Will You Maximise the Art of Revision?

I’d like to consult you for a decision. If you were in my shoes, what would you do? So, here’s the situation.

I am in a certain country where I am the only one, and I have no communication with any other person simply because there’s no other. I have a wonderful house and behind it a large plot of land to keep it modest. What can I say? It’s a whole country but I alone live on it. I have varieties of seeds that I could plant, every seed and seedlings for every imaginable plant. I could only spend my time doing some farming on the land. But I don’t know what to do with it. Should I make a large plantation with massive farming of just a few cash crops like coffee, cocoa, etc.? These crops are useful only for selling purposes, but I am the only one in my country and there’s no one to sell to. Also, it cannot keep me busy everytime, so I’ll be lazy and bored on most days. Or should I cultivate a garden with the varieties of grass, flowers and shrubs? I could really plant a few cash crops but just for my personal consumption. The garden is just for my personal luxury, consumption and duty. I could work on it pruning almost daily, so I’ll be engaged. I could make it decorative and I could enjoy the view in evenings. I could be more and more creative with it newer ideas in the morning. I could really enjoy the fruits without feeling anything is wasting. And I could enjoy the shades or sunbathe on the grass. Please, which do you suggest that I do?

***********

What would be your answer to the puzzle above? Did you suggest a plantation? I guess not. I guess you suggested to this friend to have a garden. If you suggested a garden, why? Did you imagine enjoying the personal luxury, consumption and duty? Did you imagine enjoying the varieties? Did you imagine enjoying the peace that comes with knowing there’s no waste? If so, I would like to encourage you to cultivate your garden also. Don’t try to own a plantation but cultivate a garden.

What is our foundation again? ‘Consciousness is the one and only reality.’ You are the One Consciousness there is, expressing yourself in various forms in this world of your shadows. It’s a country where you, the I Amness of man, you are the one and only Lord.

In the beginning, you have a garden. It is called Eden, and you are within it now. This earth and the fullness of it that belongs to the Lord is the garden of the Lord, and it is this world. This is the creative canvas of your human imagination. And your human imagination is the Lord God.

When you are trying to manifest one or two great moments of life without regard for all your day, you are trying to raise a plantation. For instance, you want to manifest a huge sum of money or a fantastic relationship — which is all good. But for them, you ignore the little manifestations of things you would as well cherish in your day to day living, then you are not cultivating a garden. You are actually cultivating a plantation. The only use of it is for others to exchange; but you are the only reality. Did you realise also that usually while trying to manifest this gainful employment or that relationship gets you to be self-absorbed, the many lovely things in the day get overlooked by you? (The garden is already there. But lack of focus on it makes one unaware of the beauty and makes weeds grow.)

Would it be okay if we reconsidered the situation? Perhaps you want to manifest financial abundance so quickly and for such a long time (days, weeks or months — you know). But because it hasn’t happened yet, you feel frustrated? Then watch this. There is also the loving relationship with your colleague that you could manifest since you’ve both not been on the same terms since the second week you’ve resumed there. There is also the inner peace you could manifest since you’ve been restless and scared on your own ever since you became an adult. There is also the self-confidence that you could manifest after your self-confidence was bruised into ‘self-assured’ doubt from your teenage years. There is also the recognition of contribution you could manifest at work where you’ve given so much inputs that have passed undernoticed. The relationship between your parents is there which you could manifest understanding into it, and the relationship between you and your siblings which you could manifest harmony into. There’s the good luck charm you could manifest for petty things turning into big unexpected favours for you, instead of the ill luck you might have shrunk from. True friendships are there for you to manifest, probably after your prolonged betrayals and loneliness. The freedom and innocence is there that you could manifest for how you feel about your daily actions. There are daily habits like exercising, journalling, cycling, being in touch with friends, growing with family, etc. Clarity of life’s vision could be manifested. Constant happiness could be manifested. Good health could be manifested. Receiving gifts daily could be manifested. Spiritual experiences could be manifested. The solution to people’s challenges and troubles could be manifested. And many more manifestations that could be wonderful plants. Anyway, you are the one reality in this whole vast universe?

