Alien Identities : Ancient Insights into Modern UFO Phenomena [Paperback]

Richard L. Thompson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1995

This is the intelligent fair and logical examination of modern UFO phenomena that countless readers have been looking for written by a renowned scientist and philosopher. also explores possible UFO incidents recounted in the the ancient Vedic DESCRIPTIONs of flying craft floating cities cosmic battles and other wonders. It examines the extraordinary and the extraterrestrial in European folk tales and looks at religious reports of miraculous visitations particularly the 1917 apparition at Fatima Portugal bringing fresh and convincing insights into the identity and purposes of UFO visitors throughout the centuries.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...Alien Identities is absolutely seminal, a real ground breaker...A "must-read" addition to the field." -- Whitley Strieber, author of Communion and many other UFO books

"...stimulating, well organized, and an encyclopedic smorgasbord of UFO data and ancient Indian counterparts...stands to become a classic." -- Berthold Schwarz, M.D., psychiatrist and author of UFO Dynamics

"A Summa Ufologica of great importance...Thompon has written perhaps the most honest UFO book extant in the English language." -- Gnosis magazine

About the Author

Richard L. Thompson was born in Binghampton, New York, in 1947. In 1974 he received his Ph. D. in mathematics from Cornell University, where he specialized in probability theory and statistical mechanics.

Dr. Thompson has done scientific research in quantum physics, mathematical biology, and remote sensing. He has extensively investigated ancient Indian astronomy, cosmology, and spirituality, and he has developed multimedia expositions on these topics. He is the author of six books on topics ranging from consciousness to archeology and ancient astronomy.

Product Details

• Paperback: 464 pages
• Publisher: Govardhan Hill Pub; 2 Revised edition (September 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0963530941
• ISBN-13: 978-0963530943
• Product Dimensions: 6.3 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #738,678 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 34 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars If you want good information that reads very well........ September 13, 2000

By mitch skidmore

Format:Paperback

I have a master's degree from Yale in Religion (for what it's worth)and I spent lots of what I feel is unbiased, level-headed rational time investigating religious phenomena, origins of humankind, ancient history, religion and the nature of living things. I have no bias in any particular religious or scientific direction. I have tried to be open to all possibilities regarding extraterrestrial phenomena and possible connections with ancient known and unknown cultures.

This is a good book. It is good reading. No matter what your persuasion, anyone could read this with skepticism or gullibility and feel that information is presented in an unbiased and scientific manner. That is what I like about it -- not to mention the potentially profound revelations concerning Vadic material and other text. When I ordered this book, I had to wait for it. In the meantime I bought 4 others referenced as "related" and none held a candle to this one. THIS IS A GOOD BOOK. Go get it if you have any interest in understanding or contemplating possibilities regarding ancient cultures and human origins.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Thought provoking, but covers too much January 1, 1999

By Nancy A. Fox

Format:Paperback

This book is a fascinating comparison of modern UFO phenomena with similar phenomena recorded in the Vedic texts of Ancient India. Unfortunately, the author tries to cover too much in one volume.

The first half of the book contains an excellent summary of modern UFO and related phenomena. In the second half of the book, Mr. Thompson uses his tremendous knowledge of ancient Vedic texts and shows similarities between the two. Unfortunately, in an effort to bolster his arguments, he adds in Celtic folklore and mythology plus the 1917 events in Fatima, Portugal. It felt like he didn't have enough room to fully flesh out his hypotheses.

If this book is to be updated for a 3rd addition, I strongly recommend that a glossary be added. In the second half of the book, the author repeatedly refers to the various types of entities refered to within the ancient Indian literature and I had trouble keeping them straight. Also, many of the deities could be refered to by multiple names and it became confusing when a particular deity would be refered to by 2 different names within consecutive pages (for example a Christian might refer to Jesus as Jesus Christ or Son of God, etc.).

This is a fascinating book, and I think that Mr. Thompson has a very interesting point to make. I recommend this book to people interested in possible connections between the modern UFO phenomena and ancient mythology and folklore. However, if you are unfamiliar with ancient Indian mythology, I recommend that you keep your own glossary as you read through the 2nd half of the book.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars EXPLAINS A LOT ABOUT UFO BEHAVIOR January 7, 2006

By Theresa Welsh

Format:Paperback

The strange tales of lights in the sky moving in seemingly-impossible ways, craft that land and leave marks on the ground, abductions by odd-looking humanoids, animal mutilations and all the other stories associated with UFOs are largely ignored by the media and by academic scholars. Since there is no explanation for them that fits our current knowledge of how the universe works, people who want to avoid being ridiculed tend to pretend these things don't exist. Some brave souls have tackled the problem and offered "explanations" that may fit some of the tales -- those involved are hallucinating, making it up, or have seen meteors, the moon, ball lightening, or swamp gas.

