 Robert Todd Carroll
Shaman Trever McGhee burnt out May 10, 2007 KFC crew gets burned February 28 2002 About 12 Burger King employees burn feet while walking over white-hot coals in fire-walking ritual at seminar in Miami that was intended to promote bonding - Oct 6, 2001 Is it safe? Eli Tyler of El Cajon, California, was one of seven people hospitalized with severe burns to the bottoms of their feet from a fire-walking ceremony at an American Association for Nude Recreation convention in August, 2000. Fred Gilbert, a professional fire-walker, apparently told a bare naked lie when he said that he was providing "a safe and spiritual experience where you walk through your past to arrive at your future." Tyler is suing Gilbert for "using the wrong type of wood, starting the fire walk before ash formed on the wood and failing to have medical personnel present, among other things." |
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fire walkingFire walking refers to the activity of walking on hot coals, rocks or cinders without burning the soles of one's feet. In some cultures [e.g., India], fire walking is part of a religious ritual and is associated with the mystical powers of fakirs. In America, fire walking is part of New Age religion, i.e., self-empowering motivational activity. Tony Robbins popularized fire walking as an activity for demonstrating it is possible for people to do things that seem impossible to them; the fire walk is a technique for turning fear into power. Robbins doesn't consider the power of the mind to overcome fear of getting burnt as paranormal, however. Overcoming this fear is presented as a step in restructuring one's mind, almost as if this trial by fire was some sort of initiation into an esoteric and very special group of risk-takers. To the timid and those who feel powerless amongst all the dynamic firebrands around them, such a feat as walking on hot coals must seem a significant event.
Robbins may have popularized fire walking but Tolly Burkan, founder of The Firewalking Institute for Research and Education, claims he was the first to introduce the practice to North America. According to Burkan, fire walking is "a method of overcoming limiting beliefs, phobias and fears."
Also, "both hardwood and charcoal are good thermal insulators.... Wood is just as good an insulator even when on fire, and charcoal is almost four times better as an insulator than is dry hardwood. Further, the ash that is left after the charcoal has burnt is just as poor a conductor as was the hardwood or charcoal" (Willey). Nevertheless, some people do get burned walking across hot coals, not because they lack faith or willpower, but because the coals are too hot or are have a relatively high heat capacity, or because the firewalker's soles are thin or he doesn't move quickly enough. But even very hot coals with a high heat capacity can be walked over without getting burned if one's feet are insulated, e.g., with a liquid such as sweat or water. (Think of how you can wet your finger and touch a hot iron without getting burned.) Again, one must move with sufficient speed or one will get burned. However, even armed with this knowledge, it still takes courage to fire walk. When Michael Shermer of Skeptic magazine did a fire walk for “The Unexplained” television program, he had the knowledge but the fear was obviously still there. Our instincts are telling us: don't do this, you idiot! Fire walking requires some faith as well as knowledge: faith that the coals were prepared properly, that you can move fast enough to avoid getting burned, and that something will work in practice as you know it should in theory. Even so, whether the firewalker gets burned depends on how the coals were prepared and on how fast the firewalker moves, rather than on willpower, the power of the mind to create a protective shield, or any other paranormal or supernatural force. Michael Shermer Firewalking Across Hot Coals
further reading
Christopher,Milbourne. ESP, Seers & Psychics (Thomas Y. Crowell Co. 1970). |
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©copyright 2007 Robert Todd Carroll |
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updated 12/03/07 |
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