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THE BATTLE FOR YOUR MIND, by Dick Sutphen -- 22.2 KB
Persuasion & Brainwashing Techniques Being Used On The Public Today
SUMMARY OF CONTENTS
The Birth of Conversion/Brainwashing in Christian Revivalism in 1735. The
Pavlovian explanation of the three brain phases. Born-again preachers:
Step-by-Step, how they conduct a revival and the expected physiological
results. The "voice roll" technique used by preachers, lawyers and hypnotists.
New trance-inducing churches. The 6 steps to conversion. The decognition
process. Thought-stopping techniques. The "sell it by zealot" technique. True
believers and mass movements. Persuasion techniques: "Yes set," "Imbedded
Commands," "Shock and Confusion," and the "Interspersal Technique."
Subliminals. Vibrato and ELF waves. Inducing trance with vibrational sound.
Even professional observers will be "possessed" at charismatic gatherings. The
"only hope" technique to attend and not be converted. Non-detectable
Neurophone programming through the skin. The medium for mass take-over.
I'm Dick Sutphen and this tape is a studio-recorded, expanded version of a
talk I delivered at the World Congress of Professional Hypnotists Convention
in Las Vegas, Nevada. Although the tape carries a copyright to protect it from
unlawful duplication for sale by other companies, in this case, I invite
individuals to make copies and give them to friends or anyone in a position to
communicate this information.
Although I've been interviewed about the subject on many local and
regional radio and TV talk shows, large-scale mass communication appears to be
blocked, since it could result in suspicion or investigation of the very media
presenting it or the sponsors that support the media. Some government agencies
do not want this information generally known. Nor do the Born-Again Christian
movement, cults, and many human-potential trainings.
Everything I will relate only exposes the surface of the problem. I don't
know how the misuse of these techniques can be stopped. I don't think it is
possible to legislate against that which often cannot be detected; and if
those who legislate are using these techniques, there is little hope of
affecting laws to govern usage. I do know that the first step to initiate
change is to generate interest. In this case, that will probably only result
from an underground effort.
In talking about this subject, I am talking about my own business. I know
it, and I know how effective it can be. I produce hypnosis and subliminal
tapes and, in some of my seminars, I use conversion tactics to assist
participants to become independent and self-sufficient. But, anytime I use
these techniques, I point out that I am using them, and those attending have a
choice to participate or not. They also know what the desired result of
participation will be.
So, to begin, I want to state the most basic of all facts about
brainwashing: IN THE ENTIRE HISTORY OF MAN, NO ONE HAS EVER BEEN BRAINWASHED
AND REALIZED, OR BELIEVED, THAT HE HAD BEEN BRAINWASHED. Those who have been
brainwashed will usually passionately defend their manipulators, claiming they
have simply been "shown the light" . . . or have been transformed in
miraculous ways.
The Birth of Conversion
CONVERSION is a "nice" word for BRAINWASHING . . . and any study of
brainwashing has to begin with a study of Christian revivalism in eighteenth
century America. Apparently, Jonathan Edwards accidentally discovered the
techniques during a religious crusade in 1735 in Northampton, Massachusetts.
By inducing guilt and acute apprehension and by increasing the tension, the
"sinners" attending his revival meetings would break down and completely
submit. Technically, what Edwards was doing was creating conditions that wipe
the brain slate clean so that the mind accepts new programming. The problem
was that the new input was negative. He would tell them, "You're a sinner!
You're destined for hell!"
As a result, one person committed suicide and another attempted suicide.
And the neighbors of the suicidal converts related that they, too, were
affected so deeply that, although they had found "eternal salvation," they
were obsessed with a diabolical temptation to end their own lives.
Once a preacher, cult leader, manipulator or authority figure creates the
brain phase to wipe the brain-slate clean, his subjects are wide open. New
input, in the form of suggestion, can be substituted for their previous ideas.
Because Edwards didn't turn his message positive until the end of the revival,
many accepted the negative suggestions and acted, or desired to act, upon
them.
Charles J. Finney was another Christian revivalist who used the same
techniques four years later in mass religious conversions in New York. The
techniques are still being used today by Christian revivalists, cults,
human-potential trainings, some business rallies, and the United States Armed
Services . . . to name just a few.
