THE BATTLE FOR YOUR MIND
Strand Three Zine. Issue 3
Persuasion & Brainwashing Techniques Being Used On The Public Today

SUMMARY OF CONTENTS

The Birth of Conversion/Brainwashing in Christian Revivalism in 1735.
The Pavlovian explanation of the three brain phases. Born-again
preachers: Step-by-Step, how they conduct a revival and the expected
physiological results. The "voice roll" technique used by preachers,
lawyers and hypnotists. New trance-inducing churches. The 6 steps to
conversion. The decognition process. Thought-stopping techniques. The
"sell it by zealot" technique. True believers and mass movements.
Persuasion techniques: "Yes set," "Imbedded Commands," "Shock and
Confusion," and the "Interspersal Technique." Subliminals. Vibrato and
ELF waves. Inducing trance with vibrational sound. Even professional
observers will be "possessed" at charismatic gatherings. The "only
hope" technique to attend and not be converted. Non-detectable
Neurophone programming through the skin. The medium for mass take-over.
I'm Dick Sutphen and this tape is a studio-recorded, expanded
version of a talk I delivered at the World Congress of Professional
Hypnotists Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada. Although the tape carries a
copyright to protect it from unlawful duplication for sale by other
companies, in this case, I invite individuals to make copies and give
them to friends or anyone in a position to communicate this information.
Although I've been interviewed about the subject on many local and
regional radio and TV talk shows, large-scale mass communication appears
to be blocked, since it could result in suspicion or investigation of
the very media presenting it or the sponsors that support the media.
Some government agencies do not want this information generally known.
Nor do the Born-Again Christian movement, cults, and many
human-potential trainings.

Everything I will relate only exposes the surface of the problem. I
don't know how the misuse of these techniques can be stopped. I don't
think it is possible to legislate against that which often cannot be
detected; and if those who legislate are using these techniques, there
is little hope of affecting laws to govern usage. I do know that the
first step to initiate change is to generate interest. In this case,
that will probably only result from an underground effort.
In talking about this subject, I am talking about my own business.
I know it, and I know how effective it can be. I produce hypnosis and
subliminal tapes and, in some of my seminars, I use conversion tactics
to assist participants to become independent and self-sufficient. But,
anytime I use these techniques, I point out that I am using them, and
those attending have a choice to participate or not. They also know
what the desired result of participation will be.
So, to begin, I want to state the most basic of all facts about
brainwashing: IN THE ENTIRE HISTORY OF MAN, NO ONE HAS EVER BEEN
BRAINWASHED AND REALIZED, OR BELIEVED, THAT HE HAD BEEN BRAINWASHED.

Those who have been brainwashed will usually passionately defend their
manipulators, claiming they have simply been "shown the light"... or
have been transformed in miraculous ways.

The Birth of Conversion
CONVERSION is a "nice" word for BRAINWASHING... and any study of
brainwashing has to begin with a study of Christian revivalism in
eighteenth century America. Apparently, Jonathan Edwards accidentally
discovered the techniques during a religious crusade in 1735 in
Northampton, Massachusetts. By inducing guilt and acute apprehension
and by increasing the tension, the "sinners" attending his revival
meetings would break down and completely submit. Technically, what
Edwards was doing was creating conditions that wipe the brain slate
clean so that the mind accepts new programming. The problem was that
the new input was negative. He would tell them, "You're a sinner!
You're destined for hell!"

As a result, one person committed suicide and another attempted
suicide. And the neighbors of the suicidal converts related that they,
too, were affected so deeply that, although they had found "eternal
salvation," they were obsessed with a diabolical temptation to end their
own lives.

