Twin Telepathy by Guy Lyon Playfair

 

I’ve finished reading the revised, enlarged 2008 edition of Guy Lyon Playfair’s Twin Telepathy, first published in 2002.  A simple definition of ‘telepathy’ is thought transference.  Playfair is the author of the talking poltergeist case study This House Is Haunted (1980) and a book about paranormal phenomena in Brazil originally entitled The Flying Cow (1975).  Being a twin myself who has done extensive research into psychic phenomena, I would like to share my perspective on this subject.
 
In particular, Playfair cited the 1987 Rosambeau Survey, which resulted with completed questionnaires from six hundred twins or parents of twins.  There were questions about “any experience which might be explained as being able to read each other’s minds” and “Have you ever been surprised by both of you having the same illness or pain at the same time?”  A total of 183 people replied in the affirmative to at least one of these questions, or just over 30 per cent, as Playfair mentioned.  I’ll answer these questions myself.
 
As far as I know, Mike and I are identical twins although a formal genetics test hasn’t been done.  We lived together until beginning our careers and now we occasionally speak on the telephone and see each other a couple times a year.  There have been many ‘co-incidences’ over the years but I recall one incident in recent years.  I’ve occasionally made him artwork and there was one summer when I contemplated doing a new painting for him.  The idea that came to me was the image of a hand.  I didn’t have any further ideas and didn’t manage to find the time to create something.  Then, when I visited Mike, he gave me as a birthday gift a mousepad where the primary object was an upraised palm and I realized that this was very close to the image that had come into my mind.
 
Concerning illness, it seems that Mike and I have to be careful about conditions arising from high uric acid, which is something that also confronted our mother.  Having had a vegan diet for many years has helped me in this regard and I often express the spiritual and physical benefits from such a diet.  Although I usually take a holistic approach to health, I was curious enough to accept a bone density test upon turning fifty.  My results were in the normal range while I’m aware of many male carnivores who weren’t so fortunate.
 
There was one incident where we experienced an unusual malady at the same time.  After clipping away an ingrown toenail on my right big toe several years ago, I developed a small fungal infection in this area of the nail when it grew back and successfully treated it with an over-the-counter ointment.  When I mentioned this to Mike, I discovered that he too had a fungal infection on the same toenail and this is the only time that either he or I have experienced a fungal nail infection.
 
In Twin Telepathy, an opinion of J.B. Rhine matches my own as I have no doubt that the telepathic rapport that has most often been reported at momentous times in the lives of twins is something also possible between any closely related pairs or friends.  Furthermore, the annals of psychic phenomena and ‘remote viewing’ show that there can be telepathy between individuals who’ve never met.