As You Think [New ed.] 0931432774, 9780931432774

Citation preview

Classic Wisdom NEW WORLD LIBRARY ^-^ ^i^ •

:

W0

'

II

^^^ :iK.rj^j^^XKV^,.^:}^Ui? t^ mi^m.'^ •

AS YOU

ITHINK

1^

CN.

vC)

m

cv

\C/ /o

c\

vC/

n

cv

vC>

n

.

vC > n

c\

(C)

n

cv

(C) n

c\

(C)

n

Cv

\C) n

c\

\\V/yO C\(C)yO C\(C)/3 C\(C)/3 Cv(C>/3 C\(C)/3 C\\W/3

.

CV

(C) /^

C\

(C) /O

C\

(C)

As Yom Think

As l&iui Think by

James Allen Edited and with an Introduction by

Marc Allen

The Classic

Wisdom Collection

New World

Library

San Rafael, California

Original version © 1904 James Allen This edited version © 1991 Marc Allen

The

Classic

Wisdom

Collection

Published by New World Library 58 Paul Drive, San Rafael, CA 94903

Cover design: Greg Wittrock Text design:

Nancy Benedict

Typography: Wilsted

&

All rights reserved. This

whole or

Taylor

book may not be reproduced in any form, without

in part, or transmitted in

written permission from the publisher. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Allen, James, 1864-1912.

[As a

man

thinketh]

As you think / by James Allen edited and with an introduction by Marc Allen, (The classic wisdom collection) cm. p. ;

—

ISBN 0-931432-77-4 1.

New Thought.

(alk.

paper)

L Allen, Marc, 1946-

in. Series.

IL Title.

BF639.A48 289. 9'8

—

1991 dc20

91-21731

CIP

First printing,

October 1991

ISBN 0-931432-77-4 Printed in the U.S.A. on acid-free paper

Mind is the master power that molds and makes, And we are Mind, and evermore we take The

tool

of thought, and shaping what we

Bring forth a thousand joys, a thousand

We

pass —

will, ills.

think in secret, and it comes to Our environment is hut our looking glass.

—James Allen

Publisher's Preface

Introduction

ix

xi

xv

Foreword Chapter

i

Thought and Character

Chapter

2

The

Effect of

Thought on

Circumstances

Chapter

3

The

Effect of

9

Thought on Health

and the Body

29

Chapter 4

Thought and Purpose

Chapter

Thought as a Factor Achievement 43

in

Chapter 6

Visions and Ideals

51

Chapter 7

Serenity

5

61

Vll

i

35

Life

is

an endless cycle of change.

We

and our

world will never remain the same. Every generation has difficulty relating to the previous generation; even the language changes. The child speaks a different language than the parent does. It seems almost miraculous, then, that certain voices, certain books, are able to speak to

not only one, but

many

generations beyond

them. The plays and poems of William Shakespeare are

still

relevant today

giving us goose bumps,

still

turbing, and profound.

—

still

capable of

entertaining, dis-

Shakespeare

is

the

writer who, in the English language, defines the

word

classic.

There are many other writers and thinkers who, for a great many reasons, can be considered time.

classic,

We

for they withstand the test of

want

to present the best of

IX

them

to

PUBLISHER

you

in the

S

PREFACE

New World Library Classic Wisdom who, even though

Collection, the thinkers

they lived

many

and important ing words of

years ago, are

in today

s

still

relevant

world for the endur-

wisdom they

created,

words that

should forever be kept in print. Shakti Gawain Marc Allen

New World

Library

Whatever you can

—

dream you can, begin it power, and magic in it.

do, or

Boldness has genius,

— Goethe

There has to be some power and some magic in a book that has been in print and selUng successfully for nearly a hundred years. As You Think has proven to be one of the world's most enduring and best

''self-help" books, in the

best sense of the term. "Self-development''

—

is

or "self-empowerment." This

term book can show us the greatness we are capable of, and give us the tools to achieve it. The truth can always be stated simply. And when it is stated, it can have a deeply moving effect. It can change our lives, in fact. The truth can literally make us free, free from the

a better little

XI

INTRODUCTION

limitations

we have imposed upon

ourselves.

key to James Allen shows our own personal power is in our minds, and he shows us how to use that key to unlock the greatest success and power we can imagine. discovered As You Think about seven I us so clearly that the

years ago,

when

me

a friend gave

a cassette

tape of Leonard Orr reading the book.

I

must

have played that tape over a hundred times,

my car, before

wore the tape out. Then I bought the book, and made a cassette copy in my own voice. I still listen, on oc-

while driving in

casion,

when

I

feel a

ter listening so

large parts of

I

need for inspiration. Af-

many

times, I've

memorized

it.

As these simple

yet brilhantly shining

James Allen have seeped slowly into my subconscious, supported by the repetition of a great many listenings and readings, my life has slowly and steadily changed for the

words

of

have ceased doing the things I don't want to do in life; I spend my time doing what I love. I have written successful books and recorded albums of my music. I have created, with the assistance of a great many wonderful

better.

I

Xll

INTRODUCTION

a successful business which runs smoothly and supports me and many others abundantly. I have discovered my purpose in life, and I am steadily working to help create, in my own way, a better world for all of us. The words of James Allen (who is no relation to me, incidentally) have definitely been a powerful guiding force in my life, and I am pleased and excited to be able to share them with you. I have edited the book only slightly, changing language that has at times become dated or

people,

The Thinketh. Of

obsolete.

women

original

title

course,

the

— book—

as well as

opening of the

men

as

As A Man author meant

is

he writes in the

for the principles

he

points out to us so clearly are universal, apply-

ing to everyone regardless of sex, age, race, beliefs, social

standing, or education.

Enjoy the for

you

—

feast

James Allen has prepared

a large, nourishing feast in a small

package.

