Chapter 2

How To Generate Brain Power

The  power  to  create  a  new  life  for  yourself  lies  within your own brain. 

Your  brain  has  capacities  that  have  been  proven and  used—but used by few persons so far. 

Now the time has come for these capacities, these powers, these abilities, to be shown to you—for the simple purpose of illustrating to you how they may be used and how you may benefit by them. 

All these great and wondrous gifts of God are contained in the organ  that  is  absorbing  these  words  right  at  this  moment—your brain. 

Your brain is the one thing that has made man different from other of God’s creatures. Yet so new is the conception of man’s thinking organ that the Greeks didn’t even have a word for it.  Man had progressed through countless centuries and numberless generations to that first great golden age of Greek civilization. Yet these people, who are credited with having had a word for everything, called the brain merely “the thing in the head.”

 To the Greeks, the brain was completely negligible. In seeking the whereabouts of the mind, the learned men of ancient Greece chose the solar plexus. It seemed to them that the rhythmic movements of the midriff were closely linked with what went on in what was their concept of the mind. 

It took two thousand years for the brain to emerge from the darkness of man’s ignorance of himself. By the time the anatomists dis-  covered the brain, it was already believed to be the possible secret storehouse of man’s intelligence. By then thinkers had moved the habitation of the mind from the diaphragm to the head. Shakespeare, writing of the brain, called it that “which some suppose the soul’s frail dwelling-house.” 

But the anatomist could do little more than weigh the brain. He discovered  that  the  “gray  matter”  in  man  weighed  about  fifty ounces, in woman about forty-five ounces. He made sketches of the complicated series of nerves and cells that his knife revealed. 

It was not until the latter part of the nineteenth century that the dawn started to break over the knowledge of the brain. Two medical officers of the Prussian army, wandering among the stricken men on the Sedan battlefield in 1870, had the brilliant—if somewhat ghoulish—notion of testing the effect of electrical current on the exposed brains of some of the casualties. 

There began the first medical experiments that led to discovery of what the brain truly is. 

It seems strange that in the entire history of man and his miraculous development it has been only within the last eighty-odd years that  there  has  been  serious  realization  of  the  intricacies  of  that wonderful Golden Gift, the brain. 

In reality man has two brains. But these are not like the two brains of one species of dinosaur of millions of years ago. That enormous animal had one small brain in the head and a second at the base of the spine so that it could control its huge body without taxing its “higher” brain. 

Man’s two brains are together. The second is but a development of the first. As man has grown emotionally, as he has learned to reason and to think, so he has developed a newer section of the brain.

It is man’s brain, the wonderful “enchanted loom,” that has made him  rise  above  the  other  species.  This  “enchanted  loom”  which helps him spin his imagination has given man the ability to reason.

Without it, he would be no better off than the lion, the elephant or the monkey. Without it he could have progressed no farther than his simian “relative” the ape. 

Man’s imagination, the product of his newer brain, has enabled him to think out things before he does them. Therefore, if he is in error, he need not actually commit the error. He can discard that process before making the error and utilize his brain, his imagination, to try another means of solving the problem.

 While the animal’s power of thinking is limited to “I sense, therefore I am,” man can deduce. His reasoning makes him the master of his surroundings. He can expand thinking to “I know, therefore Iam.” Man “knows” because he has a brain to utilize. He is not dependent on his senses purely. He takes what his senses convey to him and weighs them with reason. The result is knowledge and, eventually, understanding. 

Like the animals around him, man has his original brain—the racially older instinctive and emotional brain. Man’s difference, his Golden Gift, is his newer thinking and reasoning brain. 

The basal ganglia make up the older forebrain. The cerebral cortex and the middle portion make up the newer forebrain. 

In the middle section of the basal ganglia is found the thalamus.

This  controls  the  involuntary  functions  of  the  body  through  the medium of the autonomic or sympathetic nervous system. 

The cerebral cortex controls the voluntary actions of the body by means of the frontal lobes and the motor, or cerebro-spinal, nervous system.

The process called thinking is one which involves both sections of the brain and both sets of nervous systems. But your thinking is divided into two sections. 

You are most familiar with “conscious” thought. This is the thinking you do in everyday life. This is the thinking you are utilizing now  as  you  read  this.  It  is  purely  surface  thought.  It  is  basic thought. 

You have, however, a power that is easily utilized in your thinking.

Yet it is one which few people know about and fewer bother to develop. This is thinking on the “Supraconscious” level. 

Supraconscious thinking is the key to the development of the Golden Gift of the brain. In the Supraconscious mind lie powers that will be unfolded for you as you read further in this book. They are powers which require no special learning to develop. They require no  special  key  to  use.  They  require  no  special  payment  for  the profits you will reap. 

