Answering Question Number 4

Ray Hemachandra asked Byron Katie the following question during an interview :

Do people sometimes struggle to answer the fourth question? Because you’re having the thought—it’s become part of you—so you are essentially imagining yourself as someone else, even if that’s your true self you’re imagining.

This is what she replied:

No. What I invite people to do is to look at their lives just the way they have lived them. Not to change anything, and not to do positive thinking at all. Just look at yourself going to the market yesterday. Look at yourself going to work yesterday. Look at yourself having breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Just look at your life without that thought.

Look at your life without the thought “Something terrible is going to happen” or “No one cares” or “I’m not good enough.” It’s the same life, but without the thought. It’s quite an amazing experience to see the same life with and without the thought. You come to see how crazy a thought can make you when you believe it.

And then you turn it around. For example, the opposite of “Something terrible is going to happen” is “Something wonderful is going to happen.” You can now find genuine examples of possibilities without being crazy—genuine, real possibilities of what can come out of a situation you’re experiencing. Your little child is asleep in the closet, and instead of thinking “Something terrible has happened to him,” you’re thinking “Something wonderful has happened to him.” Then, you start looking for examples and possibilities. It really helps when you’re looking for a little guy.

When you call the police, and they say, “Did you look in the closet?” you can honestly say yes, and let’s look again, but without the panic. With the panic, sometimes you can’t even answer: “I don’t know where I’ve looked.” You’re just panicked, and then you’re blind.

Fear is blind. There are some options in it, but they’re very limited compared to the options available to the fearless mind.

A Closer Look At Questions 3 and 4

Byron Katie explains what she means by, “How do you react when you think that thought?”— Is it a gut reaction? Is it emotional? Is it thought?

It would be like you coming home expecting to see your son running into your arms. You’re very happy walking through the door, and then he’s not there. You look around, and you can’t find him. You look more and, if you’re married, your wife says, “Uh-oh, I haven’t seen him in a while,” and then you both begin to panic.

Notice the emotions that happen, on a scale from 1 to 10. They can go from mild discomfort all the way up to real panic. Nothing’s actually happened, except that you’re believing thoughts like “I need to find him,” “He’s missing,” “He’s in trouble,” or “Something terrible has happened to him.” Whatever your thought is in that situation—“He could be hurt” or “He needs me” or “I need to call 911”—how do you react when you believe that thought?

And then you find him—maybe he fell asleep in the closet and you find him there. How do you treat him if you’ve been believing those thoughts? While one person might simply be relieved, another person might wake him up and start crying and holding him, or someone else might yell at him for causing all that worry. Just imagine the little guy and his fear and what that would mean to someone who was just taking a nap, after all.

So: “How do you react when you believe that thought?” How does it feel in your body when you believe the thought? How do you treat other people and yourself? Is this where addictions kick in? Is this where you begin to overeat or smoke the cigarette you said you’d never smoke again?

That’s all in the third question. It’s meditation. You sit and you watch what happens to your life as a result of that thought. You go back to your childhood and then all the way up to the present. “How do you react—what happens—when you believe the thought?” It’s an amazing question. Your whole life will just appear in front of you in images.

And then the fourth question: “Who would you be without the thought?” The result is calmness. You can watch your life without the thought. Let’s say, for example, the child is asleep in the closet, and you are afraid something has happened to him. Who would you be without the thought “Something terrible has happened to him”? The thought is like a nightmare that has surfaced. Even though you don’t really want to admit it, it’s always present for some of us. It surfaces when you can’t find him after the first five minutes.

So, you watch: “Who am I without the thought ‘Something terrible has happened’?” And then you get to that closet a lot quicker because your mind is clear. It’s not panicked. It’s more intelligent and calm without the thought. It does the same work, but it’s so much more effective. Our children and the world deserve that kind of clarity.

Questions About The Questions

In an interview, Katie was asked the following questions:  The first question is “Is it true?” The second question is “Can you absolutely know that it is true?” When you start doing The Work regularly, does the second question eventually fall off, because you fully probe things when you ask the first question?

