Indigo children

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Paranormal / Parapsychology
Terminology
Artists rendering, based on the writing of Nancy Ann Tappe
Details
Terminology: Indigo children
Definition: Children held, within New Age beliefs, to possess ESP/related abilities and/or a greater level of awareness
Signature: An Indigo colored Aura
Misc
Coined by: Tappe, Nancy Ann (1982) "Understanding Your Life Through Color"
Status New Age Belief
See Also: crystal children

Indigo children refers to a New Age belief that some children, especially those born after the late 1970s, represent a higher state of human evolution. The term itself is a reference to the belief that such children have an indigo colored aura.[1] Beliefs concerning the exact nature of Indigo children vary, with some believing that they have paranormal abilities such as the ability to read minds, and others that they are distinguished from non-Indigo children merely by more conventional traits such as increased empathy and creativity.

Contents

[edit] Origins

The term Indigo children originates from the 1982 book "Understanding Your Life Through Color," by Nancy Ann Tappe, a self-styled synesthete and psychic, who claimed to possess the ability to perceive people's auras. She wrote that during the late 1970s she began noticing that many children were being born with "indigo" auras. Today, she estimates that 60 percent of people age 14 to 25 and 97 percent of children under ten are "Indigo."[1][2]

The idea of Indigo children was later popularized by the 1998 book The Indigo Children: The New Kids Have Arrived, written by the husband-and-wife team of Lee Carroll and Jan Tober.[3] According to Carroll he learned about the concept of indigo children while channeling a being known as Kryon, Master angelic energy. Tober has said that she and Carroll do not talk much about Kryon in interviews because they see this as being a potential barrier to them reaching out to mainstream audiences that exist outside of the New Age movement.[4]

[edit] Characteristics and beliefs

According to New Age belief, Indigo children are highly sensitive with a clear sense of self-definition and a strong feeling that they need to make a significant difference in the world. They are strong-willed, independent thinkers who prefer to do their own thing rather than comply with authority figures. They are empathic and can easily detect or are in tune with the thoughts of others, and are naturally drawn to matters concerning mysteries, spirituality, the paranormal and the occult, while opposing unquestioned authority and contradictory to convention. They allegedly posess wisdom and level of awareness "beyond their years." They are also said to feel a strong sense of entitlement.

Some beliefs hold that they are often labeled with the psychiatric diagnoses of Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD), Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and also Autism, and that they become unsociable when not around other Indigo Children. They are also believed to be prone to depression and sleep disorders such as insomnia and persistent nightmares.[citation needed] Indigo children also possess defining characteristics in learning; indigos tend to be more visual, kinesthetic learners so remember best what they can picture in their brain and create with their hands.[citation needed] Movement is required to keep them better focused. [5][6][7][8][9][10]

[edit] Criticism

According to psychiatric expert Russell Barkley, the New Age movement has yet to produce empirical evidence of the existence of Indigo children and the 17 traits most commonly attributed to them were so vague they could describe "most of the people most of the time" and put him in mind of the Forer effect. Barkley also expressed concern that labeling a disruptive child an "indigo" may delay proper diagnosis and treatment that may help the child.[11][12] Others have advised that many of the traits of indigo children could be more prosaically interpreted as simple arrogance and selfish individualism, which parents with certain New Age beliefs see as being something that they are not.[13]

It has also been hypothesized that rather than being a new step in human evolution, the Indigo phenomena may be the reaction of children watching television shows with an emphasis on magic and New Age-compatible language. An example of this was illustrated in a Dallas Observer article discussing indigo children, a reporter recorded the following interaction between a man who worked with indigo children, and a purported indigo child:

“ Are you an indigo? he asked Dusk. The boy looked at him shyly and nodded. "I'm an avatar," Dusk said. "I can recognize the four elements of earth, wind, water and fire. The next avatar won't come for 100 years." The man seemed impressed.[12] ”

Readers of the Dallas Observer later wrote in to inform the newspaper that the child's response appeared to be taken from the storyline of Avatar: The Last Airbender; a children's cartoon showing on Nickelodeon at the time of the interview. The editor of the Dallas Observer later admitted they were not aware of the possible connection until readers brought it to their attention.[14]

[edit] Education

Although the mainstream teaching profession does not recognize New Age beliefs about the existence of Indigo children some alternative education groups have set up programs based around the concept.[3][15]

[edit] Commercialization

According to Lorie Anderson of Skepticreport.com, belief in Indigo children has significant commercial value due to sales of book, video, and one-on-one counseling session for children, as well as in donations and speaking engagements.[16]

[edit] In popular culture

  • The film Indigo is about the relationship between a man and his indigo grandchild[17]
  • The computer game Fahrenheit, known as Indigo Prophecy in North America, features an indigo child prophet
  • The CSI episode The Unusual Suspect features a character described as possessing the traits of an indigo child
  • The band Puscifer's album 'V is for Vagina' contains the song 'Indigo Children'

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Tappe, Nancy Ann (1982) "Understanding Your Life Through Color", Starling Publishers, ISBN 0940399008 (Reprint)
  2. ^ " Indigo glow: Aura theory interprets behavior of exceptional children" by Savannah Thomas Arrigo, Today's Local News, San Marcos, CA, July 2, 2006
  3. ^ a b Carroll, Lee & Tober, Jan (1998). The Indigo Children: The New Kids Have Arrived. Carlsbad, CA: Hay House.
  4. ^ "Interview with Jan Tober" by Rick Martin, Kryon Website, 2001
  5. ^ Indigo Children: Subtle Therapies for Sensitive Children (English). Retrieved on 2007-10-16.
  6. ^ Indigo, Crystal and Rainbow Children (php) (English). Retrieved on 2007-10-16.
  7. ^ Indigo Children at Indigoenergy.ca (html) (English). Retrieved on 2007-10-16.
  8. ^ Lang, Craig R.. The Indigo Hypothesis – Are Indigo Children a Goal of the Visitor Agenda? (html) (English). Retrieved on 2007-10-16.
  9. ^ Okelberry, Connie. The Indigo Children website (html) (English). Retrieved on 2007-10-16.
  10. ^ Indigo Children – The Next Step In Human Evolution (html) (English).
  11. ^ Leland, John. "Are They Here to Save the World?", The New York Times, 2006-01-12. Retrieved on 2007-10-23. (English) 
  12. ^ a b Hyde, Jesse. "Little Boy Blue" (html), Dallas Observer, 2006-03-09. Retrieved on 2007-10-23. (English) 
  13. ^ Jayson, Sharon. "Indigo kids: Does the science fly?" (html), USA Today, 2005-05-31. Retrieved on 2007-10-23. (English) 
  14. ^ "Letters to the Dallas Observer", Dallas Observer, 2006-03-16. Retrieved on 2007-10-23. (English) 
  15. ^ Simpson, K. (2004). "The Beach School: Giving Children the Freedom to Learn." Children of the New Earth, 2:1, pp. 92–95.
  16. ^ Anderson, Lorie (2003-12-01). Indigo: the color of money (html) (English). Retrieved on 2007-10-23.
  17. ^ Plot summary for Indigo (English). Internet Movie Database. Retrieved on 2007-10-23.

[edit] Further reading

  • Redman, Deb (2001). "Investing in Adult Understanding of Special Children." Chicago: Project Legacy.
  • Lancaster, Dianne (2002). Anger and the Indigo Child. Boulder: Wellness Press.
  • Carroll, Lee and Tober, Jan (1999). "The Indigo Children." California: Hay House, INC.

[edit] External links