Marc Allen San Rafael, California

Xlll

This

little

volume

—

— the

result of meditation

and experience is not intended as an exhaustive treatise on the much-written-upon subject of the power of thought. It is suggestive rather than explanatory,

stimulate

its

men and women

object being to to the discovery

and perception of the truth that "they themselves are makers of themselves'' by virtue of the thoughts which they choose and encourage; that mind is the master weaver, both of the inner garment of character and the outer garment of their circumstances and that, as they may have previously woven in ignorance and pain they may now weave in enlightenment and happiness. James Allen Ilfracombe, England

XV

T

1

^*^ Thouglit and Character

a being of power, intelligence, and love, and the lord of your own thoughts, you contain ''As

within yourself that transforming

and

regenerative agency by which you yourself what you will/'

may make

our hearts so whole of our are we/' not only embraces the as to reach comprehensive being, but it is so of our out to every condition and circumstance charour think, we lives. We are literally what being the complete sum of all our

The aphorism, "As we think

in

acter

thoughts.

As the

plant springs from, and could not be

without, the seed, so every one of our acts thoughts, springs from the hidden seeds of our and could not have appeared without them. "sponThis apphes equally to those acts called those taneous" and "unpremeditated" as to

which are deliberately executed. Act is the blossom of thought, and joy and

we gather in sweet and bitter fruits of our own planting.

suffering are

the

its fruits;

thus do

CHAPTER ONE

What we are was designed and built by our own thoughts in our minds. If we nurture ignorant or

evil

thoughts, pain will soon follow.

our thoughts are healthy and beneficial, joy will follow us as surely as our shadows follow If

us on a sunny day.

A man or a woman is a growth by law, not a creation

by

artifice,

and such cause-and-

effect is as absolute and undeviating in the hidden realm of thought as in the world of visible and material things. A noble and Godlike

character is

is

not a thing of favor or chance, but

the natural result of continued effort in right

thinking, the effect of long-cherished association with Godlike thoughts. bestial character,

An

ignoble and

by the same process,

is

the

result of the continued harboring of grovelling

thoughts.

We

unmade by ourselves; in we forge the weapons by which we destroy ourselves, and we also fashion the tools with which we build for ourare

made

or

the armory of thought

selves heavenly mansions of joy and strength and peace. By the right choices and true applications of our thoughts, we ascend to divine

THOUGHT AND CHARACTER

by the abuses and wrong applications of our thoughts, we descend below the level of the beast. Between these two extremes are all grades of character, and we are their makers and masters. perfection;

Of all the beautiful

truths pertaining to the

soul which have been restored and brought to light in this age,

none

is

more gladdening

or fruitful of divine promise and confidence

—

you are the master of your thought, the molder of your character, and the maker and shaper of your condition, environment, and destiny. than this

As

that

a being of power, intelligence,

and

love,

and the lord of your own thoughts, you hold the key to every situation, and contain within yourself that transforming and regenerative agency by which you may make yourself what

you

will.

You are always the master, even in your weakest and most abandoned state; but in your weakness and degradation you are the foolish master

hold.

who misgoverns your

When you

house-

begin to reflect upon your

condition, and to search diligently for the law

CHAPTER ONE

upon which your being is estabhshed, you then become the wise master, directing your and fashioning your thoughts to fruitful issues. Such is the conscious master, and you can only become a conscious master by discovering within yourenergies

self the

tally a

with

inteUigence,

laws of thought. This discovery

is

to-

matter of application, self-analysis, and

experience.

Only by much searching and mining

are

gold and diamonds obtained, and you can find

every truth connected with your being, will dig

if

you

deep into the mine of your soul. The

you

maker

of your character, and the builder of your destiny, you may unerringly prove, if you will watch, control, and alter your thoughts, tracfact that

are the

the molder of your

life,

ing their effects upon yourself, upon others,

and upon your life and circumstances, linking cause and effect by patient practice and investigation, and utilizing your every experience even the most trivial, everyday

— —

occurrence

as

a

means

of

obtaining that

knowledge of yourself which leads standing, wisdom, and power.

to

under-

THOUGHT AND CHARACTER

In this direction, as in

no

other,

is

the law

absolute that "Those that seek shall find; to those that knock the door shall be opened," for

only by patience, practice, and ceaseless importunity can you enter the door of the temple of knowledge.

2 The Effect of Thoiuiglit on /ircumistaiices

''You are buffeted by circumstances so long as

you believe yourself to be a creature affected by outside conditions but when you realize

—

that you are a creative povc^er,

may command the

hidden

soil

and that you and seeds of

your being out ofvc^hich your circumstances then you become the rightful master of "

groves,

yourself

Your mind may be likened

may

to a

garden which

be intelUgently cultivated or allowed to

— but

whether cultivated or neglected, it must, and will, hring 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. run

wild

Just

as

gardeners cultivate their plots,

keeping them free from weeds, and growing the flowers and fruits they desire, so

may you

tend the garden of your mind, weeding out

all

the wrong, useless, and impure thoughts, and cultivating toward perfection the flowers and fruits of right, useful,

and pure thoughts. By

II

CHAPTER TWO

pursuing this process, you will sooner or later discover that you are the master gardener of your soul, the director of your life. You also reveal, within yourself, the laws of thought,

and understand, with ever-increasing accuracy, how the forces of thought and elements of the

mind operate

in the

character, circumstances,

shaping of your

and destiny.

Thought and character

are one, and as

character can only manifest and discover

itself

through environment and circumstance, the outer conditions of your life will always be found to be harmoniously related to your inner state. This does not mean that your circumstances at any given time are an indication of your entire character, but that those cir-

cumstances are so intimately connected with some vital element of your thought that, for the time being, they are indispensable to your development.

You are where you are by the law of your being; the thoughts which you have built into your character have brought you there, and in the arrangement of your life there is no ele-

ment

of chance, but

all is

12

the result of a law

THE EFFECT OF THOUGHT ON CIRCUMSTANCES

which cannot

who

feel

err.

This

is

just as true of those

"out of harmony" with their sur-

roundings as of those

who

are contented with

them.

As a progressive and evolving being, you where you are in order to learn and to grow, and as you learn the spiritual lesson which any circumstance contains for you, it passes away and gives place to other circumare

stances.

