Edgar Cayce: The Life of a Modern Mystic

Introduction and Overview

Edgar Cayce is renowned as one of the most respected mystics of the modern era. The term "mystic" is used here in the broad sense of supersensory and supernatural abilities and perception of reality. A common definition of a mystic is a person who is "initiated into esoteric mysteries." As will be discussed, the life and works of Edgar Cayce certainly fit this definition.

Cayce was born in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, in 1877 and came from a staunch Methodist family. There were also signs of psychic abilities in his family, with his father and grandfather displaying certain psychic tendencies. His grandfather had the ability to find water with a divining rod, and his father seemed to have the ability to attract snakes. Therefore, we can assume that Edgar's psychic and mystical abilities would not have been considered totally out of place in his social and cultural environment. His mystical and psychic abilities also grew in a developmental fashion, with documented evidence that the first signs appeared in early childhood.

The signs of his psychic abilities were evident from a very early age. As a child, he would see "the little people" who would dance about him freely but disappear when others came around. He met an angelic female creature in the woods one day who asked him what he would most like to do. After telling her that he would like to help children and others, she promised that he would, one day. This meeting with an angelic entity was to have a profound impact on his life and would become the precursor to his healing abilities.

The first true indication of his abilities manifested when he developed a form of laryngitis as a young man. When he was hypnotized in an attempt to find the source of his condition, he correctly identified the cause as a paralysis of the muscles and suggested his own cure while under hypnosis. After this event, Edgar Cayce began to use his psychic powers to help those who were ill. In a state of trance-like sleep, he successfully diagnosed and helped cure the illnesses of others. During these trances, it appeared that he had access to a source of knowledge outside of himself and often outside of conventional wisdom.

He frequently perceived "unorthodox remedies, and unheard of combinations of medicines and herbs with generally good results for those who were ill." Even more remarkably, "At times Cayce would not only tell the inquirers what medicine to take, but would tell them where they could find such a medicine, even describing the store, the particular shelf, and the specific spot on the shelf."

The method used to undertake these healings was, on the surface, extremely simple. After a meal, Cayce would rest and go to sleep. The individual responsible for the readings would provide Cayce with information about the sick or ailing person. Cayce would then describe the individual's condition and provide a cure for the complaint. Another significant factor that defies scientific and rational logic is that Cayce could undertake this healing process even if the sick individual was at a distance. "Even at long distances, Cayce would somehow locate them, evaluate their condition, and prescribe a cure while they went about their business."

Furthermore, the depth of his medical knowledge, although he had no formal training, astounded medical experts. He would often refer to drugs and medications that were not generally known or even on the market. Another astounding documented fact was that "Although he had conscious knowledge only of the English language, Cayce is also estimated to have spoken in some two dozen foreign tongues while in a trance."

The Development of Mystical Insight

An example of his abilities involved a five-year-old child named Aime Dietrich. She had been extremely ill for a number of years following an attack of influenza that led to extreme mental stagnation and lack of development. In a trance, Cayce diagnosed her problem as an influenza germ that had become lodged in her spine. He recommended osteopathic treatment, which led to the girl's eventual recovery.

At first, Cayce was a healer who used unorthodox methods to help those who were ill. However, these abilities were to increase. In 1923, an individual named Arthur Lammers asked Cayce about religious and philosophical matters while he was in a trance. He answered with insights, prophecies, and statements that were often strongly at variance with orthodox Christian and scientific beliefs. Cayce can therefore be referred to both as a healer and a mystic.

His secretary, Gladys Davis, made a record of his prophecies and utterances while in a trance state. These documents are recorded and indexed in the Association for Enlightenment and Research, established in Virginia in 1932 to study Cayce's work. There are a total of 14,879 readings documented from his career.

One of the interesting aspects of his life and the knowledge that he obtained during his trance states was that he was not consciously aware of the way in which his powers functioned. He stated that the secret to his mystical insights lay essentially in the ability to deny the ego and enter into a state of selflessness. As he explained:

"Apparently, I am one of the few who can lay aside their own personalities sufficiently to allow their souls to make this attunement to a universal source of knowledge—but I say this without any desire to brag about it."

