Ganzfeld effect with ping pong balls

[thesmokingpants]

Has anyone tried this? You apparently cut ping pong balls in half and put them over your eyes and sit under a lamp.

[CFTraveler]

And then what?

[Kallas]

one way to find out

[paint1]

Don't forget to paint the insides.

[kiwibonga]

http://brain.web-us.com/ganzfeld.htm

Pretty interesting... A fail-safe way of entering profound meditation by putting ping pong balls on your eyes...

Sounds silly, but someone should definitely test this

[sumday]

It seems like the ganzfield effect works by giving the brain a wealth of meaningless data. The moment the brain recognizes that there is no useful information to be deciphered from the data, it just ignores it.

I'm definitely going to try this soon. Although i don't have any ping pong balls, maybe i can come up with some other way of doing it.

[Sunn]

god bless those little ping pong balls

[sumday]

this didn't work for me. I tried it first with white ping pong balls, painstakingly cut into a shape that covers my entire field of vision. I then colored them evenly in red and tried again, but nothing much happened. Once or twice i had the beginnings of what felt/looked like a hynogogic hallucination, but nothing to get excited about. One of them was an indistinguishabe feature that appeared to be on a ceiling of some kind, but that disappeared as quickly as it came.

It's a good thing ping pong balls are relatively cheap.

[MisterJingo]

It seems like the ganzfield effect works by giving the brain a wealth of meaningless data. The moment the brain recognizes that there is no useful information to be deciphered from the data, it just ignores it.

I'm definitely going to try this soon. Although i don't have any ping pong balls, maybe i can come up with some other way of doing it.

This was a technique used by Derren Brown on his show in the UK. He slightly altered it though. He would ring a public phone (where a secret camera was filming) and then play down it a stream of inchoherent words and noise. He would then say 'sleep', and the person would literally drop to the floor in a sleep. he gave it as an example of how powerful suggestion is. The brain cannot make sence of the meaningless data, and then it hears something it can latch on to (the word 'sleep') and so it does.
A certain amount of susceptibility to suggestion might be needed for it to work effectively.

[Selski]

He would ring a public phone (where a secret camera was filming) and then play down it a stream of inchoherent words and noise. He would then say 'sleep', and the person would literally drop to the floor in a sleep.

So THAT'S how he did it!  That's been bugging me for months.  I believed that he wasn't using stooges, but my god, how on earth did he get someone to drop to the floor???!!!!

Actually, that's quite frightening really.  :confused:

Can we really be that suggestible in certain situations?  It seems so.

I saw Derren Brown live and he wanted volunteers from the audience.  There were one or two people he rejected, saying he couldn't use them.  I wondered whether this was stage play, or is there a way of "shielding" oneself from suggestibility, and these characters had done so.  

Even if these people were able to do this, Derren picked up on it.  

He does my head in.   :aargh:   But I love him for it.

Sarah

[MisterJingo]

He would ring a public phone (where a secret camera was filming) and then play down it a stream of inchoherent words and noise. He would then say 'sleep', and the person would literally drop to the floor in a sleep.

So THAT'S how he did it!  That's been bugging me for months.  I believed that he wasn't using stooges, but my god, how on earth did he get someone to drop to the floor???!!!!

I think he divulged that in a web chat I sat in on, he usually doesn't give much away   .

Actually, that's quite frightening really.  :confused:

Can we really be that suggestible in certain situations?  It seems so.

Definately. Some memorable bits from his show included the guy who he made legless drunk just by remembering the sensations of it (he added a trigger phrase so this state could be induced instantly when it was seen - working by text message too!), the medical students he gave accute tooth ache too, and the people he had rob the security van(!).

I saw Derren Brown live and he wanted volunteers from the audience.  There were one or two people he rejected, saying he couldn't use them.  I wondered whether this was stage play, or is there a way of "shielding" oneself from suggestibility, and these characters had done so.  

I'd love to see him live . I think some people are more naturally susceptible than others. You'll see stage hypnotists do the same, they pick out the people who will be most suggestive to this state. My Dad once went up on stage for a hypnosis show, and he sent him back down because he couldn't be hypnotised   .

Even if these people were able to do this, Derren picked up on it.  

He does my head in.   :aargh:   But I love him for it.

