CHAPTER 19 The Law of Attraction We are the architect of our own life In the words of Napoleon Hill, Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve. We all have a set pattern of thoughts, and that very pattern affects everything that happens in our life. It is well said that Once you focus on your aim and simultaneously begin to take the necessary steps in its direction, the world will begin to unfold before you. The Law of Attraction, the main tenet of the New Age Movement, is scientifically recognized all over the world. It presents a holistic world view, emphasizing that mind, body, and spirit are dynamically interrelated. The central theme is: What you focus on, you attract. What happens in life is occasioned by what we think. The principle behind quantum physics is beautifully summed up by Albert Einstein: All matter is energy. Since everything in the physical world is interconnected by invisible energy fields, our intentions and focused thought patterns shape the reality around us. Therefore, when we think about something, energy is created, not only in our bodies but also in our personal space, whereupon that reality begins usually gradually to unfold. The law of attraction is a dynamic principle that is based on the natural
Awakening the Thinking Mind 179 law of like attracts like. Each of us is an energy field, vibrating at our own signature frequencies. Thoughts, words, and emotions hold their own unique vibration. Those having similar frequencies draw together to form a creative field. When the energy of a particular creative field has accumulated to a critical point, it manifests on the visible plane in one way or another. Thoughts and words are a concentrated form of energy, and a powerful means of creation (HUFFPOST RELIGON, Guiding Our Inner Evolution, by Masami Saionji). The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven. John Milton, Paradise Lost As we think and feel, a corresponding frequency is created and sent out into the universe which attracts back to us events and circumstances of that same frequency. For example, if we entertain positive thoughts and feel good, we attract back circumstances that cause us to feel better and better. We can experience radiant health and more happiness simply by changing our thought patterns and feelings. The reverse is equally true when it comes to negative thoughts and unwanted circumstances. Using our vast inherent power to direct the law of attraction, virtually any dream can be fulfilled. When we stop thinking about what we don t like and start focusing on what we do want to experience and achieve, our lives begin to unfold as we desire and wish. Lifetime experiences reflect what we believe about our world, ourselves, our capabilities, and our limits. Instead of working against our desires and intentions, we should think and act harmoniously with them. Gautama Buddha has rightly said, All that
180 Balvinder Kumar Nothing is unachievable in life, with focussed mind. we are is the result of what we have thought. The mind is everything. What we think, we become. Clairvoyant prophet Edgar Cayce put it more succinctly: Mind is the builder. Scientifically speaking, the universe and the world we experience are made of ever-changing fields of energy, which interact with one another to create the world we perceive. Anything that comes into our life has been attracted to us by our dominant thoughts and feelings. And it takes shape by virtue of focused attention and the creative or destructive imaginings/images we hold in our mind. In other words, we quite literally have the ability to mould and shape events, circumstances, and relationships in our life, based on how we choose to think, believe, and feel! Recent research in quantum mechanics shows that we humans are much more than simply the observers in this physical world, and we can directly affect
Awakening the Thinking Mind 181 the waves and particles of the universe. In this way, we are powerful creators rather than just passive observers. Quantum physics is the science that explores and explains how everything in this world comes into existence, beginning at the subatomic level. We are actually the ones who are responsible for orchestrating everything that is happening in our life. However, due to lack of understanding of these underlying mechanics, we fail to appreciate their power and very often blame circumstances, vague outside forces, or simply bad luck when things go wrong. On the contrary, we are always in a position to influence the reality surrounding us. Therefore, a revolutionary interpretation of our relationship to the world holds that we are active participants as well as contributors to everything that we see. Spiritual traditions of antiquity have long held this view. Gregg Braden, an author of New Age literature, has argued that human emotions affect DNA, and that collective prayer may effect physical healing. He further explains that despite the role played by our DNA, the success of our relationships and our peace of mind are based on what we believe, and the way we think of ourselves. Do we co-create the illnesses/diseases we suffer? Most of us think an illness is due to a foreign invader, like bacteria and viruses, coupled with a weak immune system. Technically this may be right, but in reality we participate actively in creating those illnesses. It is estimated that close to 90% of illnesses are due to lifestyle, the choices we make in life. With the awareness that mind shapes our body and biology, we can recognise our ability to change our minds, and thus create a healthy body. We are co-creating participants, not victims to suffer from random, roving
182 Balvinder Kumar bugs and mysterious imbalances. When we can see ourselves as active contributors to all that ails us, we start experiencing results that seem to be miraculous. The law of attraction works perfectly, and to whatever degree that body, mind, and spirit are aligned with it. Ideally, we should achieve all of the goals that we set for ourselves in life. Every single day we must visualise what we want to achieve. We should use affirmations and emotionalise the achievement of our goals so that our thoughts, feelings, and expectations are congruent with the frequency of abundance. We should develop a blueprint, a plan with strategies and tactics for how we are going to get from where we are now to where we want to be. Now the law of attraction will start operating in our life. The universe will do most of the work, but it wants us to do the footwork, so to speak. It may sound strange that the universe responds to our beliefs. Strange, that is, until we realize that in this participatory reality, we are creating our experiences through our beliefs. It is this difference in our thinking that makes us intentional creators rather than by-default sufferers. While practicing to attract what we want to achieve, we should use positive language because it helps us to manifest what we want. We should not think or speak about what we do not want in life. When we give emotional thought or expression to what is not desired, we generally attract the same. We must keep this simple mantra in mind. We should all think big, and dream of only good things in life. There is no dearth of opportunities in our life s journey. All that is required is focused and consistent attention, with our mind set steadily on what we desire.
