The Way Toward Health:
The very last book dictated by Seth
to Jane. This one picking up where
"The Individual and the Nature of
Mass Events" left off on the
subject of health.
YOU ARE, WHAT YOUR BELIEVES
THOUGHTS AND EMOTIONS ARE!
Your health will reflect that state of mind!
You cannot escape your own attitudes, for they will form the nature of
what you see. Quite literally you see what you want to see; and you see
your own thoughts and emotional attitudes materialized in physical
form. If changes are to occur, they must be mental and psychic changes.
These will be reflected in your environment. Negative, distrustful,
fearful, or degrading attitudes toward anyone work against the self.
"In many instances people exercise quite simply because they are afraid of
what will happen if they do not. They may run to avoid heart disease, while their
own fear can help to promote the very eventuality they fear. I do not mean to
imply that exercise is detrimental to good health. It is true, however, that the
reason that you exercise is actually more important than the exercises that you
perform. The reason can promote your good health or actually impede it. Your
ideas about your own health are even more important than those steps you
take to promote it."

"You will discover that so-called diseases perform certain services. They fulfill
purposes for you that you may BELIEVE you can achieve in no other way. The
reasons for such illnesses are not deeply buried in the subconscious, as you
may think. They are much closer to the conscious mind, and usually consist of
a series of seemingly innocuous decisions that you have made through the
years. Other illnesses, of course, may be caused by sudden decisions that are
a response to a particular event in your life."

"The way toward health is simplicity itself. It is the natural, easiest way to
behave, yet this natural mental behavior is often quite difficult for the intellect to
understand, since the intellect is apt to enjoy playing with complications and
solving problems. Therefore, to the intellect it often seems ludicrous to imagine
that the answer to a question lies within the question itself....It is perfectly fine to
make plans for the future, yet each individual should live day by day, without
worrying about the outcome of those plans. The physical body can only react in
present moment. Worrying about future events, or dwelling upon past
unfavorable situations, only confuses the body’s mechanisms, and undermines
their precise activity in the present moment."

"I am not saying that anyone should pretend that unfavorable circumstances do
not sometimes exist, or that they may not be encountered in the past, present,
or future. It is also true, however, that advantageous events occur with a far
greater frequency than do negative ones - otherwise the world that you know
simply would not exist. It would have disappeared in the throes of destruction or
calamity."

"All creatures are also born, then, with a keen sense of self-approval. Each
creature is born proud of itself, and loving itself. That same self-approval is also
experienced in varying ways not only by creatures as you think of them, but
also by atoms and molecules, and by all orders of matter."

"Do not think of the mind as a purely mental activity, and of the body as a
purely physical one. Instead, think of both mind and body as continuing,
interweaving processes that are mental and physical at once. Your thoughts
actually are quite as physical as your body is, and your body is quite as
nonphysical as it seems to you your thoughts are. You are actually a vital force,
existing as part of your environment, and yet apart from your environment at
the same time."

"When you become too serious you overwork your intellect and tire your body,
for then it seems that your entire life depends upon the reasoning of your
intellect alone. Instead, of course, your intellectual abilities are supported and
promoted by that inner mixture of spontaneity and order that so magically
combine to form both your reality and the reality of the world."

"It should be noted before we begin that death itself is -- a deliverer -- of your
species and all others. It is not negative in itself, but instead is the beginning of
a different kind of positive existence. It prunes the planet so to speak, so there
is a room and time for all, energy and food for all...If death disappeared even
an hour all of life would soon be threatened."

"There are innumerable stages of health, from high, sheer, energetic
exuberance to lethargy and discomfort. There are, in fact, an almost infinite
number of stages connected with the state of health. You could invent a
completely different way of regarding human health by numbering and defining
each of those stages. Instead, of course, your society has chosen to recognize
and define all of those stages that are detrimental to health -- stages that are
recognizable because of health’s absence to one degree or another."

"You also possess what is often called the subconscious, and this merely
consists of feelings, thoughts or experiences that are connected to your
conscious mind, but would be considered excess baggage if you had to be
aware of them all of the time."

"There is no magic connected with suggestions - but repeated often enough,
and believed in fervently, such suggestions do indeed take on a deeply
habitual nature. They are no longer examined, but taken for literal truth."