Once a preacher, cult leader, manipulator or authority figure
creates the brain phase to wipe the brain-slate clean, his subjects are
wide open. New input, in the form of suggestion, can be substituted for
their previous ideas. Because Edwards didn't turn his message positive
until the end of the revival, many accepted the negative suggestions and
acted, or desired to act, upon them.
Charles J. Finney was another Christian revivalist who used the
same techniques four years later in mass religious conversions in New
York. The techniques are still being used today by Christian
revivalists, cults, human-potential trainings, some business rallies,
and the United States Armed Services... to name just a few.
Let me point out here that I don't think most revivalist preachers
realize or know they are using brainwashing techniques. Edwards simply
stumbled upon a technique that really worked, and others copied it and
have continued to copy it for over two hundred years. And the more
sophisticated our knowledge and technology become, the more effective
the conversion. I feel strongly that this is one of the major reasons
for the increasing rise in Christian fundamentalism, especially the
televised variety, while most of the orthodox religions are declining.

The Three Brain Phases
The Christians may have been the first to successfully formulate
brainwashing, but we have to look to Pavlov, the Russian scientist, for
a technical explanation. In the early 1900s, his work with animals
opened the door to further investigations with humans. After the
revolution in Russia, Lenin was quick to see the potential of applying
Pavlov's research to his own ends.
Three distinct and progressive states of transmarginal inhibition
were identified by Pavlov. The first is the EQUIVALENT phase, in which
the brain gives the same response to both strong and weak stimuli. The
second is the PARADOXICAL phase, in which the brain responds more
actively to weak stimuli than to strong. And the third is the
ULTRA-PARADOXICAL phase, in which conditioned responses and behavior
patterns turn from positive to negative or from negative to positive.
With the progression through each phase, the degree of conversion
becomes more effective and complete. The way to achieve conversion are
many and varied, but the usual first step in religious or political
brainwashing is to work on the emotions of an individual or group until
they reach an abnormal level of anger, fear, exitement, or nervous
tension.

The progressive result of this mental condition is to impair
judgement and increase suggestibility. The more this condition can be
maintained or intensified, the more it compounds. Once catharsis, or
the first brain phase, is reached, the complete mental takeover becomes
easier. Existing mental programming can be replaced with new patterns
of thinking and behavior.
Other often-used physiological weapons to modify normal brain
functions are fasting, radical or high sugar diets, physical
discomforts, regulation of breathing, mantra chanting in meditation, the
disclosure of awesome mysteries, special lighting and sound effects,
programmed response to incense, or intoxicating drugs.
The same results can be obtained in contemporary psychiatric
treatment by electric shock treatments and even by purposely lowering a
person's blood sugar level with insulin injections.
Before I talk about exactly how some of the techniques are applied,
I want to point out that hypnosis and conversion tactics are two
distinctly different things--and that conversion techniques are far more
powerful. However, the two are often mixed... with powerful results.

How Revivalist Preachers Work
If you'd like to see a revivalist preacher at work, there are
probably several in your city. Go to the church or tent early and sit
in the rear, about three-quarters of the way back. Most likely
repetitive music will be played while the people come in for the
service. A repetitive beat, ideally ranging from 45 to 72 beats per
minute (a rhythm close to the beat of the human heart), is very hypnotic
and can generate an eyes-open altered state of consciousness in a very
high percentage of people. And, once you are in an alpha state, you are
at least 25 times as suggestible as you would be in full beta
consciousness. The music is probably the same for every service, or
incorporates the same beat, and many of the people will go into an
altered state almost immediately upon entering the sanctuary.
Subconsciously, they recall their state of mind from previous services
and respond according to the post-hypnotic programming.
Watch the people waiting for the service to begin. Many will
exhibit external signs of trance--body relaxation and slightly dilated
eyes. Often, they begin swaying back and forth with their hands in the
air while sitting in their chairs. Next, the assistant pastor will
probably come out. He usually speaks with a pretty good "voice roll."

Voice Roll Technique
A "voice roll" is a patterned, paced style used by hypnotists when
inducing a trance. It is also used by many lawyers, several of whom are
highly trained hypnotists, when they desire to entrench a point firmly
in the minds of the jurors. A voice roll can sound as if the speaker
were talking to the beat of a metronome or it may sound as though he
were emphasizing every word in a monotonous, patterned style. The words
will usually be delivered at the rate of 45 to 60 beats per minute,
maximizing the hypnotic effect.

