Does the Law of Attraction Work? – A Bahai Perspective
by Susan Gammage, Baha'i Life Coach
Does the Law of Attraction Work? This question has been asked time and time again by just about everyone that’s ever watched “The Secret” and heard of the Law of Attraction: does it really work? It often comes up in my Bahai-inspired life coaching practice, as people want to set goals for themselves. As hard as it may be to believe, the Law of Attraction works. It has always worked and it will always work whether you practice it or not.
Have you ever wondered why Bahá’u'lláh tells us:
To look always at the good and not at the bad. If a man has ten good qualities and one bad one, to look at the ten and forget the one. And if a man has ten bad qualities and one good one, to look at the one and forget the ten.
J.E. Esselemont, Bahá’u'lláh And the New Era, p. 83.
Or why ‘Abdul-Bahá tells us:
I charge you all that each one of you concentrate all the thoughts of your heart on love and unity. When a thought of war comes, oppose it by a stronger thought of peace. A thought of hatred must be destroyed by a more powerful thought of love.
Abdu’l-Bahá, Paris Talks, p. 29.
Simply put, the Law of Attraction states that like attracts like. It’s based on the fact that everything in this world emits a certain vibration and those vibrations seek out and interact with other things that have similar vibrations. If you focus your attention on the positive, you’ll attract positive; if you concentrate your energies on love and unity, you’ll be a magnet for those qualities too.
Haven’t you ever noticed when one bad thing happens in your life it is often followed by another? This is often called the domino effect. We have other sayings for it such as: “When it rains it pours.” That’s the Law of Attraction at work.
If the Law of Attraction is so great, why use negative examples to illustrate its effectiveness? For some reason, we as a society find it much easier to believe something negative instead of the things that are positive. When good things happen we just write them off as a one-off lucky break or think that it was just chance.
Is the Law of Attraction About Chance?
There’s no such thing as chance. Everything that happens in this world and in your life happens for a reason. That reason is the Law of Attraction.
Whether you accept it or not, the Law of Attraction works. To believe that it works means that you have to accept responsibility for where your life is and that makes it hard for many to accept the Law of Attraction. Most people right now reading this are going to think: “I do accept responsibility.” Do you really?
Where are your thoughts right now? Are you worrying about money or how to pay the bills? Are you stressed over the fact that more bills keep coming and the money keeps getting spread thinner and thinner?
- The more you worry and stress out about bills, the more bills you’ll receive. The more you worry about not having money, the less money you’ll have in your bank account. If you simply change the way you think about these things, you’ll be amazed at what will happen. You will begin to take positive action subconsciously.
Spend the next 14 days not thinking about your bills. Don’t look at your bank account. Every time you go to the mailbox, picture money in there. Every time you start to think about bills and debt, transform your mind into thoughts of overflowing abundance.
- Think about what you have in your life that is good. Everyone, no matter who they are, has something to be grateful for. Figure out what you’re grateful for and focus on it.
“. . . recount the blessings of his Lord, and render thanks unto Him at all times and under all conditions”.
Bahá’u'lláh, Tablets of Bahá’u'lláh, p. 155.
Some people will argue that it takes more than just “thinking” about things to make them happen or appear, which is true. Thoughts need to be transformed into actions, that’s why some believers say that, so long as you’re thinking about what you want in life, you will take the necessary actions to make those things happen. This is simply another way the Law of Attraction can work. As we know from the Bahai Writings:
“Intention brings attainment”.
‘Abdul-Bahá, Ten Days in the Light of ‘Akká, pp. 30-31.
The Law of Attraction is working right now, all around you. It’s at work in your life. It’s time for you to take control and make the Law of Attraction work in your favor. This means you have to change the way you think. You have to be grateful for what you have and you have to always focus on the positive. The Law of Attraction is real, and it is powerful.
How have you seen the law of attraction work in your life?Post your comments here.
A loyal reader asked: How long does it takes for visualisation to manifest in the real world.Does one need any extra action to bring this visualization into reality.
You’ve asked a good question. Are you familar with the “5 steps of prayer
for solving problems”?
5 Steps of Prayer for Solving Problems
The below five steps were suggested by the beloved Guardian Shoghi Effendi
to a believer as a means of finding a solution through the use of prayer.
This statement belongs to the category of statements known as “pilgrims
notes”, and as such has no authority, but since it seems to be particularly
helpful and clear it was felt that believers should not be deprived of it.
1st Step: Pray and meditate about it. Use the prayers of the Manifestations
as they have the greatest power. Then remain in the silence of contemplation
for a few minutes.
2nd Step: Arrive at a decision and hold this. This decision is usually born
during the contemplation. It may seem almost impossible of accomplishment
but if it seems to be as answer to a prayer or a way of solving the problem,
then immediately take the next step.
3rd Step: Have determination to carry the decision through. Many fail here.
The decision, budding into determination, is blighted and instead becomes a wish or a vague longing. When determination is born, immediately take the next step.
4th Step: Have faith and confidence that the power will flow through you,
the right way will appear, the door will open, the right thought, the right
message, the right principle, or the right book will be given to you. Have
confidence and the right thing will come to your need. Then, as you rise
from prayer, take at once the 5th step.
5th Step: Act as though it had all been answered. Then act with tireless,
ceaseless energy. And as you act, you, yourself, will become a magnet, which
will attract more power to your being, until you become an unobstructed
channel for the Divine power to flow through you.
Many pray but do not remain for the last half of the first step. Some who
meditate arrive at a decision, but fail to hold it. Few have the determination to carry the decision through, still fewer have the confidence that the right thing will come to their need.
But how many remember to act as though it had all been answered? How true
are these words “Greater than the prayer is the spirit in which it is
uttered” and greater than the way it is uttered is the spirit in which it is
carried out.
Shoghi Effendi, Principles of Bahá’í Administration, p. 91.
For me, it gives me a plan to follow. First I have a visualization of what
I want, then I use this process.
If you’ve got something you’d like to bring forth, I’d be happy to give you
a 30 minute coaching session at no charge.
A reader wrote:
Wow – I have never met another Baha’i who truly gets the law of attraction. Most are afraid, it seems. And you are another Canadian, to boot. Hah!
Well, I’ve just attracted you into my life. Nice to meet you. Allah’u'Abha
Thanks for your enthusiastic comment, Zia!
Actually, I was introduced to “The Secret” by another Baha’i who was giving deepenings on it! And then I heard so much from Baha’is in the area I had to investigate for myself.
Where I think it’s dangerous, is when people think they’re the author of all the good that comes into their lives, forgetting it’s all in God’s hands!