Here's what she said:

Sometimes the second question doesn’t even apply. And sometimes with the concept you’re questioning, it makes more sense to ask just the second one and not the first one. For me, I wouldn’t miss one of the four. I like to say that the first question is there, and just in case you miss it, there’s another one to back it up.

Some people sincerely answer yes to the first question, but with the second question they have to go deeper and see if they can absolutely know what they’re so convinced of. For example, if the concept is “John shouldn’t have hit me—is that true?” your answer may be a quick yes. Of course it’s true; we all know that violence is bad. But then, when you ask yourself the second question, your answer may be different. You may find that you can’t absolutely know what is best for you or for John or for the world. And if your answer is yes, then just move to the third question: “How do you react when you believe that thought?” And just trust the questions and the inquiry.

People sometimes believe that every answer to the first two questions should be no. That’s not true. This is personal work. It’s meditation, and you come out with the answer that is yours. When you’re not defending and justifying, and you’re being very still, your answers can and do shock you.

From Hemachandra.com

When Everyone Does The Work

Byron Katie answers the question of what she thinks the world looks like when everybody comes from a fearless place of pure love and joy—when everyone lives with that depth of understanding?

It’s amazing. We all begin to do what we can do—what you and I are doing now—to clean up the planet and to find solutions rather than fight. It just happens everywhere. We begin to become human in a different way than what we’ve known before. We begin to be creative in a whole new way. Right now our minds are confused with thousands of untrue beliefs, and we act out of those beliefs, and our environment mirrors that confusion back to us.

We have the opportunity to—oh my goodness!—it’s unspeakable. All of us would be doing the most wonderful things, and we would never know who did them. Like pollution right now—we never really know who’s doing it, although if we’re awake enough, we can know our own part. So, it would be like living the opposite of the pollution example, where all day long you do something that is a contribution and helpful, but you don’t ever get found out. No one knows it’s you.

You realize, “My life is a contribution.” Even breathing is a contribution. Low self-esteem is not possible when you understand the nature of everything. Depression is not possible. The universe is absolutely friendly.

If everyone lived that way, it would end up with all of us living as our true nature. And if we weren’t fearful, we would live that way.

Source: Hemachandra.com

When Your Children Suffer

This dialogue is from an Interview With Byron Katie. The interviewer is Ray Hemachandra. To read the interview in it's entirety, visit his website, Hemachandra.com.

:

Ray: Here’s a personal sticking point: identification with my child’s well-being. If I get cancer, I can accept and love what is, and even approach it joyfully, I think. But if my child gets sick — I have a son who was born in 2000 — I think I would be devastated.

Katie: Ray, what makes you think that you could handle cancer any better than he could? How do you know that he couldn’t handle cancer at least as well as you could? If something happens to your son, your thoughts about not having him in your life are what your terror is about. It’s not about his life.

When your son is healthy and happy, you’re happy. And when you’re son is not healthy, you’re unhappy. But that doesn’t make sense. When you question your thoughts about a time when your son is not healthy, you come to see that you’re the only one you’re worried about. It’s all about your happiness. You want him to be happy so that you can be happy. You want him to live for you.

It’s like this: If you’re okay with dying, your son could be at least as enlightened as that. If you’re okay with cancer, your son could be at least as enlightened as you are. And if your son is afraid to die, it’s because of what you’ve taught him. Some children are afraid to die because their parents are afraid to die. My own children have come to understand that it’s totally okay with me if they die. They don’t have to live for my sake.

What happens when you’re afraid for your child’s well-being? How do you react when you think the thought that something terrible could happen to your son and he’s out of your sight at 7 years old? How do you treat him when you think the thought that he’s not okay?

Look at that. You become frightened. You become overprotective. You begin to teach your child some very fearful things.

You don’t even realize you’re teaching them, because you try to hide your fear. You think you’re doing a good job of it. And yet your child picks up all your concepts.

Who would you be without your fear—without the fear of losing your son when he has cancer or he is dying? Who would you be without the thought “I need my son to be alive”? You would be present with him, not missing one second, not one moment, of your lives together.

