As a Man Thinketh

by James Allen









Foreword


This little volume (the result oI meditation and experience) is not intended as an exhaustive treatise on the
much-written upon subject oI the power oI thought. It is suggestive rather than explanatory, its object being to
stimulate men and women to the discovery and perception oI the truth that -
Thev themselves are makers of themselves
by virtue oI the thoughts which they choose and encourage; that mind is the master-weaver, both oI the inner
garment oI character and the outer garment oI circumstance, and that, as they may have hitherto woven in
ignorance and pain they may now weave in enlightenment and happiness.

James Allen





Thought and Character

The aphorism, "As a man thinketh in his heart so is he," not only embraces the whole oI a man's being, but is so
comprehensive as to reach out to every condition and circumstance oI his liIe. A man is literally what he thinks,
his character being the complete sum oI all his thoughts.
As the plant springs Irom, and could not be without, the seed, so every act oI a man springs Irom the hidden
seeds oI thought, and could not have appeared without them. This applies equally to those acts called
"spontaneous" and "unpremeditated" as to those which are deliberately executed.
Act is the blossom oI thought, and joy and suIIering are its Iruits; thus does a man garner in the sweet and bitter
Iruitage oI his own husbandry.

Thought in the mind hath made us. What we are
By thought we wrought and built. II a man's mind
Hath evil thoughts, pain comes on him as comes
The wheel the ox behind . . . II one endure
In purity oI thought, joy Iollows him
As his own shadow - sure.
Man is a growth by law, and not a creation by artiIice, and cause and eIIect is as absolute and undeviating in the
hidden realm oI thought as in the world oI visible and material things. A noble and Godlike character is not a
thing oI Iavor or chance, but is the natural result oI continued eIIort in right thinking, the eIIect oI long-
cherished association with Godlike thoughts. An ignoble and bestial character, by the same process, is the result
oI the continued harboring oI groveling thoughts.
Man is made or unmade by himselI; in the armory oI thought he Iorges the weapons by which he destroys
himselI; he also Iashions the tools with which he builds Ior himselI heavenly mansions oI joy and strength and
peace. By the right choice and true application oI thought, man ascends to the Divine PerIection; by the abuse
and wrong application oI thought, he descends below the level oI the beast. Between these two extremes are all
the grades oI character, and man is their maker and master.
OI all the beautiIul truths pertaining to the soul which have been restored and brought to light in this age, none is
more gladdening or IruitIul oI divine promise and conIidence than this - that man is the master oI thought, the
molder oI character, and maker and shaper oI condition, environment, and destiny.
As a being oI Power, Intelligence, and Love, and the Lord oI his own thoughts, man holds the key to every
situation, and contains within himselI that transIorming and regenerative agency by which he may make himselI
what he wills.
Man is always the master, even in his weakest and most abandoned state; but in his weakness and degradation
he is the Ioolish master who misgoverns his household. When he begins to reIlect upon his condition, and to
search diligently Ior the Law upon which his being is established, he then becomes the wise master, directing his
energies with intelligence, and Iashioning his thoughts to IruitIul issues. Such is the conscious master, and man
can only thus become by discovering within himself the laws oI thought; which discovery is totally a matter oI
application, selI-analysis, and experience.
Only by much searching and mining are gold an diamonds obtained, and man can Iind every truth connected
with his being iI he will dig deep into the mine oI his soul; and that he is the maker oI his character, the molder


oI his liIe, and the builder oI his destiny, he may unerringly prove, iI he will watch, control, and alter his
thoughts, tracing their eIIects upon himselI, upon others, and upon his liIe and circumstances, linking cause and
eIIect by patient practice and investigation, and utilizing his every experience, even to the most trivial, everyday
occurrence, as a means oI obtaining that knowledge oI himselI which is Understanding, Wisdom, Power. In this
direction, as in no other, is the law absolute that "He that seeketh Iindeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be
opened"; Ior only by patience, practice, and ceaseless importunity can a man enter the Door oI the Temple oI
Knowledge.