Some manifestations are flowers that will seasonally look great, smell great and feel great to touch. Some are shrubs that look quite ornamental for all seasons — they are always going to be there no matter what. Some are grass, and they just allow you to relax and feel more and more secured. Some are fruits that you could enjoy in their various seasons. Some are reproducing themselves, and they let you relax having to try every manifestation out yourself. At any rate, would you like to keep a plantation of manifestations (hard toil at first, laziness for a time, two or three great manifestations in a period and nothing for a long time)? Or would you find it easier to keep a rich and abundant garden (always some sparkling, lovely and amazing manifestations each day, always engaging and always refreshing with delicious rewards)?

Did you understand that a longing for two to three manifestations is usually accompanied by the neglect of daily manifestations? This is how. Some of your manifestations will happen after years, like planting two seeds of acorn in your garden; two seeds of apple and of mangoes here and there. They will take years to materialize according to the nature of their time. Some of your manifestations will happen in months, like planting watermelon, corn, wheat, vegetables according to their nature. Some will happen in weeks. Some will happen in days, and some will happen in hours. According to their nature (*that is, according to how long it would take your imagination to feel natural about their reality ‘within’), they will manifest in different times. Having varieties in your garden therefore ensures that while you’re watering the oak-type of manifestation today with persistent assumption in the wish fulfilled, you are enjoying the tasty watermelon that you’ve just harvested. It guarantees that while you are moving your raspberries from nursery today, you could be eating apples harvested from the tree you planted five years ago. In other words, each day will be filled with manifestations, and rather than having time to slump into whining, you could be dancing.

If you would like to keep a garden, you must use the pruning shears of revision. The only way to have manifestations-filled day is to become a daily practitioner of the pruning shears of revision for yourself and for everyone you encounter (as many as possible). Neville made one of the boldest statements in the history of mankind in his lecture on the Pruning Shears of Revision. You too consider with me if it is not a bold assertion.

‘I firmly believe that if you will wisely and daily use the pruning shears of revision that you will find there is no objective beyond your ability to realize. And I mean that seriously, no objective beyond your ability to realize.’ (Neville Goddard, The Pruning Shears of Revision)

At first, I would rush past these first words of the lecture. But consider it. Wouldn’t you like to know there is no aim or goal in life that is beyond your ability to realize? Wouldn’t you like to actually be capable of achieving any desire you might have? Using the pruning shears of revision on a daily basis will bring you to find this is really true for you. This is one of the boldest statements anyone could make; and not even representatives of world powers could make such a bold statement openly. But let me assure you that this is exactly how I began to feel after my first month of taking the pruning shears of revision seriously. I have manifestations happening on a daily basis, and I truly, sincerely feel that I can accomplish any goal in life. While I was planning to write this, a manifestation happened which was from a revision just two days ago. I have had manifestations happen after revision three months or even a year ago. But none of your manifestations could equal the experience of certainty in the power of your imagination to externalize your objectives. That is the one of the greatest gifts from this art. Yes, Neville encouraged you to take care of the garden.

‘For your garden is always projecting itself on the screen of space, and you can see by looking carefully at your world what you allow to grow in the garden of God. But you have a mission, you have a purpose, it is not to amass a fortune — you can do it if you want to — it’s not to be famous, it is not to be some mighty power, but simply to tend the garden of God. That’s your purpose. You are placed in the garden to dress it and to keep it, that only the lovely things grow in the garden of God.’ (The Pruning Shears of Revision)

If you are ready to maximise the art of revision, which is simply a commitment to revise as many experiences as possible in your daily experiences. Don’t judge; just revise. If you are ready for it, how could you do revision? Well, let’s consider Neville’s suggestion on this.

‘You don’t accept one thing in the world as final unless it conforms to the ideal you want to realize in the world. But you do it daily; if you do not prune it daily you will get out of the habit, then weeds will grow. Just look at it, don’t deny it, don’t duck it, look at it that you may prune it and then reshape it. Take the conversations with your friends today, were they pleasant, were they arguments, no matter what it is, were they negative? Then rewrite the script and just imagine the conversation to have taken place that now you are rewriting for the first time. And it will take place, for everything in your world that you behold, though it appears without, it is within, in your imagination. And this wonderful imagination of yours is Christ Jesus. Imagination is the actual habitation of every created thing. No matter what you see in the world, it springs from your imagination. So that’s where you go, that’s the workshop, the garden of God. And now you have a mission, you have a purpose in life; it’s a noble purpose, because you have been selected to really become the chief gardener in the garden of God, and in the garden you must have pruning shears, and pruning shears is revision.’

So, Gardener. Got your shears ready? Let’s start pruning.