The Mind As A Garden

In his book As A Man Thinketh, James Allen rightly observed: "A man's mind may be likened to a garden, which may be intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild; but whether cultivated or neglected, it must, and will, bring forth. If no useful seeds are put into it, then an abundance of useless weed seeds will fall therein, and will continue to produce their kind. Just as a gardener cultivates his plot, keeping it free from weeds, and growing the flowers and fruits which he requires, so may a man tend the garden of his mind, weeding out all the wrong, useless, and impure thoughts, and cultivating toward perfection the flowers and fruits of right, useful and pure thoughts. By pursuing this process, a man sooner or later discovers that he is the master gardener of his soul, the director of his life."

This astoundingly simple analogy is perhaps the best illustration of how our thoughts affect our lives. What is it that our thoughts "bring forth"? Actions. What is it that actions produce? Results. What affect do results have in our lives? They determine our life circumstances. Thus, it is because we are capable of "planting seeds" or directing our thoughts that we are able to affect the nature of our actions, which will in turn affect the results we produce, which will in turn affect the circumstances of our very lives, and in this sense, every living person is "the director of his life."