It always surprises me when I run into a random piece of information that doesn't seem like much when I first see or hear it, but somehow, it stays with me and grows into something much more important later. It can be much later. Like many years later. This is something that's happened to me many times and I've learned that you never know when you're about to stumble upon something that may have deep meaning for you down the road. And it always amazes me that our mind has a way of keeping things stored away, to help us in a time and circumstance that hasn't happened yet. How does it know to do that? It's quite a mystery. But one of those times happened to me several decades ago, back in the late 70s. It was just a few moments on a TV show and I thought nothing of it at the time, but I'm still processing it today. My mother was in the early stages of a degenerative illness that was to eventually take her life at a relatively young age. She had been an extremely active woman, but as the illness progressed, she had started spending a lot of time resting in bed and the TV was on constantly.  Once, when I was visiting her, one of those late-afternoon talk shows was on. The guest was a hypnotist and he was going to hypnotize two different subjects. In the first segment of the show, the host and the hypnotist were interviewing both subjects, a man and a woman, making casual conversation and getting to know them. The hypnotist chatted with them for a few moments and it was obvious that they were ordinary, average, everyday people.   The host said that during the commercial break, the hypnotist would put them both under hypnosis. They didn't want to do it on TV because of what it might do to the audience. After the break the hypnotist and the host were alone on stage. The hypnotists explained that he had hypnotized both subjects and that during hypnosis, he had given each of them a post-hypnotic suggestion. He said that when they came back, they would both appear to be just fine. But he had given the woman a post hypnotic suggestion that for her, the number six no longer existed. And he had given the man a post hypnotic suggestion that if he were asked to pick up anything off the floor, no matter what it was, it would be too heavy for him to lift. He wouldn't be able to do it, no matter what it was. They brought the female subject back first. The hypnotists started chatting with her about what it had felt to be hypnotized. She said it had been very relaxing. She had remembered the whole thing and went into some details about it, but interestingly, she never mentioned anything about being put into a post-hypnotic trance. At one point, the hypnotist asked simply if she thought she could count to ten. When she said she was certain she could, he pulled out a twenty-dollar bill and told her if she can count to ten, he will give it to her. She looked at him with surprised amusement and casually started counting. 1,2,3,4,5. And then she stopped and got a somewhat contorted look on her face. She was stuck at five and couldn't go forward. She soon became completely confused by what was happening to her. For some strange reason, she couldn't go beyond five.           The hypnotist told her to relax, that she would be okay and an attendant came and led her off stage. He then explained to the host that he will remove the post-hypnotic suggestion in a few minutes and had them bring out the man. The hypnotist goes through the same casual conversation with him that he did with the woman. The man says he feels fine and tells him his pleasant memories of being hypnotized, and like the first subject, makes no mention of being put under a post hypnotic trance.  Eventually, the hypnotist pulls out a $100 bill from his pocket and hands it to the man. As he's holding it, the man confirms that it appears to be a normal $100 bill. The hypnotist takes it back, throws it on the floor and tells the man, "If you can pick it up, you can keep it." The man looks at him surprised, like this can't be for real. And he bends over to pick it up. But he can't do it. He keeps struggling and the camera goes into a closeup of the man's arm, which is shaking and his veins are bulging. No matter how hard he tries, he can't pick up the $100 bill. Completely confused, he keeps struggling as they take a commercial break. When they return, it's just the host and the hypnotist again. The hypnotist explains that the two subjects have been returned to their normal mental state. And then he goes on to explain a fascinating fact. He says that if you honestly and truly believe in the deepest part of your mind that you cannot do something, you won't be able to do it. It can be as simple as standing up or walking. The woman couldn't count to ten because he had removed the existence of the number six from her mind. And the man couldn't pick up the $100 bill because he had put the belief deeply into his mind that anything that was on the floor would be too heavy to lift and there was no way he could lift that bill, which was just a piece of paper. Then he added another fascinating point. He said that there is no way that either the woman or the man would ever have been able to guess what had happened to them. They knew that they were strangely unable to perform the simple, specific action, but they had no idea know why. And they never would unless someone told them, because the suggestions had been placed in a part of the mind that is beyond rational thought.   