in a conflict of this kind.  The effect of this is to neutralize all of the other person’s power so far as its effect on yourself is concerned—­you really do not destroy it in him totally.  You simply render his forces powerless to affect you.  This is important not only when in a psychic conflict of this kind, but also when you wish to render yourself immune from the psychic forces of other persons.  You may shut yourself up in a strong defensive armor in this way, and others will be powerless to affect you.

In the positive statement, “I deny!” you have the Occult Shield of Defense, which is a mighty protection to you.  Even if you do not feel disposed to cultivate and develop your psychic powers in the direction of influencing others, you should at least develop your defensive powers so as to resist any psychic attacks upon yourself.

You will find it helpful to practice these offensive and defensive weapons when you are alone, standing before your mirror and “playing” that your reflection in the glass is the other person.  Send this imaginary other person the psychic vibrations, accompanied by the mental picture suitable for it.  Act the part out seriously and earnestly, just as if the reflected image were really another person.  This will give you confidence in yourself, and that indefinable “knack” of handling your psychic weapons that comes only from practice.  You will do well to perfect yourself in these rehearsals, just as you would in case you were trying to master anything else.  By frequent earnest rehearsals, you will gain not only familiarity with the process and methods, but you will also gain real power and strength by the exercise of your psychic faculties which have heretofore lain dormant.  Just as you may develop the muscle of your arm by calisthenic exercises, until it is able to perform real muscular work of strength; so you may develop your psychic faculties in this rehearsal work, so that you will be strongly equipped and armed for an actual psychic conflict, besides having learned how to handle your psychic weapons.

After you have practiced sufficiently along the general offensive and defensive lines, and have learned how to manifest these forces in actual conflict, you will do well to practice special and specific commands to others, in the same way.  That is to say, practice them first on your reflected image in the mirror.  The following commands (with mental pictures, of course) will give you good practice.  Go about the work in earnest, and act out the part seriously.  Try these exercises:  “Here! look at me!” “Give me your undivided attention!” “Come this way!” “Come to me at once!” “Go away from me—­leave me at once!” “You like me—­you like me very much!” “You are afraid of me!” “You wish to please me!” “You will agree to my proposition!” “You will do as I tell you!” Any special command you wish to convey to another person, psychically, you will do well to practice before the mirror in this way.