In the first place, every thought process, every emotional activity, every creation of ideas, is accompanied by a manifestation of force—­in fact, is the result of the manifestation of a force.  Without entering at all into the question of what mind is, in itself, we may rest firmly on the natural fact that every manifestation of mental or emotional activity is the result of an action of the brain or nervous system, manifesting in a form of vibrations.  Just as in the case of the manifestation of electricity in which certain chemical elements are consumed, or transformed, so in the case of mental or emotional activity there is a consuming or transformation of the substance of which the nervous system is composed.  When I say “nervous system” in this connection, I include the brain, or brains of man—­for these are but a part of his great nervous system in which all emotional or mental activity is manifested.

Moreover, just as there is no real destruction of matter in any of Nature’s processes—­all seeming destruction being but a transformation—­so in the case before us there is a transformation of the energy released in the thought or emotional process.  We may grasp this idea more clearly if we consider what takes place into transformation of electrical energy.  For instance, transmit a strong current of electricity over a fine wire, or filament of carbon, and lo! the current is transformed into light.  Use another kind of channel of transmission, and the current is transformed into heat.  Every electric light, or electric heating apparatus is proof of this.  In the same way, the electric current is sent into space in the form of wireless waves.  These waves coming in contact with certain forms of apparatus are transformed into forms of force which are registered and interpreted by the wireless operator.

In the same way, the telepathic waves of energy are sent forth by the activity released by the thought or emotion state.  These waves travel in every direction, and when they come in contact with physical apparatus sufficiently sensitive to register them, they may be reproduced or retransformed into thought or mental states similar to those which originally sent them forth.  You talk into the receiver of the telephone, and the sound waves are transformed into waves of electricity.  These electric waves travel over the wires, and on reaching the other end of the telephone circuit are again transformed into sound-waves which are heard by the ear of the listener.  Well, then, when your brain sends out thought waves, these travel until they are received by the apparatus in the brain of another person, when they are re-transformed into thoughts of the same kind that originally caused the thought-waves.  I will have much more to say on this subject in the next chapter.  I will pause here to point out the difference between the phenomena of this form of telepathy, and the higher form which is really a phase of clairvoyance.