"The mind grows wiser with age when it is allowed to do so. There is even an
acceleration of thought and inspiration, much like that experience in the
adolescent years. that suddenly brings a new understanding to the aged
individual, and provides an impetus that should help the person to achieve
greater comprehension - a comprehension that should quell all fears of death."

"When people become ill, worried or fearful, one of the first symptoms of trouble
is a lack of pleasure, a gradual discontinuance of playful action, an over-
concentration upon personal problems. In other words, illness is first often
marked by a lack of zest or exuberance."

"Immediately begin to live in the present as much as possible. 2. Refuse to
worry 3. When your thoughts do touch upon your particular problem in that
present moment, imagine the best possible solution to the dilemma."

"Many diseases are actually health-promoting processes. Chicken pox,
measles, and other like diseases in childhood in their own way naturally
inoculate the body, so that it is able to handle other elements that are a part of
the body and the body’s environment. When civilized children are medically
inoculated against such diseases, however, they usually do not show the same
symptoms, and to an important extent the natural protective processes are
impeded. Such children may not come down with the disease against which are
medically protected, then - but they may indeed therefore become prey to other
diseases later in life that would not otherwise have occurred."

"I am not advising my readers to refuse to have their children vaccinated, since
you now have to take vaccination into consideration because of the prominence
of it in society. It is very possible, however, that science itself will in time
discover the unfortunate side effects of many such procedures and begin to
reevaluate the entire subject."

"The body is more than agreeable, and more than able, to bring about an
extraordinary recovery."

"I do not mean that ill children should not be treated with kindness, and perhaps
a bit of special attention - but the reward should be given for the child’s
recovery, and efforts should be made to keep the youngster’s routine as
normal as possible....Children, however, may be quite conscious of the fact that
they willed themselves to become ill, in order to avoid school, or an
examination, or a coming feared family event. They soon learn that such self-
knowledge is not acceptable, however, so they begin to pretend ignorance,
quickly learning to tell themselves instead that they have a bug or a virus, or
have caught a cold, seemingly for no reason at all. Parents frequently foster
such behavior. Some are simply too busy to question a child about his own
illness. It is far simpler to give a child aspirin, and send a child to bed with
ginger ale and a coloring book. Such procedures unfortunately rob a child of
important self-knowledge and understanding. They being to feel victims to this
or that disorder. Since they have no idea that they themselves caused the
problem to begin with, then they do not realize that they themselves possess
the power to right the situation. If they are being rewarded for such behavior in
the meantime, then the pressure is less, of course, so that bouts of illness or
poor health can become ways of attaining attention, favorite status, and
reward....Parents who are aware of these facts can start helping their children
at an early age by asking them simply the reasons for their illness. A mother
might say: You don’t need to have a temperature in order to avoid school, or as
a way of getting love and attention, for I love you in any case. And if there is a
problem at school, we can work it out together, so you don’t have to make
yourself ill."

"To a child, play and work are often the same thing, and parents can utilize
imaginative games as a way of reinforcing ideas of health and vitality. When a
child is ill-disposed or cranky, or has a headache, or another disorder that does
not appear to be serious, parents can utilize this idea: have the child imagine
that you are giving it a better and better pill. Have the child open its mouth while
you place the imaginary pill on its tongue, or have the child imagine picking the
pill up and placing it in its mouth. Then give the child a glass of water to wash
the pill down, or have the child get the water for himself or herself. Then have
the youngster chant, say, three times, I’ve taken a better and better pill, so I will
shortly feel better and better myself....In other cases of a child’s illness, have
the child play a healing game, in which he or she playfully imagines being
completely healthy again, outdoors and playing; or have the youngster imagine
a conversation with a friend, describing the illness as past and gone. Play can
also be used even in old people’s homes, for it could revive feelings of
spontaneity and give the conscious mind a rest from worrying."

"There is also a rather conventional stereotype version of karma that may
follow such beliefs. Therefore, you may be punished in this life for errors you
have committed in a past one, or you may actually be making up for a mistake
made thousands of years ago. Again, all of a person’s reincarnational
existences are, indeed, connected - but the events in one life DO NOT CAUSE
the events in the next one."

