Excerpt from

A Guide To Awareness and Tranquillity

by William Samuel

Chapter XIV Thought, Meditation and Miracles

TAKE NO THOUGHT: BE STILL AND KNOW—ABOUT MEDITATION

QUESTION: What is meant by meditation, "practicing the silence," and what is its importance?

ANSWER: Many things we read and study, many philosophies and the teachers of them, tell of the wonders of meditation and of the benefits to be reaped from "practicing the silence." Throughout history we have heard the many admonitions to "take no thought," to enter into the silence, to meditate in quietness and to "be still and know." Judging from the letters I receive and from the comments of those with whom I talk about this matter, many feel that they have failed and feel guilty because they find themselves unable to "exclude thoughts from consciousness." Many say to me, "To take no thought means that I am to become a mindless blank—a vacuum! How in the world can I stop thinking?"

Understand this: Even though to "stop thinking as a personal thinker" (as a possessor of Life) appears mandatory, nonetheless it is effortless! And it does not mean that we must become a mental blank. Not at all!

A story has been written that will make this clear. It is about a prince who was raised as a poor woodcutter, unmindful of his kingly identity. For many years, the prince labored and toiled, felling the huge oaks of the forest one after another, cutting them into kindling to sell at the market place. Despite the magnitude of the toil, he was barely able to provide for his family. The fervent prayers that came forth from his agony went unanswered. Then one day, in the midst of a great despair over his hopeless situation, the lost prince was found by his father, the king, who told him of his royal identity and kingly heritage. At first, the prince didn't believe it; it was simply beyond his comprehension. But then he was taken up into a high mountain by the king and shown the entire kingdom that was his very own. There, on the mountain top, his heart whispered, "It is so!" and finally the prince believed. With this, he received the mantle and scepter and was told to commence his reign. Then, in great relief, he threw down the heavy axe and shouted aloud:

"I have sought Truth all my life, but lo That that I seek, I am!
Every tree in the forest is mine!
And every forest in the land is Thine, oh Mind that is Me!
The borrowed axe was borrowed from Myself;
The acres leased were rented from Myself;
The wood was cut for Me alone."

With some reflection, this story should serve to make clear that one does not have to stop thinking and "empty out his thoughts" before he is enabled to assume the rightful identity. Just as quickly as the prince recognized his honest identity and accepted it as his own, he instantly and effortlessly stopped thinking as a woodcutter. But he did not stop having thoughts! He did not become a blank! He thought consciously as the king, not as the woodcutter. His thoughts were effortlessly kingly. He stopped thinking limitedly, narrowly, impoverishedly, hungrily, greedily, angrily and desirously. Such woodcutter-thinking was let go without hesitation. Why? Because he was the prince and always had been, not a woodcutter. Furthermore, it was immediately apparent to the prince that thinking and acting as the misidentification had resulted in the misidentification's trials and tribulations!

So what do we do? We accept and assume our rightful heritage, our proper Identity. This is an effortless task because Identity is an already-fact. But we can assume this heritage only as we stop playing the role of the woodcutter. We cannot continue to keep consciousness full of woodcutter plans and calculations, woodcutter fears and phobias, woodcutter judgments and thoughts. How can we do that and simultaneously be the New Identity? We cannot serve both. We must "choose this day" one or the other. Really, there is no choice in the matter; Identity is established. It exists outside the influence of a phantom's personal choice.

So, the "silence" we practice is the silence of the woodcutter's thinking; a silence of worry and concern for what appears to be going on in the woodcutter's affairs; a silence from the plans and calculations the misidentification makes in order to establish peace where peace already exists. We practice silence from fault finding and judgment.

This is not to become a mental blank. This is not to sit in a chair and attempt to push out every thought, erase every image, silence every sound, negate every emotion. Not at all! Our silence is to sit loose and simply be the thoughts of Deity, the thinking of the One Mind, the Awareness of beauty and harmony, which assuredly includes more wonderful thoughts, ideas, sounds, images and emotions than the world has dreamed of!

Excerpt from "A Guide To Awareness and Tranquillity" By William Samuel

Available at Amazon

If you would like further guidance in understanding any of William Samuel's work based on Self discover you are welcome to contact me, Sandy Jones - samuelandfriends@gmail.com - Ojai, California -