Ultimately, the mechanism that is presupposed by the belief system taught in The Secret, but never explicitly stated, is the philosophy known as "pantheism." Pantheism is a philosophical belief about the fundamental nature of existence that cannot be derived from observation, but instead must be assumed as a starting point in our thinking and then may be tested to see if it's logical conclusions fit reality.
What Is Pantheism?
Pantheism literally means "God is all" and "All is God." The word is from the Greek: "pan" means "all," "theos" means "god," and "ism" means "doctrine" or "belief." Pantheism is the view that the universe, or nature, and God are equivalent.
According to the belief of pantheism, I am God, you are God, the table is God, animals and bugs and trees and dirt are God; in short every single thing in the entire universe is one essence and that essence is God. At first this may sound like a poetic statement, a metaphor, encouraging us to believe that there are divine qualities in all of us. But that's not what pantheism means by these statements. It posits that, in spite of all appearances to the contrary, we as individuals are not distinct from others, from our environment, nor from God. We do not think separate thoughts, feel separate feelings, nor make separate choices. And any perception of such dichotomies (divisions) to our minds through our senses is simply an illusion.
The Origins of Pantheism
Pantheism is the philosophy underlying a number of other popular philosophies or religions practiced around the world throughout much of history, but mostly originating in the East. It is also know as "Eastern Philosophy" and as such includes Hinduism and Buddhism.
Pantheism migrated to the United States in the late 19th century, most notably with the Theosophical Society (founded by Helena Petrovna Blavatsky in 1875), and in a wave of mind-science religions such as the Christian Science religion (founded by Mary Baker Eddy, also in 1875) which dresses the pantheistic concepts in the language of Biblical Christianity.
In the late 1950s and throughout the 1960s there was another influx to the West beginning with Transcendental Meditation followed by the interest in various Hindu gurus by the counter-culture of the 1960s. As with the popularization of The Secret by celebrities of our day, these gurus were propelled to mass popularity by celebrities in their day, such as The Beatles. The Hindu practice of Yoga has grown to ubiquity since the 1960s, though many of its practitioners may only view it as a form of exercise and may not encounter or be aware of the Hindu philosophy of which it is part. The Hare Krishna movement (ISKCON) began in New York in 1966.
Pantheism Is The Secret
Belief in pantheism has flourished over the years and is now one of the most commonly held beliefs in Western culture. Due to the vagueness of the language used to describe pantheism and the increasing lack of clarity of beliefs amongst those who hold to the traditional Judeo-Christian view that God and creation are distinct, pantheism is held in part, or in some form, by many without them recognizing it.
Another way people come to believe in pantheism is by being taught the conclusions that grow out it, such as the law of attraction. The only possible explanation for why an individual person's thoughts could manipulate forces in the universe to "attract" the things that person is thinking about is if that person is mentally integrated with the universe. But if the particulars of the universe were what they appear to be—finite and separate beings and things—then there is no reason to think our thoughts will cause an effect on a larger scale beyond the scope of our own bodies.
The assertion could be made that the law of attraction is the same as the Christian concept of praying to God who uses His infinite power to grant our request. However, with the God of the Bible, God's will is distinct from, and often opposed to, our wills. The Secret teaches that the law of attraction is a law of cause and effect and that the effect must follow the cause. The Christian God needn't choose to respond to our wishes and has wishes of His own to which our response is voluntary.
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