Let me point out here that I don't think most revivalist preachers realize
or know they are using brainwashing techniques. Edwards simply stumbled upon a
technique that really worked, and others copied it and have continued to copy
it for over two hundred years. And the more sophisticated our knowledge and
technology become, the more effective the conversion. I feel strongly that
this is one of the major reasons for the increasing rise in Christian
fundamentalism, especially the televised variety, while most of the orthodox
religions are declining.
The Three Brain Phases
The Christians may have been the first to successfully formulate
brainwashing, but we have to look to Pavlov, the Russian scientist, for a
technical explanation. In the early 1900s, his work with animals opened the
door to further investigations with humans. After the revolution in Russia,
Lenin was quick to see the potential of applying Pavlov's research to his own
ends.
Three distinct and progressive states of transmarginal inhibition were
identified by Pavlov. The first is the EQUIVALENT phase, in which the brain
gives the same response to both strong and weak stimuli. The second is the
PARADOXICAL phase, in which the brain responds more actively to weak stimuli
than to strong. And the third is the ULTRA-PARADOXICAL phase, in which
conditioned responses and behavior patterns turn from positive to negative or
from negative to positive.
With the progression through each phase, the degree of conversion becomes
more effective and complete. The way to achieve conversion are many and
varied, but the usual first step in religious or political brainwashing is to
work on the emotions of an individual or group until they reach an abnormal
level of anger, fear, exitement, or nervous tension.
The progressive result of this mental condition is to impair judgement and
increase suggestibility. The more this condition can be maintained or
intensified, the more it compounds. Once catharsis, or the first brain phase,
is reached, the complete mental takeover becomes easier. Existing mental
programming can be replaced with new patterns of thinking and behavior.
Other often-used physiological weapons to modify normal brain functions
are fasting, radical or high sugar diets, physical discomforts, regulation of
breathing, mantra chanting in meditation, the disclosure of awesome mysteries,
special lighting and sound effects, programmed response to incense, or
intoxicating drugs.
The same results can be obtained in contemporary psychiatric treatment by
electric shock treatments and even by purposely lowering a person's blood
sugar level with insulin injections.
Before I talk about exactly how some of the techniques are applied, I want
to point out that hypnosis and conversion tactics are two distinctly different
things--and that conversion techniques are far more powerful. However, the two
are often mixed . . . with powerful results.
How Revivalist Preachers Work
If you'd like to see a revivalist preacher at work, there are probably
several in your city. Go to the church or tent early and sit in the rear,
about three-quarters of the way back. Most likely repetitive music will be
played while the people come in for the service. A repetitive beat, ideally
ranging from 45 to 72 beats per minute (a rhythm close to the beat of the
human heart), is very hypnotic and can generate an eyes-open altered state of
consciousness in a very high percentage of people. And, once you are in an
alpha state, you are at least 25 times as suggestible as you would be in full
beta consciousness. The music is probably the same for every service, or
incorporates the same beat, and many of the people will go into an altered
state almost immediately upon entering the sanctuary. Subconsciously, they
recall their state of mind from previous services and respond according to the
post-hypnotic programming.
Watch the people waiting for the service to begin. Many will exhibit
external signs of trance--body relaxation and slightly dilated eyes. Often,
they begin swaying back and forth with their hands in the air while sitting in
their chairs. Next, the assistant pastor will probably come out. He usually
speaks with a pretty good "voice roll."
Voice Roll Technique
A "voice roll" is a patterned, paced style used by hypnotists when
inducing a trance. It is also used by many lawyers, several of whom are highly
trained hypnotists, when they desire to entrench a point firmly in the minds
of the jurors. A voice roll can sound as if the speaker were talking to the
beat of a metronome or it may sound as though he were emphasizing every word
in a monotonous, patterned style. The words will usually be delivered at the
rate of 45 to 60 beats per minute, maximizing the hypnotic effect.
Now the assistant pastor begins the "build-up" process. He induces an
altered state of consciousness and/or begins to generate the excitement and
the expectations of the audience. Next, a group of young women in "sweet and
pure" chiffon dresses might come out to sing a song. Gospel songs are great
for building excitement and INVOLVEMENT. In the middle of the song, one of the
girls might be "smitten by the spirit" and fall down or react as if possessed
by the Holy Spirit. This very effectively increases the intensity in the room.
At this point, hypnosis and conversion tactics are being mixed. And the result
is the audience's attention span is now totally focused upon the communication
while the environment becomes more exciting or tense.
