Tell me your thoughts about "The Secret"

[KarenB]

I was speaking to a family member while on vacation this past week. She was talking about "The Secret" and the Power of Attraction, making a list, and the positive things that have changed for her. What do you think about all of this? I want (and need) to know more.

Please share your thoughts and experiences about The Secret!

Thanks,
Karen

 

[Diva of Dragons]

I have been studying this and similar things for years. "The Secret" is just the tip of the iceberg and that's where the misconceptions about it come from. You have go deeper than what is presented in "The Secret". It is meant to be an introduction to the "Law of Attraction".

Basically, it talks about the fact that what we think about, expect, and focus on in life, we get. It's not just about positive thinking. I recommend the DVD but, I also recommend the "Law of Attraction" DVDs by Abraham-Hicks and "You Can Heal Your Life" DVD by Louise Hay. Also, the book "Science of Mind" by Ernest Holmes and writings by Ralph Waldo Emmerson. And there plenty of other teachings out there. It does take a little time to fully grasp it.

I think this whole frame of thought gets a bad rap as being "New Age", yet its principles are thousands of years old and appear in the Bible, all over the place. The problem is that eventually religious dogma took over and self-empowering spirituality was villified, as the "church" and government sought to control the masses.

All that being said.....I absolutely know it works. I can see how I have attracted all the positive and not so fun things I have experienced in my life, and the lessons they have taught me. I have known people who used the principles, in various forms, and were cured from "incurable" illnesses (Lupus & Cancer), transformed their finances and relationships etc...

I also know people who insist on bemoaning and loathing themselves, others, and life and keep attracting more things to hate into their lives. Then they say, "See, life sucks." And, they're happy they have been proven right.

I think it's better to watch "The Secret" than read it, and go from there.

Feel free to PM me if you want to chat about it.

 

[Imzadi]

I have been studying this and similar things for years. "The Secret" is just the tip of the iceberg and that's where the misconceptions about it come from. You have go deeper than what is presented in "The Secret".

I studied these kinds of concepts too, years ago. Diva of Dragons must have grown up around the same time, during the "New Age" movement for a new consciousness. Yes, it did get a bad, undeserved rep. It really amazes me that people are thinking all this stuff is new. But, I guess every generation has it's time to bring this into consciousness and it is new for them. Oprah has been a spear head for that. But it does irk me sometimes because it is presented like this is new and Oprah found it, and it's not. It's centuries old.

If you really want to get into The Law of Attraction mentality, you need more than one book, video or tape. It's not a quick-fix process, though it's been coming off that way. You really need to embody it in your whole life & in your whole out-look on life. This way of thinking has to become your way of life. That's when your life begins to "lift off."

I was explaining on another thread about reserving the book, "A New Earth" (instead of a new age,) at the library. There were 342 people on the reserve list. When it it finally was available for me, and they placed it on the reserve shelf with my name on it, I wasn't able to pick it up for a couple of days.

Someone else must have seen it on the shelf & stole the book! It's computer coded, so no one else can check out someone else's reserved book. Luckily, I knew a lot of the concepts already. This was just going to be review for me.

I thought it was funny because stealing the book goes against some of the principles the book was trying to teach: Give up your need for material possessions!

The librarian & I thought, that person must have needed to book more than me. So I was able to let go of the need to have that book then.

Other great books along these concepts are the classic primers, Creative Visualization and Living in the Light, both by Shakti Gawain.

And I agree with You Can Heal Your Life, by Louise Hay. It is excellent in terms of how your thought can heal your body.

With that way of thinking, Louise almost single-handedly, radically change the face of the AIDS epidemic among gays and how they deal with it. Getting AIDS back then was almost immediately an instant death sentence. While they were being shunted everywhere, Louise taught them self-love and how radically change their thinking to LIVE with AIDS rather than die from it.

Louise Hay also has a great tape, The Totality of Possibilities. I'd listen to that before The Secret. That tape has to be about 18 years old. I finally got a CD copy of it, and I STILL listen to it all the time. Now, it is so soothing, and affirming.

Then Louise went on to create the #1 publishing company in the world for self-help books. Then she has created hayhouseradio.com which are inspirational free podcasts at: http://www.hayhouseradio.com

It's packed with very inspiring 1 hour radio podcasts from various, famous self-help authors she publishes. Some of them are a bit out there, (depending on your beliefs,) but my favorite best-selling authors there are: Dr. Wayne Dyer, Debbie Ford (who was on Oprah several times and one of my favorite people in this genre,) Cheryl Richardson (also on Oprah,) and Marianne Williamson. (I'm reading her book, The Age of Miracles, now,) and Caroline Myss.

