We commonly think of hypnosis in connection with magic and entertainment, or as a form of medical or psychological therapy. But hypnosis has been known since the earliest times. It was employed by priests to evoke divine communication. During the Middle Ages, hypnosis came to be associated with the evil eye and black magic. It achieved respectability in the nineteenth century as Drs. Braid and Charcot experimented with it to relieve physical and mental symptoms. Today, hypnosis remains mysterious and can be dangerous if proper safeguards are not taken.

In The Power of Hypnosis, Hans Holzer, the distinguished author of many books on the paranormal, explains exactly what hypnosis is and examines its relationship to sleep and dreaming. He then describes hypnotic techniques and the ways in which he usually puts a person into the first, second, and third stages of hypnotic trance. Next, he shows how he has used hypnosis in his research into reincarnation, telepathy, and extrasensory perception, as well as in forms of psychotherapy, the changing of habits, and the improving of human relations.

Holzer also describes such phenomena as silent hypnosis—when someone with a particularly strong will and unusual eyes can mesmerize one person or even a large group—and involuntary hypnosis, which can be brought about through certain forms of advertising or political propaganda.

Here is a fascinating book which clears away all the misconceptions about hypnosis and gives it the careful analysis it deserves.