Advanced Trance
Dennis R. Wier
Director, The Trance Institute, Bruetten, Switzerland

Trance is easy to produce, especially uncontrolled instances of trance. With some practice and awareness it is possible to control trance and to produce intense trances at will.

Once intense controllable trances can be produced, it becomes possible to create and to control multiple trances simultaneously. Technically, these multiple trances are forms of awareness in multiple dissociated trance planes. I call the skillful control of these multiple DTPs 'advanced trances'.

Advanced trances result from combinations of multiple dissociated trance planes (DTP). Some skills are needed to modulate or control multiple DTPs. But these skills are relatively easy to develop over some time.

Secondary trance loops are necessary to control multiple DTPs. By varying the content of the primary trance loops and controlling the secondary trance loops, modulation of multiple dissociated trance planes becomes possible.

The modulation of multiple dissociated trance planes has several interesting effects, but one interesting effect is that there is an inhibition of the habitual cognitive organization and therefore the 'reality shines through'. This is merely a poetic way of expressing only one small effect of advanced trance.

Occult groups vary the content of the primary trance loops by means of ritual and this is effective for controlling or modulating these multiple DTPs. There are other ways, but generally these ways seem 'ritual-like' since they tend to appear to somewhat mechanically repeat.

The disabled cognitive functions that occur as a result of a first order trance continue with multiple DTPs. The mental content of awareness thus changes and it could be described as coming into awareness of another reality or dimension. The ritual repetitions do not directly influence the content of the awareness at this point, but seem to act more like a catalyst. However, many people seem to falsely connect the content of the rituals with the content of the trance awareness. I do not know if this connection is a valid one but I suspect the apparent connection is made by persons who are observing and not by the persons actually experiencing. Because there seems to be a connection between the rituals of varying the primary trance loop and the content of the advanced trance states the rituals are sometimes called 'magical'.

The content of these states tends to be or seems like 'secret' in some sense. At least in the sense that the content is subtile, or indescribable. It is not that one is unwilling to communicate what the content is. But communicating the content is 'telling the future' or 'exposing hidden knowledge.' The content is easily corruptable and somehow is less corruptable when it is kept secret.

The subtilty of the content of the advanced trance states can create a belief in 'other dimensions' or 'ghosts' or 'gods' or 'entities' etc. In some cases advanced trance states imitate schizophrenia, especially when there is little grounding in the non-trance reality or when advanced trance states occur in a person who does not understand what is happening to him or her.

Because addictions can exhibit some of the structural similarity of advanced trance, addicts can also exhibit awareness of 'other dimensions' or can have special awarenesses of subtile realities. The primary pharmacalogical effects of the drugs will often mask the perception of these advanced trance states.

Trance theory is rich; it is full of important implications. Not only does it explain the trances of the past, it can help us to analyze the trances of the present and design trances of the future.

I am very interested in working with serious minded people who wish to use trance theory in scientific or in personal research. I invite you to contact me personally with your questions and proposals.

References:

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Wier, Dennis R., Trance: from magic to technology. Ann Arbor, Michigan: Trans Media, 1996.

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About the Author:

Dennis R. Wier is the Director of The Trance Institute in Switzerland. He may be reached by email by using the form below. See also www.trance.edu