You are buffeted by circumstances so long you believe yourself to be a creature affected by outside conditions but when you realize that you are a creative power, and that you as

—

may command the hidden soil and seeds of your being out of which your circumstances grow, then you become the rightful master of yourself.

All

people

who have

practiced

examination and self-control know that

selfcir-

cumstances grow out of thought, for they have noticed that the alterations in their circumstances have been in direct proportion to their altered mental conditions.

when you

So true

this that

is

earnestly apply yourself to 13

remedy

CHAPTER TWO

the defects in your character, you

make

swift

and marked progress and pass rapidly through a series of changes.

The soul attracts that which it secretly harthat which it loves, and also that which bors

—

it

fears. It reaches the

aspirations,

and

it falls

height of

its

cherished

to the depth of

its

re-

unexamined fears. Circumstances are the means by which the soul receives its own. Every thought-seed sown or allowed to fall curring,

into the mind, and to take root there, produces

own, blossoming sooner or later into act, and bearing its own fruits of opportunity and circumstance. Good thoughts bear good fruit, bad thoughts bear bad fruit. The outer world of circumstance shapes itself to the inner world of thought, and both pleasant and unpleasant external conditions are factors which make for the ultimate good of the individual. As the reaper of your own harvest, you learn both by suffering and bhss. Following the innermost desires, aspirations, thoughts, by which you allow yourself to be dominated, you at last arrive at their fruition and fulfillment in the outer conditions its

14

THE EFFECT OF THOUGHT ON CIRCUMSTANCES

your life. The laws of growth and ment apply everywhere. of

A

adjust-

person does not end up in the gutter or

by the tyranny of fate or circumstance, but by the path of low thoughts and base desires. Nor does a pure-minded person fall suddenly into crime by the stress of any merely external force the criminal thought had long been secretly fostered in the heart, and the hour of opportunity revealed its gatha prison

—

ered power. Circumstance does not

person,

it

make

the

reveals the person to himself or her-

self.

No such conditions can exist that lead us to descend into vice and apart from our

own

its

attendant sufferings

vicious inclinations, just

no such conditions can exist that lead us to ascend into virtue and success and its pure as

happiness without the continued cultivation of virtuous and successful aspirations.

We,

therefore, as the lords and masters of our

thoughts, are the makers of ourselves, the shapers and authors of our environment.

Even at birth the soul comes to its own, and through every step of its earthly pilgrim15

— CHAPTER TWO

age

tions

tions

combinations of condi-

attracts those

it

which reveal of

itself,

own

its

which are the

purity and

reflec-

impurity,

its

strength and weakness.

we

We

do not

are.

Our whims,

thwarted

attract

what we want, but what

fancies,

and ambitions are

every step, but our innermost

at

thoughts and desires are fed with their

own

good or bad. The "divinity that shapes our ends" is in ourselves; it is our very self. And so we are held prisoners only by ourselves: our own thoughts and actions are the jailers of our fate they imprison, if they are base; they are also the angels of freedom food, be

it

—

they liberate,

if

they are noble.

We don't get what we wish and pray for, we get

what we

justly

Our wishes and and answered when

earn.

prayers are only gratified

they harmonize with our thoughts and actions.

In the light of this truth,

meaning in

what then

is

of "fighting against circumstances"

our lives?

It

means

that

we

are continually

revolting against an effect without, while

the time

the

we

are nourishing and preserving

i6

all its

THE EFFECT OF THOUGHT ON CIRCUMSTANCES

the cause in our hearts. That cause may take form of a conscious vice or an unconscious weakness; but whatever it is, it stubbornly retards the efforts of

its

possessor, and calls

aloud for a remedy. Most of us are anxious to improve our circumstances, but are unwilling to improve ourselves

— and we therefore remain bound.

If

we

do not shrink from honest self-examination we can never fail to accomplish the object upon which our hearts are set. This is as true of earthly things as

it is

Even acquire wealth, we must

of heavenly things.

our sole object is to be prepared to make great personal sacrifices and before we can accomplish our object if

—

how much more so for those of us who would realize a strong and well-poised hfe? Let's

Here poor.

some examples: some people who are wretchedly

look at are

They

are extremely anxious that their

surroundings and

home

comforts should be

the time they shirk their work, and consider they are justified in trying grounds of to deceive their employers on the

improved, yet

all

people the insufficiency of their wages. These 17

— CHAPTER TWO

do not understand the simple basic principles which are the basis of true prosperity, and are not only totally unfit to rise out of their poor condition, but are actually attracting to themselves still worse conditions by dwelling in

and acting out

—weak,

lazy,

couple

who are

and deceptive

thoughts.

Here

is

a rich

the victims of

and persistent disease as the result of gluttony. They are willing to pay large sums of a painful

money

to get rid of their illness, but they will

not sacrifice their habits of overeating. They

want

to gratify their taste for rich foods in im-

moderate amounts and have their health as Such people are completely unfit for good health, because they have not yet learned well.

the

first

principles of a healthy

Here are some employers

life.

of laborers

adopt crooked measures to avoid paying

who fair

wages, and, in the hope of making larger profits,

reduce the wages of their workpeople.

These employers are altogether unfit for prosperity, and when they find themselves bankrupt, in both reputation and riches, they blame

18

— THE EFFECT OF THOUGHT ON CIRCUMSTANCES

circumstances, not knowing that they are the sole authors of their condition.

have introduced these three cases merely

I

to illustrate the truth that people are the caus-

ers

— though

nearly always unconsciously

of their circumstances, and that, while aiming at

good ends, they are continually frustrating

the accomplishment of those good ends by en-

couraging thoughts and desires which cannot possibly harmonize with those ends.

Such

cases could be multiplied and varied almost in-

but this

definitely, if

we

thought this

as a

is

not necessary, as

we

can,

so resolve, trace the action of the laws of

is

in

our own mind and

life

— and

until

done, mere external facts cannot serve

ground

of reasoning.

Circumstances, however, are so complicated,

thought

is

so deeply rooted, and the

conditions of happiness vary so vastly with individuals that our entire soul-condition

though

it

may

be

known

(al-

to ourselves) cannot

be judged by anyone else from the external aspects of our in

life

A person may be honest

alone.

certain directions,

yet suffer privations.

