Who is John Ruskin?

[cdn2wheeler]

OK, I'm back, but just for a minute.

Over the past 6 weeks or so I've been on the receiving end of a series of harsh shocks involving health, relationships and career. None of these were my own making.

But, in keeping with the concept of 100% responsibility (hat's off to Angela for that), I did some research and questioning as to why these shocks were presented to me at this time, in this order, and at this stage in my life.

What I believe I've discovered goes to the core of what LoA is all about.

This is where John Ruskin (1819 - 1900), art critic, social gadfly and author, comes in. Jack Canfield - the Chicken Soup for the Soul guy - uses a Ruskin quote in his (Canfield's) Success Principles coaching materials.

And True Believers probably aren't going to like it very much.

Ruskin wrote, "What we think or what we know or what we believe is, in the end, of little consequence. The only consequence is what we do."

Through my own experimentations with LoA, what has become abundantly clear is that "asking the Universe" for what you want, regardless of what it is - or what you want to be - makes up about 10% of results.

Sure, there will be the occasional "hit," and some might consider random "hits" as some sort of proof that LoA without action actually has some merit. But, in short, they're wrong.

Life is random. And even in this chaos, sometimes things seem to come together. But we end up creating meanings for these events when no meanings exist. We see cause-and-effect patterns in events that have no cause-and-effect. Humans do this; it's an evolutionary adaptation and has served us well for millennia. "Og ate mushroom. Og died. Me no eat mushroom," or, "Og make noise in forest. Sabre-toothed tiger heard Og, killed and ate him. Me no make noise in forest."

The vast majority of what we wish to bring into our lives comes not from who we are or even what we believe. It comes from what we do.

That is extraordinarily liberating.

Now, one can argue that what we do comes from what we are. That's fair comment. But it also misses the point.

We don't have to ask our Higher Selves or our Guardian Angels (if they even exist; my suspicion is that those who think they've tapped into some sort of supernatural consciousness have deluded themselves into thinking that their active imagination is some sort of alternate reality. But there simply isn't any such thing. If there is, prove it). We don't have to tap into our core unconsciousness. We don't have to visualize, we don't have to imagine, we don't have to pray, we don't have to change the fundamental foundations of who we are, we don't have to cultivate some sort of Zen-like consciousness.

By all means, if that's your thing, then go right ahead. But don't think for a moment that it's actually going to make much of a difference unless you attach an action to it.

We just have to do. We just have to make verbs out of our desires.

But without the verbs, we're dreaming. We're fantasizing. We're living in a world that doesn't really exist.

So how does this relate to those things that avalanched upon me over the past few weeks and turned my comfortable life upside down?

It means that I did not bring those things onto myself through some inner fault. It means that I'm not being somehow punished or getting my own back through some sort of karma. It means that the "universe" isn't out to feed me a bucketful of sh!t because I somehow deserve it. It means that what's taken place is not a reflection of who I am.

These things just are. The only context and meaning they have is the context and meaning I give them. And in keeping with 100% responsibility, I choose NOT to give them meaning because they don't have any.

The principles of LoA - the visualization, the "think as it already is" and all the rest - are all fine and relatively innocuous. There's really no harm in them unless they're relied upon to provide a result without some sort of action.

"The only consequence is what we do."

There's a direct connection between what we do and what we get. There is, alas, no connection whatsoever between who we are or what we think or what we believe or how strongly we believe it and what we get.

I know this runs completely counter to the basic principles of LoA. And I, for one, am hugely thankful for that.

So there you have it. Stop dreaming. Start doing.

(Hey, this is my post number 1000. Kewl.)

[Dan.Linehan]

Originally Posted by cdn2wheeler

The vast majority of what we wish to bring into our lives comes not from who we are or even what we believe. It comes from what we do.

Your beliefs determine your actions.

[Pegasus]

Hi, cdn! Your absence from the forums hasn't gone unnoticed! I was debating whether it was a good thing (moving on with your life; these forums can be addictive) or whether so much was going on that you didn't feel like doing anything at all.

I partially agree with your post.

We just have to make verbs out of our desires.

Even here you use the word "desires." Without the initial thought or intention, we are not motivated to act.

There's a direct connection between what we do and what we get.

Most of the time. What about when we do all the right things and nothing happens? Or when we get what we really want without having put any considerable action into it?

