Memorizing The Bible
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Every now and then, I get an email that reads something like this one:
I read your description of your program and I am still unsure whether it is all that you say it is or some scheme. I was wondering if there is any other details that you can give me to help me in my decision on whether or not this program is worth buying?"
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I want to
learn how to memorize the whole Bible. |
In India, in the past, the sacred books were committed to memory, and handed down from teacher to student, for ages. And even today it is no uncommon thing for the student to be able to repeat, word for word, some voluminous religious work equal in extent to the New Testament. Max Muller states that the entire text and glossary of Panini's Sanscrit grammar, equal in extent to the entire Bible, were handed down orally for several centuries before being committed to writing. There are Brahmins today who have committed to memory, and who can repeat at will, the entire collection of religious poems known as the Mahabarata, consisting of over 300,000 slokas or verses. Leland states that, "the Slavonian minstrels of the present day have by heart with remarkable accuracy immensely long, epic poems. I have found the same among Algonquin Indians whose sagas or mythic legends are interminable, and yet are committed word by word accurately. I have heard in England of a lady ninety years of age whose memory was miraculous, and of which extraordinary instances are narrated by her friends. She attributed it to the fact that when young she had been made to learn a verse from the Bible every day, and then constantly review it. As her memory improved, she learned more, the result being that in the end she could repeat from memory any verse or chapter called for in the whole Scripture." |
So it is possible. But it is no small feat. And no matter what techniques you use, it will take you a very long time to succeed -- if you succeed at all.
I cannot guarantee you that you will succeed in memorizing the whole Bible using the technqiues in this book, and I would venture to say that anyone who claims to have techniques to guarantee success in such an endeavour is a liar.
(I know those are strong words, and it is just my opinion; but
my opinion it is.)
So your task is possible, but difficult. The question then becomes,
can this book help you?
I believe yes, and I'll explain why I believe this
book in particular
is a good choice for your specific task.
There are other books out there on memorizing, some great, some
not-so-great, and some that probably shouldn't be sold at all.
Most Memory Books Teach Mnemonics
What most of these books teach, are mnemonics
and mnemonic tricks. These range from the extremely simplistic,
like:
General Electric Power Company -- This is for remembering the
order of Galations, Ephesians, Phillipians and Colossians
and
This is the way the disciples run
Peter, Andrew, James and John Phillip and Bartholemew
Thomas next and Matthew, too.
James the less and Judas the greater
Simon the zealot and Judas the traitor."
...to very advanced systems, like memory pegging techniques
and phonetic substitution systems.
Tricks like these might be great for remembering tidbits
and facts, but they do not improve your memory
in the long run. And of course, they do not help you remember
long texts, or large amount of information.
The only way I know to train your memory, not for party-tricks,
but for
extensive feats like memorizing the whole Bible, is to practice.
And to
practice a lot!
The Key Ingredient Vital To Your Success
There is one thing that is absolutely essential when you want to memorize a large body of text.
It is how you practice.
I'll say that again: The way you practice is vital to your
success.
The book "...Memory - How To Develop, Train And Use It!"
is not about mnemonics at all -- it is about training your memory.
In essence,
it teaches the power of concentration, interest, and understanding.
It says that it is, of course, impossible to remember something
you
didn't quite notice in the first place, and it leads you thorugh
ways
to train and develop your senses so that you will notice, and remember.
It teaches you how to practice.
This is an old book, it was first published in 1912 and has only
recently been scanned and made available as a downloadable eBook.
There is nothing fancy about this book. It will not teach you to
memorize the Bible in 90 days; it does not show you a Royal Road
to
Memory.
It will, however, guide you through a very good way of
training
your memory, so you will be able to achieve whatever you
set your mind to.
I've attached an excerpt from the introduction to this letter, so
that you can get a feel for the writer's intent and style.
Not matter what you choose, I wish you the very best of luck!
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Sincerely,
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| Sten M. Andersen |
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Excerpt from the Introduction
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[...]This then is the list of the three essentials in the cultivation
of the memory:
(1) Use and exercise; review and practice;
(2) Attention and Interest; and
(3) Intelligent Association.
You will find that in the several chapters of this book dealing
with the various phases of memory, we urge, first, last, and all
the time, the importance of the use and employment of the memory,
in the way of employment, exercise, practice and review work.
Like any other mental faculty, or physical function, the memory
will
tend to atrophy by disuse, and increase, strengthen and develop
by rational exercise and employment within the bounds of moderation.
You develop a muscle by exercise; you train any special faculty of the mind in the same way; and you must pursue the same method in the case of the memory, if you would develop it.
Nature's laws are constant, and bear a close analogy to each other.
You will also notice the great stress that we lay upon the use of
the faculty of attention, accompanied by interest.
By attention you acquire the impressions that you file away in your
mental record-file of memory. And the degree of attention regulates
the depth, clearness and strength of the impression. Without a good
record, you cannot expect to obtain a good reproduction of it.
A poor phonographic record results in a poor reproduction, and
the rule applies in the case of the memory as well. You will also
notice that we explain the laws of association, and the principles
which govern the subject, as well as the methods whereby the proper
associations may be made.
Every association that you weld to an idea or an impression, serves
as a cross-reference in the index, whereby the thing is found by
remembrance or recollection when it is needed.
We call your attention to the fact that one's entire education depends
for its efficiency upon this law of association. It is a most important
feature in the rational cultivation of the memory, while at the
same time being the bane of the artificial systems.
Natural associations educate, while artificial ones tend to weaken
the powers of the mind, if carried to any great length.
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You get the whole book here