Book Review: Thoughts Are Things

by Ernest Holmes
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I mentioned in a previous article that the roots of The Secret lie in the New Thought Movement of the 19th century. Ernest Holmes (1887-1960) was the founder of the Science of Mind philosophy and movement, which grew out of the New Thought Movement.

Thoughts Are Things is a concise introduction to Holmes’ philosophy. After reading just the first few pages, you can see parallels to The Secret - especially in the belief that positive thinking can cure illness.

“We can provide ourselves with free insurance which has a fine guarantee of good health. But we need to wake up to the fact that good health is our natural state, and also stop continually inviting sickness with undue worries, concerns and anxieties. The same thing applies also to our relationships and affairs. We can insure their continued good state by not emotionally and mentally nurturing their opposites”

Keep in mind that Holmes wrote during the birth of modern psychology when we knew very little about how the brain correlates with behavior. Some of what he says still has a grain of truth to it. We now know that stress and worry can have a significant impact on immune response. I’m sure you’ve had intense periods of stress and once the task was completed, you were exhausted and had to fight off a cold.

We also know that having a positive mental attitude can aid in illness recovery. You can see this in cancer patients - those with a positive mental attitude and the will to keep living fight their illness longer than those who lose hope. If you’ve ever walked into a nursing home, you can tell which residents are still spirited vs the ones who are waiting around to die. Attitude matters significantly.

That said, what Holmes implies is that just by believing and being positive, you can cure yourself of any ailment without medical treatment. That your very thoughts can heal your body regardless of if you change your behaviors (aside from a few recited affirmations).

For instance, Holmes cites Dwight L Wilbur of the American College of Physicians, who was reported to have said that one-third to two-thirds of people who visit a doctor’s office have no recognizable organic illness. Holmes claims “He does not mean by this that their condition is imaginary, but rather that it is a functional disturbance brought on by their own way of thinking.”

Again, that explanation probably made sense before our modern medical technologies. Keep in mind that it was only during the mid 1800s when germs were discovered, the stethoscope was invented, and there was a good chance of dying if you ever were unfortunate enough to visit a hospital. Doctors just didn’t know about the various germs, bacteria and viruses. They didn’t understand the intricate functions of body organs. So, it makes sense that if they couldn’t find anything wrong with the person, that they’d attribute it to their thinking.

Holmes also believes that we not only have a divine spark or a part of God within us, but we can evoke that power to create whatever we choose.

“Wonderful indeed is the conception of the union of all life, which Jesus proclaimed in the ecstasy of his illumination: “I and my Father are one.” All cause and all effect proceed from the invisible Spirit. You are one with this Spirit and cannot be separated from It. Your word has power because your word is the action of God through your thought.”

This passage says more than just “you can do anything you put your mind to.” It actually claims that the reason you can do anything is because you’re tapping into the divine reservoirs within you and just as God creates, you can use His power to create. You don’t need to pray that God will answer you. Since God is within you, you merely have to realize you have that power to use it. This is one of those beliefs where the New Thought Movement breaks from Christianity. He elaborates in this passage:

“Right action means that every legitimate and constructive purpose you have in mind shall be successfully executed. It means that you will know what to do, how to think, how to act, how to proceed. You definitely know that if your thought is in accord with the Divine Nature it actually is the Law of God enforcing Itself in your experience. Hence, there is nothing in you or around you which can limit your constructive thought. The Power of this Law is within you and the action which results from this Power produces harmony, peace, joy and success.”

From my few excerpts, I’m sure you can see strong parallels with what The Secret teaches. That said, while the book certainly isn’t up to modern medical and scientific standards, it does make for an interesting philosophical read. It addresses a number of good points like freeing yourself from fear and keeping a positive mindset.

To give Holmes credit, he has tried to rely on the scientific data available at the time, which I’m sure made for a compelling read back in his day - and some of which have proven true today. For instance he discussed a study of family groups done by the University of Illinois which

“revealed that to a large extent the problems parents are confronted with in their children are the result of their own problems and maladjustments. In other words the parents are creating the problems they are trying to solve!”

This concept was addressed in Alice Miller’s seminal work, The Drama of the Gifted Child, originally published in 1979.

Certainly, being aware of our own patterns and tendencies - and being able to ask ourselves empowering and critical questions - can shape our perception of what’s happening. Holmes goes even further to suggest that the origins of any problem lie within us.

“Instead of considering a problem as a thing which exists entirely outside ourselves, if we take the time to carefully examine our thinking we will no doubt find that the difficulty had its source within us. Unless we learn to think with discretion and care we will find ourselves battling real live problems into which our thoughts have grown.”

There is some truth to this. We are often most aware of another’s behaviors because those issues are important to us (either positively or negatively). For instance, if you’re a neat freak and your partner’s not as organized, it probably bugs you that he doesn’t pick up after himself. If you’re always punctual and your best friend is always late, that tardiness bugs you.

On a more positive note, the qualities we admire in others are often the standard by which we’d like others to see ourselves. If we admire someone’s courage or intellect or integrity, it’s because those traits are important to us and are things we’d like others to perceive in us.

Thoughts Are Things is a short read at 100 pages. It’s broken into four main sections: The World Around You, The Life You Live, Your Mental and Spiritual Health, and The Future Is Yours. If you’re looking for books that influenced the modern philosophy of the Law of Attraction or The Secret or the modern self help movement, this book is a must read. It’s an inspirational tome that will leave you feeling positive and empowered. Buy from Amazon.com