EIIect oI Thought on Circumstances


A man's mind may 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. II no useIul seeds are put into it, then an
abundance oI useless weed seeds will fall therein, and will continue to produce their kind.
Just as a gardener cultivates his plot, keeping it Iree Irom weeds, and growing the Ilowers and Iruits which he
requires, so may a man tend the garden oI his mind, weeding out all the wrong, useless, and impure thoughts,
and cultivating toward perIection the Ilowers and Iruits oI right, useIul, and pure thoughts. By pursuing this
process, a man sooner or later discovers that he is the master-gardener oI his soul, the director oI his liIe. He also
reveals, within himselI, the laws oI thought, and understands, with ever-increasing accuracy, how the thought-
Iorces and mind-elements operate in the shaping oI his character, circumstances, and destiny.
Thought and character are one, and as character can only maniIest and discover itselI through environment and
circumstance, the outer conditions oI a person's liIe will always be Iound to be harmoniously related to his inner
state. This does not mean that a man's circumstances at any given time are an indication oI his entire character,
but that those circumstances are so intimately connected with some vital thought-element within himselI that,
Ior the time being, they are indispensable to his development.
Every man is where he is by the law oI his being; the thoughts which he has built into his character have brought
him there, and in the arrangement oI his liIe there is no element oI chance, but all is the result oI a law which
cannot err. This is just as true oI those who Ieel "out oI harmony" with their surroundings as oI those who are
contented with them.
As the 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 Ior him, it passes away and gives place to other
circumstances.
Man is buIIeted by circumstances so long as he believes himselI to be the creature oI outside conditions, but
when he realizes that he is a creative power, and that he may command the hidden soil and seeds oI his being
out oI which circumstances grow, he then becomes the rightIul master oI himselI.
That circumstances grow out oI thought every man knows who has Ior any length oI time practiced selI-control
and selI-puriIication, Ior he will have noticed that the alteration in his circumstances has been in exact ratio with
his altered mental condition. So true is this that when a man earnestly applies himselI to remedy the deIects in
his character, and makes swiIt and marked progress, he passes rapidly through a succession oI vicissitudes.
The soul attracts that which it secretly harbors; that which it loves, and also that which it Iears; it reaches the
height oI its cherished aspirations; it Ialls to the level oI its unchastened desires; and circumstances are the
means by which the soul receives its own.
Every thought-seed sown or allowed to Iall into the mind, and to take root there, produces its own, blossoming
sooner or later into act, and bearing its own Iruitage oI opportunity and circumstances. Good thoughts bear good
Iruit, bad thoughts bad Iruit.
The outer world oI circumstance shapes itselI to the inner world oI thought, and both pleasant and unpleasant
external conditions are Iactors which make Ior the ultimate good oI the individual. As the reaper oI his own
harvest, man learns both by suIIering and bliss.


Following the inmost desires, aspirations, thoughts, by which he allows himselI to be dominated (pursuing the
will-o'-the-wisp oI impure imagining or steadIastly walking the highway oI strong and high endeavor), a man at
last arrives at their Iruition and IulIillment in the outer condition oI his liIe.
The laws oI growth and adjustment everywhere obtain.
A man does not come to the almshouse or the jail by the tyranny oI Iate or circumstance, but by the pathway oI
groveling thoughts and base desires. Nor does a pure-minded man Iall suddenly into crime by stress oI any mere
external Iorce; the criminal thought had long been secretly Iostered in the heart, and the hour oI opportunity
revealed its gathered power.
Circumstance does not make the man; it reveals him to himselI. No such conditions can exist as descending into
vice and its attendant suIIerings apart Irom vicious inclinations; or ascending into virtue and its pure happiness
without the continued cultivation oI virtuous aspirations; and man, thereIore, as the lord and master oI thought,
is the maker oI himselI, the shaper and author oI environment. Even at birth the soul comes to its own, and
through every step oI its earthly pilgrimage it attracts those combinations oI conditions which reveal itselI,
which are the reIlections oI its own purity and impurity, its strength and weakness.
Men do not attract that which they want, but that which they are. Their whims, Iancies, and ambitions are
thwarted at every step, but their inmost thoughts and desires are Ied with their own Iood, be it Ioul or clean. The
"divinity that shapes our ends" is in ourselves; it is our very SelI. Man is manacled only by himselI. Thought and
action are the jailers oI Fate - they imprison, being base; they are also the angels oI Freedom - they liberate,
being noble.
Not what he wishes and prays Ior does a man get, but what he justly earns. His wishes and prayers are only
gratiIied and answered when they harmonize with his thoughts and actions.
In the light oI this truth, what, then, is the meaning oI "Iighting against circumstances"? It means that a man is
continually revolting against an effect without, while all the time he is nourishing and preserving its cause in his
heart.
That cause may take the Iorm oI a conscious vice or an unconscious weakness; but whatever it is, it stubbornly
retards the eIIorts oI its possessor, and thus calls aloud Ior remedy.
Men are anxious to improve their circumstances, but are unwilling to improve themselves; they thereIore remain
bound. The man who does not shrink Irom selI-cruciIixion can never Iail to accomplish the object upon which
his heart is set. This is as true oI earthly as oI heavenly things. Even the man whose sole object is to acquire
wealth must be prepared to make great personal sacriIices beIore he can accomplish his object; and how much
more so he who would realize a strong and well-poised liIe?
Here is a man who is wretchedly poor. He is extremely anxious that his surroundings and home comIorts should
be improved, yet all the time he shirks his work, and considers he is justiIied in trying to deceive his employer
on the ground oI the insuIIiciency oI his wages. Such a man does not understand the simplest rudiments oI those
principles which are the basis oI true prosperity, and is not only totally unIitted to rise out oI his wretchedness,
but is actually attracting to himselI a still deeper wretchedness by dwelling in, and acting out, indolent,
deceptive, and unmanly thoughts.
Here is a rich man who is the victim oI a painIul and persistent disease as the result oI gluttony. He is willing to
give large sums oI money to get rid oI it, but he will not sacriIice his gluttonous desires. He wants to gratiIy his
taste Ior rich and unnatural viands and have his health as well. Such a man is totally unIit to have health,
because he has not yet learned the Iirst principles oI a healthy liIe.


