Last week I watched an episode of Oprah where she talked with the producer and in some way affiliated authors of a DVD called "The Secret".
The basic idea behind this "secret" is often called "the law of attraction". Loosely stated this law boils down to "you manifest those events/situations in your life where your mind is attuned to".
Now that is part of what I have been talking about in my theosophical writings (see articles on this site). In that sense I have promulgated that idea (for free) for over a decade.
In my writings I have added some comments about this "law" which I want to elaborate here (and perhaps in a follow-up) .
You know, one should take into account several factors that play a role in one's life besides this law of attraction. Think of the following:
- influence of the environment, milieu, etc.
- health, age, temperament
- past and future karma of self and others
- cyclic factors, "Zeitgeist"
This list will be enough for the moment.
I think it will be abundantly clear that one's environment exerts a powerful influence on oneself. If you don't understand that, then have a look at ghetto's, slums and other concentrations of misery in this world. Then ask yourself what influences you send into the environment!
Young children have often little choice but to undergo the negative influence of other kids and adults. Hundreds of millions of children in India alone have been abused in one form or another. The same story applies to the rest of the world. So, this "order peace of mind, wealth, health, etc. from the universe" idea that is often preached in newage circles, seems a little cheap to me. Did the victims of war ("collateral damage") in Worldwar II, Vietnam, Iraq, Darfur, etc., etc., order these events? How cruel to think in such a way! What about ill health? Just "order good health from the universe" and expect it to arrive within a couple of days/weeks/months? What a simplistic vision of the world!
No, one has to be a bit more realistic than that. As studies in physics and biology show, there are almost invariably "lag-factors" in play, e.g. one's body needs time to adjust to a new environment, diet, exercises (not only physical but mental ones too!). Thinking about that, one's mind also needs time to adjust to new insights, new information. The lag involved differs for different people and different situations. An open society with responsive people will simply allow a freer flow of creative energy (see Bennett about energy types and qualities). That kind of energy is needed to change situations for the better! The higher type of creative energy is impersonal, and may follow ways that the personality may never expect in the first place. "Ordering a $5,000 income a month from the universe" may turn out a little different than expected. You may have to work a little harder than you are prepared to in order to earn that amount..
Where's the ethic in all this "ordering business?". It looks very much a self-centered, consumerist affair to me. Not very spiritual at all. Think about that.
One cannot expect that someone with bad health just "magically" can turn into a vibrant healthy person.Common sense shows that that is next to impossible.
Having said all this, it is of course wise to adopt a positive attitude towards life, in thinking, feeling and action. A constructive attitude, based on understanding of life, will inevitably bring benefits to self and others.
As all true religions teach, selfless service to others is the road to fulfillment. Then one will tune in to deeper levels of reality, one's inner pattern, and things will start to shift from the inside out, instead of from the outside in (external factors). But one has to follow one's passion in doing all this, nothing contrived or it will fail.
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