[cdn2wheeler]

Originally Posted by Dan.Linehan

Your beliefs determine your actions.

Or inaction. True Believers, who may believe that no action is required to obtain a result, might refrain from taking action. And the random nature of the universe means that occasionally they'll get what they desire even though they did nothing. Even a blind squirrel can find his nuts once in a while. That's what I meant when I wrote about a false cause-and-effect correlation.

Originally Posted by Pegasus

Hi, cdn! Your absence from the forums hasn't gone unnoticed!

Thanks... I think.

Originally Posted by Pegasus

Even here you use the word "desires." Without the initial thought or intention, we are not motivated to act.

Precisely Ruskin's point. Desires are all fine and good, but if they don't lead to action, then they're nothing more than empty wishes. If they create motivation to act, then something might happen as a result of the actions. But if they don't lead to action, then they are of little value.

Originally Posted by Pegasus

Most of the time. What about when we do all the right things and nothing happens? Or when we get what we really want without having put any considerable action into it?

You actually answered it in your post when you wrote, "Most of the time."

Sometimes we do everything right and the result isn't what we anticipated. Other times events drop things in our proverbial laps. We can't control the outcome through wishing. And we can only partially stack the deck by doing. That's the chaotic nature of the universe at work.

[Angela]

It sounds like Ruskin (and you, cdn) have it that what you do is who who you are. I look at it differently: who you are has you doing what you do.

I'm not concerned about visualizing a parking spot or a bicycle or a mansion and having it show up in my life. I'd rather park as far from the entrance as possible so I have a nice walk, go rent a used bike from the hotel rental shop, and be grateful for my luxurious, gorgeous small apartment overlooking the sea. If I need a Mazeratti, I'll take action and buy a Mazeratti. I am with you that dynamic action is powerful! And one very dynamic action is the generation of a way of being that has you living a life you love.

I am concerned about being what I want to give the world. That is: freedom, connection, joy, and bold inspiration, among other things. There is plenty of action that being those things inspires for me; lots of action that I take, and some I only ponder. And to me, those dynamic actions are only an expression of being who I want to be. Sometimes I just sit around and Be, or I just be with Danger Man, not taking much action at all. The Being is my first priority; the Doing flows freely from Being.

Whatever has you living a life you're in love with, whatever approach you take (especially you, cdn!) I am 100% in favor of it. I don't care what you do; I love who you are with all my heart.

Angela

[cdn2wheeler]

Originally Posted by Angela

It sounds like Ruskin (and you, cdn) have it that what you do is who who you are. I look at it differently: who you are has you doing what you do.

I don't think that's what Ruskin is saying. His direct quote is, "What we think or what we know or what we believe is, in the end, of little consequence. The only consequence is what we do." Nowhere in the quote does he make any mention of who you are. He just speaks of consequences of action (or inaction).

Originally Posted by Angela

I'm not concerned about visualizing a parking spot or a bicycle or a mansion and having it show up in my life.

That may not be your personal intention, but I've seen that sort of intention repeatedly being posted on the board, and I'm sure you have too. "All I have to do is wish/visualize/think happy thoughts/get in touch with my spirit guide/whatever and the Universe will acquiesce to my demands." And, given the random nature of the universe, that demand may actually come about. But because it may happen isn't correlated with wishing; it's correlated with chaos, which is no correlation at all.

Ruskin's point, as I understand it, is that if you want something, you actually have to take action to get it. Instead of existing as a human being, exist as a human doing.

[moonrambler]

I'm inclined to agree with you, cdn. There are people here who state they can manifest what they want into their lives without taking any action -- maybe they are just so skilled at all this, that it does work that way. *poof*

What I see in the LoA and IM, and believing it before you see it, and acting as if, and all that, is it can empower people to act more effectively. And it gets them focused and clear on what they do want, and why they have been spinning their wheels.

I don't believe that anxiety and fear and focusing on lack, in and of themselves, drive away good things, as is claimed by LoA proponents. I think those negative emotions can have a negative effect on how effective we are at doing well in a job interview, or generating more income, or studying and performing well on a test. But I don't think a person can manifest an A on a test by meditating and not showing up for the test. I do think students can get a better grade by believing in themselves, believing they are an A-level student, calmly studying and taking the test instead of freaking out and being anxious and worried about it. But I know at this moment in time, absolutely know, that if I'm going to take a test for a college course some day in the future, that even if I'm freaked out and anxious to the point of feeling nauseated, I'm still going to do just fine, because I'm a great student. It's who I am. That directly conflicts with what I hear about LoA.

