A Podcast Featuring Sri Aurobindo Studies
Sept. 10, 2024

Creating Beneficial Thought Forms and Their Positive Action

Creating Beneficial Thought Forms and Their Positive Action

Reference: Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, Powers Within, Chapter II Power of Thought, pp. 11-12 This episode is also available as a blog post at https://sriaurobindostudies.wordpress.com/2024/09/06/creating-beneficial-thought-forms-and-their-positive-action/

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The US editions and links to e-book editions of Sri Aurobindo’s writings can be found at Lotus Press www.lotuspress.com

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Whenever there is some kind of
news headline about a major

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negative event, such as a school
shooting or a catastrophic

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earthquake or hurricane, we hear
major political leaders express

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thoughts and prayers for the
victims and their families.

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Everyone knows that there is no
serious force behind this and it

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is intended to deflect from
actually doing anything.

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It also makes us doubt the
efficacy of thoughts and prayers

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at all.
Aside from the deliberate

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hypocrisy at work here, it is
clear that no real force of

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consciousness and development of
a powerful thought form was

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applied at all.
It is merely empty words.

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Yet we can see examples where
the creation of a thought form,

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whether expressed in words or
not, can have a very substantial

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and beneficial impact on people
and circumstances.

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This can occur when there is a
systematic application of effort

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to develop a formation, or when
there is a marrying of a thought

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with a strong emotion or vital
energy to enliven and strengthen

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it in its action.
Some years ago, the

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Transcendental Meditation
movement developed a program to

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send a number of meditators to
certain hotspots for violence to

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meditate systematically for a
period of time.

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Studies were carried out that
showed in the period following

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the meditation focus, the
violent crime statistics went

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down meaningfully.
Of course, these studies could

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not be done as double-blind,
scientifically validated

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studies, but looked at
statistics reported generally

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before and after.
This impact was seen across

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several decades in a number of
specific incidents, seemingly

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shoring up the benefit of such
quiet action on the general

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populace.
The creation of detailed

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formations is an important part
of many spiritual and occult

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teachings from around the world,
including also healing

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modalities.
For example, the Tibetan yogic

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practice of the development of
the psychic heat has as a

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preliminary practice the process
of detailed visualization, with

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the practitioner seated and
visualizing his root guru

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immediately above his head and
the lineage of guru seated one

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above the other.
He then calls forth the psychic

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gift waves from the guru, which
opens his receptivity to the

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subtle vibration sent by the
guru to support the disciple.

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The combination of the
visualization process, the

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aspiration or call, and the
opening or receptivity creates

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the condition for the formation
to turn the practice into

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realization.
The healing modality of Reiki

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also uses a focus on certain
symbols to which specific

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meaning is provided.
Through a process of attunement,

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the disciple learns how to
create the appropriate

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formation, opening the channel
for the flow of the higher

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energy in and through him and
thereby out to the patient or

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client who is being treated.
Reiki also works at a distance

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without the physical presence of
the client, required through a

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specific set of formation
actions to transmit the energy

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to the intended party.
It is interesting to note that

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Reiki works extremely well on
animals who do not have the

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intellectual doubts that plague
human beings, but who simply

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experience and open themselves
to the energy and even at a

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distance.
A Reiki master teacher

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practitioner reported her own
experience in receiving the

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initial attunements.
When she made the required focus

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and receptivity, she suddenly
felt a powerful surge of energy

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in her chest area.
In fact, she had been suffering

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from pains in that area for
several decades prior, But after

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the atonements, that problem was
resolved and the pains were

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eliminated.
She did not consciously try to

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focus on the area of the pains,
but through the visualization

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and concentration process and
the creation of receptivity

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within herself for the energy of
Reiki, the blockage, the source

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and cause of the pain was
eliminated.

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Of course, the process of
creation of powerful thought

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forms may also help create an
atmosphere where people step

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forward to help solve situations
and support needs.

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It can help create a texture of
consciousness that allows

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changes at the societal level to
occur and may even lead to

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changes in the political dynamic
that prevents real positive

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change from occurring.
Such a societal change takes

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time and persistence, but
history shows us that such

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changes can and do occur,
particularly when there is a

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serious and focused attention to
the creation of positive and

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progressive thought forms to
move the society forward.

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If possible, the thought
formation can be most powerful

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when combined with a form of
outer action that engages the

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emotional being, the vital
force, and the physical action.

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If an individual is not in a
position to do all of them, the

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first step, the creation of the
positive thought formation, is a

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necessary and important aspect.
Eventually, as it takes shape,

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the formation begins to change.
The outer action for the

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individual and for the
circumstances and the societal

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setting focus on creating
positive thought.

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Formations cannot be used as an
excuse for refusing to undertake

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the other steps as they become
possible.

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But random outer action is not
as effective as the creation of

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beneficial forces at the causal
level, the mother notes quote.

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Note that this power of
formation has a great advantage

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if one knows how to use it.
You can make good formations,

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and if you make them properly,
they will act in the same way as

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the others.
You can do a lot of good to

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people just by sitting quietly
in your room, perhaps even more

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good than by undergoing a lot of
trouble externally, if you know

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how to think correctly, with
force and intelligence and

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kindness.
If you love someone and wish him

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well, very sincerely, deeply,
with all your heart, that does

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him much good, much more
certainly than you think.

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I have said this often, for
example, to those who are here

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who learn that someone in their
family is very ill and feel the

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childish impulse of wanting to
rush immediately to the spot to

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attend the sick person.
I tell you, unless it is an

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exceptional case and there is
nobody to attend on the sick

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person, and at times, even in
such a case, if you know how to

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keep the right attitude and
concentrate with affection and

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goodwill upon the sick person,
if you know how to pray for him

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and make helpful formations, you
will do him much more good than

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if you go to nurse him, feed
him, help him, wash himself.

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Indeed, all that everybody can
do.

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Anybody can nurse a person, but
not everybody can make good

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formations and send out forces
that act for healing.

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End Quote.
Reference Srioro Bindo and the

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Mother Powers within, Chapter 2.
Power of Thought, pages 11:00 to

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12:00.