A Brief History of Radionics. Where did it begin, and what is it?
In discussing the history of Radionics, likewise with the majority of new encounters in the experimental stages, the forerunners of this science were often ridiculed. Lister, Pasteur and other great pioneers of the past have suffered the same fate as Dr. Albert Abrams. Any commendable new idea is often by definition in advance of its years.
The first insight into Radionics began under the discoveries of Dr. Albert Abrams. Albert Abrams, A.M.LLD. M.D. was born in San Francisco in 1863 and qualified at an accredited medical college before he was of age to receive his diploma. He learnt German and went to the University of Heidelberg, graduating in medicine with the highest possible honours. His post-graduate work was spent in Heidelberg, Berlin, Paris, Vienna and London under some of the most famous teachers. He was Fellow of the American Medical Association, author of many books and regarded as one of the foremost neurologists of his day. His professional qualifications and career were outstanding and yet some members of the medical profession, without bothering to do their homework, described his work as quackery.
As early as 1914 he wrote:
“As physicians, we dare not stand aloof from the recent progress made in science…. the laws of physical science are universal and apply equally to living organism and so-called inanimate things. The Electron Theory demonstrates the electrical nature of matter.”
Here began the concept of the energetic field we focus on in Radionics. Calling his discoveries ‘electronic’ added to the suspicion – this was the ‘Stone Age’ of electronics and few people were knowledgeable in the subject. He was also correct in his statement ‘thought yields an energy.’ He developed numerous instruments and found it possible to charge an ordinary slip of paper with what he called the ‘vibratory rate’ of a patient. Here again we parallel the works of Radionics practitioners working with vibratory patterns of energy.
Dr. Albert Abram’s carried out extensive tests and developed instruments to establish that if radiation from diseased tissue was electronic in origin, it should be possible to distinguish between one ‘radiation’ and another by electronic methods.
At lease five distinguished British doctors took Abrams’ post-graduate course and could vouch for his methods and results. The British medical profession as a whole however, ignored them. Sir James Barr, a Past President of the British Medical Association duplicated Abrams’ experiments. He described him as by far the greatest medical genius the profession has produced for half a century.
I haven’t gone into any great depths regarding his experiments, as this would be far too lengthy for a brief history. I felt the importance should lie in the fact that he was no fool. We owe it to these great pioneers who dedicated their lives in pursuit of helping others to continue building on their expertise and pioneering work.
Their ideas like seeds are scattered at random; if they are fertile a few are bound to take root and sprout in the hospitable soil of open, imaginative minds, however rare these may be.
A few individuals both sides of the Atlantic judged Abrams’ methods and results for themselves and furthered their own research and development. Their work led to the development of Radionics, as we know it today.
After Abrahams’ death, Ruth Drown held the centre stage in the drama of medical Radionics and spearheaded its further development. Ruth Drown was a chiropractor with no formal scientific training. Mr Arthur M. Young who had studied Radionics for many years stated:
“Her failing was that her inspired and intuitive pronouncements did not mesh in with the rather flat-footed and dogmatic pronouncements of current science.
In conversation with her, one could feel that she was in touch with a tremendously complicated internal system of patterned harmonics, a self regulating system of ‘resonant vibration’ of which all I can say is that I was convinced she knew what she was talking about, even though it could not be translated into terms which would pass muster in present science.”
Whatever the origin or validity of her theories, there is no doubt that she was successful with many of her patients. As a result she attracted a large, devoted and grateful following.
Just before World War II she brought her instruments to England and taught her methods to many. Her pupils including Dr. Hugh Wylie and Dr. Mary Walker of Oxford who continued to practice her methods for many years.
Though Abrams and others had been harassed and criticised, Ruth Drown appears to have been actively persecuted for her Radionics Work. It is probable that she was over-confident and enthusiastic and these qualities are still an occupational hazard for those engaged in this new science.
Next came George de la Warr who decided to improve on Ruth Drowns work. His Honour Judge Humphreys, Q.C. said of George de la Warr:
“George de la Warr will one day be recognised as a very remarkable man….. His friends are as widespread – and often secret – as his enemies were powerful and vociferous, but … I believe that George de la Warr will rank as one of the pioneers of the twentieth century in the attempt to lead man one step higher than blind materialism towards an ultimate awareness of the total man.”
