ENTERING INTO CREATIVE SILENCE
We saw clearly in the last chapter that the path to successful manifestation and joy in life is to focus toward the inner source of that joy and success. As Haanel puts it:
When the individual mind touches the Universal Mind, it receives all the power it requires to manifest. This happens in the world within.
In order to understand the process through which your individual mind can touch the Universal Mind, let’s see what Haanel means by the individual mind. Then I’ll teach you a pragmatic method for bringing your individual mind predictably in touch with the Universal Mind.
Manifestation is often considered an individual act of conscious willpower. We decide that we want to have something that we don’t have or that perhaps doesn’t even exist yet in our physical world. We choose to set our intent on acting to obtain this thing or situation or experience. We purposefully develop a strategy for how to manifest what we want and then go into action by using our intelligence and willpower to push ahead and do what must be done in order to achieve our goal.
When we perceive ourselves as isolated intelligent physical bodies driven by selfish egos, we limit our power of achievement to our biological potential, rather than our higher potential. There’s nothing wrong with this, but indeed it does limit us considerably and inhibit the deeper feeling of fulfillment that we seek. Here’s how Haanel says this:
The fundamental principle of creative power is in the Universal, and therefore the idea of forcing an action by the power of the individual will is an inverted conception, which may appear to succeed for a while but is eventually doomed to failure—because it antagonizes the very power which it is seeking to use.
We have enough individual ego power to force a certain level of manifestation to happen. But Haanel continually insists that our personal will must be in harmony with the Greater Will if we are to not only grab what we want in life, but also come into possession of those things and situations and relationships that truly nurture deep satisfaction. And this higher path to fulfillment involves coordination of two quite different functions of the mind, so that our personal willpower and intellectual reasoning work together with the “higher” functions of the mind that are plugged into the Universal Mind and its infinite manifestation powers.
Reflecting the new psychological terminologies of his historic period, in which Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung were actively leading a revolution in human thinking, Haanel often used the terms “conscious” versus “subconscious,” or “objective” versus “subjective,” to differentiate two different vital functions of the human mind: our two “centers of our being,” as he called them.
It is the coordination of these two centers of our being, and the understanding of their functions, which is the great secret of life. With this knowledge we can bring the objective and subjective minds into conscious cooperation and thus coordinate the finite and the infinite.
Our conscious mind is the perceptual observing mind of the senses, plus all the cognitive symbols and thoughts that emerge based on past experiences and rational reflection. We have an experience, respond to that experience, reflect upon it, categorize it, and perhaps change our ideas about life based on the experience. We also use past experience to fantasize and think up plans for the future—and decide how to act so as to manifest our creative projections.
The outward and changeable function has been termed the conscious mind, which deals with outward objects. Perceiving and operating through the five physical senses, the conscious mind deals with the impressions and objects of the outward life. It has the faculty of discrimination, carrying with it the responsibility of choice. It has the power of reasoning. It is the seat of the will.
Often people tend to think that this reasoning, willful, strategy-prone function of the mind is the primary driver of our manifestation powers. But for Haanel, the conscious mind comes into power only when it temporarily becomes quiet and surrenders to the other primary function of the mind, which he calls subjective, unconscious, intuitive, creative, and spiritual.
We are related to the world within by the subconscious mind, which includes all subjective sensations such as joy, fear, love, emotion, respiration, imagination, insight, and wisdom. It is through the subconscious that we are connected with the Universal Mind and brought into relation with the infinite constructive forces of the universe.
This is a very strong statement from Haanel, and once again he’s doing his best to employ words and concepts to speak of the ineffable dimensions of reality that lie beyond our senses, that transcend the conscious mind’s rational vistas and limitations. And once again, I don’t expect you to just nod your head and agree with these words. Rather, I hope to lead you through an experiential process that will let you find out for yourself what lies beyond these words.
Scientists remain mostly baffled by the phenomenon of intuition, by the creative flashes of insight and spiritual realization that all humans are prone to. Cognitive psychology has ascertained that the left side of the brain is associated with deductive conscious logic and reason, as well as perception and willful intent, and that the right side of the brain is mostly devoted to creativity, insight, and subjective feelings.
And at times, both sides seem to fire off together, in what some neurologists refer to as the “integrative function of the mind.” But this is a mere label, aiming our attention toward a high-mind phenomenon that science cannot quite grasp. Why? Because right at the point where the conscious rational mind interacts with the unconscious intuitive mind, as we’ve seen, the traditional space-time material model of reality seems to expand into dimensions that science cannot as yet demonstrate.
