World—A Projection of Thought

Careful reflection will show that the entire universe is in reality the projection of the human mind—Manomatram Jagat. Purification and control of the mind is the central aim of all Yogas. Mind in itself is but a record of impressions that keep expressing ceaselessly as impulses and thoughts. The mind is what it does. Thought impels you to action; activity creates fresh impressions in the mind-stuff. Yoga strikes at the very root of this vicious circle by a method of effectively inhibiting
the functions of the mind. Yoga checks, controls and stops the root function of the mind, i.e., thought. When thought is transcended, intuition functions and Self-knowledge supervenes. Thought has the potency of creating or undoing the world in the twinkling of an eye. Mind creates the world according to its own Sankalpa or thought. It is the mind that creates this universe, (Manomatram Jagat; Manahkalpitam Jagat). Through the play of the mind, a Kalpa is reckoned by it as a moment and vice versa. Like a dream generating another dream in it the mind having no visible form generates existent visibles.

We Live in a Boundless World of Thoughts

Thought alone is the whole world, the great pains, the old age, death and the great sin, earth, water, fire, air, ether. Thought binds a man. He who has controlled his thoughts, is a veritable God on this earth. You live in a world of thoughts. First is thought. Then there is the expression of that thought through the organ of speech. Thought and language are intimately connected. Thoughts of anger, bitterness and malice injure others. If the mind which is the cause of all thoughts
vanishes, the external objects will disappear. Thoughts are things. Sound, touch, form, taste and odor, the five sheaths, the waking, the dreaming and deep sleep states—all these are the products of mind. Sankalpa, passion, anger, bondage, time—know them to be the result of mind. Mind is the king of the Indriyas or senses.
Thought is the root of all mental process. The thoughts that we perceive all round us are only the mind in form or substance. Thought creates, thought destroys. Bitterness and sweetness do not lie in the objects, but they are in the mind, in the subject, in thinking. They are created by thought. Through the play of the mind or thought upon objects, proximity appears to be a great distance and vice versa. All objects in this world are unconnected; they are connected and associated together only by thought, by the imagination of your mind. It is the mind that gives
color, shape, qualities to the objects. Mind assumes the shape of any object it intensely thinks upon. Friend and enemy, virtue and vice are in the mind only. Every man creates a world of good and evil, pleasure and pain, out of his own imagination only. Good and evil, pleasure and pain do not proceed from objects. These belong to the attitude of your mind. There is nothing good nor pleasant in this world. Your imagination makes it so.

Thought—Its Power, Workings and Uses

Thought is a vital, living dynamic power—the most vital, subtle and irresistible force
existing in the universe. Through the instrumentality of thought you acquire creative power. Thought passes from one man to another. It influences people; a man of powerful thought can influence readily people of weak thoughts. There are nowadays numerous books on thought-culture, thought power, thought dynamics. A study of them will give you a comprehensive understanding of thought, its power, its workings and usefulness.

Thought—Its Form, Its Name and Colour

Suppose your mind is rendered perfectly calm, entirely without thoughts. Nevertheless, as soon as thought begins to rise, it will immediately take name and form. Every thought has a certain name and a certain form. Thus you find that every idea that
man has or can have, must be connected with a certain word as its counterpart. Form is the grosser and name the finer state of a single manifesting power called thought.
But these three are one; wherever there is one, the other two also are there. Wherever
name is, there are form and thought. A spiritual thought has yellow color. A thought charged with anger and hatred is of a dark red color; a selfish thought has a brown color and so on.

Thought—Its Weight, Size and Shape

Every thought has got weight, shape, size, form, color, quality and power. A Yogi can
see all these thoughts directly with his inner Yogic eye. Thoughts are like things. Just as you hand over an orange to your friend and take it back, so also you can give a useful, powerful thought to your friend and also take it back. Thought is a great force; it moves; it creates. You can work wonders with the power of thought. You must know the right technique of handling and manipulating a thought.

Radium and the Rare Yogi

Radium is a rare commodity. Yogins who have controlled their thoughts are also very rare in this world, like radium. Just as sweet perfume continuously emanates from an incense stick, so also divine perfume and divine effulgence (magnetic, Brahmic aura) radiate from a Yogi who has controlled his thoughts and who is constantly dwelling on Brahman or the Infinite. The effulgence and perfume of his face is Brahma-Varchas. When you hold in your hand a bouquet made of jasmine, rose and Champaka flowers, the sweet perfume pervades the whole hall and tickles all alike. Even so the perfume or fame and reputation (Yasas and Kirti) of a Yogi who has controlled his thoughts spreads far and wide. He becomes a cosmic force.