Much has been written about Tibetan magic. Some of’ it is true, most of it is rubbish. Let us try and distinguish and look first at the accounts of a few eye-witnesses:
A traveller lost his hat. It was blown o ff liis head by the strong wind which often prevails in Tibet. It flew away and itcametoahaltinavalleybelowtheroad. Lookedatfrom a distance, it seemed like a rather strange creature. Those who passed it were frightened o f it and did not dare to in vestigate what it was. Theirfears grew and grew, until thesefearsimbuedthehatwithapowerofitsown. Itbegan to move like an animal.
This story is told by Alexandra David-Neil in ‘Magic and Mystery in Tibet’and it is true. This is not a direct magical action. What is shown clearly is what the mind can do to inanimate objects. II’, as is the case here, many minds contribute, then one sees astonishing results.
David Barker relates in ‘Psi-Phenomena in Tibetan Culture ’how he once met a lama who diverted a rain storm. As a scientist he found this difficult toacceptbuthedidnotputitdowntocoincidence. ‘Thewholeexperience produced in me afeeling o fdistress and disorientation which persistedfo r weeks, ’he wrote.
This book is about genuine Tibetan magic. One must understand that the mixture of Buddhism, Tantra and ancient Shamanism has lead to a system where, contrary to our Western opinions, magic is not considered to be unnatural.
This is the time to say a few words concerning the many misconceptions about Tibet and its magic. Many people think that they do know something about Tibet, about the Lamas and about its magic. They have come to that conclusion because they have avidly read all the books which were written by a certain Tuesday Lobsang Rampa. He was a building worker in the Birmingham area. This is what happened:
