Concentration and the Acquirement of Personal Magnetism by O. Hashnu Hara is an amazing book giving us step-by-step instructions on the secret processes of magnetic healing for curing ailments and illnesses. This is a course of lessons on the action of thought, explaining its composition, and the correct method of using it, especially with regard to increasing and controlling your personal magnetism.

Concentration and the Acquirement of Personal Magnetism is a very important self-improvement book and I am sure its practical exercises will assist you in developing your personal magnetism to use as a powerful force in your personal and professional life.

–Harrison

CONCENTRATION AND THE ACQUIREMENT OF PERSONAL MAGNETISM

By O. Hashnu Hara

INTRODUCTION

IN giving this series of lessons to the public at a nominal fee, I believe I am really doing something that will be of great benefit to all who need a helmsman to guide the rudder of the good boat “Thought” to the harbor of Success.

Thought, unorganized, is so much waste matter; Thought, ORGANIZED, is the greatest power in the world, greater even than the almighty Dollar, for it commands filthy lucre and bids grim poverty farewell – forever? It commands love, which filthy lucre can’t, and it commands all that makes life worth living.

That it is necessary to undergo special mental training to produce this state of mental organization is very apparent, and that people desire daily more light, more knowledge, and for means to overcome their state of ignorance is, as sure as “eggs are eggs,” the reason why Personal Magnetism and the consideration of the Thought Forces have become such a cult.

Personal Magnetism means health, happiness, power and success.

Those who want these things and all they stand for, follow the rules I give you in these pages; read, mark, learn and inwardly digest each lesson, and if you do not live to bless the wonderful force known as Personal or Animal Magnetism; if you do not realize within yourself a new found happiness, because you realize that you are not the weak, downtrodden creature you have so long considered yourself, but a glorified, radiant, happy being; then, I say, my name is not…


O. Hashnu Hara

 


THOUGHT AND THE BRAIN



LESSON I

 

THAT a course of lessons fully illustrating the action of thought, explaining its composition, and the correct method of using it, would prove a boon to many students of the Occult and mental sciences, who find this a very great drawback to serious advancement, appear almost a certainty.

The methods usually advocated seem to me very impractical; in the first place, how can a man who has never learned to control thought in everyday matters, such as banishing business worries when he comes home, or goes to bed, or in learning to control small habits, suddenly sit down and “concentrate on Spirit,” when probably his very idea of spirit is such as to awaken all his dormant fancies, and to call forth not one image, but hundreds? Then he fondly believes he is concentrating, until the utter absence of results proves that he has done no such thing, and he begins all over again.

It is only what may be expected, and even a general attempt to simplify the matter would be welcome; but I have had so many letters and so many appeals from men and women who cannot master this one subject – quite the most important in the whole school of Metaphysical and Occult teaching – the door, in fact, which will open to them the whole vista held out in books, an entrancing vision of knowledge, of health, of happiness, and the unseen, which too often will remain in books, simply because the initial step is too difficult – that I have made a great effort to meet the demand in a popular and practical form.

First of all I will beg of my pupils to begin at the bottom. Do not try to concentrate your thought on spirit before you are quite sure:

First. As to what THOUGHT is composed of.

Second. That you are able to concentrate your mind on some unimportant mundane matter, to the exclusion of all else.

Third. Do not try to concentrate your mind for half an hour at a time, until you can concentrate for two consecutive minutes.

Fourth. What spirit is.

I advise the student to practice keeping his mind on one subject for a minute at a time, and then gradually increase the time from day to day.

If you intended to train for, say, a foot race, you would not start with a twenty-mile walk after having been out of training for a long time. Nor if a little child is being taught how to read is he given a difficult scientific book to begin with. Yet men and women are put to a task far more difficult than these, without any preparation or gradual initiation into the processes employed.

Take some subject you are very much interested in for the commencement, then for one minute hold this before your mind’s eye, try to see if it in your imagination, and if you fail, wait another hour or so then try again.

By these means you gradually increase the elasticity of your brain, which, by continual exercises, can be expanded and made to perform tasks which were originally impossible. The next thing is to consider the part our brain plays in the matter of thought generation.

Look upon the brain simply as a very delicate machine, a dynamo that generates thought as an ordinary dynamo generates electricity. The construction of this machine needs some consideration for it is known that certain parts of the brain are put to certain uses, and that a brain left dormant grows gradually incapable of anything much above involuntary action, and that if certain parts even of the brain are neglected they in turn become atrophied and are useless.

The accompanying diagram shows the relative parts of the brain, and the work they do is as follows:

Fig. 1 is the cerebrum, and consists of two hemispheres, which are separated by a very deep fissure. The cerebrum is composed of a thick layer of gray matter, surrounding white fibrous nerve substance. The gray matter is drawn up in to folds, or convolutions, and the whole is covered by a delicate membrane composed of arteries and veins, supported by tissue.


( Diagrams not shown )

 

This part of the brain is the seat of sensation, of will, of intelligence, and also of the emotions; if this part of the brain is injured, the power of manifesting mental faculties is more or less lost.

Fig. 2 is the lesser brain, or cerebellum, and this guards and regulates the involuntary muscles and movements of the mind and body. I have always placed the subconscious mind here; it seems the most reasonable locality to apportion it to, for the subconscious mind is certainly an involuntary worker; it also depends very little upon the will of the emotions, for all the will-power in the world will not make it manifest if it is not in the state to do so, and the everyday working brain has quite enough to do to look after its own without taking on another function.

Fig. 3, the pons varolli, and Fig. 5, the medulla oblongata, do not immediately concern us, although, of course, their own work is very important. Thus, if the medulla oblongata is destroyed, death at once ensues.