19

CHAPTER

while another person

TWO

may

be dishonest in cer-

tain directions, yet acquire wealth

— but the

conclusion usually formed that the one person

because of his or her particular honesty, and that the other prospers because of his or fails

her particular dishonesty,

is

the result of a su-

judgment, which assumes that the

perficial

dishonest person

is

the honest person

almost totally corrupt, and

is

almost entirely virtuous.

knowledge and wider experience such judgment is found to be erroneous. The dishonest person may have some In the light of a deeper

admirable virtues the other does not possess,

and the honest person may have certain even though subtle ones which are vices absent in the other. The honest person reaps the good results of honest thoughts and acts,

—

—

but also experiences the suffering that his or

her vices produce. The dishonest person wise garners his or her

own

like-

suffering and hap-

piness. It is

pleasing to

human

vanity to believe

that one suffers because of one's virtue

not until

we have exterminated

20

every

—but

sickly.

THE EFFECT OF THOUGHT ON CIRCUMSTANCES

and impure thought from our mind, and washed every unhealthy stain from our soul, can we be in a position to know and declare that our sufferings are the result of our good, and not our bad qualities and on the way to that supreme perfection, yet long before we have reached it, we will have found, working in our minds and our lives, a great law which is absolutely just, and which cannot, therefore, give good for evil, or evil for good. When we possess such knowledge, we will then know, as we look back upon our past ignorance and blindness, that our lives are, and always have been, justly ordered, and all our past experiences, good and bad, were the equitable outworkings of our evolving, yet unevolved self. Good thoughts and actions can never produce bad results; bad thoughts and actions can never produce good results. This is but saying that nothing can come from corn but corn, nothing from nettles but nettles. We understand this law in the natural world, and work with it; but few understand it in the mental bitter,

—

21

CHAPTER TWO

and

moral

there

world

—although

its

operation

and undeviating

just as simple

is

they, therefore, do not cooperate with

Suffering

thought

is

some

always the

effect of

— and

it.

wrong

an indication that we are out of harmony with ourselves, with the law of our being. The sole and suin

preme use all

that

is

direction.

of suffering

is

It is

to purify, to

burn out

useless and impure. Suffering ceases

who are pure. There can be no object burning gold after the dross has been removed, and a perfectly pure and enlightened being cannot suffer. for those

in

The circumstances which we encounter with suffering are the result of our own mental

inharmony The circumstances we encounter with grace and pleasure are the result of our own mental harmony. Grace and pleasure, even blessedness sions

—

— and

not material posses-

are the measures of right thought;

suffering and misery, not lack of material possessions, are the

Some

measures of wrong thought.

people are miserable and rich; some are

blessed and poor. Blessedness and riches are

only joined together

when

22

the

riches

are

THE EFFECT OF THOUGHT ON CIRCUMSTANCES

rightly

and wisely used; and the poor only de-

scend into misery as a

when they

regard their lot

burden unjustly imposed upon them. Poverty and overindulgence are the two

extremes of misery. They are both equally unnatural and both the result of mental disorder.

We

are not rightly conditioned until

happy, healthy, and prosperous

we

are

— and happi-

and prosperity are the result of a harmonious adjustment of the inner with the ness, health,

outer, of ourselves with our surroundings.

We

only begin to be happy, healthy, and

when we cease to whine and revile, and when we begin to search for the hidden justice which regulates our lives. And as we learn to adapt our minds to that regulating facprosperous

tor,

we

cease to accuse others as the cause of

our condition, and we build ourselves up in strong and healthy thoughts; we cease to lash out against circumstances, and begin to use them as aids to our more rapid progress, and as a

means

of discovering the hidden powers

possibilities

and

within ourselves.

Law, not confusion,

is

the dominating

principle in the universe; justice, not injustice.

23

CHAPTER TWO

is

the soul and substance of

teousness, not corruption,

moving

is

force in the spiritual

the world. This being so,

life;

and righ-

the molding and

government

we have

of

to but right

ourselves to find that the universe is right; and during the process of putting ourselves right,

we will find that as we alter our thoughts towards things and other people, things and other people will alter towards us.

The proof

of this truth

is

in every person,

and it therefore admits of easy investigation by systematic introspection and self-analysis. Let us radically alter our thoughts, and

we

will

be astonished at the rapid transformation will effect in the material conditions of lives.

it

our

We imagine that our thought can be kept

secret,

but

it

cannot

—

it

rapidly crystallizes

into habit, and habit solidifies into circumstance.

Base thoughts crystalize into habits of

drunkenness and resentment, which solidify into circumstances of destitution and suffering; destructive thoughts of every kind crystallize into confusing and exhausting habits, which solidify into distracting and adverse cir24

THE EFFECT OF THOUGHT ON CIRCUMSTANCES

cumstances; thoughts of

fear,

doubt, and in-

weak and inconsiswhich sohdify into circumstances poverty, and dependence; lazy

decision crystaUize into tent habits, of

failure,

thoughts crystallize into habits of uncleanliness and dishonesty, which solidify into

cir-

cumstances of foulness and poverty; hateful and condemnatory thoughts crystallize into habits of accusation and violence, which solidify into circumstances of injury and persecution; selfish

thoughts of

all

into habits of self-seeking,

kinds crystallize

which

solidify into

circumstances which are distressing.

On all

the other hand, beautiful thoughts of

kinds crystallize into habits of grace and

kindliness,

which

solidify

into

genial

and

sunny circumstances; constructive thoughts crystallize into habits of

control,

which

temperance and

self-

solidify into circumstances of

repose and peace; thoughts of courage,

self-

reliance, and decision crystallize into strong and productive habits, which solidify into circumstances of success, plenty, and freedom;

energetic thoughts crystallize into habits of cleanliness

and industry, which 25

solidify into

CHAPTER TWO

circumstances of pleasantness and pleasure; gentle and forgiving thoughts crystallize into habits of gentleness, which solidify into safe and healthy circumstances; loving and unselfish thoughts crystallize into habits of self-

forgetfulness for others, which solidify into

circumstances of sure and abiding prosperity

and true

A be

it

sults

riches.

particular train of thought persisted in,

good or bad, cannot fail to produce its reon our character and circumstances. We

cannot directly choose our circumstances, but can choose our thoughts, and so indirectly,

we

yet surely, shape our circumstances.

