Through many hours of Zazen (objectless meditation) I have sat both in my local dojo and on retreats. One of the principle teachings in Zen is to let go of the the thinking mind, or the ego as it is often referred to.

When I first came into contact with The Secret it was in a different form, but presented precisely the same teaching. I became excited and began to practice the teachings, but this later fell away because it seemed to contradict the teachings of Zen.

This issue has now been resolved within me and I’d like to share it with you.

In Zen teachings the goal is not to have a goal, but simply to let your awareness experience things as they are:

“The present moment, as it is.”

The teaching of The Secret can seem to some – viewing it from outside – as a materialistic practice, because a person practicing can draw to them anything they want, and if you are like me there are a vast number of material things which you desire.

However, The Secret is NOT materialism, for the following reason:

If a person were materialistic they would see the world of form, or the world without, as being the ultimate aim. They would put value, excessive value, on the things which manifest. This point of view would undoubtedly lead to selfishness and is related to the competitive mind.

What The Secret teaches us is something much deeper, giving us an understanding of our true nature, because we come to realise that we the formless entity which creates, can create anything we want. Indeed we are not the ego or thinking mind, this is just a tool.

If I give you a few examples of the connections I have found to Buddhist teachings and The Secret you can understand that Buddhism ultimately teaches The Secret, but not in the easy to understand way, or at least so I have found.

During Meditation we are advised to let the thoughts which appear to our cognitive mind come and pass again without giving our attention to them and thus creating more thought. If you have been watching and listening to The Secret this will sound very familiar, because by giving thought attention and focus we create more of the same thought by attraction. By sitting in a quiet place, releasing all tension, concentrating on the body remaining still, focusing out attention, we are actually completing the first four weeks of The Master Key System.

What is often said in Buddhism is that the world is a reflection of mind and that we should change our mind to change the world. This is explained in greater detail in the Master Key book; the how and why is all there. The cognitive mind impresses its thoughts on the subconscious mind, which then transfers the thought into a material fact through the one True Mind.

In Zen mediation we are encouraged to focus on the stillness which resides in ourselves, and the Great Zen Masters refer to this stillness by comparing it to the mountains and the rivers; it is called the Tao or The Way. Indeed, the stillness is The Way – it is the unconscious mind which gives and sustains life as it is, all that has been or ever will be; all form comes from it.

By understanding our connectedness to this mind we begin to know our own divinity, the sense of power within us is immense – but not the kind of power that forms from a materialistic mind which seeks to control people and things to bring it what it wants, also known as the competitive mind. No, this feeling of oneness gives us the joy often referred to in The Secret.

It is thought that The Buddha surpassed the thinking mind and dwelt in only the One Mind or unconscious mind constantly, and thus entered into the state of Nirvana.

It was because of this teaching that I originally became doubtful as to whether The Secret was something I wanted to follow, because “I wanted to be Enlightened and enter the same state.” Does this sound like a contradiction… it did to me.

The desire to become enlightened is in itself a desire like any other positive desire that the cognitive mind chooses to impress on the One Mind. It was from this realisation that I practice The Secret teachings and Zen teachings today. In fact the more I look at the reality of the friends I practice with and the Temples which have been created, the more I realise that all of these people have desire and the desire to see their desires fulfilled, whether for their own benefit or the benefit of Buddhism.

My desire is this: To fill my life with all the things which I want by becoming completely aware of my thoughts and controlling my mind. To realise my own divinity by holding awareness in the present moment and then creating a world which is of benefit for everyone.

The Buddha said:

“Be the master of your own mind, because it is the mind which turns a man, a human being, into a Buddha or a beast.”

When I no longer have anything left that can be expressed through physical form, then I suspect that I will remain in the formless entity and thus transcend life and death, but until that day I practice with complete faith that I can change myself and give others the opportunity to do the same.

In both Zen and Tibetan Buddhism there is an ordination called a Boddhisatva ordination, where in Tibetan teachings the one ordained is attempting to realise a strong sense of compassion, which is described as a spontaneous wish to free others from suffering. I see much suffering, but so much that I have seen before has been dissolved because it was in me, and through The Secret I am changing; I am at peace.

Love also is given the highest esteem in Buddhism, being defined as wanting what is best for another person no matter what that person does to you. Following The Secret also brings this into fruition because we see that we only hurt ourselves with criticism because it comes back to us.

This is of course the same teaching as that of Karma, which has been taught for many years, and the teaching of the Master Key shows us cognitively why the whole universe is one.

I hope this is of interest to you. I profess to be nothing but one filled with enthusiasm and a desire to change myself and the world and feel at peace with what I am and what I do.

If you would like to talk about any point of view related to this or give me advice on how you put The Secret into practice yourselves, I would love to be in contact; look for me in the Powerful intentions forum.

Best Wishes

Bruce