A Thought Diamond

The book, As A Man Thinketh, has inspired me for the past twenty years. It is in my top ten list of books that have had the greatest influence in my thought, world view and life. I have read it many times, and would like to think that it has benefited my conduct and life.

The author, James Allen was born in England in 1864. He wrote this classic in a clear, polished and accessible language. It has the tone and texture of scripture, yet it transcends religion by speaking to the condition of all humanity. If you want to spend a few minutes with a "thought diamond", read this very brief book.

Here is a small sample:

"Circumstance does not make the man; it reveals him to himself. No such conditions can exist as descending into vice and its attendant sufferings apart from vicious inclinations, or ascending into virtue and its pure happiness without the continued cultivation of virtuous aspirations. And man, therefore, as the lord and master of thought, is the maker of himself, the shaper and author of environment. Even at birth the soul comes to its own, and through every step of its earthly pilgrimage it attracts those combinations of conditions which reveal itself, which are the reflections of its own purity and impurity, its strength and weakness.

"Men do not attract that which they want, but that which they are. Their whims, fancies, and ambitions are thwarted at every step, but their inmost thoughts and desires are fed with their own food, be it foul or clean. The 'divinity that shapes our ends' is in ourselves; it is our very self. Man is manacled only by himself. Thought and action are the jailers of Fate - they imprison, being base. They are also the angels of Freedom - they liberate, being noble. Not what he wishes and prays for does a man get, but what he justly earns. His wishes and prayers are only gratified and answered when they harmonize with his thoughts and actions."

(Notes: The book's title is derived from Psalms 23:7. This book is in the public domain, and can be found on several websites. If you wish to read the entire book, click here.)