James McClenon, PhD has been a sociology professor and licensed clinical social worker. He is author of Deviant Science: The Case of Parapsychology, Wondrous Events: Foundations of Religious Belief, Wondrous Healing: Shamanism, Human Evolution and the Origin of Relgion, and The Entity Letters: A Sociologist on the Trail of a Supernatural Mystery.

Here he describes how he first became interested in firewalking by participating in a Buddhist ceremony in Japan. Subsequently, in Sri Lanka, he became severely burned during a similar ceremony. This prompted him to make a study of the physical parameters associated with successful firewalking. Eventually, he became an instructor and made many temperature measurements in order to determine more precisely how to successfully accomplish this feat. He also discusses the role of hypnosis and religious belief.

(Recorded on October 31, 2018)

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Published on November 1, 2018