It’s just too valuable to take time out for your fearful thoughts about what would happen to you without him. It’s all about you, you, you. I invite everyone to question their thoughts about their children and allow their children to be free. That’s when we stop teaching our children fear.

Haiti: Why Send Money?

What we have here is a letter I found at ByronKatie.com, it was written to Byron Katie, and includes her response.

Dear Katie,

You say that you are contributing money to help the earthquake victims in Haiti. But aren’t you supposed to love what is? Don’t you love earthquakes? Why send money? I wouldn’t. That would be saying you don’t agree with what is.

~B

Dearest B,

My goodness! The simple answer is, “I like them and wish to support them and I like me when I do that.” And no one is “supposed” to love what is, nor can they, until they are no longer fooled by their minds. I simply do love what is, because I have questioned my stressful thoughts thoroughly enough to know how the mind creates all the suffering in the world.

For example, if I were to believe that the earthquake shouldn’t have happened, or if I were to imagine their pain and project it onto myself as though it were mine, it would be borrowing pain that isn’t mine, as well as costing me this amazing state of grace to be one who is freed up and in a position to help. I don’t want to add my false suffering as an aftershock to the Haitians.

How would that help anyone? It certainly wouldn’t help them, and it wouldn’t help me be as someone compassionately available and aware enough to see myself and them clearly enough to send support. To send support when I know to do it allows me to join where I want to, and the affect is a guiltless state of mind, one that joins without fear. I realize that the earthquake should have happened, because it did happen (in this dream I call reality). What happened happened, and in my kindest world, what is the best-intentioned wanting? It is “How can I help you, add to you in your time of need when I have no need myself?” That’s it, and nothing in the world can change that truest reality of our most authentic and pure kind nature.

I don’t want earthquakes to happen before the fact; but once they happen, that’s what I want. I am a lover of reality. As I often say, when you argue with God, you lose—but only 100% of the time.

Stephen gashed his finger the other day and came in and asked me to drive him to the emergency room for stitches. The blood was really gushing out quite strongly. I didn’t say, “Oh, it’s good that it happened, now you can bleed all over your clothes and the rug.” Rather, we hopped into the car, I drove to the hospital, and he got five stitches in his left hand. Actually it was fun, really fun for both of us. The doctor turned out to be a neighbor whom we hadn’t met yet, and Stephen said that he learned something about blood that will be useful when he writes about the Iliad, which is quite bloody. (He is translating the Iliad from ancient Greek. He finds that great fun—which I find hilarious, and very dear.)

"Loving what is" doesn’t mean that you are passive. Love is action. It lives from the inside out. It is source. People who are suffering are me, they are my own old self being witnessed—that part of my old mind that hasn’t caught up yet, my mind being witnessed, or, in other words, my mind coming back at me to see what is love and what isn’t yet. My mind, your mind, all mind: the same.. I respond to them (people, mind) with the same kindness as I practice toward myself, when I get up and brush my teeth and feed and water this body of the woman people call Katie. Some believe it and some don’t.

When someone comes to me who is suffering, my internal mind’s response and experience is “How can I help?” I don’t think that they shouldn’t be suffering. They are suffering (in their experience, and that makes it real for them as it used to be for “me”). That’s their truth, for the moment and I have mine and theirs is the cause of their suffering until it isn’t. If they are angry or depressed or sad or resentful, I never think that they shouldn’t be feeling what they’re feeling, or that whatever happened to them (as they see it) shouldn’t have happened. I listen. I am available as a “humane” being and friend. I am there to help them question the mind that is creating their suffering. I love that they come to me with an open mind, if they do; and if their mind is not so open, I love that too. Everything is welcome here.

I sent money to Haiti because that seemed to me the kind, right-minded thing to do. I just knew to do it. It was a wholehearted response to an invitation to help. That asking is what is, just as the earthquake is what is. Now that the earthquake happened, I love that people asked me for help, and I love love in action and sending money is just one way. Are you metaphorically experiencing an earthquake within you? If so, let’s do The Work.