The Supraconscious mind is your silent partner in achieving the greatest, and up-to-now only dreamed-of, successes in life. The average  man  has  little  concept  of  the  tremendous  power  that  lies beyond the level of the brain’s consciousness. 

By learning to use this potential correctly you can place at your disposal an abundance of energy you little realized existed in yourself.  You  can  give  yourself  great  new  mental  powers—the  real purpose of the Golden Gift. And you can bring about for yourself a completely new concept of living: a way of happier and longer life. 

To say that you do not use the Supraconscious now is not a fair statement. You do, but so lightly as to leave it lying much as a rich field that is not seeded for crops. All your conscious thoughts and actions are produced by the combined reactions of the dual mental apparatus and the double nervous system to those things that affect your senses. That is to say, you react to what you see, hear, smell, taste and touch.

But, as was pointed out before, this is just the same as what happens to an animal. It senses, and bases its “thinking” on the sensations. You have the power of discrimination and judgment. This constitutes your thinking to the point of knowing, and your knowing to the point of understanding. 

In man the responses to sensory perception are channeled to the thalamus. It is the thalamus that is the principal source of human feelings  and  emotions.  The  patterns  and  the  habits  of  so-called “emotional thinking” are channeled in this area of the brain by both the Supraconscious and the “collective unconscious.” 

In  his  recent  book,  Release  From  Nervous  Tension,  Dr.  Harold Fink makes it clear that the thalamus—which he terms the “interbrain”—is the seat of man’s deeper intellect, the Supraconscious. 

The function of the thalamus is to act as a sort of bridge between what takes place inside of you and outside of you. Thus you are able to register like or dislike upon having one of your five senses react  to  a  stimulus.  At  this  instinctive  “wish  level”  of  the  consciousness, the natural response of your “emotional thinking” is to seek pleasure (that is, security) and avoid pain (or insecurity). 

In people who think sanely and live wisely, the reactions of sensory perception of outside stimuli first pass through the thalamus. Then they, are “telegraphed” through the cortex, where feeling impulses are analyzed and modified in the light of reason. The conscious thoughts are then sent once again to the thalamus, where they are transmitted into physical action.

 Sometimes one’s “emotional thinking” is dominated by negative attitudes  of  feeling.  These  are  offshoots  of  man’s  primitive  impulses of greed, fear and anger. If these negative feelings dominate the thinking it is difficult, sometimes impossible, for the powerful emotional impulses to be adequately controlled by one’s ability to reason. Thus one is deprived of one of the great powers of the Golden Gift.

 How this negative thinking causes a malfunctioning of the autonomic nervous system and produces psychosomatic illness is discussed in a later chapter. You will also be shown how positive attitudes  of  feeling  are  responsible  for  producing  good  health  and peace of mind. This is accomplished by the harmonious functioning  of  the  human  organism.  Along  these  same  lines  it  will  be shown how meditation, and prayer, can produce what are commonly called “miracles of faith healing” through the simple means of extreme acceleration of the processes of organic repair.

 One of the greatest examples of the everyday use of the Supraconscious is in your judgment of people and things. You may be inclined to make snap judgments. More often than not, these judgments are correct. What is the basis of this perception within you? Are you consciously so perceptive? Obviously not, for if asked, or if you seek to determine for yourself what you based your opinion on, you seldom can say.

 “I just felt it, that’s all,” is a common answer to such a question. 

What does play a part in this system of judgment, however, is the Supraconscious level of the mind. You react consciously to a person upon meeting him. Similarly you react to a situation. These reactions are filed in the brain and from its deepest depths the pattern of opinion is formed, based on these conscious reactions. This pattern is flashed to the conscious mind and you have formed an opinion.

Few people suspect that the Supraconscious is the storehouse from which they draw these judgments. It has been the development of our “cultural reasoning,” as Frederick Pierce points out, that has hidden from us the fact we do use the Supraconscious in our thinking. 

The  quicker  you  are  to  realize  that  you  can  probe  beyond  the boundaries of the conscious, and allow yourself to do so, the sooner will you be starting to use fully the power that you have hidden within you. 

Biologists have pointed out that while reason—the power to think consciously—has been responsible for man’s attainment of mastery over his destiny, man is primarily not a rational being. 

Man “relies on reason only where its usefulness is forcibly and immediately brought home to him.” The rest of the time man relies on what is termed “instinct.” That is, he depends for his reactions upon  what  his  innate  self  knows.  What  the  Supraconscious  has learned over the countless years of man’s development determines the driving power that enables him to do what he does do, whether it is good or bad. 

Man’s innate nature is the end product of numberless years of collective  environmental  experience.  This  experience  is  as  much  a part of man’s heredity as his biological constitution. 

