The ancients espoused the phrase “as within, so without” to teach us that our inner thoughts and beliefs will be reflected in our outer reality. It’s amazing how just four words can have such a profound meaning.
The more you pay attention to your thoughts, the more you will start to see their impact on your outer world. You might not see their impact “instantly”, although, the time between thought and result can get pretty short if you are paying attention and if your mind is clear.
However, in this day and age of mass information, it is hard to notice how our thoughts influence our reality because instead of “thinking” we are absorbing other people’s thoughts through the TV and social media.
So it is important to distinguish between two kinds of outer reality…
The first kind of outer reality is the one you experience with your own eyes & ears – this is called direct experience.
The other kind of outer reality is the one projected on you through a TV, smart phone, or other computer device.
Most of us assume what we see on our screens IS our outer reality, but, when you turn off the TV/phone/tablet, it is no longer part of your outer reality, is it?
When our dog barks at another dog on TV, our dog thinks the other dog is part of its outer reality, but it is not! Of course we know the dog on TV is not real, but our dog does not know this. Similarly, almost everything we see on TV or social media is far less real than what we perceive with our five senses. It is here in our direct experience we are more likely to witness our thoughts and their impact on our outer world.
Granted, there is plenty of illusion and distraction in our direct experience as well, but we have a better chance of witnessing our creations in the here and now.
The TV, social media or whatever computer-based reality you invite into your world is a lot like inviting someone to bang on a loud drum in your living room while you are trying to hear a bird sing.