Discussion What is your opinion about manifestation, the law of attraction, and such?

[Vivir_O_No]

First and foremost, I'm a very skeptical person. So, when my friends talk to me and say, "You're so negative; try thinking positive and manifest positive things in your life, Yay!" I'm like, "What? Do you really believe that my mind is going to bypass the laws of physics and allow me to manipulate matter and energy to behave as I want? You should've told me this earlier." For me, that sounds overly optimistic and somewhat childish. I mean, why would the universe bend to the desires of someone like me? You could have suggested telling a starving child to manifest a piece of bread instead.

At the same time, I find myself very confused about everything. Yes, there are scientific explanations that explain why this universe behaves as it does and why everything is as it is, but those answers do not concern the why. So, when people tell me about manifestation and the law of attraction, I struggle to comprehend it. I've observed how much pain this universe can cause to other sentient beings and witnessed absurd and ridiculous things happening to other people. And then you tell me that I can manipulate matter and energy with my mind? Why, out of nowhere, is this thing called the universe being so compassionate with us human beings, granting us whatever we wish for?

I believe that perhaps consciousness could modify things, considering that the laws of physics, which dictate how matter and energy must behave, govern the physical realm. However, consciousness is not something physical per se. Still, given that consciousness emerges from biological and physical phenomena, it implies that consciousness itself is subject to the laws of physics. Consequently, it may not have the capacity to alter reality after all.

 

[Forever Sleep]

I'm not really sure. From a personal perspective, there have been things in life that I desperately wanted and actually got. Kind of against the odds I would say. One thing was to get on to a particular university course. I was obsessed with it. Honestly, comparitively speaking- I was nowhere near as good as a lot of the people there. Still- sometimes just the fact that you are obviously passionate about something and are willing to work very hard is enough to impress people I think.

That would be my doubt really- as in- someone who really wants something in life has very likely pulled out all the stops to get it. So- they're not just sitting at home praying for great wealth or a partner or a particular job- I imagine they're very likely acting on their wishes in the real world. So really- how much of it is psychic mannifesting and how much of it is hard work?

The other thing is- I don't think you can just pretend to want something because you feel you should or because other people have told you to. I think whatever it is- it needs to be a genuine want. Most of my half arsed attempts at things in life have failed because there will be someone else who put all their effort in.

 

[Slow_Farewell]

I find it to be..not something that's generic or a..um..like as-a-whole thing.
For example(and this is going to be a bit on the materialistic side):
i've had experiences where I wanted a certain job so much. Did the work, looked into the company, prepped as much as I could, etc and I got it. Then there was a time I was obsessed with the lottery. Never prayed so hard before in my life, on a regular basis. tried to be as good as I could, etc etc but...well, i didnt.
Granted, my examples may seem mundane and all but having going through similar examples again and again and again, it kinda jarred my whole perception of it, as I believe all it does is slowly change your outlook on things. it wont get you anything, but it will create a habit of you changing your perception of how things are, which may or may not lead to the outcome you desire.
A practical example: Person A is a realist, Person B is a skeptic, Person C is someone who practices the law of attraction.
The boss says I have a project, we need to do this.
Person A would attempt to quantify the challenges and base his response on that, something along the lines of "hmm. it will take X hours to do this and that, which means we have to take time away from this and this to compensate. It can be done but at a cost" and end it there. He/She didn't say it couldn't be done, he merely pointed out the things that would need to be done to accomplish the goal set forward.
Person B would say "Are we certain it would give the result we'd need? have we done this and that? Sounds like it's not worth it" Person B already assessed what would happen in his/her head, and he/she maybe have come to the conclusion without all the needed information, instead relying on ongoing or historical projects.
Person C would most probably say "Yes, we'll do it and it will be awesome!"
IF the project succeeds, C would be remembered as being a model employee, while A & B would be.. pricks.
IF the project FAILS, A & B would be remembered as "not team players". C's response would be swept under the rug
Come assessment or bonus time, C would be given a higher bonus than A & B, even though both A & B cautioned against the project, albeit in different manners. C would probably be promoted. Whenever C would be asked about the success, all he/she would say is "Thinking positive/the Law of Attraction works for me"

TL;DR The Law of Attraction is something that relies or "preys" heavily into the feeling of "hope". There is nothing to suggests it works any more differently than being "hopeful". Personally, learning about psychology and social studies would work more in your favor.

