Ever since I can remember, I figured it would be so cool to walk over hot coals and then be able to boast about it to my friends.
Motivational speaker Tony Robbins’ recent seminar “Unleash the Power Within” in Dallas, could have been the opportunity I needed. However, volunteering in local activities made it impossible to get away.
Thousands of people took part though, took part in walking across those hot coals. One was Oprah, seen with a big smile as she finished her stride. Mr. Robbins claims that walking over hot coals is “designed to help you unlock the forces inside that can help break through any limits and create the quality of life you desire”. Who wouldn’t want that supremacy!
Then I heard that five people were taken to the hospital and another 30 or so evaluated with “burn injuries to their feet and lower extremities.” Why did those people have a problem when so many didn’t? Organizers said it was distractions by jostling in the crowd of onlookers or maybe cell phones that might have been jingling. I wondered if it maybe was the added heat of being in Dallas. That town is known to be one of the hottest spots in the US. However, the hospital’s burn manager later stated that coal-walking is not an activity that they would ever recommend.
I was still fixated on why some couldn’t handle the hot coals. Maybe I would have been one of them. Robbins does state “Once you start doing what you thought was impossible, you’ll conquer the other fires of your life with ease.” Why not all the hot coal walkers then?
Physicists and anthropologists who have participated in fire-walks deny that any particular state of mind is required for successful fire-walking, so long as the coals are properly prepared and you don’t stay in the fire too long. Then there are fire-walking proponents who claim that successful fire-walking is the result of a heightened psychological state. I won’t know who to believe – until I do it for myself.
I recall a study published in Psychological Science, that proclaimed so-called self-help books don’t work one iota. Meant to solve problems, change behaviour or make you become a better lover, they only help the people who need help the least, such as those lucky ones with high self-esteem. It was proclaimed that these unproven procedures can actually be destructive for those who are in need the most. The low self-esteem followers of these recommendations reported feeling worse. It supposedly could even backfire on them.
I can identify with that. I read that by thinking of pleasant nature scenes at bedtime would get you to sleep quicker. I tried conjuring up images of majestic forests and mountainous shorelines. The shores for some reason would evolve into sandy beaches and the beaches soon had dozens of bikini-clad girls sauntering by. That backfired for me big-time. It not only woke me right up but I had to get out of bed to erase those tempting visions.
However, I am keeping an open mind about mind power. One time as a student worker at Dominion Magnesium, I had to deliver a sample to the company engineer. He was a big man, almost overflowing his office chair. His astute knowledge and gruffness made him someone to respect but avoid at all costs. I knew his reputation and wished I could avoid him now. Entering his office, trembling like a leaf and even more when he asked me about a large cyst on my left wrist – there for so long I never thought about it anymore.
He said, “You come back here tomorrow morning and I will get rid of it.” I was astonished at his perception but terrified when he pointed to the thickest text book I ever saw.
“After you put your hand on my desk, I will smash it,” he continued. I just sensed it would be with that big book. Even before he finished his sentence I saw trouble. My fate was sealed.
I fretted over it the entire day and the evening when I got home. The night was torment as I couldn’t sleep visualizing the engineer and his big book. The next day I debated about playing sick but the thought of being a coward forced me to go to work. I went directly to his office just to get it over with. He had me stretch my arm out and then he smiled. “It’s gone,” he said. And so it was, but how? Was it his mind or my mind at play or else something very mysterious?
Mind power techniques – what exactly are they? Is the question of unlocking your mind power a bunch of hocus pocus or is there solid proof for it? Maybe it all is about having a desire for something and then somehow the universe will detect your positive energy and change it to make your dreams come true. Some believe this, many don’t.
I believe mind power doesn’t require you to make boundless ‘leaps of faith.’ Rather, it is about harnessing your mind to operate efficiently and allow you to reach your full potential.
Even if those who had burnt feet in Dallas did not have sufficient mind power, they should feel like I do; that there is nothing you can do to influence the outcome of something. It means stop fighting it, just accept and live with whatever happens – or is that up for debate?
