1. We are told that Man has "dominion over all things"; this dominion is established through Mind. Thought is the activity which controls every principle beneath it. The highest principle by reason of its superior essence and qualities necessarily determines the circumstances, aspects and relation of everything with which it comes into contact.
2. The vibrations of Mental forces are the finest and consequently the most powerful in existence. To those who perceive the nature and transcendence of mental force, all physical power sinks into insignificance.
3. We are accustomed to look upon the Universe with a lens of five senses, and from these experiences our anthropomorphic conceptions originate, but true conceptions are only secured by spiritual insight. This insight requires a quickening of the vibrations of the Mind, and is only secured when the mind is continuously concentrated in a given direction.
4. Continuous concentration means an even, unbroken flow of thought and is the result of a patient, persistent, persevering and well-regulated system.
5. Great discoveries are the result of long-continued investigation. The science of mathematics requires years of concentrated effort to master it, and the greatest science—that of the Mind—is revealed only through concentrated effort.
6. Concentration is much misunderstood; there seems to be an idea of effort or activity associated with it, when just the contrary is necessary. The greatness of an actor lies in the fact that he forgets himself in the portrayal of his character, becoming so identified with it that the audience is swayed by the realism of the performance. This will give you a good idea of true concentration; you should be so interested in your thought, so engrossed in your subject, as to be conscious of nothing else. Such concentration leads to intuitive perception and immediate insight into the nature of the object concentrated upon.
156
7. All knowledge is the result of concentration of this kind; it is thus that the secrets have been wrested from Heaven and Earth; it is thus that the mind becomes a magnet and the desire to know draws the knowledge, irresistibly attracts it, makes it your own.
8. Desire is largely sub-conscious; conscious desire rarely realizes its object when the latter is out of immediate reach. Sub-conscious desire arouses the latent faculties of the mind, and difficult problems seem to solve themselves.
9. The subconscious mind may be aroused and brought into action in any direction and made to serve us for any purpose, by concentration. The practice of concentration requires the control of the physical, mental and psychical being; all modes of consciousness, whether physical, mental or psychical, must be under control.
10. Spiritual Truth is therefore the controlling factor; it is this which will enable you to grow out of limited attainment and reach a point where you will be able to translate modes of thought into character and consciousness.
11. Concentration does not mean mere thinking of thoughts, but the transmutation of these thoughts into practical values; the average person has no conception of the meaning of concentration. There is always the cry "to have" but never the cry "to be"; people fail to understand that they cannot have one without the other, that they must first find the "kingdom" before they can have the "things added." Momentary enthusiasm is of no value; it is only by unbounded self-confidence that the goal is reached.
12. The mind may place the ideal a little too high and fall short of the mark; it may attempt to soar on untrained wings and, instead of flying, fall to earth; but that is no reason for not making another attempt.
13. Weakness is the only barrier to mental attainment; attribute your weakness to physical limitations or mental uncertainties and try again; ease and perfection are gained by repetition.
14. The astronomer centers his mind on the stars and they give forth their secrets; the geologist centers his mind on the construction of the earth and we have geology; so with all things. Men center their minds on the problems of life, and the result is apparent in the vast and complex social order of the day.
15. All mental discovery and attainment are the result of desire plus concentration; desire is the strongest motive to action; the more persistent the 157
desire, the more authoritative the revelation. Desire added to concentration will wrench any secret from nature.
16. In realizing great thoughts, in experiencing great emotions that correspond with great thoughts, the mind is in a state where it appreciates the value of higher things.
17. The intensity of one moment's earnest concentration and the intense longing to become and to attain may take you further than years of slow normal and forced effort; it will unfasten the prison bars of unbelief, weakness, impotence and self-belittlement, and you will come into a realization of the joy of overcoming.
18. The spirit of initiative and originality is developed through persistence and continuity of mental effort. Business teaches the value of concentration and encourages decision of character; it develops practical insight and quickness of conclusion. The mental element in every commercial pursuit is dominant as the controlling factor, and desire is the predominating force; all commercial relations are the externalization of desire.
19. Many of the sturdy and substantial virtues are developed in commercial employment; the mind is steadied and directed; it becomes efficient. The principal necessity is the strengthening of the mind so that it rises superior to the distractions and wayward impulses of instinctive life and thus successfully prevails in the conflict between the higher and lower self.
20. All of us are dynamos, but the dynamo of itself is nothing; the mind must work the dynamo; then it is useful and its energy can be definitely concentrated. The mind is an engine whose power is undreamed; thought is an omni-working power. It is the ruler and creator of all form and all events occurring in form. Physical energy is nothing in comparison with the omnipotence of thought, because thought enables man to harness all other natural power.
