establishes itself in the Subconsciousness until it becomes Second Nature, and the Subconsciousness causes the functioning of the body to follow the line of disease instead of health. The Subconsciousness in providing the body with diseased functioning thinks it is doing right, its idea of Right being supplied it by its frequent repetitions of diseased functionings. How disease starts is often apparently as obscure as the origin of life itself. Many diseases apparently mysterious in their origin are doubtless the result of a memory of that disease being in the Subconsciousness, possibly carried for many generations back and startled into asserting itself by some bodily condition, environment or occurrence. In this way odors have a remarkable effect upon some people, whose Subconsciousnesses carry a memory of that particular odor, which had that particular effect upon people generations ago whose experiences had their share in forming the Subconsciousnesses in question. When the Reason accepts the working of the memory consciousness as something that cannot be combated it instantly forms an alliance with the sick impulse and aids in its development. On the other hand, when Reason, understanding the working of the Subconsciousness, sees an hereditary trouble developing, or in fact observes anything developing which is not in harmony with itself-Reason-it can very quickly stop its de velopment by turning to its Infinite self and becoming Positive in its Rightness. These things will be further discussed in the chapters on "healing," and have been noted here simply to make harmonious our progress in the study of Life and Living. What we need to fix firmly in our minds are these two points: (1) Our Subconsciousness is not a weak thing. It is strong with the development of hundreds of centuries of unceasing struggle for animal perfection. Its strength is in proportion to the perfection of our physical breeding, and when we discover its strength, even when our Reason tells us it is pursuing a wrong course, we should be proud of it and not revile it, though it takes a mighty and prolonged struggle to bring it to the standard of our Reason. (2) It is not a foolish, capricious or wicked thing. It is as absurd to consider it so as to take that view of the Subconsciousness of a horse, an ox, a dog or a tree. They are all developed on the same lines, except as Reason is interposed in the human Subconsciousness. Every Subconsciousness is wise with the wisdom of Infinity, as far as its own species is concerned. Every Subconsciousness, having been built up by the repetitional, the habitual, as moved by the Infinite Urge to Rightness, considers the repetitional, the habitual, the proper course to pursue. When we consider how much of our living is made up of this sort All our of thing we will not wonder that it is so. functioning is Subconscious, and it is fortunate for us that it is so, for if we had to be conscious of every breath we draw, every movement of our hearts, of our digestive organs, we would not last an hour. We would not dare to sleep for fear we would forget to breathe or keep the heart at its work. These things are done by the sleepless Subconsciousness. The joy of living in a physical sense comes from the work of a normal Subconsciousness performing its duties without our being aware of it. Every Subconsciousness is, with its Supraconsciousness-the Infinite Life-complete in itself. This is in harmony with the Egoism of the Universe, that every Consciousness and Subconsciousness is to itself the center of Life; in no sense is it helpless. Affected, of course, by environment, the horse, the tree, the flower, suffi cient to itself, pursues the path of perfection of species, in its growth and in passing away to make room for others. It must be evident to us, then, that every unreasoning Subconsciousness at least is so constituted as to be able to "work out its own salvation." THE INFLUENCE OF THE SUBCONSCIOUS ON the ReaSON-DIVINE HYPNOTISM? We have noticed how Reason, when diligently employed, can cause the Subconsciousness to acquire accomplishments entirely new to the development that it has found through centuries of progress and untold generations of our ancestors. Having seen how Reason can affect it, let us glance at how it can affect Reason. Perhaps no better description of the pertinacity of our Subconsciousness-our Memory, our Habit Mind-in asserting its standard of Rightness, acquired, as we have seen, as in all other animal Subconsciousnesses, through experience, often "red of beak and claw," is to be found than in the seventi chapter of Romans : 15. For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. 16. If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. 17. Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. 18. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. 19. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. 20. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. 21. I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. 22. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: 23. But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 24. O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? 25. I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin. Who shall de Paul's answer Paul, with all his mastery of logic, with all his skill as a Reasoner, at times was evidently fearful of his ability to overcome the "sin that dwelt in him." When we have made some noble resolution and miserably failed to adhere to it, who amongst us has not cried, "O wretched man that I am! liver me from the body of this death?" to his own question is not satisfying. what he really means? The quips and quirls of his logic have made the Pauline Theology an almost fruitless study. Putting this aside, let us face the situation as he saw it and as we all see it. Our Reason— our unsensuous self-finds Rightness in a certain course. When we attempt to pursue this course our Memory Mind begins to raise objections. We have made up our minds always to tell the truth without a shadow of evasion or equivocation. Our Habit Mind tells us that "all men are liars," that we will be misunderstood, misrepresented, find it impossible to live with people, to do business. We insist that we will pursue the course we have mapped out. It comes back at us with the assertion that it is not worth while, that we will tire ourselves out and make everybody tired of us. We still insist that we will stick to our plan. It asserts that we will be really doing harm by pursuing such a course, that many untruths are merely diplomatic efforts to evade fric |