From the under surface of the brain twelve pairs of nerves are given off, called the cranial nerves; each pair supply some sense to the body, generated by the brain machine, just as a dynamo turns out its streams of electricity. One pair of nerves supply the sense of smell; the next the optic nerves; the third pair move the eyeballs; the fourth supply the skin of the face, the muscles of the lower jaw, and the tongue; the sixth pair are supplied to the muscles which turn the eyeballs outwards; the seventh pair supply fibers to the muscles of the face; the eight pair supply the ear; the ninth pair are mixed nerves and they enable us to taste, and also supply the nerves to the pharynx; the tenth pair are very important mixed nerves which send fibers to her larynx, lungs, hear, stomach and liver; the eleventh pair are motor nerves which supply certain muscles to the neck; the twelfth pair are spending fibers to the tongue. So here we get a clear idea of our thought machine, a good thing to start with, since certainly no other kind of engineer would attempt to drive a machine of which he was absolutely ignorant. This direct arrangement from the brain center explains to a great extent how the form of concentration called mental healing can affect the body, and rebuild the tissues.

For each pair of nerves will carry the message given to them by the brain, and it naturally depends upon the message as to the effect produced. Here we get the machine we have to work with, and having mastered the technical parts of it, we will now proceed to see how thought acts, and how concentration affects thought.

It has long been a matter of consideration and study to me as to where the will really is located, and in this matter of concentration it is doubly important, because without that WILL man cannot possibly concentrate. It is the master of the Thoughts Machine, and I have found that the best way to meet the difficulty is to look upon the WILL as the OVER SOUL, that part of man which never dies, and which is carried on from incarnation to incarnation. I am assuming the theory of reincarnation to be something more that theory. It has been given to me to remember past lives, although only two or three; but even if one can remember any it surely renders the theory a fact.

This OVER SOUL, or will-power, is the force which sets the brain in motion, and which determines what effect the thought generated will have, and also what strength; it rests within ourselves to decide the state we are to reach in each successive incarnation (after we have been through a certain number), yet if we seek the intelligent co-operation of the over soul we can, if we so desire, accomplish in one life what might otherwise take centuries to perform.


THE WILL: HOW THOUGHT TRAVELS –VARIETIES OF THOUGHT WAVES



LESSON II

 

THE seat of WILL, or the over soul, may, I think, be safely placed in the NERVE AURA surrounding the brain.

The exact nature of thought has not, so far as I have been able to discover, ever been fully explained. There is no doubt that thought is of atomic origin, else I do not quite see how, in accordance with Nature’s law, it could travel through the ether.

In regarding the action of thought in the ether, we are too much in danger of regarding the ether as something outside ourselves, and thought as an unconsidered and unknown quantity, a mistake which must be rigorously guarded against.

The ether permeates our whole body, and because of this wonderful invisible medium, thought, magnetism, and other know substances of a similar nature can attract to themselves matter from throughout the universe; thought, of course, having a greater power of attraction than any other substance. There is nothing in the world, which can prevent this attraction, no matter what may intervene between the thought and the object it seeks. The reason for this may be summed up in one word – ether. This acts as a conducting medium for the light waves which travel form the most distant planets and fixed stars, light which takes ten years to reach our little earth; and it acts as a conducting medium for our thought, whether we desire to send it to the other side of the earth, or to some far distant region in the unknown, or back, back into the long forgotten past, or forward into the yet unexplored future.

I have frequently held forth respecting the nature of that invisible substance called ether, but for the benefit of new readers, at the risk of boring the old, I will repeat myself.

The ether, then, is an invisible medium filling all space; scientists accept it as a necessity to account for the transmission of LIGHT through space where no ordinary medium, such as air, is to be found.

It is said by scientists to be of a smooth, jelly-like substance, and by Rosicrucian’s it is looked upon as living flame: We are at present more concerned with the scientific standpoint of what is called the “aluminiferous ether.” As my readers can readily understand, there must be some substance to fill all space, or we could get light from sun or moon, or the far distant stars.

This light travels through the ether by means of “waves,” that is, the tiny atoms, or particles, travel through space in a series of concentric (that is, from a common center) waves, each particle communicating motion to the next adjoining particle, and so on. Remember, too, that each particle, or atom, becomes, in its turn, a center of disturbance, sending out new waves. These wavelengths are exceedingly minute, and travel at an immense speed. They follow the waveform usual to water when, say, a stone is thrown in to cause a disturbance. There is the crest of the wave and the trough, and although the scientific method of measuring the length of these waves does not affect us at present, measured they are.

We know that light travels through ether by means of waves continually spreading outward; that a RAY of light is really non-existent. Light travels in minute particles, or atoms, and THOUGHT is propelled through the ether and through space in a similar manner to light.

You will consider the brain as a dynamo, only, of course, more powerful than any other known machine, and more delicately constructed. Man, as a race, is in constant danger of under-estimating the power of this machine, simply because he cannot CONCEIVE of such power.

From the central point of the brain, where motion is so intense, it almost appears at a standstill, thought radiates outward, as light radiates from our central point of energy -the sun.

We have seen, first, the machine, which generates thought, and secondly, the medium through which thought is propelled in its journey from one point of the globe to another.

The NATURE of thought is such that it is invisible as far as ocular demonstration is concerned, but its POWER is such that it is manifested in our daily life on every hand.

I assume thought to be of atomic origin, and, as I have already explained, the ether is a smooth, jelly-like substance with the property of transmitting atoms and molecules (a molecule is a group of two or more atoms) through space (which it entirely fills) at a terrific speed, the speed, of course, depending entirely upon the nature and size of the atom. Thought atoms are so infinitesimal that they probably exceed the highest known rate of speed, for the smaller the atom the higher and swifter the rate of vibration.

Whenever anybody thinks, even on the most trivial matter, they at once set up a stress (or disturbance) in the ether, and all around them becomes disturbed. If the thought was feeble, the disturbance will be merely local, and affect nobody, although, if charged with anger, worry, or discontent, it will affect the thinker very much for evil.

