The Peaceful Warrior.

There is a movie called ‘The Peaceful Warrior’.

Haven’t seen it yet – yeah yeah we are going soon – but as a modern woman I have been to Dan Millman ’s website.
And as he is a modern man as well, he has a blog too.

And as a fellow blogger I had to browse his site and doing so I came across this interesting post about playing your part in the whole manifesting game.

For you who know me by now, that sure is a topic to grab my attention.
And as he has some interesting words to say I will share them with you.

Dan starts with this story:

Louie goes to church every Sunday and prays to God, “Dear Lord, I’ve been a good and devout man for many years, living according to your Laws, doing acts of charity, serving the poor, supporting my family. So please, please, let me win the lottery just once!” He repeats this plea every week for years, but his entreaties go unanswered. So Louie starts to pray to win the lottery every night and every day. Until one day, he hears a voice thunder down from the heavens: “Louie, will you at least go half-way with me and buy a ticket?”

Then Dan goes on to say;

That’s all I’m suggesting — a simple point ignored by “The Secret” — go to the effort to buy a ticket. Or as an Arabic sage once said, “Trust in God . . . but tie your camel.”

So if you wish to be successful, dream big, but start small — then connect the dots. In other words, start with a vision, then take baby steps.
Neither dreaming nor wishing nor magical secrets get the laundry done.
(Darn, do I want to hear this?)

The biggest issue with programs like The Secret (or other idealistic notions such as learning “positive thinking”) is that when their magical methods don’t work, we end up believing that it’s our fault.
We believe that if we had truly deserved it, or really applied ourselves, or focused more intently, or visualized more clearly with a sincere heart, surely it would have worked.

The Secret, then, with its lovely and uplifting promise, is a foolproof supposition: If we don’t heal, manifest, get what we want, it’s due to our own lack of faith.

Or maybe it’s because we forgot the “taking action” part . . .

There are some successful people who claim to have mastered “The Secret” and who have manifested their dreams and desires. Few of them tell us about their years of struggle and labor and preparation.

By all means strive in the direction of your dreams! Visualize a grand life! Then get to work. While we cannot control the outcomes, we can control our efforts. And by making the effort, we increase the odds of creating a larger life.

I close with my warmest wishes, and with a reminder from Henry David Thoreau:
“If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost. Now put foundations under them.”

End of Dan’s post.

I would like to also share this suitable contribution from Robert Popovic who is the person who made this website.
He quoted Lau Tzu in his last week’s comment;

“Fill your bowl to the brim and it will spill.
Keep sharpening your knife and it will blunt.
Chase after money and security and your heart will never unclench.
Care about people’s approval and you will be their prisoner.

Do your work, then step back.
The only path to serenity. “

So there you have it, fellow manifestors.

No free rides . . . get your hands dirty . . . remember to build good structures and get them working for you . . . and be peaceful . . . and let your heart speak . . . and whistle while you work but that is another movie . . .