MANILA, Philippines - Have you ever felt cold in the nape, your hair standing up for no apparent reason at all? Have you ever experienced hearing somebody call out your name, and then when you look behind you, no one is around? How about hearing sounds, smelling unusual fragrances and seeing shadows out of the corner of your eyes, or even feeling like you’re being watched?
I have.
And it all started when I was just seven years of age, or more than three decades ago. Back then, my so-called “figments of the imagination” seemed just as real as fantasy heroes and Disney characters. But were they really just a “figment of my imagination” — or a reality?
When I got involved with Tony Perez and the “Spirit Questors,” the group he helped establish, I soon learned that they were called extra-sensory perceptions or ESP. And as fate has would have it, I met a friend who showed me the doorway to the paranormal.
I asked for help, and was given the opportunity to learn firsthand from the activities of the Questors. With a systematic way of training and education with the Spirit Questors, I started to understand my experiences. I met people who, like me, were also experiencing what others call hallucinations. Our intimate realities became intertwined with the realities of the other world. We’ve learned to switch it on and off. And instead of going insane, we became more human and sane.
In time, I was given the privilege of being the group’s records keeper. I became privy to a vast array of information, especially the knowledge and skills I developed whenever the group did what they call “spirit questing.” Through these duties, I was able to amass a book — more like a personal journal of sorts — that I would like to share with others who, like me before, might have a hard time understanding what their “little figments of imagination” really are all about.
By writing a book about the personal experiences I have had, I hope to help make sense of the experiences of others. Through my personal quests, I would like to be able to guide others like me in their own personal journeys. For those who question the reality of spirit existence, I hope that the compilation will serve as an eye-opener so that they can gain inspiration from it.
The collection also lets people know what the Spirit Questors actually do, and why they do it. It is hoped that readers will be able to use the book as a starting point for developing themselves.
The book, Quests Beyond Existence, was developed as a sequel to Stories of the Moon, a book about the paranormal world published in 2001 with Tony Perez and Dion Fernandez. Prior to finally getting printed this year, I had to grapple with numerous difficulties with the manuscript — for a time, it seemed like the book would avoid final publication.
But now it’s here. Quests Beyond Existence provides an intimate recounting of spirit quests and similar paranormal phenomena that I have personally encountered. It tells the stories of people who, like me, have been reluctant to share their and special experiences. Often, people ask me about the world beyond and how it relates to this present realm of existence. This compilation contains stories that can be viewed from various points of views, interpreted from both the physical and spiritual level of relationship. It goes beyond common level of understanding, and asks readers to introspectively review their level of existence while looking at a broader perspective of human existence.
Most of the information presented in the book was told to us by others from their own encounters; some of the ideas are incorporated into stories about a deceased relative or friend, woven into cultural and traditional myths. There is also a touch of faith-based perspective, which can be viewed either from the point of view of the living or the non-living.
Of all the stories presented in the book, I had been touched deeply by the way the living can be freed and liberated from the bounds of the limited physical realm by the actions and thoughts of a deceased relative or friend. It forces me to pose a question: Which of us are really earthbound, the living or the deceased? It’s a truly philosophical query that depends on one’s point of view. The stories in Quests Beyond Existence actually speak to anyone with an eye for a unique adventure.
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Mike Duque’s book entitled Quests Beyond Existence will tour Powerbooks TriNoma on Oct. 27 and Powerbooks MOA on Oct. 28. The official launching of the book is on Oct. 29 at Powerbooks Pasay Road, and on Nov. 3 in Baguio. A grand eyeball of the paranormal, psychic and New Age enthusiasts will also coincide with the book launch on Oct. 30 at Berting’s Grill in Libis, Quezon City. Everyone is invited.