Monday, May 10, 2010

A seminal work on unintentional humour


This is a dedication to my cousin Anirudh, who decided to buy the book: Hypnotism For Everybody by Pandit Laksmhi Doss.


I was at my aunt's house this weekend. Enjoying nice temperate climate, it was a perfect setting to read nice books and relax. Getting fed up after trying out 3 random books including a Sidney Sheldon novel, I decided to read the book on hypnosis, just for something different. When I started reading the book, I couldnt help but notice the bad editing, pathetic grammar , citing of random examples and unintentional humor that lay in the narration technique to describe what the author wanted to tell.

The main thing to note is that the author is a tamilian, who has converted his talk in tamil to english word-by-word, and especially reading it with this in mind makes it extra humorous. Further, the humor is like a progressive piece of music with a grand crescendo!

I am replicating exactly the Introduction section of the book, so that you can imagine the stuff in rest of the book.


INTRODUCTION
Hypnotism is a branch of science or may be considered as an art connected with the mind. Among the various branches of education as Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Engineering,Medical, Geology, etc. Hypnotism is also a branch of study. At present times the nature of study and job are different, for example a science graduate is employed in a Bank or firm. (Eh?)

Hence he almost forgets that he has studied in college. But hypnotism is both study and practice. All these branches are about the matter outside the human mind and its functions. But Hypnotism is a subject of study dealing with what is inside the mind (which is in the brain) and what are its powers. (Heh!)

Hypnotism means to influence others to do an act for the benefit of them, by the strong will power of the hypnotist. In the man kind when we analyse, we find that there are certain persons with extra brain power or mental capacity. This can be noticed in all walks of life,whether in educational field or in music or painting or in acting and so on. Several thousands of people gather to hear the speech of a leader. (Hmm...)

This leader is able to impress upon the audience his way of thoughts. This is also a way of Hypnotism.Often the physical personality does not seems to be a major factor for this leadership. There are several people with charismatic physical appearance but they are not able to talk even a few words before a crowd. The essential factor to be a powerful hypnotist is his will power. Hypnotism is concentration the mind,with purity of thought word and deed. (Fair enough)

The dictionary meaning of hypnotism is that the this word comes from hypnosis meaning Greek God of sleep. Hypnosis means a sleep like state of mind in which the mind responds to the external suggestions of the hypnotist and can recover forgotten memories. Hypnoanalysis means analysis of a person's psychological troubles by obtaining informations from him while he is in a state of sleep. (So where is this going?)

Water is flowing through the river But when a dam is constructed across the river water gathers. By some technical means electricity is produced. There is air every where when more air s inflated in a tube and covered by a tyre makes bus, lorry or cycle to go on road. (LOL!)

Even expenditure has to be controlled according to income. A commodity is put under control for equal distribution. People have to be controlled by the Government and a constitution is framed. Now population control is the major issue throughout the world. When all these are controlled man is not aware of the mind control. Mind when it is controlled and directed towards a proper course the powers are many. (LOL-o-LOL!)

Any branch of knowledge can be used for the benefit of the people and society or to destroy everything. Atoms theory was invented. The result is that one nation is afraid of the other about the atom bomb. A typewriter is an essential machine for use the office to type official letters. But when a clerk uses the machine to type a love letter to a co-lady clerk, the defect is not in the typewriter, it is on the part of the man using the typewriter. (ROFL!)

Any power should never be misused. So also Hypnotism. When a hypnotist uses his power to the evil of others it is not worthy and desirable on his part since his thoughts are not pure. (So also Hypnotism... what Tinglish)

Any action against the laws of a nation is a crime. So also a hypnotist should never use his power for selfish motive or for the evil of others. In due course such persons will lose their power and will suffer a miserable fall. Swami Sivananda in writing his commentary in this had observed thus ,'Thought is as much a thing as the yonder piece of stone, having weight,colour and shape and size and form. It is a strong force. It is a force like gravitation or repulsion. Thoughts travel with the velocity which is unimaginable. Thought has much power.It can work wonders. This is supplied through food. Pure food gives pure thoughts. A pure thought is sharper than the edge of a razor (Yoga Sara Upanishad 1936 edition) (Wow... references!)

When a person wants to take up a Doctorate Degree in any subject he has to study well with concentration from the very first standard for a minimum period of twenty years. For getting proficiency in Veena etc one has to study well under a guru. HALF KNOWLEDGE IS DANGEROUS is the proverb. (:D)

Hence by reading one book or by practicing for one month one cannot arrive at the conclusion that he has got super power. Hypnotism is not like vegetable to be got how market by paying money (Hahaha...!). The man who wants to study the art has to read several books on the subject. Having got a full knowledge of subject he has to do regular steady practice, side by side controlling the senses, anger, lust irritability, ego etc. have to be removed from the mind only than his practices will bear fruit.

In concluding this I wish to state that this science deals on the mind, the center of life force, and that any wrong practice or any hasty method may harm the mind. Hence the author does not take any responsibility for any harm of the practioner due to irregular or wrong method or hasty conclusion. (Haha...) The publisher also takes no responsibility on this. (LOL!) But a slow and steady practice with earnestness, noble thoughts one can get surely. (Surely!)

(NOW HERE COMES THE CRESCENDO:)

"That is full -this is full -
From that fullness this fullness has come -
Though this fullness has been taken -
That fullness always remains full"

(Brihad Aranya Upanishad)

(LOL-y-pop!!!)




3 comments:

antiTalented said...

Aah.. You found that book. Its a collectible dude, the "Iron Monkey" of the literature world. I can't pinpoint on the cosmic forces that propelled me to buy that book. I believe it had something to do with a book expo in a tent, a boring summer afternoon and a cost of 15 bucks. I found that book dangerous to my mental health. The book should be illegal for the amount of laughter it can induce.

Vishwa said...

True... couldnt stop laughing the whole of yesterday evening

DR said...

ROTFL!!..guess it should be - author takes no responsibility for spreading the Tinglish flu..and ur comments are the icing on the cake..