It was a pretty powerful concept for me – if you truly believe you can't do something, you won't be able to do it, even though it's well within your power. And you may not know what's driving your disbelief, because what's causing it may be out of reach. That's all I remember from that random TV show on that random day and I really didn't give it another thought until about twenty years later when I came across a quote from Parmahansa Yogananda, the great Indian yogi who lived in America for many years until his death in 1952. I have always been inspired by his insights since I first became aware of his writings in the early 70s. So one day, this short quote of his caught my eye. He said, "I have met the Devil and his name is I Can't." And it really got me. Now I am the product of many, many years of Judeo-Christian religious training and the idea of the Devil, which is the personification of pure evil, plays a central part in it. And here, with this short comment, Yogananda was equating this source of all human suffering with a two-word idea, "I Can't," which I realized, is simply an attitude of mind.   So, was this master of consciousness growth saying that the source of all human suffering is an attitude of mind? That was a new one for me, and as I started giving it some thought, my memory of that TV show with the hypnotist came back to me. I doubt that I had even thought of it for twenty years. Now, that had been quite an example of the idea that if you really believe you can't do something, you won't be able to do it, no matter how simple or easy it is. Of course, we all know that if you really do believe you can do something, it will greatly improve your ability to actually do it. There are many different mental strategies about how to boost your performance. Thinking positively about the task, finding your inner strength to do it and visualizing a positive outcome are just a few of the many things you can do to boost your chances of success. But no matter what positive mindset strategy you use, there are certain things that you just won't be able to do. Like, maybe you've always loved the stories of saints who supposedly could levitate or even fly, including Saint Francis. But if you decide you want to give it a try, no matter how much faith or belief you have that you can fly, don't go jumping off of a building. Just try levitating from a sitting position instead. It's a much safer idea. So having a deep belief that you can do something doesn't necessary mean that you can do it, but having a deep belief that you can't do something can definitely stop you, even if you actually can do it. And on its most basic level, the belief that you can't do something can stop you from even trying. Many times, just making the effort is often the key to success. Part of the nature of our intelligence is that it grows by doing, which is one of the reasons it's so important to make effort. As Lincoln once put it, "I say try. If we never try, we never succeed." Which led me back to Yogananda, who had succeeded with an amazing number of accomplishments during his 59 years of life. He had built large ashrams in America, as well as in India, was the spiritual leader of millions of people and founded a large organization that survives to this day. He was a firm believer in putting plans into action, So, his idea that the attitude that defeats making any effort is the devil in disguise started making some sense. But then it went a little deeper. Yogananda was first and foremost a yogi, which means he had dedicated his life to something that his tradition called "God Realization." He always said that realizing the infinite presence of the divine within your consciousness is the actual purpose of life on earth and accomplishing this ultimate achievement far eclipses anything else, which took me to a new level of thought.  I started combining the idea of "I can't" along with the idea of attaining God Realization in this life and I realized that on the deepest level, I honestly and truly believe that I can't. I have too many doubts about it, and given my cultural upbringing, it just seems impossible. So, what does that say about my chances? Then, one more thing came up. Yogananda always taught that the external world is an illusion by nature, always pulling you away from your goal, and I thought of the two subjects of hypnosis on that TV show, who had no idea that they were under post-hypnotic suggestion, and that's what was stopping them.   And it made me wonder, how much of our thoughts and actions are coming from things that are buried so deeply within our minds that we are unable to access them? It's a pretty profound concept, because it's acknowledged that there are so many things that affect us in our lives that are blind spots for us. We just can't see them. Like how much of an effect do you think your kindergarten teacher had on you? Studies show that it's enormous and it stays with you for the rest of your life. It makes sense because this is one of the primary programmers of your early mind. But you can't touch it. Like a post hypnotic suggestion, it's completely out of reach. Personally, I don't remember anything at all about mine. And it's the same thing with a countless number of other things in our lives. Popular culture, belief systems, societal attitudes, and a thousand other forces that we barely notice, have a profound effect on our minds, our personalities, and ultimately, our destinies.   It all makes the idea of evolving to a higher consciousness seem pretty attractive, because no matter what influences are impacting my mind, subtle or not so subtle, the fact is, I'm still breathing, I'm still alive. And this most basic foundation of my existence, is happening on its own. I have absolutely nothing to do with it, yet it keeps giving me the chance to be alive, and so much more. So, I guess that should tell me something. Anyway, that's the end of this episode. As always, keep your eyes, mind and heart open, and let's get together in the next one.

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