 

[Dr Iron Arc]

Manifesting negative occurrences is literally the easiest thing in the world. That's probably why so many people choose the path of evil because at least they know they can make some kind of difference with it. At least that's what I discovered.

 

[Kimlett]

Believe or not, I thought about making a thread just like this today. Is that the law of attraction working or what?

I also find this stuff confusing to the point it feels stupid. I mean, I would like it to be real, but I just don't get how it's supposed to work. People who answered already make good points. I have some questions I would like a person who believes in this stuff to answer; I don't expect actual answers but I'd like to share them.

1. How can I not manifest something I don't want? (Diseases for example, or unexpected tragedies in general) I can avoid thinking about it but how can I actively prevent those things to happen?
2. I have been wanting to die and thinking about death for years. Shouldn't I have manifested my own death already?
3. I've watched tons and tons of horror movies, and also heard about a lot of terrifying stories, creepypastas and stuff. Why haven't I had any experiences with ghosts, creatures or serial killers in my real life? (Not that I want to)

 

[leavingthesoultrap]

It might work if you don't have other issues. I have personally disorder autism and chronic fatigue. I can manifest all I want but these things will always drag me down

 

[Vivir_O_No]

It might work if you don't have other issues. I have personally disorder autism and chronic fatigue. I can manifest all I want but these things will always drag me down

I'd really like to know your manifestation method. It would be interest to apply it to my life and see if something changes.

 

[Abandoned Character]

Manifestation can keep us open to possibility, which may indirectly influence the parts of our lives that we want to change. I see these sorts of ideas as useful in the same way that astrology is useful. Whatever kind of magical thinking gets people focusing about their intentions in the world and thus increasing general awareness is a positive thing in my book. "What goes around comes around" is a cliche for a reason, what you put out into the world is going to influence what comes to you--that is undeniable. I think it is a valid concept to consider and one should not reject manifestation without really thinking about its implications.

 

[Kasumi]

Thats pretty much something some person came up with cause it sounded nice, wrote a book about it and celebrities spread it so people believe it cause their fav celeb said its great.
There's no scientific base to that whatsoever.
In short "law of attraction" and manifestation is just another part of esoterism.

On the contrary, actually there is a slight tendency showing that people who think things will happen just by believing in them will on average find that less of the things actually happen.
That's because people who approach things rationally also prepare for the case that things don't go as planned and are overall better prepared.

To add a bit more detail, it was Helena Blavatsky who wrote the book "The Secret Doctrine" which sort of invented the "Law of attraction", I recommend checking out her wikipedia site, that should explain enough.

Here's a good video btw.


also those ones about common misconceptions we regularly encounter.



also this entire video is great, but specifically I wanna point out the part about correlation vs causation since that problem comes up nearly every day,
f.e. in another thread where someone mentioned a news article which was about a med student or something who found a correlation between some protein in the brain or smth like that and suicidability, yet it was presented as causation by that article.

 

[ijustwishtodie]

I don't know what manifestation is but I think the law of attraction is mostly bs. I believe that life will occur regardless of whatever mindset you develop towards it. For example, no matter how much you try to have a different mindset, you'll always have to work unless if you're rich enough not to. And if working is something that you can't ever look forward towards, you can't do anything about it. Thinking good about it wouldn't make good things happen

I do believe that if you work hard for good things, you have a higher chance of getting it as long as whatever you consider a good thing to be entirely realistic with your skill sets and how life operates overall. However, like most things in life, nothing is guaranteed; this is something that even pro lifers agree on and hence if you think positively, you won't always end up with a positive outcome

 

[EvisceratedJester]

Law of attraction and manifestion are both bs. Any results gained from them are likely moreso due to changes in behaviour (making decisions and taking risks that you normally wouldn't) and confirmation bias rather than "thinking positive = manifesting positivity from the universe" or whatever.