Join for free, (they send no spam) and then check out the archives for the different hosts/authors & their podcasts. There are so many, it will keep you in podcasts and affirming this mentality for quite some time. I find that when I'm able to listen to one of these podcasts a week, the experience of my entire week is different.

Marianne Williamson is also big in this realm. She is one of my all-time favorite lecturers & authors. Her audio tapes on healing money issues has been phenomenal. She cuts to the heart of situations, teaching from her very personal experiences.

Oh yeah, there's also The Celestine Prophecy. You can get that from the library. It's one of those books, you need to have read yesterday. It's so insightful. You'll learn how concepts or "laws" build on one another and why you can't do just one law.

 

[msmouse]

All of my life I have been taught that "opposites attract". That has always confused me about the Law of Attraction. Can someone explain that to me?

 

[alldiz]

All of my life I have been taught that "opposites attract". That has always confused me about the Law of Attraction. Can someone explain that to me?

It's basically the power of positive thinking
Kerri

 

[violetshelby]

Wow Imzadi and Diva of Dragons, Interesting stuff and perfect timing for me. I have just completed treatment for breast cancer and I am now going through some stressfull marital problems. I read and finished the Secret about a week ago and It really spoke to me. My attitude and mood has already changed for the better and I can't wait to learn more.
I went out and purchased How to heal your life By Louise Hay and have started to read that, and yesterday I got The power of intenion By Dr. Wayne Dyer. I can't wait to learn more. I really feel a kind of peace right now knowing my life if only going to get better from this point on.

I am now off to look up the Hay house radio website. Thank you.

 

[Robinrs]

It's not just simply the power of positive thinking... though positivity is a major part of it. It concerns the ideal that what you speak of and think of is what you BRING to your life.

The bible says that the power of life and death is in the tongue. We speak our conditions and our blessings.

I put the Secret to my life DAILY. I just put together my board of things I want yesterday! The list of things I am grateful for is on my wall in my bedroom. I've seen this work so many times I cannot tell you.

Take the basic precepts and utilize them. Sure, some people need lots of proof and readings and statistics to believe in something... I use one word.. FAITH. As a youth I overcompensated and overread and over studied everything... it leads to doubt and double mindedness. Don't ask PEOPLE for your needs and help, use the basics and just believe.

It's amazing how it works!

 

[Imzadi]

It isn't just positive thinking. You can attract negative to you too, if you aren't careful & conscious of what you think. That's why you can't just study one principle or law, or part of a principle or law. You may miss a lot of how the principles work together, then say this stuff doesn't work. It's like that old cliche (that isn't a cliche after all): Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it.

Thoughts are energy period. Ideas are energy. Just as the light from a light bulb is energy. Even look at this smilie -->
The image used for an idea is in the form of a light bulb --> energy.

The very simplified version is: Everything is a form of energy. Even a rock is energy. The whole universe is made up of energy in one form or another. (Remember what Obi Wan Kenobe said about The Force? It's an energy field.) You are your thoughts. You are your ideas. You are your energy. Your soul is energy. Before anything manifests in physical energy form, a thought (energy) had to happen first to make it. If you believe in a God, even God had to think of a you first, in order to make you in the next instant.

If you understand your thoughts are energy and the universe is energy. You can use your energy to attract other energy to you. In fact you always attract energy to you (both good & bad.) You just might not be aware of it. And you might not understand how the varying forces & laws of the universe work.

That's why the bibliography of books Diva & I mentioned early really help to break the concepts down & understand it.

BTW, there are a lot of people who will say this stuff doesn't work. That's their thought. That's their energy. That creates their experience. Their thoughts & experiences becomes their beliefs. And their beliefs control the different energies which are attracted & repelled. So their beliefs and their energy create more experiences which become their Reality. It all builds upon each other, yet it's all circular at the same time.

 

[Imzadi]

I am have just completed treatment for breast cancer and I am now going through some stressfull marital problems. I am now off to look up the Hay house radio website. Thank you.

Your welcome. One of Louise's favorite sayings is,"If people think our thoughts can't affect our body, they haven't had a sexual fantasy."

