The Power of the Mind and Positive Thought

The aphorism, "As a man thinketh in his heart so is he," not only embraces the whole of a person’s being, but is so comprehensive as to reach out to every condition and circumstance of one’s life. A person is literally what he or she thinks, your character being the complete sum of all your thoughts.

As the plant springs from, and could not be without, the seed, so every act of a person springs from the hidden seeds of 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 of thought, and joy and suffering are its fruits; thus does a man garner in the sweet and bitter fruitage of his  or her own husbandry.

This course shows you that a noble and Godlike character is not a thing of favor or chance, but is the natural result of continued effort in right thinking, the effect of long- cherished association with Godlike thoughts. On the other hand, an ignoble and bestial character, by the same process, is the result of the continued harboring of groveling thoughts.

We show you that a person is made or unmade by himself or herself. In the armory of thought you forge the weapons by which you destroys yourself; or you fashion the tools with which you build yourself heavenly mansions of joy and strength and peace. By the right choice and true application of thought, a person ascends to the Divine Perfection. By the abuse and wrong application of thought, you descend below the level of the beast. Between these two extremes are all the grades of character, and a person is their maker and master.

This is what this course intends to show that of all the beautiful truths pertaining to the soul which have been restored and brought to light in this age, none is more gladdening or fruitful of divine promise and confidence than this - that man is the master of thought, the molder of character, and maker and shaper of condition, environment, and destiny.

As a being of Power, Intelligence, and Love, and the Lord of his own thoughts, a person holds the key to every situation, and contains within oneself that transforming and regenerative agency by which one may make oneself what one wills.

A person is always the master, even in your weakest and most abandoned state; but in your weakness and degradation you are the foolish master who misgoverns your household. When you begin to reflect upon your condition, and to search diligently for the Law upon which your being is established, you then become the wise master, directing your energies with intelligence, and fashioning your thoughts to fruitful issues. Such is the conscious master that this course teaches you to become.