Manifestation: Pros and Cons
New Age traps you want to avoid
Manifestation is all the rage...
Up until fairly recently, it was not common knowledge that as people, we can in fact influence our surroundings using the power of thought. Such abilities were kept in the circles of ruling classes and religious leaders, only later coming out into the public sphere through books such as Rhonda Byrne's 'The Secret.' Nowadays, the word 'manifestation' can be heard in almost any New Age corner shop, coming from the mouths of... people who don't necessarily know what it means. Or at least, not the full implications.
The basic mechanics behind the Law of Attraction are fairly simple science. If all of the universe is made up of energy, then everything in it - from a piece of rock to a black hole - vibrates at its own frequency. (You'll hear me repeating this concept throughout the website time and time again, because this is the basic fact you need to know in order to start any journey.) Therefore, is it so surprising that thoughts create their own energy field as well? Not to be patronizing, but it's worth noting that every event, action or thought ever made leaves an imprint in history. So it's perfectly possible to hide from your mum the fact you've broken her favourite vase, but nothing escapes the all-knowing energy field. Nothing. We can speak later on how the total sum of people's thoughts and actions form the Collective Consciousness, but let's begin with what the Law of Attraction means to you as an individual. One way to think of it is Karma. What goes around, comes around, right? This is a widely accepted concept, but how many have sat back to think why? It's a simple fact of what type of energies you choose to put out there. If you're full of anger and vengeance, the charge that's leaking out of you will be highly negative, so naturally it will infect your surroundings. People are then more likely to become infuriated and lash back out at you, after picking up on your angry thoughts and body language. If left unaddressed, this negative cycle could lead to fights, accidents and an atmosphere that you just don't need to be in. The only way to bring it to an end is for a highly positive person or situation to lift the vibes. On the flip side, treating others how you would like to be treated creates an atmosphere of joy and automatically attracts more reasons to be happy. Worry attracts worry. If you're in the position of having to walk from A to B in the city on a dark night, one of your best sources of protection is a good attitude. Even if you're not entirely convinced, being worried is actually more of a danger, because what you're doing is subconsciously telling the brain to look for situations involving bandits or pickpockets. And the brain has a knack to draw in what it wants. Or is told to want.
Manifestation works in much the same way. The way most New Age teachers will phrase it is to first off, imagine what you want. Everybody wants something, come on! Whether that be to upsize your house, cure a disease or find the love of your life. Can you picture it? Excellent. Can you feel the burning desire to obtain/achieve the object of your passion? Keep going, almost there! Now imagine how you would feel when that thing is finally yours. Gratitude. Love. Bliss. Sit with those emotions, keep them there and act as if it is there already. Now... voila. You have successfully manifested your dreams into life.
Umm... sure. Love and Light are truly beautiful states to be in, provided you've actually earnt them and not used it as an escape route to fast track past all your problems (read up on Spiritual Bypassing to understand more). There are a few basic flaws in this model of manifestation that we need to pinpoint.
One is caused directly because of the bypassing. As an example, we'll say your person has a deep desire to attract a legendary partner, but deep down, she feels undeserving of love, perhaps from not being shown enough of it from her parents. Instead of giving herself the time to identify her problem, really come to understand what was lacking in those early years and what can be done to heal that now, said person spends her time on guided meditations, attending workshops that promise to teach you to create everything you dream of. All the while, she's sitting there frustrated, wondering why this so-called miracle technique isn't bringing her the partner she wants. The solution in this case is to put the manifestation techniques on the back seat temporarily, while knuckling down to bring out the emotions being suppressed all this time. You could want and want something for the rest of your life, but until you've discovered and addressed the underlying problem holding you back, the dream will stay just that - a dream. Oftentimes, the real reward comes not after you've successfully visualized or repeated affirmations, but after you've completed the sincere self work to remove the blockage in that area. Sometimes, overcoming that one block is enough to set off an avalanche of luck.
