Laws and Human Development

There are different types of laws. All have distinct roles in guiding the growth and expansion of humanity. Each provides us with a sound platform, a base from which to move forward.

We are most familiar with Social Laws, which are instructions on co-existing and bringing resources together to pursue our goals. They are prescriptive because they are artificial rules society sets to maintain order and justice. In contrast to social laws, natural laws, both scientific and mental, are descriptive. We benefit because they provide a consistent, predictable framework that allows us to interact with our environment meaningfully. Understanding these laws has led to technological advancements, improving our lives and expanding our horizons. Scientific Laws, our attempts to describe reality, will always only be an approximation because we rely upon measurement tools to test and develop theories. As we refine those tools, our theories also are refined. Mental Laws are somewhat new and lesser known. We do not have instruments like those used to test scientific laws, but like numerous renowned scientists, we can use thought experiments to push the frontiers and expand human knowledge. Albert Einstein, perhaps the most famous user of thought experiments, developed the Special Theory of Relativity through his Gedankenexperiment, or “thought experiment”. He imagined riding a beam of light and questioned what he would see, leading him to groundbreaking conclusions about the nature of time and space. Others include Erwin Schrödinger, Galileo Galilei, and Isaac Newton.

It is these Mental Laws that I wish to spend time on, to introduce and encourage you to consider and experiment. See if they provide you with a new understanding.

Barbara Berber provides a list of Mental Laws that provide a framework to develop our thinking. Her book, The Awakening Human Being, also provides exercises. These laws are different from the kind we have to follow. They are the kind that describes how the human mind works.

In considering Mental Laws, there is value in pausing, taking a step back, and considering our thoughts. If we give a little time to this, we will witness thoughts arise and disappear. Thoughts are temporary; they come and go, but we continue to witness the phenomenon, and it is clear we are different from our thoughts.

As children, we learn the names of things. If something does not have a name, we give it one. As our language develops, we create stories around those names. We create and share narratives describing our dreams and experiences. We take ownership of these stories, and in doing so, we create our identity.

Our thinking, the thoughts we entertain, determines our life experience. Our experience of reality results from our thoughts about life or reality, not from experiencing reality itself directly.

Thought is always the cause of emotion. It happens so quickly that it may appear the emotions just appeared, but the truth is a thought or a group of thoughts and beliefs always precede every emotion, whatever it is.

The notion that thought always precedes an emotion differs from how most people describe their experience. This idea is about halfway through the eleven Mental Laws that Barber Berger has identified. It is where, on reading the laws, I doubted whether this was how the mechanism of the mind works. So, it is appropriate to consider how many of these laws are counter-intuitive; in other words, they are not easily understood instinctually or unconsciously.

I found four considerations to justify exploring these laws and not just dismissing them.

1. Discoveries that have had the most significant impact on our lives have been counter-intuitive. There was a time when people thought the Earth was flat. Some people still argue it is flat. We used to believe the Sun went around the Earth. I know the chair I sit on is 99.9999% space, but I do not fall through. So, what is solid?

2. With physical sciences, we have external tools to measure and test theories. As those tools become more refined, the theories become more accurate. We have technologies, like EEG, where we observe a correlation between electrical signals and thought, but we still use the brain to interpret those signals.

3. The philosophical question: how do we know what is true or false? Not just these mental laws, but how do we know anything is true?

4. The personal test: is it helpful? When I consider Law 5, which states that thought precedes emotion. It isn’t easy to believe. When driving, I may feel anger due to unforeseen events. Or, if I encounter a snake, I will likely experience fear without recognizing a thought. Such events happen so quickly that I/we do not have time to think, but I experience the emotion. But, if I/we do not continue to think about it, the anger or fear passes. Only if I continue to think about it will I continue to feel the emotion. If my thoughts precede my emotions, I have greater control over my life than if my emotions come first or are independent of thought.

Many are familiar with the idea what you focus your attention on grows. While we know how to actively perform work in the physical environment, it requires some degree of thought. We may interpret this in other ways, such as when we imagine or see things in our future experience, this reality comes true. We typically do not accept or believe this because we can not explain it. But there are many stories of people ordering a particular motor vehicle; in the following weeks, they notice many more cars like it. It is not that there are more of that type of vehicle on the street; instead, they notice more of them because it has their attention.

But also, we know from science, specifically Quantum Mechanics (Heisenberg principle and double-slit experiment), that a conscious observer collapses the wave function from the fields of potentiality into actual time-space events. Is it possible we will have even greater control over what comes into our lives one day?

There is also another aspect of focus. That is, how do we frame or perceive it? We all have challenges and so-called problems. What is the focus of our attention when we face them? Do we focus on the potential, the opportunity each situation presents? Or do we focus on the hassle, inconvenience, and the irritation? It is like two sides of the same coin. When we consider the power of focus, we can see how vital our choice is. And we do have a choice. We have free will.

Most people today are asleep. In other words, most people do not consciously choose, but the power to choose is still there. Whether we are aware of it or not, we are always choosing.

Reality is what it is, as is life. But our experience is determined by our perception, thoughts and underlying beliefs about life – whether or not we are conscious of these thoughts and beliefs. And whether or not we are conscious of this mechanism.

These underlying beliefs are something we learn from early childhood from our parents, society, the media, etc. From the moment we are born, we learn from those around us. Some say programmed, but that is negative. It is not so; it is human. However, when we realise the facts, we can examine them. Ask if it is true. And choose what works for us.

We can change our lives just by changing our thinking. It is impossible to stop thinking about something by merely telling ourselves to do so. This is because we end up focusing on what we don’t want to think about, making it stronger. The law of substitution teaches us that the only way to transform our thinking is by replacing old thought patterns with new ones. In other words, we can substitute old ideas or thoughts with new ones to change our thinking.

Mental laws are clearly different from scientific ones because we cannot test them outside of ourselves. But we can learn lessons from science experiments. If we slow down the thought process, we can observe what happens. Effectively, this is what meditation is. The difficulty many people have is their expectations and judgement. We decide what should happen, forgetting that everyone is different and will have a different experience.

During a meditation practice, as soon as we stop to consider it, we think and judge, then meditation stops. People new to meditation usually believe that thoughts should stop arising. If that happens, if they do stop, we stop being human. It is a fundamental part of being human for the thoughts to arise. As a way of experimenting with thought, I propose with a partner or group, you sit quietly, observing your breath as it moves in and out. Nothing more. When the thought arises, and it will arise, note what you see or experience and then return to the breath. This pause to make a note should be brief because if it is not, you start thinking about what you experienced. After some time, 3 to 5 minutes, stop and compare notes with your partner or group. The experience is more likely to be similar if one individual participating in the practice has intentionally sent a thought, perhaps an image of a randomly selected object.

We call this telepathy. I have written a blog on my own experience practising telepathy. Avoid thinking about it during those 3 minutes, as thought and judgment stop the process. You only need to observe. As distance is not a factor, the internet makes it easier for us to practice this skill with others.

When attempting telepathy, it is important to note that one’s own thoughts and expectations can hinder success, much like in meditation.