Such thoughts upset the ether, recoil upon the internal organism through the brain, and set up a state of irritation similar to the mental process, thus affecting not only the secretions of the vital organs, but surrounding the whole with a negative aura, which destroys the waves of love and good feeling which would otherwise surround that person. Then also, in a slight degree, these conditions will affect others in the immediate vicinity. They may experience feelings of depression, and the sensation of a cloudy atmosphere; but the thoughts are too unorganized to have a lasting effect, unless one is continually living with this species of thought emanation; it will not affect anybody seriously, EXCEPT the THINKER. He, or she, will at once show the work they have been unconsciously performing – bad digestion, sleepless nights, wrinkles, flabby cheeks, and the general inability to enjoy anything. These are the lasting results of such disturbance of the etheric substances.

We are all anxious to obtain success in life, and to help others; but the life success must be so perfectly blended with the spiritual success, that the two are one, else neither will be very lasting. I am aware that certain people may take exception to this statement, but it is my firm opinion that true-life success embraces this dual aspect I have described.

The law of vibration is always traveling from a higher to a lower rate and back again; it follows a free-path motion, and returns upon its journey laden with the errand it set out to perform. If you will look at the first diagram of this lesson, you will see a perfect circle, which we will call the sphere of spirit. At the mark “A” in this circle we see pure spirit, and at ‘B” we will place matter. Thus ‘A,” pure spirit is a rate of vibration which is intense –


( Fig. II not shown )

the swiftest possible. From this, spirit travels at a rate that grows slower and gradually slower, and, of course, denser, until it arrives at the base “B,” where it is practically at a standstill. This may be interpreted as the procession of spirit through the grosser shades of matter, until at “B” we find matter almost pure and simple; but from “B” back to “A” again this etheric flow grows swifter and swifter, until at “A” it again assumes its swiftest rate of speed, and, having shaken off the confining elements of matter, is again merged into pure spirit.

We can trace this as the process of life. All life is spirit, and this diagram represents the entire period from the first separation of the individual from spirit, on its journey through life to the time when, having passed through countless incarnations, it is ready to return whence it came. The reason for this journey is not apparent; it is simply the law of Nature.

Thus from “A” to “B” is the spiritual basis upon which we are all founded, and from which, by the slow processes of evolution, we attain the state of so much gross matter, the state in which quite nine-tenths of the population of the world are at present. Then, from here, man’s higher sense begins to crave a higher state of evolution, and at last realizes that he has it in his power to obtain this when he pleases. “We live in the state of development our thoughts create for us.” The higher our mental aspirations, the swifter and purer the rate of vibration we attain. If you live in the dirt you cannot expect to attract anything else; but if you are a child of sunshine, so will you be garbed in light, and draw to yourself all that is your by right.

To retrace our steps a little, we will repeat that the brain center is a medium, a machine for manifesting and creating thought, as a dynamo, only, of course, more powerful than any other know machine, and more perfect.

At the center of the brain, energy is so intense that it almost appears to be still and calm, and from this still center radiates outward thought, the quality and quantity of which depends upon the machine, which generates the power. The generating process takes place through the all-compelling action of the WILL or OVER SOUL, that part of man, which never dies. This action is helped, and often to a very great degree, by correct breathing, which has the most wonderful effect upon concentration of thought.

The following diagrams will illustrate very clearly how thought will proceed under given circumstances. Thought will proceed under given circumstance. Thought is dynamic, or, properly speaking, kinetic; * but, of course, the words apply to the same thing. Under the compulsion of a strong and well-advanced WILL, or over soul, thought travels in a direct line towards that upon which it is concentrated. The more intense this form of concentration, the swifter and more direct the journey of that thought.

Fig. 2 shows the action of thought when directed upon some particular point. From “A” to “B” we get concentrated thought traveling from the brain center, “A,” to the point it is intended to reach, “B.” This may be defined as organized thought, a substance of which the vibrations are almost as subtle as the transmitting medium, etheric waves.


( Diagram not shown )

 

From “A” to “C,” however, we obtain the action of thought as it is understood in everyday parlance, the vacillating, uncertain thought of the organized mind which follows a zigzag course, varying in strength, and finally filtering away, without ever reaching its goal.


*Producing motion. Force of any kind as a motive power and its action.

 


THOUGHT WAVES – CONTINUED



LESSON III

 

TO resume the consideration of the various kinds of thought waves we will now consider Fig. III (Lesson III), which shows the action of the brain when generating another kind of mind wave, when the thought field, which closely resembles the magnetic field, as known to electricians, is composed of lines of forces which are less concentrated because more scattered in area, since they radiate outwards to all points, still from the same calm center.

But under the action of an organized mentality each line reaches the mark.

Thus from “A” to the outermost circle on every side, which in this case we will take to represent the known universe, or perhaps better still, as the world, the thought rays travel in even quality, and with direct force. When the student sits from general concentration, desiring, or expecting some good thing which mankind or nature as a whole (because of his relation to nature) can give him, but without specifying any individual, then his thought follows the directions of this figure, and his brain machine just radiates the thought as the sun radiates light.

It falls gently, and equally distributed upon all, and almost insensibly, often by what may seem the queerest chances, those on whom it falls are drawn to that center power, and the thinker, be if for business, or otherwise, realizes that his concentration has borne fruit.


( Fig III not shown )

 

Fig. IV clearly indicated the nature of thought sent in the general direction, but consisting of uneven and vacillating action, and will explain better than anything else why it is that some people have never achieved anything by the study of mental and spiritual science, or any other of the many methods of improving thought life.


( Fig IV not shown )

 

They are not the masters of the laws governing mental action, nor do they clearly comprehend the kinetic nature of this curious and powerful substance, or the methods of its propulsion through the ether.

The third law of motion is, ‘that action and reaction are equal in force, but opposite in direction.”

