The Mystic Will Part 1

The Mystic Will.

by Charles G.o.dfrey Leland.

NOTICE.

This wonderful treatise was first published in England several years ago, under the t.i.tle of "_Have You a Strong Will_?" and has run through several editions there. In its original form, it was printed in quite large type, double-leaded, and upon paper which "bulked out"

the book to quite a thick volume. Some copies have been sold in America, but the price which dealers were compelled to charge for it, in its original shape, prevented the wide circulation that it merited, and which its author undoubtedly desired for it, for it seems to have been a labor of love with him, the interest of the race in his wonderful theories evidently being placed above financial returns by Mr. Leland. Believing that the author's ideas and wishes would be well carried out by the publication of an American edition printed in the usual size type (without the expedient of "double-leading" unusually large type in order to make a large volume), which allows of the book being sold at a price within the reach of all, the publisher has issued this edition along the lines indicated.

The present edition is identical with the original English edition with the following exceptions:

(1) There has been omitted from this edition a long, tiresome chapter contained in the original edition, ent.i.tled "On the Power of the Mind to master disordered Feelings by sheer Determination. As Set forth by Immanuel Kant in a letter to Hufeland," but which chapter had very little to say about "the power of the mind," but very much indeed about Hygiene, Dietetics, Sleep, Care of Oneself in Old Age, Hypochondria, Work, Exercise, Eating and Drinking, Illness, etc., etc., from the point of view of the aged German metaphysician, which while interesting enough in itself, and to some people, was manifestly out of place in a book treating upon the development of Mental Faculties by the Will, etc. We think that Mr. Leland's admirers will find no fault with this omission.

(2) The word "Suggestion" has been subst.i.tuted for the word "Hypnotism" in several places in the original text, where the former word was manifestly proper according to the present views of psychologists, which views were not so clearly defined when the book was written.

(3) The chapter headings of the original book have been shortened and simplified in accordance with the American form.

(4) The t.i.tle "The Mystic Will" has been subst.i.tuted in place of that used in the original edition, which was "Have You a Strong Will?" This change was made for the reason that the original t.i.tle did not give one the correct idea of the nature of the book, but rather conveyed the idea of an inquiry regarding the "iron-will," etc., which the author evidently did not intend. The use of the Will, as taught in the book by Mr. Leland, is not along the lines of "the iron-will," but is rather in the nature of the employment of a mystic, mysterious, and almost weird power of the Human Will, and the t.i.tle of the present edition is thought to more correctly represent the nature of the book, and the author's own idea, than the inquiry embodied in the t.i.tle of the original edition.

(5) Several unimportant footnotes, references to other books, etc., have been omitted after careful consideration.

(Those who would wish to read the book in its original English edition will be able to procure it from the English publisher, Mr. Philip Wellby, 6 Henrietta street, Covent Garden, London, W. C, England.)

To the few readers of this book who are not familiar with the author, Mr. Charles G. Leland, it may be said that this gifted man was an American by birth, but who lived in Europe for many years before his death. He died March 20, 1903, at Florence, Italy, at the ripe age of 79 years, active until the last and leaving unpublished ma.n.u.scripts, some not completed. He lived up to his ideas and profited by them. His writings are spread over a period of nearly, or fully, fifty years, and his range of subjects was remarkable in its variety, style, and treatment.

Among his best known works were "Practical Education," "Flaxius," "The Breitmann Ballads" (which introduced his well-known character "Hans Breitmann"), "Gypsy Sorcery and Fortune Telling," "Wood Carving,"

"Leather Work," "Metal Work," "Drawing and Designing," "The Minor Arts," "Twelve Manuals in Art Work," "The Alb.u.m of Repousse Work,"

"Industrial Art in Education," "Hints on Self Education," and many other works along the lines of Manual Training, etc., and the Development of the Constructive Faculties; "Kulsop the Master, and other Algonquin Poems and Legends," "The Alternate s.e.x," and many other works, some of which are now out of print, but a number of which may be purchased from, or through, any bookseller. There has been recently published a biographical work embodying his memoirs, written and edited by his beloved niece, Mrs. Pennell, to which volume all admirers of this wonderful man are referred.

