The Science of Mind

by Ernest Holmes

  PSYCHO-ANALYSIS

  It may be necessary for the practitioner to diagnose the thought of his patient; in fact this is one of the main points in healing. This is psycho-analysis (from psyche or soul). Psycho-analysis is the analysis of the soul or subjective mind. Its teaching is, that within the soul, or subjective mind, all the seeds of our thought fall; and that most of man's physical troubles are caused by some conflict of the emotions and the will. The conscious mind, desiring certain things which it cannot have, sends into the subjective thought opposing desires, which conflict with each other and mentally tear or bind; and as they manifest in the body, they produce disease. It is claimed that seventy percent of all diseases are the results of suppressed emotions; these emotions are not necessarily sex emotions, but may be any suppressed desires. These suppressed emotions cause what are called complexes.

  It is probable that when Jesus forgave the man his sins, He realized that the man had a complex of condemnation within himself. The sense of condemnation which the race holds about itself weights it down, and it must be removed. This explains why Jesus said: "Thy sins be forgiven thee." It is feeling that hurts. The thinking man thinks things out, resolves everything into its normal parts and so avoids complexes. It has been said: "Life is a comedy to him who thinks, a tragedy to him who feels."

  The practitioner talks to his patient, shows him the Law of Mind, teaches him the way, diagnoses his thought, points out to him that certain mental attitudes produce certain physical results, teaches him how to be harmonious in his thinking, how to be at peace, how to trust and believe in the Good, lifts him up mentally and spiritually and supports his thought until he can stand alone.

  A practitioner must be filled with a spirit of Divine Compassion; he must have a deep, underlying sense of unity and sympathy, else he will do but little good; but he must not have sympathy with the disease. The only guarantee of our Divinity is in its expression through our Humanity. Consequently an enlightened soul understands the meaning of sympathy and exercises it, but not morbidly.

  DEAL ONLY WITH THOUGHTS

  In mental treatment, the practitioner deals with thoughts and does not treat bodies or conditions. He never manipulates, nor need he lay his hands on his patients. He does not hypnotize them; he does not care where they are when he is treating them, or what they are doing; for this would be a limited concept. The practitioner's work begins and ends within his own consciousness.

  NERVOUSNESS

  The thoughts to cover in nervousness are ones of peace, poise and power. There is no twitching of the nerves; there is no strain or struggle in the universe. Things move harmoniously, quietly and normally; and this action, which is the action of Life, is the truth about the one you are treating. A treatment lasts until the one treating is convinced of the truth which he states; it might last one minute or one hour, or longer.

  STAMMERING

  The treatment for stammering is one that covers the idea of correct speech. Speech is the Word of God and cannot become impaired, but must be a flow from that One Life which knows Itself to be what it is. Speech is perfect.

  ARGUMENT IN TREATMENT

  Just a word about argument in treatment; we do not argue to make principle work but to convince our own thought that it already is operating. To sum up the idea of treating, then:—you are conscious mind: your patient is conscious mind; he has thought, or is thinking, or there has been thought through him, consciously or unconsciously, an idea of imperfection. You, as conscious mind, remove this something which says that he is imperfect. The treatment begins and ends within your own mentality; it must cover the case and leave nothing to be sick, sin or die; then it will be effective. Meditation in treatment; an uplifted receptivity to Spirit will always produce good results. A deep inner sense of the unity of all life enables one to feel that the Great Conscious Mind and Spirit of the Universe, flowing through his mentality, is the Presence and the Power of an Infinite Life, Truth and Love. We should sense that back of the word which we speak is the Power of the Universe surging to express Itself. Then speak the word consciously, knowing that it is Law.

  Note: Read and carefully study "Teaching and Addresses," Edward S. Kimball; "The Law of Mind in Action," F. L. Holmes; "The Faith That Heals," F. L. Holmes; "Christian Healing," Fillmore; "Lessons in Truth," Cady; "Primary Lessons," Militz; "Outwitting Our Nerves," Jackson.

