“To change your mood or mental state—­change your
    vibration.”—­The Kybalion.

One may change his mental vibrations by an effort of Will, in the direction of deliberately fixing the Attention upon a more desirable state.  Will directs the Attention, and Attention changes the Vibration.  Cultivate the Art of Attention, by means of the Will, and you have solved the secret of the Mastery of Moods and Mental States.

“To destroy an undesirable rate of mental vibration, put into operation the principle of Polarity and concentrate upon the opposite pole to that which you desire to suppress.  Kill out the undesirable by changing its polarity.”—­The Kybalion.

This is one of the most important of the Hermetic Formulas.  It is based upon true scientific principles.  We have shown you that a mental state and its opposite were merely the two poles of one thing, and that by Mental Transmutation the polarity might be reversed.  This Principle is known to modern psychologists, who apply it to the breaking up of undesirable habits by bidding their students concentrate upon the opposite quality.  If you are possessed of Fear, do not waste time trying to “kill out” Fear, but instead cultivate the quality of Courage, and the Fear will disappear.  Some writers have expressed this idea most forcibly by using the illustration of the dark room.  You do not have to shovel out or sweep out the Darkness, but by merely opening the shutters and letting in the Light the Darkness has disappeared.  To kill out a Negative quality, concentrate upon the Positive Pole of that same quality, and the vibrations will gradually change from Negative to Positive, until finally you will become polarized on the Positive pole instead of the Negative.  The reverse is also true, as many have found out to their sorrow, when they have allowed themselves to vibrate too constantly on the Negative pole of things.  By changing your polarity you may master your moods, change your mental states, remake your disposition, and build up character.  Much of the Mental Mastery of the advanced Hermetics is due to this application of Polarity, which is one of the important aspects of Mental Transmutation.  Remember the Hermetic Axiom (quoted previously), which says: 

    “Mind (as well as metals and elements) may be transmuted
    from state to state; degree to degree, condition to
    condition; pole to pole; vibration to vibration.”—­The Kybalion.

The mastery of Polarization is the mastery of the fundamental principles of Mental Transmutation or Mental Alchemy, for unless one acquires the art of changing his own polarity, he will be unable to affect his environment.  An understanding of this principle will enable one to change his own Polarity, as well as that of others, if he will but devote the time, care, study and practice necessary to master the art.  The principle is true, but the results obtained depend upon the persistent patience and practice of the student.