Man is the master of thought, the
moulder of (his own) character, and the maker and shaper of (his) condition,
environment, and destiny. 6
As a being of power, intelligence, and
love, and the lord of his own thoughts, man holds the key to every situation,
and contains within himself that transforming and regenerative agency by which
he may make himself what he wills. 6
Man is always the master, even in his
weakest and most abandoned state. But in his weakness and degradation he is a
foolish master who misgoverns his “household” (i.e. his life). When he begins
to reflect upon his condition and search diligently for the law upon which his
being is established, he then becomes the wise master, directing his energies
with intelligence and fashioning his thoughts to fruitful issues. 6
Only by much searching and mining are
gold and diamonds obtained, and man can find every truth connected with his
being, if he will dig deep into the mine of his soul. 6
A man may truly prove that he is the
maker of his character, the moulder of his life, and the builder of his destiny
if he will watch, control, and alter his thoughts; tracing their effects upon
himself, upon others and upon his life and circumstances; linking cause and effect
by patient practice and investigation. And utilizing his every experience (even
the most trivial, everyday occurrence) as a means of obtaining that knowledge
of himself which is understanding, wisdom and power. 6 (paraphrased)
Only by patience, practice, and
ceaseless importunity (tireless persistence) can a man enter the door of the
temple of (self-) knowledge. 7
EFFECTS OF THOUGHTS ON CIRCUMSTANCES
A man’s mind can be likened to a
garden, which may be intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild; but
whether cultivated or neglected, it must, and will bring forth. If no useful
seeds are put into it, then an abundance of useless weed-seeds will fall
therein, and will continue to produce their kind. 8
Just as a gardener cultivates his plot,
keeping it free from weeds, and growing the flowers and fruits which he
requires, so may a man tend the garden of his mind, weeding out all the wrong,
useless and impure thoughts, and cultivating toward perfection the flowers and
fruits of right, useful and pure thoughts. 8
Thought and character are one, and as
character can only manifest and discover itself through environment and
circumstance, (so will) the outer conditions of a person’s life be always found
to be harmoniously related to his inner state. 8
Every man is where he is by the law of
his being; the thoughts which he has built into his character have brought him
there, and in the arrangement of his life there is no element of chance, but
all is the result of a law which cannot err. 8
As a progressive and evolving being,
man is where he is that he may learn, that he may grow; and as he learns the
spiritual lesson which any circumstance contains for him, it passes away and
gives place to other circumstances. 9
Man is buffeted (battered) by
circumstances as long as he believes himself to be the creature of outside
conditions, but when he realizes that he is a creative power, and that he may
command the hidden soil and seeds of his being [out of which circumstances
grow]; he then becomes the rightful master of himself. 9 (paraphrased)
Any man who has for any length of time
practised self-control and self-purification knows that circumstances grow out
of thought. 9 (paraphrased)
The soul attracts that which it
secretly harbours, that which it loves, and also that which it fears. It
reaches the height of its cherished aspirations; it falls to the level of its
unchastened desires, and circumstances are the means by which the soul receives
its own (harvests). 9
Every thought-seed sown or allowed to
fall into the mind, and to take root there, produces its own, blossoming sooner
or later into act, and bearing fruitage of opportunity and circumstance. Good
thoughts bear good fruit, bad thoughts bad fruit. 9
No comments:
Post a Comment