Every subject touched upon by Mr. Leland was brightly illuminated by the power of his marvellous mind. He seemed to be able to go right to the heart of the subject, seizing upon its essential truth and at the same time grasping all of its details. His mind was so full of general information that it fairly oozed out from him in all of his writings.

The reader will notice this phenomenon in the present book, in which the author has evidently had to fight his own mind in order to prevent it from intruding all sorts of valuable and varied general information in among the particular subjects upon which he is treating. While not a professional psychologist, Mr. Leland has given utterance to some of the most valuable and practical psychological truths of the last fifty years, his contributions to this branch of human thought is sure to be recognized and appreciated in the near future. It is hoped that this little book will carry some of his valuable precepts and ideas to many who have never had the advantage and pleasure of his acquaintance up to this time.

It is believed by the publisher that this popular edition of Mr.

Leland's valuable work upon the Use of the Will, issued at a nominal price, will carry the author's teachings to the homes of many of those whom Lincoln called the "plain people" of this American land, who need it so much, but who would not have been able to have purchased it in its original shape. This work has been well known in England, but here, in America, the birthplace of the author, it has been comparatively unheard of. It is to be hoped that this edition will remedy this grievous fault.

April 11, 1907 THE PUBLISHER.

PREFACE.

During the past few years the most serious part of the author's study and reflection has been devoted to the subjects discussed in this book. These, briefly stated, are as follows: Firstly, that all mental or cerebral faculties can by direct scientific treatment be influenced to what would have once been regarded as miraculous action, and which is even yet very little known or considered. Secondly, in development of this theory, and as confirmed by much practical and personal experience, that the Will can by very easy processes of training, or by aid of Auto-Suggestion, be strengthened to any extent, and states of mind soon induced, which can be made by practice habitual. Thus, as a man can by means of opium produce sleep, so can he by a very simple experiment a few times repeated--an experiment which I clearly describe and which has been tested and verified beyond all denial--cause himself to remain during the following day in a perfectly calm or cheerful state of mind; and this condition may, by means of repet.i.tion and practice, be raised or varied to other states or conditions of a far more active or intelligent description.

Thus, for ill.u.s.tration, I may say that within my own experience, I have by this process succeeded since my seventieth year in working all day far more a.s.siduously, and without any sense of weariness or distaste for labour, than I ever did at any previous period of my life. And the reader need only try the extremely easy experiment, as I have described it, to satisfy himself that he can do the same, that he can continue it with growing strength _ad infinitum_, and that this power will unquestionably at some future time be employed with marvellous results in Education. For, beyond all question--since any human being can easily prove or disprove it by a few experiments-- there is no method known by which inattention, heedlessness, or negligence in the young can be so promptly and thoroughly cured as by this; while on the other hand, Attention and Interest by a.s.siduity, are even more easily awakened. It has indeed seemed to me, since I have devoted myself to the study of Education from this point of view, as if it had been like the Iron Castle in the Slavonian legend, unto which men had for centuries wended their way by a long and wearisome road of many miles, while there was all the time, unseen and unknown, a very short and easy subterranean pa.s.sage, by means of which the dwellers in the Schloss might have found their way to the town below, and to the world, in a few minutes.

To this I have added a succinct account of what is, I believe, the easiest and most comprehensive Art of Memory ever conceived. There are on this subject more than five hundred works, all based, without exception, on the _a.s.sociative_ system, which may be described as a stream which runs with great rapidity for a very short time but is soon choked up. This, I believe, as a means applied to learning, was first published in my work, ent.i.tled _Practical Education_. In it the pupil is taught the _direct method_; that is, instead of remembering one thing by means of another, to impress _the image itself_ on the memory, and frequently revive it. This process soon becomes habitual and very easy. In from one year to eighteen months a pupil can by means of it accurately recall a lecture or sermon. It has the immediate advantage, over all the a.s.sociate systems, of increasing and enlarging the scope and vigour of the memory, or indeed of the mind, so that it may truly bear as a motto, _Vires acquirit eundo_--"it gains in power as it runs long."