Awakening the Thinking Mind 183 When we understand that all we are seeing around us is a reflection of what we think, we start witnessing a sea change, not only at the individual level but also in the collective human consciousness. We can manifest a better reality for ourselves and others simply by elevating our consciousness with positive thoughts of a higher frequency and vibration. Acceptance and adoption of this emerging worldview whose essence is the unerring law of attraction is bringing humanity to a much higher level. The reason why attempts at using the law of attraction often seem to fail is because we do not understand the difference between setting goals, which is an imaginative and rational process, and achieving goals, which is mostly a habitual and emotional process. When we have a desire for a specific achievement or outcome, we are in a certain vibration as we emotionalise that desire. But we need to sustain that strong vibration; otherwise it will dissipate and lose its strength. While our conscious mind is the chooser, our subconscious mind is the implementer. And the reason that so many of us never achieve the positive results that we wish to attract is because despite our surface positivity, we have unconscious beliefs, fears, habits and possibly values that are not in line with each other (Why the Law of Attraction Doesn t Work for Most People by John Assaraf). The other important reason why conscious use of the law of attraction may not seem to work is most people s inability to focus or concentrate consistently on something. The mental focus most potent when it is laser-like is lacking under normal circumstances. Divided attention commonly occurs in everyday life when we are performing multiple tasks at a time. It is rare for someone to be engaged in just one task.
184 Balvinder Kumar The underperforming student practice visualization of steps at home. We lack focused attention because our average attention span is only 6-10 seconds per minute. That is why it is so difficult to concentrate on anything, regardless of how attractive it may be to us. Most people assume that they don t have enough time to attend to anything other than their own immediate needs. They become frustrated and give up when manifestation is long in coming. This is simply because they have not learned to utilize the law of attraction to work for them and provide the results that they want. Creative Visualization Most of us stay in our comfort zone and, whether we re aware of it or not, we tend to resist change, which could encroach on that comfort zone. Precisely for this reason, we often miss opportunities that are
Awakening the Thinking Mind 185 staring us right in the face. We limit ourselves by our belief patterns and static expectations, seldom looking beyond the routine and familiar of mundane experience. If we are open-minded and risk a peek beyond our limited sphere of thinking, endless opportunities can be tapped opportunities that in the normal course of life go unnoticed. A powerful technique for attracting them to us is the practice of creative visualization. This is a technique uses the imagination s vivid mental pictures to make our dreams and goals come true. Whether consciously or unconsciously, all successful people use this power in one way or another to attract the success they want in their personal or professional life. Take as an example a gymnastics coach who asks his underperforming student, who s learning a complex sequence of flips, to practice visualization at home. As she rehearses the entire sequence of movements in her mind, the student does not move a muscle. Rather, as she repeats those complex movements in her mind, she is creating neural pathways in her brain. Once she does this mental exercise along with physical practice, she remarkably improves her performance. We create and then strengthen our neural pathways by electrical impulses between every connection when we practice visualization. We all know that everything, including thought, is energy. We are therefore all connected. The thoughts we experience continuously influence the reality around us. Through creative visualization, we can attract what we desire through the power of mind. By visualizing a certain event, situation, or object without the interference of
186 Balvinder Kumar conflicting thoughts or feelings we attract it into our life. It is a process that is similar to daydreaming. For some people, this might look like magic, but there is no magic involved, only the natural process of the power of thoughts and natural mental laws (From Imagination to Reality, by Remez Sasson). Successful people use this technique naturally in their everyday affairs, generally unaware that they are harnessing this power to attract happiness and success. Visualizing their goals as already accomplished, and feeling as they would feel were it so, they attract good things into their life. Likewise, all who are heavily burdened, and whose desires are mainly frustrated, use it by default when they complain, rail against fate, feel unlucky, and expect the worst. Shakti Gawain, a New Age and personal development author, has sold over 10 million copies of her seminal book titled Creative Visualisation: Use the Power of Your Imagination to Create What You Want in Your Life. Gawain clearly demonstrates how the art of creative visualisation combines mental imagery and affirmation to produce positive changes. This approach is being successfully used in the fields of education, business, athletics, and the creative arts. A variety of creative visualisation techniques are available from a number of sources. Some of the recommended techniques have as high as a 90% success rate; however, one has to completely accept that through our power of mind, unclouded by negativity and fear, we can achieve what we desire.
Awakening the Thinking Mind 187 TO SUM UP Since everything in the physical world is interconnected by invisible energy fields, our intentions and focused thought patterns shape the reality around us As we think and feel, a corresponding frequency is created and sent out into the universe which attracts back to us events and circumstances of that same frequency. Using our vast inherent power to direct the law of attraction, virtually any dream can be fulfilled. When we stop thinking about what we don t like and start focusing on what we do want to experience and achieve, our lives begin to unfold as we desire and wish. A revolutionary interpretation of our relationship to the world holds that we are active participants as well as contributors to everything that we see. When we have a desire for a specific achievement or outcome, we are in a certain vibration as we emotionalise that desire. But we need to sustain that strong vibration; otherwise it will dissipate and lose its strength. We lack focused attention because our average attention span is only 6-10 seconds per minute. That is why it is so difficult to concentrate on anything, regardless of how attractive it may be to us.