Pyrokinesis

So I’m continuing with my look at the world psychic abilities, and I thought this week I would feature the ability of pyrokinesis. Pyrokinesis is the ability to create or manipulate fire using only the mind. The term was actually created by the Author Stephen King, for his book Fire Starter, but the concept has been around much longer.

While it’s difficult to judge when the first claim for this ability occurred, magicians as early as the 1600’s used a variety of parlor tricks to create the illusion of starting fires. Magicians still use fire tricks today to impress and confuse their audience. It’s all too easy to be distracted by the flash and lights.

But are there real cases of this happening? It’s hard to say for sure without solid, controlled studies of the phenomenon. Most of the modern cases involve seemingly random house fires. I did come across a video of a man that appeared use his mind to heat a wet towel that was impressive, but every case of fire-staring I came across seemed to be the product of active imaginations or trickery.

Maybe it is possible. Maybe someday we will understand matter well enough to know how to manipulate it. But for now, I’m not holding my breath.

Do you think Pyrokinesis is a real possibility?