Finally, I set forth a system of developing the Constructive Faculty-- that which involves Ingenuity, Art, or manual _making_--as based on the teaching of the so-called Minor Arts to the young. The principle from which I proceed is that as the fruit is developed from the flower, all Technical Education should be antic.i.p.ated. Or begun in children by practicing easy and congenial arts, such as light embroidery, wood-carving or repousse, by means of which they become familiar with the elements of more serious and substantial work.

Having found out by practical experience, in teaching upwards of two thousand children for several years, that the practice of such easy work, or the development of the constructive faculty, invariably awakened the intellectual power or intelligence, I began to study the subject of the development of the mind in general. My first discovery after this was that Memory, whether mental, visual, or of any other kind, could, in connection with Art, be wonderfully improved, and to this in time came the consideration that the human Will, with all its mighty power and deep secrets, could be disciplined and directed, or controlled with as great care as the memory or the mechanical faculty.

In a certain sense the three are one, and the reader who will take the pains, which are, I trust, not very great, to master the details of this book, will readily grasp it as a whole, and understand that its contents form a system of education, yet one from which the old as well as young may profit.

It is worth noting that, were it for nervous invalids alone, or those who from various causes find it difficult to sleep, or apply the mind to work, this book would be of unquestionable value. In fact, even while writing this chapter, a lady has called to thank me for the substantial benefit which she derived from my advice in this respect.

And, mindful of the fact that Attention and Unwearied Perseverance are most necessary to succeed in such processes as are here described, I have taken pains to show or explain how they may be rendered more attractive, tolerable, and habitual to the fickle or light-minded; this, too, being a subject which has been very little considered from a practical point of view.

But, above all things, I beg the reader, laying aside all prejudice or preconceived opinion, and neither believing nor disbelieving what he reads, to simply _try it_--that is to test it in his own person to what degree he can influence his will, or bring about subsequent states of mind, by the very easy processes laid down. If I could hope that all opinion of my book would be uttered only by those who had thus put it to the test, I should be well a.s.sured as to its future.

And also I beg all readers, and especially reviewers, to note that I advise that the auto-suggestive process, by aid of sleep, _shall be discontinued as soon as the experimenter begins to feel an increase in the power of the will_; the whole object of the system being to acquire a perfectly free clear Will as soon as possible. Great injustice was done, as regards the first edition of this work, by a very careless though eminent critic, who blamed the author for not having done what the latter had carefully recommended in his book.

There are four stages of advance towards the truth: firstly, Disbelief; secondly, Doubt, which is, in fact, only a fond advance towards Disbelief; thirdly, Agnosticism, which is Doubt mingled with Inquiry; and, finally, pure and simple Inquiry or Search, without any preconceived opinion or feeling whatever. It is, I trust, only in the spirit of the latter, that I have written; therefore I say to the reader, Neither, believe nor disbelieve in anything which I have said, but, as it is an easy thing to try, experiment for yourself, and judge by the result. In fact, as a satisfactory and conclusive experiment will not require more time, and certainly not half the pains which most people would expend on reading a book, I shall be perfectly satisfied if any or all my critics will do so, and judge the system by the result.

INTRODUCTION.

"Unto many Fortune comes while sleeping."--_Latin Proverb_.

"Few know what is really going on in the world."-- _American Proverb_.

It is but a few years since it suddenly struck the gay world of comic dramatists and other literary wits, that the Nineteenth Century was drawing to an end, and regarding it as an event they began to make merry over it, at first in Paris, and then in London and New York, as the _fin-de-siecle_. Unto them it was the going-out of old fashions in small things, such as changes in dress, the growth of wealth, or "the mighty bicycle," with a very prevalent idea that things "are getting mixed" or "checquered," or the old conditions of life becoming strangely confused. And then men of more thought or intelligence, looking more deeply into it, began to consider that the phrase did in very truth express far more serious facts. As in an old Norman tale, he who had entered as a jester or minstrel in comic garb, laid aside his disguise, and appeared as a wise counsellor or brave champion who had come to free the imprisoned emperor.