This is like where I was commenting about how I have a hard time believing that most of our great rock musicians, for example, who tend to make it very big very young, sat around at 18 years old doing IM and reading about LoA and meditating and visualizing and all that. What they did was they lived it. They loved it and lived it and dedicated their lives to it.

[Rose of Cairo]

I don't agree with you cdn. (who would have guessed that?! )

Cultivating some sort of Zen-like consciousness, like you say, does make a huge difference in my life. And honestly, when I see your mindset about all sorts of things, I'm not surprised at all that you get what you get. What I see is a confirmation that the LoA works: you get exactly what you attract with your negative thoughts.

But we already had this discussion in other threads and I guess it's useless to go through it once again. So why don't you just stop bothering about the LoA? Forget about it.

I'm glad for you that you found another model that suits you better. I can imagine that it's a big relief for you. And why not? There's not only one right model and many people are very successful with the action-model. I hope it will bring you all the desired results.

So now, take action!

[Angela]

Originally Posted by cdn2wheeler

I don't think that's what Ruskin is saying. His direct quote is, "What we think or what we know or what we believe is, in the end, of little consequence. The only consequence is what we do." Nowhere in the quote does he make any mention of who you are. He just speaks of consequences of action (or inaction).

You're right, and I read my interpretation in. "what we think or what we know or what we believe" is a huge part of generating what we're being. To say that is of little consequence just doesn't work for me in LALIL.

That may not be your personal intention, but I've seen that sort of intention repeatedly being posted on the board, and I'm sure you have too. "All I have to do is wish/visualize/think happy thoughts/get in touch with my spirit guide/whatever and the Universe will acquiesce to my demands." And, given the random nature of the universe, that demand may actually come about. But because it may happen isn't correlated with wishing; it's correlated with chaos, which is no correlation at all.

So what? If it works for them in generating a life they love, who cares?

Ruskin's point, as I understand it, is that if you want something, you actually have to take action to get it. Instead of existing as a human being, exist as a human doing.

That's fine; he's dead. I'm alive, and being a being being works for me!

But I don't begrudge you following his example, and focusing on the doing. Do!

[Pegasus]

What does LALIL mean?

[jeff3]

Is there a remote possibility that you are ,due to your programming (beliefs), simply applying the LOA in a manner that proves you "have" to do something. "have" to take action, can't simply "ask and receive"?

There is a big 'catch 22' attached to the LOA in it's most literal interpretation.
If it works , it works all the time, even if you don't believe in it.
If it works and you don't believe it does , your reality will reflect this, even if you "play" with it and "test" it. If your basic belief is that it won't work and that only action gets results, sooner or later you will prove to yourself that it won't work and only action gets results.


If it doesn't work, it doesn't work, and the sporadic results I have achieved as well as the results others have achieved are figments of our imagination and we delude ourselves with our attempts to repeat these delusions. If I did not have personal experience with real results I would go with this explanation, but the same logical mind that kept me away from this stuff now keeps me interested because of what i have seen.

My feelings about your conclusions are that you have simply proved to yourself what you want to (or have to) believe, that we live in a purely mechanistic universe that has no underlying or innate intelligence of it's own and only through brute force can your desires be fulfilled.

[Pegasus]

I'm slow on the uptake.

Living A Life I Love


Hey Moderators, maybe we could create an SP Forums dictionary?

[Acting Like Godot]

For the sake of discussion, I will assume that the Law of Attraction does NOT exist. Even so, it is abundantly clear that what you do, is always a product of how & what you think. In fact, what you do is ENTIRELY dictated by how & what you think. Therefore it is eminently foolish to believe that how & what you think, is of little consequence.

How & what you think is of GIGANTIC importance, ESPECIALLY if you believe that the successes and failures in your life depend primarily on what you do (rather than, say, random good luck, or family background, or the help and support from other people, or genes, or natural talent etc).

Even if you aspire to be a super-duper action-oriented goal-setting machine, the first thing you'll have to do every morning is:

"Write a to-do list and prioritise the items" ... (Standard advice in time management books).