There's a great cancer support group here on the DIS, if you didn't know.

I've seen this work so many times I cannot tell you.

Don't ask PEOPLE for your needs and help, use the basics and just believe.

It's amazing how it works!

I've seen this work many times too.

Yes, the point of learning the principles isn't so you can just get material abundance. That's a wonderful great thing to have.

You can't do very much when you are powerless, in a place of scarcity & lack. Instead of just being a passenger in this journey of life, (or a victim,) harness the energy to help yourself, your loved ones & the universe.

It's more about becoming a more conscious, self-actualizing person (or soul.) You are here for a reason. You are part of all the universal energy for a reason - yet are unique in all the universe- for a reason.

You may not get to choose everything that happens to you. You do get to decide how you want to experience it.

 

[DisTeach1]

Okay, maybe someone can address this...How, as a Christian, do you apply this in in your life? When you are supposed to "let go and let God" and "God's will be done". How does that go along with the Law of Attraction?

Also, do you think Wayne Dwyer also talks about the Law of Attraction? I always thought so, but I found it interesting that he wasn't mentioned or quoted in the Secret.

 

[DreaminDisney]

I've seen this work many times too.

Yes, the point of learning the principles isn't so you can just get material abundance. That's a wonderful great thing to have.

You can't do very much when you are powerless, in a place of scarcity & lack. Instead of just being a passenger in this journey of life, (or a victim,) harness the energy to help yourself, your loved ones & the universe.

It's more about becoming a more conscious, self-actualizing person (or soul.) You are here for a reason. You are part of all the universal energy for a reason - yet are unique in all the universe- for a reason.

You may not get to choose everything that happens to you. You do get to decide how you want to experience it.

Well said!

I just wanted to add another good book on this is "Quantum Success" which is based on the principle of quantum physics.

I noticed a change in my life when my attitude changed. When I wanted a job so much and finally let go of the desperation for it is when I got it.

I also know the energy of appreciation in very stong too

 

[Robinrs]

Okay, maybe someone can address this...How, as a Christian, do you apply this in in your life? When you are supposed to "let go and let God" and "God's will be done". How does that go along with the Law of Attraction?

We discuss this in my bible study. Lots of the precepts are biblical. When you hear the word "universe" replace it with who YOU find as your holy leader. I've taught my son to say God when the Secret says "universe".

Yes, we are supposed to let go and let God... but we have a job to do, too. We were given free will to believe or to NOT believe. He says "I come to the door and knock..." it is OUR job to do what it takes after that!

 

[Carly_Roach]

Okay, maybe someone can address this...How, as a Christian, do you apply this in in your life? When you are supposed to "let go and let God" and "God's will be done". How does that go along with the Law of Attraction?

Also, do you think Wayne Dwyer also talks about the Law of Attraction? I always thought so, but I found it interesting that he wasn't mentioned or quoted in the Secret.

The teachings of Jesus mirror almost exactly what The Secret teaches. People have a hard time following His teachings and matching them to The Secret because they're using other people's interpretations of His word rather than interpreting it themselves using their own internal guidance system.

Jesus taught "turn the other cheek" and "forgive 70 times 7". He taught us to be as little children and have faith that everything is going to work out. He taught that revenge harms you more than it harms the one you want revenge on. The Secret, as well as Jesus' teachings, is all about letting go of other people's ideas and thoughts and focusing on your inner God (or Source, or whatever name you want to give it) and living your life based on that amazing goodness that we are all born with.

Of course, there's much more to it and this is only my interpretation of it. You have to find your own way. Follow the bibliography given by Imzadi and apply your own life experience to what you will learn. If you allow others to tell you how you should feel or what you should think about it, then you've missed the point of The Secret entirely.

 

[Carly_Roach]

I noticed a change in my life when my attitude changed. When I wanted a job so much and finally let go of the desperation for it is when I got it.

YES!!! You've got it! When we release resistance, that's when great things start happening!

Congrats on your new job!!!

 

[DisTeach1]

Yes, but okay, maybe I'm looking at this wrong...Isn't part of The Secret about focusing on something you want, thinking positively about it, writing about it, etc. What if what you want is not within God's plan...How do you reconcile that?

 

[breezy1077]

The Secret can get a bit "corny" at some parts, but that's only to emphasize a point IMO.

