Musings On The Road To Portland

“The Secret” has been coming up in my life a lot lately, sometimes in the strangest situations. "The Secret" is a movie about the law of attraction, which states that like attracts like. On a practical level, we attract what we focus on. Focus on your optimal outcome, your optimal outcome will unfold. Focus on your current situation and you’ll attract more of the same. Focus on your fears or the worst possible scenario and *presto* what you think is what you'll get. The principle is timeless and cross-cultural. In my opinion, the movie is a great summary in a package which appeals to modern day Americans.

I remember a translation of a Sanskrit text I read decades ago, "The Doctrine of Vibration." According to Abinavagupta, all reality, material or immaterial, is formed of sound waves. I consider quantum physics: everything is formed from discrete packets of vibrating energy.

I see a sign for the Lewis and Clark trail, and think what an amazing trip that must have been. An infinite eyeful of wonders. As if cued, Dvorak’s “New World Symphony” comes on the radio. The music paints the sweeping vistas, the dangerous beauty, the glory of being fully alive and immersed in unknown and infinite majesty. Metaphorically paralleling the adventure into the wilds of consciousness, bringing us back to….

The law of attraction. I’m not going to argue its validity here. Psychologists have given it their scientific seal of approval. Research has nodded its assent. Self-help gurus have monetized it... and their students employed it with predictable success. If you feel like disputing it, feel free to email and I'll happily point you in the direction of those with far more credibility-- and interest in arguing--than I.

As a Christian, I am particularly interested in the Biblical references to the law of attraction. Though it took until the 20^th century for science to get with the program, the Bible told us over 2000 years ago, “As a man thinketh, so he becomes.” And here’s where things get really wild. Here’s where the doors open to spine-tingling possibility. “God created man in his own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” God is a creator, therefore our very nature is creation. God spoke the world into being, therefore, we too have that power as our birthright. Regardless of our acknowledgement or lack thereof, our words create our worlds. “So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11).

The first step of faith is stepping into that unseen created reality despite the apparent contradictions in what commonly masquerades as the real world.

I blow past a cop and realize I’m off on a tangent, but that tangent has filled in another piece of the puzzle.