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Mind over Matter: Books to Read.

Writers Who Got It Right

By sylvana lee-jonesPublished 6 years ago 4 min read
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'Hand of God' Photo by S.L.J

The notion that our inner thoughts can have a direct result on the physical world around us is not a new one. There are countless books on the subject pertaining to the success of ‘mind science’.

The concept was made popular in the early New Age movement by individuals like Thomas Troward, with his Edinburgh and Dorès Lectures on Mental Science (1904 – 1909), and Florence Scovel-Shinn with her book The Game of Life and How to Play It (1925). The theory of the power of the mind then took on a renewed lease of life with the famous The Secret published in 2006, which was itself influenced by a book published in 1910 (The Science of Getting Rich by Wallace D. Wattles).

But what are these books really telling people? What is the secret to the secret? Each author interprets, in his or her own way, how the mind can have a direct influence on the material. They all use different words to explain the same phenomenon, and they have varying methods which produce the same results.

Thomas Troward (1847 - 1916) took a very methodical and scientific approach to it and was one of the more affluent and credible founders of this new age thought. His literature makes for heavy reading but his research and reasoning are in-depth and reveal a great many secrets for those who have ‘eyes which see’. His methods rely heavily on absolute faith and visualization techniques.

Anyone serious about the subject of mind over matter should not only read but seriously study Troward's works.

His only student, Genevieve Behrend, recounts in her book Your Invisible Power (1921) how she came to be Troward’s one and only student, by precisely using the methods he describes in his Dorè Lectures.

She entered ‘into the spirit’ of his words and following his instructions, successfully used her force of mind to secure the finances she needed to travel from America to England in order to meet Mr. Troward and eventually (after some persuasion) become his student.

Florence Scovel-Shinn (1871 – 1940) is another great author of new age thought. Her books are a much easier read than the notes of Thomas Troward but her message is just as powerful. She explains in simple terms what it takes to use the mind as a positive force for change in the material world. She gives clear and concise examples demonstrating the success of her method. Shinn often focuses on the power of affirmations followed up by positive action which reinforces the belief that what a person desires will undoubtedly materialize in the physical world.

It is this unwavering belief that activates the ‘God Mind’, in which all miracles are possible.

For those who do not have the inclination to pour over the in-depth details of Troward’s works should read the works of Florence Scovel-Shinn. Her explanations are simple yet effective, and are a great introduction to just how our thoughts directly influence our lives and the world around us.

Another great read on the subject is The Secret Science Behind Miracles (1948) by Max Freedom Long.

There is debate as to the validity of this book but the message remains the same: the within controls the without. There are some gems of truth in this novel if one knows what they are reading. This is the ONLY book I have read so far to clearly reveal ‘the secret’ to working miracles with the mind.

Many authors and new age thought leaders focus on the higher mind and how connecting to this superconscious self is the key to creating matter out of thought forms. All agree that pure absolute belief in receiving what has been asked for is essential for any success, and a lot of peoples’ methods are simply about reinforcing that belief.

Max Freedom Long recounts the beliefs and methods of Hawaii’s indigenous tribes. They claim that it is only the subconscious self that can have direct communication with the higher self, thus facilitating the working of miracles, but that the subconscious self spends most of its time ignoring our conscious self.

And for good reason! Could you imagine if our subconscious took every one of our thoughts seriously and made them materialize in our physical reality? It would be chaos.

Thus we have to do something to impress our true desires onto the subconscious self. We must act in order to let the subconscious-self know we mean business. Once that is done, the subconscious relays the message to the higher conscious self, who in turn manifests our desires into reality. And therein lays the true secret to mind science. Everybody else’s explanations are merely methods in impressing the subconscious mind in such a way that it believes what you are thinking – and thus can carry that message forward to the higher mind.

Read The Secret Science Behind Miracles by Long and follow it up with The Game of Life and How to Play It by Shinn and the world truly could be yours for the making.

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