Article December 30, 1985 Issue

The spiritual power of a positive "no!"

NATHAN A. TALBOT

"No, this just can't be!" the homemaker may exclaim on discovering that the microwave oven overdid its job and dinner is burned to a crisp. The same cry could describe the first feelings anyone may have when faced with more serious circumstances—perhaps an event that seems almost overwhelming.

Such a natural reaction illustrates a yearning of the human mind—its resistance to accepting loss or accident or symptoms of disease. But the human mind of itself is incapable of actually destroying what it fears or dislikes. It may shout "no," but at a more fundamental level it is admitting "yes."

And yet a statement like "No, I will not accept this" can completely overturn such an event as sickness or feelings of fear or grief if it has the right context and is spiritually inspired. In other words, a statement of negation can have such a positive setting that it literally reverses what appears to be irreversible.

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