Here we are considering the action of somebody endowed with energy by natural or mechanical means. As an example, if you take an india-rubber ball and throw it against a wall, it will return to you with exactly the same force with which it struck the wall; and it’s just exactly the same with any other body, or mass of atoms (for do not forget that everything from a stone to the human body is built up of atoms. In some things, such as the human body, gases, electricity, or water, the atoms are in continual motion; in others, such as rocks, certain chemicals, etc., they are in a state known as “inertia,” that is to say, they are resting, waiting for some other substance to come along and wake them up, then, hey presto! They are as full of life and energy as anything else. Often the chemical action of smoke and atmosphere will make large buildings, which are apparently dead, or inert, really a mass of movement, every tiny particle of stone vibrating), they come back to you with exactly the same force you send them, or with which nature sends them, as the case may be.

So that, say, the flinging of the ball against the wall is the action, and the force with which they meet creates the reaction, sending the ball back whence it came; at the same time if the ball strikes the wall so feebly that hardly any reaction is given, it will fall to the ground for want of momentum, or impetus (the force with which a body is driven or impelled).

Thought rays (thought being a vibratory mass, as we have agreed) sent out through the ether with direct force, will return upon their center (the brain) with equal force to that which sent them forth. So, according to this law, thought goes out, charged with its duty, and returns to the starting point having fulfilled its mission, if the thinker is organized. So that thought goes out to perform an errand, and will return to you laden with just what you sent it for, IF YOU ARE MASTER. Thought is your SERVANT, and if properly used will always bring you what you send it for.

In the realm of occultism the psychic forces, which are used by man, follow very much the same laws, which govern the natural, or partly material world, but so far from realizing this important fact man has sought for laws outside those he knows. It has been my experience that the occult is so simple it passes the comprehension of the man in the street whom looks for mystery where there really is none. Life in all its manifestations is simple, and is governed, as the ancients taught, by ONE life, ONE law, ONE word. It is the teachings that are complex, not the subject, and anything that can be done to simplify such teachings is most decidedly a step in the right direction.

There is the old, old motto, used by Freemasons and others of religious and mystic persuasions, in hoc signo vinces (by this sing thou shalt conquer), and man has been speaking also of the esoteric societies and Masonic brotherhood, taken this to mean the sign of the cross. Yet how can a cross help us to conquer? I will tell you what it really means, it is not the cross, but the CHRIST which will help us to conquer, and it is not even the Christ who is but a myth to many, it is the Christ within ourselves, and until we recognize this great power of good within us we shall never conquer. It has always seemed to me that the solidity of our bodies has been a drawback to the mental acceptance of the occult truths we are tying to make a part of our minds, and that the idea that we have so many stones of flesh and blood, bone and muscle to support, keeps us form the realization of the mighty truth that we are all MIND and LOVE, so I am anxious for my pupils to get their minds clear of that and to believe and understand that they are as much spirit as anything else. The very materiality of the fleshy body is a hindrance to mental and physical development, but I do not wish you to deny your body, it is there all right enough, and a very great necessity, too; I only want you to grasp the fact that by recognizing the occult significance of “I AM LOVE,” or “I AM POWER,” you are admitting the fact that our entire body is permeated throughout with the etheric waves which act as a medium for all things throughout the infinite.

So that you ARE love and power, and being all love nothing can ever really harm you if you understand the law. Your body is an animated magnet, and the space it fills in the atmosphere is just a greater center of attraction. Say so half a hundred times a day, think of all it means to you, “I am FORCE, the LAW OF LIFE. The law is manifesting in my body and can be tapped for use whenever I wish to do so.”

There is a great power in words, not that the words themselves are of any value, but they can and do convey suggestions, and when you concentrate upon certain words you set up the conditions those words convey to your brain machine. You say the word LOVE; it at once awakens a certain train of thought, and as you think you set in motion vibrations which, ever reaching outward, bring you into mental contact with the best the world has for you, the best part of the men and women with whom you come into business or social relations, the best of mineral, animal, and vegetable kingdoms, and last, but not least, the best of the spiritual world and of YOURSELF. You MAKE yourself LOVE, and you are love; you simply radiate love as a stove or the sun radiates heat. So let that be your battle-cry; let it be your password to a better state, “I AM LOVE, LOVE FILLS MY ENTIRE BODY.” Even if it brought you no material benefit (which it will do), the experiment is well worth trying for the simple pleasure of seeing how everybody you meet will unbend to your influence, and how much loved in return you will become. It will be simply your mental body responding to the suggestion carried by the word love, and from the mental to the physical meaning of the little word not only mentally, but also physically.

I have shown how thought does and should travel, and why it is capable of performing its journey through ether, but I only treated of this in a perfunctory manner, because I wanted to explain more fully in the lesson of thought fields, to which we are coming in our next lesson.


MAGNETIC POWER – THOUGHT FIELDS – POWER OF ATTRACTION



LESSON IV

 

THE arguments advanced in this lesson are worthy of particular attention, because, in the first place, they will help us to a clearer understanding of the occult power of thought when properly directed and energized by concentration, and also because it clearly demonstrates the affinity existing between esoteric and physical laws. Before treating of the effects of radiant energy and thought fields, it will be as well to understand, first, what radiant energy is, and second, what a field is?

To take the meaning of energy first, as distinguished from motion; energy is the term applied to any mass (or any body), which, when moving, strikes against another body and sets that also moving, and the power of the original body to move another is known as its energy, and measured according to the amount of movement it is able to impart.

Radiant energy is the term applied to any mass or body of matter possessing energy of a nature that can be imparted to the atmosphere, or the medium, which surrounds it, and the speed with which this energy is transmitted depends entirely upon the ability of the medium to transmit energy, and not upon the force itself.

Thus the thought atoms are in perfect sympathy with the medium, ether, and as a consequence ether is an ideal transmitter for thought waves.

