1-Sentence-Summary: As A Man Thinketh Book Summery by James Allen: James Allen was a British philosophical writer known for his inspirational books and poetry and as a pioneer of the self-help movement.
“As a Man Thinketh” is a literary essay by James Allen, published in 1903. Allen described it as “dealing with the power of thought, and particularly with the use and application of thought to happy and beautiful issues."As A Man Thinketh" by James Allen is a timeless masterpiece that teaches readers the importance of cultivating a positive mindset and taking control of their thoughts to create a life of purpose and success.
Allen has tried to make the book simple so that all can easily grasp and follow its teaching and practice the methods it advises. It shows how, in his thought world, each man holds the key to every condition, good or bad, that enters his life and that, by working patiently and intelligently upon his thoughts, he may remake his life and transform his circumstances. Allen also described it as “A book that will help you to help yourself,” “A pocket companion for thoughtful people,” and “A book on the power and proper application of thought.
Thought and character
The saying "as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he" encompasses every aspect of a person's existence and applies to all conditions and circumstances. A person's character is the sum total of their thoughts; just as a plant grows from a seed, every action stems from one's innermost beliefs.
A person's thoughts are the source of their actions, and the results of those actions are either joy or suffering. One's mind shapes who they are and determines their fate. If a person thinks negatively, they will experience pain, while positive thinking leads to happiness.
Man is not a creation of artifice but rather a growth by law, and the laws of cause and effect apply to the hidden realm of thought as well as the material world. A noble character is the result of continued effort in right thinking, not chance or favor.
Man is both the maker and master of their own character. By choosing to think positively and applying those thoughts properly, a person can achieve divine perfection. On the other hand, negative thinking leads to a descent below even the level of beasts.
As a being of power, intelligence, and love, a person holds the key to every situation. They have the ability to transform themselves and shape their destiny. By delving deep into their soul, a person can uncover every truth about themselves and prove that they are the creators of their own character, the architects of their own life, and the builders of their own destiny.
Effect of thought on circumstances
A man's mind can be compared to a garden that needs a gardener to cultivate it intelligently. If a man doesn't put beneficial seeds into his mind, then an abundance of useless and impure thoughts will take root and continue to produce their kind.
Just like a gardener tending to his plot, a man can weed out all the evil, useless, and impure thoughts from the garden of his mind and cultivate perfect flowers and fruits of correct, helpful, and pure ideas.
Through this process, a man discovers that he is the master gardener of his soul, and the director of his life. He understands how the laws of thought operate and shape his character, circumstances, and destiny.
Thought and character are inseparable, and a person's outer conditions are related harmoniously to their inner state. A man's circumstances do not indicate his true character but are intimately connected with a vital thought element within him.
As a creative power, a man holds the key to every situation in his life. Every thought seed sown or allowed to take root in the mind produces its own fruitage, bearing its opportunity and circumstance. Good thoughts bear good fruit, while bad thoughts bear bad fruit.
Men are anxious to improve their circumstances but are unwilling to improve themselves, remaining bound by their limitations. To accomplish their goals, even if it is only acquiring wealth, a man must be willing to make personal sacrifices.
A man may be honest in specific directions yet suffer privations, or dishonest in particular rules yet acquire wealth. Surface judgments are erroneous without profound knowledge and broader experience.
Good thoughts and actions can never produce bad results, and suffering is always the effect of wrong thinking. The sole and supreme use of suffering is purification, to burn out all that is useless and impure.
Happiness, health, and prosperity result from a harmonious adjustment of the inner with the outer of the man with his surroundings.
A man's thought crystallizes into habits, which solidifies into circumstances. Bestial, impure, fearful, doubtful, indecisive, and selfish thoughts lead to adverse circumstances. On the other hand, beautiful, pure, courageous, self-reliant, and decisive thoughts lead to circumstances of success, plenty, and freedom.
While a man cannot directly choose his circumstances, he can choose his thoughts and indirectly shape his circumstances.
Effect of thought on health and the body
The body is the servant of the mind. It obeys the mind’s operations, whether deliberately chosen or automatically expressed. At the bidding of unlawful thoughts, the body sinks rapidly into disease and decay; at the command of happy and beautiful views, it becomes clothed with youthfulness and beauty (As A Man Thinketh).
Thoughts of fear have been known to kill a man as speedily as a bullet. Anxiety quickly demoralizes the whole body and opens it to the entrance of disease; even if not physically indulged, impure thoughts will soon shatter the nervous system.
Humans will continue to have impure and poisoned blood so long as they propagate unclean thoughts. Out of a clean heart comes a pure life and a clean body. Out of a defiled mind proceeds a defiled life and corrupt body (As A Man Thinketh).
A diet change will not help a man who will not change his thoughts. When a man makes his views pure, he no longer desires contaminated food (As A Man Thinketh).
If you would perfect your body, guard your mind.
There is no physician-like positive thought for dissipating the ills of the body; there is no comforter to compare with goodwill for dispersing the shadows of grief and sorrow. To live continually in thoughts of ill will, cynicism, suspicion, and envy are to be confined in a self-made prison hole (As A Man Thinketh).
