The New Focus

Yesterday, I posted about how the Occultism of a hundred and twenty years ago reflected psychology. Modern books and documentaries reflect the new science of our day, and I'll bet that you know just what I'm talking about.

Have you seen “The Secret”? For those who haven't, it relies on the Hermetic “Law of Attraction” to make the point that we all attract our situations to ourselves through our thoughts and moods. Honestly, it doesn't serve as more than a conversation starter. It's a gateway to esoteric topics. A much better movie along those lines is “What The Bleep Do We Know?” staring Marley Matlin. There's a lot more focus on the science.

Quantum theories of the last 50 years have focused on the connectivity of all things, with experiments on split atoms and how one will react to the stimulus of the other, even over a significant distance. There is also the phenomenon how the smallest units of matter that are observable will be either a particle (matter) or a wave (energy). The crazy part is that it becomes matter when it's directly observed, making it merely an energy pattern when it isn't observed, like the tree falling in the forest that no one hears.

How this relates to Occultism is that we can alter reality with our focus. Therefore, by being aware and deliberate in our focus, we can be better able to influence our circumstances. But here's the rub: it takes a lot of work to be that aware. One method I've heard is to choose a daily activity and just be present. For example, when I'm shaving and brushing my teeth, I focus on the feel of the razor, the smell of the shave gel, how the temperature of my skin changes when I splash the water on my face, etc. After doing this for awhile, I'll notice throughout my day how random thoughts pop up, and spot patterns, both helpful and detrimental.

This has already gone on longer than I meant to, so I'll go post now. Tomorrow, I have an announcement about my first interview, and whether you know her or not, I have no doubt that many of you will be interested!