I've been given written information on paper twice during two separate out-of-body experiences. The first happened as a child:
— I must have been thirteen or fourteen when the spirit of a girl my age came to me while I was out of body. I’d just returned to my bedroom after wandering the house in the other realm, and there she was, waiting for me.
The girl’s whole being was semi-transparent, shaded in light gray, and she wore what looked like a nightgown. She smiled at me and sat on the floor as if she belonged there. Perhaps she used to live in the home. I sat beside her and noticed she was holding a folded paper note in her hands. She said it was for me, then opened it and began to read. I knew the message was important, but when I returned to the physical, her words escaped me. When she finished reading, she handed me the note, left my room, and disappeared. —
The second experience happened only a couple of years ago:
— In the early morning hours of January 14, 2025, I was outside of my body, walking through my house. Someone accompanied me, and communicated telepathically that a gift was waiting for me in the linen closet. Had they left this gift themselves, or were they only the messenger? I made my way into the hallway that led to the bedrooms, where the linen closet was. That spot was exactly where I’d seen flashes of light in the middle of the night on many occasions.
As I stood in the hallway, I could feel the air charged with intensity. I was surrounded by drumming, though it was unlike any sound I’d ever known in the physical realm. It was a pulsing energy that moved through my entire being. Whatever waited on the other side of the closet door was extremely important.
I opened the closet and found a gift on the shelf beside the towels. When I picked it up, the throbbing waves of energy intensified. It was a large currency note, folded many times in an intricate, deliberate pattern.I slowly unfolded it, and each layer revealed a new image, fully formed only when the folds joined.
Brain diagrams, strange faces, and detailed illustrations of the human eye connecting to the brain were displayed on the note. The longer I held it in my hands, the more I absorbed the knowledge. I stood there in the hallway outside my bedroom, my sleeping body only a few steps away, tapping into the true potential of the human mind.
When I reached the final folds, I opened them carefully, taking in the last beautiful diagrams of the brain. Then a clear, female voice spoke directly into my ear and said, "Element 117." —
There's much more to both of these experiences, but I do wonder where in the other realm I left these two gifts. On the other hand, I wonder if these were only visual representations of something I was absorbing on a much deeper level. Was I only able to process these gifts of divine insight by visualizing them as paper notes?
These questions led me to look for other accounts involving written information received during encounters with the unexplained.
There are only two UFO incidents I can find that involve information on paper.
The first is the Betty and Barney Hill case. Betty found a book containing strange symbols and characters while aboard the craft. When she asked if she could take it home, the leader initially agreed. However, as she and Barney were preparing to leave, other crew members objected to allowing a human to keep physical evidence of the encounter. The leader ultimately reversed his decision, so the book was taken back before the couple was released.
The second is the Betty Andreasson case. The beings entered Betty's home, and she traded her Bible for a thin, blue book containing unknown symbols on bright pages before boarding the craft. Unlike Betty Hill, she was able to keep the booklet at home, where it remained in her possession for several days before mysteriously vanishing. Her daughter also witnessed the otherworldly material.
And then there's a much older account worth mentioning: Henry Steel Olcott's from 1883, reported in his 1884 testimony to the Society for Psychical Research.
While staying near Lahore, in present-day Pakistan, Henry said he was awakened by a visitor he identified as the Mahatma Koot Hoomi. The visitor took Henry's left hand and pressed the fingers of his own right hand against Henry's palm. Henry felt something form between their hands. The visitor then closed Henry's hand around the object, said goodbye, and left.
When Henry got up and examined what he was holding, he found a small package wrapped in Chinese silk. Inside was a letter addressed to him in a Chinese envelope.
According to Henry, however, Koot Hoomi was not described as a nonhuman being. He identified him as a Mahatma—a spiritually advanced human teacher. This case is relevant because of the paranormal materialization of a letter, but it isn't a clear example of an otherworldly being giving someone written information.
This isn't much to go off of, so I have to wonder whether there are other accounts out there. Someone, somewhere, must have experienced being given written information alongside a download of knowledge during an out-of-body experience, while aboard a UFO, during a paranormal encounter, or something similar.
If you have, I invite you to share it.