Love,
kt

Accepting The World As It Is

From an Interview With Byron Katie, we have the following explanation of what she means when she talks about accepting the world as it is:

Ray: Some people might be troubled by your idea of fully accepting world conditions. Let me read a passage from A Thousand Names for Joy: “The apparent craziness of the world, like everything else, is a gift that we can use to set our minds free. Any stressful thought that you have about the planet, for example, shows you where you are stuck, where your energy is being exhausted in not fully meeting life as it is, without conditions.” And, then, “Until you can love what is—everything, including the apparent violence and craziness—you’re separate from the world, and you’ll see it as dangerous and frightening.”

So, war, genocide, poverty, hunger, environmental degradation—you love all parts of the world because you love what is. Can lovers of what is still be agents of change, and how can they do so without the “should”—that something should be other than what it is?

Katie: Let’s take the example of war—the war in Iraq. If I have the thought, “They should stop fighting,” then I can’t know that that’s true. Who do I think I am, God? Who am I to say what’s right and what’s wrong? Who am I to say what is good for me or you or the planet in the long run?

When I turn the thought around, one turnaround is “I should stop fighting.” Is there any place in my life where I am making war? Am I fighting with my husband or my children or my parents? Every time I read the newspaper, am I fighting with the President in my head? Am I fighting with myself? Let me work on that. That way war is ending somewhere in the world.

If I think the environment in the world needs to be cleaned up, let me clean up my own environment. Let me clean up the environment in my head—let me work with the pollution in that ecosystem. And that’s huge: just to clean up one ecosystem.

The power of one is magnificent. Look at what Gandhi did. He was clear. Well, I don’t know if he was or not, but he was certainly clear enough for me. So, it’s obviously possible, when we really love and respect people, for them to affect our lives. And we want to know: How is it that courageous, fearless people like Gandhi are possible?

The power of one! If you can’t stop war in your life, how can you expect politicians to stop war in the world? You can’t. And we all have equal wisdom, so if you can do it, then you know that everyone can do it if their minds are open to answering just four simple questions and beginning there.

Thinking Without Thinking

In an interview, Ray Hemachandra asks: Some people may struggle to disengage the intellect. How do you undo thinking without thinking? Is inquiry not thought engaging itself or deconstructing another thought?

Katie Replies: Actually, it’s mind seeing through itself and understanding itself. I like to say that understanding is the power. The most important relationship is the mind’s relationship with itself. In other words, the ultimate—and, really, the only—relationship you have is the relationship with your own thoughts.


As far as intellect, what else is there? Without intellect, there’s no story and no world. If we are in silence — in absolute silence with no thoughts — for 10 minutes, it’s only a thought that tells us we were silent for 10 minutes. Our only proof is a thought.


Mind is everything. There’s nothing that it’s not.


If people are living their lives for security and comfort and pleasure, then mind’s every waking moment will be plotting those things. That’s how it stays identified — as a body, as a you. The moment it begins to question itself, the mind becomes so clear that it starts working with itself rather than with the body’s identification.

Common Realizations

Byron Katie answers the question: What are some especially common stories and beliefs people realize they hold when they start doing The Work?

When I say, “People shouldn’t lie—is it true? How many of you think that’s true?” everyone in a room of, let’s say, a thousand people will raise their hand. Then I say, “Do people lie?” They all agree, “Yes, they do.” Then I ask, “Is there anyone in this room who has never lied?” No one ever raises a hand.

So, reality is: Should people lie? Yes. How do I know they should? They all do. This is not to condone lying. But realizing that people should lie when they do makes me a little more open-minded, a little more tolerant, when my child or my partner lies. Then, turn it around: I shouldn’t lie. I’m the one I need to work with. I’m the one who changes the world if I can follow what I think should and shouldn’t be lived in this world.