21. Vibration is the action of thought; it is vibration which reaches out and attracts the material necessary to construct and build. There is nothing mysterious concerning the power of thought; concentration simply implies that consciousness can be focalized to the point where it becomes identified with the object of its attention. As food absorbed is the essence of the body, so the mind absorbs the object of its attention, gives it life and being.
158
22. If you concentrate on some matter of importance, the intuitive power will be set in operation, and help will come in the nature of information which will lead to success.
23. Intuition arrives at conclusions without the aid of experience or memory.
Intuition often solves problems that are beyond the grasp of the reasoning power. Intuition often comes with a suddenness that is startling; it reveals the truth for which we are searching, so directly that it seems to come from a higher power. Intuition can be cultivated and developed. In order to do this it must be recognized and appreciated; if the intuitive visitor is given a royal welcome when he comes, he will come again; the more cordial the welcome the more frequent his visits will become, but if he is ignored or neglected he will make his visits few and far apart.
24. Intuition usually comes in the Silence; great minds seek solitude frequently; it is here that all the larger problems of life are worked out. For this reason every business man who can afford it has a private office, where he will not be disturbed; if you cannot afford a private office you can at least find somewhere where you can be alone a few minutes each day, to train the thought along lines which will enable you to develop that invincible power which is necessary to achieve.
25. Remember that fundamentally the subconscious is omnipotent; there is no limit to the things that can be done when it is given the power to act. Your degree of success is determined by the nature of your desire. If the nature of your desire is in harmony with Natural Law or the Universal Mind, it will gradually emancipate the mind and give you invincible courage.
26. Every obstacle conquered, every victory gained, will give you more faith in your power, and you will have greater ability to win. Your strength is determined by your mental attitude; if this attitude is one of success, and is permanently held with an unswerving purpose, you will attract to yourself from the invisible domain the things you silently demand.
27. By keeping the thought in mind, it will gradually take tangible form. A definite purpose sets causes in motion which go out in the invisible world and find the material necessary to serve your purpose.
28. You may be pursuing the symbols of power, instead of power itself. You may be pursuing fame instead of honor, riches instead of wealth, position 159
instead of service; in either event you will find that they turn to ashes just as you overtake them.
29. Premature wealth or position cannot be retained because it has not been earned; we get only what we give, and those who try to get without giving always find that the law of compensation is relentlessly bringing about an exact equilibrium.
30. The race has hitherto been for money and other mere symbols of power, but with an understanding of the true source of power we can afford to ignore the symbols. The man with a large bank account finds it unnecessary to load his pockets down with gold; so with the man who has found the true source of power; he is no longer interested in its shams or pretensions.
31. Thought ordinarily leads outwardly in evolutionary directions, but it can be turned within where it will take hold of the basic principles of things, the heart of things, the spirit of things. When you get to the heart of things it is comparatively easy to understand and command them.
32. This is because the Spirit of a thing is the thing itself, the vital part of it, the real substance. The form is simply the outward manifestation of the spiritual activity within.
33. For your next exercise concentrate as nearly as possible in accordance with the method outlined in this Part; let there be no conscious effort or activity associated with your purpose. Relax completely, avoid any thought of anxiety as to results. Remember that power comes through repose. Let the thought dwell upon your object until it is completely identified with it, until you are conscious of nothing else.
34. If you wish to eliminate fear, concentrate on courage.
35. If you wish to eliminate lack, concentrate on abundance.
36. If you wish to eliminate disease concentrate on health.
37. Always concentrate on the ideal as an already existing fact; this is the Elohim, the germ cell, the life principle which goes forth, and enters in, and becomes, sets in motion those causes which guide, direct and bring about the necessary relation, which eventually manifests in form.
Thought is the property of those only who can entertain it.—Emerson.
160
161. What is the true method of concentration?
To become so identified with the object of your thought that you are conscious of nothing else.
162. What is the result of this method of concentration?
Invisible forces are set in motion which irresistibly bring about conditions in correspondence with your thought.
163. What is the controlling factor in this method of thought?
Spiritual Truth.
164. Why is this so?
Because the nature of our desire must be in harmony with Natural Law.
167. What is the practical value of this method of concentration?
Thought is transmuted into character, and character is the magnet which creates the environment of the individual.
166. What is the controlling factor in every commercial pursuit?
The mental element.
167. Why is this so?
Because Mind is the ruler and creator of all form and all events occurring in form.