I genuinely hate those types of beliefs since it can get vunerable and desperate people's hopes up and it also, whether in intentional or not, blames innocent people for the horrible situations they are in.

 

[Vivir_O_No]

Thats pretty much something some person came up with cause it sounded nice, wrote a book about it and celebrities spread it so people believe it cause their fav celeb said its great.
There's no scientific base to that whatsoever.
In short "law of attraction" and manifestation is just another part of esoterism.

On the contrary, actually there is a slight tendency showing that people who think things will happen just by believing in them will on average find that less of the things actually happen.
That's because people who approach things rationally also prepare for the case that things don't go as planned and are overall better prepared.

To add a bit more detail, it was Helena Blavatsky who wrote the book "The Secret Doctrine" which sort of invented the "Law of attraction", I recommend checking out her wikipedia site, that should explain enough.

Here's a good video btw.


also those ones about common misconceptions we regularly encounter.



also this entire video is great, but specifically I wanna point out the part about correlation vs causation since that problem comes up nearly every day,
f.e. in another thread where someone mentioned a news article which was about a med student or something who found a correlation between some protein in the brain or smth like that and suicidability, yet it was presented as causation by that article.

Interesting. Another aspect we should be aware of is that we are only exposed to people for whom the supposed manifestation works, introducing the element of survivor bias. I believe there might be individuals for whom manifestation and similar practices have not worked, but their experiences often go unnoticed and unheard. This lack of visibility may contribute to the widespread belief that it consistently works.

I don't know what manifestation is but I think the law of attraction is mostly bs. I believe that life will occur regardless of whatever mindset you develop towards it. For example, no matter how much you try to have a different mindset, you'll always have to work unless if you're rich enough not to. And if working is something that you can't ever look forward towards, you can't do anything about it. Thinking good about it wouldn't make good things happen

I do believe that if you work hard for good things, you have a higher chance of getting it as long as whatever you consider a good thing to be entirely realistic with your skill sets and how life operates overall. However, like most things in life, nothing is guaranteed; this is something that even pro lifers agree on and hence if you think positively, you won't always end up with a positive outcome

Yeah, I believe life is probabilistic. You can strive to maximize the probabilities of success through effort, but there is no guarantee that things will work out.

 

[Kasumi]

Interesting. Another aspect we should be aware of is that we are only exposed to people for whom the supposed manifestation works, introducing the element of survivor bias. I believe there might be individuals for whom manifestation and similar practices have not worked, but their experiences often go unnoticed and unheard. This lack of visibility may contribute to the widespread belief that it consistently works.

Yea, pretty much exactly what the first video talked about at 14:40.
On the small scale it's a simple dream for people that might give them hope or whatever, but on the larger scale it shifts the blame onto the individual in question, away from the actual problem itself.
It's the same concept that every employee-abusing company / structure likes to use to shift the blame onto the victims themselves.
Shifting the blame of climate change onto the end user is a completely different area that does the same thing.

 

[LastLoveLetter]

It's bullshit and the inability to "manifest" the desired outcome using "positive energy" or whatever is routinely used to blame those of us who are in dire situations.

I can try to "manifest" a better life as much as I want. It's not going to cure my lifelong disability, Complex PTSD, CFS or other chronic debilitating conditions.

Doesn't matter how much I want something or wish things could be different, there's nothing that can eradicate my ailments. I have tried so hard to access various treatments and to build a better life. But this broken body and traumatised mind cannot be mended. Acknowledging this isn't "being negative," it's genuinely the cold hard truth. People simply don't like to hear it.

 

[Katdogg]

Manifesting something with thoughts and actions, maybe. Without the actions I can't see it coming into being.

It reminds me of that ,"The Secret" bullshit they were hyping and selling years ago.

I was so desperate at the time I almost got sucked into buying . Hope is a helluva drug.

 

[Final_Choice]

I don't believe in it, but certain psychological phenomenon's like self-fulfilling prophecy and the placebo affect can't directly manifest things to happen but can influence you enough so that some particular thing has a higher chance of happening over another.