Out-of-body researcher-experiencers are a rare breed. Douglas Scott Rogo (February 1, 1950 – August 18, 1990) was one of those. Rogo was a writer, journalist and researcher on subjects related to consciousness and parapsychology. He coordinated an experimental course in parapsychology at the University of California State University, where he graduated summa cum laude from California in the psychology of music in 1972 to become a faculty member and lecturer on the Master's programme in parapsychology at John F. Kennedy University, Pleasant Hill, California. He served as a visiting researcher at the Psychical Research Foundation (then in Durham, North Carolina) and the (former) Division of Parapsychology and Psychophysics of Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York. Rogo also worked as a consulting editor for Fate Magazine, for which he wrote a regular column advocating and promoting research collaborations between parapsychological researchers and skeptics.
Rogo, in many ways, was a genius by the breadth of his knowledge as much as the range of subjects he researched. He began publishing articles on consciousness-related subjects while still a teenager, including in some scientific journals and finalise his first book when he was only 20. He wrote or co-wrote 20 books and more than 100 articles in magazines or research journals, such as Anabiosis or the European Journal of Parapsychology, by age 40. It is not surprising that many considered him a leading authority on the history of psychical research. Indeed, Rogo published on ganzfeld and Extrasensory Perception (ESP), autism and ESP, was involved in field investigations of hauntings, poltergeists and telekinesis, trance and possession, and did precursory research in states of abduction, sleep paralysis, Out-of-Body Experiences (OBEs) and Near-Death Experiences.
What is lesser known is that Rogo equally experienced OBEs. He had his first OBE while collecting and analyzing OBEs in 1965 when he was only 15. He recalls the event in the following way:
Indeed, his book "Leaving the Body: A complete guide to Astral Projection" can be, in full right, considered a must-read, providing an extensive and knowledgeable overview of the subject, including reviewing many techniques of OBE induction. To my knowledge, it remains one of the best books to learn about OBE with a self-critical approach. Certainly, there is no doubt that his own experiences on the subject insightfully guided his inquiries as an independent investigator.
MSc. Neuroscience,
Sleep Consciousness Researcher,
PhD Candidate.
REFERENCES:
Hansen, G. P. (1991). "D. Scott Rogo and His Contributions to Parapsychology." Anthropology of Consciousness 2(3-4): 32-32.
Rogo, D. S. (1983). Leaving the Body: A complete guide to Astral Projection. New York, Prentice Hall Press.
Rogo, D. S. (2022). Parapsychology: A Century of Enquiry, White Crow Books.