The Energy Cure: Unraveling the Mystery of Hands-On Healing

My view of Bill Bengston's book, and especially the CD set, is that they are vitally important. By all means buy several and give them away - that's what I've done. Bengston is a stickler for tight experimental protocols and publishing in peer-reviewed journals so his results are well documented and quite credible. Still, it's amazing this work has gone on for forty years without catching the baleful eye of the closed-minded professional skeptics. There are a number of other reviews posted here that do a good job describing Bengston's method in some detail. In this review I will provide some additional information, based on a workshop I attended, that may not be found in the book or CD set or in the other reviews (there are 48 reviews of the book at this writing and I didn't read them all). After reading the book and working through the CD set (I recommend going directly to the CD set if you're serious) I really couldn't understand how Bengston's method is possible. I'm not saying I couldn't understand how it works - I knew there was little chance of that at the present - but rather how his actual mental algorithm, continuously cycling through a list of at least 20 mental images in a fraction of a second per cycle, could be performed by a typical human. That quandary caused me to sign up for one of Bill's occasional workshops, held in late 2013. It was reasonably priced - he's clearly not in it for the money - and it turned out to be a great experience. Much was revealed in the way of small details that are important for clarity and could make the difference between success and frustration. The information I give here is my best recollection and interpretation of what Bill said; I believe these points are accurate but I may have misunderstood something, and there were many times when Bill emphasized he was speculating or providing anecdotal information. Addressing my misgivings about the process of extremely rapid cycling, Bill said that as you accelerate the rate at which you go through your image list you reach a point where you are no longer seeing discrete images or even a blur of images; what remains is a "physical sensation." It seems that this "phase transition," as Bill calls it, like the transition of water to ice, is the key to learning this method. The second most important issue would seem to be learning to cycle in background mode while going through your normal daily activities. To perform actual healing, according to Bill, you "form a fleeting intention to heal and then let it go, step out of the way, and let the universe take care of it." We humans with our "pea brains" couldn't hope to carry out anything so amazingly complex, he emphasized. While "healing," he said, carry on a conversation, have an argument, watch TV, do anything you like but don't think about healing. Asked if there was any way to know you are cycling properly other than to heal he said, not so far as he knew. However, some encouragement may be had if items on your cycling list (things that you want to happen or to have) begin to occur in surprising ways - at which time you should take those items off your list. He keeps his list up to date and also removes any items that "don't feel right" as he cycles; he said the last time he had updated his list was on the airplane traveling to the workshop. As to the question of when to cycle, he told the workshop, "You've never seen me not cycling." Bill says he cycles pretty much constantly while he's awake. When asked what percentage of the "volunteers" who had taken part in his published lab experiments over the years, mostly grad students and faculty at the various universities where the experiments were performed, had succeeded in curing cancer in laboratory animals, Bill responded, "All of them." Remember, he did not select volunteers who were already healers or who claimed to be psychic or unusually intuitive, or even individuals who were enthusiastic and believed it could work. He selected ordinary scientific-skeptical students and faculty members who thought it sounded like nonsense (as indeed it does). From this it is reasonable to infer that most normal skeptical people, after six weeks of training (the normal time period used by Bill), should be able to cure cancer, at least in mice. While this seems like a reasonable inference based on the evidence it is still not certain because of a lack of understanding of exactly what is going on in this deeply mysterious process. Bill's answer to many questions was, "I don't know," and he would frequently tell participants to, "Read the manual." The "manual," which he handed out at the beginning of the workshop, was a blue glossy business card with "Avoid Ritual!" printed on one side and "Be Playful!" printed on the other. In the CD set Bengston covers 90% of what is covered in the workshop. He drills you in his technique, just like in the workshop, and covers most of the same issues. However, working through the CD set I did not develop the enthusiasm that the live workshop generated, largely because there was no way to get niggling questions answered (I hope this information helps you avoid some of the frustration), and also because I found Bill to be an amusing and entertaining teacher when he wasn't cracking the whip and exhorting the group to, "Cycle faster! Faster!" If somebody reported a problem he often responded, "You're not cycling fast enough!" Near the end of the workshop Bengston emphasized ethical issues (primarily, never do anything for another person without their permission) and legal issues (he emphasized protecting yourself if you want to offer healing and suggested a few attorneys who are knowledgeable about the issues involved). These issues are also covered in the CD set, without the specific suggestions. Late on the second day we had a brief practice period where we partnered up just to get a feel for the overall process (or you could opt out - no pressure). I found it encouraging that my practice partner (for 15 minutes) was an oncologist. I hoped I was getting a glimpse of the future when mainstream medicine embraces a pragmatic, open-minded, evidence-driven healing approach, with a renewed emphasis on the directive, "First, do no harm."

