Our Thought always continues to be creative; but in destructive use it becomes creative for destructive forces, and, since it has its origin in our own personality, we are certain sooner or later to feel its effects, on the principle that every action always produces a corresponding reaction.  As we have seen, the Law knows nothing of persons, but acts automatically in strict accord with the nature of the power which has set it in motion.  Under negative conditions the great Law of the Universe becomes your adversary, and must continue to be so, until by your altered mode of Thought you put yourself in line with it.

But on the other hand, if our intention be to co-operate with the Great Law, we shall find that in it also exists a mysterious “Soul of the Subject,” which will respond to us, however imperfectly we may understand its modus operandi.  It is the intention that counts, not the theoretical knowledge.  The knowledge will grow by experience and meditation, and its value is measured entirely by the intention that is at the back of it.

CHAPTER VI

THE PROMISES

We have now, I hope, laid a sufficiently broad foundation of the relation between the Law and the Word.  The Law cannot be changed, and the Word can.  We have two factors, one variable, and the other invariable; so that from this combination any variety of resultants may be expected.  The Law cannot be altered, but it can be specialized, just as iron can be made to float by the same law by which it sinks.  Now let us try to figure out in our imagination an ideal of the sort of results we should want to bring out from these two factors.

In the first place I think we should like to be free from all worry and anxiety; for a life of continual worry is not worth living.  And in the second we should like always to have something to look forward to and feel an interest in; for a life entirely devoid of all interest is also not worth living.  But, granted that these two conditions be fulfilled, I think we should all be well pleased to go on living ad infinitum.  Now can we conceive any combination of the Law and the Word which would produce such results? that is the question before us.  The first step is to generalize our principle as widely as possible, for the wider the generalization, the larger becomes the scope for specialization.  The invariable factor we already know.  It is the Law, always creating in accordance with the Word that sets it in motion, whether constructive or destructive; so what we really have to consider is the sort of Word (i.e.  Thought or Desire) which will set the Law working in the right direction.  It must be a Word of confidence in its own power; otherwise by the hypothesis of the case it would be giving contradictory directions to the Law, or to borrow a simile from what we have learnt about waves in ether, it would be sending out vibrations that would cancel one another and so