Sarah

hehe yeah, he comes across as arrogant, but I think hes fantastic

[Swimmingbear]

Sumday,

How long did your session last?

I read in one place that a person could start to feel the effects (see things) in a few minutes.  In another source I read it could take a couple of hours before things really start to kick in.

Is there anyone who has experience using the ping pong ball method that could give a few pointers or explain things in further detail?
The time it took etc..

SB

[RooJ]

If you go to Darrens site on channel4.com he actually tells you how he does a few of the tricks.
For the phonebox one read this:

http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/M/mindcontrol/trick/phone.html

[MisterJingo]

If you go to Darrens site on channel4.com he actually tells you how he does a few of the tricks.
For the phonebox one read this:

http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/M/mindcontrol/trick/phone.html

Thanks for the link .

Taken from the site:

For this trick of the mind I have chosen someone who is convinced by New Age philosophies and alternative medicine. There's nothing wrong in being open-minded about claims that crystals, spells or psychic phenomena have the power to heal, as long as you're prepared to test them. If not, you could find yourself being conned.

I start by establishing an atmosphere which will convince the woman that I have supernatural powers. To do this, I take her to Epping Forest, a wild and natural place, full of ancient trees. I have a doll, which, I tell her, contains a ring that belongs to her. When I tie up the doll's legs, she finds she cannot move her legs. When I tie up the doll's arms, she can't move her arms. I tie string round the doll's mouth and she finds she cannot speak. This fits in so well with her beliefs about how the world works that she is happy to accept that by putting her ring into the doll, I have given it her soul. As a result, her body mimics what I do to the doll.

In reality, the doll does not contain her ring and I have no supernatural powers. When I give the woman permission to question my powers, she finds she can move and speak.

Through this trick I wanted to illustrate the power of unquestioning belief and show how it can leave people open to being used and manipulated.

http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/M/mindcontrol/trick/doll.html

This is why I respect Derren, and this is why I question everything (including my own personal experiences). For the woman above, this act would have reinforced her world view, yet it was her belief making such astounding things happen. I have experienced so much, yet, I can see alternative explainations for it, which is why I think we should be more sceptical in our beliefs.

[AndrewTheSinger]

I've used the ping-pong balls and they worked. You should not paint them, use the white ones, you cut them in the half and attach them to something that would resemble swimming goggles. I made it with toilet paper wrapped around normal paper so it wouldn't hurt the face, then I used rubber bands to pull it tight around the eyes. Do no let any light get in through holes or anything. I used hot glue to attach the half balls to the papper thing. Then you lie or sit with a lamp in front of your face, the white background should have you seeing strange things in a few minutes.

I was able to find out what coloured geometric form a person had chosen from a deck with a few objects.

[sumday]

Sumday,

How long did your session last?

I read in one place that a person could start to feel the effects (see things) in a few minutes.  In another source I read it could take a couple of hours before things really start to kick in.

Is there anyone who has experience using the ping pong ball method that could give a few pointers or explain things in further detail?
The time it took etc..

SB

it was about half an hour each time i tried. I have pretty rubbish powers of visualization, so maybe this was the problem. Or maybe i was thinking about the ping pong balls too much or something.

[sumday]

well i just tried this again with a less intense light, and it worked really well! It was instant meditation, as advertised. Very impressive. I think this will be a nice way to practice phasing, because you can literally see your vision turn itself off. One moment my entire visual field is red, the next moment it has faded to black. That's when i get what seems to be hypnogogic hallucinations, but it doesn't take very long at all to get to this stage. Maybe 3 of 4 minutes at most.The hard thing is staying like that for long periods of time.

I think, with practice, i'll be able to do it instantly. Thinking too much about my body, the ping pong balls, and everything else hinders my progress.

[Sunn]

i say it again

GOD BLESS THE PINGPONG BALLS

btw  what would happen if you did it in the dark

[sumday]

In the dark? your eyes would have nothing to ignore, so the whole effect is pointless. it would be like meditating with your eyes closed i guess. Just normal.

I bought 6 ping pong balls, and it takes one per eyepiece. I've already got a red pair, so i'm gonna make a white pair, and a green pair, and see if there is any difference.

