Properties of Mental Images

Properties of mental images

          As we have discussed earlier we think based on images, sounds, feelings, tastes and smells. They are called modalities of perception. If we explore these first hand information, the modalities we understand that they have minute details. Say for example if you have the image of your mother in your mind at the moment, in further examination you understand how much close is the image with you and what the size is, also is it dim or bright or is there any sound or what feelings you have when you see her image etc.

         

          In a similar way while you see ice cream on your mental screen you can measure the distance, size, brightness, feelings, taste, smell etc. These details of modalities are called submodalities. The Submodalities influence our mental state to a large extent or in other words submodalities can change our emotions and moods.

          Suppose you visits a zoo and see a wild lion moving in a cage from a distance of two hundred yards. You watch it very cool because you see it dull, small and very far. Now you walk toward the cage. As you come close to the cage what will happen your heart beat increase little bit because you come closer to the lion. Because you can see it as big, very clear and close to you. And when you reach the cage as close as possible your heart beats and breathes shoot up even though the lion is in the cage!

         

          What is happening here? Your mind processes the present experience make use of the filtering system in your mind. As a result your unconscious tells the conscious that the lion is a wild animal and carnivorous, so be careful. This specific characteristic of our mind has advantages and disadvantages in making our life healthy or unhealthy and successful or unsuccessful. This is the case of a real experience. The same lion may appear in your mind when you are away from the zoo and if the picture is very close and bright you may again afraid even with the absent of the real lion. Your unconscious mind is unable to differentiate between reality and mental images or the past and the present. It is the duty of conscious mind to convince the unconscious what is real or unreal and what is past or present. When conscious fails problems arise.

          I can make it very clear. A 10 year old girl observes that a cobra comes fast towards her with the intension to bite. Somehow she could escape from the site and its bite by running very fast on the road. But the poor girl was so afraid thinking that she lost her life. Now she has sleepless nights. She gets shocked by seeing the image of snakes while closing her eyes. On the way to school and church she is looking around whether any snake comes. Sometimes even a rope in the dim light looks like a snake for her! Without the company of somebody she can’t go anywhere. She can’t sleep. She has a very difficult life now.

          Now let us think about what makes her afraid? Is the snake she saw? No, because it was a past event and no snake there. Snake in the past can’t bite her! Also a snake in the future too can’t bite the present her! Then what’s the problem? There is a present snake somewhere which makes her afraid. And that’s the snake in her mind, the image of that particular snake! It’s a living one for her at present. The picture may not be standstill, may be a movie. She can see the snake, listen the hissing sound, expanded head and she feel the feelings as if it is happening now. So she afraid every time when her mind starts play the movie or the image. And her fear will increase or decrease according to the submodalities of the mental movies or images. This is how mood gets off, addictions starts, phobia comes and affections begin for every person.

          I hope that by reading up to this point you have got some clues about the cause and effects of inner world images. So what is the solution to eliminate the impacts of images or movies from the mind? Change the submodalities, that’s all i.e change the distance, intensity, brightness, size, location, sound etc. Let us see what are the various submodailites? The list given below indicates the modalities and submodalities.

   Above list indicates various parameters (submodalities) of internal representation of sensory experiences the difference of which makes different feelings in our mind. When feelings change the mental state and moods change. When an image is far you have a different feeling than when it is very close. You have a different feeling when the image is very bright rather dim. If the sound is very loud and clear, you have a different feeling than it is light and unclear. The clear and close image of the snake we discussed makes a different feeling than a dull and distant image. If the hiss sound is so loud your feeling is different than it is very light. And if the image is accompanied with the sound you will have yet another rich feeling.

          Changing submodality is one of the NLP techniques to heal phobias, hatred, love affections etc. We will have more discussions on it in the coming sessions.