As far as can be determined, in using the processes of the Supraconscious, man is using the oldest part of his brain from the point of view of usage. The thalamus was the dominant part of the brain in the species for unknown generations before humans were obliged to reason in order to exist and progress.

 During the many centuries of uncivilized existence in which man’s principal business was to keep alive amid the dangers lurking all around him, the thalamus acquired all the “feeling” guidance , of wild animals. In other words, the thalamus acquired the traits of animal instincts, or just “plain instinct.” 

The daily association and competition with other humans and animals in a continual struggle for existence was responsible for the development of the instinct of survival in humans: self-preservation and sex. 

The things that early man needed, or desired, he took. This frequently involved mortal combat. Primitive life made man an instinctively predatory creature with strong human impulses to satisfy the inherent desires and appetites of his primitive nature by fair means or foul. 

When primitive instincts of self and sex cause negative emotions, such as anger, fear, lust and the like, to dominate the “reasoning” mind,  these  Supraconscious  attitudes  of  “feeling”  motivate  the human conduct called misbehavior. 

This is what C. Judson Herrick, the famed neurologist, called “thalamic dominance.” It is a state of mental disorder in which one’s “feelings” usurp one’s sense of reason. 

Human  aberrations  and  psychosomatic  ills—which,  it  will  be shown to you later, frequently culminate in some form of degenerative disease—usually are the end products of “thalamic dominance,” the cause of negative “emotional thinking.” 

But that is only one side of the story of human nature. Biologists see the picture in the perspective of man’s baser nature. They overlook  the  primary  reason  why  man’s  early  ancestors  gradually learned to walk on two feet when they descended from the trees, while  the  species  known  as  monkey  continued  to  use  all  four limbs. In this you see the guiding hand of a Great Creative Force—the evolution of spirituality. The potential good in man’s nature is vastly greater than most people suspect.

 There has been plenty of evidence of unsuspected power and wisdom. The life of Jesus Christ is the best example. But, because of man’s  basic  incredulity,  unusual  manifestations such  as  intuition and the extraordinary ability to be able to effect cures in oneself or others have generally been attributed to “power of soul” or “supernatural” sources. 

Yet the answer is an obvious one: man’s evolution is a threefold one. As well as a physical and intellectual growth, there is also a spiritual growth. The spirit manifests itself through man’s deeper consciousness—his Supraconscious, the power of the Golden Gift. 

There are countless cases that bear out the powers of the Supraconscious.  Within  the  covers  of  this  book  will  be  submitted  as many cases as space permits to convince, with actual evidence, the unbiased reader that the Supraconscious mind does possess ample powers to bring renewed health, longer life, greater happiness and new successes. 

You  have  already  been  shown  that  the  interaction  of  thalamic “feeling” attitudes and “reasoning” conclusions of the cortex produces finished thoughts, words and actions. The interaction of the dual  mentality  can  produce  three  conditions:  normal,  abnormal and extranormal. 

In the normal state, the human organism functions harmoniously and the individual enjoys peace of mind and a state of good health.

In  this  state  of  well-being  the  mastery  of  one’s  own  destiny  is achieved by the uses of reason only.

 The abnormal state disrupts harmonious functioning of the human organism  and  causes  imbalance  of  the  body’s  mechanism.  This state usually robs one of peace of mind and causes ill health, as I shall prove in later chapters. 

The extranormal state is produced by synchronous interaction of positive “feeling” attitudes and “reasoning” reactions of the cortex. 

This is a state of mental perfection. In it the individual has the benefit  of  all  the  reasoning  powers  of  his  conscious  mind.  This  is combined with the emotional force and the perfect memory of the Supraconscious  mind  added  to  the  marvelously  logical  arrangement of its psychic resources. 

In short, all the elements of intellectual power are in a state of intense and harmonious activity during the extranormal state of the mind. 

It is this state of mind which produces real genius. It is this state of mind in which the inventiveness of Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, Guglielmo  Marconi,  George  Westinghouse,  Albert  Einstein  and Charles Kettering blossomed. It is this state of mind which has delivered the insight and know-how for almost every great achievement in science, industry and the arts. 

It is into this area of thinking that you are going to delve. For by correctly using this potential, you can gain the benefits of health, wealth and happiness without striving. These benefits are reachable without your having to travel laborious routes. They are yours by simply recognizing the Supraconscious level of the mind and permitting it to function under the proper conditions. 

When, through the practice of self-discipline and self-control, you have attained the state of self-mastery, you will then enjoy the benefits of your intellectual and spiritual heritage.

Once  the  biological  effects  of  your  physical  evolution—that  is, your  animal  nature—have  been  uprooted  by  sane  thinking  and wise living, you will reflect in your thoughts and actions the true way of life—that exemplified by the Infinite Mind. Keeping “in tune with the Infinite” will lead you to living a life that is useful, purposeful and rewarding. 

