The World Reflects Our Mental States

What you are, so is your world. Everything in the universe is resolved into your own inward experience. It matters little what is without, for it is all a reflection of your own state of consciousness. It matters everything what you are within, for everything without will be mirrored and colored accordingly.

Your world reflects who you are. Everything in the universe comes down to your own inner experience. What is outside you matters little, because it all reflects your own state of consciousness. What you are within matters completely, because everything outside you will reflect and take its color from it.

All that you positively know is contained in your own experience; all that you ever will know must pass through the gateway of experience, and so become part of yourself.

All that you know for certain comes from your own experience. All that you will ever know must also come through experience and become part of you.

Your own thoughts, desires, and aspirations comprise your world, and, to you, all that there is in the universe of beauty and joy and bliss, or of ugliness and sorrow and pain, is contained within yourself. By your own thoughts you make or mar your life, your world, your universe. As you build within by the power of thought, so will your outward life and circumstances shape themselves accordingly. Whatsoever you harbor in the inmost chambers of your heart will, sooner or later by the inevitable law of reaction, shape itself in your outward life. The soul that is impure, sordid and selfish, is gravitating with unerring precision toward misfortune and catastrophe; the soul that is pure, unselfish, and noble is gravitating with equal precision toward happiness and prosperity. Every soul attracts its own, and nothing can possibly come to it that does not belong to it. To realize this is to recognize the universality of Divine Law. The incidents of every human life, which both make and mar, are drawn to it by the quality and power of its own inner thought-life. Every soul is a complex combination of gathered experiences and thoughts, and the body is but an improvised vehicle for its manifestation. What, therefore, your thoughts are, that is your real self; and the world around, both animate and inanimate, wears the aspect with which your thoughts clothe it. “All that we are is the result of what we have thought. It is founded on our thoughts; it is made up of our thoughts.” Thus said Buddha, and it therefore follows that if a man is happy, it is because he dwells in happy thoughts; if miserable, because he dwells in despondent and debilitating thoughts, Whether one be fearful or fearless, foolish or wise, troubled or serene, within that soul lies the cause of its own state or states, and never without. And now I seem to hear a chorus of voices exclaim, “But do you really mean to say that outward circumstances do not affect our minds?” I do not say that, but I say this, and know it to be an infallible truth, that circumstances can only affect you in so far as you allow them to do so. You are swayed by circumstances because you have not a right understanding of the nature, use, and power of thought. You believe (and upon this little word belief hang all our sorrows and joys) that outward things have the power to make or mar your life; by so doing you submit to those outward things, confess that you are their slave, and they your unconditional master; by so doing, you invest them with a power which they do not, of themselves, possess, and you succumb, in reality, not to the mere circumstances, but to the gloom or gladness, the fear or hope, the strength or weakness, which your thought-sphere has thrown around them.

Your own thoughts, desires, and aspirations make up your world. For you, all the beauty, joy, and bliss in the universe, or all its ugliness, sorrow, and pain, lies within yourself. Through your thoughts, you make or ruin your life, your world, your universe. Your outward life and circumstances will take shape according to what you build within through the power of thought. Whatever you hold in the deepest chambers of your heart will sooner or later shape your outward life. This happens through the inevitable law of reaction. The impure, corrupt, and selfish soul moves toward misfortune and catastrophe with unfailing precision. The pure, unselfish, and noble soul moves toward happiness and prosperity with equal precision. Every soul attracts what belongs to it, and nothing can possibly come to it that does not belong to it. To realize this is to recognize that Divine Law applies everywhere. The events that make and ruin every human life are drawn to it by the quality and power of its inner thoughts. Every soul is a complex combination of accumulated experiences and thoughts. The body is only a temporary vehicle through which the soul expresses itself. Your thoughts, then, are your real self. The world around you, both living and inanimate, takes on the appearance your thoughts give it. “All that we are is the result of what we have thought. It is founded on our thoughts; it is made up of our thoughts.” So said Buddha. It follows that if a person is happy, it is because they dwell on happy thoughts. If they are miserable, it is because they dwell on hopeless and weakening thoughts. Whether a person is fearful or fearless, foolish or wise, troubled or serene, the cause always lies within their soul, never outside it. And now I seem to hear a chorus of voices exclaim, “But do you really mean to say that outward circumstances do not affect our minds?” I do not say that. But I do say this, and know it to be an infallible truth: circumstances can affect you only as much as you allow them to. You are swayed by circumstances because you do not rightly understand the nature, use, and power of thought. You believe that outward things have the power to make or ruin your life. All our sorrows and joys hang on this little word, belief. By believing this, you submit to outward things. You admit that you are their slave and that they are your unconditional master. You give outward things a power they do not possess in themselves. In reality, you give in not to the circumstances themselves, but to the feelings your thoughts have cast around them. These may be gloom or gladness, fear or hope, strength or weakness.

