The Secret of Success

Chapter 2

THE INDIVIDUAL

In our last lesson, we stated that we consider the "Secret of Success" to consist mainly of the free expression of the Individual—the "I." But before you are able to apply this idea successfully, you must first awaken to a realization of what the Individual—the "I" within you—really is. This statement may appear ridiculous at first to many of you, but it will be worth your while to familiarize yourself fully with the idea behind it; for from the true realization of the "I" comes power.

If you stop and take stock of yourself, you will find that you are a more complex being than you had at first considered yourself to be. In the first place, there is the "I," which is the Real Self or the Individual; then there is the "Me," which is something attached to and belonging to the "I"—the personality. To prove this, let the "I" take stock of the "Me." It will find that the latter consists of three phases or principles:

1. The physical body
2. The vital energy
3. The mind

Many people are in the habit original: "habitat"; likely an OCR error for "habit" of regarding their bodies as the "I" part of themselves, but a little reflection will show them that the body is merely a material covering or a machine. It is the tool through which and by means of which the "I" is able to express original: "manifest" itself. A little thought will show that a person may be vividly conscious of the "I Am" part of themselves while being totally unaware of the presence of their physical body. Because this is true, it follows that the "I" is independent of the body, and that the body falls into the "Me" category. The physical body may exist after the "I" has left it—a dead body is not the "I." The physical body is composed of countless particles that change every moment of our lives; our body today is entirely different from our body a year ago.

Then comes the second principle of the "Me"—the vital energy, or what many call "Life." This is seen to be independent of the body, which it powers, but it, too, is temporary original: "transitory" and changeable. It can easily be seen as something used to animate and energize the body—an instrument of the "I," and therefore a part of the "Me."

What, then, is left for the "I" to examine to determine its own nature? The answer that comes naturally to your lips is, "The mind, by which I know the truth of what you have just said." But stop for a moment. By saying "by which I know" when speaking of the mind, haven't you acknowledged that the mind is something through which the "I" acts?

Think for a moment—is the mind you? You are aware that your mental states change—your emotions vary, your feelings differ from time to time, and your very ideas and thoughts are inconsistent. They are subject to outside influences, or else are molded and governed by that...