This view is very close to many Eastern mystical perceptions of reality that stress the importance of selfless actions and thoughts that deny the primacy of the human ego. Cayce also believed that all human beings have the ability to enter into these selfless and non-egotistical trance states if "they would only be willing to pay the price of detachment from self-interest that it takes to develop those abilities."

It would take a book to describe all of Cayce's prophecies and predictions. The following are some of the most important. He correctly predicted both the First and Second World Wars. He also predicted the 1929 stock market crash and the subsequent events known as the Great Depression. Another of his more famous predictions was the creation of the state of Israel.

Among the wide array of predictions made by Cayce during his mystical trances, those that have received the most attention today are his apocalyptic visions of the future. In general, these dealt with "vast geographical upheavals which by the year 1998 would result in the destruction of New York, the disappearance of most of Japan, and a cataclysmic change in Northern Europe." He also described a time of peace and enlightenment when "divinity within humans would be manifested on the Earth." However, before this period of peace would come apocalyptic events, which would include natural disasters as well as economic and social collapse and unrest.

Personal Crises and Support Systems

One of the central issues that Cayce experienced was the fact that his visions and prophecies were often in conflict with his orthodox and conventional religious background. After awakening from his trance state, he was concerned about the nature of the predictions he had made while in a state of mystical illumination. As noted, these predictions were in many cases at odds with accepted Christian dogma. As a deeply religious man, this had a profound effect on him. One commentator notes:

"When Cayce woke from his sleep, he was shocked. The answers he had given were foreign to everything he had believed since boyhood. He began to wonder if he were not being used by a malicious spirit to disseminate falsehoods."

He expanded on this deep concern to Lammers:

"But what you've been telling me today, and what the readings have been saying, is foreign to all I've believed and been taught, and all I've taught others, all of my life. If ever the devil was going to play a trick on me, this would be it."

However, he overcame these doubts about the source of his powers when he considered that they enabled him to help and heal others. After much meditation, he decided that their source could not be evil or in opposition to the will of God.

There were many periods of trauma and upheaval in his life. In general, especially in the earlier period of his life, he lived in a secure and comfortable fashion with his supportive wife and friends. "In spite of his being uncomfortable with the readings, his life was fulfilling. He had a loving wife, a home, a Sunday School class at the local church, and a good job." He also opened a photographic studio and was later able to run his own hospital for a time.

However, his second son, Milton, developed whooping cough shortly after his birth. When doctors were not effective in curing him, Edgar undertook a reading of his son's condition and found that there was no hope. This was a devastating use of his abilities that traumatized Cayce. After the death of the child, both Cayce and his wife, Gertrude, suffered from depression. As a result, Gertrude became physically ill. Medical doctors eventually told Cayce that his wife had tuberculosis and was terminal. However, when Cayce undertook a reading of her condition, he became more positive about her prospects. During his trance-like state, he prescribed certain medications that led to her subsequent recovery from her illness.

One of the greatest threats to Cayce's health and life was the fact that the trance states and readings he undertook were extremely physically and psychologically draining. "The trance reading caused problems with Cayce's health which were easily seen." Doctors had warned him that he should reduce the number of readings, but the need to help others was stronger in Cayce than concerns about his own health. In 1944, his health began to deteriorate, and even his reading of his own health advised more rest. But his obligations to others overrode these concerns, and he eventually collapsed from exhaustion. He had a stroke and became partially paralyzed. He died on January 3, 1945.

Conclusion

The visions, prophecies, and healing powers of Edgar Cayce have raised a number of important issues. The first is the validity of mystics like Cayce in a modern world that is predominantly materialistic and rationalistic. The question arises: to what extent are the predictive powers and prophecies of mystics like Cayce valid and true in a world where science, reason, and logic dominate?