The CIA used remote viewing to gather incredible insight and intelligence.
But imagine being able to read over the shoulder of your business competitor and review their market strategy for the next year. What about listening in to conversations that your partner, boyfriend, or wife were having?
Well, the practice of remote viewing is allegedly a way of doing this. It’s reported to have been around for a long time and used in ancient soulful practice.
The CIA tried to use it during the Cold War to help the US spy on the Russians. But, can it be taught and used in your everyday life?
What is Remote Viewing?
Remote viewing has been used for spiritual growth, personal development, and problem-solving.
It involves using the mind to gather information about a remote or distant target, such as a person, place, or object, without relying on the physical senses.
When you successfully remote view, you can see and hear real life happening in another part of the world, without having to be there or using technology, like a phone.
It’s also different to astral travel, where you allow your soul to leave your body and travel to other dimensions.
The CIA’s Remote Viewing Experiments (Stargate Project)
In the early 1970s, a quiet curiosity began to stir within government corridors.
The CIA, alongside the Stanford Research Institute, started to explore whether human consciousness could reach beyond the body. The idea was simple: could someone describe a hidden object, a sealed envelope, or a far-away location without ever seeing it?
The programme became known as Project Stargate, and over the next twenty years, thousands of sessions were recorded.
Psychics, soldiers, and ordinary volunteers were asked to focus their awareness and “see” across distance. Some produced sketches that seemed uncannily accurate. Others sensed nothing at all. The results were uneven, but the stories that emerged were difficult to ignore.
For spiritual seekers, these experiments offer a bridge between science and the subtle realms of perception. Whether remote viewing is an untapped human ability or simply a poetic metaphor for intuition, it invites us to consider how deeply interconnected consciousness might be.
The boundaries between self and other, here and there, known and unseen, may be softer than we think.
In many ways, remote viewing mirrors meditation itself: a practice of quieting the noise, expanding awareness, and trusting what arises from within.
When viewed through a spiritual lens, the CIA’s experiments become more than an odd chapter in history; they’re a reminder that even the most rational institutions once paused to ask the oldest of mystical questions – what are we truly capable of perceiving?
5 Techniques to explore remote viewing safely
If you feel drawn to explore remote viewing yourself, approach it as you would any spiritual practice, with curiosity, grounding, and respect for your own wellbeing. The aim isn’t to “prove” anything, but to deepen your awareness of how perception works when the mind becomes still.
- Ground before you begin.
Start by sitting quietly and feeling your connection to the Earth. Breathe deeply, anchoring your awareness in your body. This prevents you from drifting into imagination or fatigue and keeps your focus clear. - Set a simple intention.
Choose one object or location that is neutral and safe, like a friend’s garden or a familiar room. Say quietly to yourself, “I intend to perceive this place clearly and calmly.” The power of intention directs awareness. - Enter a relaxed, meditative state.
Close your eyes and breathe slowly. Let thoughts pass without following them. Notice any images, sensations, or emotions that arise, no matter how faint. The key is not to force but just observe. - Record impressions immediately.
After a few minutes, open your eyes and write or sketch whatever came to mind. Don’t judge or analyse yet. Over time, you may notice subtle consistencies or patterns in what you perceive. - Close and ground again.
End each session by consciously returning to the present moment. Stretch, take a few deep breaths, and perhaps touch something solid or sip water. This seals the practice and keeps your energy balanced.
Remote viewing, practiced this way, becomes more about training attention and learning to listen to the quiet voice of your consciousness. When we approach it gently, it can awaken a deeper trust in intuition and reveal how our human perception is far more fluid, mysterious, and interconnected than we ever imagined.
Is Remote Viewing Real?
While remote viewing is not widely accepted by the scientific community, there have been numerous successful remote viewing sessions over the years.
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The CIA and other intelligence agencies have used remote viewing to gather intelligence, and there are many anecdotal reports of individuals successfully using remote viewing to locate missing persons, predict future events, and solve problems.
A review of the declassified research literature was conducted in 1995 by the American Institutes for Research, to assess whether or not the CIA program should continue with Stargate. Amazingly, a key conclusion from this was that remote viewing was shown to work in a high number of cases.
Yes, there were methodological issues with the research, but a really high number (approximately 75% of participants) were able to demonstrate some kind of positive result in remote viewing.
That said, the applicability of the results to real life spying and intelligence gathering were not seen as strong enough by the report. Apparently information gathered from remote viewing was at times vague and not accurate enough to use for spying.
Examples of Remote Viewing
The programme of research to use paranormal or psychic abilities in military application inspired Jon Ronson book ‘The Men Who Stare at Goats’, which was adapted into a film by the Cohen Brothers in 2009.
One of the most famous examples of remote viewing is the case of Ingo Swann, who was one of the original remote viewers who worked with with the CIA.
Ingo Swann successfully remote viewed features of Jupiter’s rings, providing accurate details about it’s features, which were then verified by the Voyager probe in 1979. Even more fantastic and rather out there, Swann was alledgedly involved in CIA attempts to remote view the dark side of the moon. He claimed to have seen structures built there, and a group of extraterrestrial humanoids! Crazy stuff.
Indeed, another study in 2003 tested Swann’s abilities, and found that unusual brain activity was identified at the same time as his accurate answers to hidden or remote information. These results suggested that this type of paranormal phenomenon was actually correlated with physical changes in his brain, so something was obviously going on!
The main bit you’re waiting for – how to practice Remote Viewing
To practice remote viewing takes patience, practice, and intention. We have to develop a state of heightened awareness through meditation and visualization.
The basic steps are:
- Choose a target to identify and view. The first step is to choose a remote target, which could be a person, place, or object. The target should be something that is not known you and should ideally be chosen by a third party.
- Relax your body and mind: Use deep breathing, meditation, or other relaxation techniques to get into a deep relaxing state. We suggest sitting in an upright position, so that you don’t fall asleep, and do it in a place where you won’t be disturbed.
- Visualise the intended target: Visualize in your mind any images, sounds, or sensations that come to you. Really allow your subconscious to bring out what it wants to tell you.
- Record observations: It’s worth recording observations in a notebook or other medium, noting any images, sounds, or feelings that come to mind.
- Analyze results: After the session is complete, compare observations with the actual target and analyze the results.
Doing this will take practice. You need to allow the messages, sights, smells, and sounds to come to you. Don’t force it, just tune in.
What are the benefits of Remote Viewing?
Remote viewing can be used as a tool for personal growth and self-discovery.
By accessing information that is not available through the physical senses, remote viewing can help gain a deeper understanding of yourself and wider reality.
It can also be used to improve mental wellbeing by reducing stress and anxiety, promoting relaxation, and enhancing creativity. You never know, you might end up being some kind of paranormal spy for the CIA.
Access Remote Viewing training
If doing this alone sounds like a major chore, then you can actually access training through organisations which can be online or in-person workshops.
Some of the most popular remote viewing training programs include the Remote Viewing Academy, Centre of Excellence, and the Monroe Institute, and the Farsight Institute.
Ingo Swann also has a book, ‘Everybody’s Guide to Natural ESP’, which is definitely worth checking out.
Happy Remote Viewing folks.
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