In the Huna Tradition of Hawaii there is a precept that states: “The World is What You Think It Is.” This echoes wisdom from around the world. The German mathematician Leibniz said: “What a man says about the Universe, oft times tells more about the man than it does about the Universe.” The Hindu Tradition says “all we see in life is Maya, or the Grand Illusion, and we see before us only that which we are, not any ‘reality’.” These are true statements.

Jesus added, “Do unto others as you would have them do to you.” The truth behind that statement is whatever we do to anyone we do only to ourselves, because our SELF is all there is. There is only one SELF. It is you and you are the Universe. You are a drop in the ocean that is the Universe. That may seem complicated, and if it is for you, then take some time to think about that this week, this month, or for the rest of your life.

James Allen in his 1891 book, As A Man Thinketh, says: “The soul attracts that which it secretly harbors; that which it loves, and also that which it fears; it reaches the height of its cherished aspirations; it falls to the level of its unchastened desire, and circumstances are the means by which the soul receives its own.”

Vivekananda, the great 20th century mystic, says this: “It is thought which is the propelling force in us. Fill the mind with the highest thoughts, hear them day after day, think them month after month. Never mind failures, they are quite natural, they are the beauty of life, these failures. Hold the ideal a thousand times and if you fail a thousand times, make the attempt once more. The ideal of man is to see God in everything. But if you cannot see Him in everything, see Him in one thing that you like best , and then see him in another.”

Now ask yourself, alone and with your highest honesty, “What do I repeatedly think about? What do I long for? What do I really want in life?”

Then look around at the illusion of your life that you alone have created thus far. Do you really want a world that is filled with fear? Do you really want weapons to kill others with because you feel threatened? Do you really want to constantly worry about your material progress? Or, would you like to live in a beautiful garden and be the gardener? Would you like to experience love all the time and say goodbye to anger and fear? Would you like to have a solid hope for the future and your safety in it? Would you like Peace?

Since you are the creator of your life, you are a victim only of your thoughts, and not circumstances. You choose your thoughts and how you will handle everything that comes your way. What comes your way are the circumstances that reflect what you believe and what you repeatedly think about. If you want your circumstances to change and get better, there is a relatively painless way to make that happen: Change your mind.

In 1983 I had the opportunity to spend an hour alone with Pandit Gopi Krishna, the great fully enlightened teacher of the power of Kundalini. Toward the end of that hour I asked Gopi Krishna, “What do I need to do to be enlightened?” He looked me straight in the eye and said: “Just this. Everyday, as often as you can, just think about God, and God will take care of everything else.”

I immediately believed him and set about to make that the center of my thoughts. Now, thirty years later, I can see how that one thought has shaped and blessed my life. God did not put us here to suffer and live in fear, despite how some religious dogma says otherwise. We are here to be God’s creatures growing into a world of love, and the secret is so simple it is easy to pass it by.

Jesus said it beautifully: “Seek you first the kingdom of God and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.”

Change your mind today and see what happens tomorrow!