Nature works with us and through us to help us gratify the thoughts we encourage the most, and opportunities are presented which will

most speedily bring

to the surface both

the good and the destructive thoughts.

As soon

as

we

cease from our negative and

destructive thoughts,

all

the world softens to-

ward us, and is ready to help us; as soon as we put away our weak and sick thoughts, opportunities spring up on every hand to aid our strong resolve; as soon as we encourage good 26

THE EFFECT OF THOUGHT ON CIRCUMSTANCES

thoughts, no hard fate shall bind us

down

to

misery and shame. The world is our kaleidoscope, and the varying combinations of colors which it presents to us at every succeeding

moment

are the exquisitely adjusted pictures

of our ever-moving thoughts.

You

will be

what you

Let failure find In that poor

But It

spirit scorns

it,

it

and

is

free.

conquers space,

cows that boastful

And

trickster,

Chance,

bids the tyrant Circumstance

Uncrown, and take The

false content

word "environment/'

masters time, It

its

will to be;

human

a servant's place.

Will, that force unseen.

The offspring of a deathless Soul,

Can hew a way to any goal. Though walls of granite intervene. Be not impatient

in delay.

But wait as one who understands;

When

spirit rises

The gods are ready

and commands, to obey.

27

3 The Effect of Thought on Health and the Body

"

''The body

is

a

delicate

which responds readily

which will

it is

upon

to the

and

impressed,

produce their

and /elastic

own

instrument,

thoughts by

habits of thought

effects,

good or bad,

it.

The body

is

the servant of the mind.

It

obeys

the operations of the mind, whether they be

dehberately

chosen

or

automatically

ex-

At the bidding of unhealthy thoughts the body sinks rapidly into disease and decay;

pressed.

at the it

command of glad and beautiful thoughts

becomes clothed with youthfulness and

beauty.

Disease and health, like circumstances, are rooted in thought. Sickly thoughts will ex-

through a sickly body. Thoughts of fear have been known to kill a person as speedily as a bullet, and they are continually killing thousands of people just as

press

surely,

themselves

though

less rapidly.

The people who

live in fear of disease are the people

who get it.

Anxiety quickly demoralizes the whole body. 31

CHAPTER THREE

and lays

it

open to the entrance

pure thoughts, even

if

of disease;

im-

not physically in-

dulged, will soon shatter the nervous system.

Strong, pure, and happy thoughts build up the body in vigor and grace. The body

and

is

a del-

which responds readily to the thoughts by which it is impressed, and habits of thought will produce their own effects, good or bad, upon it. People will continue to have impure and poisoned blood, so long as they propagate unclean thoughts. Out of a clean heart comes a clean life and a clean body. Out of a defiled mind proceeds a defiled life and an impure body. Thought is the source of action, life, and manifestation; make the source pure, and all icate

plastic instrument,

will be pure.

A

change of diet will not help those who will not change their thoughts. When our thoughts are pure, we no longer desire impure food.

Clean thoughts make clean habits. Those who have strengthened and purified their thoughts do not need to consider the malevolent microbe. 32

HEALTH AND THE BODY

you would perfect your body, guard your mind. If you would renew your body, beautify your mind. Thoughts of malice, If

envy, disappointment, despondency, rob the

body

of

its

health and grace.

not come by chance;

it

thoughts. Wrinkles that

A

is

sour face does

made by sour

mar

are

drawn by

folly, suffering, pride. I

know

a

woman

of ninety-six

bright, innocent face of a girl.

well under middle age into

whose

I

who has the know a man

face

is

inharmonious contours. The one

drawn is

the

result of a sunny disposition; the other is the outcome of suffering and discontent. As you cannot have a sweet and wholesome place to live unless you admit the air and sunshine freely into your rooms, so a strong body and a bright, happy, or serene face can only result from the free admittance into the mind of thoughts of joy and goodwill and serenity.

On the

faces of the aged there are wrinkles

made by sympathy,

others by strong and pure

thought, and others are carved by negative

emotions

—who cannot distinguish them? For 33

CHAPTER THREE

those

who have hved

righteously, age

is

calm,

peaceful, and softly mellowed, like the setting

recently saw a philosopher on his death-

sun.

I

bed.

He was not old

except in years.

He died as

sweetly and peacefully as he had lived.

There

is

no physician

for dissipating the

ills

like cheerful

thought

of the body; there

is

no

comforter to compare with goodwill for dispersing the shadows of grief and sorrow. To live continually in

thoughts of

cism, suspicion, and envy, a self-made prison cell.

to be cheerful with

find the

good

in all

is

ill

will, cyni-

to be confined in

But to think well of

all,

all,

to patiently learn to

— such

unselfish thoughts

are the very portals of heaven, and to dwell

day by day

in

thoughts of peace toward every

creature will bring abounding peace to their possessor.

34

4 ThoBght

le

'Thought alUed

fearlessly to f^urpose

creative force; those

who

becomes

align their thoughts

become the fearlessly with their purpose wielders of their conscious and intelligent mental powers/'

hnked with purpose there is With most no inteUigent accomphshment.

Until thought

is

people, the bark of thought

upon the ocean

is

allowed to drift

of hfe. Aimlessness

is

a vice,

for those and such drifting must not continue who would steer clear of catastrophe and de-

struction.

Those who have no lives fall

troubles,

central purpose

m their

an easy prey to petty worries, fears, self-pityings, all of which are in-

and

dications of weakness, and

which

lead, just as

crimes (though surely as deliberately planned

by a and

unhappiness, different route), to failure, persist in a loss, for weakness cannot

power-evolving universe. We need to conceive of a legitimate puraccompUsh it. pose in our heart, and set out to 37

CHAPTER FOUR

We

should make this purpose the centrahzing

may take the form of may be a material object,

point of our thoughts. a spiritual ideal, or

it

It

according to our nature at the time;

whichever

it is,

we should

but

steadily focus our

we have We should make this

thought-forces upon the object which set before ourselves.

purpose our supreme duty, and devote ourselves

to

its

attainment, not allowing our

thoughts to wander away into ephemeral fancies,

longings, and imaginings.