Here is an employer oI labor who adopts crooked measures to avoid paying the regulation wage, and, in the
hope oI making larger proIits, reduces the wages oI his work-people. Such a man is altogether unIitted Ior
prosperity, and when he Iinds himselI bankrupt, both as regards reputation and riches, he blames circumstances,
not knowing that he is the sole author oI his condition.
I have introduced these three cases merely as illustrative oI the truth that man is the cause (though nearly always
unconsciously) oI his circumstances, and that, whilst aiming at a good end, he is continually Irustrating its
accomplishment by encouraging thoughts and desires which cannot possibly harmonize with that end. Such
cases could be multiplied and varied almost indeIinitely, but this is not necessary, as the reader can, iI he so
resolves, trace the action oI the laws oI thought in his own mind and liIe, and until this is done, mere external
Iacts cannot serve as a ground oI reasoning.
Circumstances, however, are so complicated, thought is so deeply rooted, and the conditions oI happiness vary
so vastly with individuals, that a man's entire soul condition (although it may be known to himselI) cannot be
judged by another Irom the external aspect oI his liIe alone.
A man may be honest in certain directions, yet suIIer privations; a man may be dishonest in certain directions,
yet acquire wealth; but the conclusion usually Iormed that the one man Iails because of his particular honestv,
and that the other prospers because of his particular dishonestv, is the result oI a superIicial judgment, which
assumes that the dishonest man is almost totally corrupt, and honest man almost entirely virtuous. In the light oI
a deeper knowledge and wider experience, such judgment is Iound to be erroneous. The dishonest man may
have some admirable virtues which the other does not possess; and the honest man obnoxious vices which are
absent in the other. The honest man reaps the good results oI his honest thoughts and acts; he also brings upon
himselI the suIIerings which his vices produce. The dishonest man likewise garners his own suIIering and
happiness.
It is pleasing to human vanity to believe that one suIIers because oI one's virtue; but not until a man has
extirpated every sickly, bitter, and impure thought Irom his mind, and washed every sinIul stain Irom his soul,
can he be in a position to know and declare that his suIIerings are the result oI his good, and not oI his bad
qualities; and on the way to that supreme perIection, he will have Iound working in his mind and liIe, the Great
Law which is absolutely just, and which cannot give good Ior evil, evil Ior good. Possessed oI such knowledge,
he will then know, looking back upon his past ignorance and blindness, that his liIe is, and always was, justly
ordered, and that all his past experiences, good and bad, were the equitable outworking oI his evolving, yet
unevolved selI.
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 Irom corn but corn, nothing Irom nettles but nettles. Men
understand this law in the natural world, and work with it; but Iew understand it in the mental and moral world
(though its operation there is just as simple and undeviating), and they, thereIore, do not cooperate with it.
SuIIering is alwavs the eIIect oI wrong thought in some direction. It is an indication that the individual is out oI
harmony with himselI, with the Law oI his being. The sole and supreme use oI suIIering is to puriIy, to burn out
all that is useless and impure. SuIIering ceases Ior him who is pure. There could be not object in burning gold
aIter the dross had been removed, and a perIectly pure and enlightened being could not suIIer.
The circumstances which a man encounters with suIIering are the result oI his own mental inharmony. The
circumstances which a man encounters with blessedness are the resukt oI his own mental harmony. Blessedness,
not material possessions, is the measure oI right thought; wretchedness, not lack oI material possessions, is the
measure oI wrong thought. A man may be cursed and rich; he may be blessed and poor. Blessedness and riches
are only joined together when the riches are rightly and wisely used; and the poor man only descends into
wretchedness when he regards his lot as a burden unjustly imposed.