Remember that any substance or matter thus distributing radiant energy can set other masses of matter in motion, and this is an important part of our statement regarding the vibratory nature of thought. The ether transmits such wave motions in straight lines and there is no limit to the distance they can travel, they can go on indefinitely; but the point I am leading up to is what is technically called the field, and the explanation thereof.

To return to my old method of illustration, I will ask you to look carefully at Fig. I.


( Fig. I not shown )

 

The center “A” is the mass that we know possesses the power of distributing radiant energy. Now all the space outside that mass or body, to the extent within which it is capable of acting in this way upon other bodies, so as to bring them to a similar condition to its own, is what scientific men call the field. That is to say, the space surrounding and in front of the mass forms the field. So that ‘B” in the preceding diagram represents that field; and the extent of the field depends altogether upon the force, or energy, possessed by the mass. The more force it has the wider is the field through which its energy is distributed. Think how the great brains of the world make their influence felt. Or think again how the sun’s energy pervades the vast space separating it from our planet.

Taking the magnet sun as the best possible illustration of an object akin to thought energy, it is known that a magnetic field cannot exist without an inducing magnet, or current of electricity. Every magnet has what are called its poles, the term applied to the two ends, and these poles are called respectively positive and negative. Magnetism as a study is probably unknown to many of my readers, and a few words of explanation may help the student. The common magnet or lode-stone is found in Magnesia, in Asia Minor, and in other parts of the world. It has the property of drawing, or attracting to itself pieces of steel and iron, and also of invariably pointing to the north and south. Artificial magnets are made by rubbing a piece of steel on a lode-stone, when the iron will acquire the properties of the lode-stone. Dr. Gilbert, in 1600, found out that the attraction appeared to reside in a long-shaped magnet at two ends, and these two regions were called poles (Greek polos, from pelo, to move), so the magnetic pole is literally one of the points in a magnet, corresponding to the poles of the earth, the one pointing north and the other south; the poles are almost invariably at the ends. That portion of a magnet lying between the poles is less magnetic, and does not attract so strongly, and half way between the poles there is no attraction at all.

The first law of magnetism is that “like magnetic poles repel one another, and unlike magnetic poles attract one another.” So that two north pointing poles will violently repel one another, but two poles, one north pointing, or positive, and the other south pointing, or negative, will attract one another.

The earth is itself a magnet with its north pointing and south-pointing pole, and man is a magnet also; in fact all nature in its variety of forms and phases is composed of magnets, each atom and molecule having its positive and negative poles.

The human brain has also its positive and negative aspects, and its poles are situated respectively in cerebrum and cerebellum, as the third diagram will show you (see Lesson I for explanation of brain division). Figure 2 shows the ordinary magnetic lives radiating from an ordinary magnet, the space filled with the lines being the magnetic field.


( Fig. 2 not shown )

 

Now coming to our immediate subject, Thought. You will readily understand how the THOUGHT FIELD can follow the same lines as the magnetic field. Here is the brain and the THOUGHT FIELD. Thus we get “A,” the brain, “B,” the thought lines the thought field. As I explained before, there must be a body, or mass of matter to distribute radiant energy, and unless there is the body or force to create a field – magnetic, electric, chemical, mechanical or thought, which you please – there can be no field.

In the thought field the BRAIN is the mass of matter, the force that radiates energy and creates a “field;” in the feeble, unorganized brain this field is weak, and affects only a limited area. But the greater the personal magnetism, the more powerful and organized the brain, the greater the extent of its radiation, the wider its field, the more lasting its effects. And the generation of thought force, or mind, which I described in my last lessons, makes the advent of some great man or woman. Great, according to the sphere of their labor and their ruling talent.


( Fig. 3 not shown )

 

Thus, roughly, we have Christ, Buddha, Nero, Shakespeare, Boadicea, just a few names, with different qualities, yet all with sufficient force to have created energy enough to last through the ages!

When two brains are working together for the purposes of telepathy, or healing, one must be positive, the other negative, and they create what is called attraction, for by means of the sympathy between them they set up a stress (pressure) in the ether, and the thought fields act in such a way that they are pushed together (by this I mean the thought lines, not the brains), and commingle and blend under the conditions described above. They exchange, or transfer their energy, the transfer always taking place from the one possessing the higher rate to the one possessing the lower. Thus one person acts as a transmitter, and the other as a receiver. The one is negative, and the other positive, otherwise they would repel instead of attract, since “like magnetic poles repel on another, and unlike magnetic poles attract.” That is to say, two positive poles would repel each other, but a positive pole and a negative pole would attract each other. So like minds repel each other, and unlike minds attract, or perhaps it would be better to say that the strong mind attracts the weak, and vise versa.


( Fig. 4 not shown )

 

Figure 4 shows how each brain acts upon the thought field of the other, and it should be remembered this action applies more particularly to the various processes of mental healing, success vibration, etc., etc.


CONCENTRATION AND METHODS – BREATHING



LESSON V

 

WE must not forget that the attributes of the mass are possessed by the atom (that is to say, each atom contains in itself everything to be found in the mass), and that every atom of brain matter or of thought is acting upon each neighboring atom in the same way that one brain will act upon another, and that this is going on indefinitely, so that every object throughout the cosmos is continually affecting the space surrounding it in various ways, its temperature (thought HAS a temperature, and to the sensitive this becomes at once apparent, whether hot, cold or normal, and it is my opinion that a machine will soon be made showing the thought temperatures of people), and its effects upon the surrounding space, with its magnetic or electric qualities, and in the case of thought with its spiritual, material, good and mistaken qualities.