George de la Warr, like most creative people underestimated the universal resistance to any new idea, also the time it takes to be accepted. He was an imaginative person and like most imaginative people did not realise that outside their own interests many had no imagination at all. He trained as an engineer, but had a great interest in medicine.
As mentioned, it is impossible in this short summary, to give details of experiments and instruments used during the development of Radionics. However, in August 1965 the Delawarr Laboratories carried out an experiment. They succeeded in establishing a state of ‘Radionic rapport’ between a young man in Oxford and his photograph in New York. This was an historic experiment that portrayed evidence that:
- A state of ‘Radionic rapport’, exists between a person and his photograph.
- Treatment of the photograph can produce measurable effects on the person.
- Distance makes no difference to Radionic energies.
Theories and instruments often referred to as the black box, continued to emerge, leading to two further prominent figures in the history of Radionics – Mr Malcolm Rae and Mr David V. Tansley.
Malcolm Rae, born in Cheshire in 1913 joined the Royal Navy as a seaman rising to the rank of Lieut-Commander. During his Service career he became aware of Radionics from a brother officer, joined the Radionic Association and was elected a Member in 1965. He brought to Radionics practical experience, his technical training in the Navy, and a mathematical mind. He preferred to use the pendulum as his tool and based much of his work on the assumption that Radionics utilises the senses very similar to the characteristics of their everyday equals – The senses of sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch and should not be regarded as any more mysterious. Radionics work should be considered as a more highly refined sense of the latter but less understood.
He made the important point of shedding any notions that there is something spooky about radiesthetic senses and that it is a perfectly natural sense latent in most people and developed to some extent in others. Radionics may seem less mysterious if we remind ourselves that all our senses depend on subtle and rapid mental processes, including memory.
Our eyes bring us different wavelengths of light and it is our minds that interpret these as different colours and patterns.
Ears bring us different wavelengths of sound arranged in patterns we call words, interpreted with the aid of our memories. Taste and smell advise us of chemical changes, touch signals pressure changes for us to determine the significance.
Now we’ve taken into consideration how processes of the mind are involved with all our ‘normal’ senses, those senses applied when working with Radionics could be considered as natural and no more mysterious. The difference being, they haven’t been as researched and consequently not as thoroughly understood.
After extensive research, experiments and development of yet more of Radionics inexplicable instruments and charts, Malcolm Rae concluded briefly that Radionics helps a patient in two ways. It can detect deficiencies and attempt to correct them and it can instruct the body how to cure itself. The second statement is of great significance in the Radionic world – It is the patient that inevitably does the healing.
At this point in the History of Radionics David Tansely began to further the link with Western science, medicine and Eastern philosophy. His approach was logical and down-to-earth. He was brought up in England and at the age of seventeen, obtained a First Class Certificate in General Agriculture. He emigrated to Canada, made frequent trips to England and served in the R.A.F. as a radar operator. He then went onto study sculpture and art before changing direction to graduate with honours from the Los Angeles College of Chiropractic in 1965. Shortly afterwards he set up a practice in England.
It was at this point he studied Eastern philosophy and was convinced that disease starts in what he called the ‘subtle anatomy of man.’ He studied its laws and principles and committed himself to applying it to Radionics, thus enhancing the practice of Radionics.
Western science and medicine at this point did not recognise the existence of the subtle anatomy. Few recognised the value of Oriental or ancient wisdom. For many, Radionics was already and still is bizarre without the notion that it could somehow be involved in Oriental mysticism and the subtle anatomy.
Considering recent discoveries, it is quite obvious that living things could not exist without some external energy to keep them going. We know, for instance, that without the energy from the sun, all life would cease. The ancients realised the existence of external energy and called the unknown force or forces prana, life energy that we absorb.
David Tansley’s work was a natural and logical extension to the work of the early pioneers in Radionics. It was due to his extensive work that the subtle anatomy became an integral part of Radionics as we know it today.
Radionic practitioners recognise the brilliance of Western Medicine and its continuing need. We consider our work to be supportive, encouraging the body to heal itself. Radionic treatment draws attention to normalising the forces of nature within. It is a developing science that is in much need of recognition, with a need to be experienced rather than explained. It is simply a technique used to bring balance and equilibrium back into the mind and body regardless of distance.
“The universal mind is so clearly linked to the very process and nature of Radionic diagnosis and treatment.”
David Tansley