So we have this universally shared understanding that our individual conscious minds do sometimes come into active contact with important but subtle realms of realization and empowerment, through the subconscious mind, and that if we properly manage our minds, through this interaction of personal and universal we can predictably tap into the manifestation power of our Creator.
The subconscious mind perceives by intuition, and its processes are rapid. Those who trust the subconscious find that they have infinite resources at their command.
That said, what is the relationship between the conscious and the unconscious mind in the manifestation process? First we must learn, as stated before, how to quiet the chatter of the conscious mind long enough to tune into our unconscious needs and desires, and to link ourselves with the Universal Mind’s wisdom and power. That accomplished, we can then use the conscious mind’s special power to focus on our goals and to will our manifestation desires to happen step by step in our lives.
When the conscious mind states to the subconscious mind specific things to be accomplished, forces are set in operation that lead to the result desired. Herein lies the power of the conscious mind: The subconscious can and will carry out such plans and ideas as may be suggested to it by the conscious mind.
Over and over, we’re going to keep returning to this basic manifestation process, discovering step by step how to actually do what we’re talking about. Let’s pause a moment and reflect.
Do you agree with this basic understanding of who you are and how you can learn to manage your mind so as to achieve your higher goals?
Perhaps you might want to take a bit of time to put the book aside, and reflect upon your own feelings concerning your personal relationship with the Infinite Mind.
Does this discussion ring true for you? In your personal experience, are Haanel’s lofty ideas just words on paper, or have you discovered in your own life that you are in fact more than just a physical brain and body?
Right now do you feel connected with an infinite Creative Source that brought this entire physical universe into existence? Or are you nothing more than an isolated bubble of awareness with no connection to a greater manifestation power?
Pause . . . and reflect.
A key premise Haanel teaches is that you must learn how to regularly quiet the usual habitual thoughts in your mind, that stream of consciousness that chatters nonstop and occupies so much of your attention. Why stop this chatter? Because only in the midst of inner silence can you shift fully into the intuitive “unconscious” state of mind in which you connect with, listen to, and receive from the Universal Mind.
Stated succinctly:
It is in the Silence that you will get into touch with the omnipotent power of the subconscious mind from which all power is evolved.
In all the world’s meditative and contemplative traditions, this same basic notion is taught: that we must somehow quiet our minds and enter into the Silence if we want to tap into the infinite realms of consciousness that lie beyond the limited everyday realms of our senses and biological brains.
Intuition usually comes in the Silence; great minds seek solitude frequently; it is here that all the larger problems of life are worked out. For this reason every businessman who can afford it has a private office, where he will not be disturbed; if you cannot afford a private office you can at least find somewhere where you can be alone a few minutes each day and enter into Silence, which will enable you to develop that invincible power which you yearn to achieve.
One of the reasons I’m writing this book is because Haanel speaks so strongly about the requirement of regularly quieting the mind, but offers no concrete guidelines or methods for achieving this initial manifestation goal. He makes the following beginning statement, from which we will expand:
The Silence is necessary, the senses must be stilled, the muscles relaxed, repose cultivated. When you come into possession of a sense of poise and power you will be ready to receive the information or inspiration or wisdom necessary for the development of your purpose.
Back in the late 1960s I was lucky enough to be at the right place at the right time to participate in seminal research exploring the underlying “quiet-mind” psychological process common to all the world’s meditative traditions. New research has amplified these early discoveries. I’d like to share with you the formal quiet-mind process we’ve now developed, devoid of traditional theological and esoteric trappings, for quickly entering into the Silence.
Psychologically, most of us most of the time are caught up in nonstop thoughts and imaginings that pull our attention away from the present moment, into past and future fixations. We can continue with our mental ruminations and be aware of one present-moment sensory event at the same time.
But as soon as we focus our attention on two or more sensory events at the same time, all of our habitual thoughts temporarily stop.
It’s that simple—and almost all meditative techniques from antiquity designed to quiet the mind’s chatter have been based on this universal psychological fact.
Through combining old-time meditation techniques with current psychological insights, we’ve recently created a core method for quieting your mind and entering into the Silence whenever you so choose. This quiet mind is the primary foundation you will require in order to succeed in consciously creating the life that you desire.
As you learned in the previous chapter, the initial step (and the intent of the first Focus Phrase) in this method is always to pause and give yourself permission to feel good. Remember to say to yourself, “I choose to enjoy this moment.”
