This article is an excerpt from the Shortform book guide to "The Silva Mind Control Method" by José Silva. Shortform has the world's best summaries and analyses of books you should be reading.
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Do you want to keep your memory sharp? How can you improve your learning capacity and memory?
In The Silva Mind Control Method, José Silva argues that you can improve your memory and learning ability using the Alpha state. Silva recommends “The Three Finger Technique,” which acts as a trigger to instantly access the Alpha state.
Continue reading to learn how to improve learning capacity and memory with this technique.
Maximize Your Learning and Memory
To establish the trigger for “The Three Finger Technique,” go into your Alpha level and hold your thumb, your index finger, and your middle finger together. Tell yourself firmly that from now on, holding your fingers in this position will instantly put you into the Alpha state of mind. You may need to repeat this meditation a few times to get the trigger to stick, but once it does, you’ll be able to instantly access a deep Alpha state. Below are a few strategies for navigating the Alpha state when you’re learning how to improve learning capacity and memory.
(Shortform note: This technique echoes other traditions that use hand gestures to cue certain mental states. For example, Hindu and Buddhist traditions include mudras, or specific hand and body positions used in spiritual practices like yoga and meditation. The hand shape Silva describes corresponds to the Vaata Naashak mudra, which practitioners believe can help a person overcome forgetfulness, which may aid learning. Similarly, practitioners of neuro-linguistic programming (a particular approach to behavior change) use a technique called “anchoring,” in which they associate a particular hand shape with a particular feeling, such as confidence, until that particular gesture immediately and reliably triggers that feeling.)
1. Access Memories in Alpha
You can use the above technique to quickly access memories in your Alpha state that your mind has forgotten in the Beta state. For example, if you wanted to remember the name of a film you watched years ago, you’d hold your fingers together to instantly access your Alpha state. Then, you’d call up the relevant memories on your mental screen—perhaps you and a friend at the theater when you first watched the movie. As you replay the memory, your Alpha mind will retrieve more and more details until it eventually unearths the name of the film.
(Shortform note: In addition to improving your ability to access long-buried memories, training yourself to access the Alpha state on demand may improve your short-term memory. One modern study found that training people to access the Alpha state using neurofeedback training (in which people learn to control their brain waves in real time) significantly improved their short-term memory over time.)
2. Use Alpha to Aid Learning
You can also use your Alpha trigger to aid learning. If you hold the position while you sit in a class or read educational material, your brain will enter Alpha as you encode the material—so you’ll encode it more deeply. Then, if you hold the position again while you’re being tested on the material, you’ll be able to remember the material much better than if you stayed in Beta during the test.
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Here's what you'll find in our full The Silva Mind Control Method summary:
- The method of using your mind to heal your body, sharpen memory, and solve problems
- How to unlock your innate psychic power to help yourself and others
- How you can use the Alpha state to heal others remotely