In other words, even if you want to take action, action, action ...... the most important thing is still to THINK about what you want to do, and CLARIFY your own thoughts as to which actions would be most important, and IDENTIFY the end results you wish to achieve. This planning, or thinking, is essential. The THINKING is always the key.

Efficient, effective and powerful ACTION follows from efficient, effective and powerful THINKING.

Confused, incoherent and misguided ACTIONS follow naturally from confused, incoherent and misguided THINKING.

How could it be otherwise?

Let me say it again .... What You Do Is Entirely Dictated By How & What You Think.

The real issue that Cdn2Wheeler has been grappling with is ....

.... WHETHER your thoughts have any consequence to your reality, apart from entirely controlling and dictating your every physical action and deed throughout the entire day.

Of course. Among other things, the thoughts you choose have a direct effect on the emotions you feel. For example, for your entire life, whether you experience:

happiness, sadness, anxiety, worry, joy, peace, calm, anger, love, frustration, hopelessness, passion, hate, confidence, fear etc etc

is primarily a process of consciousness. In other words, your thoughts play a huge role in determining the amount of happiness and suffering in your life.

If you consider that to be a trivial point, then you are extraordinarily foolish.

===========

Now, I shall reintroduce LOA/IM back into the equation.

As a regular practitioner of LOA/IM, I do my IM and I also take action on my goals. Frankly I do not see how it could be otherwise.

You see, thought attracts similar thought. The more intensely you think about your goal X, the more you will attract MORE thoughts about Goal X. And all action is simply a form of thought. If you disagree, then try getting a brain-dead person to hit a tennis ball, drive a car, give a speech or balance on one foot.

Action follows naturally from thought. If you use an IM exercise, say, to visualise yourself running, you cannot help but feel more motivated to run, and therefore you will. And you probably WILL run better too, which is why countries now send their sporting teams together with hypnotherapists to the Olympics.

So the only point we are debating here is whether your thoughts have any consequence on reality, apart from on:

(a) your own actions
(b) your own emotions

(although, by now, it should be clear that (a) and (b) are of vital consequence in their own right). And that would lead us to the discussion of the "magical" effects of LOA. But we've been there before, many times, nothing new, I won't revisit. Those who are interested can check out the old threads.

So I only leave you with this thought for today:

No matter how you look at it, it's still ALL about your thinking. Get that right, and your actions will follow. And so will your emotions.

[RT Wolf]

I think everybody is reacting strongly to what cdn2wheeler said (he had a bit of an assertive style), but are missing the essential point:

He feels great now. I know that feeling, too, the feeling of knowing what the playing field looks like and exactly where the ball is. Much more clarity and simpler than this whole detachment/you dunno your beliefs/somin subconscious/etc business. If IM is indeed true, then this is a much, much better place to be manifesting from than doubt about whether your entire enterprise is faulty or not. I hope you will remember some of the lessons from your IM journey as worthy. Many/most of the individual parts of IM can be found in more traditional PD books, too, like Brian Tracy, Tony Robbins and the like. Perhaps, ironically, once you stop trying to use IM to influence the world, you will start influencing the world.

I felt a little like that when I realized that limiting IM to simply thoughts taking direct action is controlling the how, and I'm supposed to simply focus on what I want. And if I'm not willing to take actoin (ether I do or not is a different matter), then I don't really want whatever it is I'm intending for. So, my solution around the problem (and I PMed ALG about this a little while ago) is to allow intentions to manifest from all the routes, including my own physical action, subconcious action, synchronsity and whatever. Its all fair game, because the point is to get what I want.

If that's what works for you, great. I hope that your IM journey has been an interesting side-track on your journey of personal growth. And if there's some validity to the magical aspects of IM, I'm sure you'll discover them sometime in hte rest of your life, should you choose to remain in this path of PD. We're all going to live for a long, long time.

[cdn2wheeler]

Originally Posted by RT Wolf

I think everybody is reacting strongly to what cdn2wheeler said (he had a bit of an assertive style), but are missing the essential point:

He feels great now. I know that feeling, too, the feeling of knowing what the playing field looks like and exactly where the ball is. Much more clarity and simpler than this whole detachment/you dunno your beliefs/somin subconscious/etc business. If IM is indeed true, then this is a much, much better place to be manifesting from than doubt about whether your entire enterprise is faulty or not. I hope you will remember some of the lessons from your IM journey as worthy. Many/most of the individual parts of IM can be found in more traditional PD books, too, like Brian Tracy, Tony Robbins and the like. Perhaps, ironically, once you stop trying to use IM to influence the world, you will start influencing the world.

