The Nirmukta Freethought Community

Anybody else come across this book? It is about The Law of Attraction.

Recently me and a friend were in a book shop and he noticed this really attractive book that promised to be a life changer. He is the sort of guy who never reads books, but he heard from someone the greatness of The Secret. I warned him that the book is about wishful magical thinking and he can do that thinking all by himself without wasting his money. And yet the marketing hype was so strong around that book that he bought it (He never got around to read it though).

Yeah, the markets are full of this sort of tripe. People simply lap up on wishful thinking!

You'll love this then - it's an Australian comedy show called Chaser's War on Everything, and this is a sketch they did on The Secret - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usbNJMUZSwo.

haha good one, Unsorted!

I'm embedding the same video for the convenience of others:

Watching the video again, it occurred to me how clever a strategy that "Step 2" is: "Believe". Belief, faith, positive thinking -- these things are common to most forms of woo. If it didn't work - you must not have believed enough.

How do we combat this? Any "Secret" follower who sees this video, for example, would find it easy to dismiss.

The author is back to attract more money into her life !!

'Secret' author Rhonda Byrne to share 'The Power'

Tue Jul 13, 11:35 am ET

NEW YORK – The author of "The Secret" now wants to share "The Power."
Atria Books announced Tuesday that Rhonda Byrne's follow-up to her pop culture phenomenon that sold millions of copies comes out next month. "The Power," like "The Secret," is a guide to positive thinking, how "everyone is meant to have an amazing life."
Atria, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, plans a first printing of 2 million copies.
Byrne is an Australian who has worked as a television and film producer. Her central claim in "The Secret" is that the "law of attraction" governs our universe. She said in 2007 that "when you think and feel what you want to attract on the inside," the law will bring you closer to what you want.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100713/ap_o..._the_power

My dad loves these new age books so i got my hands on this book -- it's hilarious. Some of the things in that book are just dumb. The author makes claims that so many successful people knew "The Secret" but there is no way to prove the claim. I find it so odd that so many people will believe someone if they make a claim with enough conviction, mind you i find it odd but not surprising.

About a week after I skimmed through the book I realised the dangers of a book like the secret. It feeds on a human tendency to put the individual above all else. What I mean by this is that such philosophies make you believe that you are the centre of the universe, you begin to spin an entire cosmology around yourself. This is the effect that most religions have on people. The idea that you can have a direct relationship with fate (through faith) can seem enticing to most in the same way that the idea that you are directly connected to "God".

While in the simple analogies that the author paints in her readers minds the implications of such beliefs do not seem apparent, it does when one expands the scope of what is involved. I find that most importantly this type of new age philosophy has an adverse effect on how we view poverty. People in this movement may begin to believe that the poor deserve their situation because they do not desire material wealth strongly enough! This is similar to characters who have worked their way to the top who believe that poor people are lazy and do not want to be rich because it is hard work, with no hand-outs and other such "benifits" poverty. This of course is just conjecture but you never know.

(18-09-2010 06:48 AM)rahuldsouza Wrote:  While in the simple analogies that the author paints in her readers minds the implications of such beliefs do not seem apparent, it does when one expands the scope of what is involved. I find that most importantly this type of new age philosophy has an adverse effect on how we view poverty. People in this movement may begin to believe that the poor deserve their situation because they do not desire material wealth strongly enough! This is similar to characters who have worked their way to the top who believe that poor people are lazy and do not want to be rich because it is hard work, with no hand-outs and other such "benifits" poverty. This of course is just conjecture but you never know.

Well said! A related idea is positive thinking. It is also supposed to make all problems go poof. Here's an interesting article on positive thinking.

I also had seen this film with several other friends. Everyone loved it. Though I am not follower of this technique, I didn't see anything wrong with it MINUS WE SHOULD BE A PASSIVE VISIONARY. At least positive thinking does not allow you to sink in the hopeless corner of depression. After all, hope can be a great instrument for many to live their life more peacefully. I always have been listening the similar things which I found in this video as well, beginning from my kids church days till today's Sunday sermons. Having it said, again, it is our active participation in action in the line of our vision - that will attract what we want to attract.

(25-07-2011 04:32 PM)ekata Wrote:  I also had seen this film with several other friends. Everyone loved it. Though I am not follower of this technique, I didn't see anything wrong with it MINUS WE SHOULD BE A PASSIVE VISIONARY. At least positive thinking does not allow you to sink in the hopeless corner of depression. After all, hope can be a great instrument for many to live their life more peacefully. I always have been listening the similar things which I found in this video as well, beginning from my kids church days till today's Sunday sermons. Having it said, again, it is our active participation in action in the line of our vision - that will attract what we want to attract.

Please have a look at the Forum Rules, point 6. We do not allow proselytising. As far as we are concerned, religion is bullshit. Period. There are far better alternatives to satisfy our emotional needs. You can however, take specific points and argue for it by presenting scientific evidence instead of making blanket generalizations.

A couple of excellent resources debunking The Secret, and the whole Law of Attraction bullcrap.

Ingrid Hansen Smythe's excellent piece from skeptic magazine.
Skepdic's treatment of the Law of Attraction/

In addition, Rebecca Watson, skepchick.org and the Skeptics Guide podcast have all spent a lot of time deconstructing this idea.

Steven Novella reviews recent psychology studies and proposes a 'naturalistic explanation' for 'The Secret', along with important caveats.
http://theness.com/neurologicablog/index...s-or-dont/