22 March 2012: I've decided to update this review since I've also purchased and listened to the CD set Hands-on Healing: A Training Course in the Energy Cure . Like the book most of the CD tells the story of how Bengston got interested in energy work, how his method developed, what it does and does not do, and some speculation on how it works and Bengston states he doesn't know or understand it all. He calls himself a skeptic which means he is open to possibilities tempered by questioning and doubt and says he's a real skeptic as some who call themselves skeptics already have their minds made up so they aren't real skeptics in Bengston's view. Bengston's lack of understanding about how energy healing works it is part of what fuels his fascination into energy healing. Bengston's method does not require belief on the part of the patient or even the healer. He asks you do as he instructs you and to keep an open mind and see for yourself. His research and findings on cancer are interesting such as once cured of cancer it has never re-occurred so there appears to be some kind of immunity developed or perhaps whatever the underlying cause is it has been resolved. The cancer remits at the rate of its onset so if it came on quickly it will remit slowly and if it came on quickly it will remit quickly. He also describes resonant bonding which is basically the interconnectedness of life. Through resonant bonding the healing of groups (mice) are effected by even the brief presence of the healer or when they are in close proximity to each other (such as in the same building). It is speculated resonant bonding possibly might explain the placebo effect mainly thought of as a psychological effect, but through resonant bonding the placebo effect could be thought of as shared healing effect. I don't pretend to be enough of a scientist to evaluate these thoughts and the studies. Bengston's method is a bit different from most of the other alternative healing methods I have come across. Professor Bengston is a sociologist at St. Joseph's College, New York. Unlike a lot of others who claim to be able to heal everything and anything, Bengston is honest in what his method seems to work on and what it does not. Mainly his cycling technique appears to work very well on malignant cancer. It can help with such things as diabetes, arthritis, and Parkinson's, but can't cure these conditions. I also found his experiements and information about "charging" or energizing cotton and water and using them in healing very interesting. I thought about Masaru Emoto's books such as The Hidden Messages in Water where water was affected by influences such as words taped to the containters, music, and thoughts. Bengston recommends having fun and keeping things light and I appreciate his attitude and advice as some who work with energy seem to be too serious. He also invites readers/listeners to experiment and submit their results. His cycling technique uses a minimum of 20 personally totally selfish desires or wishes and the list is cycled very rapidly through the mind of the healer in around a second, so fast your mind can't dwell on it. This takes some practice as the healer must cycle the list faster and faster until it can be accomplished in a second. Like the book, only a small portion of the CD is devoted to actually showing Bengston's healing method, but I found it more helpful than the book since it gives you a better sense of how to make up the list and cycle so if you're interested in actually trying his cycling method I suggest you skip the book and purchase the CD. On the CD set Bengston leads the listener through a few exercises and he assumes the listener wants to practice his method so he goes into ethics, state licensing/certification, etc. The CD set is more expensive though so you might want to keep that in mind. As it takes practice to cycle the list of 20 or more things in a second this is not a method most people will be able to do instantly. I have not tried his method as it will take some practice to cycle effectively.