I felt a little like that when I realized that limiting IM to simply thoughts taking direct action is controlling the how, and I'm supposed to simply focus on what I want. And if I'm not willing to take actoin (ether I do or not is a different matter), then I don't really want whatever it is I'm intending for. So, my solution around the problem (and I PMed ALG about this a little while ago) is to allow intentions to manifest from all the routes, including my own physical action, subconcious action, synchronsity and whatever. Its all fair game, because the point is to get what I want.

If that's what works for you, great. I hope that your IM journey has been an interesting side-track on your journey of personal growth. And if there's some validity to the magical aspects of IM, I'm sure you'll discover them sometime in hte rest of your life, should you choose to remain in this path of PD. We're all going to live for a long, long time.

RT, my friend, you nailed it spot-on. Very insightful. Next beer's on me.

And, yes, I suppose the style was a bit assertive. I make no apologies for that.

Look, here's the thing: ALG is right in the sense that actions follow thoughts. He's clearly defined the cause-effect (thought - action) when he writes:

Originally Posted by ALG

As a regular practitioner of LOA/IM, I do my IM and I also take action on my goals. Frankly I do not see how it could be otherwise.

Exactly. ALG takes action to attain his desired result. That action flows from his thoughts. And without taking action, thoughts simply bounce around in our heads, tiny surges of chemical and electrical impulses in our brain that have little or no effect on the world outside the skull.

My point was that in order to attain a desired result, actions must follow thoughts, which is exactly what ALG has outlined here. Thoughts alone are simply not enough. "The only consequence is what we do," which is why I wrote:

We just have to do. We just have to make verbs out of our desires.

But without the verbs, we're dreaming. We're fantasizing. We're living in a world that doesn't really exist.

Jeff3 makes a good point as well and it deserves some investigation. The catch-22 that he elucidates really goes to the foundations of the discussion. All I can share is my personal experience: that there's a direct correlation between what I do (or don't do) and the results I get (or don't get). But, alas, there is no correlation I've seen between my intentions that aren't followed up by actions and what I get, regardless of how strongly I feel about it, how clearly I visualize it, how relaxed I am about it, how well I "release" it, or anything else.

In short, thoughts/intentions without actions do not lead to a desired result.

That's good, that's very good. It means that regardless of whatever's stewing in one's subconscious, or whatever some sort of "higher self" or "guardian angel" thinks (subject to the caveats in the original post) or whether the "universe" thinks one is ready for it or not, or that one is somehow doing it wrong, you can stack the cards in one's favour by taking action, by doing what's necessary to get the desired result.

[Angela]

Originally Posted by cdn2wheeler

In short, thoughts/intentions without actions do not lead to a desired result.

Well, that depends on the desired result! Is your goal to *get*, or to *be*?

For instance, let's say I want to be in a LLTMBR, and I'm not. Of course if I'm smart I'll take actions towards my goal, like signing up on eHarmony or asking my friends to keep me in mind for potential match-ups, etc.

But even more powerful is who I'm being, which is entirely a matter of what I'm thinking. If I am wanting to be in LLTBR but I'm thinking, "men disappoint women" or "all men cheat" or "I wish I were thinner and prettier", my results would be phenomenally less successful than if I were being, "I am alert to the beauty and vitality of everyone I meet." Without taking any action at all, I have transformed who I'm being (okay, well, transforming IS an action! ) and simply by going about the business of who I am, the likelihood of meeting wonderful potential partners is exponentially increased. I wouldn't necessarily be consciously changing what I do; but my actions would naturally and un-self-consciously be more *attractive* in the sense that I'd be available to what I want to attract, instead of repulsive.

Plus, I would be a more joyful person when I'm just sitting around alone, too.

[Angela]

@ Pegasus: ILA!*



*I love acronyms.

[cdn2wheeler]

Originally Posted by Angela

Without taking any action at all, I have transformed who I'm being (okay, well, transforming IS an action! ) and simply by going about the business of who I am, the likelihood of meeting wonderful potential partners is exponentially increased. I wouldn't necessarily be consciously changing what I do; but my actions would naturally and un-self-consciously be more *attractive* in the sense that I'd be available to what I want to attract, instead of repulsive.