Right about this time, when an eyes-open mass-induced alpha mental state
has been achieved, they will usually pass the collection plate or basket. In
the background, a 45-beat-per-minute voice roll from the assistant preacher
might exhort, "Give to God . . . Give to God . . . Give to God . . ." And the
audience does give. God may not get the money, but his already wealthy
representative will.
Next, the fire-and-brimstone preacher will come out. He induces fear and
increases the tension by talking about "the devil," "going to hell," or the
forthcoming Armegeddon.
In the last such rally I attended, the preacher talked about the blood
that would soon be running out of every faucet in the land. He was also
obsessed with a "bloody axe of God," which everyone had seen hanging above the
pulpit the previous week. I have no doubt that everyone saw it--the power of
suggestion given to hundreds of people in hypnosis assures that at least 10 to
25 percent would see whatever he suggested they see.
In most revivalist gatherings, "testifying" or "witnessing" usually
follows the fear-based sermon. People from the audience come up on stage and
relate their stories. "I was crippled and now I can walk!" "I had arthritis
and now it's gone!" It is a psychological manipulation that works. After
listening to numerous case histories of miraculous healings, the average guy
in the audience with a minor problem is sure he can be healed. The room is
charged with fear, guilt, intense excitement, and expectations.
Now those who want to be healed are frequently lined up around the edge of
the room, or they are told to come down to the front. The preacher might touch
them on the head firmly and scream, "Be healed!" This releases the psychic
energy and, for many, catharsis results. Catharsis is a purging of repressed
emotions. Individuals might cry, fall down or even go into spasms. And if
catharsis is effected, they stand a chance of being healed. In catharsis (one
of the three brain phases mentioned earlier), the brain-slate is temporarily
wiped clean and the new suggestion is accepted.
For some, the healing may be permanent. For many, it will last four days
to a week, which is, incidentally, how long a hypnotic suggestion given to a
somnambulistic subject will usually last. Even if the healing doesn't last, if
they come back every week, the power of suggestion may continually override
the problem . . . or sometimes, sadly, it can mask a physical problem which
could prove to be very detrimental to the individual in the long run.
I'm not saying that legitimate healings do not take place. They do. Maybe
the individual was ready to let go of the negativity that caused the problem
in the first place; maybe it was the work of God. Yet I contend that it can be
explained with existing knowledge of brain/mind function.
The techniques and staging will vary from church to church. Many use
"speaking in tongues" to generate catharsis in some while the spectacle
creates intense excitement in the observers.
The use of hypnotic techniques by religions is sophisticated, and
professionals are assuring that they become even more effective. A man in Los
Angeles is designing, building, and reworking a lot of churches around the
country. He tells ministers what they need and how to use it. This man's track
record indicates that the congregation and the monetary income will double if
the minister follows his instructions. He admits that about 80 percent of his
efforts are in the sound system and lighting.
Powerful sound and the proper use of lighting are of primary importance in
inducing an altered state of consciousnes--I've been using them for years in
my own seminars. However, my participants are fully aware of the process and
what they can expect as a result of their participation.
Six Conversion Techniques
Cults and human-potential organizations are always looking for new
converts. To attain them, they must also create a brain-phase. And they often
need to do it within a short space of time--a weekend, or maybe even a day.
The following are the six primary techniques used to generate the conversion.
The meeting or training takes place in an area where participants are cut
off from the outside world. This may be any place: a private home, a remote or
rural setting, or even a hotel ballroom where the participants are allowed
only limited bathroom usage. In human-potential trainings, the controllers
will give a lengthy talk about the importance of "keeping agreements" in life.
The participants are told that if they don't keep agreements, their life will
never work. It's a good idea to keep agreements, but the controllers are
subverting a positive human value for selfish purposes. The participants vow
to themselves and their trainer that they will keep their agreements. Anyone
who does not will be intimidated into agreement or forced to leave. The next
step is to agree to complete training, thus assuring a high percentage of
conversions for the organizations. They will USUALLY have to agree not to take
drugs, smoke, and sometimes not to eat . . . or they are given such short meal
breaks that it creates tension. The real reason for the agreements is to alter
internal chemistry, which generates anxiety and hopefully causes at least a
slight malfunction of the nervous system, which in turn increases the
conversion potential.
Before the gathering is complete, the agreements will be used to ensure
that the new converts go out and find new participants. They are intimidated