had heard thee say these words, that he was startled. And we went down together, entered the house and found the spirit bound to the bed. And we looked on thee and him and found thee like unto him. And he who was bound to the bed was unloosed; he took thee in his arms and kissed thee, and thou also didst kiss him. Ye became one.”

Also, the Apocryphon of John:
http://www.gnosis.org/naghamm/apocjn.html

And, the Thomas tradition is full of the idea that Thomas is Jesus’s twin.

http://books.guardian.co.uk/firstchapters/story/0,6761,1072106,00.html

sounds like a good idea.

PMP: Yeah, I am trying to figure out what would be (1) an effective method to do this, and (2) what my intention would be in doing it, and (3) how to prepare a landing pad in case it goes wrong.

JP:

heh, just watch the second season of twin peaks about eight times in a row.

Yeah, absolutely. Especially the parts where he enters the Black Lodge. Perhaps I could formulate something from that. Also, while I have your ear, do you have any particular recommendations of gnostic texts that deal heavily with the double/twin element?

The person I know is an excessive drinker also , and you wonder what part that may play.

Well that’s simple. It’s called self-medication - trying to numb yourself with drugs that you freely can control, as opposed to using corporate (or rather pharmaceutical) drugs.

I have gone over and over these things with this person , to try and explain that it is their imagination

Well, frankly - you don’t *know* that it is their imagination. That is precisely the same thing as this person coming to you and saying to you that the way *you’re* acting is all in *your* imagination. It is precisely 100% exactly the same.

I think there are very few people like this, at that level of delusion.

No, but there are quite a few people who are at *your* level of delusion where they believe that how they see the world is how the world is. That delusion is probably in the 98% or greater realm.

I’m kind of tempted plus half-terrified out of my mind to try some kind of magickal working to contact my doppleganger

sounds like a good idea.

Sometimes they moderate a bit and laugh about their delusions. Sometimes even they admit they are delusional.
After a while they go back to them though. I think there are very few people like this, at that level of delusion.

I think they should be left alone in their delusions and not hospitalized unless proven dangerous for some reason.

The drug company`s love these people , and usually kill them in 10 to 20 years with an assortment of dangerous drugs they over prescribe. Then they kill the next bunch. I call it harvesting pelts for the corporate drug company`s.

Sometimes there is a drug and alcohol connection with people like this. The person I know is an excessive drinker also , and you wonder what part that may play.