Omaha daily bee., 1891-03-30


be laws against indscrimlnate hypn otization.
His reasons were altogether founded upon
medical and pathological view OF the matter
In his latter conclusion most OF tho members
of the Theosophical society fully concur but
they also think that there will be danger
from crime suggested TO hypnotizod subjects.
not, however, in the Immediate present but
i'm the future. This is because hypnotlsm is
not understood by the medical profes sion nor
its dangers appreciated. Still less do they
credit the public with any correct KNOWLEDGE
on the su beet.
The very best hypnotizers are only on the
outer edge Of the pursuit. and know very
well that there are points at which tho hyp-
notized subject escapes their influence con-
tinues in the state Of hypnosis, and remains
under some influence not known TO the 0per-
ator nor distnvuishable by the subject. Here
is one danger dan ger Of Ignorance and of
blind guides leading one equally blind. Sucn
writers as Binet, Braid and others arc only
statisticians they simply give facts and
methods, oil being equally in the dark as to
causes and hidden conditions Again, the
operators In the forefront of hypnotic fame
know, TOO, as Cbarcot has said there
is danger that hysteria will be devel-
oped where II never existed with long train
OF other evils. This is why he demands the
suppress ion of indiscrimnate hypnotizing.
But the zeal rock on which all will at last
break is tnis--and well known to the theo-
sophical student-that as the force and power
of this agent are better known, 1T Will be
seen that, whatever the influence is, the pro-
cess going on in all cases OF hynotizing Is the
contracting Of the cells Of the body and the
brain from the periphery TO the centre; and
this process is actually phenomenon OF
death, aud is the opposite of mesmeric effect.
This point is not considered by the medical
profession even IL known to its mem bers, and
it does OF seem likely that they will find it,
because po5tmortem examin ations never re
veal the action of living cell Magnetism
by human influence starts from within and
pruceeds TO the outer surface, thus exhibit
ing ph enomenon of life the very opposite of
hypnotiSm. And the use OF curative magne-
tism is not Objectionable Yet it, also should
be limited in practise TO competent members
OF the medical profession
The more studious and careful fellows OF
the Theosophical society then, are against
the use of hypnotisn. In all It's anesthetic
phases IL can be duplicated by mesmeris I'm
without any bad effects DR.. Esdailo has
aSundantly shown this Laws ought TO be
passed making it a miSdemeanor to have pub
lie or private hypnotic seances. And these
laws should be aimed even at those doctors
who, un der the plea of scientific research
throw subjects into undignified and disgrace
full positions. Such practices are not neces-
Sary and are deliberated against the desire
of the waking state of the person when he
exercises his will and JUDI tment. They only
exhibit the operators power and add nothing
to knowledge which cannot otherwise be OBJ
taiued.
corded in France and elsewhere the laws
governing mans inner constitu tion-and
which especially obtain in hypnotism IN from a
certain point-are not perceived by the
learned writer's. Some give only facts about
methods or facts about strange recurrence
! of statesh peculiar to each person DR..
James of this country assumes that there is
an hidden self who plays all these queer
tricks with the mortal shape.
Theos ophstS know that the extraordinary
N m n r.
renee of states, and the apparently distinct
| division OF intelligence in a single human
| subject are all explained by the ancient east
| method of reducing the inner power Of man
| into seven classes, in each Of which the hid
| den self-the ego-can and does act ind O.
pendently.
This theory begins by considering the body
| as only a gross instrumc or field for the ic-
tion Of the real man. 1t divides him into
| seven planes of action, In every one of those
| the ego or self being in possession Of con-
sciousn ess operating in manner peculiarly
appropriate to that plane and also partaking
| of the consciousness and OF the planes above,
| but not below any particular one in which it
may for the lime be located This further,
OF course, assumes for every cell and atom q
| consciousness OF its own, the t0tality gol ng
| to make up the consciousness called by that
name by us. To every cell and atom are also
| given, in this scheme, memory and sensation.
| The thing we call memory is not confused by
| the theosophical system to the BRAIN, but is
| also specialized in every spot where
there Is nerve, hence sometimes
| memory begins to act from portions Of the
body which have previously been concerned
| in any sensation and actually report TO the
brain much of what it has to recollect. This
must all be admitted, We think. before the
4 medical profession will begin to properly
4 understand hy pnotsm.
| But further, each of the seven great layers
\ OF fields of consciousness is further divided
| into other subfields, in each of which there
! may be a separate experience and action, OF
all may be combined. Now in the case.
| taken up by DIR. James, the popularity notet
| was that when the su bject acted as No |, sht
4 had no recollection of a state called No. 2
NO explanation of this was Offered, only thu
4 fact being recorded. II is explained by thu
| localizatiOn Of the consciousness of the ego
| for the time being in one or the other of th'
| Subfelds Of action included in the first class
| of seven, all of which belong to the body ant
its nsations. The failure to recoilect from
the one to the other was due to the fact tina
4 the ego was forced into that partic ular field
| 1T. Hence its action was only automatic
that is to say it was simply the support TO
| the life of the body which was left TO the us
of its own physical memory without the ali
| of the inner self This effect was in conse
4 quence almost altogether of the specific cor
tractile action of the hypnotic process, which
as said above, is essentially a contraction o
the cells from the outside to the centre
4 lnlS IOrcinR anu cOnGractiuB WILL AWAY
prevent the ego from educating itself to re
member from state to state and field to tiel'
the experience met in each. Il
the ordinary waking state the Who'll
mass of experience is treasured up by tn
inner man who, through the prain-as the in
strument, arranges them Ia an orderly man
ner and thoroughly digests them for use.
The cases where the subject escapes fror
the operators control are all explicable un de
the same theosophc theory. That is, thos
are inst ances where tho ego retreats fror
the first plane or field of consciousness mad
up Of seven su bdivisions to the next one O
the whole class ofseven, instead of enterin
one Of the subdivisions Of the first. And a
the medical practitioners do not know 0
these nor admit the reality OF the higher sell
they are not acquainted with the means TO
reaching the ego when 1t has escape
further from them in to field Of action an
consciousness Of which the operator is in at
solute Ignorance. That Is TO say they are nc
examining the real field Of operation Of tn
force, but are looking at some of its phenou
ena merely. Those phenomena are @,
hibited in the body or outer shell, while tn
| psycho-physiological processes going o
within and causing the visible phenomen
| are hidden from their view.
WRAPPED WITH WIRE.