I knew two men who, at an early age, lost the hard-earned savings of years. One was very deeply troubled, and gave way to chagrin, worry, and despondency. The other, on reading in his morning paper that the bank in which his money was deposited had hopelessly failed, and that he had lost all, quietly and firmly remarked, “Well, it’s gone, and trouble and worry won’t bring it back, but hard work will.” He went to work with renewed vigor, and rapidly became prosperous, while the former man, continuing to mourn the loss of his money, and to grumble at his “bad luck,” remained the sport and tool of adverse circumstances, in reality of his own weak and slavish thoughts. The loss of money was a curse to the one because he clothed the event with dark and dreary thoughts; it was a blessing to the other, because he threw around it thoughts of strength, of hope, and renewed endeavor.

I knew two men who lost years of hard-earned savings at an early age. One was deeply troubled and gave in to frustration, worry, and despair. The other read in his morning paper that his bank had failed completely and he had lost everything. He said quietly and firmly, “Well, it’s gone, and worry won’t bring it back, but hard work will.” He returned to work with renewed energy and quickly became prosperous. The first man, however, kept mourning his lost money and complaining about his “bad luck.” He remained at the mercy of difficult circumstances, though he was really at the mercy of his own weak, slavish thoughts. Losing money was a curse to the first man because he surrounded the event with dark and gloomy thoughts. It was a blessing to the other because he met it with thoughts of strength, hope, and renewed effort.

If circumstances had the power to bless or harm, they would bless and harm all men alike, but the fact that the same circumstances will be alike good and bad to different souls proves that the good or bad is not in the circumstance, but only in the mind of him that encounters it. When you begin to realize this you will begin to control your thoughts, to regulate and discipline your mind, and to rebuild the inward temple of your soul, eliminating all useless and superfluous material, and incorporating into your being thoughts alone of joy and serenity, of strength and life, of compassion and love, of beauty and immortality; and as you do this you will become joyful and serene, strong and healthy, compassionate and loving, and beautiful with the beauty of immortality.

If circumstances had the power to bless or harm, they would bless or harm everyone alike. But the same circumstances can be good for one person and bad for another. This proves that the good or bad lies not in the circumstances, but in the mind of the person facing them. When you begin to realize this, you will begin to control your thoughts and discipline your mind. You will rebuild the inner temple of your soul, removing all useless and unnecessary material. You will fill your being only with thoughts of joy and serenity, strength and life, compassion and love, beauty and immortality. As you do this, you will become joyful and serene, strong and healthy, compassionate and loving, and beautiful with the beauty of immortality.

And as we clothe events with the drapery of our own thoughts, so likewise do we clothe the objects of the visible world around us, and where one sees harmony and beauty, another sees revolting ugliness. An enthusiastic naturalist was one day roaming the country lanes in pursuit of his hobby, and during his rambles came upon a pool of brackish water near a farmyard. As he proceeded to fill a small bottle with the water for the purpose of examination under the microscope, he dilated, with more enthusiasm than discretion, to an uncultivated son of the plough who stood close by, upon the hidden and innumerable wonders contained in the pool, and concluded by saying, “Yes, my friend, within this pool is contained a hundred, nay, a million universes, had we but the sense or the instrument by which we could apprehend them.” And the unsophisticated one ponderously remarked, “I know the water be full o’ tadpoles, but they be easy to catch.”

Just as we dress events in our own thoughts, we do the same with the visible objects around us. Where one person sees harmony and beauty, another sees disgusting ugliness. One day, an enthusiastic naturalist was roaming country lanes in pursuit of his hobby. During his walk, he came upon a pool of brackish water near a farmyard. He began filling a small bottle with water to examine under a microscope. A farm worker with little education stood nearby. The naturalist spoke to him at length about the countless hidden wonders in the pool, with more enthusiasm than discretion. He concluded, “Yes, my friend, this pool contains a hundred, or even a million universes, if only we had the sense or the instrument to perceive them.” The simple man ponderously remarked, “I know the water be full of tadpoles, but they be easy to catch.”

Where the naturalist, his mind stored with the knowledge of natural facts, saw beauty, harmony, and hidden glory, the mind unenlightened upon those things saw only an offensive mud-puddle.