There are amazing beliefs a lot of people hold, like “They don’t care about me”; “I should be more successful”; “I don’t have enough money”; “I’m too fat”; “They shouldn’t have done it”; “I’m not good enough”—the beliefs go on and on. But when you begin to investigate these beliefs, the question “Is it true?” begins to live in you. It comes alive. It begins to rise as kind of a partner to all these stressful universal beliefs that people have been stuck in for centuries.


Also, the question “Who would I be without that thought?” begins to live, because you learn to identify stress with the concept that’s happening in the moment. And when that happens—oh, my goodness—what a world! In that moment, a state begins to happen that I call unceasing meditation.


You cease to be body-identified. The mind becomes a joy to itself. It dances with itself. It sees that it is its only self. It is its ultimate relationship and love and friend. It dances and sings, and the physical world cannot compete with that.


The nature of mind is that it loves everything once it loves itself—just as it opposes everything when it opposes itself.

Exerpt from an Interview With Byron Katie

What is the Work?

“The Work is merely four questions; it’s not even a thing. It has no motive, no strings. It’s nothing without your answers. These four questions will join any program you’ve got and enhance it. Any religion you have—they’ll enhance it. If you have no religion, they will bring you joy. And they’ll burn up anything that isn’t true for you. They’ll burn through to the reality that has always been waiting.”

~ Byron Katie

Where do we go astray?

Where do we go astray?
How do we start down the path of living in thoughts and illusions rather than pure joy?


Here's what Byron Katie says:

It’s like this, to take a simple example: Your mother says, “That’s a tree.” And you’re a little kid, you don’t have a reference for it; for you, the whole world is one unseparated reality. And then she says again, “Honey, it’s a tree.” You still don’t have a reference for it, but eventually you hear it enough times and from enough people that there is a moment when you believe it. And it’s separated out the moment you believe. You actually see a tree.


What are you believing? It seems benign to think, “There’s a tree.” It seems to be a beautiful thought. But the moment you believed that there was a tree, there was the thought I—there was a you believing that there was a tree. And in that same moment, there was a mother teaching you, “There’s a tree.” There was a whole world of separate things, rather than the reality of what is.


And, really, your mother didn’t teach you, “It’s a tree.” You taught yourself, the moment you believed.


The world you live in is 100 percent your own responsibility. If you don’t like your world, it doesn’t work to say, “Well, it’s my mother’s fault. She taught me how to think.” No. The moment you believed what she was saying was the moment your suffering began. And it’s not just “mother”—it’s everyone and everything around us. It’s the dream—the dream world.
My mother became a believer, and then I became a believer. But when I was 43 years old, I began to think for myself, somehow—by fluke and by grace. And I thought, “Oh, my, I was so mistaken. The world isn’t what I believed it to be. I am not what I believed me to be, and neither is anyone.” So now I live in a state of grace, where I don’t have to know.

Exerpted from an Interview with Byron Katie

Do We Need Teachers?

Exerpted from an interview by Ray Hemachandra:

At an event the other night in Asheville, North Carolina, you said, “Joy is a natural way of being.” In A Thousand Names for Joy, you write, “Sadness isn’t a natural response.” Katie, if joy is natural, why do so many people need a teacher to tell them they can live in it?

Byron Katie:

Well, nobody needs a teacher, though most of us can use a little reminder now and then. Teacher is not a word I normally use. It implies that we all don’t teach equally, and that’s not true. Everyone has equal wisdom. It is absolutely equally distributed. No one is wiser than anyone else.

Ultimately, there’s no one who can teach you except yourself. Each of us needs to look at what our belief system really consists of. Look at the concepts that come across your mind and just notice what you believe.

Why Are We Suffering?

Here's what Byron Katie says about why we suffer:

If your beliefs are stressful and you question them, you come to see that they aren’t true — whereas prior to questioning, you absolutely believe them.


How can you live in joy when you’re believing thoughts that bring on sadness, frustration, anger, alienation, and loneliness? When you believe those thoughts, you think that the world is making you unhappy. But it’s your thoughts about the world that are making you unhappy.