Indigence and indulgence are the two extremes oI wretchedness. They are both equally unnatural and the result
oI mental disorder. A man is not rightly conditioned until he is a happy, healthy, and prosperous being; and
happiness, health, and prosperity are the result oI a harmonious adjustment oI the inner with the outer, oI the
man with his surroundings.
A man only begins to be a man when he ceases to whine and revile, and commences to search Ior the hidden
justice which regulates his liIe. And as he adapts his mind to that regulating Iactor, he ceases to accuse others as
the cause oI his condition, and builds himselI up in strong and noble thoughts; ceases to kick against
circumstances, but begins to use them as aids to his more rapid progress, and as a means oI discovering the
hidden powers and possibilities within himselI.
Law, not conIusion, is the dominating principle in the universe; justice, not injustice, is the soul and substance oI
liIe; and righteousness, not corruption, is the molding and moving Iorce in the spiritual government oI the world.
This being so, man has but to right himselI to Iind that the universe is right, and during the process oI putting
himselI right, he will Iind that as he alters his thoughts toward things and other people, things and other people
will alter toward him.
The prooI oI this truth is in every person, and it thereIore admits oI easy investigation by systematic
introspection and selI-analysis. Let a man radically alter his thoughts, and he will be astonished at the rapid
transIormation it will eIIect in the material conditions oI his liIe.
Men imagine that thought can be kept secret, but it cannot; it rapidly crystallizes into habit, and habit solidiIies
into circumstance. Bestial thoughts crystallize into habits oI drunkenness and sensuality, which solidiIy into
circumstances oI destruction and disease: impure thoughts oI every kind crystallize into enervating and
conIusing habits, which solidiIy into distracting and adverse circumstances: thoughts oI Iear, doubt, and
indecision crystallize into weak, unmanly, and irresolute habits, which solidiIy into circumstances oI Iailure,
indigence, and slavish dependence: lazy thoughts crystallize into habits oI uncleanliness and dishonesty, which
solidiIy into circumstances oI Ioulness and beggary: hateIul and condemnatory thoughts crystallize into habits oI
accusation and violence, which solidiIy into circumstances oI injury and persecution: selIish thoughts oI all
kinds crystallize into habits oI selI-seeking, which solidiIy into circumstances more oI less distressing.
On the other hand, beautiIul thoughts oI all kinds crystallize into habits oI grace and kindliness, which solidiIy
into genial and sunny circumstances: pure thoughts crystallize into habits oI temperance and selI-control, which
solidiIy into circumstances oI repose and peace: thoughts oI courage, selI-reliance, and decision crystallize into
manly habits, which solidiIy into circumstances oI success, plenty, and Ireedom: energetic thoughts crystallize
into habits oI cleanliness and industry, which solidiIy into circumstances oI pleasantness: gentle and Iorgiving
thoughts crystallize into habits oI gentleness, which solidiIy into protective and preservative circumstances:
loving and unselIish thoughts crystallize into habits oI selI-IorgetIulness Ior others, which solidiIy into
circumstances oI sure and abiding prosperity and true riches.
A particular train oI thought persisted in, be it good or bad, cannot Iail to produce its results on the character and
circumstances. A man cannot directlv choose his circumstances, but he can choose his thoughts, and so
indirectly, yet surely, shape his circumstances.
Nature helps every man to the gratiIication oI the thoughts which he most encourages, and opportunities are
presented which will most speedily bring to the surIace both the good and evil thoughts.
Let a man cease Irom his sinIul thoughts, and all the world will soIten toward him, and be ready to help him; let
him put away his weakly and sickly thoughts, and lo! opportunities will spring up on every hand to aid his
strong resolves; let him encourage good thoughts, and no hard Iate shall bind him down to wretchedness and
shame. The world is your kaleidoscope, and the varying combinations oI colors which at every succeeding
moment it presents to you are the exquisitely adjusted pictures oI your ever-moving thoughts.


You will be what you will to be;
Let Iailure Iind its Ialse content
In that poor word, "environment,"
But spirit scorns it, and is Iree.

It masters time, it conquers space;
It cows that boastIul trickster, Chance,
And bids the tyrant Circumstance
Uncrown, and Iill a servant's place.

The human Will, that Iorce unseen,
The oIIspring oI a deathless Soul,
Can hew a way to any goal,
Though walls oI granite intervene.

Be not impatient in delay,
But wait as one who understands;
When spirit rises and commands,
The gods are ready to obey.