The naturalist, with his knowledge of nature, saw beauty, harmony, and hidden glory. But someone without that knowledge saw only an unpleasant mud puddle.

The wild flower which the casual wayfarer thoughtlessly tramples upon is, to the spiritual eye of the poet, an angelic messenger from the invisible. To the many, the ocean is but a dreary expanse of water on which ships sail and are sometimes wrecked; to the soul of the musician it is a living thing, and he hears, in all its changing moods, divine harmonies. Where the ordinary mind sees disaster and confusion, the mind of the philosopher sees the most perfect sequence of cause and effect, and where the materialist sees nothing but endless death, the mystic sees pulsating and eternal life.

A traveler may thoughtlessly trample a wildflower. But to the poet’s spiritual eye, it is an angelic messenger from the invisible. To many people, the ocean is just a dreary stretch of water where ships sail and sometimes sink. To the musician’s soul, it is a living thing. In all its changing moods, the musician hears divine harmonies. Where the ordinary mind sees disaster and confusion, the philosopher’s mind sees a perfect sequence of cause and effect. Where the materialist sees nothing but endless death, the mystic sees pulsing, eternal life.

And as we clothe both events and objects with our own thoughts, so likewise do we clothe the souls of others in the garments of our thoughts. The suspicious believe everybody to be suspicious; the liar feels secure in the thought that he is not so foolish as to believe that there is such a phenomenon as a strictly truthful person; the envious see envy in every soul; the miser thinks everybody is eager to get his money; he who has subordinated conscience in the making of his wealth, sleeps with a revolver under his pillow, wrapped in the delusion that the world is full of conscienceless people who are eager to rob him, and the abandoned sensualist looks upon the saint as a hypocrite. On the other hand, those who dwell in loving thoughts, see that in all which calls forth their love and sympathy; the trusting and honest are not troubled by suspicions; the good-natured and charitable who rejoice at the good fortune of others, scarcely know what envy means; and he who has realized the Divine within himself recognizes it in all beings, even in the beasts.

Just as we cover events and objects with our own thoughts, we also cover other people's souls with them. Suspicious people believe everyone is suspicious. A liar feels secure in thinking he is not foolish enough to believe that anyone is completely truthful. Envious people see envy in every soul. A miser thinks everyone is eager to get his money. A man who has set aside his conscience to make his wealth sleeps with a revolver under his pillow. He is wrapped in the delusion that the world is full of conscienceless people eager to rob him. A person given over to sensual pleasures sees the saint as a hypocrite. On the other hand, those who dwell on loving thoughts see something in everyone that calls forth their love and sympathy. Trusting and honest people are not troubled by suspicion. Good-natured and generous people rejoice in others' good fortune and hardly know what envy means. And a person who has realized the Divine within himself recognizes it in all beings, even animals.

And men and women are confirmed in their mental outlook because of the fact that, by the law of cause and effect, they attract to themselves that which they send forth, and so come in contact with people similar to themselves. The old adage, “Birds of a feather flock together,” has a deeper significance than is generally attached to it, for in the thought-world as in the world of matter, each clings to its kind.

Men and women become more convinced of their outlook because of the law of cause and effect. They attract what they send out, and so they meet people like themselves. The old saying, “Birds of a feather flock together,” has a deeper meaning than people usually give it. For in the world of thought, as in the physical world, each clings to its own kind.

If you are one of those who are praying for, and looking forward to, a happier world beyond the grave, here is a message of gladness for you, you may enter into and realize that happy world now; it fills the whole universe, and it is within you, waiting for you to find, acknowledge, and possess. Said one who knew the inner laws of Being, “When men shall say lo here, or lo there, go not after them; the kingdom of God is within you.” What you have to do is to believe this, simply believe it with a mind unshadowed by doubt, and then meditate upon it till you understand it. You will then begin to purify and to build your inner world, and as you proceed, passing from revelation to revelation, from realization to realization, you will discover the utter powerlessness of outward things beside the magic potency of a self-governed soul.

If you are praying for and looking forward to a happier world beyond the grave, here is good news for you. You can enter and experience that happy world now. It fills the whole universe, and it is within you, waiting for you to find, acknowledge, and possess it. Someone who knew the inner laws of Being said, “When people say, look here or look there, do not follow them. The kingdom of God is within you.” You must simply believe this, with a mind free from doubt. Then meditate on it until you understand it. You will then begin to purify and build your inner world. As you go from revelation to revelation and realization to realization, you will make a discovery. You will see how utterly powerless outward things are beside the magical power of a self-governed soul.