What the Movie The Secret Never Told You

The Secret, written by the Australian television producer and writer Rhonda Byrne, was a highly popular book published in 2006. It sold over 9 million copies and has been translated into 46 languages. But the film, also produced by Rhonda Byrne in 2006 may have become even more popular.

Loved, hated, parodied by many, it focused on the principles of how to use the Law of Attraction to manifest one’s dreams and featured a number of spiritual teachers and authors, such as Mike Dooley, Jack Canfield, Lisa Nichols, Bob Proctor and Marie Diamond.

To be fair, The Secret did help seed the paradigm of what has been called New Thought into mainstream mass consciousness. And that’s a good thing. But what were the downsides, the drawbacks, and what did The Secret neglect to tell you? As a friend so succinctly put it “The Secret would have you believe that the Universe is just one gigantic vending machine!”

Yes, there was a strong focus on manifesting the material, a house, a car, and the process to attain one’s desires was laid out very simplistically. The viewer was encouraged to believe that all one had to do was focus upon a desired object with enough passion and persistence, that manifestation was a sure fire certainty.

On the most fundamental level it didn’t make mention of other principles, often referred to as Universal or Spiritual Laws, the very principles which Bob Proctor, featured in the Secret, speaks and writes about extensively. But even if The Law of Deliberate Creation, The Law of Allowing, etc., had been mentioned, it still would have fallen short.

I’ve been applying many of these principles for several decades now, sometimes with greater focus, sometimes with less, and I do find them to be very powerful, and highly effective. But a definitive outcome is by no means guaranteed, and there are other factors involved.

What if we say we want something, but our subconscious thought patterns are out of alignment with what we say we desire? Our self doubt, self blame and negative self talk which persists as sabotaging internal mental chatter might block us from achieving our goals, until we learn how to compassionately shift and change it.

And if we are souls in a human body, which I believe we are, then our soul must have a part to play in this grand theatrical drama.The agenda of the ego is often acquisition, while the soul’s deepest desire is to evolve and grow.

We live in an infinite, pulsating sea of energy that flows through us, surrounds us and is beyond our control. So it’s really not surprising that our lives sometimes unfold in inexplicable, unexpected ways. One of the important keys to manifestation is that we must be willing to let go of our attachment to outcome, surrender and have faith that the Universe will provide.

Beyond what I’ve mentioned, we sense there must be more, but with our limited perception, is it really knowable? Metaphorically speaking, you could say it’s a bit like trying to grasp the vast, infinite mystery of the Universe by gazing up at the spacious sky through an aperture as narrow as a keyhole!

Still, I continue to apply the known principles of manifestation and do my inner work. Not really to optimize my chances of manifesting my desires, but to grow, evolve, and to blossom into the highest expression of myself.

In the end we attract not so much what it is we go after, we magnetize and draw unto ourselves that which we have become.