"Remind yourself constantly that the most favorable solution to a problem is at
least as probable as the most unfortunate solution. Remind yourselves also
that despite all of your worrying, the spirit of life itself is continually within your
experience, and forms your physical body."

"We must also remember, however, that in a fashion BELIEFS THEMSELVES
ARE TOOLS, and that in some situations beliefs that seem quite negative can
also clear the way for more beneficial ones. With all of this discussion of
negative beliefs, therefore, it is a good idea not to call any beliefs BAD or evil in
themselves. They are no more bad or evil in their own way, say, than viruses
are in theirs. If you look upon them in that manner, you will avoid being
overwhelmed by what seems to be an endless parade of negative thoughts and
beliefs that can only lead to destruction. Instead, compare the negative beliefs,
for example, with the STORMS that sweep the country: they have their
purposes - and all in all those purposes tend to promote and support life itself."

"The thoughts and beliefs that we want to re-arouse are those that were often
predominant in childhood... They are spiritual, mental, emotional and biological
beliefs that are innately present in the birth of each creature. Children believe
not only that there will be a tomorrow, and many tomorrows, but they also
believe that each tomorrow will be rewarding and filled with discovery. They feel
themselves couched in an overall feeling of security and safety, even in the
face of an unpleasant environment or situation. They feel drawn to other
people and to other creatures, and left alone they trust their contacts with
others. They have an inbred sense of self-satisfaction and self appreciation,
and they instinctively feel that it is natural and good for them to explore and
develop their capabilities. They expect relationships to be rewarding and
continuing, and expect each event will have the best possible results. They
enjoy communication, the pursuit of knowledge, and they are filled with
curiosity. All of those attitudes provide the strength and mental health that
promotes their physical growth and development. However simple those ideas
may sound to the adult, still they carry within them the needed power and
impetus that fill all of life’s parts. Later, conflicting beliefs often smother such
earlier attitudes, so that by the time children have grown into adults they
actually hold almost an opposite set of hypotheses. These take for granted that
any stressful situation will worsen, that communication with others is dangerous,
that self-fulfillment brings about the envy and vengeance of others, and that as
individuals they live in an unsafe society, set down in the middle of a natural
world that is itself savage, cruel, and caring only for its own survival at any cost."

"I want to assure you that regardless of your circumstances, age, or sex, you
can indeed start over, re-arousing from within yourself those earlier, more
innocent expectations, feelings and beliefs. It is much better if you can imagine
this endeavor more in the light of children’s play, in fact, rather than think of it
as a deadly serious adult pursuit."

"There is no need to search endlessly into the past of this life or any other, for
the original causes for beliefs. Making a change in the present of a certain kind
will automatically alter all beliefs across the board, so to speak."

"The child plays at being an adult long before he is one, and so you can play
with more desirable beliefs while you are still growing into that more beneficial
picture."

"Your body repairs itself constantly, and your mind thinks - all without your
normally conscious attention. The same applies to all of those inner processes
that make life possible. Your thoughts are conscious, but the process of
thinking itself is not. Spontaneity is particularly important in the actions of
children, and in the natural rhythmic motion of their limbs. Feelings also seem
to come and go in a spontaneous fashion."

"It is possible for your ideas to cause chemical reactions that impede your body’
s ability to accept nourishment. If you believe that the body is evil, the purest
health-food diet will or may do you little good at all, while if you have a healthy
desire and respect for your physical body, a diet of TV dinners, and even fast
foods, may well keep you healthy and nourished."

"The body often wears out because it has been used less and less - and that is
because little study has been given to the true capabilities of the healthy
physical body in the later years of life. That period also contains certain
RHYTHMS IN WHICH NORMAL HEALING PROCESSES are highly accelerated,
and the life force itself does not wear out or lessen within a body. Its expression
may be impeded at any time, but the unique energy of each individual IS NOT
DRAINED AWAY because of old age alone....basically speaking there are no
diseases brought about by old age alone."

"No matter how depressed you may feel, you do still want to live, or you would
be dead by now - so there is a part of you that seeks life and vitality, and that
portion also deserves expression."

"Some people might say, I have a right to die, when they are arguing the case
for suicide. And while this is true, it is also true that the people on your planet
need every bit of help and encouragement they can get from each person
alive. In a certain sense, the energy of each individual does keep the world
going, and to commit suicide is to refuse a basic, cooperative venture."

