Ananda Sangha of Portland--The Attributes of Success (Part 2) by Paramhansa Yogananda

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The Attributes of Success, Part II
by Paramhansa Yogananda, first published in book form in 1944

Reaching the Source of Will

Now I have mentioned some of the attributes you must cultivate in order to achieve success—positive thoughts, dynamic will, self-analysis, initiative, and self-control—but these are only the first steps. Many popular books stress one or more of these, but do not give credit to the Power which is behind them. Self-analysis should lead to a better understanding of the inner Self. The cultivation of dynamic will should flower in attunement with the Divine will.

Will is the power that moves the cosmos and that moves everything living in it. It was God’s will that shot the stars into space. It is His will that holds the planets of the solar system in their orbits and directs the cycles of birth, growth, and decay of all animate an inanimate matter.

When Jesus said: “Let Thy will be done,” what did He mean? He meant that when man attunes his will with God’s will, which is guided by wisdom, then he is using Divine Will. However, you will not know what Divine Will is until you have developed your own will and then learned to harmonize it with the Supreme Will. This divine contact is gained through meditation.

Divine Will has no boundaries; it works in all bodies, in all things. It can change the course of destiny, wake the dead, put the mountain into the sea, and change the orbits of the planets in the solar system. So you must exercise your will in every undertaking, until it drops its mortal delusion of being human will and becomes one with all-powerful Divine Will. You only need to know that you already possess it, and in the image of God within you.

When guided by error, your human will is very faulty and can mislead you, but when guided by wisdom, it is attuned to the Divine Will. Unfortunately, God’s plan for you often becomes buried beneath the conflicts of human life and so you lose the guidance which would save you from the chasm of error. Only by using your conscious will power rightly can you contact God’s will.

The Ocean of Abundance

Just as all Power lies in His will, so all spiritual and material gifts flow from His boundless abundance. In order to align yourself with it, you must eradicate from your mind all thought of lack or poverty. Universal Mind is perfect, it knows no lack; and to reach that never-failing supply, you must create a consciousness of abundance—even if you do not know where the next dollar is to come from. When you refuse to be apprehensive, then you do your part and rely on God to do His, you will find that mysterious forces will come to your aid and your constructive wishes will materialize.

Since God is the source of all mental power, peace and prosperity, do not will and act first, but contact God first and thus harness your will and activity to the right goal. As you cannot broadcast through a broken microphone, so must you remember that you cannot broadcast your prayer through a mental microphone that is disordered by restlessness. By deep calmness you must repair your mind microphone and increase the receptivity of your intuition, so that you can broadcast to Him and receive His answers.

The Value of Meditation

After you have repaired your mental radio—when you are calm and attuned to constructive vibrations—how can you use it to reach Him? The right method of meditation is the only satisfactory way.

By the power of concentration and meditation, you can direct the untold power of your mind to accomplish what you desire, and you can guard all doors through which failure may enter. All men and women of success have devoted much time to deep concentration and meditation—though some of them may never have used the word “meditation” to describe their mental processes. They were people who could dive deeply into their problems and come out with the pearls of right solutions. If you learn how to withdraw your attention from all objects of distraction and place it upon one object of concentration, then you will know how to attract at will what you need.

When you want to create something important, sit quietly, calm your senses and your thoughts, and meditate deeply upon what you want to do or acquire. You will then be guided by the great creative power of Spirit. After that you must use all material resources to bring about whatever you wish to accomplish.

What Constitutes Need?

Knowledge of how to become successful is always important and I have discussed some of the attributes of success and have told you how to use them. But do you know what constitutes success? What does the word mean to you? I have said that real success comes by so increasing your mental efficiency that you can supply the things you need in life—but, remember, there is a great difference between things that you need and things that you want.

To lead a successful life you must first have a dominant purpose, and that purpose must be the right one for you, then all the powers of God will guide you in all your plans and activities. The whole world will stand aside for the person who knows where he is going and is determined to get there. When you have resolved definitely upon a purpose in life, you must then make everything serve that purpose. Extraordinary talent is not so necessary as an unswerving determination and unfailing application of effort.

But—will fulfillment of the purpose you have chosen constitute success? What is success, anyway? If you have lots of health and lots of wealth, but lots of trouble with everybody, including yourself, you have very little. The entire purpose of life becomes futile if you cannot find happiness. When wealth is lost, you have lost a little; when your health is lost, you have lost something, but when your peace of mind if lost, all is lost. Therefore, success must be measured by happiness—by your ability to remain in harmony with Cosmic laws—rather than by health, prestige or wealth.

Of course, money itself is not a curse; it is the manner in which you use money that is of importance. You can take a dollar bill and ask it, “Shall I buy poison with you?” It doesn’t answer, but if you use it rightly, it will give you happiness.

Determine to Be Happy

God never punishes nor rewards you, for He has given you the power to punish or reward yourself by the use or misuse of your own reason and will power. It is you who have transgressed the laws of health, prosperity, and wisdom and punished yourself with sickness, poverty and ignorance. Do not continue to carry your burden of old mental and moral weaknesses acquired in past years but burn them in the fires of resolution and become free.

Happiness depends to some extent upon external conditions, but chiefly upon conditions of the inner mind. In order to be happy, one must have good health, an efficient mind, a prosperous life, the right work, a thankful heart and, above all, an all-round all-accomplishing wisdom.

A strong determination to be happy will help you. Do not wait for your circumstances to change, thinking that in them lies the trouble, and do not make unhappiness a chronic habit, for it is anything but pleasant to be unhappy, and it is blessedness for yourself and others if you are happy. When you are unhappy, you forget the days when you were happy, and when happiness comes, the days of unhappiness seem to leave forever; but as the sunny days would not be appreciated if there were no cloudy days, so happiness can never be appreciated without first having experienced unhappiness.

Find His Power Within

Release for constructive purposes the power which you already have and more will come. Move on your path with unflinching determination, using all the attributes of success. Tune yourself with Cosmic Power. Then you will possess the creative power of Spirit. You will be in contact with Infinite Intelligence, which is able to guide you and to solve all problems. Power from the dynamic Source of your being will flow through you so that you will be able to create in the world of business, the world of thought, or the world of wisdom.

When you absolutely convince God that you want Him above all else, then you will attune with His will. When your will continues to want Him no matter what comes to take you away from Him, then you are acting according to God’s will.

The power of truth is yours, and if you will make a determined effort you will no longer walk nervously in fear and uncertainty on the path of life. There is a Power which will light your way, which will bring you health, happiness, peace, and success if you will but turn toward that Light. Swim in the ocean of vastness and peace and limitless happiness beyond dreams—within yourself!