Now the assistant pastor begins the "build-up" process. He induces
an altered state of consciousness and/or begins to generate the
excitement and the expectations of the audience. Next, a group of young
women in "sweet and pure" chiffon dresses might come out to sing a song.
Gospel songs are great for building excitement and INVOLVEMENT. In the
middle of the song, one of the girls might be "smitten by the spirit"
and fall down or react as if possessed by the Holy Spirit. This very
effectively increases the intensity in the room. At this point,
hypnosis and conversion tactics are being mixed. And the result is the
audience's attention span is now totally focused upon the communication
while the environment becomes more exciting or tense.
Right about this time, when an eyes-open mass-induced alpha mental
state has been achieved, they will usually pass the collection plate or
basket. In the background, a 45-beat-per-minute voice roll from the
assistant preacher might exhort, "Give to God... Give to God... Give
to God..." And the audience does give. God may not get the money, but
his already wealthy representative will.

Next, the fire-and-brimstone preacher will come out. He induces
fear and increases the tension by talking about "the devil," "going to
hell," or the forthcoming Armegeddon.
In the last such rally I attended, the preacher talked about the
blood that would soon be running out of every faucet in the land. He
was also obsessed with a "bloody axe of God," which everyone had seen
hanging above the pulpit the previous week. I have no doubt that
everyone saw it--the power of suggestion given to hundreds of people in
hypnosis assures that at least 10 to 25 percent would see whatever he
suggested they see.

In most revivalist gatherings, "testifying" or "witnessing" usually
follows the fear-based sermon. People from the audience come up on
stage and relate their stories. "I was crippled and now I can walk!" "I
had arthritis and now it's gone!" It is a psychological manipulation
that works. After listening to numerous case histories of miraculous
healings, the average guy in the audience with a minor problem is sure
he can be healed. The room is charged with fear, guilt, intense
excitement, and expectations.

Now those who want to be healed are frequently lined up around the
edge of the room, or they are told to come down to the front. The
preacher might touch them on the head firmly and scream, "Be healed!"
This releases the psychic energy and, for many, catharsis results.
Catharsis is a purging of repressed emotions. Individuals might cry,
fall down or even go into spasms. And if catharsis is effected, they
stand a chance of being healed. In catharsis (one of the three brain
phases mentioned earlier), the brain-slate is temporarily wiped clean
and the new suggestion is accepted.

For some, the healing may be permanent. For many, it will last four
days to a week, which is, incidentally, how long a hypnotic suggestion
given to a somnambulistic subject will usually last. Even if the
healing doesn't last, if they come back every week, the power of
suggestion may continually override the problem... or sometimes, sadly,
it can mask a physical problem which could prove to be very detrimental
to the individual in the long run.
I'm not saying that legitimate healings do not take place. They do.
Maybe the individual was ready to let go of the negativity that caused
the problem in the first place; maybe it was the work of God. Yet I
contend that it can be explained with existing knowledge of brain/mind
function.

The techniques and staging will vary from church to church. Many
use "speaking in tongues" to generate catharsis in some while the
spectacle creates intense excitement in the observers.
The use of hypnotic techniques by religions is sophisticated, and
professionals are assuring that they become even more effective. A man
in Los Angeles is designing, building, and reworking a lot of churches
around the country. He tells ministers what they need and how to use
it. This man's track record indicates that the congregation and the
monetary income will double if the minister follows his instructions.
He admits that about 80 percent of his efforts are in the sound system
and lighting.

Powerful sound and the proper use of lighting are of primary
importance in inducing an altered state of consciousnes--I've been using
them for years in my own seminars. However, my participants are fully
aware of the process and what they can expect as a result of their
participation.

Six Conversion Techniques
Cults and human-potential organizations are always looking for new
converts. To attain them, they must also create a brain-phase. And
they often need to do it within a short space of time--a weekend, or
maybe even a day. The following are the six primary techniques used to
generate the conversion.

