Is hypnosis of the devil?

From the devil... When you do hypnosis, people think something of it.

There are large groups of people who think hypnosis is of the devil. Why they think that, they don't really know. Yes, they do know, it's taught to them that way of course, because a small child doesn't know that anyway. The taught thought comes from faith. Because the devil belongs to God. That is his counterpart. So if you believe in the devil, you also believe in God. And where does the devil come from? From the church. The mosque, or whatever.

Compare to what they already know

You see this with certain groups. With Christians and Muslims, and with Hindus as well. But also certainly with people from Indonesia, and Suriname, who are very afraid of hypnosis. Often it is because they compare it to what they know. For example, if you look at Surinamese and Hindu cultures, voodoo-like practices and curses are very well known there. They also include hypnosis in that. They think that through hypnosis you get under the influence of spirits or demons. That you could then be cursed. If you believe that, then of course you are never going to try hypnosis. You understand that. That will scare you. But you always have to check: where does the fear come from? Where does that whole idea come from?

If you reason all the way back, it comes from faith. Priests scare people, because fear makes you go to church. As long as you go to a church, you don't have to be afraid. But if you stop going to a church then you have to be afraid, because then you will be punished, cursed or whatever. That's where it comes from.

Imagine if hypnosis were the devil’s work. Let’s just assume that for a moment. That would be pretty crazy, because hypnosis has all kinds of positive effects. Then you can reframeit :“Yeah, no, it just seems that way. At first it’s positive, but then… The road to hell is paved with all kinds of good intentions. You have to be very careful.” Yes, you can reframe it that way, but that doesn’t mean you’ll actually do it.

What if hypnosis is divine?

I personally believe that hypnosis is actually a divine state. Let me explain. What brain waves are most active when you are born? Well, in a baby it is delta. Between 0 and 4 hertz. In a toddler the beta variety, which is between 4 and 7 hertz. Then comes the alpha, 7 to 12 hertz and above that is beta. But that only comes - that higher brain activity - around 7 or 8 years old. You could also call that the "critical mind. Being able to weigh it. But what do you contrast it with? Everything you learned beforehand, of course. How do you learn the fastest? If you don't have a critical mind, because otherwise you have to wonder all the time what everything is. 'Little Sjonnie, that's a couch'. - 'Oh yeah, who says that?'

If you are two then just take that. Why? You're mostly in that beta state. All the information comes in almost unfiltered. You always filter some, because you have senses and they filter automatically. That is sensory filtered, but you don't necessarily have beliefs. Or things that you think are important or had experiences that make you filter. Not yet. A little bit of course. That also goes super fast, but in the beginning everything comes in unfiltered.

If we compare that brain activity to people in deep hypnosis, it is almost identical. So you could say, In deep hypnosis you are actually a little child again who is completely open to suggestions. So if it were of the devil, it would mean that every little child is possessed and in hypnosis, and therefore would be devilish. That from the 0 to 3rd year of life you are in the hands of the devil. After that, after 6-7 years, when you have a little bit of your critical mind, then you can protect yourself from demonic influences from that hypnotic state, for example. I think that is a huge fallacy. On the contrary, I think it is exactly the other way around.

How to become who you are

You’re born in exactly that unfiltered state. Yes, and in that state, you can receive suggestions that aren’t helpful. Research shows that children laugh about 400 times a day, while adults laugh only 20 times. So children laugh 20 times more than adults. Those children who are in their natural state live completely in the present moment; they live in flow, and they laugh all day long, standing up straight. Of course, there are always exceptions, but generally speaking. Generally speaking, we can say: that’s how it should be. Living in flow, living simply in the present—everything is a miracle, and we’re generally happy all day long. Emotions come and go. Of course, they might suddenly start crying, and then it’s over. Many adults today long for a life like that. Why? Not because it’s a devilish state—no, because it points much more toward a divine state. Or perhaps it is a divine state!

When we look at brain activity and how receptive children are to suggestions, it’s comparable to hypnosis. When I have someone under hypnosis for 45 minutes, they are completely in the present moment: they’re open to suggestions, and generally, they recover faster and sleep better. It depends, of course, on what kind of suggestions they receive, but they’re generally happier as well. And that’s naturally because you’re giving them positive suggestions. Is that dangerous? For someone to be so open to suggestions? Yes, it can be. But then again, a young child growing up with abusive parents—that’s dangerous, too. A child who is constantly told, “You can’t do anything. You’re worthless. You’re stupid.” All those terrible things they hear, they end up accepting as true. Is that dangerous? Yes, because we don’t know what kind of person they’ll become later on. Maybe they’ll turn into a terrible person. Maybe they’ll do terrible things, because they’ve been so brainwashed by it. Can they do anything about it? Yes, later on they can certainly do something about it. They can’t do anything to prevent it from happening, because it’s already happened. But then we can go back to that state in which it happened and undo it. If that’s devilish, then the devil has done us an enormous favor—to transform things incredibly quickly, to turn them around, to look at them in a different way, to forget and let go of things.

Hypnosis is a tool

If we think of it in those terms, it can’t be anything other than a divine state. Then it can’t be anything other than a tool of God—something we’ve been connected to since birth, our natural state. Hypnosis can be compared to flow, to being “in the zone,” to being in the present moment, and to meditation. Actually , they’re all facets of the diamond that you are. You could say: meditation brings about those kinds of qualities. Hypnosis—in my view—is a somewhat more goal-oriented tool. It allows you to examine what aspects you can still tweak so that you function a bit better in certain contexts. Being in flow is great, because I’m more productive and I have less stress. A lot of stress and pressure falls away. In my case, when I’m working in the flow, I’m really productive. I really enjoy that. Then there are mindfulness-type exercises: mindful walking, mindful eating, mindful talking. Those kinds of things are all tools that can improve your life.

Within some religions, they say: Yes, it's all from the devil. Mindfulness, meditation, also yoga. So everything good that can improve our lives is from the devil? That's crazy. Do you know why that is said? Because, imagine, you start doing yoga every day, you start meditating every day, you start using hypnosis to resolve traumatic experiences. Imagine you're going to live more in flow, so you're actually going to live that life that you have to live. So yeah, then you're actually not catching on. Then you don't necessarily go to a church. Not necessarily. You can go to church, but because you want to. Not because you have to. So then suddenly you are free from the system. Free from - let's say - the "clutches" of ... life. Well, life isn't. But you then suddenly live your own life. You are then suddenly self-reliant. You are free. And free people are not pleasant to the devil, of course. He wants to imprison people, to indoctrinate them, to manipulate them. Not that they just go and live their lives their way. They have no use for that, free people. So then they say: all those tools that make you free are from the devil. Maybe it's the exact opposite of what they claim....

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