Tag: New Age

Practical Guide to Vibrational Medicine: Energy Healing and Spiritual Transformation

Practical Guide to Vibrational Medicine[rating:.5/5]

Vibrational Medicine is allegedly written by someone with an M.D. With that being so, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect that the author had a fair amount of education and was capable of writing a book that while potentially controversial (nothing wrong with that per se) but was supported by real research which, of course, would also be listed in a well-written bibliography. Don’t expect anything like this; however, from Richard Gerber – the guy is a real QUACK!

I originally had high hopes for this book – with the topic being “vibrational medicine” there is an incredible wealth of information on all kinds of related topics – including the complete sound spectrum and the electromagnetic continuum. Obviously an enormous amount of time could be spent on examining readily (and empirically) identifiable uses of such waveforms but that seems to be expecting far too much from Gerber.

Instead of science, Gerber decides to spew forth endless pages of New Age quackery beginning with a seemingly never-ending discourse on chakras and other such garbage. He refers to “research” conducted by clairvoyants, psychics, faith healers, “medical intuitives”, and a whole plethora of other euphemisms as the basis for his drivel. This appears to be designed to legitimize the fact that he can’t support the bizarre ideas he presents.

While one can’t help but wonder if Gerber must have missed his thorazine when he wrote this nonsense, he covers many of the most ridiculous modalities of “healing” but ignores many, many valid ones. For example, Gerber doesn’t even mention the use of sound – a treatment modality that has found uses in essentially every culture and yet he goes into such bizarre topics as long distance “color therapy” where the healer merely “thinks” of a color while projecting his/her healing thought upon a patient who happens to be miles away.

In fact, this book contains so much meaningless tripe that it might be best to sum it up by hypothesizing a visit to Gerber’s “medical” practice. For example: suppose you are in the midst of a massive heart attack. After reading this book, it is easy to imagine that Gerber would tell you that his on-staff “medical intuitive” took the day off in order to find some more snake oil. As a result, he needs to call the psychic hotline first (because he can’t read your aura) and will need the so-called clairvoyant at the other end of the line to bathe you in “indigo” in order to unblock your chakras. Let’s not forget that you will need to be facing west, during your heart attack, and have magnets placed upon your chest as you sniff the essence of dandelions that have been fermented in a green room (shaped like a pyramid, of course).

While there are so many promising approaches to healing that use legitmate techniques for overcoming sickness, books like this do nothing but harm those who are doing real research into alternative medicine modalities. If you have any sense, at all, avoid this unscientific pile of excrement behind … after all, you wouldn’t want to block your chakras!

Far Journeys

Far Journeys [rating:.5/5]

I recently read Robert Monroe’s first book, “Journeys Out of Body” and found it to be a disappointment – it was just weird. As I noted in my review of that book, I had hoped that the author would discuss his use of sound, for which he is allegedly noted. As I purchased this book at the same time and had nothing else to read, I thought I’d give it a try.The book did start out with a brief discussion of some of his “research” and I thought that, perhaps, this book might actually have some real substance. That belief; however, quickly disappeared. By the time I had reached the half-way point in the book, nothing remained but a schizophrenic quagmire of incomprehensible gibberish. How does total garbage like this manage to get printed?!

There are those that claim that Monroe was a highly left-brained individual who delved into the realm of the creative right-brain. If this book is any indication, one can’t help but wonder if Monroe was missing his entire left hemisphere! There is nothing logical or, for that matter, even coherent in the babble spewed across the endless pages of this book. It would have been worthwhile if Monroe had actually described his experiments and resulting data in a scientific manner. Instead, he chose to spew his incoherent ramblings about his own, personal, dream experiences: these wander so aimlessly, from paragraph to paragraph, that one can’t help but wonder what real point, if any, he was trying to make.

The sad thing is that I had really hoped to find a genuinely scientific study of his work – I was actually quite interested in the topic. Having now been subjected to two of his useless books, I’m amazed that they’re still in print. This is pseudo-science at its absolute worst.

Journeys Out of the Body

Journeys Out of the Body[rating:3/5]

I purchased this book because I had heard of Robert Monroe’s work with binaural beats: a subject that interests me. I really wasn’t prepared; however, for the strange nature of this book which takes a look at numerous “experiments” Monroe conducted on his own, personal, “out of body” experiences. While the book reads like a science fiction diary, Monroe actually believes in and lucidly describes his journeys. It’s difficult to categorize this book but should interest those who have an open mind regarding the world of the bizarre.

Mozart Effect: Tapping the Power of Music to Heal the Body, Strengthen the Mind, and Unlock the Creative Spirit

Mozart Effect: Tapping the Power of Music to Heal the Body, Strengthen the Mind, and Unlock the Creative Spirit[rating:2/5]

Bad book but fun to read. The book is sadly filled with tons of pseudo-science new-age garbage. I am greatly offended that Don Campbell copyrighted the term “Mozart Effect” which he based upon real scientific research that was conducted by Gordon Shaw. Campbell’s bastardization of Shaw’s research and apparent lack of knowledge regarding classical music has further hampered much needed research into the impact that music has upon learning. The only reason I did not rate this book as “total crap” is because it does make the discerning reader ask more questions about what type of research is needed.