 Posted Tuesday, June 03, 2008 11:05 AM
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| Reading through the beginning chapters of "The Quimby Manuscripts" I encountered some interesting experiments of his. His work, in his early mesmeric days, centered on studying reactions of his patients after they had been given an idea from him...mentally. Quimby would place his subject into a hypnotic state and observe their reaction as he (Quimby) mentally pictured wild animals and such. His findings were that his subjects became extremely frightened - as if the experience were real - even though he would audibly tell them that this was all just in the imagination. Quimby's conclusion was that HIS thoughts became REAL to his subject. Now, if during this demonstration, there was someone present who was a severe skeptic, this whole process was disrupted by the skeptics thoughts. This whole process led Quimby to believe that other peoples thoughts seemed to have more power over his subject than the subject's own thoughts, so that a doctors belief was made manifest in his patient. In other words, thoughts of others have more power over a sick persons body than the sick persons own thoughts do. Quimby's thinking was that if he could produce a terrifying spectacle into anothers thoughts and make it real to them, then he could certainly place a wonderful, beneficial thought into a sick persons mind and produce a healing. In a round about way, this makes a compelling argument for M.A.M.. From what I can glean, I understand that a few criteria must first be met. The victim needs to be a willing one, in that they must submit to being put into a hypnotic trance. Or, in the case of Christian Scientists, they would call a practitioner..which, in effect, is giving carte blanch with your mind... you're submitting to THEIR control of YOUR mind. The other possibility is that you submit to neither, but you BELIEVE in their power over you. This explains why rogue Christian Scientists would tell their victim that they were "taking them up in thought." This, by the way, wreaks of VOODOO..minus the chicken bones - but not the witchdoctor (practitioner). If a person believes in the value of a doll with pins stuck in it - it becomes real to them. This whole business of M.A.M. used to be quite laughable to me until I read about this, now I see a dark power at work. Since it is a power, I have to conclude that any power that takes control of a persons spirit like that is not from GOD. In fact, if you are filled with the Holy Spirit, M.A.M. has no power over you - just as you cannot be possessed by demons. The reason I even bring this up, is that I often wondered.. if you openly defied the Christian Science church, if some of them would "take you up in thought".... and would this have any power over you - as it did in Quinby's experiments...I have to conclude that it would not, but welcome anyone's opinion.
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Posted Wednesday, June 11, 2008 8:04 PM
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| Anonymous, you've thrown your bucket into a very deep well. "Voodoo" is actually the Carribean (esp. Haitian) variant of West African juju, which, in turn, is a manifestion of a common, worldwide set of folk beliefs I refer to as shamanism. Shamans are sometimes known as medicine men (and women), American Indian sachems, witch doctors, psychic healers, and so on. There are many and various types, but certain themes and beliefs show up rather quite frequently, such as (spiritist) medium activity (including animal familiars), folk pharmaceutical (both medicinal and psychotropic), healing of various physical and metaphysical therapies, prophesy, spiritual ecstasy,* necromancy, and so on. But the ability to heal is an essential, even the core, part of a shaman's art, power, and social standing. Shamanism has not been rare in Western culture. CS competed against Theosophy in its day. "New Age" believers are enthralled with shamanistic belief and practices.LIke J.K. Rowling's witches and wizards, shamans are both made and trained. It seems that young people, even children sometimes recognized as "gifted," but then become trained, starting with apprenticeships. George Lucas borrowed from shaman culture in his Star Wars epics, particularly the notion that there is a conflict between "light" and "dark" forces--and their devotees. The power of thought is an important aspect of shamanism. It is imperative that the sick/injured person have "faith" in the shaman/practioner. Psychosomatic illness will obviously respond, but you've hit on something much deeper and spiritually mysterious, Anonymous. There does seem to be a (for lack of a better term) mystical phenomenon involved here. Sometimes even a skeptic is healed. But what you're reporting on Quimby is new to me. It explains the genesis of Eddy's dread of mental malpractice, which I have previously dismissed as her strange paranoia. Or is it just something that shows us how malleable (and easily controlled) hysteria can be? *Often induced in congregational assembly, and may involve alcohol, halluncinagenic agents, singing, drumming, dancing etc.
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