Chapter 5. Increasing Life
YOU must get rid. Of. The last vestige. Of the old idea. That. There is a Deity whose will it is. That you should be poor. Or whose purposes. May be served. By keeping you. In poverty.
The Intelligent Substance. Which is All. And in All. And which lives in All. And lives in you. Is a consciously Living Substance. Being a consciously living substance. It must have the nature. And inherent desire. Of every living intelligence. For increase. Of life. Every living thing. Must continually seek. For the enlargement. Of its life. Because life. In the mere act of living. Must. Increase itself.
A seed. Dropped into the ground. Springs into activity. And in the act. Of living. Produces. A hundred more seeds. Life. By living. Multiplies itself. It is forever. Becoming More. It must do so. If it continues. To be at all.
Intelligence is under this same necessity. For continuous increase. Every thought we think. Makes it necessary. For us. To think another thought. Consciousness. Is continually expanding. Every fact we learn. Leads us. To the learning. Of another fact. Knowledge is continually increasing. Every talent we cultivate. Brings. To the mind. The desire. To cultivate. Another talent. We are subject. To the urge. Of life. Seeking expression. Which ever. Drives us. On to know more. To do more. And. To be more.
In order. To know more. Do more. And be more. We must have more. We must have things. To use. For we learn. And do. And become. Only by using things. We must get rich. So. That. We can live more.
The desire for riches. Is simply. The capacity. For larger life. Seeking fulfillment. Every desire. Is the effort. Of an unexpressed possibility. To come into action. It is power seeking to manifest. Which causes desire. That which. Makes you. Want more money. Is the same. As that which. Makes the plant grow. It is Life. Seeking fuller expression.
The One Living Substance. Must be subject. To this inherent law. Of all life. It is permeated. With the desire. To live more. That is why. It is under the necessity. Of creating things.
The One Substance. Desires. To live more. In you. Hence it wants you. To have all the things. You can use.
It is the desire. Of God. That you should get rich. He wants you. To get rich. Because. He can express himself better through you. If you have plenty. Of things. To use. In giving him expression. He can live more in you. If you have unlimited command. Of the means. Of life.
The universe desires you. To have everything. You want. To have. Nature is friendly. To your plans. Everything is naturally for you. Make up your mind. That this is true.
It is essential. However. That your purpose should harmonize. With the purpose. That is in All.
You must want real life. Not mere pleasure. Of sensual gratification. Life is the performance. Of function. And the individual really lives. Only. When he performs. Every function. Physical. Mental. And spiritual. Of which he is capable. Without excess in any.
You do not. Want to get rich. In order. To live swinishly. For the gratification. Of animal desires. That is not life. But the performance. Of every physical function. Is a part. Of life. And no one lives completely. Who denies. The impulses. Of the body. A normal. And healthful expression.
You do not want. To get rich. Solely. To enjoy. Mental pleasures. To get knowledge. To gratify ambition. To outshine others. To be famous. All these are. A legitimate. Part of life. But the man. Who lives. For the pleasures. Of the intellect alone. Will only have a partial life. And he will. Never be satisfied with his lot.
You do not want. To get rich. Solely. For the good. Of others. To lose yourself. For the salvation. Of mankind. To experience. The joys. Of philanthropy. And sacrifice. The joys of the soul. Are only. A part of life. And they are no better. Or nobler. Than any other part.
You want. To get rich. In order. That you may eat. Drink. And be merry. When it is time. To do these things. In order. That you may surround yourself. With beautiful things. See distant lands. Feed your mind. And develop your intellect. In order. That you. May love men. And do kind things. And be able. To play a good part. In helping the world. To find truth.
But remember. That extreme altruism. Is no better. And no nobler. Than extreme selfishness. Both are mistakes.
Get rid of the idea. That God wants you. To sacrifice yourself for others. And that you can secure. His favor by doing so. God requires nothing. Of the kind.
What he wants. Is that you. Should make the most. Of yourself. For yourself. And for others. And you can help others more. By making the most. Of yourself. Than in any other way.
