Clarification and deeper Understanding of The Secret

Recently, there was an open letter to Oprah Winfrey asking her to stop 'promoting' The Secret. Below is a link to the open letter, along with my response to the letter. Feel free to share your take on the letter, my response or anything else you'd like to express!

http://www.slate.com/id/2166211/pagenum/2/

I've struggled with John Gravois' point exactly when it comes to 'positive thinking'. But actually, Gravois is arguing with the concept of positive thinking which Oprah and The Secret do not claim or espouse. I specifically remember watching the show where Oprah interviewed participants from The Secret documentary. One of the participants said, 'This is not about positive thinking'. And Oprah said, 'Yes, that's right. This is not about positive thinking because that doesn't work.' In my experience, they are right. Positive thinking is like trying to clean a sewer with a few drops of bleach.

My understanding is that The Secret is not about positive thinking, it is about feeling good!! Feeling good, feeling joy and laughing is a powerful cleansing solution to clean up the sewer of negative beliefs and negative feeling patterns that I have about myself, other people and certain situations. The more I feel good, the easier it is to see all the things that do not make me feel good and the easier it is to discover the negative beliefs I have that I have never noticed before. In seeing those beliefs, there's choice! There is the choice to continue to believe what I have been believing that makes me feel bad. Or, I can feel the 'bad' feeling fully, which inevitably makes me feel better! Or, I can choose to believe something else that feels better! If I feel better and feel good, that is a sign that I am now in line with my spirit. My spirit informs me by how I am feeling.

I've also been looking at the concepts of Destiny vs. Free Will. What I've discovered is that I am limiting myself by choosing to subscribe to destiny or free will. I'm finding that there is wholeness and fulfillment in recognizing and honoring destiny AND free will. Both exist simultaneously. A friend of mine recently did my natal astrology chart and she was able to break down, with uncanny accuracy, major events that have happened in my life. That is not possible if there is only free will. My natal astrology chart was set in motion before I made any choices as Simone. There were certain events that were set in motion for me to experience, regardless of my personal choices and free will. That's destiny! The concept of destiny used to make me feel powerless. It made me feel that I was a victim of God's* plan. But, what I'm finding is that God's* plan has been set up for me to feel good, feel fulfilled, feel joy and feel blissful in moving towards and fulfilling my destiny! So, whatever makes me feel good** is in service to me fulfilling my destiny. My free will comes into play as to whether, in each moment, I am choosing to feel good or not. Am I choosing to focus on what I love and what makes me happy or am I not? When I focus on what I love, I get more of it. When I don't focus on what I love, I get more of that. It's been that simple. More and more, I have been easily and naturally creating a life that I love. So, it seems there is a predetermined destiny. And, within that destiny, I have the free will to follow my joy and feel good fulfilling my destiny, or not. Within the free will to follow my joy and feel good or not, I can believe, not believe, think or not think whatever I choose. That's freedom!! I'm free!!









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* I recognize there is no separation between myself and what I call 'God'
** I acknowledge that my feeling good is done in integrity and is not a result of bringing someone unnecessary harm