EIIect oI Thought on Health and the Body

The body is the servant oI the mind. It obeys the operations oI the mind, whether they be deliberately chosen or
automatically expressed. At the bidding oI unlawIul thoughts the body sinks rapidly into disease and decay; at
the command oI glad and beautiIul thoughts it becomes clothed with youthIulness and beauty.
Disease and health, like circumstances, are rooted in thought. Sickly thoughts will express themselves through a
sickly body. Thoughts oI Iear have been known to kill a man as speedily as a bullet, and they are continually
killing thousands oI people just as surely though less rapidly. The people who live in Iear oI disease are the
people who get it. Anxiety quickly demoralizes the whole body, and lays it open to the entrance oI disease;
while impure thoughts, even iI not physically indulged, will soon shatter the nervous system.
Strong, pure, and happy thoughts build up the body in vigor and grace. The body is a delicate and plastic
instrument, which responds readily to the thoughts by which it is impressed, and habits oI thought will produce
their own eIIects, good or bad, upon it.
Men will continue to have impure and poisoned blood so long as they propagate unclean thoughts. Out oI a
clean heart comes a clean liIe and a clean body. Out oI a deIiled mind proceeds a deIiled liIe and corrupt body.
Thought is the Iount oI action, liIe and maniIestation; make the Iountain pure, and all will be pure.
Change oI diet will not help a man who will not change his thoughts. When a man makes his thoughts pure, he
no longer desires impure Iood.
II you would perIect your body, guard your mind. II you would renew your body, beautiIy your mind. Thoughts
oI malice, envy, disappointment, despondency, rob the body oI its health and grace. A sour Iace does not come
by chance; it is made by sour thoughts.
Wrinkles that mar are drawn by Iolly, passion, pride.
I know a woman oI ninety-six who has the bright, innocent Iace oI a girl. I know a man well under middle age
whose Iace is drawn into inharmonious contours. The one is the result oI a sweet and sunny disposition; the
other is the outcome oI passion and discontent.
As you cannot have a sweet and wholesome abode unless you admit the air and sunshine Ireely into your rooms,
so a strong body and a bright, happy, or serene countenance can only result Irom the Iree admittance into the
mind oI thoughts oI joy and good will and serenity.
On the Iaces oI the aged there are wrinkles made by sympathy; others by strong and pure thoughts; and others
are carved by passion: who cannot distinguish them? With those who have lived righteously, age is calm,
peaceIul, and soItly mellowed, like the setting sun. I have recently seen a philosopher on his deathbed. He was
not old except in years. He died as sweetly and peaceIully as he had lived.
There is no physician like cheerIul thought Ior dissipating the ills oI the body; there is no comIorter to compare
with goodwill Ior dispersing the shadows oI grieI and sorrow. To live continually in thoughts oI ill-will,
cynicism, suspicion, and envy, is to be conIined in a selI-made prison-hole. But to think well oI all, to be
cheerIul with all, and to patiently learn to Iind the good in all - such unselIish thoughts are the very portals oI
heaven; and to dwell day by day in thoughts oI peace toward every creature will bring abounding peace to their
possessor.




Thought and Purpose

Until thought is linked with purpose there is no intelligent accomplishment. With the majority the barque oI thought is
allowed to driIt upon the ocean oI liIe. Aimlessness is a vice, and such driIting must not continue Ior him who
would steer clear oI catastrophe and destruction.
They who have no central purpose in their liIe Iall an easy prey to petty worries, Iears, troubles, and selI-pitying,
all oI which lead, just as surely as deliberately planned sins (though by a diIIerent route), to Iailure, unhappiness,
and loss, Ior weakness cannot persist in a power-evolving universe.
A man should conceive oI a legitimate purpose in his heart, and set out to accomplish it. He should make this
purpose the centralizing point oI his thoughts. It may take the Iorm oI a spiritual ideal, or it may be a worldly
object, according to his nature at the time being; but whichever it is, he should steadily Iocus his thought Iorces
upon the object which he has set beIore him. He should make this purpose his supreme duty, and should devote
himselI to its attainment, not allowing his thoughts to wander away into ephemeral Iancies, longings, and
imaginings. This is the royal road to selI-control and true concentration oI thought. Even iI he Iails again and
again to accomplish his purpose (as he necessarily must until weakness is overcome), the strength of character
gained will be the measure oI his true success, and this will Iorm a new starting point Ior Iuture power and
triumph.
Those who are not prepared Ior the apprehension oI a great purpose, should Iix their thoughts upon the Iaultless
perIormance oI their duty, no matter how insigniIicant their task may appear. Only in this way can the thoughts
be gathered and Iocused, and resolution and energy be developed, which being done, there is nothing which may
not be accomplished.
The weakest soul, knowing its own weakness, and believing this truth - that strength can onlv be developed bv
effort and practice, will at once begin to exert itselI, and adding eIIort to eIIort, patience to patience, and
strength to strength, will never cease to develop, and will at last grow divinely strong.
As the physically weak man can make himselI strong by careIul and patient training, so the man oI weak
thoughts can make them strong by exercising himselI in right thinking.
To put away aimlessness and weakness, and to begin to think with purpose, is to enter the ranks oI those strong
ones who only recognize Iailure as one oI the pathways to attainment; who make all conditions serve them, and
who think strongly, attempt Iearlessly, and accomplish masterIully.
Having conceived oI his purpose, a man should mentally mark out a straight pathway to its achievement,
looking neither to the right nor to the leIt. Doubts and Iears should be rigorously excluded; they are
disintegrating elements which break up the straight line oI eIIort, rendering it crooked, ineIIectual, useless.
Thoughts oI doubt and Iear never accomplish anything, and never can. They always lead to Iailure. Purpose,
energy, power to do, and all strong thoughts cease when doubt and Iear creep in.
The will to do springs Irom the knowledge that we can do. Doubt and Iear are the great enemies oI knowledge,
and he who encourages them, who does not slay them, thwarts himselI at every step.
He who has conquered doubt and Iear has conquered Iailure. His every thought is allied with power, and all
diIIiculties are bravely met and wisely overcome. His purposes are seasonably planted, and they bloom and
bring Iorth Iruit which does not Iall prematurely to the ground.


