Most of them tell you that everything is a trick of the mind. Some others say that they have supernatural powers (Lior Suchard, Guy Bavli or Uri Geller are good examples). I've been studying hypnosis for a long time, and I know for sure that some of them use suggestion and streep hypnosis to play tricks (Derren Brown, for example).
I've read some books about these subjects, but most of them cannot explain their own powers. They just "can" read minds (read Mind Reader: Unlocking the Power of Your Mind to Get What You Want by Lior Suchard), but they cannot provide a methodology to develop such abilities.
Almost every online community of mentalism is very closed to outsiders, and this doesn't help with these questions. It's understandable, since many of the tricks they use in their routines could be exposed. But there are a few that give suble hints about magick or real telepathy, and I cannot confirm this without a real accomplished mentalist.
My experience with the paranormal don't provide a realiable, trainable and foolproof effect that I could use in a show. Even hypnosis relies on a very suggestionable subject, however it is workable (I have done it in familiar/private shows with friends).
So, have you met any mentalist with real superpowers? Are they naturally gifted or it is something trainable?
I don't think of myself as a mentalist I guess, but I've been a hypnotist for almost 30 years. I can tell you that hypnosis goes way deeper than relying on very suggestible people. I was never very into mind reading myself, but I tell ways to influence people remotely; knock them unconscious telepathically, bring others into a shared mindscape, remotely effect the body of another person, or merge with another person so that you can experience their body sensations, or project your own body sensations on to them.
I mean, mentalism is just an umbrella term that includes various skills of perception & influences. Since two mentalists may use different methods to achieve similar end results; is mentalism actually your goal? If you want specific mind powers; focus on the methods for developing those powers. It seems like focus on being a mentalist, amounts to focus on being a performer. This is fine if it's your true goal, but a large part of the path in developing mind powers is paying enough attention to yourself to narrow down want you truly want at the fundamental level.
I've met plenty of people with the same or similar superpowers, but they didn't call themselves mentalists. Please forgive & correct me if I've misunderstood your question:)
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"Worry about self delusion, after you have succeeded." -Owltwelve
I dont want to be a performer for money. I would like to feel what is to have a real, powerful and realiable superpower with an effect as pure as some mentalists show. BUT I dont really know if it's all a trick or they do really have that kind of powers. If they really do, maybe they have some interesting books or info in the subject that I can use.
Mental reading, mental influence or mental attacks all seem like godly superpowers to me if they can be used in a reproducible way in your everyday life. But I've never met anyone in person capable of doing any of it. Even people that claimed to have experienced such powers, they do it in an inconsistent basis and they are somewhat gifted from birth. It's not something I can bring into my life with knowledge and training.
So my interest in mentalism is about getting their info in this topic and compare results and methods.
-- Edited by Hipnos on Monday 12th of July 2021 09:15:05 PM
It's not a magic bullet, but it can be helpful for isolating & reinforcing states of mind. It can also help you to establish habits & triggers to quickly access the desirable states of mind. It can help you to access potentials that your conscious mind may be blocking for whatever reason.
Since pk like any other skill can be hindered by performance anxieties or lack of personal insight; hypnosis can help you to understand yourself & leverage your attention more efficiently. Psychokinesis is still a skill though; no getting around actual practice:)
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"Worry about self delusion, after you have succeeded." -Owltwelve