Doing The Work: A Facilitation Guide

Here is a simple guide on how to do "The Work." Basically, what we are doing is using the following four questions and sub-questions to investigate a stressful belief - for example, "I am a pathetic loser." (Some of the sub-questions may not apply.)

1. Is it true?

(Close your eyes,be still, go deeply as you contemplate your answer.
If your answer is no, continue to Question 3.)

2. Can you absolutely know that it's true?

• Can you know more than God/reality?
• Can you really know what's best in the long run for his/her/your own path?
• Can you absolutely know that you would be happier if you got what you wanted?

3. How do you react when you think that thought? (When you believe that thought?)

• Where does the feeling hit you, where do you feel it in your body when you believe that thought?
• How far does the feeling travel? Describe it.
• What pictures do you see when you believe that thought? Watch it, be still, notice.
• When did that thought first occur to you?
• How do you treat others when you believe that thought? What do you say to them? What do you do?
• Whom does your mind attack and how? Be specific.
• How do you treat yourself when you believe that thought?
• Is this where addictions kick in and you reach for food, alcohol, credit cards, the TV remote?
• Do thoughts of self-hatred occur? What are they?
• How have you lived your life because you believed that thought? Be specific. Close your eyes, watch your past.
• Does this thought bring peace or stress into your life?
• Where does your mind travel when you believe that thought? (List any underlying beliefs, and inquire later.)
• Whose business are you in when you think that thought?
• What do you get for holding onto that belief?
• Can you find a peaceful reason to keep that thought?
• What terrible thing do you assume would happen if you didn't believe that thought? Write down the terrible thought, and turn it around to the opposite and test it for yourself - is the opposite as true or truer?

4. Who would you be without the thought?

• How would you live life differently if you didn't believe that thought? Close your eyes and imagine life without it.
• Imagine you are meeting this person for the very first time with no story. What do you see?
• Who are you right now, sitting here without that thought?

Turn the thought around.

(Statements can be turned around to yourself, to the other, to the opposite, and to "my thinking," wherever it applies. Find a minimum of three genuine examples in your life where each turnaround is as true as or truer than your original statement.)

• If you lived this turnaround, what would you do, or how would you live your life, differently?
• Do you see any other turnarounds that seem as true or truer?

The turnarounds allow you to see the best course of action for you.

The key to experiencing The Work is to go beyond the quick answers of the intellect and tap into a deeper wisdom. Ask, then be still and wait for an inner voice to respond. With practice, this will become easier. You will learn to rely on yourself—not the world—to see what's true for you.

Byron Katie

The Four Questions

Investigate each of your statements on the Judge-Your-Neighbor Worksheet using the four questions below. The Work is meditation. It’s about opening to your heart, not about trying to change your thoughts. Ask the questions, then go inside and wait for the deeper answers to surface. Download the Facilitation Guide for helpful sub-questions.

In its most basic form, The Work consists of four questions and your turnarounds. For example, your statement might be “[Name] doesn't listen to me.” Find someone in your life about whom you have had that thought, take that statement and put it up against the four questions and turnarounds of The Work.

1. Is it true?
2. Can you absolutely know that it's true?
3. How do you react, what happens, when you believe that thought?
4. Who would you be without the thought?

Once you have the answers to the questions written down, begin doing the "turn arounds."

Well? How did we do?

And so we've come to the end of 30 days of hypnotising ourselves into more prosperous lives. For me, this was one of the most enjoyable projects we've done. I thoroughly enjoyed the videos, and I really do think it had an effect on my state of mind. As for my finances... I'm not so sure. I don't see anything tangible, but there does seem to be an undercurrent of hope.

I would really love it if we could get some good feedback on this project. What I'd like to know is how you would rate this project.

• On a scale of one to five, five being the highest, how would you rate hypnosis as a means to achieving prosperity, success, and/or peace and happiness?
• Do you think hypnosis works for you?
• Did you feel it had a positive effect on your finances?
• if so - how? if not - how not?
• What were your favorite videos?
• Did you learn anything? if so - what?
• Do you have any insights, experiences, or other stuff you'd like to share?
• What did you like about it?
• What did you NOT like about it?
• Would you recommend self-hypnosis, or hypnosis downloads to friends and family?