For it began to be seen that this _fin-de-siecle_ was developing with startling rapidity changes of stupendous magnitude, which would ere long be seen "careering with thunder speed along," and that all the revolutions and reforms recorded in history were only feeble or partial, scattered or small, compared to the world-wide unification of human interests, led by new lights, which has begun to manifest itself in every civilized country. That well nigh every person or real culture, or education guided by pure science, has within a very few years advanced to a condition of liberal faith which would have been in my university days generally reprobated as "infidelity," is not to be denied, and the fact means, beyond all question, that according to its present rate of advance, in a very few years more, this reform will end in the annulling of innumerable traditions, forms of faith and methods. _Upharsin_ is writ on the wall.

More than this, is it not clear that Art and Romance, Poetry and Literature, as. .h.i.therto understood or felt, are either to utterly vanish before the stupendous advances of science, or what is perhaps more probable, will, coalescing with it, take new forms, based on a general familiarity with all the old schools or types? A few years ago it seemed, as regarded all aesthetic creation, that man had exhausted the old models, and knew not where to look for new. Now the aim of Art is to interest or please, by gratifying the sense or taste for the beautiful or human genius in _making_; also to instruct and refine; and it is evident that Science is going to fulfill all these conditions on such a grand scale in so many new ways, that, when man shall be once engaged in them, all that once gratified him in the past will seem as childish things, to be put away before pursuits more worthy of manly dignity. If Art in all forms has of late been quiet, it has been because it has drawn back like the tiger in order to make the greater bound.

One of the causes why some are laying aside all old spiritualism, romance and sentiment, is that their realisation takes up too much time, and Science, which is the soul of business, seeks in all things brevity and directness. It is probable that the phrase, "but to the point," has been oftener repeated during the past few years, than it ever was before, since Time begun, of which directness I shall have more to say anon.

And this is the end to which these remarks on the _fin-de-siecle_ were written, to lay stress upon the fact that with the year Nineteen Hundred we shall begin a century during which civilized mankind will attain its majority and become _manly_, doing that which is right as a man should, _because it is right_ and for no other reason, and shunning wrong for as good cause. For while man is a child he behaves well, or misbehaves, for _reasons_ such as the fear of punishment or hope of reward, but in a manly code no reasons are necessary but only a persuasion or conviction that anything is right or wrong, and a principle which is as the earth unto a seed.

For as the world is going on, or getting to be, it is very evident that as it is popularly said, "he who will tell a lie will generally not hesitate to commit perjury," so he who cannot be really honest, _per se_, without being sustained by principle based only on tradition and the opinion of others, is a poor creature, whose morality or honesty is in fact merely theatrical, or acted, to satisfy certain conditions or exigencies from which he were better freed.

This spirit of scientific directness, and economy of thought and trouble by making the principle of integrity the basis of all forms, and cutting all ethical theories down to "be good because you _ought_," is rapidly astonishing us with another marvellous fact which it ill.u.s.trates, namely, that as in this axiom--as in man himself-- there are latent undiscovered powers, so in a thousand other sayings, or things known to us all, used by us all, and regarded as common-place, there are astounding novelties and capacities as yet undreamed of. For, as very few moralists ever understood in full what is meant by the very much worn or hackneyed saying, "we ought to do what is right," so the world at large little suspects that such very desirable qualities as Attention, Interest, Memory and Ingenuity, have that within them which renders them far more attainable by man than has ever been supposed. Even the great problem of Happiness itself, as really being only one of a relative state of mind, may be solved or reached by some far simpler or more direct method than any thinker has ever suggested.