Thought allied Iearlessly to purpose becomes creative Iorce; he who knows this is ready to become something
higher and stronger than a mere bundle oI wavering thoughts and Iluctuating sensations; he who does this has
become the conscious and intelligent wielder oI his mental powers.


The Thought-Factor in Achievement

All that a man achieves and all that he Iails to achieve is the direct result oI his own thoughts. In a justly ordered
universe, where loss oI equipoise would mean total destruction, individual responsibility must be absolute. A
man's weakness and strength, purity and impurity, are his own, and not another man's; they are brought about by
himselI, and not by another; and they can only be altered by himselI, never by another. His condition is also his
own, and not another man's. His suIIerings and his happiness are evolved Irom within. As he thinks, so he is; as
he continues to think, so he remains.
A strong man cannot help a weaker unless the weaker is willing to be helped, and even then the weak man must
become strong oI himselI; he must, by his own eIIorts, develop the strength which he admires in another. None
but himselI can alter his condition.
It has been usual Ior men to think and to say, "Many men are slaves because one is an oppressor; let us hate the
oppressor." Now, however, there is among an increasing Iew a tendency to reverse this judgment, and to say,
"One man is an oppressor because many are slaves; let us despise the slaves." The truth is that oppressor and
slave are co-operators in ignorance, and, while seeming to aIIlict each other, are in reality aIIlicting themselves.
A perIect Knowledge perceives the action oI law in the weakness oI the oppressed and the misapplied power oI
the oppressor; a perIect Love, seeing the suIIering which both states entail, condemns neither; a perIect
Compassion embraces both oppressor and oppressed.
He who has conquered weakness, and has put away all selIish thoughts, belongs neither to oppressor nor
oppressed. He is Iree.
A man can only rise, conquer, and achieve by liIting up his thoughts. He can only remain weak, and abject, and
miserable by reIusing to liIt up his thoughts.
BeIore a man can achieve anything, even in worldly things, he must liIt his thoughts above slavish animal
indulgence. He may not, in order to succeed, give up all animality and selIishness, by any means; but a portion
oI it must, at least, be sacriIiced. A man whose Iirst thought is bestial indulgence could neither think clearly nor
plan methodically; he could not Iind and develop his latent resources, and would Iail in any undertaking. Not
having commenced manIully to control his thoughts, he is not in a position to control aIIairs and to adopt serious
responsibilities. He is not Iit to act independently and stand alone. But he is limited only by the thoughts which
he chooses.
There can be no progress, no achievement without sacriIice, and a man's worldly success will be in the measure
that he sacriIices his conIused animal thoughts, and Iixes his mind on the development oI his plans, and the
strengthening oI his resolution and selI reliance. And the higher he liIts his thoughts, the more manly, upright,
and righteous he becomes, the greater will be his success, the more blessed and enduring will be his
achievements.
The universe does not Iavor the greedy, the dishonest, the vicious, although on the mere surIace it may
sometimes appear to do so; it helps the honest, the magnanimous, the virtuous. All the great Teachers oI the ages
have declared this in varying Iorms, and to prove and know it a man has but to persist in making himselI more
and more virtuous by liIting up his thoughts.
Intellectual achievements are the result oI thought consecrated to the search Ior knowledge, or Ior the beautiIul
and true in liIe and nature. Such achievements may be sometimes connected with vanity and ambition but they