Still requires action, as you've pointed out.

Sitting at home or living a hermit-like existence, even though you might have all the thoughts about attracting a desirable mate, is not likely to lead to a result.

What's more likely to lead to a result is to get out and about and meet people. That takes action. Take a night-school class. Sign up with Toastmasters or something. Go out with friends and get introduced to new people.

Even if you didn't do that inner transformation work, you're still much more likely to meet someone when you're socially connected than if you did all that inner transformation work and sat around watching TV or playing video games all day & night.

[{aspiring_to_clarity}]

Hey, cdn. I missed you around here. That is all.

[Angela]

Originally Posted by cdn2wheeler

Still requires action, as you've pointed out.

Right. The difference is, is my goal to *get* a mate, or is it to *be* a mate? If I am focused on *getting*, that sets me up for frustration and dissatisfaction, whether I'm doing those things or sitting around stewing about why I haven't *gotten* mate yet. If I am focused on *being*, then whether or not I am taking action, whether or not my perfect match is actually there, I am satisfied and fulfilled -- joyful and free.

The potential matches that are attracted to a frustrated and dissatisfied person are quite a bit different that the ones that are attracted to someone who is satisfied, fulfilled, joyful and free.

Also, a difference in the actions that I would take is: with one way of being, my actions are effortful and contain stress, with the other way of being, my actions are effortless, free and fun.

oh, p.s., cdn..last night we went to a theatre called the "Ruskin" and I thought of you!

[moonrambler]

Originally Posted by Acting Like Godot

As a regular practitioner of LOA/IM, I do my IM and I also take action on my goals. Frankly I do not see how it could be otherwise.

Of course now I have to mention the two instances you recently talked about, where you were so happy to manifest a large amount of money and it didn't require any action other than visualization.

[cdn2wheeler]

Originally Posted by Angela

Right. The difference is, is my goal to *get* a mate, or is it to *be* a mate? If I am focused on *getting*, that sets me up for frustration and dissatisfaction, whether I'm doing those things or sitting around stewing about why I haven't *gotten* mate yet. If I am focused on *being*, then whether or not I am taking action, whether or not my perfect match is actually there, I am satisfied and fulfilled -- joyful and free.

The potential matches that are attracted to a frustrated and dissatisfied person are quite a bit different that the ones that are attracted to someone who is satisfied, fulfilled, joyful and free.

oh, p.s., cdn..last night we went to a theatre called the "Ruskin" and I thought of you!

Getting a mate or being a mate still requires another person (or more than one, if that's your thing) to be in the picture. And that, regardless of one's intentions, will require some action to go out and meet someone. They may approach you, but you still have to take 100% responsibility (sound familiar? )and get out of the house.

That's Ruskin's point. "The only consequence is what we do." It takes action. It takes effort. It takes some risk. And it may or may not work out. But "being satisfied, fulfilled, joyful and free" while sitting at home alone won't magically cause someone to appear on your front doorstep with a bouquet of roses or a box of chocolates or a BMW K1200GT (which would be my choice! Keep the flowers and the sugar... give me that motorcycle!).

I think we might be mixing our semantics up a bit here, though. "Being" is something that can be modified pretty much on one's own, and there's a lot to be said for doing that sort of internal work to be the best one can be. "Being a mate" is another paradigm entirely because it requires the presence of at least one other person. And getting in contact with that other person will require action.

All that said - and I may be starting to hijack my own thread here - it's clear that the best present you can give to your partner and to your relationship is a healthy, happy, well-adjusted self. And I think that's what you may be referring to, Angela, in discussing "being."

[Angela]

Originally Posted by cdn2wheeler

Getting a mate or being a mate still requires another person (or more than one, if that's your thing) to be in the picture. And that, regardless of one's intentions, will require some action to go out and meet someone. They may approach you, but you still have to take 100% responsibility (sound familiar? )and get out of the house....

All that said - and I may be starting to hijack my own thread here - it's clear that the best present you can give to your partner and to your relationship is a healthy, happy, well-adjusted self. And I think that's what you may be referring to, Angela, in discussing "being."

Yeah, to yourself, too, don't forget.