"It is also true that persons in ordinary good health who often contemplate
suicide have already closed themselves away from the world to an important
extent. Even their physical senses seem blurred, until often they seek further
and further stimulation. These same attitudes are apparent in a lesser degree
to varying extents in period of mental or bodily illness or in unsatisfactory life
situations. If you are such a person, however, there are also other steps that
you can take. Project yourself into a satisfying future. Remind yourself that the
future is indeed there if you want it, and that you can grow into that future as
easily as you grew from the past into the present."

"The natural world itself is a gateway to other realities. You do not have to try to
blot out the physical world, or your ordinary consciousness, in order to achieve
the necessary knowledge that leads to vibrant health or experiences."

"The more fully you learn to live, the more the seemingly hidden ‘mysteries of
the universe’ begin to appear. They do not necessarily make themselves known
with great clamor or fanfare, but suddenly the most innocuous, innocent bird
song or the sight of a leaf might reveal knowledge of the profoundest nature. It
is ironic, then, that many people who seek to discover the ‘hidden’ mysteries of
nature ignore nature itself, or consider the physical body as gross or somehow
composed of lesser vibrations."

"People with life-threatening diseases also often feel that further growth,
development, or expansion are highly difficult, if not impossible to achieve at a
certain point in their lives. Often there are complicated family relationships that
the person does not know how to handle. To numbers of such individuals crisis
points come and are conquered. Somehow the person learns to circumnavigate
the unpleasant situation, or the conditions change because of other people
involved - and presto: the disease itself vanishes."

"In all cases, however, the need for value fulfillment, statement, and creativity
are so important to life that when these are threatened, life itself is at least
momentarily weakened. Innately, each person does realize that there is life
after death, and in some instances such people realize that it is indeed time to
move to another level of reality, to die and set out again with another brand
new world."

"It is also vital that these patients are not overly medicated, for oftentimes the
side effects of some cancer-eradicating drugs are dangerous in themselves.
There has been some success with people who imagine that the cancer is
instead some hated enemy or monster or foe, which is then banished through
mental mock battles over a period of time. While the technique does have its
advantages, it also pits one portion of the self against the other. It is much
better to imagine, say, the cancer cells being neutralized by some imaginary
wand. Doctors might suggest that a patient relax and then ask himself or herself
what kind of inner fantasy would best serve the healing process. Instant images
may come to mind at once, but if success is not achieved immediately, have the
patient try again, for in almost all cases some inner pictures will be perceived.
Behind the entire problem, however, is the fear of using one’s full power or
energy. Cancer patients most usually feel an inner impatience as they sense
their own need for future expansion and development, only to feel it thwarted."

"Consciously you might want to express certain abilities, while unconsciously
you are afraid of doing so. The unconscious beliefs are not really unconscious,
however. You are simply not as aware of them as you are of normally conscious
ones. Negative beliefs can block the passageways between Framework 1 and
Framework 2. It is an excellent idea for those in any kind of difficulty to do the
following simple exercise. Relax yourself as much as possible. Get comfortable
in a chair or on a bed. Tell yourself mentally that you are an excellent person,
and that you want to reprogram yourself, getting rid of any ideas that contradict
that particular statement. Next, gently remind yourself again: ‘I am an excellent
person,’ adding: ‘It is good and safe for me to express my own abilities, for in
doing so I express the energy of the universe itself.’ Different phrases with the
same meaning may come into your own mind. If so, substitute them for the ones
I have given. There are endless exercises that can be used to advantage, but
here I will mention a few that appear most beneficial."

"For another exercise, then, relax yourself as much as possible once more. If
you have some disease, imagine it as particles of dirt. Tell yourself that you can
see inside your body. You may see streets or boulevards instead of muscles
and bones, but go along with the image or images that appear. You might see
streets lined with dirt or garbage, for example. Then mentally see yourself
sweeping the debris away. Order trucks to come and carry the garbage to a
trash heap, where you may see it burn and disappear in smoke. Instead of the
drama I just outlined, you may instead see invading armies, attacking home
troops. In such a case, see the invaders being driven off. The pictures you see
will follow your own unique leanings and characteristics."