The next step is also seemingly simple yet deeply profound: looking inward and actively turning your mind’s focus of attention directly and with full concentration toward a core sensation that’s happening all the time whether you’re aware of it or not, the sensation of the air flowing in and out of your nose each new moment.
Even as you read these words, you can right now become aware of the air flowing in and out of your nose, not as an idea but as an actual sensation. Feel it!
Whenever you want to, you can use your thinking mind to direct your attention exactly where you want it by saying to yourself the following Focus Phrase:
“I feel the air flowing in and out of my nose.”
Notice the careful selection of words here. Usually in a traditional breath meditation exercise you would be given the general instruction to watch your breathing, and then be left on your own. But what really is your breathing? This Focus Phrase is highly specific, aiming your attention not toward a general idea of breath awareness, but toward an actual feeling, a pure-sensation experience.
Right now, you can feel this sensation in your nose if you tune into it. Yes? You’re pulling the atmosphere of the planet into your lungs through your nose, and then blowing that air out again into the atmosphere. This ongoing act is what keeps you alive, so tuning into your breath experience tunes you directly into your experience of being a living being on this planet; it’s a wake-up process.
That’s the power of successful affirmations: They aim your attention toward doing something that you can actually accomplish in the present moment.
As you experiment with saying this Focus Phrase to yourself, you’ll discover that when you turn your mind’s attention toward the experience of your breathing, you aim a spotlight directly onto the emerging present moment—you snap out of thoughts and imaginations of past and future, and re-enter the eternal here and now, where reality actually unfolds.
Because each emerging moment by definition has never happened before, you’ll always have a new experience.
Now we’re getting closer to the goal of passing through the quiet-mind portal into the Silence. The next essential step is to expand your awareness to include the sensations in your nose as you continue breathing, and also at the same time the inner movement sensations being generated lower in your chest and belly as you inhale and exhale.
As you expand your awareness in this natural process, your mind will naturally let go of busy everyday thoughts and concerns (“point fixation”) as you focus on two or more sensations at the same time—which, as we saw, will almost instantly shift you into a more receptive, intuitive, creative mode of consciousness.
Just say to yourself on your next exhale:
“I also feel the movements in my chest and belly.”
Go ahead and say this Focus Phrase to yourself and experience how the process of saying these words immediately aims your attention exactly where we want it to go, down and away from past and future thinking, toward quiet, organic, life-affirming present-moment experience.
Again, notice that the careful selection of words in the Focus Phrase continues to focus your attention specifically on physical sensations—in this case the host of movement sensations experienced in your muscles and skin as your torso expands and contracts during each new breathing cycle.
You are being challenged to continue experiencing the airflow sensations in your nose while you also expand your awareness to include a multitude of sensations in your chest and belly as you breathe.
This is a psychological judo move to help you transcend your usual thinking habits. You simply can’t stay lost in past and future thoughts while also expanding your awareness to experience more than two distinct sensations at the same time.
You’ll probably find that, at first, your attention will try to jump around like crazy from one sensation to the next, until later today, or tomorrow, or next week, you suddenly experience that primal desired shift in awareness from “point fixation” to “experiencing the whole at once.”
Welcome to the Silence, wherein your connection with the Source can be experienced. This will benefit you greatly.
Note that when you’re lost in thought, you’re essentially “not here” in that you’re not aware of your own physical presence in the here and now. In just a few breaths, once you get good at this quiet-mind process, you can bring yourself back to the present moment (which is where all manifestation actually happens) and experience your ongoing participation in the unfolding of this new moment. This is so important because, as we’ll see later, insight and empowerment from the Universal Mind flows into your personal consciousness only in the present moment.
So if you want to access inspiration, information, guidance, and power, you simply must regularly bring your focus of attention back to the present moment in your own body, so that you’re present to receive that inflow.
Please don’t be discouraged if, in your first few run-throughs with this Focus Phrase, your focus of attention does jump from one sensation to another, rather than expanding to experience the whole; this is to be expected, so be patient with yourself. The mental habit of chronic “thinking about” (deductive reasoning) rather than experiencing the whole at once (intuitive/integrative insight) is deeply ingrained. Only through repeatedly moving through this quiet-mind process will you begin to develop a new habit.
Once you get good at this shift into intuitive quiet-mind awareness, you’ll find you can say these two breath-awareness Focus Phrases to yourself on two consecutive breaths, and almost instantly enter into the Silence.