I disagree with you that being a mate requires the presence of another person. If you are being a mate, it makes no difference to your way of being whether your mate is there or not. *getting* a mate indicates to me a sense of dissatisfaction, because once you succeed, then you must *keep* her, and that's a whole paradigm that doesn't work for me. So yes, success in *getting* does depend on external circumstance -- the physical presence of another person. And you know I'm not big on depending on external circumstance for living a life I love!

So what I'm saying is, *getting* is eternal work, and *being* is eternal fun. Both are viable approaches, and the necessity for action depends on which approach you choose.

[cdn2wheeler]

Originally Posted by Angela

I disagree with you that being a mate requires the presence of another person.

I think I understand what you mean, but I see it as just a difference in semantics.

"Being a mate" without the inclusion of someone else in one's life is, I think, a bit like saying, "being a husband" though I'm not married, or "being a father" if I don't have any kids. The presence of another person is implied: the terms "mate" or "husband" (or wife, partner, father, or any other number of words) implies that there's another person in the equation.

It's important to understand the distinction. "Being the best mate/husband/wife/partner/father/whatever I can be" just doesn't make sense if there isn't another person involved. "Being the best person I can be," however, makes no implication about the presence of someone else.

[Angela]

I'm so glad you're back, cdn!

You know, for me, it's not mere semantics. "Being a mate" regardless of whether I am in a romantic partnership, or if he's there with me, does make sense for me. "Being a mate", as I see it, means: being available for the growth and responsibility of a LLTMBR, by being available for growth and responsibility in every conversation; being love, surrender, and joy in every conversation; and being in love in every conversation. And -- "every conversation" includes what I tell myself. What I tell myself when I'm with people and when I'm alone.

If I am being all that: growth, responsibility, love, surrender, and joy -- then I am in a very real sense "being a mate" -- regardless of whether or not I have actually met my partner yet, or that he's present.

Similarly, if I do have a boyfriend and he's with me or he's in Sweden, and I am NOT being all that, then despite the fact that I'm in a LLTMBR, I'm not "being a mate" -- I'm being a butthead.

So I wouldn't dismiss being vs. getting as mere semantics. It's the difference between living a life I love, or not. I think that's a pretty consequential difference!

(I don't love being a butthead.)

[cdn2wheeler]

Originally Posted by Angela

living a life I love

Note that the word "living" is a verb. Action. Effort. Results-oriented.

[Angela]

Originally Posted by cdn2wheeler

Note that the word "living" is a verb. Action. Effort. Results-oriented.

Yup. Fun, effortless, joyful, effective. that's what I want. that's what I have, when I'm alert.

What I don't want: constant stressful striving. that's what I have when I'm letting habit and old pain run me.

[Acting Like Godot]

Originally Posted by moonrambler

Of course now I have to mention the two instances you recently talked about, where you were so happy to manifest a large amount of money and it didn't require any action other than visualization.

Of course. Let me make myself clear.

1. Thought affects reality.

2. Your own action is a form, or an expression, of your own thought.

3. Therefore thought certainly can, and does, affect reality, through your own actions.

4. HOWEVER, your own action is NOT the only form, or expression, of your own thought.

5. In other words, your thought can ALSO affect reality through means other than your own action. This is what we can conveniently refer to, as the "magical" aspects of LOA.

Now, if you truly desire to attain X, you WILL take action towards attaining X. HOWEVER, at the same time, if you are using IM, the universe will cooperate with you, to attain X.

Depending on circumstances, sometimes your own action is all it takes to attain X. Sometimes the situation is such that you can do NOTHING yourself to attain X, but the universe will do everything necessary to bring X. And sometimes X will come to you as a result of a combination of your own action AND the universe doing its own stuff.

If there are simple, obvious steps that you can personally take to attain X, why shoudn't you? Suppose you want a cup of coffee. You really, really want a cup of coffee. Should you try to manifest one out of thin air? Or should you move your legs, walk to the kitchen and make yourself a cup of coffee.

Now if your powers are so advanced that like Sai Baba and Jesus, you can consistently manifest objects out of thin air (Sai Baba manifests personal items, jewelry, watches etc, which his disciples lost years ago; Jesus manifests bread and fish for his hungry followers) -

you may wish to try manifesting a cup of coffee out of thin air. Alternatively, just move your legs, walk to the kitchen and make yourself a cup of coffee. Bearing in mind that moving your legs, walking to the kitchen and making coffee are all forms of thought in themselves - actions which you could not possibly accomplish, if you were brain-dead.