are not the outcome oI those characteristics; they are the natural outgrowth oI long and arduous eIIort, and oI
pure and unselIish thoughts.
Spiritual achievements are the consummation oI holy aspirations. He who lives constantly in the conception oI
noble and loIty thoughts, who dwells upon all that is pure and unselIish, will, as surely as the sun reaches its
zenith and the moon its Iull, become wise and noble in character, and rise into a position oI inIluence and
blessedness.
Achievement, oI whatever kind, is the crown oI eIIort, the diadem oI thought. By the aid oI selI-control,
resolution, purity, righteousness, and well-directed thought, a man ascends; by the aid oI animality, indolence,
impurity, corruption, and conIusion oI thought a man descends.
A man may rise to high success in the world, and even to loIty altitudes in the spiritual realm, and again descend
into weakness and wretchedness by allowing arrogant, selIish, and corrupt thoughts to take possession oI him.
Victories attained by right thought can only be maintained by watchIulness. Many give way when success is
assured, and rapidly Iall back into Iailure.
All achievements, whether in the business, intellectual, or spiritual world, are the result oI deIinitely directed
thought, are governed by the same law and are oI the same method; the only diIIerence lies in the obfect of
attainment.
He who would accomplish little must sacriIice little; he who would achieve much must sacriIice much; he who
would attain highly must sacriIice greatly.


Visions and Ideals

The dreamers are the saviors oI the world. As the visible world is sustained by the invisible, so men, through all
their trials and sins and sordid vocations, are nourished by the beautiIul visions oI their solitary dreamers.
Humanity cannot Iorget its dreamers; it cannot let their ideals Iade and die; it lives in them; it knows them in the
realities which it shall one day see and know.
Composer, sculptor, painter, poet, prophet, sage, these are the makers oI the aIter-world, the architects oI
heaven. The world is beautiIul because they have lived; without them, laboring humanity would perish.
He who cherishes a beautiIul vision, a loIty ideal in his heart, will one day realize it. Columbus cherished a
vision oI another world, and he discovered it; Copernicus Iostered the vision oI a multiplicity oI worlds and a
wider universe, and he revealed it; Buddha beheld the vision oI a spiritual world oI stainless beauty and perIect
peace, and he entered into it.
Cherish your visions; cherish your ideals; herish the music that stirs in your heart, the beauty that Iorms in your
mind, the loveliness that drapes your purest thoughts, Ior out oI them will grow all delightIul conditions, all
heavenly environment; oI these, iI you but remain true to them, your world will at last be built.
To desire is to obtain; to aspire is to achieve. Shall man's basest desires receive the Iullest measure oI
gratiIication, and his purest aspirations starve Ior lack oI sustenance? Such is not the Law: such a condition oI
things can never obtain : "Ask and receive."
Dream loIty dreams, and as you dream, so shall you become. Your Vision is the promise oI what you shall one
day be; your Ideal is the prophecy oI what you shall at last unveil.
The greatest achievement was at Iirst and Ior a time a dream. The oak sleeps in the acorn; the bird waits in the
egg; and in the highest vision oI the soul a waking angel stirs. Dreams are the seedlings oI realities.
Your circumstances may be uncongenial, but they shall not long remain so iI you but perceive an Ideal and
strive to reach it. You cannot travel within and stand still without. Here is a youth hard pressed by poverty and
labor; conIined long hours in an unhealthy workshop; unschooled, and lacking all the arts oI reIinement. But he
dreams oI better things; he thinks oI intelligence, oI reIinement, oI grace and beauty. He conceives oI, mentally
builds up, an ideal condition oI liIe; the vision oI a wider liberty and a larger scope takes possession oI him;
unrest urges him to action, and he utilizes all his spare time and means, small though they are, to the
development oI his latent powers and resources.
Very soon so altered has his mind become that the workshop can no longer hold him. It has become so out oI
harmony with his mentality that it Ialls out oI his liIe as a garment is cast aside, and, with the growth oI
opportunities which Iit the scope oI his expanding powers, he passes out oI it Iorever.
Years later we see this youth as a Iull-grown man. We Iind him a master oI certain Iorces oI the mind which he
wields with world-wide inIluence and almost unequaled power. In his hands he holds the cords oI gigantic
responsibilities; he speaks, and lo! lives are changed; men and women hang upon his words and remold their
characters, and, sunlike, he becomes the Iixed and luminous center around which innumerable destinies revolve.
He has realized the Vision oI his youth. He has become one with his Ideal.


