Herbert Mullin, David Berkowitz, Peter Sutcliffe, Anthony Sowell and Elizabeth wettlaufer all have one thing in common. They are individuals who went on a killing spree while claiming to be following instructions or orders from voices in their heads. In simple terms they are serial killers who attempted to use the excuse of hearing voices as an excuse or a defense for their crimes.
This claim is not new and has reoccurred among serial killers over the years. Some persons who have been convicted for one off murders have also been known to lay claim to hearing voices. Why they were chosen by the voices they claimed to have heard still remains a mystery.
In some cases of suicide or attempts at committing suicide, the individuals involved have also been known to claim that they were pressured to take their own lives by voices tormenting them in their head. These claims however are yet to be scientifically proven as there exists no test or procedure to authenticate the veracity of the claim or claims.
The closest known scientific acknowledgement of these sinister voices is a diagnosis of an underlying case of paranoid schizophrenia. In this situation, the sufferer has lost touch with reality accompanied by a constant barrage of auditory hallucination. Some psychiatric experts opine that the voices these convicted serial killers claim to hear are nothing more than a reflection of the contents of their minds.
Thus the claim that they heard the voice of God ordering them to carry out gruesome acts is nothing more than an attempt to shift the blame from themselves or simply not taking responsibility for their dastardly acts.
However this doesn't mean that there is nothing to these claims. Hence not all of them may be swept aside as mere excuses by the individual(s) involved as science is an evolving field. Especially when the culprit doesn't eventually confess to haven tried to use the voices as an excuse. What is rejected by science today by be accepted tomorrow as the body of knowledge is not adverse to change.
There's another voice which is often not written about probably for want of an appropriate word or appellation to describe it. I believe most of us would have had some sort of integration with this voice at some point in time, for some it might even be on a daily basis. It is that little guiding voice or whisper which points us in the right direction when about to take certain decisions or embarking on a task. I have searched and pondered for a word to describe this voice but all that I have come across such as:
intuition
sixth sense
gut feeling
I believe the above don't quite do justice to what this guiding voice does at least for me. Often times when I listen to the counsel from this voice or should I rather say thought in my subconscious, I am usually better for it as the outcome is usually pleasant. Similarly when I disregard its promptings usually to take precautionary steps or act proactively, I often regret it.
I will narrate one recent scenario. A few months ago, I had a presentation to make, I felt its promptings to go along with an extension box from home but I waved it aside convincing myself that there would surely be one at the venue. Upon getting to the venue for the presentation, lo and behold , the extension box that was available was too short.
I had to began moving about wasting time and energy searching for an extension when I ought to have been resting and rehearsing for my presentation. After much ado, I finally got an extension box which acted up on several occasions while the presentation was ongoing. I would have been saved from all the stress if only I had listened to that friendly prompting or voice in my head to go along with mine.
Have you had a similar experience with this friendly prompting or voice in your head?
Shukran
Danke
Merci
Gracias
ขอบคุณ
ধন্যবাদ
Спасибо
for reading.