Over the next few days I'll be compiling a wrap-up of this project and throwing out ideas for the next one. I might even put together a poll if I can't make up my mind what to focus on next. If anyone has any suggestions for what they'd like to explore for our upcoming project, now's the time to put your two cents in.

Hypnosis FAQ

Here are some common worries and questions that people have on clinical hypnotherapy:



Can I be hypnotized?
Most people can go into a hypnotic trance. The only types of people that cannot be hypnotised are…

1. Those suffering from psychosis or a thought disorder
2. A person with a low IQ
3. A person does not want to be hypnotised. It is very easy to resist hypnosis if you want to.

What is a hypnotic trance?
It is a normal and natural state that most of us experience several times a day. It commonly happens when people are driving. Have you ever driven somewhere and not really remembered the journey? It also often occurs when reading a book or watching TV. Sometimes you can be so absorbed in the book or TV programme that you are not consciously aware that someone is talking to you. Hypnosis is the focusing of the conscious attention in such a narrow corridor of influence. The conscious mind is so intensely focused that other influences are not being critically analysed by the conscious mind. We still hear them, although we are not always aware.

A good example of this is when you are in a place where there are several conversations going on at once. They may all sound like a mass of background noise. However if someone in one of those conversations mentions your name, you then consciously focus on that conversation. How did you know someone said your name? Your subconscious mind (which is far more powerful than your conscious mind) was listening to EVERY conversation AT THE SAME TIME! That is perhaps a reason why you can sometimes “just know” something. Your subconscious mind has absorbed it without you consciously being aware.

What does hypnosis feel like?
When in a trance you feel more mentally and physically relaxed. It is a very pleasant experience, and you can tell that you are still in control. You can still hear exactly what is going on around you, unless you choose to drift your attention away. You become aware that you can easily stand up, talk, or move whenever you want. A lot of people (me included) when they first experience a hypnotic trance move their fingers or hands in order to test whether they can move at will. Sometimes a patient can be a little difficult to wake up. This is not a sinister thing as it has been portrayed. No one has ever been stuck in trance. It is more a case that a patient just “can't be bothered” to wake up as it feels so pleasant. However they soon become bored and will wake up pretty soon. One trick the old hypnosis pro’s use is to tell the patient that they are charging for the time. It’s amazing how quickly they then wake up!

Is hypnosis dangerous?
A hypnotic trance is actually a very natural state that almost everyone goes into several times per day. In 1955 the British Medical Association set up an inquiry which favourably reported hypnosis as a therapeutic tool. It even recommended that it should be taught at medical schools. Hypnosis was also approved by the Council of Mental Health of the American Medical Association in September of 1958 as a safe practice with no harmful side effects. Since then there has been acceleration in the establishment of hypnosis societies for doctors, dentists, and psychologists. No one has been seriously hurt with hypnosis.

Can I be made to do things against my will?
You could never be made to do anything against your will or contrary to your value system. If this was actually possible, would there not be criminals learning the art of hypnotherapy in order to hypnotise their bank managers to opening the vaults and handing over a large sum of cash?! In a trance, you would not unknowingly reveal your deepest secrets. You can even lie when in a trance, which is one reason why testimony in hypnosis is not permissible evidence in a court of law. It is only used by police to help with the investigation. A person will only act upon suggestions that serve them in some way or reinforce an expected behaviour, anything else their subconscious will just ignore. Most people develop these misperceptions from seeing or hearing about a Stage Hypnosis show. However they largely achieve their results from showmanship, selection of the more extrovert people, and peer pressure.

How long will it take before I notice a change?
In one session, you can expect to become more relaxed than you are right now. Most people do not relax enough, and some people never seem to relax! Being more relaxed can help most mental and physical problems that you may have. I have often had patients report back to me that people noticed that they seemed more relaxed after just one session. In the past I have significantly helped problems such as IBS, skin complaints, and addictions, simply by doing relaxation work.

