Talk:Spiritual Tripping/@comment-25431873-20190422172155

Passage in question:

“I have gained greater power.”

“What kind of power?” I asked.

“Perhaps,” he replied, “I can show you.”

“If it’s done in the dark,” I said, “or behind curtains, or with spooks, I wouldn’t believe it.”

''“It’s a bright, sunshiny day,” he said, as if dropping the subject (or was he?). “Suppose we stroll in the park in the sunshine.”''

''I said, “I’d like to stop at Brentano’s. Suppose we stroll down Fifth Avenue instead.”''

“Anywhere you like,” he replied.

''We strolled. The Avenue was crowded. “On a block where it thins out a bit,” said he, “I’ll show you.”''

“Show me what?”

He replied majestically, “I will show you.”

''The crowd looked thinner ahead of us in front of the Public Library, and as we crossed Forty-second Street A. C. touched me lightly on the elbow and put his fingers to his lips. Ahead of us was strolling a tall, prosperous-looking gentleman of leisure, and Crowley, silent as a cat, fell into step immediately behind him. Their footfalls began to synchronize, and then I observed that Crowley, who generally held himself pompously erect and had a tendency to strut, had dropped his shoulders, thrust his head forward a little, like the man’s in front, had begun to swing his arms in perfect synchronization—now so perfect that he was like a moving shadow or astral ghost of the other.''

As we neared the end of the block A. C., in taking a step forward, let both knees buckle suddenly under him, so that he dropped, caught himself on his haunches, and was immediately erect again, strolling.

''The man in front of us fell as if his legs had been shot out from under him—and was sprawling. We helped him up as a crowd gathered. He was unhurt. He thanked us, and looked for the banana peel. There was no banana peel. With his hand on somebody’s shoulder he looked at the soles of his shoes. They were dry. He brushed himself off, regained his hat, tried his legs tentatively, thanked us, and strolled on.''

''I think I know all the answers. The easiest one is that the gentleman was a stooge. The only trouble with it is that I was the one who had suggested strolling down the Avenue, and I had been at A.C's side ever since. The gentleman, if a stooge, however, could have been loitering outside the Plaza, waiting for a signal. Identification of him and affidavits from him wouldn’t have helped at all, since he might always have been lying. The hell of all this stuff is that something of that sort is always the easiest answer.''

''Another answer is that the gentleman, without being conscious of it, heard the faint sound of Crowley’s cat-like footfalls, mingled in perfect synchronization with his own, unconsciously identified the rhythm with his own rhythm, and fell when the rhythm was violently broken. There are a number of variations of that answer, splitting hairs a bit, but still leaving the phenomenon in the field of the sensory. Still another answer is that Crowley possessed supernormal powers, was generating and sending out supernormal and supersensory emanations. I think I know all the answers—but I’m not satisfied with any of them.''