T H O U G H T    A N D   C H A R A C T E R

	The aphorism, "As a man thinketh in his heart so is
	he," not only embraces the whole of a man's being,
	but is so comprehensive as to reach out to every
	condition and circumstance of his life.  A man is
	literally what he thinks, his character being
	the complete sum of all his thoughts.

	   As the plant springs forth, and could not be with-
	out, the seed, so every act of a man springs from the
	hidden seeds of thought, and could not have appeared
	without them.  This applies equally to those acts
	called "spontaneous" and "unpremeditated" as to
	those which are deliberately executed.

	   Act is the blossom of thought, and joy and suf-
	fering are its fruits; thus does a man garner in the
	sweet and bitter fruitage of his own husbandry.

	   "Thought in the mind hath made us.  What we are
	    By thought was wrought and built.  If a man's mind
	    Hath evil thoughts, pain comes on him as comes
	    The wheel the ox behind . . . .
					. . . If one endure
	    In purity of thought, joy follows him
	    As his own shadow--sure."

	Man is growth by law, and not a creation by artifice,
	and cause and effect is as absolute and undeviating
	in the hidden realm of thought as in the world of
	visible and material things.   A noble and Godlike
	character is not a thing of favor or chance, but is
	the natural result of continued effort in right
	thinking, the effect of long-cherished association
	with Godlike thoughts.  An ignoble and bestial char-
	acter, by the same process, is the result of the con-
	tinued harboring of groveling thoughts.

	   Man is made or unmade by himself; in the armory
	of thoughts he forges the weapons by which he des-
	troys himself; he also fashions the tools with which
	he builds for himself heavenly mansions of joy and
	strength and peace.  By the right choice and true
	application of thought, man ascends to the Divine
	Perfection; by the abuse and wrong application of
	thought, he descends below the level of the beast.
	Between these two extremes are all the grades of
	character, and man is their maker and master.

	  Of all the beautiful truths pertaining to the
	soul which have been restored and brought to light
	in this age, none is more gladdening or fruitful of
	divine promise and confidence than this--that man
	is the master of thought, the molder of character,
	and the maker and shaper of condition, environment,
	and destiny.

	   As a being of Power, Intelligence, and Love, and
	the lord of his own thoughts, man holds the key to
	every situation, and contains within himself that
	transforming and regenerative agency by which he may
	make himself what he wills.

	   Man is always the master, even in his weakest and
	most abandoned state; but in his weakness and degre-
	dation he is the foolish master who misgoverns his
	"household."  When he begins to reflect upon his con-
	dition, and to search diligently for the Law upon which
	his being is established, he then becomes the wise
	master, directing his energies with intelligence, and
	fashioning his thoughts to fruitful issues.  Such is
	the conscious master, and man can only thus be-
	come by discovering within himself the laws of
	thought; which discovery is totally a matter of ap-
	plication, self-analysis, and experience.

	   Only by much searching and mining are gold and
	diamonds obtained, and man can find every truth
	connected with his being if he will dig deep into
	the mine of his soul; and that he is the maker of
	his character, the molder of his life, and the builder
	of his destiny, he may unerringly prove, if he will
	watch, control, and alter his thoughts, tracing their
	effects upon himself, upon others, and upon his life
	and circumstances, linking cause and effect by pa-
	tient practice and investigation, and utilizing his
	every experience, even to the most trivial, everyday
	occurrence, as a means of obtaining that knowledge
	of himself which is Understanding, Wisdom, Power.
	In this direction, as in no other, is the law ab-
	solute that "He that seeketh findeth; and to him that
	knocketh it shall be opened"; for only by patience,
	practice, and ceaseless importunity can a man enter
	the Door of the Temple of Knowledge.