The Law of Attraction (Draft) by Pai S Ning (section 8)
The law of attraction and Placebo Effect
Suggests that happy thoughts attract happy things while negative thoughts attract negative things. The placebo effect is almost like The Law of attraction in action, if you truly believe, it may work for you.
Placebo effect- According to researchers Cheston and Becky, the placebo effect dates back to the 18th -19th century when a religious movement called “New Thought” rose as, “part of a broad reaction to the ideas and constraints of Christianity.” It says that “Mind holds sway over matter and thinking creates reality. New Thought attributes disease, unhappiness, and misfortune to incorrect thinking. Consequently, correct thinking—having faith in a universal being—heals all ills.” Cheston and Becky also claimed that, “many of the New Age ideas of the early twenty-first century are based on the basic premise of New Thought, from hypnotherapy, the laws of attraction, the power of positive thinking espoused by Norman Vincent Peale, and the prosperity gospel, to the writings of thinkers such as Deepak Chopra, Marianne Williamson, and Eckhart Tolle.”
The law of Attraction- In the foreword of the book “The Thought of vibration or The Law of Attraction in the Thought world,” by William Walker Atkinson, he said, “The growing soul must realize it has within itself all that it requires.” He is basically saying humans have power that they need in order to survive. He also talks about people having a force--a manifestation of energy, that can attract what they desire to themselves like magnet just by thinking of it. It is quite interesting how he used gravity as an example to define what The Law of Attraction is. To quote his exact words, he said “we recognize the power of the law that attracts bodies to the earth, that holds the circling worlds in their places, but we close our eyes to the mighty law that draws to us the things we desire or fear, that makes or mars our lives.” To summarize, he is saying everyone has the power in their mind that attracts positive or negative things depending on what their choose to focus on.
What do I think of The Law of Attraction and Placebo effect?
I think it is a very plausible idea, but I don't really believe in any of them. The Placebo effect may work to simply reduce pain for a while or to get rid of fever, but I don't think it can cure cancer or any other major progressive illnesses. The real key is believing, it won't work with even a hint of doubt. The Law of Attraction may just be coincidences. My aunt once told me to look into The Law of Attraction a series of suspicious coincidences kept on happening to me, and I did. Every time I think of someone, who I haven't seen or talk to in years, they would contact me within days and ask me how I was doing, and that they had also been thinking of me. It was interesting, but not reliable enough and I didn't really believe it since it may just be some weird coincidence.
Discussion questions.
1. Have you ever experienced something similar to what I have experienced before?
2. What do you think of the placebo effect? Do you think it's real?
3. What about The law of Attraction? Can it be real?
Note: Feel free to give constructive feedbacks. I am very open to new ideas and feedbacks.
If something is really "plausible," wouldn't it be irrational not to entertain believing it? (What, btw, is the difference between believing, believing IN, and entertaining belief in?)
ReplyDeleteBut if it's not plausible, the question of belief shouldn't be at issue at all. Proportion belief to the evidence, David Hume said. Saying that something's plausible is to say that there's relevant evidence either compelling, encouraging, or at least not contradicting belief. Can we say that about the law of attraction or the placebo effect?
A plausible idea for other people, not really me. For other people who think it is real, and not just some coincidence, there maybe relevant evidence. That is for The law of Attraction. For the placebo effect, I also think it can work.
DeleteWell, "plausible" means reasonable or probable, not just personally appealing. And "evidence" can only compel belief if it is trans-personal, and corroborated. If I claim to have had a vision, for instance, but no one else can replicate it, my testimony doesn't really constitute evidence in the reputable sense.
Delete...but of course, people are bound to think of their personal experiences as evidentially compelling FOR THEMSELVES. In that case, they may believe in a phenomenon they call "attraction" but aren't really in a strong position to assert it is a "law"-a law of nature has to be replicable, minimally it has to have been inter-subjectively confirmed (not just personally and subjectively).
DeleteI can see that. Everyone, at least once in some point of their life, think something is odd about how their thought process and reality come hand in hand. But yes, can't really assert it is "law".
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