I found out about Dr. Bengston's book through a parapsychology blog... wish I could remember which one of them it was. The blogger was struck by the reaction of most people to Bengston's laboratory findings (silence), and even more so by his own reaction - the same unbelieving silence. I don't know what to make of the claims - as Bengston insists, you shouldn't believe him: You should do what he says and see for yourself. But his claims are big - and I mean BIG - such as total remissions of cancer and even a particular case where a woman was spared a foot amputation when her gangrene was healed. As Bengston informs you in his book, gangrene never goes away - there are no reported cases of it remitting and of affected limbs returning to their previously healthy state. I've read his book and I've listened through most of his Sounds True course, which I downloaded from Audible. I'm not at a point yet to discuss the merits of his approach because, well, it takes some time to get to the point where you can practice his technique. You've got to come up with 20 things you really want to manifest in your life - and these have to be very specifically crafted and unique from one another. They have to be entirely selfish. You'd think that would be easy! - But it is NOT. I've been working on my list for two days when I've been able to get around to it, and I think I have at least 15 solid items. I'm hoping to finally wrap it up tonight and hopefully try his cycling technique several times this weekend (you must envision actually having or being or experiencing the various situations you would like to manifest in your life in rapidfire succession. Eventually you do this so rapidly you aren't actually conscious of each individual item and you get in touch with an emotion which pervades you - the claim is this "e-motion" is somehow related to the generation of a healing energy which will then serve as the healing force). If you are confused, then good - this is something that takes some time to get your head around. It is this list of selfish items and the tales of people manifesting their desires which shocked me nearly as much as the healing stories - I didn't expect that learning how to heal others would have anything to do with me getting something out of it! - In fact, it seems antithetical to my presumptions, but Bengston repeatedly tells you that you'll see a lot of your presumptions get tossed aside in this work. It was a fun read! - Like a lot of the other reviewers, I read through this book pretty quickly. I think most people would enjoy Bengston's story, even if they never get around to putting any of what he has to say into practice. Rest assured this book doesn't come off like a lot of "New Agey" stuff out there - there is no certitude in these pages - simply active grappling with paradigm-destroying, empirical experience! If I find myself manifesting the desired experiences that I've written down and I start healing people of their ailments with this method, I'll be sure to come back and update my review to let you all know about it. Take care.

When one reaches the senior years after more than 7 decades of reading and researching topics from A to Z one realizes there are still things that boggle the mind. Many times, there are more questions than answers. With the new developments in science, whether it is chemistry, biology or quantum physics, the blending between the sciences and the esoteric may be coming together. After studying various types of energy healing systems over the years, I am always seeking new books and material on the subject. When I saw this 289-page soft cover book (The energy cure: unraveling the mystery of hands-on healing by William Bengston, Ph.D.) on Amazon I decided to purchase it. As always, the delivery service was very efficient. I just finished reading this interesting and informative book. The author is a sociology professor at St. Joseph College in New York but is also known for his research into energy healing. This book focuses on the author’s personal experience and how he became interested in the art of “hands-on energy healing.” Even though I am familiar with much of the material in this volume; nevertheless, I still found this book to be somewhat intreiging. His research into healing mice that were injected with cancer cells and were healed is thought provoking. Some of the material covered in this text includes the following: A remarkable encounter, breakthrough, the healings, of mice and men, too good to be true, more moonlighting with mice, talking to machines, why haven’t you won a Noble Price and many other topics. There is also a great appendix section on “how to apply hands-on healing and a research guide. Personally, having been trained and certified in various energy healing systems over the years, I found the method taught in this book somewhat unusual and needlessly complex in my opinion. I did not see the purpose of having to make a large list of things you desire in the process, but in general I liked this book. If you are interested in an unusual approach to energy healing this is a book you may want to read. Rating: 4 Stars. Joseph J. Truncale (Author: Chair/Seated Tai Chi/Qigong/Yoga stretching for seniors and the physically challenged).