168. How does concentration operate?
By the development of the powers of perception, wisdom, intuition, and sagacity.
169. Why is intuition superior to reason?
Because it does not depend upon experience or memory and frequently brings about the solution of our problem by methods concerning which we are in complete ignorance.
161
170. What is the result of pursuing the symbol of reality?
Symbols frequently turn to ashes just as we overtake them, because the symbol is only the outward form of the spiritual activity within; therefore, unless we can possess the spiritual reality the form disappears.
162
TELLS of a change in the thought of men, a change which is silently transpiring in our midst and which is unparalleled in the history of the world.
The fetters of tradition are being melted off from humanity and truth is rising full-orbed before an astonished multitude. It tells how the individual is enabled to control every form of intelligence which has not yet reached this level of self-recognition. It tells when and how the creative power originates, it tells how the Universal produces the various combinations which result in the formation of phenomena, it explains the principle of attraction by which things are brought together, which is the sole means by which existence is carried into effect. It explains the real source of wealth of the individual. It explains the method by which attention and concentration may be developed and shows why the power of attention is the distinguishing characteristic of every man of ability.
INTRODUCTION. PART EIGHTEEN.
In order to grow we must obtain what is necessary for our growth. This is brought about through the law of attraction. This principle is the sole means by which the individual is differentiated from the Universal.
Think for a moment, what would a man be if he were not a husband, father or brother, if he were not interested in the social, economical, political or religious world? He would be nothing but an abstract theoretical ego. He exists, therefore, only in his relation to the whole, in his relation to other men, in his relation to society. This relation constitutes his environment; he exists, therefore, in his relation to his environment and in no other way.
Hence it is evident that the individual is simply the differentiation of the one Universal Mind "which lighteth every man that cometh into the world," and his so-called individuality or personality consists of nothing but the manner in which he relates with the whole.
This we call his environment and it is brought about by the law of attraction.
Part Eighteen has something more to say concerning this important law.
163
1. There is a change in the thought of the world. This change is silently transpiring in our midst, and is more important than any which the world has undergone since the downfall of Paganism.
2. The present revolution in the opinions of all classes of men, the highest and most cultured of men as well as those of the laboring class, stands unparalleled in the history of the world.
3. Science has of late made such vast discoveries, has revealed such an infinity of resources; has unveiled such enormous possibilities and such unsuspected forces, that scientific men more and more hesitate to affirm certain theories as established and indubitable or to deny other theories as absurd or impossible.
4. A new civilization is being born; customs, creeds, and precedent are passing; vision, faith and service are taking their place. The fetters of tradition are being melted off from humanity, and as the dross of materialism is being consumed, thought is being liberated and truth is rising full-orbed before an astonished multitude.
5. The whole world is on the eve of a new consciousness, a new power, and a new realization within the self.
6. Physical Science has resolved matter into molecules, molecules into atoms, atoms into energy, and it has remained for Sir Ambrose Fleming, in an address before the Royal Institution, to resolve this energy into mind. He says:
"In its ultimate essence, energy may be incomprehensible by us except as an exhibition of the direct operation of that which we call Mind or Will."
7. And this mind is the indwelling and ultimate. It is imminent in matter as in spirit. It is the sustaining, energizing, all-pervading Spirit of the universe.
8. Every living thing must be sustained by its omnipotent Intelligence, and we find the difference in individual lives to be largely measured by the degree of this intelligence, which they manifest. It is greater intelligence that places the animal in a higher scale of being than the plant, the man higher than the animal, and we find that this increased intelligence is again indicated by the power of the individual to control modes of action and thus to consciously adjust himself to his environment.
164
9. It is this adjustment that occupies the attention of the greatest minds, and this adjustment consists in nothing else than the recognition of an order existing in the universal mind, for it is well known that this mind will obey us precisely in proportion as we first obey it.
10. It is the recognition of Natural Laws that has enabled us to annihilate time and space, to soar in the air and to make iron float, and the greater the degree of intelligence the greater will be our recognition of these Natural Laws and the greater will be the power we can possess.
11. It is the recognition of the self as an individualization of this Universal Intelligence that enables the individual to control those forms of intelligence which have not yet reached this level of self-recognition; they do not know that this Universal Intelligence permeates all things, ready to be called into action; they do not know that it is responsive to every demand, and they are therefore in bondage to the law of their own being.
12. Thought is creative and the principle on which the law is based is sound and legitimate and is inherent in the nature of things; but this creative power does not originate in the individual, but in the universal, which is the source and foundation of all energy and substance; the individual is simply the channel for the distribution of this energy.