You can make the most. Of yourself. Only by getting rich. So it is right. And praiseworthy. That you should give your first. And best thought. To the work. Of acquiring wealth.
Remember. However. That the desire. Of Substance. Is for all. And its movements. Must be. For more life. To all. It cannot. Be made. To work for less life. To any. Because it is equally in all. Seeking. Riches. And life.
Intelligent Substance. Will make things for you. But it will not take things away. From some one else. And give them. To you.
You must get rid. Of the thought. Of competition. You are to create. Not to compete. For what is already created.
You do not have. To take anything away. From any one. You do not have. To drive sharp bargains.
You do not have. To cheat. Or. To take advantage. You do not need. To let any man work for you. For less. Than he earns.
You do not have. To covet. The property. Of others. Or. To look at it. With wishful eyes. No man. Has anything. Of which you cannot have the like. And that without taking. What he has away from him.
You are. To become a creator. Not a competitor. You are going. To get what you want. But in such. A way. That when you get it. Every other man. Will have more. Than he has now.
I am aware. That there are men. Who get a vast amount. Of money. By proceeding. In direct opposition. To the statements. In the paragraph above. And may add. A word. 0f explanation here. Men. Of the plutocratic type. Who become very rich. Do so. Sometimes purely. By their extraordinary ability. On the plane. Of competition. And sometimes. They unconsciously. Relate themselves. To Substance. In its great purposes. And movements. For the general racial upbuilding. Through industrial evolution. Rockefeller. Carnegie. Morgan et al. Have been the unconscious agents. Of the Supreme. In the necessary work. Of systematizing. And organizing. Productive industry. And in the end. Their work. Will contribute. Immensely toward. Increased life. For all. Their day is nearly over. They have organized production. And will soon be succeeded. By the agents. Of the multitude. Who will organize. The machinery. Of distribution.
The multi-millionaires. Are like the monster reptiles. Of the prehistoric eras. They play. A necessary part. In the evolutionary process. But the same. Power which produced them. Will dispose. Of them. And it is well. To bear. In mind. That they have never been really rich. A record. Of the private lives. Of most. Of this class. Will show. That they. Have really been. The most abject. And wretched. Of the poor.
Riches secured on the competitive plane. Are never satisfactory. And permanent. They are yours to-day. And another's tomorrow. Remember. If you are. To become rich. In a scientific. And certain way. You must rise. Entirely out. Of the competitive thought. You must never think. For a moment. That the supply. Is limited. Just as soon as you begin. To think that all the money is being. "Cornered" and controlled. By bankers. And others. And that you must. Exert yourself. To get laws. Passed. To stop this process. And so on. In that moment. You drop. Into the competitive mind. And. Your power. To cause creation. Is gone.
For the time being. And what is worse. You will probably. Arrest the creative movements. You have already instituted.
KNOW that. There are countless. Millions. Of dollars' worth. Of gold. In the mountains. Of the earth. Not yet brought. To light. And know. That. If there were not. More would be created. From Thinking Substance. To supply your needs.
KNOW. That the money you need. Will come. Even if it is necessary. For a thousand men to be led. To the discovery. Of new gold mines tomorrow.
Never look at the visible supply. Look always at the limitless riches. In Formless Substance. And KNOW that they are coming. To you. As fast as you can receive. And use them. Nobody. By cornering the visible supply. Can prevent you from getting. What is yours.
So never allow yourself. To think. For an instant. That all the best building spots. Will be taken. Before you get ready. To build your house. Unless you hurry. Never worry. About the trusts. And combines. And get anxious. For fear. They will soon come. To own the whole earth. Never get afraid. That you will lose. What you want. Because some other person "beats you to it". That cannot possibly happen. You are not seeking any thing. Possessed by anybody else. You are causing what you want. To be created. From Formless Substance. And the supply. Is without limits. Stick. To the formulated statement:--
There is a thinking stuff. From which all things are made. And which. In its original state. Permeates. Penetrates. And fills the interspaces. Of the universe. A thought. In this substance. Produces the thing. That is imaged. By the thought. Man can form things in his thought. And. By impressing his thought. Upon formless substance. Can cause the thing he thinks about. To be created.