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Practical Memory Training
'Theron Q. Dumont'William Walker Atkinson
(1916)
Lesson 6 Marvelous Memories
Max Muller, [1] the great authority on Oriental philosophy, states positively that Panini's Sanscrit Grammar, [2] with its voluminous text and its extensive glossary, fully equal to our Bible in the number of its words, was handed down orally from teacher to student for several centuries, before it was ever committed to writing.
[1. (1823-1900) en.wikipedia.org/
[2. en.wikipedia.org/
As we have already seen, the earlier Vedas and other Hindu scriptures were handed down in the same way during a corresponding period of time. Even to this day there are thousands of devout Hindu students who are able to recite correctly the principal Vedas from beginning to end, which feat is about equivalent to reciting the New Testament from memory. There are well authenticated cases of living Brahmins, who are able to recite from memory, with absolute correctness, the entire epic poem, or series of poems, entitled the Mahabarata, which consists of over 300,000 verses or slokas. It has been claimed that if the entire collection of Hindu sacred literature were to be destroyed over night, there are thousands of Hindus who could restore it from memory as fast as the words could be written down.
Writers on the subject of Hebrew literature state that the Kabala, or Sacred Teaching, of the Jews, were preserved for many centuries solely in the memory of the priests and scribes, and were reduced to writing only at a comparatively late date in history. The legends regarding the ancient Druids state that their secret doctrines were transmitted in this way only, and were never reduced to writing, the consequence being that when the priests were killed or driven out of their countries the teachings gradually disappeared. The Slavonian minstrels, or singers of historical ballads, have always been noted for their ability to carry in their memories immensely long epic poems, etc., and this is said to be true of even the present day.
The ancient laws of Iceland, as well as the history of that land, were not printed or written, but were memorized by the judges and lawyers of that land and period. The legends inform us that not only were the lawyers and judges able to carry the entire body of their law in this way, but were also able to memorize the innumerable number of precedents, decisions, etc., which gathered around the law itself. To be a lawyer in that day and land was somewhat more difficult than to fill the same office today in our lands.
Charles G. Leland, [3] the author, who was not only an authority on the subject of memory, but was also the possessor of a wonderfully well stocked memory of his own, says: "The Algonquin Indians, I have found, are able to commit accurately to memory, word for word, their sagas or mythic legends, the length of which are practically interminable."
[3. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
The same authority says: "I have heard of a lady in England, of about ninety years of age, whose memory was marvellous, and of which innumerable instances are related by her friends. She attributed it to the fact that when young she had been made to learn a verse of the Bible every day, then to 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." Leland also tells the tale of a young Hindu who did not understand English at all, but whose ear-memory was so highly developed that, after having fifty lines of "Paradise Lost" read to him, was able to repeat it word for word, accurately and then as a finishing touch, he recited the whole thing backwards.
History informs us that Seneca was able to repeat two thousand disconnected words after having heard them once, in precisely the same order in which they had been given to him. Porteus Latio is said to have never forgotten any of the speeches he had ever delivered, and was able to recite any of them word for word. King Pyrrhus once sent an ambassador to the Romans, whose name was Cyneas. It is related on this man that he learned the names of the entire senate and leading citizens of Rome, in a single day, and was thereafter able to call each man by his right name.
Pliny states that Cyrus was able to call by name every soldier in his army. Themistocles called by name each of the 30,000 citizens of Athens. Luarez could recite all of the works of St. Augustine, giving perfect quotations, and citing page and line. Muretus tells an interesting story of a young Corsican pupil who could repeat backward and forward over 35,000 unconnected words, after once hearing them read to him. The writer says that the youth could have done still better, had not the readers become exhausted. Scaliger is said to have committed to memory the Iliad and Odyssey, in less than one month's time. He is said to have also committed to memory the entire works of the Greek poets in less than three months.
An interesting instance Is that of Magliabechi, [4] the celebrated bibliophile of Florence, who is believed to have had one of the best memories for books ever recorded.
[4. en.wikipedia.org/
It is told of him that he knew the location, shelf, and number of every book in not only his own great library, but also in every other great library in the world. A well known tale concerning him states that once when the Grand Duke of Tuscany asked him a question regarding a very rare book, Magliabechi replied: "There is now only one copy in existence, and that is in the library of the Grand Seignior, in Constantinople, on the seventh shelf of the third case to the right, as you enter." The sequel is that upon investigation the book was found at this particular place.
Hortensius, [5] the Roman orator, was possessed of a most remarkable memory. He is said to have once attended an auction sale, which extended over a whole day, and then, on a wager, he recited the details of each sale, in the proper order, giving name of article, name of purchaser, and price paid. Seneca [6] is said to have been able to memorize several thousand proper names, and then to recite them in their proper order, or even backward. At one time he is said to have had several hundred persons each recite a verse to him, whereupon, when they had finished, he repeated correctly the entire series, in proper order, giving the name of each person who had recited each particular verse.