  Lesson Three: Recapitulation

  Sickness is an experience but not an Ultimate Reality; it is an effect and not a cause. The body, devoid of mentality, could neither know nor have sensation; it is entirely an effect. The body is made of the same unthinking stuff from which all Creation is formed.

  Instinctive Man is Perfect, but his individual use of Life and Law enables him to cover a perfect idea with an apparently imperfect cloak.

  Man comes into objectivity with the tendency of the race already subjectified within him, through race-suggestion. The race believes in sickness and limitation, and this suggestion is more or less operative through all people. This suggestion works through the field of the subjective state of the race thought, and will operate through any individual who is receptive to it.

  As man becomes individualized, he consciously thinks and continuously pours suggestions into his subjective thought which is the silent builder of the physical body. Through the field of subjectivity thought always works out to a logical conclusion.

  Man does not, necessarily, consciously think that he is to have a certain type of physical trouble, but the physical correspondent is a logical outcome of what he thinks.

  Disease, of itself, is neither person, place nor thing; it is an image of thought, consciously or unconsciously held somewhere in Mind and will externalize wherever it finds an avenue of operation.

  Disease is entirely mental in its origin, since no person could be sick unless he had intelligence; it is the result of thinking about, and believing in duality, or a power apart from God.

  Disease can be healed through reversing the thought and turning to the Spiritual Realization of Life. It is impossible to divorce real mental healing from true Spiritual Realization, since God is ALL.

  The use of mental argument in healing rests upon the theory that we are surrounded by a Universal Mind which reacts to our thought.

  Right mental practice is the constructive use of Mind, i.e., a mental argument given for the purpose of presenting the Spiritual Truth about man. Wrong mental practice is the destructive use of Mind, i.e., a mental argument given for the purpose of presenting a false claim about man.

  Right mental practice is called the Spirit of Christ. Wrong mental practice is called the spirit of Antichrist; it is malpractice and may or may not be consciously used. To think of any one in a negative way is some form of malpractice and is harmful. Malpractice may be ignorant, innocent or malicious. It is always some form of suggestion.

  Man is known in Mind by the name he bears, and any statement made in Mind about his name will cause some action to take place through Law towards him. This is the basis of all mental healing.

  A practitioner is one who recognizes Man as a spiritual reality. Since there is but One Mind, the practitioner does this within himself. Through the medium of the One Mind these statements rise to objective conditions in his patient, according to the practitioner's belief and according to the ability of his patient to receive the Truth. Healing is accomplished through the act of setting Subjective Law in motion. The more Spiritual or Godlike the mentality of the practitioner, the more powerful the treatment.

  A mental treatment begins and ends within the thought of the practitioner because he is in the same Mind in which his patient lives. Treatment is inducing right concepts within the subjective side of life.

  Absent and present treatments are the same; for there is no absence in the One Presence.

  One disease would be as easily healed as another if the thought were as sure of itself in one case as another.

  There is no personal responsibility in healing; the p
ractitioner directs the Power and lets It work. One does not hold thoughts in mental healing; he looses thought. A practitioner does not try to suggest, hypnotize or mentally influence; he simply knows that man is now a spiritual being and holds to that belief,—no matter what the appearance may be. Right mental treatment does not tire the one giving it.

  Personal magnetism has nothing to do with mental healing. The whole basis of the possibility of mental healing rests upon the premise that we all live in One Creative Mind which reacts to our belief. It is as though there were a Universal Ear listening to, and hearing, everything that we say, feel or think, and reacting to it.

  Healing is not a process, but a revelation; for the revealing of the perfect man always heals. The process is the time and thought that it takes to arrive at the correct understanding of man's perfect state in Spirit.

  Any one can heal who believes that he can, and who will take the time to put that belief in motion through the Law.

  To daily see the perfect man and to daily declare for his objective appearance is correct mental practice and will heal.