[Acting Like Godot]

There is nothing necessarily wrong with taking action. Action is good. Action is bad only if it causes you harm (eg overwork causes you to become stressed, tired, unhappy, unhealthy etc).

The other problem is that relying on action alone limits you. Because you aren't tapping into that other great resource - the rest of the universe. Many things are beyond the influence and control of your action. But they are not beyond the influence and control of your thought.

The way to understand this is to see that your "action" is merely a subset of your "thought". All your action is your thought, but not all your thought is yur action. And that part of your thought which is not expressed as action, may nevertheless create, affect and influence your reality ... (above and beyond your own emotions).

[Acting Like Godot]

This year (2008), in my own life, and my own LOA journalling, I am drawing a personal distinction between my own "intentions" and my "projects".

"Intentions" are all the things which I do a mind session on. In other words, they are things in relation to which I lie down, close my eyes, relax, go to alpha, meditate, self-hypnotise, visualise etc.

(Here is a list of the 27 intentions which I have done so far, this year.)

"Projects" are projects for which I can take concrete action on. A project is defined entirely in terms of highly specific actions that I can take. It is NOT defined in terms of the actual consequences of those actions, and furthermore a project is not dependent on other people's actions or decisions.

For example, one of my Projects is to read entirely a certain professional textbook relating to my work. There are very specific steps I can take. For example, I read Chapter 1, then I read Chapter 2, then I read Chapter 3, and so on .... If I finish doing so, I treat this as Project Completed.

(I haven't uploaded my projects list on my blog yet. I'm still drawing it up. I have about 25 projects so far).

Now some of my Intentions are also Projects. Some of my Projects are also Intentions. But some of my Intentions are not Projects, and some of my Projects are not Intentions. Some of my Intentions and Projects relate to each other, even though they are not the same.

Example - one of my Intentions is to gain wisdom. This is something I seek to manifest. It is not a Project, because my idea of a Project is something which I can take very specific, very definite action on. And I do not know what specific, definite actions I can take, to become Wise. So I simply manifest the Intention, and leave it to the universe to arrange.

Further example - one of my Projects is to read regularly to my kids. I can define this in terms of things like, how often I shall read to my kids, how many books shall we read per week etc. If I do as I plan, I treat this as Project Completed - regardless of whether my kids have become, at the end of the Project, as literate, or as clever, as I might hope for them to be.

And Yet Another Example - an Intention relating to the above Project is that I manifest my kids to be extraordinarily bright and capable. I do not know exactly what actions can be taken to achieve this. Can a child's IQ, for example, be significantly raised by parents taking action? If so, what action? Rather unclear, to me, at least. I'm sure the scientists are still arguing about it, and will be, for the next few decades. Therefore I simply manifest the Intention, and trust that the universe will arrange it.

You see, your thoughts can achieve and create all sorts of results, even if you do not see what actions you could possibly take.

Illustration: suppose you have broken a bone, or have a surgical wound. I say to you, "Heal yourself faster." Well, of course you can ensure that you see a doctor, receive the usual conventional treatment, rest properly etc, but beyond all that ...

How the Hell Do You Take Action To Make Your Broken Bone or Wound Heal Faster!??

You simply wouldn't know what action to take. It doesn't seem possible.

And yet, as this Harvard Medical School study shows, if people with broken bones and surgical wounds are placed under hypnosis, and their minds are given hypnotic suggestions that they ARE healing faster, then they WILL heal faster, SIGNIFICANTLY faster than patients in the control group.

Harvard Gazette: Hypnosis helps healing

In other words, the mind is achieving the results, even if you don't consciously have the vaguest clue as to HOW to make your bones or wounds heal faster.

And what is hypnosis, after all, if not one mode by which the LOA may be applied.

Now, the above is just an illustration and I know that people will raise all kinds of protests and objections to it, such as "Oh, this is just one study, we need more studies to verify it", or "Just because your mind can affect your body doesn't mean that your mind can affect things outside your body" etc etc

..... BUT we have gone down these lines of discussion before, and as I have shown, there are numerous studies indicating in so many ways that your mind can affect reality, outside of your own body and independently of any actions you actually take ... And frankly it grows so tedious for me to keep repeating myself.

ESPECIALLY when I am so busy manifesting so many good things for myself every day, and getting them.

(Some, with my actions, and others, without my action, and in other cases, it's a combination).