And you, too, youthIul reader, will realize the Vision (not the idle wish) oI your heart, be it base or beautiIul, or
a mixture oI both, Ior you will always gravitate toward that which you secretly most love. Into your hands will
be placed the exact results oI your own thoughts; you will receive that which you earn; no more, no less.
Whatever your present environment may be, you will Iall, remain, or rise with your thoughts, your Vision, your
Ideal.
You will become as small as your controlling desire; as great as your dominant aspiration: in the beautiIul words
oI Stanton Kirkham Davis, "You may be keeping accounts, and presently you shall walk out oI the door that Ior
so long has seemed to you the barrier oI your ideals, and shall Iind yourselI beIore an audience - the pen still
behind your ear, the ink stains on your Iingers - and then and there shall pour out the torrent oI your inspiration.
You may be driving sheep, and you shall wander to the city - bucolic and open mouthed; shall wander under the
intrepid guidance oI the spirit into the studio oI the master, and aIter a time he shall say, 'I have nothing more to
teach you.' And now you have become the master, who did so recently dream oI great things while driving
sheep. You shall lay down the saw and the plane to take upon yourselI the regeneration oI the world."
The thoughtless, the ignorant, and the indolent, seeing only the apparent eIIects oI things and not the things
themselves, talk oI luck, oI Iortune, and chance. Seeing a man grow rich, they say, "How lucky he is!"
Observing another become intellectual, they exclaim, "How highly Iavored he is!" And noting the saintly
character and wide inIluence oI another, the remark, "How chance aids him at every turn!" They do not see the
trials and Iailures and struggles which these men have voluntarily encountered in order to gain their experience;
have no knowledge oI the sacriIices they have made, oI the undaunted eIIorts they have put Iorth, oI the Iaith
they have exercised, that they might overcome the apparently insurmountable, and realize the Vision oI their
heart. They do not know the darkness and the heartaches; they only see the light and joy, and call it "luck"; do
not see the long and arduous journey, but only behold the pleasant goal, and call it "good Iortune"; do not
understand the process, but only perceive the result, and call it "chance."
In all human aIIairs there are efforts, and there are results, and the strength oI the eIIort is the measure oI the
result. Chance is not. "GiIts," powers, material, intellectual, and spiritual possessions are the Iruits oI eIIort; they
are thoughts completed, objects accomplished, visions realized.
The Vision that you gloriIy in your mind, the Ideal that you enthrone in your heart - this you will build your liIe
by, this you will become.


Serenity

Calmness oI mind is one oI the beautiIul jewels oI wisdom. It is the result oI long and patient eIIort in selI-
control. Its presence is an indication oI ripened experience, and oI a more than ordinary knowledge oI the laws
and operations oI thought.
A man becomes calm in the measure that he understands himselI as a thought-evolved being, Ior such
knowledge necessitates the understanding oI others as the result oI thought, and as he develops a right
understanding, and sees more and more clearly the internal relations oI things by the action oI cause and eIIect,
he ceases to Iuss and Iume and worry and grieve, and remains poised, steadIast, serene.
The calm man, having learned how to govern himselI, knows how to adapt himselI to others; and they, in turn,
reverence his spiritual strength, and Ieel that they can learn oI him and rely upon him. The more tranquil a man
becomes, the greater is his success, his inIluence, his power Ior good. Even the ordinary trader will Iind his
business prosperity increase as he develops a greater selI-control and equanimity, Ior people will always preIer
to deal with a man whose demeanor is strongly equable.
The strong, calm man is always loved and revered. He is like a shade-giving tree in a thirsty land, or a sheltering
rock in a storm. Who does not love a tranquil heart, a sweet-tempered, balanced liIe? It does not matter whether
it rains or shines, or what changes come to those possessing these blessings, Ior they are always sweet, serene,
and calm. That exquisite poise oI character which we call serenity is the last lesson oI culture; it is the Ilowering
oI liIe, the Iruitage oI the soul. It is precious as wisdom, more to be desired than gold - yea, than even Iine gold.
How insigniIicant mere money-seeking looks in comparison with a serene liIe - a liIe that dwells in the ocean oI
Truth, beneath the waves, beyond the reach oI tempests, in the Eternal Calm!
How many people we know who sour their lives, who ruin all that is sweet and beautiIul by explosive tempers,
who destroy their poise oI character, and make bad blood! It is a question whether the great majority oI people
do not ruin their lives and mar their happiness by lack oI selI-control. How Iew people we meet in liIe who are
well-balanced, who have that exquisite poise which is characteristic oI the Iinished character!
Yes, humanity surges with uncontrolled passion, is tumultuous with ungoverned grieI, is blown about by anxiety
and doubt. Only the wise man, only he whose thoughts are controlled and puriIied, makes the winds and the
storms oI the soul obey him.
Tempest-tossed souls, wherever ye may be, under whatsoever conditions ye may live, know this - in the ocean
oI liIe the isles oI Blessedness are smiling, and the sunny shore oI your ideal awaits your coming. Keep your
hand Iirmly upon the helm oI thought. In the barque oI your soul reclines the commanding Master; He does but
sleep; wake Him. SelI-control is strength; Right Thought is mastery; Calmness is power. Say unto your heart,
"Peace, be still!"