[David Warner]

Thesmokingpants,

I know that I am catching this discussion at the tail end, but here's my .2. I purchased ganzfield goggles about 10years ago from this web site, which doesn't sell the product anymore...:(

I still have the goggles and every now and then I'll use them. It definitely works by shifting your consciousness/awareness into the trance state. Its a blinding effect which confuses you, makes your eyes tired and before you know it the trance state is achievable.

Now, the con's of this is that outside noises, or light at times peers thru the creases of the goggles. But with a little re-adjustment that can be resolved. Lastly, I would advise using this technique in the morning/afternoon because doing this at night will put you directly to sleep.

Tvos

[paint1]

Yes, and pink & light blue works best.

[David Warner]

why do you say that? did you notice anything different when you used pink for level of consciousness?

tvos

[kiwibonga]

Aaahhh the knife slid off the ball and shaved a chunk of meat off my finger!! Blood everywhere!

I'm still trying to cut the balls, nevertheless...

My advice: don't do this if you're an idiot who can't hold the knife straight

Will post results soon

EDIT:



Huhuhuh

EDIT again:
Well.. I was "blinded" on one eye but could still perfectly see with the other... I'll try some more to see if I can get both eyes to work

EDIT again again:
As if cutting my fingers wasn't enough, I tried to walking around with the ping pong balls on my eyes and stubbed my toe on a piece of furniture... :[

Anyway... All I see is white... The whiteness of the inside of a ping pong ball...  Perhaps I'm using a light that's too bright? Can anyone post more on getting them to work?

EDIT again again again:
Well... Nothing... I'm going to try coloring now to see if it changes anything...

[Sunn]

Aaahhh the knife slid off the ball and shaved a chunk of meat off my finger!! Blood everywhere!

I'm still trying to cut the balls, nevertheless...

My advice: don't do this if you're an idiot who can't hold the knife straight

Will post results soon

EDIT:



Huhuhuh

EDIT again:
Well.. I was "blinded" on one eye but could still perfectly see with the other... I'll try some more to see if I can get both eyes to work

EDIT again again:
As if cutting my fingers wasn't enough, I tried to walking around with the ping pong balls on my eyes and stubbed my toe on a piece of furniture... :[

Anyway... All I see is white... The whiteness of the inside of a ping pong ball...  Perhaps I'm using a light that's too bright? Can anyone post more on getting them to work?

EDIT again again again:
Well... Nothing... I'm going to try coloring now to see if it changes anything...

one of the funniest posts i've ever seen..btw you look crazy

[David Warner]

Sunn,

Cool idea - back in the day I used smaller ping pong balls cut in half which didn't work. Also, the problem with doing this could cause skin irritation and possible eye conflict with the jagged edges. Its one thing to try and induce a projection, but there are also safty measures to be accounted for.

If you review business web site that *use to* sell the product I was referring to earlier in my post. I am sure from there it wouldn't be too complex to assemble and would be safe.

www.cerebrex.com/goggle.htm



History about the product:

Anyone who is trying to learn how to meditate or is interested in experiencing an altered state should try The Ganzfeld Effect.

Historically, Arctic explorers were the first people to describe the effect. After they gazed into a frosty field of snowy white, they reported experiencing a form of snowblindness.

Upon further research in the 1930's, it was discovered that when people gazed into a featureless field of vision (a Ganzfeld), they quickly and consistently entered a profoundly altered state.

When Ganzfelds have been tried by experienced meditators, they have described the effect as instant meditation. This is not surprising, since most forms of meditation require you to focus your attention on a spot, flower, mantra, etc.

While traditional meditation can take many years of practice, a Ganzfeld works for most people in a matter of minutes. (Researchers have also tested the effects of Ganzfelds on psychic abilities, and have found a statistically significant increase in test scores. See Other Sites of Interest below)

The Effect Described
When someone is exposed to a Ganzfeld, they often experience a progression of effects that can be described as follows:

All color drains from your field of vision
The size of your field of vision oscillates
You "see" a swirling Kaleidoscope of colors and with practice
You completely ignore your vision as you us your mind in an extremely focused way
People have reported using Ganzfelds in the following ways:
Instant Meditation
Self Hypnosis
Astral Journeys
Past Lives Regressions
Psychic Abilities
Guided Imagery
Creativity
Relaxation
Self Healing & Improvement



Tvos[/img]