COMPARATIVE STUDY OF HALLUCINATIONS.

Abstract

Introduction IN both religious and secular literature there are many reports from people who have seen visions or heard voices. At times these phenomena have been considered as manifestations of the supernatural, and the actions, beliefs, and faith of many people have been influenced by them. The course of Western European history was changed by the simple faith of Joan D' Arc in her private percepts that others did not share. In our own time conservative and fundamental religious faiths have placed credence in the testimony of those who have heard voices or seen visions of a religious nature. Clinical psychiatrists tell of patients or their relatives who have described significant sensory perceptual aberrations, yet who do not appear to be mentally disturbed. 3,4,16,18 Standard interviews done on relatives of indigent psychiatric patients and on unselected medical students too have shown an evidence of hallucinations of