Is thinking something into existence possible?
The idea of thinking something into existence is a popular debate between philosophers and scientists. On one hand, philosophers believe that thoughts are powerful enough to turn into something real, while scientists believe that this is not possible.
This blog will explore the different points of the debate as well as possible outcomes.
The Philosopher’s Perspective on manifesting ideas into existence
“What is the nature of the mind? Is it necessary for man to have a thinking power… so that he should be able to think something into existent?” – Christopher Wren
According to Aristotle, the first and foremost essential quality of man is the reason. The reason, or intellect in general, is an essential part of human nature. However, this intelligence might not necessarily be limited to creating thoughts within one’s own mind. Aristotle believed that our thoughts could affect others’ actions without our awareness.
In the realm of thinking something into existence the philosopher’s stance is that everything that exists has once been thought of. And that’s not all! These thoughts demonstrate themselves through the events of our lives.
For example, when a person is thinking about manifesting their ideal job, Aristotle would believe that this is simply an idealization of what they want in the future. Our thoughts about events in the future affect these exact predictions of what will happen to us and play out in our lives. Furthermore, our thoughts about what we want in the future manifest themselves through our actions. For example, if a person does not think about getting their ideal job, they are not going to do anything to get one.
Furthermore, through the action of thinking something into existence, these thoughts become real for us. If a person thinks years into the future and realizes that nothing will change in their lives, they may stop being ambitious and simply accept the way things are now. However, if the person is ambitious and continues to think about a different future for herself, she will begin taking steps to achieve her goal.
The manifestation process according to the philosopher
This process goes as follow:
- The mind creates a thought about something.
- The thought is idealized as the thing that the person wants to manifest.
- The person starts taking action to manifest the thought.
Examples:
The comedian wishes that he could be funnier. His mind creates a thought about being a funny person. This thought is idealized as being funnier than he already is. He begins by practising some jokes. After enough practice, his mind will begin thinking of jokes on its own and this will strengthen his ability to think of jokes and recognize them in reality. The thought is strengthened and, after a period of time, he may start thinking jokes on his own.
The person wishes that they had more money. The person’s mind creates a thought about the amount of money they want. He then begins to think about how to make money. The thought is strengthened by action so that the person will continue thinking of ways to earn more and take action accordingly. This process eventually leads them to their ideal job and life as it was envisioned for them.
The Scientist’s Perspective on manifesting ideas into existence
“The idea of being able to think something into existence might be possible, but the spontaneous generation of a living organism would not be possible.” – John Watson and Rosalie Rayner
Scientists such as John Watson believe that the spontaneous generation of life is impossible. In order for life (living organisms) to exist, there must be a source of life. However, there has never been proof that spontaneous generation exists.
Therefore, if it is impossible for something to spontaneously come into existence, then the idea of thinking something into existence is not possible.
The only reason scientists can be so sure that this concept does not exist is because they have been able to observe everything that has occurred in the world.
Scientists also believe that life cannot spontaneously generate itself without an outside source. Even if a person were to imagine a cell forming inside of them – if there was no outside cell or living organism – life would still not form.
The pathways of thoughts
Stanislav Grof writes in the book “Psychotherapy of the Future” that previously, all therapy was based on Freud’s theory of the id, ego and super-ego. According to this theory, there were three essential parts of the human mind that when in conflict resulted in psychological problems.
Grof believed, however, that Freud’s theory did not cover everything. In fact, it left a lot of gaps in the understanding of psychic phenomena. Therefore, Grof created his own model of the psyche based on his experiences with LSD and other drugs used in psychotherapy.
According to this model, there are three essential parts of the human mind: the personal unconscious, the collective unconscious and the transpersonal domain.
The personal unconscious contains all memories from our life that have been repressed or forgotten by us. These memories may include traumatic experiences, sexual desires, fears and anxieties that have been repressed by the mind.
The collective unconscious contains all of our shared cultural knowledge and information that has been learned from our ancestors. This includes everything from how to hunt for food and how to be a good person to moral rules and values. This is also where we pick up much of the knowledge and wisdom we have about life which we can access at a moment’s notice when needed.
The transpersonal domain contains the impressions we have of God, the spiritual world and cosmic consciousness. This is where we have our moments of epiphanies or the sudden realization that there is more to us than just our physical body. This is also where we gain knowledge about ourselves and the world around us when we access this part of ourselves.
According to Grof’s model, all thoughts and images are created by one or more of these areas of the mind. Thinking of a thing creates an impression of that thing in the mind, even if we have never seen it before. These impressions are created through the mind, through our thoughts and through our actions.
Summary
Manifestation is the process by which something is perceived by a person in the unconscious or conscious form in a way that makes it seem real enough for them to act upon it. It also attaches to the person’s identity making them believe that this object that they want really exists and is attainable.
A person needs to believe that something is possible for them to take action towards it and do all they can to realize their desire.
Manifestation is not the same as creation. Creation simply means making things out of nothing. Manifestation means having something already in place and then acting towards it.
Manifestation is the process by which thoughts are turned into things – either real or imagined – and then made known through action.
The thoughts of someone who is manifesting an object into existence will often come from the unconscious or the transpersonal domain rather than the personal unconscious. This is because this part of our mind contains information and ideas that we have acquired from society at large.
The thoughts and images that manifest into something in a person’s mind are created by the pathways that connect their unconscious with what they are manifesting.
Manifestation does not happen automatically, it has to be pursued. The only way creation can occur is if the person takes action towards their desire.
The formation of thought and then manifestation is a complex process that requires all of the brain’s functions to be in balance. Therefore, it is unlikely that someone can manifest an object into existence by simply thinking it or wishing for it.
Manifestation and creation are completely separate processes that do not have anything to do with each other.Anybody can attempt to manifest an idea or object into existence by thinking it and willing themselves to achieve it, however, this is not the only way to do it. It is important that a person succeeds in thinking about and acting upon their desire because it will make them believe that they can accomplish what they want.