Thought and purpose
Intellectual accomplishment is only achieved when thought is linked with purpose. Those who lack a central purpose in life are easily consumed by petty worries, fears, troubles, and self-pity. These distractions, just like deliberately planned sins, lead to failure, unhappiness, and loss. In a power-evolving universe, weakness cannot persist.
To succeed, a person should conceive of a legitimate purpose in their heart and make it the central point of their thoughts. They should devote themselves to attaining this purpose and not allow their thoughts to wander into ephemeral fancies, longings, and imaginings.
Even if repeated failures occur, each one provides an opportunity for strength of character to emerge, forming a new starting point for future power and triumph. Like a physically weak man who becomes strong through careful and patient training, a person with unproductive thoughts can become strong by exercising their correct thinking.
To put away aimlessness and weakness and begin to think with purpose is to join the ranks of those strong ones who recognize failure as one of the pathways to attainment. Once a purpose is conceived, a person should mentally mark out a straight pathway to its achievement, looking neither to the right nor to the left.
Doubts and fears must be rigorously excluded since they break up the straight line of effort. Thoughts of doubt and fear never accomplish anything and always lead to failure. Doubt and fear are the great enemies of knowledge, and conquering them results in conquering failure.
The thought factor in achievement
All a man achieves and fails to achieve is the direct result of his thoughts. A man’s weakness, strength, purity, and impurity are his own and not another man’s; they are brought about by himself and not by another, and they can only be altered by himself, never by another. His sufferings and his happiness evolved from within. As he thinks, so he is; as he continues to believe, so he remains (As A Man Thinketh).
A strong man cannot help a weaker unless the weaker is willing to be enabled, and even then, the weak man must become strong himself; he must, by his efforts, develop the strength which he admires in another (As A Man Thinketh).
He who has conquered weakness and has put away all selfish thoughts can only rise, destroy, and achieve by lifting his thoughts. He can only remain weak, abject, and miserable by refusing to lift his thoughts.
To succeed, give up all animality and selfishness by any means; but a portion of it must, at least, be sacrificed. Not having commenced manfully to control his thoughts, he is not in a position to control affairs and to adopt serious responsibilities. But he is limited only by the ideas which he chooses (As A Man Thinketh).
The universe does not favor the greedy, the dishonest, and the vicious, although, on the surface, it may sometimes appear to do so; it helps the honest, the generous, and the virtuous (As A Man Thinketh).
Victories attained by proper thought can only be maintained by watchfulness. Many give way when success is assured and rapidly fall back into failure. He who would accomplish little must sacrifice little; he who would achieve much must sacrifice much; he who would attain highly must sacrifice greatly (As A Man Thinketh).
Visions and ideals
Dreamers are the world’s saviors, as the visible world is sustained by the invisible. Through all their trials and sins and sordid vocations, men are nourished by the beautiful visions of their solitary dreamers. Humanity cannot forget its dreamers; it cannot let their ideals fade and die; it lives in them; it knows them in the realities it shall one day see and know (As A Man Thinketh).
Composers, sculptors, painters, poets, prophets, and sages are the makers of the after-world, the architects of heaven. The world is beautiful because they have lived; without them, laboring humanity would perish.
He who cherishes a beautiful vision, a lofty ideal in his heart, will one day realize it. Columbus loved a vision of another world and discovered it; Buddha beheld the vision of a spiritual world of stainless beauty and perfect peace, and he entered it (As A Man Thinketh).
Cherish your visions; cherish your ideals; love the music that stirs in your heart, the beauty that forms in your mind; if you remain true to them, your world will finally be built (As A Man Thinketh).
The thoughtless, the ignorant, and the lazy see only the apparent effects of things, not the things themselves, talking of luck, fortune, and chance. Seeing a man grow rich, they say, “how lucky he is!” observed another become intellectual; they exclaim, “how highly favored he is!”.
They do not see the trials and failures and struggles that these men have voluntarily encountered to gain their experience; they do not know the sacrifices they have made, the courageous efforts they have put forth, the faith they have exercised, that they might overcome the impossible, and realize the vision of their heart (As A Man Thinketh).
They do not know the darkness and the heartaches; they only see the light and joy and call it “luck”; do not see the long and arduous journey but only behold the pleasant goal and call it “good fortune”;
The vision you glorify in your mind, the ideal you enthrone in your heart – this you will build your life by, and you will become (As A Man Thinketh).
SUMMERY
The calmness of the mind is one of the beautiful jewels of wisdom. It is the result of long and patient effort in self-control. Its presence is an indication of ripened experience (As A Man Thinketh).
The calm man, having learned how to govern himself, knows how to adapt to others. The more tranquil a man becomes, the greater his success. Even the ordinary trader will find his business prosperity increase as he develops greater self-control and equanimity. People will always prefer to deal with a man whose demeanor is strongly equable. The firm, calm man is always loved and revered. He is like a shade-giving tree in a thirsty land or a sheltering rock in a storm (As A Man Thinketh).
Wherever you may be, under whatsoever conditions ye may live, know this – in the ocean of life, the isles of blessedness are smiling, and the sunny shore of your ideal awaits your coming. Self-control is strength; proper thought is mastery; Calmness is power. Therefore, say unto your heart, “peace, be still!”
Thank You.