It is because of the vastness of thought and its possibilities that the study of its laws is so interesting and so very complex. When a man makes a movement of his body, he at once alters the position of the ether, and sets up a stress or pressure; but when he thinks, he sets up a much more powerful stress; and when we consider the thinking which characterizes some minds, we can at once understand why they are like a rudderless boat in a stormy sea; they seem to be setting up all sorts of cross currents around them, and the result is a life of misery. When the organized thinker exercises mental power, he sets up an even stress, and, to use a simile, the wind only blows one way, and so this man is not literally devoured by his own conflicts. I do not think that any man would willingly attempt to make his life hell, when he can make it heaven to a very great extent. To show how deeply we are affected by the thoughts of others, consider a clever actress; she can play upon the feeling of her audience, move them to tears, horror, or laughter, just as she pleases, yet her mental state is only simulated; but for the time the greater number of that audience are really CONCENTRATING on the woman before them, and so are swayed by the emotions she depicts.

So I get my pupils to concentrate on what they love to begin with. That is why, as a general rule, people who take up the new thought can route poverty quicker than evil of the body. They are fairly used to sickness, etc., but they can never feel satisfied with the continual grind of poverty.

If you emit love, you will shake off that demon, hate; if you think only of success you will gain it; BUT if you give your heart to these things only you will succeed for a time only. Bear in mind that the voice of the Spirit must be obeyed also, and that before you can achieve earthly happiness you must be equally advanced in both spiritual and material things.

Man is mechanical, and his development to a certain plane is also mechanical, but after that the mind man holds full sway, and we can become just what our minds conceive, ordered only by such laws of nature as are part of our being, and intended for our general enfoldment. It is true, as mental science claims, that we can overcome evil and substitute good, but we can never be quite free from nature’s laws, and the very mistakes we make are prime factors in our mental development.

In the previous lessons we have been chiefly concerned with the projection of thought in a concentrated form, and passing on to the consideration of personal and creative magnetism, we will investigate the methods of concentrating our forces within.

That is to say, instead of projecting our thought outward to either convey a message, bring back an answer, or to attract certain affinities we desire from the infinite, we are now thinking of turning our thought forces inwards, and must contrive to do so in such a manner that no outward radiation takes place whatever.

I am assuming the student to be aware that all force comes from within, and that all spirit is also within; that I to say, there is no need to “prospect” outside the self. Within your own physical body are contained all your psychic forces, and also your spiritual body, whilst locked up in the memory of the past are all the teachings of spirit, all knowledge of life and so-called death, of love, of truth, of power, all that has ever been – you know it all; you have but to unlock the memory of past births and you will speedily find that before you is a store of knowledge such as you never imagined possible before.

To a certain extent we are ordered by destiny, yet so far as the general events of each incarnation are concerned we are alone responsible for them. Each man and woman is a power in them, possessing all the potentiality of divinity. They need not seek for light from without; they have it all within themselves.

This is the most difficult lesson the student has to learn; it is curious that he may read it in hundreds of books, be told it by as many teachers, but until he has arrived at a certain stage of development he cannot realize the fact for what it is worth.

This method of inward concentration is the most precious of all and the most important. The processes I have indicated in previous lessons appertain more to the acquirement of material things than spiritual, but this method applies more nearly to the realm of spirit.

I do not wish to be misunderstood. All thought, as all progress, comes from within, but under certain circumstances you project that thought, and under certain other circumstances it is turned inward, so that all the light of your reason is concentrated upon your soul.

When we project our thoughts we send them outside ourselves, maybe to travel on some mission, or to heal the sick, to carry a message to a friend, or any other material object, good in itself, but not always of the highest piritual benefit – to the thinker. If you will look at Fig. I (Lesson 5) you will see the method involved. The outermost circle may be regarded as the limit of the brain; of course, meaning the machine, not the force generated.


( Fig I -Lesson 5 – Not Shown )

 

This circle I have marked “B.” “A” is the physical heart, the altar of the etheric centers of the body (according to the Rosicrucian teachings). Now the rays of thought, instead of being projected outwards, are turned directly inwards to the heart, and these rays, or vibrations, follow the direction of “B” to “A,” instead of from “A” to “B.” So that, like a dark lantern, there is nothing to be seen from outside, all the light is concentrated within.

As in the ordinary form of concentration, do not try too much at first. This is even more trying than the other, because, unless a very ardent student of the occult, it is less interesting. At the same time, where true progress is desire it is absolutely necessary.

As long as we learn from books and from lessons we are but novitiates, and the knowledge we obtain is second hand at best, but once we have really learnt how to concentrate we no longer remain in the outer temple, we are no longer dependent upon others, we know for ourselves. Study the foregoing diagram well; then, having gotten the idea firmly in your mind, sit down quietly and turn your thought inwards as I have described.

I find that pupils are more likely to achieve results if they use some word or words in their concentration, and suggest the following: breathe deeply, but perfectly evenly and without effort, do not attempt to count the breathing, nor to hold it any length of time; let the whole process be quite natural and not forced. Deep breathing, that is to say from the abdomen, or rather from behind it, from the solar plexus, has a most curious and direct effect upon all efforts in the way of concentration, clairvoyance and kindred powers of spirit.

As you breathe in, think; think, with every particle of your brain, “Love,” or “Wisdom,” “Life,” “Divinity,” but you must think it up with all your mind and continue to do so until you have taken it in its entirety. You must soak it in, and when you have got it, keep fast hold, and do not ever relinquish.

When you think these words you are gradually molding yourselves into these conditions. Perhaps the best word of all is “Power”; it means so much, but you must clearly realize what you do mean, and you must not take up any side issues, nor let our thoughts wander from the inward focus I have described. That is why I gave the other forms of concentration first, because they are easier to master, and prepare the student for the heavier task now under discussion. Remember that your thought can mold your body, and that as you think so you will become, so that when you stop for ten minutes or longer in the contemplation of your prospective power, wisdom and love, you are actually growing into these things, and as long as you think them intelligently you are bound to become them.

Now when you have accomplished this matter, try a little farther; but although you take all the lessons at once, you cannot do both these exercises at once, and you simply must take one step at a time.

