Happiness and Marriage | Page 7

is the statement that man is a magnet and able to attract
what he will. To repudiate this statement is to knock the props out from
under the whole philosophy. Better stay an old-thoughter and let Jesus
suffer for your sins and those of your relatives and friends. At least
Jesus took the sins of the world to bear, all of his own free will. There
is some comfort in letting Jesus do what he chose to do.
But you have turned away from Jesus as a scapegoat. You refuse to lay
your burdens on him who offered to bear them; and you refuse to bear
them yourself. Instead you distribute them around among your relations
and friends and then fret your soul because they won't accept your
distributions. Of course you excuse yourself by acknowledging "your
share of responsibility" for the unpleasantness of conditions, but if you
will examine carefully you will find that your portion of the
responsibility includes most of the good things in your conditions,
whilst you have portioned off almost all the responsibility for the bad
things among your protesting--or indifferent--relatives. You always say,
"I try so hard," but you never balance that with, "He tries so
hard,"--"They try so hard." You get all the I-try-items in your own pile
and the don't-try-items in other folk's piles. "If it were not for Tom and
Dick and Harry and Fan you would do wonders--if they'd only treat you
with half the consideration other people give you, or half they give
other people!--if!--if!"
I wonder why they don't indeed! It is just because you are you, and you
attract your own particular kind of treatment. To all intents and
purposes Tom, Dick, Harry and Fan are a punch and Judy show and
you pull the strings. When other people pull the strings there's a
different sort of show. YOU are the motive power in all their treatment
of you. Not a tone or look or act of theirs in your direction but you are
responsible for; it was you and no other who drew them to you; and it is
you and no other who hold them there.
Now don't say, "I don't see how!" Of course not--you haven't wanted to

see how--you've been too intent justifying yourself. And anyway, it
takes an open mind, and some time, and much faith to enable us to see
the principles of things. We have to act as if they were so, a long time
before we see that they are. If you had acted upon the principle that you
are a magnet and that all that comes to you comes by your attraction,
you'd have long ago had your eyes opened to "see how." And you'd
have made progress and changed your conditions.
If you are ever going to be a magnet you are one now. If you are ever
going to be able to attract to the hair's breadth whatsoever you will then
you are doing it now. There will be no miraculous change in the
running gear of this universe to enable you to attract what you want.
What you now are in essence and working principle you have always
been, and you will always be--the same yesterday, today and forever--a
self-made MAGNET, working to the hair's breadth.
ONLY BY CHANGING THE QUALITY OF YOUR MAGNETISM
CAN YOU CHANGE YOUR ENVIRONMENT AND ATTRACT
DIFFERENT TREATMENT FROM TOM, DICK, HARRY AND
FAN.
Sweetness within brings sweetness without. You have been more or
less bitter and self-justifying within, and Tom, Dick, Harry and Fan
have danced to the strings you pulled.
As long as you think you try and they don't; as long as you think your
judgment superior to theirs; your ideals loftier and worthier; your ways
better; you will get from them responses of carelessness, bitterness,
lack of consideration, selfishness.
You are inconsiderate of their ideas, ideals, judgments and ways; in
self-preservation they are inconsiderate of yours. If you had your way
they'd be pretty little putty images of your ideals, judgments, wishes,
ways and feelings. The Law of Individuality prevents your imposing
yourself on them. You think you are finding fault with their "lack of
consideration"; you are really condemning the law of being.

If you are ever to be a magnet you are one NOW. All that comes is
"your fault." If anything different comes it will come through your
change of mental attitude and action.
It will not do to throw it on "Karma" either, and say you are receiving
now the unpleasant things deserved in a previous state of existence.
The mills of the gods grind slowly but they are not so dead slow as all
that. What you thought and did in a previous state has determined your
parentage and childhood environment in this.