A fascinating look at energy healing, from both a practical and scientific point of view. I'm always surprised to discover just how many corners of the psychic universe have been under scientific evaluation -- and have held up -- for so very long. Dr. Bengston is not only a practitioner of using energy to cure, but has also pioneered scientific investigation into the process. He's discovered that IT WORKS. And it works consistently, under experimental conditions as well as practical ones. He utilizes "cycling," which is a VERY quick series of visualizations, to let the ego step aside and the universal energy come through for healing. He tells of how he got involved with this as a high school graduate, wondering what he'd do for the rest of his life. Dr. Bengston went through many disappointments in trying to get the scientific community to listen to the results of his experiments. I'm glad there are now SOME outlets out there willing to spread the word. I just took my first Reiki course last weekend and read this first so I could compare the two. Reiki has a lot more frou-frou associated with it. Is it really needed? Dr. Bengston says his technique won't work on people who've been through radiation and chemo (he also says that that might only apply to himself; that others who utilize it might be able to work with those conditions). My Reiki instructor said that radiation and chemo are no problem. Years ago I took Kolaimni (don't know why I didn't keep it up. I have the instruction books somewhere) and recall that method as also not having Reiki's ceremonial/symbolic frou-frou, but it had a different way of approaching the healing, by reminding the etheric body of its structure and working one's way carefully through the physical body (like Reiki does, only Reiki concentrates on chakras. Kolaimni charges up chakras in one phase of its healing process). The only thing I wish the book would do is to be more clear exactly how one does the process. I want a step-by-step guide. So I got the audio followup, and hope that that has more detail. Dr. Bengston's website shows that in-person workshops are available. I'm surprised to see ordinary medical practices are now beginning to incorporate Reiki. I think the same will hold true for Dr. Bengston's Energy Cure. It is a technique anyone can use, though skill level will vary. You'll get a lot out of reading the book.