13. The individual is simply a means by which the universal produces various combinations which result in the formation of phenomena. These depend upon the law of vibration, whereby various rates of rapidity of motion in the primary substance form new substances only in certain exact numerical ratios.
14. Thought is the invisible link by which the individual comes into communication with the Universal, the finite with the Infinite, the seen with the Unseen. Thought is the magic by which the human being is transformed into a being who thinks and knows and feels and acts.
15. As the proper apparatus has enabled the eye to discover worlds without number millions of miles away, so, with the proper understanding, man has been enabled to communicate with the Universal Mind, the source of all power.
16. The Understanding which is usually developed is about as valuable as a telephone box without wires or an exchange; in fact, it is usually nothing more 165
than a "belief" which means nothing at all. The Indians believe something and so do the savages of the Cannibal Islands; but that proves nothing.
17. The only belief which is of any value to any one is a belief that has been put to a test and demonstrated to be a fact; it is then no longer a belief, but has become a living Faith or the Truth.
18. And this Truth has been put to the test by hundreds of thousands of people and has been found to be the Truth exactly in proportion to the usefulness of the apparatus which they used.
19. A man would not expect to locate stars hundreds of millions of miles away without a sufficiently strong telescope, and for this reason Science is continually engaged in building larger and more powerful telescopes and is continually rewarded by additional knowledge of the heavenly bodies.
20. So with understanding; men are continually making progress in the methods which they use to come into communication with the Universal Mind and its infinite possibilities.
21. The Universal Mind manifests itself in the objective, through the principle of attraction that each atom has for every other atom, in infinite degrees of intensity.
22. It is by this principle of combining and attracting that things are brought together. This principle is of universal application and is the sole means whereby the purpose of existence is carried into effect.
23. The expression of growth is met in a most beautiful manner through the instrumentality of this Universal Principle.
24. In order to grow we must obtain what is essential for our growth, but as we are at all times a complete thought entity, this completeness makes it possible for us to receive only as we give; growth is therefore conditioned on reciprocal action, and we find that on the mental plane like attracts like, that mental vibrations respond only to the extent of their vibratory harmony.
25. It is clear, therefore, that thoughts of abundance will respond only to similar thoughts; the wealth of the individual is seen to be what he inherently is. Affluence within is found to be the secret of attraction for affluence without. The ability to produce is found to be the real source of wealth of the individual. It is for this reason that he who has his heart in his work is certain 166
to meet with unbounded success. He will give and continually give, and the more he gives the more he will receive.
26. What do the great financiers of the City and Wall Street, the captains of industry, the statesmen, the great company lawyers, the inventors, the physicians, the authors—what do each of these contribute to the sum of human happiness but the power of their thought?
27. Thought is the energy by which the law of attraction is brought into operation, which eventually manifests in abundance.
28. The Universal Mind is static Mind, or Substance in equilibrium. It is differentiated into form by our power to think. Thought is the dynamic phase of mind.
29. Power depends upon consciousness of power; unless we use it, we shall lose it, and unless we are conscious of it we cannot use it.
30. The use of this power depends upon attention; the degree of attention determines our capacity for the acquisition of knowledge, which is another name for power.
31. Attention has been held to be the distinguishing mark of genius. The cultivation of attention depends upon practice.
32. The incentive of attention is interest; the greater the interest, the greater the attention; the greater the attention, the greater the interest, action and reaction; begin by paying attention; before long you will have aroused interest; this interest will attract more attention, and this attention will produce more interest, and so on. This practice will enable you to cultivate the power of attention.
33. Now concentrate upon your power to create; seek insight, perception; try to find a logical basis for the faith which is in you. Let the thought dwell on the fact that the physical man lives and moves and has his being in the sustainer of all organic life; in air, which he must breathe to live. Then let the thought rest on the fact that the spiritual man also lives and moves and has his being in a similar but subtler energy upon which he must depend for life, and that as in the physical world no life assumes form until after a seed is sown, and no higher fruit than that of the parent stock can be produced; so in the spiritual world no effect can be produced until the seed is sown and the fruit will depend upon the nature of the seed, so that the results which you secure 167
depend upon your perception of law in the mighty domain of causation, which knowledge is the highest evolution of human consciousness.
Thought engenders thought. Place one idea upon paper, another will follow it, and still another, until you have written a page. You cannot fathom your mind. It is a well of thought which has no bottom. The more you draw from it, the more clear and fruitful it will be. If you neglect to think yourself, and use other people's thoughts, giving them utterance only, you will never know what you are capable of.—G. A. Sala.