The Mandela Effect: Why We Remember Things, That Never Existed

The Mandela Effect is the hypothesis, that through a psychological phenomenon known as a "collective delusion", several people can believe a false memory is true even though it never occurred in reality. The theory holds, that what we remember about history or present events is actually completely wrong.

A new idea, theory, or memory is created and then spreads not just on social media, but throughout the wider world. The term can also be used to describe how memories can change over time with the benefit of hindsight. Often, the evidence will seem to suggest, that the world has suffered a case of mass delusional amnesia, but its true nature is far more interesting.

What Is This Phenomenon?

The memory of a false event, that never occurred is often called a "false memory". The term "false memory" has been used in this context since the 1980's. The "Mandela Effect" is the idea, that there are "multiple universes" or "alternate realities" in which the same events occur, but they are remembered differently.

Theory 1:

Consciousness can create a "filter" that only shows events, that are in concordance with what an individual's beliefs are. The way this works is that each human being has an "ideal world" in their mind, with all the rules and values that they hold. Events that do not fit inside of that world do not get filtered out, instead they get stored inside a "forgetful" or "false" memory.

Theory 2:

As an "experiment of nature", humanity is "filtering" reality to fit their own perceptions. As time goes on, our perception of the world changes and so the "ideal world" that each of our minds is striving for changes too, but the world itself is constantly in flux. The "filter" that humanity has created for itself has not caught all the changes and so many of the things, that were once filtered out are now showing up in people's minds.

Are the theories correct?

There are a lot of different theories about how the Mandela Effect works and there is a lot of evidence, that it exists, but what if it is a combination of all or at least a few? What if the "ideal world" in each of our minds is unique and all of those universes exist in the "Memory Palace" of the brain? What if the "filter" that each of us puts up is not just for show, but actually modifies our experience of the world at all times?

If that is the case, then the "false memories" should be showing up all the time. They just haven't been reported in full yet. The "true memories" should all look the same across everyone. We have all these "memories" of different versions of the past, but they should all be accurate in the sense of the theory we are looking at.

A Gateway To Alternate Reality

If the "false memories" were deleted from people's minds, then they would all have perfect "true memories", but that would mean that the world that everyone remembers is the only possible world that could have occurred. There would be no alternate realities. In this theory, the "false memories" are actually necessary for an individual to have a full and complete "memory" of the past. They allow each of us to have an "alternate reality" in which we can exist. It is just like day dreaming, except that the "day" in question is an "alternate reality".

There are probably many other interesting things, that could be said about this theory, but instead we will focus on why it is a gateway to the alternate reality theory.

You see, the "memory" or "false memory" that you have is not really about the past itself. Rather, it is about your "ideal world" of how things should be. The person who has the "memory" is actually experiencing the "ideal world". The world that the person remembers is just a way to make the "ideal world" more real.

The "memory" itself is just a concept and the person experiencing it, whatever that person might be, does not really "exist". The person is actually an "idea" in the head of the person remembering. The real person has been filtered out to fit inside of the concept.

This theory is a good example of how the Mandela Effect can function. The people who hold the "false memories" are essentially creating a version of the world that does not include the "real world". They are creating an "ideal world" in their own minds and then using the "filter" that their minds have put up to try to make that "ideal world" real.

You think about this for a moment. The "false memories" do not actually change the past. They are simply a way for the people who have them to experience an "alternate reality".

Delusions

Delusions are very strange and they are a big part of the explanation for the Mandela Effect. While these "memories" are not really memories at all, they are very powerful in their own way. As we discussed, they allow people to experience alternate realities in which they can remember things the way they would like. The strange part about them is that the person experiencing the delusion is not aware that they are doing it. The delusion itself seems to be "real" in that it influences the environment around the person experiencing it.

In other words, a person who is deluded is convinced that a certain concept, "A", is real, even though it is clearly not. The person is so convinced of the reality of "A" that they are willing to ignore any evidence to the contrary. Their entire "reality" is determined by the delusions that they hold.

You can see how this would be a powerful way of filtering information, but it also has a very strange effect on a person's personality. The person who is deluded will typically respond to "real world" information in a very strange way. They may appear perfectly normal, but their reactions to the world around them will be very off. Their delusions may be a way of compensating for an odd reality.

Common Examples Of The Mandela Effect

Let's look at a few examples of the Mandela Effect in action. This will illustrate some of the common ways, that the "false memory" can show up.

Monopoly Guy With His Monocle

If you remember, that this Monopoly man has monocle you are absolutely wrong. He has never had monocle, but most of the people remember him wearing his monocle.

Pikachu's Tail

How do you remember? Does Pikachu have black color in his tail? No, in reality his tail is yellow without any black color.

C-3PO Has a Silver Leg

What about C-3PO's right leg? Is it gold or silver? In reality his right leg is silver.

See more examples here.

What is going on here? Well, it's simple. When a person remembers something, that never actually happened, it is often because they were "filtered" into it. They are so convinced that the "memory" is real, that they fail to notice the obvious.

The "real world" evidence of the event, that they are remembering never occurred. The "world" that they remember never happened.

This is particularly easy to accomplish, if the evidence of the alternate "memory" never occurred at all. It would only take something as simple as a "filter" being applied to the evidence, "forgetting" the part that does not fit the idea and "remembering" the part that fits.

Lead image source: https://nccnews.newhouse.syr.edu/tag/mandela-effect/

Thank you for reading.