The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success: A practical guide to the fulfillment of your dreams.

By Deepak Chopra

ISBN 1-878424-11-4

Published by Amber-Allen Publishing & New World Library 1994. 112 pages. 

This is a book you will cherish for a lifetime, for within its pages are the secrets to making all your dreams come true. Deepak Chopra distills the essence of his teachings into seven simple yet powerful principles that can easily be applied to create success in all areas of your life. Based on natural laws which govern all of creation, this book shatters the myth that success is the result of hardwork, exacting plans, or driving ambition. Deepak Chopra offers a life-altering perspective on the attainment of success: Once we understand our true nature & learn to live in harmony with natural law, a sense of well-being, good health, fulfilling relationships, energy & enthusiasm for life & material abundance will spring forth easily & effortlessly. Filled with timeless wisdom & practical steps you can apply right away, this is a book you will want to read & refer to again & again.  .   [This link provides a summary of what I highlighted during my read of this excellent book -- I recommend it on my Top-ten List of Peace resources.  My purpose in providing them is to interest you, the reader, and hope that you will obtain and read the complete work.  To properly understand the highlights, you need to read the book to put them in the proper context.]

Introduction

• …success also includes good health, energy and enthusiasm for life, fulfilling relationships, creative freedom, emotional and psychological stability, a sense of wellbeing, and peace of mind.

Chapter 1: The Law of Pure Potentiality

• The source of all creation is pure consciousness…pure potentiality seeking expression from the unmanifest to the manifest.
  And when we realize that our true Self is one of pure potentiality, we align with the power that manifests everything in the universe.
• One way to access the field is through the daily practice of silence, meditation, and non-judgment. Spending time in nature…
• Practicing silence means making a commitment to take a certain amount of time to simply Be.

Applying the Law of Pure Potentiality

• …be silent…meditation…nature…non-judgment

Chapter 2: The Law of Giving

• The Universe operates through dynamic exchange…giving and receiving are different aspects of the flow of energy in the universe.
  And in our willingness to give that which we seek, we keep the abundance of the universe circulating in our lives.
• …if you want to learn to love, learn to give love…the easiest way to get what you want is to help others get what they want.
• …thought has the power to transform.
• …the most powerful forms of giving are non-material
• …affection…
• …you are already inherently affluent…the source of all wealth is the field of pure potentiality…

Applying the Law of Giving

• …bring them a gift.
• …gratefully receive all the gifts…

Chapter 3: The Law of “Karma” or Cause and Effect

• Every action generates a force of energy that returns to us in like kind…what we sow is what we reap.
  And when we choose actions that bring happiness and success to others, the fruit of our karma is happiness and success.
• “What you sow is what you reap.”
• “will this choice that I’m making now bring happiness to me and to those around me?” if the answer is yes, then go ahead with that choice. If the answer is no, if that choice brings distress either to you or to those around you, then don’t make that choice. It’s as simple as that.
• If your body sends a message of comfort, that’s the right choice. If your body sends a message of discomfort, then it’s not the appropriate choice.

Applying the Law of “Karma” or Cause and Effect.

• …witness the choices…
• …ask myself two questions…
• …ask my heart for guidance…

Chapter 4: The Law of Least Effort

• Nature’s intelligence functions with effortless ease…with carefreeness, harmony, and love.
  And when we harness the forces of harmony, joy, and love, we create success and good fortune with effortless ease.
• “do less and accomplish more.” Ultimately you come to the state where you do nothing and accomplish everything.
• Nature’s intelligence functions effortlessly, frictionlessly, spontaneously. It is non-linear; it is intuitive, holistic, and nourishing.
• …when your actions are motivated by love, there is no waste of energy.
• …three components to the Law of Least Effort…The first component is acceptance…You can wish for things in the future to be different, but in this moment you have to accept things as they are.
• …the second component…responsibility.
• Having accepted this circumstance, this event, this problem, responsibility then means the ability to have a creative response to the situation as it is now.
• The third component…defenselessness
• If you just relinquish the need to defend your point of view, you will in that relinquishment, gain access to enormous amounts of energy that have been previously wasted.
• You do not need to justify; simply declare your intent to yourself, and you will experience fulfillment, delight, joy, freedom, and autonomy in every moment in your life.

Applying the Law of Least Effort

• I will practice acceptance.
• Having accepted things as they are, I will take Responsibility for my situation and for all those events I see as problems.
• …every problem is an opportunity in disguise…
• Today my awareness will remain established in Defenselessness.

Chapter 5: The Law of Intention and Desire

• Inherent in every intention and desire is the mechanics for its fulfillment…intention and desire in the field of pure potentiality have infinite organizing power.
  And when we introduce an intention in fertile ground of pure potentiality, we put this infinite organizing power to work for us.
• The whole universe, in its essential nature, is the movement of energy and information.
• This conscious change is brought about by the two qualities inherent in consciousness: attention and intention. Attention energizes, and intention transforms.
• …use your intent for the benefit of mankind. This happens spontaneously when you are in alignment with the Seven Spiritual Laws of Success.
• Intention combined with detachment leads to life-centered, present-moment awareness.
• Your intent is for the future, but your attention is in the present. As long as your attention is in the present, then your intent for the future will manifest, because the future is created in the present. You must accept the present as is. Accept the present and intend the future. The future is something you can always create through detached intention, but you should never struggle against the present.
• Both past and future are born in the imagination; only the present, which is awareness, is real and eternal.
• If you have life-centered, present-moment awareness, then the imaginary obstacles—which are more than ninety percent of perceived obstacles—disintegrate and disappear.
• Learn to harness the power of intention, and you can create anything you desire.

