The Roots of Coincidence, written by Arthur Koestler

Arthur Koestler

Arthur Koestler CBE was a Hungarian author and journalist. Koestler was born in Budapest and, apart from his early school years, was educated in Austria...

, is an accessible introduction to theories of parapsychology

Parapsychology

The term parapsychology was coined in or around 1889 by philosopher Max Dessoir, and originates from para meaning "alongside", and psychology. The term was adopted by J.B. Rhine in the 1930s as a replacement for the term psychical research...

, including extra-sensory perception

Extra-sensory perception

Extrasensory perception involves reception of information not gained through the recognized physical senses but sensed with the mind. The term was coined by Frederic Myers, and adopted by Duke University psychologist J. B. Rhine to denote psychic abilities such as telepathy, clairaudience, and...

 and psychokinesis

Psychokinesis

The term psychokinesis , also referred to as telekinesis with respect to strictly describing movement of matter, sometimes abbreviated PK and TK respectively, is a term...

. It postulates links between elements of quantum mechanics

Quantum mechanics

Quantum mechanics, also known as quantum physics or quantum theory, is a branch of physics providing a mathematical description of much of the dual particle-like and wave-like behavior and interactions of energy and matter. It departs from classical mechanics primarily at the atomic and subatomic...

, such as the behaviour of neutrinos and their interaction with time

Time

Time is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....

, and these paranormal phenomena. It is influenced by Carl Jung's

Carl Jung

Carl Gustav Jung was a Swiss psychiatrist and the founder of Analytical Psychology. Jung is considered the first modern psychiatrist to view the human psyche as "by nature religious" and make it the focus of exploration. Jung is one of the best known researchers in the field of dream analysis and...

 concept of synchronicity

Synchronicity

Synchronicity is the experience of two or more events that are apparently causally unrelated or unlikely to occur together by chance and that are observed to occur together in a meaningful manner...

.

Appearance in popular culture

In Volume 7 of Alan Moore

Alan Moore

Alan Oswald Moore is an English writer primarily known for his work in comic books, a medium where he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and popular series, including Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and From Hell...

-David Lloyd's

David Lloyd

David Lloyd may refer to:*David Lloyd , chief justice of colonial Pennsylvania*David Lloyd Welsh cleric and translator*David Lloyd , British tenor...

 V for Vendetta

V for Vendetta

V for Vendetta is a ten-issue comic book series written by Alan Moore and illustrated mostly by David Lloyd, set in a dystopian future United Kingdom imagined from the 1980s to about the 1990s. A mysterious masked revolutionary who calls himself "V" works to destroy the totalitarian government,...

, Inspector Finch is seen reading The Roots of Coincidence. Koestler is referenced several times in the work. Koestler's ideas would also make their way into the Dr. Manhattan issues of Moore's and Dave Gibbons'

Dave Gibbons

Dave Gibbons is an English comic book artist, writer and sometime letterer. He is best known for his collaborations with writer Alan Moore, which include the miniseries Watchmen and the Superman story "For the Man Who Has Everything"...

 Watchmen

Watchmen

Watchmen is a twelve-issue comic book limited series created by writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons, and colourist John Higgins. The series was published by DC Comics during 1986 and 1987, and has been subsequently reprinted in collected form...

.

The musician Sting was an avid reader of Koestler. Sting named The Police's

The Police

The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For the vast majority of their history, the band consisted of Sting , Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland...

 final studio album Synchronicity as a reference to The Roots of Coincidence. Sting had named The Police's previous album, Ghost in the Machine

Ghost in the machine

The "ghost in the machine" is the British philosopher Gilbert Ryle's description of René Descartes' mind-body dualism. The phrase was introduced in Ryle's book The Concept of Mind to highlight the perceived absurdity of dualist systems like Descartes' where mental activity carries on in parallel...

, after another of Koestler's books.

"The Roots of Coincidence" is also the name of a Grammy Award-winning song by Pat Metheny Group

Pat Metheny Group

The Pat Metheny Group is a jazz group founded in 1977. The core members of the group are guitarist and bandleader Pat Metheny, composer, keyboardist and pianist Lyle Mays , and bassist and producer Steve Rodby...

, featured on their 1997 album Imaginary Day

Imaginary Day

Imaginary Day is an album by the Pat Metheny Group, released in 1997 by Warner Bros. Records. It also won the 1999 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Jazz Album, while "The Roots of Coincidence" won Best Rock Instrumental Performance....

.

In the 2007 novel Hässelby (novel)

Hässelby (novel)

Hässelby is a novel by the Norwegian author Johan Harstad, published in 2007. The title refers to Hässelby, a suburb of Stockholm, Sweden. Albert Åberg , the main character of the novel, is also the name of a well known Swedish children's book's character, famous from the books by Gunilla Bergström...

 by Johan Harstad

Johan Harstad

Johan Harstad is an Norwegian short story writer, novelist and playwright.Harstad was born in Stavanger. He made his literary debut in 2001, with a collection of short prose entitled Herfra blir du bare eldre...

, the main character is strongly influenced by this work and make numerous references to it throughout the book.

The youth fiction book Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett references this work in chapter 14.

Publication data

• The Roots of Coincidence (1972), Random House hardcover: ISBN 0-394-48038-4
  • 1973 Vintage paperback: ISBN 0-394-71934-4