There’s a third Focus Phrase that rounds out this process. Once you’ve shifted into experiencing the air flowing in and out of your nose plus the movements in your chest and belly as you breathe, you’ll find that your attention has expanded to include your head, your belly, your solar plexus, and your heart. Why not go the full distance, into being aware of your whole body at once here in this present moment?
“I’m aware of my whole body, here in this present moment.”
Insight and empowerment from the Universal Mind or Creative Spirit flow into your body in the present moment. To maximize your reception of this inflow, it’s wise to make sure you’re “at home” to receive, and that’s what this “whole body” Focus Phrase ensures, that you’re fully present and conscious.
Say it. Do it.
To complete this quiet-mind section of the daily manifestation process, there is one more very helpful Focus Phrase that will ensure your success with the process. Again the statement of intent is short and clear and powerful:
“My mind is quiet . . . I am now in the Silence.”
Say these words to yourself as you exhale, and as you inhale experience your mind becoming fully quiet. It’s that simple, and that profound!
You are now solidly into the learning process of memorizing and mastering the first part of Haanel’s manifestation process, that of focusing your attention toward positive feelings and then turning inward to enter the Silence that links you with your higher manifestation powers. As you’ll discover in action, the “I choose to enjoy this moment” Focus Phrase will quite naturally encourage you to fully enjoy the breathing sensations that you tune into, so you immediately do feel better!
The next set of Focus Phrases that will consciously focus and activate your manifestation powers will be built solidly upon this joyful quiet-mind foundation.
Note that while moving through a manifestation session, it will be absolutely essential that you never let go of a heightened ongoing awareness of your breathing. Even while you expand your awareness to include specific manifestation dimensions, you must continue to stay aware of the air flowing in and out of your nose and the movements in your chest and belly as you breathe—that’s the key to success!
Whenever you lose breath awareness, it’s essential to immediately go back to the beginning and re-establish this breath focus.
Note also that Focus Phrases in general are designed to be “said” silently to yourself, not out loud. However, Focus Phrases have no real power if they’re simply “thought”—you need to feel the subliminal movements in your tongue, throat, and lips, even though you don’t audibly vocalize.
Say to yourself the statement of intent as you exhale . . . then as you inhale, right in the middle of your breath experience, be open to experience the impact of the words throughout your inner awareness. That’s how to tap the power of Focus Phrases.
QUIET-MIND PROCESS
Entering the Silence
Here’s the quiet mind process as a complete unit for you to memorize and master. In the next chapter we’ll explore what to do after you successfully enter into the Silence.
“I choose to focus enjoyably inward.”
“I feel the air flowing in and out of my nose.”
“I also feel the movements in my chest and belly.”
“I’m aware of my whole body, here in this present moment.”
“My mind is quiet . . . I am now in the Silence.”
All too often, we tend to approach manifestation as “no fun” work that we must force ourselves to do in order to achieve our goals. Yes, we must be diligent and persevere toward fulfilling our intent. But the spirit in which we approach manifestation needs to remain light, uplifting, enthusiastic, confident, and enjoyable.
Your challenge in the next days is to remember to remember, and to move through the Focus Phrases many times each day so that you internalize them, develop a new positive mental focusing habit, and master the fine art of waking up your own power to create the life you desire. Haanel is emphatic about the need to practice:
Persistence will win, but persistence requires that you practice these exercises every day without fail.
What you’ll probably discover as you begin practicing these first Focus Phrases is that (a) you have a hard time remembering to pause and move through the process, (b) you sometimes can’t remember what the Focus Phrases are, and (c) even after saying the first Focus Phrase to yourself, your thinking mind will yank your attention away from the Focus Phrases and plunge your attention back into past and future mentation.
What to do?
I’d like to teach you a way to turn the practice and memorization needed to master this process into a continually enjoyable experience. This game will highlight the fact that the very first Focus Phrases, in and of themselves, are remarkably powerful in transforming your moment-to-moment experience.
The goal of this game is to get through the list of five Focus Phrases in one sitting, without looking at your list as you move through the process.
To start, remember to remember to pause and take out your list of Focus Phrases if you need it and read through the list—then put the list away!
First, sit quietly for a few breaths to let the mental dust settle; then without effort, bring the first two words of the first Focus Phrase to mind, and say them to yourself:
“I choose . . .”
Now see if the next three words come to mind effortlessly, and if they do, say them to yourself:
“. . . to focus enjoyably . . .”
Now your mind is focusing directly toward your root intent: to experience pleasure and serenity, fulfillment and happiness. And where specifically are you going to focus? Allow the last word to pop into your mind:
“. . . inward.”
