Manifestation is a relatively new phenomenon- it centers around the idea that if we want something and we think positive thoughts then automatically it will come to us. Manifestation as a concept started occurring after the release of the book The Secret published by Rhonda Bryne.
The book “The Secret” talks about visualizing an aim in mind and using positive thoughts or imagery to bring that into fruition. These aims could be anything such as wanting a car, a dream job, a home, even a perfect partner! Manifestation arose out of the second revival of the book and coincided with new age Spirituality. Immediately YouTube and other social media platforms filled with Manifestation gurus and coaches who, for a simply exorbitant sum would aid you to manifest your heart’s wishes. Manifestation has a variety of techniques which call forth the desire in mind such as Scripting (journaling the desire as it is already done), speaking desires into a glass of water, positive imagery, guided meditations and using repetitive numbers also dubbed angel numbers (111,222,333) as signposts to make a wish or as confirmation that the wish is on its way. Visualization is a key component in receiving the end goal of the manifestation.
What do psychologists think of Manifestation? While positive psychologists do believe in the idea of thinking positively and then working hard towards the aim, most psychologists dismiss manifestation as marketing strategies, packaged in a way that sells and attracts more customers.
An idea in manifestation that psychologists do not seem to approve of is the constant positive thinking.
In manifestation, a person is often understood as an energy field- they are called low vibration when they think negative thoughts or assume that their wish will not come true and high vibration when they are thinking positively and working on themselves. However, it is important to note that not all people have the privilege or willingness to want to work on themselves. Constant positive thinking during stressful situations is even more stressful than the situation itself especially if the individual notices an incongruence between what they are seeing and what they are doing or thinking.
Believing that the world revolves around us and grants our wishes gives some element of control and makes us feel safe but when the wishes we want do not get satisfied there is an immediate doubting and blaming of the self, leading to a pattern of negative talk.
It is also cruel to suggest that the bad things that happen in a person’s life is because of he or she did not affirm positively enough. “You fractured your legs because you did not think positively and you are still hurting because you are not thinking positively of healing and getting better.” This is not to say that the mind is not a wonderful thing or that we do not have the power to change our perception of the situation. Victor Frankl, who wrote Man’s Search of Meaning tried to think positively to get through his difficult circumstances in order to find meaning (He and his friends at the concentration camp would think of rationing the loaf of bread in order to make it last.) However, constantly thinking positive is a strenuous thing.
A concept in Psychology called the Self- fulfilling prophecy would indeed be the answer to why when we manifest, some of our wishes seem to come true. Self-fulfilling prophecy refers to the belief system that because we believe something to be true, we automatically make efforts to bring it to light. A person manifesting weight loss would obviously cut down on calories, sing up at the gym and take small but incremental steps towards achieving that goal and the end result is often attributed to Manifestation instead of giving credit to oneself.
While psychologists are okay with positive thinking under the right circumstances there is a general warning to not fall under the scam of paying someone to manifest your desires for your or believing that it is because you did not think positively that negative life circumstances are happening to you.
REFERENCES
Jasko, A. (2014). The Law of Attraction’s Psychological and Spiritual Harms. Nondual Manifestation: A Healthy Alternative [Blog]. Retrieved 16 January 2022, from https://lifeafterdogma.org/2020/10/14/law-of-attraction-harms-nondual-manifestation/.
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