The meeting or training takes place in an area where participants
are cut off from the outside world. This may be any place: a private
home, a remote or rural setting, or even a hotel ballroom where the
participants are allowed only limited bathroom usage. In
human-potential trainings, the controllers will give a lengthy talk
about the importance of "keeping agreements" in life. The participants
are told that if they don't keep agreements, their life will never work.
It's a good idea to keep agreements, but the controllers are subverting
a positive human value for selfish purposes. The participants vow to
themselves and their trainer that they will keep their agreements.
Anyone who does not will be intimidated into agreement or forced to
leave. The next step is to agree to complete training, thus assuring a
high percentage of conversions for the organizations. They will USUALLY
have to agree not to take drugs, smoke, and sometimes not to eat... or
they are given such short meal breaks that it creates tension. The real
reason for the agreements is to alter internal chemistry, which
generates anxiety and hopefully causes at least a slight malfunction of
the nervous system, which in turn increases the conversion potential.

Before the gathering is complete, the agreements will be used to
ensure that the new converts go out and find new participants. They are
intimidated into agreeing to do so before they leave. Since the
importance of keeping agreements is so high on their priority list, the
converts will twist the arms of everyone they know, attempting to talk
them into attending a free introductory session offered at a future date
by the organization. The new converts are zealots. In fact, the inside
term for merchandising the largest and most successful human-potential
training is, "sell it by zealot!"

At least a million people are graduates and a good percentage have
been left with a mental activation button that assures their future
loyalty and assistance if the guru figure or organization calls. Think
about the potential political implications of hundreds of thousands of
zealots programmed to campaign for their guru.
Be wary of an organization of this type that offers follow-up
sessions after the seminar. Follow-up sessions might be weekly meetings
or inexpensive seminars given on a regular basis which the organization
will attempt to talk you into taking--or any regularly scheduled event
used to maintain control. As the early Christian revivalists found,
long-term control is dependent upon a good follow-up system.
Alright. Now, let's look at the second tip-off that indicates
conversion tactics are being used. A schedule is maintained that causes
physical and mental fatigue. This is primarily accomplished by long
hours in which the participants are given no opportunity for relaxation
or reflection.

The third tip-off: techniques used to increase the tension in the
room or environment.

Number four: Uncertainty. I could spend hours relating various
techniques to increase tension and generate uncertainty. Basically, the
participants are concerned about being "put on the spot" or encountered
by the trainers, guilt feelings are played upon, participants are
tempted to verbally relate their innermost secrets to the other
participants or forced to take part in activities that emphasize
removing their masks. One of the most successful human-potential
seminars forces the participants to stand on a stage in front of the
entire audience while being verbally attacked by the trainers. A public
opinion poll, conducted a few years ago, showed that the number one
most-fearful situation an individual could encounter is to speak to an
audience. It ranked above window washing outside the 85th floor of an
office building. So you can imagine the fear and tension this situation
generates within the participants. Many faint, but most cope with the
stress by mentally going away. They literally go into an alpha state,
which automatically makes them many times as suggestible as they
normally are. And another loop of the downward spiral into conversion
is successfully effected.

The fifth clue that conversion tactics are being used is the
introduction of jargon--new terms that have meaning only to the
"insiders" who participate. Vicious language is also frequently used,
purposely, to make participants uncomfortable.
The final tip-off is that there is no humor in the communications...
at least until the participants are converted. Then, merry-making and
humor are highly desirable as symbols of the new joy the participants
have supposedly "found."

I'm not saying that good does not result from participation in such
gatherings. It can and does. But I contend it is important for people
to know what has happened and to be aware that continual involvement may
not be in their best interest.

Over the years, I've conducted professional seminars to teach people
to be hypnotists, trainers, and counselors. I've had many of those who
conduct trainings and rallies come to me and say, "I'm here because I
know that what I'm doing works, but I don't know why." After showing
them how and why, many have gotten out of the business or have decided
to approach it differently or in a much more loving and supportive
manner.

