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Arthur Guirdham (1905–1992) was an English physician, psychiatrist, novelist, and writer on the Catharism sect, alternative medicine, ESP and reincarnation.
After writing a couple of wartime thrillers he became increasingly interested in esoteric history and reincarnation. His books The Lake and the Castle (1976) and The Great Heresy: The History and Beliefs of the Cathars (1977) describe the Cathar faith. He also wrote on Sigmund Freud and C. G. Jung. Most successful, however, were his books on reincarnation, notably The Cathars and Reincarnation, which were translated into several languages and won him a loyal audience of enthusiasts and a significant role within British studies of the paranormal and alternative perspectives on mental illness.
Novelist and occult writer Colin Wilson was a friend of Guirdham and stayed at his house on a number of occasions. He wrote approvingly of Guirdham's reincarnation claims.Colin Wilson. (2000). Afterlife. Caxton Editions. p. 201. Wilson interviewed Guirdham for his book Strange Powers (1973).Gary Lachman. (2016). . TarcherPerigee. p. 178.
"Dr. Guirdham takes the Freudian theories of repression and the unconscious and extends them to the conclusion that the three types of disease-neurosis, functional (autonomic) disorders, and organic stress diseases-result from a repression of emotion into three strata, differing in depth, of the unconscious mind. The theory appears to be supported by little enough evidence; indeed, throughout the book the factual basis for Dr. Guirdham's theories is not considerable."Hubble, D. V. (1958). Review: Obsessional Nordic Man: A Theory of Disease by Arthur Guirdham. The British Medical Journal 1 (5086): 1526.
Brian Inglis who was supportive of some of Guirdham's ideas wrote that a negative aspect of his writing was that he tended "to make sweeping assertions unsupported by evidence".Brian Inglis. (1958). Body and Soul: A Theory of Disease by Arthur Guirdham. Encounter. pp. 84-85
Psychologist Robert A. Baker listed Guirdham and Carl Wickland as early psychiatrists who preferred to "ignore the science and embrace the supernatural".Baker, Robert A. (1996). Hidden Memories: Voices and Visions From Within. Prometheus Books. p. 202.
Historical researcher Ian Wilson has criticized the reincarnation claims of Guirdham noting "serious errors and inconsistencies" in his book The Cathars and Reincarnation. Wilson wrote that "Guirdham's claims lacking any means of independent verification, must be regarded as unacceptable."Wilson, Ian. (1981). Mind Out of Time?: Reincarnation Claims Investigated. Victor Gollancz Ltd. pp. 42-46.
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