This

is

the

royal road to self-control and true concentration of thought.

Even

if

we

to accomplish our purpose must until our weakness

fail

—

again and again

we

as

is

necessarily

overcome

— the

strength of character gained will be the mea-

sure of our true success, and this will form a

new starting point umph.

for future

power and

Those who are not prepared

tri-

for the appre-

hension of a great purpose should

fix their

thoughts upon the faultless performance of their duty,

task

may

no matter how

appear.

Only

insignificant their

in this

way

can the

thoughts be gathered and focused, and reso38

THOUGHT AND PURPOSE

lution and energy be developed, which being is nothing which may not be accomphshed. The weakest soul, knowing its own weakthat strength ness, and believing this truth practice and can only be developed by effort

done, there

—

will at effort

once begin to exert to

effort,

patience

itself,

to

—

and, adding

patience,

and

strength to strength, will never cease to de-

grow divinely strong. As physically weak people can make themselves strong by careful and patient training, so can people with weak thoughts make themselves strong by exercising themselves in right

velop, and will at last

thinking.

To put away aimlessness and weakness, and to begin to think with purpose, is to enter the ranks of those strong ones who only recognize failure as one of the pathways to attainment, who make all conditions serve them,

and who think strongly, attempt fearlessly, and accomplish masterfully Having conceived of our purpose, we should mentally mark out a straight pathway to its achievement, looking neither to the right

39

CHAPTER FOUR

nor the

left.

Doubts and

fears should be rig-

orously excluded; they are disintegrating ele-

ments which break up the fort,

rendering

Thoughts

it

straight line of ef-

crooked, ineffectual, useless.

and fear never accomplished anything, and never can. They always of doubt

lead to failure. Purpose, energy,

and

all

strong thoughts cease

power

to do,

when doubt and

fear creep in.

The that

we

will to

do springs from the knowledge

can do. Doubt and fear are the great

enemies of knowledge, and those who encourwho do not slay them, thwart them-

age them,

selves at every step.

Those who have conquered doubt and fear have conquered failure. Their every thought is allied with power, and all difficulties are bravely met and wisely overcome. Their purposes are seasonably planted, and they bloom and bring forth fruit which does not fall prematurely to the ground. Thought allied fearlessly to purpose becomes creative force; those who know this are ready to become something higher and stronger than mere bundles of wavering thoughts 40

— THOUGHT AND PURPOSE and fluctuating sensations; those who do this ahgn their thoughts fearlessly with their pur-

pose—become

the conscious and intelligent

wielders of their mental powers.

41

5 Thouglit as a Factor in

Achievement

"

and your happiness are evolved from within. As you think, so you 'Your

suffering

as you continue

to think,

are;

so you remain.

you fail to achieve is the direct result of your own thoughts. In a justly ordered universe, where

All that

you achieve and

loss of equilibrium

all

that

would mean

total destruc-

tion, individual responsibility must be absopurity lute. Your weakness and strength, your

and impurity, are your own, and not anyone yourself, and else's; they are brought about by not by another; and they can only be altered by yourself, never by anyone else. Your condition is also your own, and not anyone else's. Your suffering and your happiness are evolved from within. As you think, so you are; as you continue to think, so you remain. Stronger people cannot help the weaker unless the weaker are wxWxng to be helped, and

even then the weaker must become strong of themselves; they must, by their own efforts. 45

CHAPTER

FIVE

develop the strength which they admire in others.

Only we ourselves can

alter

our con-

ditions.

Both oppressors and those who are oppressed are cooperating in ignorance, and,

while seeming to

afflict

each other, are in real-

A perfect

knowledge perceives the action of law in the weakness of the oppressed and the misapplied power of the ity afflicting themselves.

oppressor; a perfect love, seeing the suffering

which both states entail, condemns neither; a perfect compassion embraces both the oppressor and the oppressed. Those who have conquered weakness, and have put away all selfish thoughts, belong neither to oppressor nor oppressed. They are free.

We

can only rise, conquer, and achieve, by up our thoughts. We can only remain weak and abject, and miserable by refusing to lift up our thoughts. lifting

Before

we

can achieve anything,

worldly things,

we must

lift

above extreme self-indulgence.

have to give up

all selfishness, in

46

even

our thoughts

We

do not

order to sue-

THOUGHT

AS A FACTOR IN ACHIEVEMENT

ceed, but a portion of

it

must,

at least,

be given

our dominant thoughts are those of indulgence, we can neither think clearly nor plan methodically; we cannot find and develop our

up.

If

latent resources,

taking.

and so we

fail

in

Not having commenced

control our thoughts, to control affairs sibilities.

We

we

any under-

to effectively

are not in a position

and to adopt serious respon-

are not

fit

to act independently

and stand alone. But we are limited only by the thoughts which we choose. There can be no progress, no achievement, without a certain degree of sacrifice, and our worldly success will be directly proportional to the degree that we overcome selfish, indulgent

thoughts and fix our minds on the development of our plans, and the strengthening of our resolution and self-reliance; And the higher we lift our thoughts, the more up-

and idealistic we become, the greater will be our success, and the more blessed and enduring will be our achieve-

right, righteous,

ments.

The universe does not

favor the greedy,

the dishonest, the vicious, even though on the

47

CHAPTER

mere surface so;

it

it

FIVE

may sometimes

helps the honest, the

appear to do

magnanimous, the

virtuous. All the great teachers of the ages

have declared

varying forms, and to we have but to persist in

this in

prove and knov^

it

making ourselves more virtuous by

lifting

up

our thoughts. Intellectual achievements are the result of

thought consecrated to the search for knowledge, or for the beautiful and true in life and nature. Such achievements may be sometimes connected with vanity and ambition, but they are tics,

not the outcome of those characteris-

they are the natural outgrowth of long

and arduous

effort,

and of pure and unselfish

thoughts. Spiritual achievements are the consummation of holy aspirations. Those who live constantly in the conception of noble and lofty thoughts, who dwell upon all that is pure and unselfish, will, as surely as the sun reaches its zenith and the moon is full, become wise and noble in character, and rise into a position of influence and blessedness. Achievement, of whatever kind, is the

48

THOUGHT

crown of

AS A FACTOR IN ACHIEVEMENT

effort, the

diadem

of thought.