Then, after saying these potent elicitor words, just relax a moment and experience the impact of this first Focus Phrase as you breathe, and perhaps say the Focus Phrase again to yourself until it fills your mind with clear intent.
Next, without looking at your list, and without mental effort, see if you remember the theme of the next Focus Phrase: breath awareness. All you need to do is to turn your attention to your nose, and see if the first two words of the second Focus Phrase come to mind. When they do, say these two words to yourself:
This is a very powerful elicitor statement, which shifts your mind’s attention from thinking mode to feeling mode. And now that you’re tuned into feeling in your nose, see if the next two words come to mind. What do you feel?
“. . . the air . . .”
And what is the air continually doing?
“. . . flowing in and out of my nose.”
Go ahead and take time to experience this breath sensation in your nose, for one or more breaths.
Finally, now that you have the general idea of how to approach each new Focus Phrase, you can continue with the next three on your list in this same manner. But whenever you need to look to your list, the rules of the game say that you must return to the beginning, and start over. Why? Because the quiet-mind experience needs to start at the beginning each time you move through it, for full impact.
The end of the game is when you do manage to make it to the final quiet-mind Focus Phrase. You can then just sit quietly in the Silence for as long as you choose, remaining aware of your breathing throughout. As Haanel puts it:
Go into the Silence, and know the Truth.
If you play by the rules and don’t look at your list while saying the Focus Phrases to yourself, you will find that often, long before you get to the end of this game, your attention has wandered and dropped you back into everyday thoughts or imaginations. This is what makes this game fun: catching yourself drifting and mastering the focusing game of making it all the way to the end, into an immersive experience in Haanel’s creative Silence.
Whenever you find that your attention has dropped away from the quiet-mind Focus Phrase experience and slipped into everyday plans, worries, and imaginations, your challenge is to return to the beginning and say to yourself again:
“I choose . . .”
And move through the process again, until you do make it to the end of the fifth Focus Phrase and enter into a unique new experience of inner silence. When you achieve this goal, you’ve won for the day!
Here’s what’s so interesting about this whole quiet-mind process: Most of us most of the time don’t make it to the end of the game after we start playing it. The challenge seems so simple, and yet our thinking minds are so locked into the “thinking game” that we can’t even move through five short sentences and breaths without drifting back into thought. Playing this game will enable you to catch your mind in the act of slipping into relatively unconscious thought.
Often you won’t notice that you’ve dropped out of the game halfway through until minutes or even hours later—and then a flash of awakening will occur. You’ll realize that you’re not choosing to enjoy the moment, and you’ll begin the game at the beginning again, saying that most important Focus Phrase of all:
“I choose to focus enjoyably inward.”
After you play this game for a few days, you’ll notice that quite remarkable things will happen in your life. You’ll find that you are indeed choosing to enjoy each new moment more often, and with greater success.
You are succeeding in changing a core mental habit in the direction of higher awareness and creative pleasure.
You’ll find that as you get further and further into winning the game, you strengthen your mental ability to quickly shift into the Silence, and this will allow you to apply the manifestation Focus Phrases of later chapters more effectively.
The beauty of this game is that even when you don’t win by getting to the end in one flow, you will win over and over again as you continue to return your attention to the beginning Focus Phrase and choose to enjoy, yet again, the emerging moment.
At some point, the Focus Phrase “I choose to focus enjoyably inward” will become a continual positive background thought in your mind, which in and of itself will bring a deep sense of fulfillment related to your happiness goal.
Here are the Focus Phrases all in one place, so you can copy them longhand onto paper, enter them into your mobile device, or photocopy them to memorize and master:
Entering the Silence
“I choose to focus enjoyably inward.”
“I feel the air flowing in and out of my nose.”
“I also feel the movements in my chest and belly.”
“I’m aware of my whole body, here in this present moment.”
“My mind is quiet . . . I am now in the Silence.”
Once you practice this expanded version of the process for a while or so, you’ll find that you can then shorten the Focus Phrases considerably.
As soon as you say, “I choose to focus enjoyably inward,” your attention will naturally focus inward to your breathing experience, and this will naturally lead to a present-moment whole-body awareness, which naturally quiets your habitual thoughts, so that you move right from that Focus Phrase to the quiet-mind Focus Phrase.
That’s your goal, and it will take some practice to attain it. Give yourself a couple of weeks before dropping the intermediate Focus Phrases.