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ufos and esotericism

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by charles lear from the days of flying

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saucers in the 1940s and 1950s

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up until the present where many now

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prefer the term unidentified aerial

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phenomena

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uap investigators and researchers have

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approached the mystery

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using scientific methods however this is

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not the case for all who have sought

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answers as to the source and purpose

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of the reported encounters with strange

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things in our skies

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many have turned to esotericism in

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addition to science

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as a means of inquiry this approach has

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actually been present from the very

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beginning of modern ufology

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and those interested in the subject

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might consider looking into it

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even if only from a historical or

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sociological perspective

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esoteric is defined by the

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merriam-webster dictionary as

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designed for or understood by the

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specially initiated alone

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when one talks of esotericism in

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association with ufos or the paranormal

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one is usually referring to what has

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become known as western esotericism

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which is a term used to describe a

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loosely connected group of religious and

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philosophical ideas

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that deviate from judeo-christian

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beliefs and post-enlightenment

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rationalism

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by the late 19th century organized

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groups and secret societies

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had developed around these esoteric

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ideas two of the most prominent being

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the hermetic order of the golden dawn

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and the theosophical society

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both of these adhered to the belief that

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there is a group of cosmic beings

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that can be contacted by adepts who wish

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to receive ancient wisdom and advice

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the theosophical society still exists

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today

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arguably the first group to investigate

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claims of a mysterious flying object

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was the borderland sciences research

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association

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formed in southern california by mead

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lane along with max

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freedom long bsra was an association

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dedicated to paranormal research

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and included parapsychologists

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spiritualists

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and theosophists their research methods

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included yoga

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kabbalistic technique and spirit

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channeling their main spirit channeler

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was mark probert

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the telegnostic from san diego the group

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put out its first newsletter the round

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robin in february 1945

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it wasn't long before they were

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investigating what they called the

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aethership mystery

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the october 1946 issue of round robin

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has an article by mead lane titled

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welcome carita

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a sighting reported the lane via

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telephone by mark probert

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probert said he and a boy watching a

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meteor shower saw an object

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about the size of an extremely large

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plane with two reddish lights

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he said he saw it twice at first moving

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faster than any plane

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and then flying across the moon

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according to him the flapping of its

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swings was plainly visible

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he described it as somewhat luminous the

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boy fernando estevan

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corroborated probert's description

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saying it was certainly not a plane

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no plane could maneuver that way in

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addition to those of probert and estevan

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11 other witness descriptions from

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different areas around san diego are

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included

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after the witness descriptions lane

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tells his readers

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what we are about to do will delight our

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enemies make the blood of our best

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friends run

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cold we are going to declare our

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personal editorial

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present and tentative acceptance of

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certain psychic

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mediumistic and clear audient

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communications

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lane then includes a statement by

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probert who received information about

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the object

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by his clear audience according to

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probert

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the object called a carita was sent to

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our planet by people from a far

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off planet it had ten thousand parts was

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made of balsam wood coated with a thin

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layer of alloy

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and the wings were operated by small yet

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powerful electric motors

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the people who sent the ship did so to

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make contact and hoped to make a landing

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before a group of scientists at an

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isolated spot

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after this the aethership mystery was

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included among the group's

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investigations

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in 1950 bsra published the aethership

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mystery and its solution

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a booklet for public information written

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by mead lane

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among lane's conclusions were that the

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mystery ships materialize

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out of the etheric plane known as

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etherea that little men may have

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actually been

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our size but shrinkage may have occurred

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during materialization

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that then present-day science was not

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equipped to deal with the mystery

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and that the occultism of today is the

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science of tomorrow

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a modern-day swedish researcher who has

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looked deeply into esoteric influences

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on ufo investigation

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is hokum blankfest a doctor of

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philosophy and director of the institute

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of contemporary history

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blankfest was one of the founders in

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1973

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of the archives for ufo research now

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archives for the unexplained

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and is still active with the

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organization today blunkfist wrote a

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book on ufos in esotericism

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published in 2013 titled return of the

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gods

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ufos in the esoteric tradition it has

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not been translated to english

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but in 2017 blankfest released the pdf

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collection of his blog

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hokum blankfest's blog titled

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esotericism and ufo research

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a selection and compilation of blog

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entries 2013-2017

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blankfest informs his readers that the

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founders of sweden's ufo movement in the

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1950s

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were active members of the theosophical

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society adyar

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according to him when the contactees

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came to prominence

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after the 1953 publication of george

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adamski's book

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the flying saucers of landed co-authored

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with desmond leslie

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there were two camps among the world's

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ufo researchers

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those who were open to the claims of the

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contactees and those who dismissed them

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outright the contactees claims of

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communication both verbal and psychic

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with otherworldly beings fit in with the

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beliefs of the theosophists

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because most of the swedish ufo

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researchers were theosophists

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sweden became a contactee friendly

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country blankfest identifies the main

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influence in the development of sweden's

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ufo movement as edith nicolaisen

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who founded the new age publishing

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company parthenon

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according to him nicolaisen and the

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three women making up parthenon's

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board were all active members of the

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theosophical society adyar

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nicolason began a correspondence with

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adamski

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in 1954 and published his and leslie's

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book in swedish the first ufo book

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published in that language

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in nineteen fifty seven there was a

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shift in 1966

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with the publication of a book by k

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gostaren

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the flying saucers documents and

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theories gren was the swedish regional

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director of the american-based aerial

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phenomena

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research organization apra was very

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scientific in their approach to the

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mystery

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and dismissive of the contactees renton

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was also scientific in his approach

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and his book had an influence among

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swedish researchers

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ufo organizations in sweden began to

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form that were more science-based and

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the most prominent of these

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was ufo sweden formed in 1970. the

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organization is still

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active today and manages afu blunkfest

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was a member in 1973 when he helped

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found afu

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and is still an active member today in

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spite of the organization's emphasis on

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science

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those with esoteric beliefs were and

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still are

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welcome to participate today many

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researchers around the world approach

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the ufo mystery

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with a combination of science and

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esotericism

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the esoteric aspect ranges from

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entertaining the idea that we are being

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contacted by intelligences

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that exist in another dimension to

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attempts in initiating contact by

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psychic means

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dr j alan heineck jacques villa and john

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keel

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all researchers with backgrounds in

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science greatly influenced the adoption

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of this approach

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as they all came to the conclusion that

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science alone was not up to the task of

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solving the mystery

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as valid as this sort of approach might