Silva Meditation
The Silva method is a therapeutic program developed by Jose Silva in the 1940s designed to better equip people to deal with the stress of life. Among its claims are that it increases IQ, can develop higher mental powers and at the extreme end, Silva claims to have taught his daughter and others psychic abilities such as ESP. While such claims have not been verified, many people testify to the day to day benefits of the program.
Like many traditional forms of meditation, the Silva method promotes methods of achieving self-control and awareness in order to find calm and deep relaxation. Indeed, the original and somewhat misleading name for the method was Silva Mind Control. Of course, Silva was quick to point out that this referred to people taking control of their own minds, rather than anything more sinister! The method is predicated on the belief that the way we think and the way we perceive the world not only determine our experience of the world, but can be changed through simple mental means for a positive impact on our lives. Thus, we can create the life we desire, simply through willing it and using the power of our mind.
Silva believed that most people used only the left-hand, logical side of the brain rather than the creative right-hand side, and that if they could be taught to think with both sides, they could harness a previously unused source of brainpower. Through unlocking this, and learning self-control, followers of the method are taught “tools”, or mental responses where perhaps otherwise man-made solutions would be needed. For example, replacing sleeping pills with a mental exercise. Guided meditation is frequently used as part of the Silva method. By initially being taken through each step bit-by-bit, the meditators are taught responses to different situations that eventually become part of their “toolkit”.
The Silva method promotes the medical benefits of a deep relaxed state, in particular one in which a person’s brainwaves are in the range of eight to thirteen Hz, which students are taught to attain. Proponents of the method say that being in such a state can slow down metabolism, increase blood flow to the brain and decrease cholesterol levels. Adherents claim to become sick up 50% less after taking the program and use drugs 62% less after being taught the Silva method. Dreams too are an important part of the Silva method. As part of unlocking the power of the right-hand side of the brain, adherents to the method are taught control of their dreams – the phenomenon known as lucid dreaming. Some report being able to discover allergies through manipulation of their dreams.
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