By

the

aid of well-directed thought, resolution, self-

control,

and righteousness, we ascend; by the and con-

aid of laziness, lack of self-control,

fusion of thought,

We may

rise to

we

descend.

high success in the world,

and even to lofty altitudes in the spiritual realm, and then descend into weakness and wretchedness by allowing arrogant, selfish, and corrupt thoughts to take possession of us. Victories attained by right thought can only be maintained by watchfulness. Many give way when success is assured, and rapidly fall

back into

failure.

All achievements, whether in the business, intellectual, or spiritual world, are the result

by same method; the

of definitely directed thought, are governed

the

same law and

only difference

are of the

lies in

the object of attainment.

Those who would accomplish little must sacrifice little; those who would achieve much must sacrifice much; those who would attain highly must sacrifice greatly.

49

''Those

who

cherish a beautiful vision, a lofty

ideal in their hearts, will one

The dreamers

day

realize

'' it.

are the saviors of the world.

the visible world

is

so humanity, through

takes and suffering,

As

sustained by the invisible,

is

all

its

trials

and mis-

nourished by the beau-

tiful visions of its solitary

dreamers.

Humanity cannot

its

forget

dreamers;

it

let their ideals fade and die. It lives in them; it knows them as the realities which it shall one day see and know. Composer, sculptor, painter, poet, prophet, sage, these are the makers of the afterworld, the architects of heaven. The world is beautiful because they have lived; without them, laboring humanity would perish. Those who cherish a beautiful vision, a lofty ideal in their hearts, will one day realize

cannot

it.

Columbus cherished

world, and he discovered

a vision of another it;

Copernicus fos-

tered the vision of a multiplicity of worlds and

53

CHAPTER

a

SIX

wider universe, and he revealed

it;

Buddha

beheld the vision of a spiritual world of stain-

beauty and perfect peace, and he entered

less

into

it.

Cherish your visions; cherish your cherish the music

beauty that forms that drapes your

in

them

will

grow

ideals;

your heart, the your mind, the loveliness

that stirs in

finest thoughts, for out of

all

delightful conditions,

heavenly environment; of these, main true to them, your world will

if

all

you

re-

at last

be

built.

To desire

is

to

obtain;

to

aspire

is

to

achieve. Shall our basest desires receive the

and our purest aspirations starve for lack of sustenance? Such is not the law of the universe; such a condition of things can never obtain. "Ask and you will fullest

measure

of gratification,

receive.''

Dream

lofty dreams, and as you dream, so you become. Your vision is the promise of what you shall one day be; your ideal is the prophecy of what you shall at last unveil. The greatest achievement was at first and shall

54

VISIONS

for a time a dream.

AND IDEALS

The oak

sleeps in the

acorn; the bird waits in the egg; and in the

highest vision of the soul a w^aking angel

Dreams

stirs.

are the seedlings of realities.

Your circumstances may be uncongenial, but they shall not long remain so if you but perceive an ideal and strive to reach it. You cannot travel within and stand still without. Here is a young woman, and here is a young man, both hard pressed by poverty and labor; confined long hours in an unhealthy workshop; uneducated, and lacking all the arts of refinement. But they both dream of better things; they think of intelligence, of refine-

ment, of grace and beauty. They conceive of, mentally build up, an ideal condition of life; the vision of a wider liberty and a larger scope takes possession of them; unrest urges them to action, and they utilize all their spare time

and means, small though they are, to the development of their latent powers and resources. Very soon their minds have become so altered that the workshop can no longer hold them.

It

has become so out of

55

harmony

CHAPTER

SIX

with their mentaUty that lives as a

garment

is

it falls

out of their

cast aside, and,

with the

growth of opportunities which fit the scope of their expanding powers, both of them pass out of

it

forever.

Years later

we

see

them

as

full-grown

adults. We find them, each in their own unique way, masters of certain forces of the mind which they wield with worldwide influence and almost unequalled power. In their hands they hold the cords of gigantic responsibihties; they speak, and lives are changed; men and women hang upon their words and remold their characters, and, sunhke, they become the fixed and luminous center around which innumerable destinies revolve. They have realized the vision of their youth. They have become one with their ideals.

And you the vision

be

it

too, youthful reader, will realize

— not the

idle

wish

—

of

your heart,

base or beautiful, or a mixture of both,

for you will always gravitate toward that which you, secretly, most love. Into your hands will be placed the exact results of your own

56

— VISIONS

AND IDEALS

thoughts; you will receive that which you

no more, no less. Whatever your present environment may be, you will fall, remain, or rise with your thoughts, your vision, your ideal. You will become as small as your controlling desire; you will become as great as your dominant aspi-

earn,

ration.

In the beautiful

words

of Stanton

Kirkham

Davis,

"You may be keeping accounts, and presently you shall walk out of the door that for so long has seemed to you the barrier of your ideals, and shall find yourself before an audience— the pen still behind your ear, the inkstains on your fingers and then and there shall pour out the torrent of your inspiration.

"You may be driving sheep, and you shall wander to the city— bucolic and open-mouthed; and you wander under the intrepid guidance of the spirit into the studio of the master, and after a time he shall say, 'I have nothing more to teach

51

CHAPTER

SIX

you/ And now you have becon^e the master, who did so recently dream of great things while driving sheep. You shall lay down the saw and the plane to take upon yourself the regeneration of the world."

The thoughtless, the ignorant, and the lazy, seeing

only the apparent

effects of things

and not the things themselves, talk of luck, of fortune, and chance. Seeing someone grow rich, they say, "How lucky they are!'' Observing another become a renowned scholar, they exclaim,

"How

And

highly favored they are!"

noting the saintly character and wide influence of others, they remark, at

"How

luck aids

them

every turn!"