[5. en.wikipedia.org/
[6. wikipedia.org/wiki/
It is stated on the authority of Eusebius [7] that when the Chaldeans destroyed the manuscripts of the Hebrew Scriptures, Esdras [8] repeated them word for word, from memory, so that the scribes were able to reproduce them.
[7. en.wikipedia.org/
[8. en.wikipedia.org/
Bishop Saunderson [Sanderson] [9, 10] is said to have been able to recite from memory, nearly all of the works of Juvenal and Perseus, all of Tally, and all of Horace.
[9. wikipedia.org/wiki/
[10. The Life of Dr. Robert Sanderson by Izaak Walton: "... Sanderson had a metaphysical brain and a matchless memory ..." anglicanhistory.org ]
Fedosova, a Russian peasant, is said to have been able to repeat over 25,000 poems, folk-songs, legends, fairy-tales, war legends, etc., even after she was seventy years of age. One of the authorities cites the instance of a man in New York named Clark, who was able to state correctly the exact presidential vote of each State in the American Union, at every election from the first up to the present time. He also gave the population of every town in the world, ancient or modern providing that there was a record of the same. He is said to have at his command the entire works of Shakespeare, which he could recite, beginning at a given point.
There have been several public performers who were able to repeat the exact population of any town in the world, exceeding 5,000 inhabitants; thousands of dates, names of personages in history, etc. In the case of one of the best known of these performers, an Englishman, it was estimated that the information of this kind he had at his command would require a goodly sized reference book to contain in ordinary type.
A number of the authorities cite the case of a Dutchman, name unrecorded, who is said to have been able to pick up a current newspaper, read it through, including, market reports and advertisements, and then to recite correctly what he had read, word for word, from start to finish. It is a pity that this case has not been more intelligently recorded and verified, for it ranks with the best instances in point of accomplishment, if true. Whether true or not, it is matched by the celebrated case of Lyon, the English actor, who is said to have frequently repeated this feat, on a wager, including not only the market reports, and proceedings of Parliment, but also the railroad time-tables. One authority mentions the case of an English waiter who could memorize the contents of an eight-page paper.
A number of good authorities mention the case of a child, of abnormal brain development, who could repeat the entire Bible; two hundred hymns; five thousand Latin words; a great amount of ecclesiastical history, theory, dogmas, arguments, etc., and an almost encyclopaedic quantity of ecclesiastical literature. In fact, the mind of this child seemed to he practically a plastic phonographic record, which easily took the impression of every word read to it, and easily reproduced the same. The child seemed to be abnormal—a "freak"—without any special intellectual development, and it died at an early age.
Fuller [11] relates the following interesting case attributing it to Seneca: "A certain author had written a poem of considerable length, and, as was the custom of the time, read it in public, the assemblage being a very large one...
[11. Thomas Fuller (17th-18th century). Referred to in The Language of Memory in a Crosslinguistic Perspective at Google Books ]
"On the reading being concluded, a man stood up in the audience and denounced the author as a plagiarist, claiming that he, himself, had written the poem, in proof of which he offered to recite it from beginning to end. The audience with one voice demanded that he substantiate his claim, whereupon he recited the poem all the way through, without an error, and defied the author to do the same; which the latter, to his extreme mortification, was unable to do, and the audience promptly decided that the man who had recited the poem from memory must be the true author. On the verdict being declared, however, the man frankly stated that he had really never heard the poem before, but had committed it to memory while the author was reading it. But in spite of this admission, he received even greater honor.
And so the stories go. A large sized volume could easily be filled with similar examples and instances recited by the writers on the subject of the history of mnemonics. But, as I have already said, these cases represent the extreme of memory training rather than the normal mean sought to be developed in the student. In some cases there is an almost abnormal development, while in others it is seen that the power is practically of the mechanical, parrot-memory type, rather than the exhibition of true memory culture and training.
To the scientific investigator these cases are of extreme interest, though they may have but little real practical value to the teacher or student of scientific memory culture and training.
The weakness apparent in the great number of these abnormal cases, is that these prodigies, while able to perform these spectacular feats show but comparatively little ability to use their gifts in a practical, common-sense way. Their memories have only a fictitious value in this matter of fact, practical age, and lack real value in the direction of practical Efficiency and creative work. Again, I ask my students to carry in mind this distinction, so as to avoid attaching false values. Let us ever remember that Efficiency rather than Sensationalism is the ideal, aim, and goal of all true teachers and students of Memory.