Could He Make Orbs Using Mind Power?

 The late Alex Tanous was a psychic and parapsychologist described in the encyclopedia article here. At the beginning of his memoir Beyond Coincidence: One Man's Experience With Psychic Phenomena, he makes a series of claims that are about as startling as any man has ever made. He claims:

• That he revealed to individuals many events in their future, including marriages and the date of birth of their children.
• That he relived crimes in such detail he was able to sketch the faces of the culprits, persons later arrested and convicted. 
• That he broke cameras of all descriptions without touching them.
• That he caused lights to go out in public buildings by just willing them off.
• That he projected images on to walls with only the power of his mind.
• That he "separated one part of my consciousness from the rest, sent it hundreds of miles from my physical body, observed the surroundings, then returned and reported what I saw with total accuracy"; and that he "duplicated this feat time and time again, in a scientific laboratory, under tightly controlled conditions."
• That he spoke with spirits and ghosts.

Relevant to this topic of this blog are the claims of Tanous that he could create with his mind balls of light.  On page 2 he says "I have created floating balls of light in totally dark rooms." On page 53 he says, "I've been able to project balls of light into my hands or into the room, in otherwise absolute darkness." On page 101 he says, "I discovered I could project not only balls of light, but actual images, images which could be seen by everyone in the room."  On page 110 we read that many witnesses saw a ball of light mysteriously near Tanous. 

On page 102  and the next page Tanous quotes several witnesses who said they saw a strange aura emitting from his body. One described it as a mist around his head.  On page 123 Tanous says that "on several occasions, I saw a shapeless mist drift away from a patient when he died."

On page 140 of the document here, we read of a "fly-in" experiment performed by distinguished researcher Karlis Osis, in which many claiming out-of-body experiences were invited to attempt astral projection (an out-of-body experience) to identify objects in a small office of the American Society for Psychical Research. We are told this:

"Alexander Tanous related that his awareness traveled several times from Portland (Maine) to the target locale during the experiment. Not only did he correctly observe the objects and shape of the table, but also noted a tea cup, which indeed was unintentionally left there by another researcher. Elwood Babbitt also described the target correctly in his third fly-in from Massachusetts. He also correctly drew the shape and location of a broad, small plant, a painting, and small sculpture of a smiling girl. Teddy Marmoreo of Toronto projected to the site at night before the experiment and saw Osis sleeping at ASPR – an account which was confirmed."  

Tanous' discussion of the test is on this page and the next two pages.. On page 140 Tanous says, "In the early months of 1974, Dr. Osis and I talked at length about my impression that during my out-of-body experiences, I see myself as a tiny ball of light."