They do not

see the trials

struggles which these

and

failures

men and women

and

have

voluntarily encountered in order to gain their experience; they have no knowledge of the sacrifices

efforts

they have made, of the undaunted

they have put forth, of the faith they

have exercised, that they might overcome the apparently insurmountable, and realize the vision of their heart. They do not know the 58

— VISIONS

AND IDEALS

darkness and the heartaches; they only see the

hght and

joy,

and

call it

"luck"; they do not see

the long and arduous journey, but only see the pleasant goal, and

"good fortune"; they

call it

do not understand the process, but only perceive the result, and call it "chance." In

all

human

affairs there are efforts,

and

there are results, and the strength of the effort is

the measure of the result.

It is

not chance.

So-called "gifts," powers, material, intellectual,

and

effort;

spiritual possessions are the fruits of

they are thoughts completed, objects

accomplished, visions realized.

The

vision that

you

glorify in

your mind,

the ideal that you enthrone in your heart this

you

will

become.

will build

your

59

life

by,

and

this

you

7 Jerenity

"

we develop a right understanding, and see more and more dearly the internal relations of things by the action of cause and effect, we cease to fuss and fume and worry and grieve, and remain f^oised, steadfast, serene. ''As

Calmness of mind is one of the beautiful jewels of wisdom. It is the result of long and patient effort in self-control. Its presence

indication of ripened experience, and of a

is

an

more

than ordinary knowledge of the laws and operations of thought.

We become

calm in the measure that we understand ourselves as thought-evolved beings, for such knowledge necessitates the understanding of others thought, and as

we

standing, and see

as

the

result

of

develop a right under-

more and more

clearly the

internal relations of things by the action of

cause and

effect,

worry and

we cease to

grieve,

fuss

and fume and

and remain poised, stead-

fast, serene.

63

CHAPTER SEVEN

People

who

are calm, having learned how^

to govern themselves,

know how

to

adapt

themselves to others; and these others, in revere

turn,

the

calm

people's

spiritual

strength, and feel that they can learn from

them and rely upon them. The more tranquil we become, is

the greater

our success, our influence, our power for

good. Even the most ordinary salespeople, for

example, will find their business prosperity increase as they develop a greater self-control

and equanimity, for people will always prefer to deal with people whose manner is pleasant and steady. Strong, calm people are always loved and

They

revered.

are like shade-giving trees in a

thirsty land, or a sheltering rock in a storm.

Who

does not love a tranquil heart, a

sweet-tempered, balanced

matter whether

it

life?

It

does not

rains or shines, or

what

changes come to those possessing these blessings, for they are always sweet, serene,

and

calm. That exquisite poise of character which

we

call

ture;

serenity

it is

is

the last lesson of our cul-

the flowering of

64

life,

the fruitage of

!

!

SERENITY

the soul.

It is

precious as wisdom, and

more

fine to be desired than gold—yes, than even

How

gold.

insignificant

mere money-seeking

looks in comparison with a serene life— a

life

the that dwells in the ocean of truth, beneath in tempests, the waves, beyond the reach of the eternal calm How many people do

we know who sour

who ruin all that is sweet and beauby explosive tempers, who destroy their

their lives, tiful

poise of character, and make bad blood! It is a question whether the great majority of people

do not ruin their lives and mar their happiness by lack of understanding and self-control.

few people we meet in life who are wellbalanced, who have that exquisite poise which

How is

characteristic of the finished character

humanity surges with uncontrolled is anger, is tumultuous with ungoverned grief, blown about by anxiety and doubt. Only the and truly wise, whose thoughts are controlled Yes,

purified,

make the winds and the storms

of the

soul obey them.

be,

Tempest-tossed souls, wherever you

may

under whatever conditions you may

live,

^5

CHAPTER SEVEN

know

this:

In the ocean of Ufe the isles of

blessedness are smiling, and the sunny shore

your ideal awaits your coming. Keep your hand firmly upon the helm of thought. In the ship of your soul reclines the commanding Master he does but sleep; wake him. Selfcontrol is strength; right thought is mastery; calmness is power. Say unto your heart, of

—

"Peace, be

still!''

66

James Allen was born in Leicester, England in 1864. Because of family difficulties following his father's death, he was obliged to leave school when he was fifteen. He worked for several British manufacturers until 1902, when he decided to write full-time. After he finished his

first

book, From Poverty

to

Power,

he moved to Ilfracombe, on England's southwest coast, and lived there until his death in 1912. Allen wrote nineteen books in all.

67

About the Editor Marc Allen New World

is

co-founder and president of

Library.

eral books, including tra for the

dom.

A

He

is

the author of sev-

The Perfect

West —A Guide

musician

to

Life

and Tan-

Personal Free-

and composer,

he

recorded several albums. Allen lives in

has

Marin

County, California, where he divides his time between writing, music, and the pubUshing

company.

69

The Classic

Wisdom Collection OF

New World As You Think by James Introduction by

Library

Allen. Edited and with an

Marc

Allen. October, 1991.

Native American Wisdom. Compiled and with an Introduction by Kent Nerburn and Louise Mengelkoch. October, 1991.

The Art of True Healing by Israel Regardie. Edited and updated by Marc Allen. October, 1991.

Letters to a

Young Poet by

Translated by Joan

troduction by

Marc

Rainer Maria Rilke.

Burnham and with an

In-

Allen. April, 1992.

The Green Thoreau. Compiled and with an duction by Carol Spenard LaRusso.

IntroApril,

1992.

The Message of a Master by John McDonald. Edited and with an Introduction by Katherine Dieter. April, 1992.

71

)

Cv

(0/3 C\(C)/^ /D C\(C)/3 C\(C)/D

C\

^

(C) /3 C\{C)/>C\

j^'W'W'

"W ^^ ^^ ^^ 'W "W "W"

w/> ^(w •^\v/' \Wp

^(C)/' ^(v)/' ^^>/' ^(0/'

^4/= ^