• When you follow these five steps for fulfilling your desires, intention generates its own power:
  1. slip into the gap
  2. established in that state of being, release your intentions and desires
  3. remain in the state of self-referral
  4. relinquish your attachment to the outcome
  5. let the universe handle the details

Applying the Law of Intention and Desire

• I will make a list of my desires
• I will release this list of my desires and surrender it to the womb of creation, trusting…
• I will remind myself to practice present-moment awareness in all my actions.

Chapter 6: The Law of Detachment

• In detachment lies the wisdom of uncertainty…in the wisdom of uncertainty lies the freedom from our past, from the known, which is the prison of past conditioning.
  And in our willingness to step into the unknown, the field of all possibilities, we surrender ourselves to the creative mind that orchestrates the dance of the universe.
• …in order to acquire anything in the physical universe, you have to relinquish your attachment to it. This doesn’t mean you give up the intention to create your desire. You don’t give up the intention, and you don’t give up the desire. You give up your attachment to the result.
• Attachment…is based on fear and insecurity—and the need for security is based on not knowing the true Self.
• …with detachment there is freedom to create.
• The search for security is an illusion…the solution to this whole dilemma lies in the wisdom of insecurity, or the wisdom of uncertainty. This means that the search for security and certainty is actually an attachment to the known. And what’s the known? The known is our past…There’s no evolution in that…And where there is no evolution, there is stagnation, entropy, disorder, and decay.
• Uncertainty, on the other hand, is the fertile ground of pure creativity and freedom.
• The Law of Detachment does not interfere with the Law of Intention and Desire—with goal-setting. You still have the intention of going in a certain direction, you still have a goal. However, between point A and point B there are infinite possibilities.

Applying the Law of Detachment

• Today I will commit myself to detachment
• Today I will factor in uncertainty as an essential ingredient of my experience
• I will step into the field of all possibilities and anticipate the excitement that can occur when I remain open to an infinity of choices

Chapter 7: The Law of “Dharma” or Purpose In Life

• Everyone has a purpose in life…a unique gift or special talent to give to others.
  And when we blend this unique talent with service to others, we experience the ecstasy and exultation of our own spirit, which is the ultimate goal of all goals.
• The Law of Dharma says that we have taken manifestation in physical form to fulfill a purpose.
• There is something that you can do better than anyone else in the whole world.
• If you could start children right from the beginning with this thought, you’d see the effect it has on their lives.
• What I really want to focus on is asking yourself how you can serve humanity, and asking yourself what your unique talents are.
• There are three components to the Law of Dharma. The first component says that each of us is here to discover our true Self, to find out on our own that our true Self is spiritual, that essentially we are spiritual beings that have taken manifestation in physical form.
• The second component of the Law of Dharma is to express our unique talents… This means that there’s one thing you can do, and one way of doing it, that is better than anyone else on this entire planet.
• The third component of the Law of Dharma is service to humanity—to serve your fellow human beings and to ask yourself the questions, “How can I help? How can I help all those that I come into contact with?”
• The question, “What’s in it for me?” is the internal dialogue of the ego. Asking “How can I help?” is the internal dialogue of the spirit.
• If you want to make the maximum use of the Law of Dharma, then you have to make several commitments.
  The first commitment is: I am going to seek my higher self, which is beyond my ego, through spiritual practice.
  The second commitment is: I am going to discover my unique talents, and finding my unique talents, I am going to enjoy myself, because the process of enjoyment occurs when I go into timeless awareness. That’s when I am in a state of bliss.
  The third commitment is: I am going to ask myself how I am best suited to serve humanity. I am going to answer that question and then put it into practice.

Applying the Law of “Dharma” or Purpose in Life

• Today I will lovingly nurture the god or goddess in embryo that lies deep within my soul.
• I will make a list of my unique talents.
• I will ask myself daily, “how can I serve?” and “how can I help?”

Summary and Conclusion

• There is a natural sequence for the application of these laws in your daily life that may help you to remember them. The Law of Pure Potentiality is experienced through silence, through meditation, through non-judgment, through communion with nature, but it is activated by the Law of Giving. The principle here is to learn to give that which you seek. That’s how you activate the Law of Pure Potentiality. If you seek affluence, give affluence; if you seek money, give money; if you seek love, appreciation, and affection, then learn to give love, appreciation, and affection.
• Through your actions in the Law of Giving you activate the Law of Karma. You create good karma, and good karma makes everything in life easy. You notice that you don’t have to expend a lot of effort to fulfill your desires, which automatically leads to an understanding of the Law of Least Effort. When everything is easy and effortless, and your desires keep getting fulfilled, you spontaneously begin to understand the Law of Intention and Desire. Fulfilling your desires with effortless ease makes it easy for you to practice the Law of Detachment.
• Finally as you begin to understand all the above laws, you begin to focus on your true purpose in life, which leads to the Law of Dharma. Through the use of this law, by expressing your unique talents and fulfilling the needs of your fellow humans, you begin to create whatever you want, whenever you want it. You become carefree and joyful, and your life becomes an expression of unbounded love.

The Chopra Foundation: an invitation

• Is dedicated ..to promoting world peace
• …promote healing and peace by scientifically and experientially exploring non-dual consciousness as the ground of existence.
• …seeding individuals and communities at peace…
• “…all people are already united by the fact that they are all equally the expression of one life.”—Meher Baba
• …to create a critical mass of peace consciousness

If you are interested in becoming involved in either the Alliance for the New Humanity or The Chopra Foundation activity, please log onto www.chopra.com and visit The Chopra Foundation Web page for more information.  You may also send an email to foundation@chopra.com .