  A treatment recognizes that all is Mind and that everything is mental; it resolves all disease into thought; neutralizes the false thought and recognizes the true. Nothing can stop it from operating except a lack of faith in the reality of the Truth and man's ability to use It.

  In giving mental treatment the practitioner first realizes his own being as spiritual; he then recognizes the perfect state of his patient's being; then he attacks the false claim and brings the evidence of Truth to bear against it, thinking in such a manner as to completely destroy the false claim and to realize the Truth.

  Lesson Four: Introduction

  Mental Science is not a "get-rich-quick scheme," neither does it promise something for nothing. It does, however, promise the one who will comply with its teaching that he shall be able to bring into his life and experience greater possibilities and happier conditions.

  The Science of Mind is based entirely upon the supposition that we are surrounded by a Universal Mind into which we think; this Mind, in Its original state, fills all space with Its Presence. Since It fills all space, It fills the space that man uses in the Universe. It is in man as well as outside of him. As he thinks into this Universal Mind he sets in motion a Law which is creative, and which contains within Itself a limitless possibility.

  THE LAW IS INFINITE

  The Law through which man operates is Infinite, but man appears to be finite; that is, he has not yet evolved to a complete understanding of It. He is unfolding from a limitless potential but can bring into his experience only that which he can conceive. There is no limit to the Law, but there appears to be a limit to man's understanding of It. As his understanding unfolds, his possibilities of attainment will increase.

  It is a great mistake to say: "Take what you wish; for you can have anything you like." We do not take what we wish, but we do attract to ourselves that which is like our thought. MAN MUST BECOME MORE IF HE WISHES TO DRAW A GREATER GOOD INTO HIS LIFE. We need not labor under the delusion that all we have to do is to say everything is ours. This is true in reality; but in fact, it is only as true as we make it. We provide the mold for the Creative Law, and unless the mold which we provide is increased, the substance cannot increase in our experience; for Mental Science cannot hold forth a promise that will do away with the necessity of complying with law.

  The Law is a law of liberty, but not a law of license. It is exact and exacting, and unless we are willing to comply with Its nature and work with It, along the lines of Its inherent being, we will receive no great benefit. Every man must pay the price for that which he receives, and that price is paid in mental and spiritual coin. An avenue must be provided through which the Law may work as a law of liberty, if It is to free us. This does not mean that we must please the Law; for It is impersonal and neither knows nor cares who uses It, nor for what purpose; but, because It is impersonal, It is compelled, by Its very nature, to return to the thinker exactly what he thinks into It. The Law of mental equivalents must never be overlooked; for "Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap."

  THE POSSIBILITIES OF THE LAW

  The possibilities of the Law are infinite; and our possibilities of using It are limitless. We may, and should, receive full benefit, and we will to the degree that we understand and properly use It.

  There is a law of unfoldment in man which says that he can advance only by going from where he is to the place where he would like to be. This is not because the Law is limited but because It is law. As man unfolds in his mentality, the law automatically reacts to him. The way to work is to begin right where we are, and, through constantly applying ourselves to the Truth, to gradually increase in wisdom and understanding; for in this way alone will good results be obtained. If, day by day, we have a greater understanding and a clearer concept; if daily, we are realizing more of Truth and applying it in our actions, then we are on the right path, and eventually we will be made free.

  SPIRIT AND MENTAL LAW

  It is impossible to divorce spiritual understanding from the proper use of mental law. The Spirit within man is God, and only to the degree that we listen to, and seek to obey that Spirit, shall we really succeed. The Law is a blind force, and lest we misuse It, we should be very careful to FOLLOW ONLY A CONSTRUCTIVE COURSE. But the Law is Absolute, and we should trust Its impersonal action implicitly. It can do anything for us that we can conceive of Its doing. It is the law of freedom to all who believe in and obey It.

