The UAE witnessed the power of the human mind recently when celebrity extra- sensory perception (ESP) expert Deepak Rao wowed crowds during a show.

From pushing a pencil out of a person's hand just by staring at it for a few seconds to reading minds to telling stunned volunteers their phone numbers and dates of birth, and reading out the name of a raffle winner, while the person who picked it out held it hidden in his own hand, Rao did it all.

The Indian specialist, who was invited to the UAE by RAK Hospital, has written a book on the power of the human mind and holds shows around the world in which he demonstrates the powers of ESP, telepathy, déjà vu, telekinesis, premonition, intuition and the physical mechanism by which these abilities operate.

Rao organises several such shows for business leaders each year. According to him, ESP is an important inborn ability that can sharpen a person's senses and help him manage his life more efficiently – something that business leaders need to do all the time if they are to succeed.

"ESP is an abbreviation for extra-sensory perception, but to my mind, it is nothing but being extremely sharp,  extremely observant and extremely alert," Rao told Emirates Business.

"I genuinely believe it is sheer intelligence and experience – combined with wisdom – that takes the form of an extra-sensory-perceptiveness or intuitive ability.

"ESP is an important inborn ability that can sharpen your senses and help you manage your life more efficiently. Hence the need to be focussed in almost everything you do. ESP is something we all are born with but we have to work towards developing it further. Just like any of our normal senses, a non-descriptive mental energy works from within."

And while many people believe ESP originates beyond the known physical world, Rao says he does not subscribe to that view.

"This is a natural ability that every person possesses. When someone demonstrates an ability to send and receive information that is not a part of their five ordinary senses, it is placed in the realm of  'extra' – almost as though it was bizarre or abnormal," he says.

"Demonstrations and experiments in ESP are a highly exhilarating experience that one has to go through to enjoy. Once discovered, this ability can be extremely useful in dealing with all aspects of one's life."

Asked if his shows have helped businesses improve their bottomlines, Rao says: "I can say with confidence that my sessions have been motivational and inspiring to their employees. But I definitely cannot claim I have contributed to their bottomline. There is no way any single individual can substantiate the same because growth and profit-making, need a lot more effort than just the application of ESP. However, I do help people sharpen their concentration even more through some exercises which in turn help them perform even better at work."

According to him, it is important for business leaders to improve their concentration. As a vital business tool to achieve all-round success, people need to develop focused concentration.

Rao says: "Most people only use between five and 15 per cent of their mental capabilities while a few use 15 to 25 per cent. The secret of those who use 15 to 25 per cent of their mental capabilities is focused concentration. 

"People with poor focus are scatterbrained. They see what they don't need to see, hear what they don't need to hear and ask irrelevant questions and waste time in unproductive areas.

"The mind is like a computer. It stores information, images etc. Unimportant data stored in the brain only adds to clutter leaving little or no space for important issues.

"People with weak focus have too much clutter choking their minds. So it is important to let irrelevant issues pass and keep one's mind occupied with important issues only.

"Business leaders must remember and discuss only important issues based on the principles 'need to know', 'need to action', and 'need to remember'. When you are focused you can achieve the impossible. Fine-tuning focus is the major awakening to success."  

Talking about how it all started for him, Rao says: "I had an uncle who trained me in the subject since the age of 11 and it took me quite some time before I could make any effective presentation."

Today Rao has many corporate giants in India as his regular clients and has performed at more than 200 shows around the world.

Rao says: "I have been booked directly by Narayan Murthy of Infosys, Ajay Piramal of Nicholas Piramal, Harsh Goenka of RPG Group and quite a few other Indian industrialists, predominantly to present my ESP show, which is also a motivational exercise, during their conferences or board meetings and so on."

Globally, he says, more than 200 businessmen book him repeatedly for ESP show and his fun mind-opening training sessions. "During my sessions with them, I show them exercises to improve concentration and focus. This is because aimless and irrelevant talk amidst important discussions indicates lack of focus resulting in loss of precious time apart from deviation from objectives," says Rao.