It all depends on exertion of the _Will_. There are in this world a certain number of advanced thinkers who, if they knew how to develope the _Will_ which exists in them, could bring this reform to pa.s.s in an incredibly short time. That is to say, they could place the doctrine or religion of Honesty for its own sake so boldly and convincingly before the world that its future would be a.s.sured. Now the man who can develope his will, has it in his power not only to control his moral nature to any extent, but also to call into action or realize very extraordinary states of mind, that is, faculties, talents or abilities which he has never suspected to be within his reach. It is a stupendous thought; yes, one so great that from the beginning of time to the present day no sage or poet has ever grasped it in its full extent, and yet is is a very literal truth, that there lie hidden within us all, as in a sealed-up spiritual casket, or like the bottled-up _djinn_ in the Arab tale, innumerable Powers or Intelligences, some capable of bestowing peace or calm, others of giving Happiness, or inspiring creative genius, energy and perseverance. All that Man has ever attributed to an Invisible World without, lies, in fact, within him, and the magic key which will confer the faculty of sight and the power to conquer is the _Will_.

It has always been granted that it is a marvellously good thing to have a strong will, or a determined or resolute mind, and great has been the writing thereon. I have by me the last book on the subject, in which the faculty is enthusiastically praised, and the reader is told through all the inflexions of sentiment, that he _ought_ to a.s.sert his Will, to be vigorous in mind, _etcetera_, but unfortunately the How to do it is utterly wanting.

It will be generally admitted by all readers that this _How to do it_ has been always sought in grandly heroic or sublimely vigorous methods of victory over self. The very idea of being resolute, brave, persevering or stubborn, awakens in us all thoughts of conflict or dramatic self-conquering. But it may be far more effectively attained in a much easier way, even as the ant climbed to the top of the tree and gnawed away and brought down the golden fruit unto which the man could not rise. There are _easy_ methods, and by far the most effective, of awakening the Will; methods within the reach of every one, and which if practised, will lead on _ad infinitum_, to marvellous results.

The following chapters will be devoted to setting forth, I trust clearly and explicitly, how by an extremely easy process, or processes, the will may be, by any person of ordinary intelligence and perseverance, awakened and developed to any extent, and with it many other faculties or states of mind. I can remember once being told by a lady that she thought there ought to be erected in all great cities temples to the Will, so as to encourage mankind to develop the divine faculty. It has since occurred to me that an equal number of school-houses, however humble, in which the art of mastering the Will by easy processes _seriatim_ should be taught, would be far more useful. Such a school-house is this work, and it is the hope of the author that all who enter, so to speak, or read it, will learn therefrom as much as he himself and others have done by studying its principles.

To recapitulate or make clear in brief what I intend, I would say _Firstly_, that the advanced thinkers at this end of the century, weary of all the old indirect methods of teaching Morality, are beginning to enquire, since Duty is an indispensable condition, whether it is not just as well to do what is right, _because_ it is right, as for any other reason? _Secondly_, that this spirit of directness, the result of Evolution, is beginning to show itself in many other directions, as we may note by the great popularity of the answer to the question, "How not to worry," which is briefly, _Don't! Thirdly_, that enlightened by this spirit of scientific straightforwardness, man is ceasing to seek for mental truth by means of roundabout metaphysical or conventional ethical methods (based on old traditions and mysticism), and is looking directly in himself, or materially, for what Immaterialism or Idealism has really never explained at all--his discoveries having been within a few years much more valuable that all that _a priori_ philosophy or psychology ever yielded since the beginning. And, finally, that the leading faculties or powers of the mind, such as Will, Memory, the Constructive faculty, and all which are subject to them, instead of being entirely mysterious "gifts," or inspirations bestowed on only a very few to any liberal extent, are in all, and may be developed grandly and richly by direct methods which are moreover extremely easy, and which are in accordance with the spirit of the age, being the legitimate results of Evolution and Science.

And, that I may not be misunderstood, I would say that the doctrine of Duty agrees perfectly with every form of religion--a man may be Roman Catholic, Church of England, Presbyterian, Agnostic, or what he will; and, if a form aids him in the least to be _sincerely honest_, it would be a pity for him to be without it. Truly there are degrees in forms, and where I live in Italy I am sorry to see so many abuses or errors in them. But to know and do what is right, when understood, is recognising G.o.d as nearly as man can know him, and to do this perfectly we require _Will_. It is the true _Logos_.

CHAPTER I.

ATTENTION AND INTEREST.