“Seth material” search engine (Jane Roberts)

If, on the other hand, thinking of him under the same conditions, you stop yourself and say gently to yourself: he will begin to feel better now—or his drinking is temporary—and there is indeed hope here, then you have given him aid, for the suggestions will at least represent some small telepathic ammunition to fight off the war of despondency.

There are obviously ways in which you can mold your own conditions, protect yourself from your own negative suggestions and those given to you by others. You must immediately erase a negative thought or picture by replacing it with its opposite.

You have been examining others, rather than examining the self. What you see of others is the materialization of what you think, subconsciously, that you are: not necessarily what you are. For example: if others seem deceitful to you it is because you deceive yourself and then project this outward onto others.

These are simply examples now. If an individual sees only evil and desolation in the physical world, it is because he is obsessed with evil and desolation and projects them outward and closes his eyes to all else. If you want to know what you think of yourself, then ask yourself what you think of others, and you will find your answer.

True self-knowledge is indispensable for health or vitality, and this means in every instance. The recognition of the truth about the self means that you must first discover what you think about yourself subconsciously. If this is a good image, build upon it. If it is a poor one, recognize it as simply the opinion of the subconscious and not as a definite truth.

For our guest: you should tell yourself frequently, “I will only react to constructive suggestions,” for this gives you some protection against your own negative thoughts and those of others. You can observe these laws in operation where you work and also, privately, when you are alone. A negative thought, if it is not erased, will almost certainly result in a negative situation, a momentary despondency, a headache, according to the original intensity of the thought.

Now: if you find yourself saying to yourself: “I have a headache,” you must immediately say “That is in the past. Now in this new moment, this new present, I am already feeling better.” Then immediately turn your attention away from your physical condition entirely. Concentrate upon something pleasant, or begin another task.