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Eugene Auguste Albert D'Aiglun Rochas 1837-1914
prominent French
psychical investigator, famous for his researches in human emanations, hypnotism, reincarnation and physical phenomena. He was Administrator of the Ecole Polytechnique of Paris, but owing to his interest in occult investigations, was forced to resign. He was the first who acquainted the French public with the claims of Reichenbach. In his experiments in the exteriorisation of sensitivity he was preceded by
Paul Joire, but he has unique observations to his credit. To the elucidation of the mystery of physical phenomena he contributed an important theory: the exteriorisation of motricity. The book of the same title in which it is expounded sums up his experiments with
Eusapia Palladino who was his guest in his country house at I'Agnelas, near Voiron and sat in the presence of a large committee of scientists.
The interest of Col Rochas extended to every branch of psychical research. As an investigator he was keen and competent. C. V. Miller, the San Francisco materialisation medium, came to Europe after his overtures. At the end he did not sit for Col. Rochas. Nor did he succeed in witnessing full materialisations with other mediums. The second visit of Charles Bailey, the Australian apport medium, was arranged by him. Bailey came to Grenoble in 1910 and was, amid much excitement, exposed.
Books by Col. Rochas: La Science des Philosophes et l'Art des Thaumaturges dans
l'Antiquite, 1882; Les Forces non definies, 1887; Le Fluide des
Magnetiseurs, 1891; Les Etats Profonds de l'hypnose, 1892; l'Exteriorisation de la
Sensibilite, 1895, l'Exteriorisation de la motricite, 1896; Receuil de documents relatifs a la levitation du corps
humain, 1897; Les Etats Superficiels de Phypnose, 1898; Les Effieuves odique; L'Envoutement; Les Frontieres de la
Science, 1902; Les Sentiments, la Musique et le Geste; Les Vies
Successives, 1911; La Suspension de la Vie, 1913.
Source (with minor modifications):
An Encyclopaedia of Psychic Science by Nandor Fodor (1934). |