Hypnosis can bridge the gap between your head and your heart, making your goals much more emotionally compelling, and therefore increasing your chances of permanent change. Good health links body and mind to focus on a common goal. Depending upon the intensity of your session and the number of times you have listened to the recording, you will notice suggestions for the desired behavioural changes spontaneously popping into your conscious mind almost immediately.

source

Chanting - How did we do?

The time has come to weigh in with our thoughts, insights, experiences, and ideas about "Chanting for Prosperity." I'm especially curious to know if anyone actually did 30 continuous days of chanting, and if so, which chant did you use?

Other questions include the following:

• Did you actively participate in this project?
• Or was it more of a hit and miss kind of thing?
• If you did do some chanting, do you feel it brought more prosperity into your life?
• If so, will you continue the practice?
• Were there other benefits?
• Was there a favorite chant?
• Did you learn anything new?
• Did you experience any insights or "aha" moments?
• What was your favorite part of the project?
• Your least favorite?
• Would you recommend chanting to others as a way to have a better life?

Your input is deeply appreciated and valued!
Thanks!

Keeping the peace?

I loved this comment that Karla made a couple of days ago. I decided to post it so that all of our readers will get to see it. The comment was in reference to the post about brain scans being able to predict who will keep a promise and who won't.


"What is dishonest?" For some people, white lies and evasive techniques come very easily because they are the type that survives best in a harmonious atmosphere. I see this a lot in reading palms. Crooked pinkies indicate fibbing...the more twisted the pinkie, the more apt someone is to twist the truth. But slightly bent often just means the person adjusts truth to keep peace.

We can apply this to our project, I think. When we don't keep those promises to ourselves were we fibbing at the onset? Or is it that the need is simply to harmonize another area of our life at that moment when we must let that promise go?

So, Karla, here's my answer:

When I read this, the first thing I did was check my pinkie fingers - and sure enough, they are only very slightly bent. How interesting! Years ago, they used to be alot more crooked than they are now. So, clearly I'm making progress with myself which is good. The fact that they are even slightly bent, plus the fact that I know what I do got me thinking... Do I adjust the truth to keep the peace? Or am I more likely to tweak the facts in order to avoid trouble? or ease my workload? And at what point does adjusting the truth to smooth out the wrinkles in my life actually begin to cause way more trouble for me than it fixes?

And that answer brings up even more questions:

And what about you? Are you a truth adjuster? What do your pinkie fingers look like? When you find yourself not keeping the commitments you make to yourself, is it in the interests of peace and harmony? or to avoid trouble? And is that the same thing? What areas of your life do you most often find a need to "harmonize," where are your peacekeeping skills most evident? I would love to hear your thoughts and ideas about this one, and how it might relate to this project, and have you been able to keep your commitment to yourself thus far, and if not, were you on a peace keeping mission? or troubleshooting? or what?

What do you think?

"Imagine making a promise when in fact, you know you would benefit from not keeping it. Would you keep it anyway?"

This question was posed in yesterday's post and I've been thinking about it ever since. How would you answer that question?

And what if you thought you would benefit from a commitment you made, and then found that more benefits would be had if you didn't follow through? What would you do then?

Which brings me to the question of instant gratification vs delayed gratification. Is this what happens when I make a commitment to myself of "no more junk food" and then when confronted with chips and dip, I'm right away having some? Is it that the immediate benefit outweighs the not so immediate benefit?

And does this make me an opportunist? Or merely human? And what about you? How do you handle delayed gratification, hasty commitments, and unrealistic promises? Do you think it would be helpful to create for yourself a habit of renegotiating, renewing, or rethinking what you say "yes" to?

And while we're on the subject of "yes," I'd like to point out that every "yes" has it's inherent "no." For example, "yes" to yet another slice of pizza may actually be "no" to a night without heartburn. At the same time, "no" to taking time for yourself to relax, or create, may actually be a "yes" to stress or unhappiness.

So, there you have it. Plenty of things to think about, questions to ponder, and answers to post!