According to Wikipedia Pareidolia (pronounced /pærɪˈdoʊliə/) is a psychological phenomenon involving a vague and random stimulus (often an image or sound) being perceived as significant. Common examples include seeing images of animals or faces in clouds, the man in the moon, and hearing hidden messages on records played in reverse. The word comes from the Greek para- ("beside", "with", or "alongside"—meaning, in this context, something faulty or wrong (as in paraphasia, disordered speech)) and eidolon ("image"; the diminutive of eidos ("image", "form", "shape")). Pareidolia is a type of apophenia.
In the specific case of imaginary sightings of the imaginary virgin mother of an imaginary deity all Marian apparitions are obviously imaginary because the individual imagined to appear does not now and never did exist.
When a person is afflicted with religious delusions that involve superheroes like Jeebus, or his supposedly virgin mommie, they may become predisposed to recognize images of their invisible friends.
The items listed below may help you to understand the basis of these hallucinations which are simply tricks of self deception within the minds of those afflicted with religious delusions.
Acclaimed by a wide range of experts, The "God" Part of the Brain is a classic. Matthew Alper presents a stunning argument: that our brain is hardwired to believe in a God. He offers a scientific explanation that we inherit an evolutionary mechanism that allows us to cope with our greatest terror - death. The author also evokes his personal odyssey as he sought to understand why mankind created the concept of a higher power to deal with the fear and terror we experience due to our species' unique awareness of the inevitability of death. The "God" Part of the Brain has sparked praise by scientists such as E.O. Wilson, a two-time Pulitzer Prize-winner; E. Fuller Torry, "the most famous psychiatrist in America"; and Arnold Sadwin, former Chief of Neuropsychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania. The book has been adopted by universities across the country. Praise for The "God" Part of the Brain "This cult classic in many ways parallels Rene Descartes' search for reliable and certain knowledge...Drawing on such disciplines as philosophy, psychology, and biology, Alper argues that belief in a spiritual realm is an evolutionary coping method that developed to help humankind deal with the fear of death...Highly recommended." - Library Journal "I very much enjoyed the account of your spiritual journey and believe it would make excellent reading for every college student - the resultant residence-hall debates would be the best part of their education. It often occurs to me that if, against all odds, there is a judgmental God and heaven, it will come to pass that when the pearly gates open, those who had the valor to think for themselves will be escorted to the head of the line, garlanded, and given their own personal audience." - Edward O. Wilson, two-time Pulitzer Prize-Winner "This is an essential book for those in search of a scientific understanding of man's spiritual nature. Matthew Alper navigates the reader through a labyrinth of intriguing questions and then offers undoubtedly clear answers that lead to a better understanding of our objective reality." - Elena Rusyn, MD, PhD; Gray Laboratory; Harvard Medical School "What a wonderful book you have written. It was not only brilliant and provocative but also revolutionary in its approach to spirituality as an inherited trait." - Arnold Sadwin, MD, former chief of Neuropsychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania "A lively manifesto...For the discipline's specific application to the matter at hand, I've seen nothing that matches the fury of The 'God' Part of the Brain, which perhaps explains why it's earned something of a cult following." - Salon.com "All 6 billion plus inhabitants of Earth should be in possession of this book. Alper's tome should be placed in the sacred writings' section of libraries, bookstores, and dwellings throughout the world. Matthew Alper is the new Galileo...Immensely important...Defines in a clear and concise manner what each of us already knew but were afraid to admit and exclaim." - John Scoggins, PhD "Vibrant ... vivacious. An entertaining and provocative introduction to speculations concerning the neural basis of spirituality." - Free Inquiry Magazine
Your God Spot is based on scientific findings about God, spirit, and religion. Spiritual hardwiring in the brain is the source of all deity and belief, from which the mind projects all forms of faith everywhere. This new view sheds light on the most basic and perplexing questions about belief. Subtitled "How the Brain Makes and the Mind Shapes All Forms of Faith," this book consists of three tight fitting parts. Part I, "In the Mirror of Spirit" directs your attention to the God Spot within. Part I, "Through a Prism of Religion," describes the forms of faith projected by the mind, including their pros and cons. And Part III, "Out the Window of Belief," focuses on some faiths that measures up, and how you can fulfill your spirituality, no matter your state of belief. Seven chapters brim with reader-friendly information and application. There are opening questions and closing statements.emphasized text, table highlights, quotes from experts, and a "Mirror into Me" vignette from the author's clinical experience. "Your God Spot" adds a new choice--free-ist--to the old categories of atheist, atheist, and agnostic. This means that we are now free to tailor make our own belief, and to alter it to fit as we grow. An extensive bibliography anchors this new view, and guides the reader who wants to dive deeper yet.
