Hello Surendra and list members, Indeed an interesting and intriguing topic of discussion. Can the blind be hypnotised??
What is hypnosis? It has been said that "If waking is white, and sleep is black, then hypnosis is gray." Hypnosis is an ordinary, natural state of consciousness, that we move in and out of, every day. Think of making your way home and not noticing the last few blocks? How about losing track of time and place while caught up in a great novel? And what about, on a day off, that feeling when you wake at the normal work time, and realizing that you don't have to be anywhere, you fall back in the bedclothes and just feel a wonderful, dreamy feeling....not completely awake, but not asleep either. That state is hypnosis. According to me yes, a blind person can be hypnotized. But the method of hypnosis is entirely different from the ones adapted to the sighted. In my admittedly limited experience with hypnotism mainly from TV shows and comicbooks I think the main trait needed in the hypnosis process is an ability, to shut out all outside distractions. One way for the mesmerizer to do that is to use a visual point in which to have his subject invest all his or her concentration on. I don't see why a repetitive sound couldn't do the same thing. Both would be done while the hypnotist is suggesting tiredness to the subject. I think that a blind person who wanted it to work and was able to trust the hypnotist AND was able to mentally exclude their surroundings could be hypnotised. But in no circumstance can any person be hypnotized against their will unless someone can practically prove me wrong here. people who have certain types or degrees of brain damage, may not be hypnotizable, also people who are psychotic, those on heavy drugs or alcohol, people with extremely low IQs, and as far as we know, the only other people who can not be hypnotized are those who do not want to be hypnotized. People who do not fit into those categories are those who can normally enter the hypnotic state. Mujtaba Merchant Bangalore, India Search for old postings at: http://www.mail-archive.com/accessindia@accessindia.org.in/ To unsubscribe send a message to accessindia-requ...@accessindia.org.in with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in
