CLARIFICATION OF SOVIET PHILOSOPHY WITH REGARD TO PARAPSYCHOLOGY/ USE OF THE SCIENCE AS AN INTELLIGENCE FACTOR

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP83-00423R001300610001-9
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: November 9, 2016
• Document Release Date: October 16, 1998
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: January 28, 1954
• Content Type: REPORT

Approved For Release 1999/09/10: CIA-R
COUNTRY : International
25X1A2
m? Clarification of Soviet philosophy with Regard to
yiIJUVJ Jlli
Parapsychology/Use of the Science as an Intelligence
Factor
PLACE ACQUIRED:
DATE ACQUIRED : Jan 54
DATE OF INFORMATION: Jan 54+
SOURCE DESCRIPTION:
25X1X6
25X1X6
1. The following two sentences were offered in para 5, as a
speculative explanation of the fact that the study of parapsychology 25X1A2g
has been explicitly condemned by the USSR:
..."Perhaps the cultural authorities fear this science because it
deals with strange aspects of the human mind which are often in-
directly tied in with religious beliefs (such as that of the bi mwral
'soul'). Or perhaps at a more subtle philosophic level they fear
that experimental discoveries concerning the nature of the mind
will contradict the mechanistic view of man which is basic to dia-
lectical materialism...
2. Further development of these ideas lies outside the scope of an intelligence
report. The subject is one of extreme difficulty because it relates to
the fundamental nature of man. In these mat- hers there is no consensus of
scientific opinion. Nevertheless, because the area embracing this subject
is of central importance in the defense of the USA I shall try to delineate jE
the logical path which led me to make the above-quoted suggestions,
3@ The urge to satisfy ordinary biological needs (for food, protection} pro-
pagation.,, exercise, entertainment) does not suffice to explain much of
man's activity. He also exhibits an urge to make patterns. His scientific
RETURN TO CIA
LIBRARY
Approved
For Release 999/09/ 0 : CIA-RDP83-00423R001300610001-9
 Approved For Release 1999/O9 A-RDP83-00423 R001300610001-9
and artistic tendencies cans for example., be subsumed under such a
heading.
4. When man directs this urge toward his mental self,, it gives rise to
religion, in which an essential element is idealization, The kind of
religion which results depends upon, among other things, the assumed
prior nature of man.
Communism, as a religion, begins with the assumption that man is essentially
a biological machine, a collection of atoms whose functioning is determin-
istic. Stated differently, Communism assumes that man is no-more than.,
nor different from., what modern science suggests him to be namely, an
organism whose behavior is determined by heredity and by observable environ-
mental factors. This beginning would, on the face of its, seem to destroy
the possibility of idealization and., with it, the possibility of Communism
as an inspirational force, But no, the urge to idealize (justify) himself
is so strong in man that if he cannot revere the individual, he will revere
society. In this way Communism draws its ideological strength from mater-
ialism.
6. Most other religions begin with the assumption that man has a "spiritual"
element. Shorn of its mysticism and reduced to minimal terms,,this implies
that individual man has meaningful reference to other men in a way that
is beyond the expectations of present-day physics.
7.
To show how this conception could determine moral values, one might con-
sider the hypothesis (made plausible, but by no means proved by the ex-
perimental findings of parapsychology) that each man shares with other
men a portion of his mental being, so that the inspiration or degradation
of one is in some degree shared directly by others. Under these circum-
stances, the welfare of others may be a matter of direct concern to each
of us. The speculative elaboration of this theme must be left to the reader,
8, If, in the manner described, Communism assumes the essential completeness
of present day psychology and physics, new discoveries calling for a major
reorientation in these sciences cannot fail to alarm the Soviet intelli- 25X1A2
gentsia. The philosopher or scientist in this country who would like to g
know whether such alarm is justified will study in detail the findings
of parapsychology,
9, I stated before flee Para 117 that under favorable circumstances
information of military value might be obtained by psychic means, This
idea was developed previously in paras 16 and 22 of 00-B-69118, in which
it was suggested that such information might come spontaneously or as the
result of a planned effort. Unless there are intelligence problems of
the kind mentioned in para 22, further elaboration would appear an un-
warranted endeavor.
10. In this connection it may be helpful to consider the immediate, practical
application of psi phenomena in a broader perspective. It is not unfair
to compare our present knowledge of these phenomena to the knowledge of
electricity possessed by the ancient Greeks. The Greeks were aware that
Approved For Release 999/09/ 0 : CIA-RDP83-00423R001300610001-9
 Approved For, Release 1999/09/10 : CIA-RDP83-00423R001300610001-9
-3-
rubbed amber would attract a pith ball, Had they been pressed for an
application of electricity, they might have developed a rather effective
dust brush for some specific need. Admittedly dust brush applications'r
may be important, but barring an unexpected scientific break-through, the
immediate influence of psi phenomena is more likely to be felt on a world
scale through the inspiration they afford. The rationally-inclined can
know that man's mind is a far more pervasive entity than had been supposed
by psychology, and that an area of knowledge hitherto abandoned to faith
is properly a part of science.
Approved For Release 1999/09/10 : CIA-RDP83-00423RO01300610001-9