I like the fact that, if nothing else, it raises peoples level of thinking - a key componant if "you're" in sales.

The other aspect I like, is that it opens peoples eyes to the opportunities that they might otherwise be blind to. I've always believed that everyone is presented with opportunities in life - but you have to recognize them as they come to you - and then take advantage of them.

Good Luck - one thing I can tell you is that it can't hurt to try it.

 

[Carly_Roach]

Yes, but okay, maybe I'm looking at this wrong...Isn't part of The Secret about focusing on something you want, thinking positively about it, writing about it, etc. What if what you want is not within God's plan...How do you reconcile that?

I can't interpret for other people or what they think God's plan is for them. I can only interpret for myself. What I believe happens would be something along the lines of this (and, once again, this is oversimplifying it):

I want a shiny new red Saturn Skye. I really want it. I want it so bad I can taste it. I'd be very happy with this car. I'd enjoy driving it. I'd feel good every time I saw it in the garage. This is my car and it's coming to me.

I've learned that getting my shiny new red Saturn Skye isn't really what I want to be after. It's the feeling of the shiny new red Saturn Skye that triggers the receiving of this or something better. The fantasizing about it, the imagining I'm driving it right now, the happiness I receive from dreaming about how I'm going to feel behind the wheel of my shiny new red Saturn Skye.

As Disney fans, we should all understand this feeling. We get it every time we plan a trip to WDW! Don't most people say the planning is 1/2 the fun? This is why! It's the looking forward to it that triggers the feelings of happiness and anticipation. I'm willing to bet that the rest of people's lives become so much happier when they're planning a Disney trip. It's because they've released whatever it was that was bothering them and are concentrating on something that makes them feel good. Everything else just magically seems to fall into place when they do that.

But if I insist that ONLY the Saturn Sky would do, and it must be red, and it must be this exact make and model, it MUST come to me at this exact time at this exact place in this exact method, then it's likely I'm not going to get my car and I'll blame God for not answering my prayers. I can't see that I'm closing myself off to a better plan that God may have for me.

Which may be a shiny, almost new, red last year's model of the Saturn Skye that's well within my monetary grasp at this point.

I'm not sure if that answered your question, Teach. It's more about feelings than words.

 

[beckmrk04]

I have read the Secret and watched the DVD, and it started a whole process of exploration for me. The teachings really resonated with me, as far as changing my thoughts and my beliefs about MY situation.

I was thoroughly surprised when I started reading "A New Earth" by Eckhart Tolle (a book I highly reccommend), and I saw so many of the teachings in there echoing some of the things based on the Law of Attraction (i.e.- "thoughts are energy," "what you resist persists").

And my whole thought process is this: these books speak to me. I really feel that these books hold the answer to helping me change my life. And practicing the lessons in these books make me feel better. I feel happier, and less negative. I feel grateful for what I have, instead of a negative longing or unhappiness with what I don't have.

It can't hurt to live a more grateful life. It can't hurt to change your thoughts to more positive thoughts. It can't hurt to focus on the present, instead of wallowing in the past or worrying about the future. These are things I have learned from these books.

 

[Diva of Dragons]

Yes, but okay, maybe I'm looking at this wrong...Isn't part of The Secret about focusing on something you want, thinking positively about it, writing about it, etc. What if what you want is not within God's plan...How do you reconcile that?

Carly_Roach said it well! What is effective is focusing on the experience you are seeking. Where "let go, let God" comes is in not defining the specific form in which these desires are met.

DH and I are Feng Shui consultants and we have seen many successes using this technique. For example: If you are miserable in your job, instead of focusing on wanting a new job, out of desperation, focus on the attributes you want your job to contain and write them down.....

*My work is mentally, emotionally, and spiritually fulfilling.
*My co-workers and I have mutual respect for eachother.
*My workplace has a family, team oriented atmosphere.
*My work supports all of my financial needs and goals...etc...

Very often, what happens is not that the person gets a new job, but the actual conditions change at their present job; like the boss leaves, or they get a promotion. Sometimes, the person gets laid off, only to have another, much better opportunity fall into their lap. If you have consciously set a change in motion, the key is not to freak when the lay-off happens but thank it, knowing something better is coming.

 

[Diva of Dragons]

All of my life I have been taught that "opposites attract". That has always confused me about the Law of Attraction. Can someone explain that to me?

Maybe, but "birds of a feather flock together"!