Sit as before, breathe evenly; now ask a question, make your mind blank, and listen for the answer. You will get a clear message in perhaps a month or two. Do not be impatient, you cannot hurry this thing; just listen as if you were waiting for a human voice to speak to you. Listen intently, and at last you will get an answer, either directly or an impression.

It is very difficult for some people to make the brain a blank, and it is not at all easy to teach the process. I think, however, that the best way is to take it by degrees. Try to kill all thought for a minute at a time, gradually increasing the time, from day to day. In this way you obtain perfect control of your brain machine. You can eliminate thought altogether or think on any chosen subject at will, and you must not despair if you do not gain immediate results. You cannot possibly learn in a second, it takes time, and the longer you take to acquire your knowledge the more thorough it will be, and the results more lasting.


HOW TO WEAVE THOUGHT CURRENTS



LESSON VI

 

THERE are two distinct aims in the attainment of the power of concentration: First, to mold the consciousness into a new and better state; second, to attain the highest possible knowledge of things spiritual.

Remember that habit is what you desire to cultivate, so that you are able to form your body anew, and to repeat the process almost involuntarily is the chief necessity for continual and regular concentration, for the more concentrated and single your mind becomes on any particular point, the more it tends to permanency, and in the same way, if you are irregular, you tend to suppress the thought power you ought to manifest.

The cellular brain tissues are greatly changed by this process of correct thinking, and may be actually increased, whilst those that have been constructed by wrong thinking are caused to waste away. Every effort at right thought, or concentration, brings into play a new set of atoms which tend to build up the new tissues, and at the same time devour and destroy the old.

There is absolutely nothing in the all world so plastic as the brain of man. It can be molded by the will or over soul of the owner or of someone who may have influence over him, and in this way a teacher, by applying the right impulse, may bring the pupil to a higher state of mind, and help him in the process of rebuilding his physical and mental system.

When a man arrives at a state when he realizes how much his over soul can do for him he does not need a teacher to help in the molding process, but when, as very frequently happens, the spirit awakens in a man whose over soul is still more or less dormant, then is the guidance of a teacher more or less of a necessity.

Often the searcher after truth doubts his own power and divinity and so long as he doubts he will obtain little benefit from the occult. It is the poor opinion of his own powers which keeps man in the background, and also that he forgets that every moment of his life he is fashioning the future, that is to say, that all his thoughts today may take material form tomorrow, or the day after, so that each time he fails to concentrate with earnest purpose, each time he omits the daily exercise, he is postponing his future happiness.

The action of breathing deeply, which I have recommended, has the effect of quickening the circulation of the blood, and in some way acts upon the brain tissue, making sight, it the spiritual sense, hearing, and sense all more acute; and when you think some strong and positive thoughts as you breathe, it has the effect of sending this message to every part of the body, right along the nerves, arteries and blood vessels, until the whole body has taken up the chorus and is full of the power of your thought. Here again the value of concentration comes in; a decided message sent along your physical telegraph wire reaches the point at once and makes a firm and decided record, whilst a weak thought has no such effect. So that if you seek to overcome some bodily ill, get a clear grasp of the part that needs renovation, and then turn all your thought force inwards and send a strong message to that part.

“I am strong, I am well, I am divine. All is life, and in my thought and mind dwells infinite life. I am making my future all along the line, and that future shall be perfection. I am invincible, nothing can harm me, and it is my intention to manifest my power right now in my body.”

Do not say these words like a parrot; think of all they mean, think of all they put behind you, and of all they open up before you. You are making your future now, Now, and when you sit in concentration you are weaving your own fate – good, bad, or indifferent.

Having learnt how to concentrate for a few minutes at a time, first on things mundane, then on the more difficult phases of spirit, make a habit of devoting a short time daily to the contemplation of your future prospects. When you begin to know the peace and calm which falls upon you after sitting in this concentration, you will begin to value it accordingly; at first it soon wears off, but as your mind becomes more and more organized so will the results last longer, and the time will come when you can take this infinite peace with you wherever you go, take it with you and bestow it upon others.

In the natural course of events all the thought force, which I am asking you to conserve, is wasted, and so you achieve little success in either business or any other matter. When you desire business success you must concentrate all your thought force upon the matter that must succeed, and you must then name it aloud; in your thought, see it a success, and the expect that success to manifest.

Now having done that, begin to weave your thought into power currents. See these currents traveling to the object and surrounding it on every side, until it is bathed in powerful currents of thought force which are more powerful and can travel faster than a flash of lightening, and are more deadly in execution than a strong electric battery; these in their turn act as magnets and attract all the good forces in other people who are brought into contact with the matter in hand, and they in their turn do all they can to foster its success. You many ask how to weave the thought current I have spoken of.


( Diagram not shown )

 

I strongly advise the use of the imagination to aid in this. The first ingredient is the power to concentrate; the second is to see in your imagination, your mind machine producing and generating a very fine and subtle fluid, full of this marvelous power; then, of course, you project it as directed in the first lesson, and let it follow the course given in the above diagram. “A” is the brain, “B” is the thought force that travels on its journey through the ether, and “C” is the object you desire to enfold with this mighty current of living mind stuff.

Perform this exercise two or three times a day, and you will never fail, that is to say, as soon as you have got your brain into a sufficiently organized condition to carry out your orders. This ought to be the case in about two or three months, if you follow these lessons implicitly. You see, it is not a case of miracles, but simply as system of organized education, and the results are as sure as the Tower or London.

Always regard thought as a substance. You can conceive very easily of the effect a flash of lightning would have if it played around any given object for a time, or better still, you know well the effect a current of magnetism has upon a bar of iron, and as I have told you again and again, your thought is more powerful than any of these things, and when you play it in the right condition around any given object, then you produce the same results; for as the flow of magnetism produces what it knows as induction that is to say, the transference of a magnetic or electric state from an electrified body to a non-electrified body, by proximity without contact.), so your
thought force inducts its etheric substance into what ever you choose to play it upon. The analogies between the science of electricity, and, indeed, the whole realm of physics and the noumenal world of thought and spirit are curious, and the more one investigates the more certain it appears that the same laws govern both.