The Supraconscious is a veritable “genie” of the brain that can either be a good servant or a bad one.

 The Supraconscious is wise and powerful beyond all the comprehension of the human. It is for this reason that people often refer to this hidden power of the Golden Gift as soul power. 

Call it what you will. It is, regardless of what you call it, WISDOM and POWER far beyond the reason of man to comprehend fully except in the light of Divine heritage and as an instrument through which the intelligence of the Infinite operates. 

The purpose of the writer is to provide you with sufficient knowledge of the basic mechanism of the great power of the Golden Gift so that you can use your Supraconscious as a good servant instead of a bad one. 

To this end it is essential to establish a working hypothesis. Without such a hypothesis you cannot begin an exact study of the Supraconscious. In the field of psychological investigation, and more especially in the field of parapsychology, a satisfactory scientific working hypothesis has not yet been formulated that embraces all the psychological phenomena known to mankind these many centuries. 

It was for this reason that the late Dr. Alexis Carrel, famed for his thirty-three years of brilliant biological research at the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research, commented:

“The importance of intuition in mental life requires an investigation  of  metaphysic  phenomena,  and  the  application  of  scientific method to the study of telepathy and clairvoyance.” 

For our working hypothesis, then, I will use the findings of the late scientist Dr. Thomson Jay Hudson as he outlined it in his book A Scientific Demonstration of the Future Life. Dr. Hudson compiled a great deal of data concerning the mind and its Supraconscious aspects. 

In Dr. Hudson’s time, however, it was believed that man’s apparent dual nature was that of body and soul. And he, naturally, attributed the powers of the Supraconscious to the soul. It is only the advances of psychiatry in the field of medicine which have shown us the truth that the “hidden power” of man emanates from his mind, not his soul.

 While  psychiatry  has,  however,  drawn  its  conclusions  from  the studies of abnormal psychology, thus presenting the negative side of  human  nature,  my  theory  is  built  on  human  nature’s  positive side. 

The positive, or constructive, side is based on the contention that man is essentially good, due to the Godliness of his spiritual evolution as manifested in positive “emotional thinking.” 

The  conclusions  of  our  working  hypothesis  concerning  the  extraordinary  powers  of  the  Supraconscious  are  based  on  three things. 

First I have utilized the information pertaining to mental phenomena as disclosed by the science of hypnosis. Secondly, I have used the results of Dr. Carrel’s study of the so-called “miracles” of faith-healing. Finally, the conclusions are based on my own analysis of personal experiences in telepathy, clairvoyance and clairaudience.  These various experiences can be definitely classified in the category of the parapsychological science of Extrasensory Perception, so designated by Professor J. B. Rhine of Duke University. 

The seven propositions of the working hypothesis upon which this study of the Supraconscious is to be based are: 

1. The Supraconscious is constantly amenable to control by the power of suggestion. 

2. The Supraconscious is incapable of independent reasoning by the processes of induction. 

3.  The  power  of  the  Supraconscious  to  reason  deductively  from given premises to correct conclusions is practically perfect. 

4. The Supraconscious is endowed with a perfect memory. 

5. The Supraconscious has absolute control of the functions and conditions of the body. 

6. The Supraconscious has the power to communicate by means other than the recognized channels of the five senses. 

7. The Supraconscious is capable of intuition and perception of the laws of nature. 

These seven propositions will be embellished upon and discussed fully in the chapters to come. How you can recognize these powers of the mind and how they can be put to use for your advantage will be discussed and studied.

By understanding and appreciating the seven points of this working hypothesis, you can set about creating a new life for yourself. 

These are the seven major facts that science has discovered and that you will learn in the following chapters. 

These are the seven planks of the platform that forms the basis of the teachings you are to absorb in the ensuing pages. 

These are the powers of the mind that have been recognized. They are powers that you can and will recognize. They are powers that you will quickly put to use for your own advantage. 

These are the propositions that you will learn to understand. 

These are the means by which you are going to set about NOW to create a new life for yourself. 

A PLAN TO GENERATE THE POWER IN YOUR BRAIN

Now  that  you  have  learned  the  secret  of  relaxation  and calm sleep and have opened the channels to your Supraconscious, the seven-point hypothesis of this study must be implanted into your mind so that you can begin to use the  powers  of  your  Golden  Gift  immediately  and  with success.

  Clip from the last section of this book the page on which the seven propositions of the working hypothesis are printed. Each night after you have achieved muscular relaxation and freed your conscious mind of the day’s petty cares, read the seven-point lesson.

 At first it will be best to read it aloud. Later you will find that silent reading will accomplish just as much, for by that time you will have acquired the gift of concentration and absorption.