Throughout February and March 1974, Dick experienced a series of hallucinations, which he referred to as "2-3-74", shorthand for February–March 1974. Aside from the "pink beam", Dick described the initial hallucinations as geometric patterns, and, occasionally, brief pictures of Jesus and ancient Rome. As the hallucinations increased in duration and frequency, Dick claimed he began to live two parallel lives, one as himself, "Philip K. Dick", and one as "Thomas", a Christian persecuted by Romans in the first century AD. He referred to the "transcendentally rational mind" as "Zebra", "God" and "VALIS" (an acronym for "Vast Active Living Intelligence System"). Dick wrote about the experiences, first in the semi-autobiographical novel "Radio Free Albemuth" and then in "VALIS", "The Divine Invasion", "The Transmigration of Timothy Archer" and the unfinished "The Owl in Daylight" (the VALIS trilogy).