"It also seems that each fetus must naturally desire to grow, emerge whole from
its mother’s womb, and develop into a natural childhood and adulthood.
However, in those terms just as many fetuses want the experience of being
fetuses without following through on other stages. They have no intention of
growing into complete human development. In fact, many fetuses explore that
element of existence numberless times before deciding to go on still farther,
and emerge normally from the womb. Fetuses that do not develop still
contribute to the body’s overall experience, and they feel themselves
successful in their own existences. An understanding of these issues can
greatly help throw light on the question of early deaths and diseases, and
spontaneous abortion."

"...Knowledge gained in one life is automatically transferred to another, whether
that life be present, past or future."

"It is unfortunately often - but not always - true that individuals who carry strong
religious feeling are often bothered more than usual by poor health and
personal dilemmas. The fact is that religions have been the carriers of some of
the best ideas that man has entertained - but it has also held most stubbornly
to the most troublesome concepts that have plagued mankind."

"It is far better to eat moderate amounts of food in all of the food ranges, and to
consume smaller portions more often. I realize that your social mores also
dictate your eating habits - but four light meals a day will overall serve you very
well, and give the body a more steady, regulated nourishment."

"...often physical illness of a serious nature, or habitual bad health, can often
be taken as an indication that the individual involved is in the maelstrom, the
center, of his reincarnational cycle upon your plane."

"This is one of the reasons why health suggestions given immediately before
sleep are so effective. Incidentally, they are excellent practice. Expectation can
aid you also."

"There is a short-circuiting process in which even good intentions are distorted
and turned to other purposes. That which is feared is feared so strongly and
concentrated upon so intensely that it is attracted rather than repelled. The
approach should not be fear of war but love of peace; not fear of poor health
but concentration upon the enjoyment of good health; not fear of poverty, but
concentration upon the unlimited supplies available on your earth. Desire
attracts but fear also attracts. Severe fear is highly dangerous in this respect
and in this context."

"A chronically ill existence, for example, might also be a measure of discipline,
enabling you to use deeper abilities that you ignored in a life of good health."

"Illness and suffering are the results of the misdirection of creative energy.
They are a part of the creative force, however. They do not come from a
different source than, say, health and vitality. Suffering is not good for the soul,
unless it teaches you how to stop suffering. That is its purpose."

"But if you find poor health, a lack of meaningful work, a lack of abundance, a
world of sorrow and evil, then assume that your beliefs are faulty and being
examining them.
If you have physical problems, concentrate instead upon the healthy portions of
your body and the unimpeded functions that you have. In the healthy areas,
your beliefs are working for you. As I mentioned, inner sounds are extremely
important. Each of the atoms and molecules that compose your body has its
own reality in sound values that you do not hear physically.
Left alone, your thoughts will come and go through your belief systems just as
naturally; and ideally, they will balance out, maintaining their own health and
directing your body so that its innate therapies take place."

"It seems that you are highly civilized people because you put your ill into
hospitals where they can be cared for. What you do, of course, is to isolate a
group of people who are filled with negative beliefs about illness. The contagion
of beliefs spreads. Patients are obviously in hospitals because they are ill. The
sick and their doctors both work on that principle. Women delivering children
are placed in the same environment. This may seem very humane to you, and
yet the entire system is structured so that childbirth does not seem to be the
result of health but illness."

"In the most simple and mundane of examples, if you are living in a fairly well-
balanced, healthy environment, your house plants and your animals will also be
well."

"Unfortunately, many of your public health programs, and commercial
statements through the various media, provide you with mass meditations of a
most deplorable kind. I refer to those in which the specific symptoms of various
diseases are given, in which the individual is further told to examine the body
with those symptoms in mind. I also refer to those statements that just as
unfortunately specify diseases for which the individual may experience no
symptoms of an observable kind, but is cautioned that these disastrous
physical events may be happening despite his or her feelings of good health."

"Your television dramas, the cops-and-robbers shows, the spy productions, are
simplistic, yet they relieve tension in a way that your public health
announcements cannot do."

"Medical men, for example, are often extremely unhealthy because they are so
saddled with those specific health beliefs that their attention is concentrated in
that area more than others not so involved."

"A belief in a ’god who provides,’ by whatever name, is indeed a psychological
requirement for the good health of the body and mind."
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