Second flaw of manifestation is when there's a conflict of interests. This happens when the ego wants one thing while the greater good requires something else. A person might try to use visualization in order to bring in a glamourous car, when what they truly want is to be accepted and have failed to realize. But the universe doesn't operate that way. It would make no sense if it just gave you the car, because then you wouldn't have learned the lesson, would you? The lesson, then, would be to gain the self-confidence to realize you can have the support of your friends and family, but not everyone has to accept you. If said person were to realize this, the necessity for a new car would be rendered obsolete and they'd be focussing on more pressing tasks. However, if they carry on as most people would, they'll just get annoyed and make a broad statement that all the Law of Attraction is, is complete BS. Which isn't true either. The universe's function is to give you what you need over what you want, which is not always the most pleasant experience. The problem here is that the manifestation is being used by someone who hasn't fully tamed the ego and is yet to figure out what their purpose is. If the same challenge was being faced by someone with a clear vision of what they want to do with their life and has chosen to align with the greater good, their manifestation would look more like asking for a reliable mode of transport. Which, if it's a reasonable thing to ask, they'll most certainly get.
So before you go trying to draw in a new job or the death of your cranky neighbour, 3 telling questions are:
Is this good for me and everyone involved?
Is this what I honestly want?
Is there something holding me back that I need to address first?
If you can navigate around these things, then you're onto something real.
Shaping your reality
I've described how manifestation can go wrong or turn out useless, but let's now dive into when it can be a truly magical tool. How quickly you can bring thoughts to life will depend on a few things. How big the request is, how much of an impact it will make and where you're at as a person. If you look at the Map of Consciousness, it will show you not only what kind of mood a person is in, but also how powerful they are. Someone who's only just started the journey will not be as far up the scale as someone who's been on it 10 years or more. This applies to the rate they can manifest too. Just to give a comparison, when I was 14 and trying to will my mum to make her cancel my music lessons, it took months before it actually happened (even then, it was only once I started walking out on them). At 21, after masses of learning and mainly just overcoming hardships, I used a new affirmation my friend had suggested and got some work overnight. Big difference? You bet.
It wasn't even that difficult. The wording was devised by Napoleon Hill, where you basically name the sum you want to earn and by when. Then speak it out loud. "I earn £100 per week or more by next month." (Yes, I'm a freelancer. Had to start with something small and stable, ok?) But you can tailor it to suit your needs. "I earn £50k per year by January 2025." If you're using it to invest in a project that benefits the community, why the hell not? After all, money only brings happiness if you know the proper way to use it. Point being, I started with a very achievable goal and was phoned up by an employer I hadn't spoken to in a while the next day. Then was smashing this target right up until Christmas, until the work sort of fizzled out and I was left back at square 1. That's the nature of doing events, unfortunately. But as explained earlier, it's also because I haven't finished working through my own blocks and haven't learned all the lessons. It just goes to show, you really do have to deal with your shadow before good results can be maintained for any meaningful length of time.
Optimism is essential. You won't be able to live where what you need/want is continuously flowing in until you feel completely safe with being at the universe's mercy. It sounds like a paradox, I know, but real flow is only possible when you stop worrying and trust. Trust that your happy ending is on it's way. Trust that the tools and opportunities to make that happen will arrive in due time. And the hardest one of all, when life beats you up and it seems like everything is lost, trust that this is all part of the process. Many will give up at this stage, because it seems like you've been conned. All these efforts you've been putting in for nothing. But I will repeat, if the higher forces can push you further along your path, they absolutely will. If that means you having to learn the hard way, so be it. Thankfully, if you can learn quickly and nip any problems in the bud, you'll hopefully not have take on the full force of them. Not sure how many will agree with my opinion, essentially, that is what we're here for. Not just to raise kids or gain lots of material goods, but to better ourselves. To take on the various challenges we're thrown and come out stronger, smarter, kinder. To find out as much about this reality and ourselves as we possibly can. Call it spiritual evolution if you will. And eventually, to have the best possible time.
That's real manifestation. Not being fixated on a specific object or outcome, but being open for an end result that can even exceed your wildest dreams. Dreams aren't to be underestimated. Without a vision, you wouldn't have a clue where you're headed and would just be carried along with the flow. This puts you in a position of other people or circumstances deciding where you should work, what to obtain, who to marry, what values to idolize. Surrendering to the universe doesn't mean giving up your judgement and letting someone else take the reins. That's laziness. Surrender means having a clear vision of what you're working towards, but stop worrying how it's going to happen. Your order, so to speak, has been placed, so there's no need to keep harassing the waiter on how it's going to be delivered or how long it takes. Ask for everything to work out exactly as it should. If you make it your policy to ask for that instead, you'll never be disappointed.
The more you practice aligning with your chosen purpose and values, the more effortless manifestation will become. To the point where the right people will literally turn up at your doorstep, and it's not even a surprize anymore. Living with flow is possible on a daily basis, just don't slack on the work required to get there.