Others who say these phenomena are produced by alien beings from other planets find themselves on the fringe of respectability and some have lost their academic positions because they took the abduction stories seriously (Dr. John Mack is one such). But now comes Richard L. Thompson to offer another view of these weird happenings. I'm an admirer of Thompson's work on a favorite book, Forbidden Archeology, and I've also read a lot of the same books he uses as sources for Alien Identities. Here, Thompson makes parallels between what happens to those involved with UFOs (sightings and contact) and stories from Indian Vedic sources, both ancient and modern.

I find these comparisons compelling, but also found it difficult to keep track of the various Vedic books and concepts he discusses. The Vedic sources, many going back thousands of years, are largely unknown in mainstream US society.... But the basics of the Vedic belief-system are similar to current spiritual ideas that are widespread - the idea that we all have an etheric double, the existence of the Spirit world, the idea of other realms of existence, reincarnation, and the idea that spirits are all around us.

Like Thompson, I found the stories told by Betty Andreasson (in the Raymond Fowler books) to appear to relate the aliens to beings that exist in the spirit world. She sometimes traveled in her astral body and was able to float through solid objects (like doors and walls) and she saw the beings turn into pure light. Whitley Streiber and others relate similar stories.

Many contactees have been given information about the human race, sometimes warnings, sometimes predictions, and sometimes the material is very bizarre. The aliens who impart this information are also sometimes bizarre, wearing odd costumes and imitating humans, but not getting it quite right. An example is the Men in Black whose clothing and behavior is often inappropriate, but who purport to be acting in some official capacity.

As with spirit communication, people receiving these messages may assume that because the source (they believe) is alien, it must be true. But when you study the literature of spirit communication, you realize that spirits exist at many levels and their perceptions of reality are limited, just as with us. There are also spirits who are inimical to those they contact, who deliberately give misinformation. The same appears to be the case with aliens. Could spirits and aliens be the same entities?

Thompson relates the UFO craft to the ancient Indian vimanas (flying machines), and provides much information I have not seen in other sources. For instance, he tells us most of these vimanas were not built by humans, but rather were built by the various entities of other realms, who can interact with humans. He also tells us these dwellers of other realms are related to us and can breed with us, explaining why so many ancient books (including the Bible) talk of intermarriage between man and gods. And also explaining the many stories of aliens stealing human sperm or impregnating human women.

Thompson's analysis of UFOs in relation to Vedic literature is well thought-out, but of course the author is seeing them within his own belief system, where they are a better fit than with mainstream Western Christian belief systems. He does give some examples from non-Oriental sources (apparition at Fatima, Irish faeries, etc.) to show the persistence of these entities in human experience. He explores some of the same territory covered by Jacques Vallee in his excellent books on the UFO phenomena.

This book gives insight into a different way to understand UFOs, that goes beyond "little green men" from outer space zipping around in space ships. It is a worthwhile read for anyone interested in understanding the mystery of UFOs. Read more ›

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A down to earth context for out of this world ideas. December 29, 2004

By Palyne Gaenir

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

One of the difficulties in the 'UFOlogy' field is that there are plenty of offbeat accounts, and in some cases evidence but mostly in pieces, or without context, or with potential other explanations. (There is more than most people are aware of, though.)

Authors such as Dr. Jacques Vallee have given interesting historical overviews of UFO lore. Of course, all these accounts are 'accounts' and 'Lore', they are not scientific evidence, but since these experiences don't seem to happen on command inside a science lab, this may account for that problem. The fact that the surgeon general has not yet made a ruling about the existence or effect of UFOs or 'experiences' potentially related, will not change whether they or the experiences exist.

ALIEN IDENTITIES is a book title I cringe to give to people and consider an embarrassment to the content. Consider it was written when such a title (not to mention Streiber as an intro) were apparently considered a hot sell and hence the publisher promo. The CONTENT of the book has a calm, fair, respectability in its own fashion that belies the assumption and hype of the title.

This book is a great introduction for people new to the subject. The first half is a recount of documented Vedic history, which is part and parcel of their religion. The second half is a recount of documented recent history--accounts in the UFOlogy field. Which, like religious history, are equally tenuous and unprovable.

However, when you read the detail from the historical accounts, and then you read the detail of claims from the last half century, the parallel is more than just striking.... It's pretty much obvious to anybody with half a brain and no major personal bias that the modern day accounts are clearly talking about some of the same kind of things as the ancient accounts.

In the context of how seriously we should take modern accounts, for which we have little hard proof and a lot of confusion, a realization that they are hardly a novel new result of science fiction books is important.

In the context of religion, "the Gods," and many accounts biblical as well as Vedic, it is thought provoking to say the least.

I highly recommend this book. It reads well, it is interesting, it is informative, and it doesn't pretend to be anything it's not. It makes no claims. It is one of the very few UFOlogy related books that I have kept on my shelves for years. Read more ›