|
Galway
Now, 2001
Text
Copy of article from Galway Now Magazine, 2001
OPEN
YOUR MIND
“The
most mysterious, least known area of man’s universe does not lie in the
farthest reaches of outer space. Nor
is it found in the most remote Amazonian jungle, or in the inky blackness of the
Mariana Trench. It is located
instead inside the human skull and consists of some three and a half pounds of
pinkish grey material with the consistency of oatmeal.
It is, of course, the human brain.”
Time Magazine, January 1974
Imagine
that you are blind and that I am trying to help you appreciate a garden.
I could lead you through the various textures, smells, sounds, shapes and
even tastes but, when it came to the visual impact of the garden, my task would
be virtually impossible because you have no terms of reference, no experience of
colour to draw on and compare and we would probably both end up frustrated and
disappointed. Describing a Mindlink
seminar is very like attempting to teach a blind person about colour.
At
the end of June, I travelled to Sligo to take part in a seminar for the purpose
of writing about it. I
had tried everything to avoid having to give up a precious weekend, including
meeting with Rod Briggs, the man behind Mindlink, and people who had already
taken the seminar but nobody could tell me what it was about.
Again and again, from different sources, I got the same response; ‘You
have to experience it yourself to fully understand.’
Rod
Briggs was born in the UK with only one working lung, which left him a virtual
cripple, but his lack of physical ability was more than compensated for by his
extraordinary mental capacity. To
say that Rod was different from other boys is quite an understatement because
Rod had the ability to ‘see’ things and to sense vibrations outside the
normal scope of the senses. Because
he was a weak child and unable to take part in sports at school, Rod was
relegated to an old library, where he began to search for the meaning behind his
visions. His search took him through various mythologies and
philosphophical systems as well as mystery schools and esoteric traditions, from
shamanism and tribal beliefs to comparative religions.
He found what he describes as ‘the core of Truth’ running through all
traditions and through all ages. The
techniques he learned in that old library ultimately led him to cure his own
lung and provided a foundation for later studies.
When
he was thirteen, Rod and his family moved to South Africa.
He studied Martial Arts to strengthen his body and obtained Black Belts
in Judo, Karate and Jiu-Jitsu. His
investigation of the philosophies behind the fighting arts added to the ‘core
of Truth’ as did his studies in Science and Theology and Psychology.
Rod has lectured to government departments, major corporations, military
and peace-keeping forces, members of the medical professions and private groups
all over the world on Stress Control, Trauma, Crisis Management and Situation
Awareness. Today he spends his time
running the Mindlink Foundation.
“The
Mindlink Foundation” the Mission Statement says, “is dedicated to the
emotional, physical and spiritual upliftment of humanity.
This dedication finds expression in seminars designed to integrate both
conscious and subconscious as well as physical and non-physical aspects of
mankind. The effects of the
resulting ‘balance’ are far-reaching and life changing.
On a micro scale, this leads to an enhanced lifestyle for the individual.
The macro impact is to raise the consciousness of the planet as a whole.”
What
Rod Briggs is trying to do, is enable as many people as possible to open their
minds and realise what the powerful computer between their ears can achieve on a
personal and a global level. We all
know and accept that we only make use of a tiny fraction of our brainpower but
Rod demonstrates how to access all the programmes and ‘acquire simple fail
proof methods in whole-brain learning.’
The
seminar began on Friday evening with about twenty-five people, from teenagers to
pensioners, from all walks of life, all there for very different reasons,
sitting in a school hall. Some
wanted to give up smoking, others wanted to improve their study techniques and a
few of us were just curious. Rod
talked us through some basics concerning states of consciousness and brain
rhythms and then led us on the first of many journeys to the subconscious.
And
this is where we get back to the blind person in the garden.
The next two days were simply amazing – but in a very quiet, very
personal and very deep way. Each
person was given the tools to explore and discover their own mind.
How far each individual wants to travel is a personal decision - some
only wanted to go part of the way while others, like me, have set off on a
life-long quest.
It
may all sound a bit too ‘New Age’ but Rod is actually using ancient wisdom
in a modern world. By Sunday
evening, we had all been given the means to find the answers to life’s
fundamental questions; Who am I? Why
am I here? What is it all about? The
introduction to the seminar booklet says, “As you progress on your journey you
will feel that you are an individual with a mission, not randomly placed here,
and you will develop the personal tools needed to pursue this mission.
You will come to feel in control of your life, effectively steering your
own mapped out course, not travelling roads designated by others.
The key to this journey will be learning to make the fullest use of the
extraordinary power of your thinking process, enabling you to create a life,
which is rewarding and exciting… The
requirements for change are few. You
will need a real desire to change your life, plus the persistence to overcome
obstacles and become a ‘whole’ person.”
What
a Mindlink seminar does is show the way towards making full use of the
incredible computer we all have between our ears.
It is particularly useful for young people and students but everyone
benefits from the experience.
Two
things struck me after the Mindlink seminar.
In the grand scheme of things, when you consider the Universe and all the
stars and planets and galaxies, human beings are more tiny and insignificant
than you can imagine but the expanse and the capabilities and the power of the
mind are limitless.
All
you need to do is dare to open it! | 