PERSONAL MAGNETISM – THE MAGNETIC WILL



LESSON VII

 

THESE papers would not be prefect without some reference to the method of concentration used by the Indian adepts, who acquire the habit ONLY BY DEVOTING A LIFETIME TO THE STUDY. We in the West have not the time for this, nor do I think we shall benefit very much by the various methods of “killing thought” advocated by those who wish merely to make the mind blank to receive inspirational communications from what is the “unknown,” but I know that we can make our mind blank without any particular effort if we will not attempt to do too much at first; and we must also remember that strong healthy bodies are necessities for those who would take up the concentrating methods with any zest, for when we hold our mind to any given subject for any length of time, the grosser atoms of thought which have traveled to the spot or object concentrated upon, sink down back to the original starting place – in fact they filter away, and their place is taken by finer particles, causing a great mental strain upon the thinker, and unless there is strong health to back up the nervous strain, madness, or brain fever would be the result, but as long as the health is all right concentration will benefit, and not harm the student. Grow to the practice gradually, and you will gain all you need, and find all efforts crowned with success.

It is not at all a bad plan to use a glass bowl of water when concentrating. Fix the desire in mind, and try to see the words spell out in the bowl; this method helps to fix the attention, and if a bowl of water is not handy, try a pencil and a piece of paper; the idea is simply to convey the message to the brain, through the retina of the eye, for this holds the image as does the sensitive plate used by the photographer.

Sit when most convenient – it is almost impossible to have any fixed time. In any course of lessons written for general use it is almost impossible to give just the information needed by each individual, and if my pupils will explain their personal difficulties they will help me and themselves, for I will gladly write a full reply to all their requirement upon receipt of 2s. 6d. to cover time and stationary.

The following brief rules may be remembered:

If you want money, see it coming to you; let your concentration be general; have faith; expect what you want to come to you

If you have ill health, do not think of the particular disease, which may trouble you, but concentrate all your attention upon the acquirement of perfect health; do no let any other idea come into your mind for the time being; say, “I AM WELL, PERFECT HEALTH IS MINE, pure vital blood flows through my veins, I am a perfect manifestation of the All Good, and in every part of my body there is nothing but life and live.” I have found this statement to bring relief even in the most obstinate cases, and it seldom fails. Talk nothing but health, sleep, dream, and EAT it, and you will very soon manifest it, for if people talked health half as assiduously as they discuss their pet ailments, the doctor would have to find a new profession!

Do you think that because you have not immediate health that you are making a false statement; you are, by your mental attitude, preparing the “TOMORROW,” and so the statement is true, for if you say “I will be well,” instead of “I am well,” your are postponing the harvest of your thought.

If your trouble should be some great sorrow let your statement run thus: –I AM LOVE, LOVE FILLS MY BOY, AND I AM FULL OF THE GLORIOUS AND JOYOUS RADIANCE ONLY LOVE CAN EMIT. ALL IS GOOD, AND I AM HAPPY.” Do not say this once but dozens of times, and allow the statement to sink in until you become the image of your ideal.

In time you will become as radiant as the love you profess, and when this takes place you will find the world all right without any further effort on your part.

Now I intend passing on to the subject of “Personal Magnetism,” and the question naturally arises. What is Personal Magnetism?

Followed by the equally pertinent demand. What are its uses?

Personal Magnetism is really many things. First it is organized will power; secondly it is health; thirdly it is the ability to amalgamate the will power and health, and aided by the desire to “obtain” certain objects, to so project the subtle and highly potent magnetic force thus generated in the body, as to attract people and circumstances – it means that every man and woman can become natural magnet they will persevere in their efforts to develop this force.

As for its uses, they are many.

This magnetic force is powerful to heal the sick, the greatest use which, in my opinion, it can be put.

It enables the man or woman who possesses it to attract or repel at will, or to draw to themselves SUCCESS, MONEY, FAME, POWER, HAPPINESS (if they use it wisely)!

Animal magnetism, then, is a very subtle substance filling the entire universe.

It is subtler than ether, just as the ether is subtler than air, and air than water.

As the vibrations of the ether permit light to travel, and the vibrations of the air sound, so the vibrations of the animal magnetism permit and cause other phenomena.

This vibratory substance is sometimes called “od”or “odylic force,” but I prefer the term animal or personal magnetism, because it is so much simpler and easier to understand, whether it is to be used as a healing agent or for any other purpose.

Every magnet has a positive and negative pole (the poles are situated at the two ends of an elongated magnet. These terms are generally accepted to mean – “Positive”-MORE, STRONGER, “Negative” – LESS, OR WEAKER. The first law of Magnetism is that like Magnet poles repel one another, and unlike Magnetic poles attract.

So the positive attracts the negative, the negative the positive, the strong the weak.

In man, the Magnet, his body and mind represent the two poles; we are taught by Helen Wilmans.

The BODY is the negative pole, MIND OR THOUGHT POWER the positive. The positive mind, the mind that has been made familiar with its own unlimited power, can attract to itself, by an ordinary reasoning process Animal Magnetism, and increase and store this force for everyday use, and generate it according to necessity.

It is intimately associated with your will power, your brain, your thought but for the cultivation you must follow the exercises give in a later lesson, and you will attain real life will throw off your years, off your cares, and gain such health and success as you desire – and more!

The recognition of Universal Intelligence is essential.

I want you to become strong Individually, to rest upon the knowledge of your own power; but do not forget this same power is but the reflected glory of the one Light, the center of all things.

It is the custom of many teachers of Metaphysics to assert that a personal God is impossible, that God is an essence, and does not possess a persona