  The highest realization that we can have is a recognition of the Omnipresence of Spirit. This will set in motion greater possibilities and will, automatically, provide a larger concept of life. We should daily train our thought to recognize the Spirit in everything we do, say, or think. There is no other way, and to try any other way would be to make a complete failure. "Render to Cæsar the things that are Cæsar's; and to God the things that are God's."

  A constant realization of the Presence of Spirit will provide a sense of Divine Companionship that no other attitude could produce. Why should we not take the highest and best? God Is,—and we should realize this fact and make use of it; as soon as we recognize that God Is, we can turn to the Law and tell It what to do.

  We have no record of Jesus ever asking God to do things for Him; He gave thanks, and then commanded the Law to work. This is the correct manner of approach to the Spirit and the Law. This is not superstition but the fact in the case, and we would better realize it.

  The Law is subject to the Spirit and is Its servant. Man is Spirit, but until he knows this he will be only half using the Law; for he will not have a clear understanding to fall back upon.

  DEMONSTRATION, OR BRINGING THINGS TO PASS

  We hold no argument with any one over the possibility of demonstrating the Law. There is such a thing as Universal Law and Mind, and we can use It if we comply with Its nature and work as It works. We do not argue, ask, deny, nor affirm; WE KNOW. Thousands are to-day proving this Law, and in time, all will come to realize the Truth.

  We can demonstrate to the level of our ability to know; beyond this we cannot go. But we will constantly expand and increase in knowledge and understanding, thereby continuously growing in our ability to make use of the Law; in time we will be made free through It.

  It is a wonderful experiment and a great adventure to make conscious use of the Law, to feel that we can plant an idea in Mind and see it gradually take form.

  The student should take time every day to see his life as he wishes it to be, to make a mental picture of his ideal. He should pass this picture over to the Law and go about his business with the inner assurance that on the invisible side of life something is taking place. There should never be any sense of hurry nor worry about this; just a calm, peaceful sense of reality. Let the Law work through, and express Itself in, the experience. There should be no idea of compulsion; we do not have to make the Law work; it is Its nature to work, and all that we need to do is to
make use of It. In gladness, then, we should make known our desires, and in confidence we should wait upon the Perfect Law to manifest through us.

  OUR PART

  Our part is to be ready and willing to be guided into truth and liberty. If, in the making of a demonstration, it becomes necessary to change our mode of living, then the Law will point the way and we will follow. Our correct choice will be part of the working out of the Law. All doubt and fear must go, and in their place must come faith and confidence; for we shall be led by the Spirit into all good.

  TREATMENT

  Treatment is not for the purpose of making things happen; it is to provide, within ourselves, an avenue through which they may happen. Treatment opens up the avenues of thought, expands the consciousness, and lets Reality through; it clarifies the mentality, removes the obstructions of thought and lets in the Light. We already live in a Perfect Universe, but It needs to be mentally seen before It can become a part of our experience. Treatment removes doubt and fear; lets in the realization of the Presence of Spirit; and is necessary while we are confronted by obstruction or obstacles. Every problem is primarily mental, and the answer to all problems will be found in Spiritual Realizations.

  MEDIUM BETWEEN MAN AND HIS MANIFESTATION

  The subjective state of man's thought decides what is to happen to him. The subjective state of his thought is the sum-total of his thinking and knowing; It is the medium between the relative and the Absolute, between the Limitless and the conditioned. Whatever is involved in it will evolve; therefore, treatment is the act, the art and the science of systematically and consciously inducing such thoughts as we wish to see expressed. When there is no longer anything within our mentality that denies our word, a demonstration will be made; nothing can stop it, for the Law is Absolute. The question might be asked: "If this is true, why not affirm that we have what we desire and let it go at that?" This is true in Principle, but in practice and in fact, it is only as true as we make it; that is, we cannot demonstrate beyond our ability to know the Truth. We should begin, then, with the things that we do know, and from that basis evolve a greater knowledge.