I ask everyone to believe in God, but God is not something on the outside of you; God is your own wonderful human imagination.

Neville Goddard

Among the countless philosophers, psychologists, and mystics who dedicated their life to discovering the hidden power of the mind we find Neville Goddard.

He believed in the “law of assumption” and wrote quite a few books about it. To name a few, Feeling is the Secret (1944), The Search (1946), and Awakened Imagination (1954).

Once you understand and apply the law of assumption, as described by the author, you will find that the material world tends to mirror the inner world.

This is empowering as it implies that the world around you isn’t always a cause-and-effect series of events over which you have no control over, but rather your creation.

And yes, this does seem to be a common theme/concept in spirituality as well as personal development. However, the law of assumption explains it in a very original way.

The law of assumption in a nutshell

“Assume” a certain event, situation, lifestyle, state of being, or desired outcome, continuously and consistently, and eventually it manifests in the physical world.

The law of assumption isn’t a recipe for miracles. Yet assumption itself, and what Neville calls the “wonderful human imagination”, are way more powerful than most would suspect.

Consider this:

  • If our own consciousness as human beings is detached from the world we experience on a daily basis, then we can only change ourselves
  • If our own consciousness is the world, the universe, and anything that’s in it, then it follows that change must begin within

You can choose to see the world through a very materialistic, skeptical view, or embrace what we call a “mystical” view of the world in which all things are interconnected.

Both are true. Both work. If you want to master the law of assumption (and I believe this is the case, since you are reading this), then you’ll want to go with the latter.

Law of assumption: how?

To manifest a certain person or event in your life, all you have to do is assume the feeling that a certain person or event would bring, as if that was already your reality, for long enough.

The “assumption” can be practiced through intense meditative practices, or simply by imagining the desired outcome every night as you are about to fall asleep.

And the desired outcome may manifest after a day, or a week, or a month. Depending on your discipline and consistency, and the goal itself, it may take a little bit longer.

Now, here’s the tricky part — the one your logical brain really dislikes: for the law of assumption to work, you have to suspend judgment and forget about the “how”.

This really is difficult. The human mind doesn’t like to surrender, to assume something when there is little to no evidence. Yet this is key to manifesting.

As you practice the law of assumption, there will be doubt. So you want to remind yourself that the “how” is none of your business. Your only task is to assume, imagine, and feel.

A word of caution

When you work toward a goal — any goal — then effectively you are working toward the goal and everything that comes with it, good or bad that it may be.

By the same token, use the law of assumption to change a certain thing in your reality and expect other things to change as well.

Now, in general, this isn’t something you should be concerned about. After all, if you are clear on what you want and you know it’ll make you happy, what’s the worst that could happen?

This is simply a reminder that if you really want to change, and if you really want your world to change, then you have to be ready for a shift, which may be a lot more profound than you’d imagine.

Law of assumption: Neville’s example

In his talks, Goddard would often share the story of how he “assumed” the feeling of being in Barbados, and eventually going there physically despite having no money.

In October 1933, Goddard was living in New York, and was unemployed, like millions at the time. He had a strong desire to go to Barbados, but had no money, and therefore thought his dream was impossible.

However, Abdullah — Goddard’s friend, a mystic who had studied the Bible and the Kabbalah — told him he shouldn’t worry about how it would happen, and to simply assume the feeling of being there.

Naturally, Goddard was skeptical, and thought Abdullah’s advice was simply “too good to be true”. But he figured he would try anyway, and “assume” that he was in Barbados, every night as he fell asleep.

But nevertheless, that night I slept in Barbados. I assumed that I am in Barbados, in my mother’s home, and that I see America relative to Barbados (…).

That’s stupid, to discuss how I am going to go, when I am in Barbados. And if I am faithful to my assumption, I cannot discuss the how. I am already there.

Days passed by. Weeks passed by. Nothing happened. Goddard was frustrated and impatient, and could not see any tangible change in the actual physical world.

He would try to discuss the matter with Abdullah, but he would refuse to talk about it. He would simply remind him, “don’t think of how you are going to get there if you are already there!”

Then on the 4th of December, Goddard saw a letter under his door. It was a letter from his family: they had bought him a return ticket to Barbados, and he would go on the 6th.

It doesn’t just end there. Interestingly, the first part of the journey — up to Saint Thomas — would be third class. Neville had assumed he would go first class.

Nevertheless, he was incredibly excited. He went to his friend Abdullah and said, “it worked! I am going, only, it’s going to have to be third class on my way there”.

Guess what Abdullah said — you are not going third class, you went to Barbados, and you went first class! Again, this sounded like pure nonsense. Yet two days later…

I went up to the desk as they were checking in the passengers, and I put my ticket forward. He said: I have good news for you, Mr Goddard; someone has canceled, and you are going first class.

There is no such thing as a “little pregnancy” (…). You assume that you are in Barbados: now you are pregnant. The idea is, you are going to give birth to a journey which will land you right in Barbados (…); that is conception.

You can listen to the original audio here. The four quotes above are taken from the same source.

Other law of assumption examples

Finances

Let’s say you’d like to earn more money, or simply be in a better financial situation in general. What you want to do, according to the law of assumption, is assume you are in a better financial situation right now.

Mind you, it doesn’t mean spending irresponsibly, or buying lottery tickets, or living beyond your means. You don’t need to do that to assume the feeling. Feelings themselves are free!

Do your best to assume the feeling, then notice how your thoughts and mood changes. What would your mood be like if you had more money? What would be your recurring thoughts, plans, goals?

Beauty

This is another common desire — need, almost — of us human beings. We want to feel beautiful, and by extension be appreciated. We want to feel and look good and then confirmation of it from others.

If this is your desire, then start assuming the feeling. What does it feel like to be beautiful? What does a beautiful, charming, elegant person think like? How is this reflected in their behavior?

By the way, let me share a little secret — it’s basically impossible for anyone not to be beautiful if they cultivate their natural beauty, inner and outer. We are all beautiful, we just need to find our own beauty.

Relationships

In the same talk, after the whale story about Barbados, Goddard gives the example of someone who wants to be happily married, or in a fulfilling relationship, yet doesn’t know how it could ever happen.

Someone comes to you now, and you would apply this principle toward their request. They say, I would love to be happily married. And you say to her or him, you are now happily married. They look at you as though you are insane.

But that is exactly what you are supposed to do: you are now happily married. (…) I would instantly begin to feel that ring there, in my imagination, and I’d let others see my ring, for that would imply I am happily married.

Luck

The same applies to everything else, including the feeling/state of being blessed. How would you, as someone who is blessed, feel? Assume the feeling long enough and luck comes to you.

This is actually one of the easiest examples to practice, just because we all are extremely lucky in some way. By focusing on all the reasons your life is abundant, you’ll then generate the feeling of abundance.

In turn, according to the law of assumption, that feeling will then generate physical events, coincidences, and seemingly unexplainable changes in your world. The trick is to be faithful, to assume.

The take-home message

What if reality was shaping your imagination… and vice versa? What if your own ability to feel a certain way, to picture things in your mind, could lead to the physical manifestation of these things?

The law of assumption states that if you assume the feeling of being/having/doing something regularly and with enough intensity, eventually the world will have to reflect that.

The beauty of this is, there are no side effects, and there is no harm in trying. Worst case scenario, it won’t work, but you’ll feel better anyway. Best case scenario, you’ll witness a miracle.

And make no mistake — that miracle will be nothing but your own mind.