I read a fair amount of new age books, listen to many informational, meditation and hypnosis CD's, and have been working to increase my natural intuitive abilities over many years. Over the past several years I've taken particular interest in healing, and energy healing, for several reasons. 1st - several years ago I was in an accident which left me with severe chronic pain - I'd LOVE to be DONE with that for good! 2nd - our son started having severe anxiety & nightmares - which led me to seek my certification in hypnotherapy so I could help him. Lastly, but one of the most pressing reasons, was that our dog, my longtime friend and loving companion got very sick, and I wanted more than anything to be able to heal him, or at least to ease his pain! Unfortunately, it was not meant to be, and he died in my arms in Nov. 2010. I miss him terribly! Initially I chose this book from the Vine selections because it sounded so fascinating. After reading the book I felt an urgency to purchase a 2nd copy for someone I dearly care about who was sick, and who I felt had the mental acuity not only to pick up on the method quickly, but to implement the method in order to heal themself. (trying not to reveal the gender of the person!) In The Energy Cure, as the story began in 1971, Bengsten at the age of 21 met the man who set the course of his life for the next 35 years, Bennett Mayrick. Initially Bengsten was as skeptical as anyone could be about Mayrick's extraordinary abilities. For goodness sake the man claimed to be able to break up cloud formations! Even after Bengsten met Mayrick, and witnessed some of his incredible abilities, he remained skeptical - he couldn't really be seeing what he was seeing .. could he?! Maybe it was simply slight of hand, or distraction, and Mayrick was patient, and mildly amused by young Bengsten's curiosity and skepticism. Mayrick did all the things Bengsten asked him to do to prove he was the real deal. Mayrick was pretty nonchalant about his abilities - which were relatively new found to him, and which were beginning to develop at a more and more astounding rate as time went by. Some of the development was spurred by Bengsten's challenges to do things he didn't know he could do. Mayrick was very nonchalant about life, never having much money, and tending to work most of the time as a house cleaner in order to sleep late, and not be responsible to anyone other than himself, and (not so much) to his family - earning only enough to keep a very meager roof over the heads of himself and his family, and put a bit of food on the table. Mayrick took each day as it came - today it might be considered an extreme form of living "in the now". Eventually it led to the demise of his family. Soon after meeting Mayrick, who had more than proven himself, Bengsten joined Mayrick, cleaning houses in order to spend more time with him and study his abilities. Bengsten was somewhat of a professional student at that point in his life, and able to do what he wanted. Although Mayrick enjoy the company of Bengsten - who was not a good house cleaner, and caused Mayrick to lose most of his regular jobs. To Mayrick's great dismay, the younger Bengsten dragged him from academic institution to academic research institution, having him tested, hoping to prove, once and for all, that intuitive and healing abilities are indeed possible. Unfortunately, as things went, everywhere Bengsten took Mayrick, no matter how incredible the tests were that Mayrick passed, the scientists always summed it up to a malfunctioning machine, or something similar - in one place unbelieveably machine after machine "malfunctioned" according to the various scientists. Mayrick finally had enough! He had warned Bengsten at the outset that no scientific institution would accept the reality of his abilities. Bengsten, being a big believer in scientific methodology, didn't want to give up. After taking Mayrick to numerous top notch institutions, which all failed to accept the proof of Mayrick's remarkable abilities, Bengsten agreed it was time to forgo proving to the scientific community that intuitive and healing abilities were possible, he gave in and spent time studying Mayrick, and just spending as much time with him as he could challenging him to continue to evolve his abilities. I read this book with great interest, and found the authors ideas completely plausible. What I liked about it, that I often find lacking in some books, was that the details of their healing methods are given. Right from the beginning the reader knows the entire appendix is devoted to explaining Mayrick's and (eventually) the authors own healing methods in detail. I don't seem to have any natural healing abilities, but I do believe in hands on healing, that some people do have an innate ability, and the rest of us have to work at it if we want to attain these skills. The bulk of the book tells the authors story - how he came to know Bennett Mayrick, the person who first interested him in these abilities. Also, it tells the development of their relationship,and how the authors skepticism was turned to complete faith. It tells how that Mayrick taught him a very difficult lesson about the scientific community which he'd always had such faith in. It was very difficult for Bengsten to accept that the scientific community is more than reluctant to accept what they cannot prove with scientific methodology, and those who seek to prove things out of the mainstream often become outcasts among their peers. Eventually, Bengsten and Mayrick ended up parting ways, and it wasn't a happy parting, but you'll have to read about all of that yourself! :) But I will tell you Mayrick ended up leaving his family, and moving to a commune, and ... years and years later ... Read it for yourself - very interesting! I didn't mention this before, but these points are very important; Bengston specializes in healing cancer, and his methods have been proven in clinical research. While he doesn't offer his services to the general public - which I can understand - it would be a non-stop life of people at your door asking to be healed, and that takes a toll on anyone, he HAS taught many others. The one criteria is that Bengsten only starts with skeptics, weeding out those who already believe, and then teaching his methods to the most skeptical of of skeptics, and, much to their astonishment, they've been able to produce the same, or similar, effects as Bengsten's. I think this is such a huge step. It's a foot in the door to academia, and then eventually research, then the mainstream. The wheels move ever so slowly, and that's unfortunate for people who could be helped NOW! It will certainly take time, but so many more people are open to alternative medicine. This method is not easy for those of us who have to work at it, but it's well worth the work it will take on anyone's part. I've been practicing since I finished the book - in early Dec 2010, at this point I don't know to what end, but I will continue to work on it, and hopefully at some point I'll be able to accomplish what I work toward, but again, some people are more naturally inclined than others. In most of the alternative or new age books I've read, the authors have solid academic credentials - which make it easier to share with those who are too skeptical to accept, or even acknowledge, the information at face value. The author of the Energy Cure, William Bengsten Ph.D, is a professor of sociology at St Joseph's College in NY. The Energy Cure also has endorsements from scientists with impressive academic credentials. Of the many people endorsing his work, is Peter Sturrock, professor emeritus of applied physics at Stanford. Also, Edward Mann - Energy Healing Historian, Garrett Moddel - Professor of Electrical Engineering, U of Colorada, Dept of Electrical, Computer, and Energy Engineering. And Richard Blassband MD, former faculty member, Yale Medical School. Not that this has much to do with this book, but on the general subject of energy, I think it's heartening to anyone who's sketptical, but desparately hoping for an afterlife. For all of us, who've suffered the loss of someone they dearly love, to know science has proven energy doesn't ever die, it just changes form. It stands to reason, just as we changed form over the time as an egg and sperm, to conception, to the time in our mother's womb - before taking our first breath, that once again, we'll change form after we leave this life, on our way to the next! The Energy Cure, by William Bengsten Ph.D, was such a hopeful book for me, that not only is my husband reading it, hoping to be able to cure me. I also purchased a 2nd copy to give to a person who is very dear to our family, who everyone thought was surely going to die - even their doctor seemed to think it was likely. I don't think it had anything to do with this book, because they didn't get the book until they'd begun to get well, but hope they read it and gain as much hope from it as I did. I do firmly believe this person willed themselves to live - and their doctor concurred with me, that they refused to die at the young age of 65. They know they're needed and dearly loved by so very many people, and hopefully they'll continue to live a good long, long life! I highly recommend this book to anyone who believes in energy medicine, or anyone exploring energy medicine. This is as much for the beginner as for anyone who's more well read on the subject. Thank you so much Dr Bengsten for what I've learned, and for such a wonderful story!

