“Could Gandhi have been a stock car racer?”

I believe in what some call the  “law of attraction” or what the bible refers to as “the principle of sowing and reaping.”

I have genuine faith in the old idea that we get out of life what we put into it and that our predominant thoughts, feelings, words, and actions will ultimately be reflected back to us in the form of circumstances and conditions.

But I don’t believe we have the ability to attract ANYTHING.

I believe we have the ability to attract EVERYTHING that’s necessary and sufficient to fulfill the mission of our True Self.

The real “you”

In “The Inner Experience: Notes on Contemplation”,  Thomas Merton makes a distinction between what he calls “the two selves”; the false self and the true self.

The false self refers to the illusory identity we take on when we live from a place of fear and fragmentation. The true self is the authentic identity we express when we live from a place of faith. It is that part of us which is conscious of its oneness with God.

When it’s you versus you, you always loses

Because energy flows along the path of least resistance, we block the natural flow of creative power when we move against the current of our True Self.

Resisting the truth of our being significantly limits our ability to appropriate the insights, resources, tools, and capacities which would otherwise be available to us.

As I stated in The Invisible Miracle Factory, “Our access to creative power is clearest when we’re focused on doing what we’re called to do.”

Do the right thing?

But what if someone really wants to do something that they’re not “called” to do?

If he wanted to, could Gandhi have been a stock car racer?

George Clooney’s character, Lyn Casady, from Men Who Stare at Goats doesn’t seem to think so:

“Your life is like a river. If you’re aiming for a goal that isn’t your destiny, you will always be swimming against the current. Young Gandhi wants to be a stock car racer? Not gonna happen.  Little Anne Frank wants to be a high school teacher? Tough Anne. That’s not your destiny. But you will go on to move the hearts and minds of millions.  Find out what your destiny is and the river will carry you. Sometimes events in life give an individual clues as to where their destiny lies.”

Does my destiny put me in a box?

So, does this mean that our options in life are determined by the fate of the gods? Is there really some sort of “destiny box” we’re all trapped in which dictates what we do or don’t have permission to create?

I don’t think so at all. I believe there is a very harmonious balance between our power to create and our purpose for being here. I don’t think we ever to have fear that we’ve been assigned a meaningless or miserable fate that conflicts with what we truly want to be, do, and have.

In tomorrow’s post, I’ll share some of my thoughts on this age-old idea of “destiny”, spiritual callings, the Law of Attraction, and the power of walking on the path of your True Self.

Until then,

Cheers 🙂

T.K. Coleman

For “Could Gandhi have been a stock car racer?” Part II, click here.