In the
personal application of the Science of Being Well, as in that of the Science of
Getting Rich, certain fundamental truths must be known in the beginning, and
accepted without question. Some of these truths we state here:
The perfectly
natural performance of function results from the natural action of the
Principle of Life. There is a Principle of Life in the universe; it is the One
Living Substance from which all things are made. This Living Substance
permeates, penetrates, and fills the interspaces of the universe; it is in and
through all things, like a very refined and diffusible ether. All life comes
from it; its life is all the life there is.
Man is a
form of this Living Substance, and has within him a Principle of Health. (The
word Principle is used as meaning source.) The Principle of Health in man, when
in full constructive activity, causes all the voluntary functions of his life
to be perfectly performed.
It is
the Principle of Health in man which really works all healing, no matter what
"system" or "remedy" is employed; and this Principle of
Health is brought into Constructive Activity by thinking in a Certain Way.
I
proceed now to prove this last statement. We all know that cures are wrought by
all the different and often opposite, methods employed in the various branches
of the healing art. The allopath, who gives a strong dose of a counter-poison,
cures his patient; and the homeopath, who gives a diminutive dose of the poison
most similar to that of the disease, also cures it.
If
allopathy ever cured any given disease, it is certain that homeopathy never
cured that disease; and if homeopathy ever cured an ailment, allopathy could
not possibly cure that ailment. The two systems are radically opposite in
theory and practice; and yet both "cure" most diseases. And even the
remedies used by physicians in any one school are not the same. Go with a case
of indigestion to half a dozen doctors, and compare their prescriptions; it is
more than likely that none of the ingredients of any one of them will be in the
others. Must we not conclude that their patients are healed by a Principle of
Health within themselves, and not by something in the varying
"remedies"?
Not only
this, but we find the same ailments cured by the osteopath with manipulations
of the spine; by the faith healer with prayer, by the food scientist with bills
of fare, by the Christian Scientist with a formulated creed statement, by the
mental scientist with affirmation, and by the hygienists with differing plans
of living.
What
conclusions can we come to in the face of all these facts but that there is a
Principle of Health which is the same in all people, and which really
accomplishes all the cures; and that there is something in all the
"systems" which, under favorable circumstances arouses the Principle
of Health to action? That is, medicines, manipulations, prayers, bills of fare,
affirmations, and hygienic practices cure whenever they cause the Principle of
Health to become active; and fail whenever they do not cause it to become
active. Does not all this indicate that the results depend upon the way the
patient thinks about the remedy, rather than upon the ingredients in the
prescription?
There is
an old story which furnishes so good an illustration on this point that I will
give it here. It is said that in the middle ages, the bones of a saint, kept in
one of the monasteries, were working miracles of healing; on certain days a
great crowd of the afflicted gathered to touch the relics and be healed. On the
eve of one of these occasions, some sacrilegious rascal gained access to the
case in which the wonder-working relics were kept and stole the bones; and in
the morning, with the usual crowd of sufferers waiting at the gates, the
fathers found themselves shorn of the source of the miracle working power.
They
resolved to keep the matter quiet, hoping that by doing so they might find the
thief and recover their treasures; and hastening to the cellar of the convent
they dug up the bones of a murderer, who had been buried there many years
before. These they placed in the case, intending to make up some plausible
excuse for the failure of the saint to perform his usual miracles on that day;
and then they let in the waiting assemblage of the sick and infirm.
To the
intense astonishment of those in the secret, the bones of the malefactor proved
as efficacious as those of the saint; and the healing went on as before. One of
the fathers is said to have left a history of the occurrence, in which he
confessed that, in his judgement, the healing power had been in the people
themselves all the time, and never in the bones at all.
Whether
this story is true or not, the conclusion applies to all the cures wrought by
all the systems. The Power that Heals is in the patient himself; and whether it
shall become active or not does not depend upon the physical or mental means
used, but upon the way the patient thinks about these means. There is a
Universal Principle of Life, as Jesus taught; a great spiritual Healing Power;
and there is a Principle of Health in man which is related to this Healing
Power. This is dormant or active, according to the way a man thinks. He can
always quicken it into activity by thinking in a Certain Way.
Your
getting well does not depend upon the adoption of some system, or the finding
of some remedy; people with your identical ailments have been healed by all
systems and all remedies.
It does
not depend upon climate; some people are well and others are sick in all
climates. It does not depend upon avocation, unless in cases of those who work
under poisonous conditions; people are well in all trades and professions. Your
getting well depends upon your beginning to think - and act - in a Certain Way.
The way
a man thinks about things is determined by what he believes about them. His
thoughts are determined by his faith, and the results depend upon his making a
personal application of his faith. If a man has faith in the efficacy of a
medicine, and is able to apply that faith to himself, that medicine will
certainly cause him to be cured; but though his faith be great, he will not be
cured unless he applies it to himself.
Many
sick people have faith for others but none for themselves. So, if he has faith
in a system of diet, and can personally apply that faith, it will cure him; and
if he has faith in prayers and affirmations and personally applies his faith,
prayers and affirmations will cure him.