Chapter XV - Exercises in the Direct Flash

And, now, having mastered the preliminary mirror-exercises, you re ready to begin your experiments on real persons. But, here, too, you must crawl before you can walk and run. You must begin with the simpler forms of magnetic influence, before you can accomplish the more complicated or difficult tasks. But, you have now emerged from the kindergarten stage, and are ready to practice in earnest. If you have faithfully followed the instructions in the mirror-practice, you have mastered the mechanism of magnetic influence, and are ready to “run the machine” in pubic view.

But do not for a moment lose what you have gained in the mirror-exercise. Hold tight and fast to the “technique” you have acquired, and do not for a moment fall into the error that you must now begin all over again. The thing for you to remember, always, is that you are really but carrying the mirror-exercises forward on a higher scale, in a broader field. And you will find some interesting work ahead of you. Take my word for it.

First Exercise. I shall now give you an exercise that is almost always given to beginners, by the best teachers of magnetism. It consists of the process of causing a person ahead of you, on the street, to turn around as if he had heard some one call out to him by name. The process is very simple.

You have but to walk some little distance behind the other person, on the street, park or other public place. Concentrate your fixed attention on the person, gazing at the lower back part of his head. And sending him first a strong flash of magnetic force, this being followed by the “direct flash” command; “Here you! Turn around,” just as if you were actually calling out aloud to him. You may even whisper the words so softly that no one else can hear them – this may help you to put force into the command at first, but you will soon outgrow the need of the same. At the time you send the flash command you must actually WILL that the person will around in your direction. Put all the magnetic force within you, in this effort.

You will find that in some cases the other person will turn his head almost at once, and look inquiringly behind him in your direction. In the majority of cases, however, he will take a longer time about it. He will be apt to first grow uneasy and restless, and begin by glancing from side to side, as if looking for some one; then he will almost (but not quite) turn his head around; then, finally he will glance backward somewhat furtively and suspiciously. No two persons act precisely alike in this respect; and, then, again, the same person will act differently under different conditions. There are certain times at which the conditions seem to be more favorable than at others, for various reasons, as you will discover for yourself.

You will find, in this as well as the following other exercises that the best results will be obtained while the other person is proceeding idly along, without his attention being directed particularly in any direction.

When the attention is free, the mind is more open to outside influences. When the other person’s attention is firmly fixed on anything else, it will be found difficult to influence him to any marked degree. This is the result of an established rule of psychology, and will be found to be operative in all cases, as for instance, if you call a person when he is preoccupied either with deep thought, or else when his surroundings-he will probably not hear you call him, though under other conditions he would turn readily. The same rule is, of course, operative in the case of magnetic influence.

Second Exercise. When in church, theatre or other public place, or even in a room full of company, fix your gaze at the lower back of the head of some person in the place, and send him the “direct flash” command: “Here, you! Turn around and look at me!” Using all the magnetic force within you, and putting the force of your will back of the command.

You will notice the same peculiar result as in the preceding exercise, i.e., the fidgeting in the seat, the uneasiness and restlessness, the final quick turn of the head in your direction, followed by the confused expression of countenance. In both of these cases, you should maintain a calm, uninterested gaze ahead, apparently not noticing the person. It is not well to have persons get the idea that you are experimenting upon them, at any time. There is no power so potent as the silent, reserved power. So keep your own counsel, and do not scatter and weaken your force by talking about it to others - far less by boasting about it. There are certain good psychological and occult reasons for my admonition regarding keeping your own counsel, and not dissipating your energy by talking about it, or revealing it to others. I shall not say more on the subject at this time – but I want you to remember what I have said, and to heed it.