The above title comes from Dr.Bengston's book and is a question asked in a doubting voice by his patients and other people. Why indeed? It is one to be answered by all readers. In his book Dr.Bengston presents astonishing clinical and experimental evidence that challenges the paradigm of Western medical science. He summarizes his 35 years relentless investigation into the mystery of hands-on healing, in the face of constant rejection and lack of support. His paradigm shifting experimental results with mice and humans are presented in an easy conversational style, with a constant attitude of scepticism and a professional approach, asking hard questions of himself and others involved. A real sceptic may enjoy this sceptical attitude, and Dr. Bengston's findings that it is easier for him to cure a doubter than a believer in energy healing. An aggresive cancer remits faster than a slower progressing one, and a cancer in a petrie dish does not react at all. The healer wanting to learn the method is invited to follow the detailed instructions presented in the book, or take a course. Bill Bengston's aim is to duplicate himself as wide as possible, he says that anyone can learn to do it, even if Ben, from whom he has learned it, was a "natural" healer and psychic. Tests conducted during healing sessions show that The healer who learns the Bengston method starts producing different brain wave frequencies, and harmonizes them with the brain of the patient. It was a challenge for me not to feel enraged by the fact that instead of open-minded welcome or scientific curiosity, the medical and scientific establishments are doing their best to put obstacles in his way and wipe out this healing method that could eliminate so much suffering and loss of life. Bill relates the case of two friends, one of whom is still enjoying her family life, after he cured her, while the other has died years ago, after the tortures of chemo and radiation. Oh, once healed with the Bengston method, the patient ( or the mouse) is cancer immune for the rest of their natural life. This book is a real milestone in the annals of energy medicine, and provides hope for the coming generations to see the medical world of healing move ahead into the quantum physics paradigm, with an ivitation to learn and practice a proven self-healing method.

Incredible book! I tore through it in two days. For me, anecdotal evidence is just not enough to test the validity for hands on healing. Dr. Bengston's research on mice and even carrots (who can get cancer) was truly an eye-opener for me on the importance of our immune system. Btw, carrots don't have one. I have tried doing Reiki and Richard Gordon's Quantum Touch in the past, but neither worked very well for me. I spent too much time in focus and concentration, when I should have been doing the opposite, just allowing the energy to flow through. I used my left hand as advised, and read a book to distract myself (the Energy Cure to be exact), and started healing a migraine that I had at the time. I have never, ever been able to heal my migraines and always resort to taking Imitrex, which is the only thing that knocks them out. I started by placing my left hand on my right trap which felt warm, then worked my way up to my neck, and finally to the right side of my head. In 10 minutes, my headache was gone. It stayed gone for 10 hours, until just before bed. I tried the healing again, and it worked just as before. I have not done any cycling, just reading, which seems to work for me. I will try the cycling as well to test it and see if it works better.

As I age, I become increasingly aware that what I thought I knew about life was not so much fact as assumption, or decree. Energy healing? Why not? Either it works or it doesn't; either you've experienced it or you haven't. I found this book to be interesting, and worth the read.

I actually read this book twice. It got me into fits of laughter the first time around, the author and his story are very entertaining. The second time, I reread it with a more analytical bias, I wanted to understand the Bengston system, which I went on to train in. Fascinating book !

Excelente libro!

エネルギーヒーリングの効果について、ねずみを使った実験など、臨床医学的な側面を丁寧に記述してある。 それに対して、なぜ、どのように、エネルギーヒーリングが機能するのか等、物理的な側面についての考察がほとんどされていない。 エネルギー医学に興味のある方は、一読の価値がありますが、それ以外の方は不要かもしれません。 期待して読んだだけに物足りなさを感じ、少し残念だった。

I absolutely loved this book easy to. Good for anyone who has an interest in healing