Guest Blog by Marian Rein
Also listen to Marian and I discuss Manifesting on the Love Middle Life Podcast HERE!
More than 35 years ago I heard someone on a TV talk show discussing manifesting using only our minds. What? Using only our minds? Is he crazy, I thought. I remember calling it ridiculous and akin to magic. But then I thought, hmmmm, isn’t that what prayer is all about, thinking about a desire and asking God for help with it? I thought about this for many years.
So over the past 10 years I’ve dived into the subject, wanting to understand more about this thing called “manifesting.” Dictionaries define it as being evident or something demonstrated. However, in more contemporary terms we’re talking about something a bit different. Esoteric / spiritual literature refers to manifesting as using our thoughts and feelings to create desirable forms (tangible things) or situations. Is this magic? Is there any science to support this idea?
So, before I go further, I have to say that I’m not an author or a spiritual guru — just a “good ole country girl” who has a deep interest in this topic. I’ve read plenty of books on the subject from both esoteric and scientific perspectives and put the idea to the test many times. And here’s my take on it.
First, humans are manifesting constantly — we can’t NOT manifest. We manifest both positive and negative things — things that we want and things we don’t want. But mostly our day-to-day lives stay the same because we’re manifesting the same stuff, over and over again. But for this blog, let’s just assume that manifesting means creating something that we desire that is not currently present in our experience and using only our thoughts and feelings.
Manifesting seems like magic because it’s about the energy that the brain/heart emits, and “the universe” returns it to us in form (a tangible object) or situation. Stated other ways, like attracts like energy; what goes around comes around; what you give out is what you get back. You might wonder, is the brain and heart really that powerful? Is there science to support this idea? The answer is a resounding YES! One source you can check out is research done by HeartMath Institute at Stanford University.
So let’s assume the brain and heart really are the powerhouse sources of manifestations. What now? Once a desire is identified, it’s about FOCUS — focusing our minds on the desired outcome in such a way that we can really feel it, like it’s already happened. You might be wondering, for how long do I hold this desire in my mind. Just a minute or two of uncontradicted thought is about all it takes. Uncontradicted means that you do not contradict your own desire. For example, if you want a new car and you think about how good it feels to drive it, you love the new-car smell of the interior, you love how great it looks, but you think, “Yeah, but I could never afford it,” or “I’d have to work a second job to afford it,” you’ve just contradicted your own desire.
It all sounds pretty easy, right? You just hold an uncontradicted thought for a minute or two and voila! Like magic it appears! Uhhh, hold your horses Kemosahbee! While that might be true, I have yet to meet many people who can actually maintain an uncontradicted thought about a deep desire without, in the very next moment, contradicting it with thoughts such as, “I’m not good enough” or “I’d love to live in a castle, but that could never happen” or “I’m not lovable enough to be with the man/woman of my dreams.” So we need to believe that our desires can be fulfilled. (However, I believe that if our desire is powerful enough, it can override our negative beliefs, but that’s a topic for another blog.) As author Deepok Chopra says, “Have an intention and a desire, but don’t be attached to the outcome.” Keep in mind that if it’s something tangible that you desire, it’s not necessarily going to appear on your doorstep (though it could), but an easy or even miraculous route to it will appear.
Remember, like attracts like, whether it’s a tangible object you’re desiring or a preferred situation or a relationship. So if you’re just getting familiar with the idea of manifesting using your thoughts and feelings, I would suggest as a starting point paying attention to your thoughts. Pay attention to what’s currently happening in your life. If you just had a fight with your spouse and you are holding angry feelings about it, it’s likely you’ll encounter someone angry at the grocery store. Likewise, if you are extremely happy, you’re most likely going to encounter happy people. Sometimes it’s subtle and we don’t recognize the connection between the thought and what shows up in our experience. It takes practice to become super tuned-in to our thoughts and feelings. You can also practice manifesting tangible objects, but start with something small, such as a cup of coffee, a new orange sweater, a feather, etc.
I hope my understanding and experience with manifesting provides at least a bit of a foundation for what people today are talking about. Manifesting! Let’s all get really good at it, imagining that the future planet earth is peaceful and supportive for the next generation — our children!
Here are some helpful resources as you explore manifesting in your life:
Manifestation Journal for Beginners
HeartMath Institute of Stanford University