Addressing the split between practitioners of science and those of spirituality, Charles Tart presents the considerations of well-known researchers and authors such as William Roll, Ramakrishna Rao, Michael Grosso, and Jeffrey Mishlove on such subjects as God, life after death, channeling, and other dimensions. A ground-breaking work that may surprise many readers.
With Body Mind Spirit the leading figures in parapsychology finally break the self-imposed silence that has sequestered the field behind a wall of methodology and laboratory data. Researchers, including William Roll, Michael Grosso, and Rhea White, reveal how their work and that of their peers is a prelude to a transformation in the relationship between science and spirituality. While Body Mind Spirit doesn't spend time arguing for the validity of paranormal phenomena, it is no less important than any experimental test data in its efforts to crack Western dogma that has relegated science to the material world and designated the church as sole proprietor of the spiritual realm. The paradigm presented by these authors opens the door to scientific exploration of a milieu that transcends the boundaries set by mainstream science.
Do you believe that you can consistently beat the stock market if you put in the effort? —that some people have extrasensory perception? —that crime and drug abuse in America are on the rise? Many people hold one or more of these beliefs although research shows that they are not true. And it’s no wonder since advertising and some among the media promote these and many more questionable notions. Although our creative problem-solving capacity is what has made humans the successful species we are, our brains are prone to certain kinds of errors that only careful critical thinking can correct. This enlightening book discusses how to recognize faulty thinking and develop the necessary skills to become a more effective problem solver. Author Thomas Kida identifies "the six-pack of problems" that leads many of us unconsciously to accept false ideas: · We prefer stories to statistics. · We seek to confirm, not to question, our ideas. · We rarely appreciate the role of chance and coincidence in shaping events. · We sometimes misperceive the world around us. · We tend to oversimplify our thinking. · Our memories are often inaccurate. Kida vividly illustrates these tendencies with numerous examples that demonstrate how easily we can be fooled into believing something that isn’t true. In a complex society where success—in all facets of life—often requires the ability to evaluate the validity of many conflicting claims, the critical-thinking skills examined in this informative and engaging book will prove invaluable.
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A wealth of evidence for doubters and disbelievers "Whether it’s the latest shark cartilage scam, or some new ‘repressed memory’ idiocy that besets you, I suggest you carry a copy of this dictionary at all times, or at least have it within reach as first aid for psychic attacks. We need all the help we can get." –James Randi, President, James Randi Educational Foundation, randi.org "From alternative medicine, aliens, and psychics to the farthest shores of science and beyond, Robert Carroll presents a fascinating look at some of humanity’s most strange and wonderful ideas. Refreshing and witty, both believers and unbelievers will find this compendium complete and captivating. Buy this book and feed your head!" –Clifford Pickover, author of The Stars of Heaven and Dreaming the Future "A refreshing compendium of clear thinking, a welcome and potent antidote to the reams of books on the supernatural and pseudoscientific." –John Allen Paulos, author of Innumeracy and A Mathematician Reads the Newspaper "This book covers an amazing range of topics and can protect many people from being scammed." –Stephen Barrett, M.D., quackwatch.org Featuring close to 400 definitions, arguments, and essays on topics ranging from acupuncture to zombies, The Skeptic’s Dictionary is a lively, commonsense trove of detailed information on all things supernatural, occult, paranormal, and pseudoscientific. It covers such categories as alternative medicine; cryptozoology; extraterrestrials and UFOs; frauds and hoaxes; junk science; logic and perception; New Age energy; and the psychic. For the open-minded seeker, the soft or hardened skeptic, and the believing doubter, this book offers a remarkable range of information that puts to the test the best arguments of true believers.
Why do we think that things happen in the way that they do? Why do we think that some things are true, and other things false? Why do we maintain that some things are good, and other things evil? These are questions that have puzzled thinkers for millennia. In the past they have been answered by separating our emotional from our rational responses. But recent research in the neurosciences suggests that the questions now deserve very different answers. In this fascinating and highly praised book, John Bowker shows that reason and emotion work much more closely together in forming opinions and judgements than has previously been supposed. If faith and belief are rooted in rationality, not separate from it (as thinkers like Richard Dawkins might propose), this discovery has stunning implications for our understanding of human identity, mind and consciousness. Illuminating some of the biggest issues that there are - issues of ethics, religion, aesthetics and truth - The Sacred Neuron makes a consistently original and stimulating contribution to key themes in 'science and religion'.
