IMAGINATION
Imagining for Others (Self Pushed Out)
Recognizing that everyone is 'yourself pushed out,' one should apply imagination to help others by mentally picturing them as they would ideally be, and then…
Step by step
- Recognize that the person you wish to help is 'yourself pushed out.'
- Do not blame or criticize them for their current undesirable state.
- In your mind's eye, paint a mental picture of them as you would like them to be (e.g., healthy, successful, happy).
- Persuade yourself that this mental picture is real and that they are already what you believe and want them to be.
- Start this practice with your immediate family (wife, husband, children) as they are your primary responsibility.
- Gradually extend this circle of imaginative help to friends, then other acquaintances, and eventually to all races and nations.
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Question And Answer
Recognizing that everyone is 'yourself pushed out,' one should apply imagination to help others by mentally picturing them as they would ideally be, and then persuading oneself of the reality of this desired state. This practice should begin with one's immediate family and gradually extend to friends, and eventually, the entire world.
So, if my daughter fell down the stairs, as she did as a child, I don’t scold her. I rush down and pick her up and bring her back and comfort her. I don’t say, “It serves you right. Let her learn her lesson.” ... So, in her case, if she is injured, I don’t blame her. As her father who loves her, I don’t blame her; I paint a mental picture of her as I would like her to be, and persuade myself that she is what I believe and want her to be. So, help everyone in the world. Tell them the story, that they may stand upon their own feet, but in the end, you are God, and God is One, and the whole vast world is yourself “pushed out.” This is just fragmented Being, the whole vast world. But you do it by starting with yourself just where you are, and then you push out your circle. You start with your family. My wife and my daughter are dearer to me because they are right at my home – my responsibility. But I can’t just limit it to that. I have friends, and then from friends to other friends, and others and others, and then finally it pushes itself out to the whole vast world, taking in races and nations, because I can’t limit it just to one. But you do start with the circle where you are. And it should be in your case, or anyone’s case who has a wife – it should be right where the wife comes. Or if it is a woman, where the husband comes. If an offspring is there, then naturally the children, and then you start spreading it out. If one cannot help himself, I would not say, “All right, it serves you right.” You step in, and you do it. It is yourself pushed out.”
Since all individuals are fragmented aspects of one's own being, helping others through imaginative acts is akin to helping oneself. This is a practical application of the unity of God and man, starting with those closest and expanding the circle of influence.