"It is not difficult for dull minds to be sharpened but it is very easy for sharp minds to become dull so it is vital to be focused at all times."


A DOCTOR'S VIEWPOINT ON ESP

Emirates Business spoke to Dr Margit Oremek, Medical Director and Consultant Internal Medicine, Cardiology, RAK Hospital, to find out what the medical fraternity thinks of ESP.

According to ESP expert Deepak Rao, a non-descriptive mental energy works from within just like any of our other, normal senses. What is your opinion on this?

To approach this question in a scientific way is difficult. Scientific statements characteristically are according to the understanding of processes. There are instruments to prove the processes and these proofs are intellectually approachable and reproducible to everybody trained to deal with the specific subject.

Ever since the relativity theory of Albert Einstein, we are witnessing scientific discussions about the "scientific truth" in the research community, which shows the many difficulties that have to be overcome.

In everyday life, we know about the subjectiveness of feelings. Take the example of temperature. Although temperature is measured at 20 degrees Celsius, an Eskimo would consider it very warm, while we in the Middle East would consider it to be winter. So the interpretations of our observations differ from individual to individual.

The mental energy that Deepak Rao refers to has been around for centuries in human beings, mirroring cultures, philosophies and especially beliefs and religion. If we look at Aristotle, Kant, Descartes, the traditional meditation techniques from Asian countries especially India with its rich tradition of meditation and yoga, there is a rich history underlining the assumption of the presence of this energy.

Therefore, it is difficult to distinguish between the different types of senses. Any sense that help a community or an individuals to explore, understand and love the world that we are living in should be estimated as "normal". In neurology we would rather define the absence or the marked impairment of our senses (being blind or deaf) as abnormal.

Can ESP be used by business leaders and professionals to enhance performance?

I guess in the business world, ESP is to some extent referred to as "experience". If we look at the meaning of experience, it is a concentration of knowledge and observation, trained actions and skills, along with a kind of passion for success. This is a notion that makes experienced leaders and professionals valuable. Because they believe in their vision and they want it to happen, they might have a higher likelihood to succeed. Again it is knowledge, action and love for the genuine target which can make it achievable.

Can people improve their reception of information through ESP?

Whenever we "train" our skills or our brain, we can initiate changes. This was illustrated recently in the treatment of dementia. Political systems use these tools as well, although at times in an unfavourable way. The effect of advertisement falls in this category. ESP is a kind of "tool". It's nice to have trained professionals, such as Deepak Rao, who are willing to share their abilities and views for the wellbeing of social entities.

Can ESP help people manage their life more efficiently?

Whenever solutions are expected from "tools", we need to be careful. Instead of dividing everyone between people who believe in ESP and those who do not, the issue should be looked at in a more casual manner. After all, every individual is different with different likes and dislikes.

It takes more than ESP to "manage life". You need a concept of life; you need to have goals, confidence and plenty of happiness, interaction with the beloved, fulfilment of targets and a bunch of "life aids". If ESP fits and gives you opportunities to serve your concept and the concept of the community you are living in, ESP might be a very valuable contribution to manage life efficiently. Perhaps the trick is more often the experience. Looking back at the survival rates in the times when human beings lived as nomads, the tribes led by experienced individuals were more successful than those just led by a young and strong individuals. Although ESP is a good option, it is not possible without experienced individuals, such as Rao, teaching the tool. 


ESP 101

Deepak Rao says an expert shooter will tell you it is not aiming correctly but focused concentration that allows you to hit a target. He suggests an exercise for managers looking to improve their focus and mental agility.

Number of people needed: 30

Venue: Indoors

Distance: 10 feet to 60 feet

How to do it 

- Keep a light plastic bottle  on a table

- Imagine a bullet shooting out of your mind.

- Concentrate. Use your finger to aim and focus

- At the count of three, shoot mentally

- The bottle should fall. However, if it does not, several attempts might be required before the desired result is achieved.

- Do this exercise on a regular basis for better results.

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