Many of these trainers have become personal friends, and it scares
us all to have experienced the power of one person with a microphone and
a room full of people. Add a little charisma and you can count on a
high percentage of conversions. The sad truth is that a high percentage
of people want to give away their power--they are true "believers"!
Cult gatherings or human-potential trainings are an ideal
environment to observe first-hand what is technically called the
"Stockholm Syndrome." This is a situation in which those who are
intimidated, controlled, or made to suffer, begin to love, admire, and
even sometimes sexually desire their controllers or captors.

But let me inject a word of warning here: If you think you can
attend such gatherings and not be affected, you are probably wrong. A
perfect example is the case of a woman who went to Haiti on a Guggenheim
Fellowship to study Haitian Voodoo. In her report, she related how the
music eventually induced uncontrollable bodily movement and an altered
state of consciousness. Although she understood the process and thought
herself above it, when she began to feel herself become vulnerable to
the music, she attempted to fight it and turned away. Anger or
resistance almost always assures conversion. A few moments later she
was possessed by the music and began dancing in a trance around the
Voodoo meeting house. A brain phase had been induced by the music and
excitement, and she awoke feeling reborn. The only hope of attending
such gatherings without being affected is to be a Buddha and allow no
positive or negative emotions to surface. Few people are capable of
such detachment.

Before I go on, let's go back to the six tip-offs to conversion. I
want to mention the United States Government and military boot camp.
The Marine Corps talks about breaking men down before "rebuilding" them
as new men--as marines! Well, that is exactly what they do, the same
way a cult breaks its people down and rebuilds them as happy flower
sellers on your local street corner. Every one of the six conversion
techniques are used in boot camp. Considering the needs of the
military, I'm not making a judgement as to whether that is good or bad.
IT IS A FACT that the men are effectively brainwashed. Those who won't
submit must be discharged or spend much of their time in the brig.

Decognition Process
Once the initial conversion is effected, cults, armed services, and
similar groups cannot have cynicism among their members. Members must
respond to commands and do as they are told, otherwise they are
dangerous to the organizational control. This is normally accomplished
as a three-step Decognition Process.

Step One is ALERTNESS REDUCTION: The controllers cause the nervous
system to malfunction, making it difficult to distinguish between
fantasy and reality. This can be accomplished in several ways. POOR
DIET is one; watch out for Brownies and Koolaid. The sugar throws the
nervous system off. More subtle is the "SPIRITUAL DIET" used by many
cults. They eat only vegetables and fruits; without the grounding of
grains, nuts, seeds, dairy products, fish or meat, an individual becomes
mentally "spacey." INADEQUATE SLEEP is another primary way to reduce
alertness, especially when combined with long hours of work or intense
physical activity. Also, being bombarded with intense and unique
experiences achieves the same result.

Step Two is PROGRAMMED CONFUSION: You are mentally assaulted while
your alertness is being reduced as in Step One. This is accomplished
with a deluge of new information, lectures, discussion groups,
encounters or one-to-one processing, which usually amounts to the
controller bombarding the individual with questions. During this phase
of decognition, reality and illusion often merge and perverted logic is
likely to be accepted.

Step Three is THOUGHT STOPPING: Techniques are used to cause the
mind to go "flat." These are altered-state-of-consciousness techniques
that initially induce calmness by giving the mind something simple to
deal with and focusing awareness. The continued use brings on a feeling
of elation and eventually hallucination. The result is the reduction of
thought and eventually, if used long enough, the cessation of all
thought and withdrawal from everyone and everything except that which
the controllers direct. The takeover is then complete. It is important
to be aware that when members or participants are instructed to use
"thought-stopping" techniques, they are told that they will benefit by
so doing: they will become "better soldiers" or "find enlightenment."
There are three primary techniques used for thought stopping. The
first is MARCHING: the thump, thump, thump beat literally generates
self-hypnosis and thus great susceptibility to suggestion.