The Secret – Old Wine, New Bottle?

By Reuben Shini

“Our life is what our thoughts make it. A man will find that as he alters his thoughts toward things and other people, things and other people will alter towards him. ” – James Allen; As a man thinketh (1902)

“Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve.” – Napoleon Hill; Think and grow rich ( 1937)

“ Man becomes what he thinks about” – Morris E Goodman; The Mircale Man; The Secret DVD ( 2006)

From the above quotes, it is very true that the “Secret” is actually not. From the very inspired book by James Allen to the founder of modern day self help books; Napoleon Hill. We have been immersed in the secret or the teachings of it for more than a century.

Many have put down The Secret DVD as a slick repackaged product filled with a dizzy array of present day Secret protagonists coupled with a healthy dose of special effects and modern day video editing.

True; The Secret DVD is well edited and boasts a bevy of societal role models from Metaphysicians, New Age authors to even a Reverand! It might even be safe to label the treatment given to the video as Da Vinci Code like. Also true is the fact that most of what has been said can be found in numerous self help books.

However, it is a fact that The Secret is reaching out to a whole different audience that both James Allen and Napoleon Hill would have never phatomed. Our world has moved from chunky clogs to to funky Crocs! Yes, even the book reading culture has been embattled by a generation fed on MTV and instant gratification from the internet.

The Secret may have been around us but has the message been communicated, received and applied? Perhaps this is the fundamental question that naysayers to The Secret have not asked themselves. Look at the results generated from impressive sales of The Secret book and dvd and you have your answer. Many have bought a copy of the book or dvd because they can recognise that they would find the messages relevant and applicable to their modern day lives. You could even say they attracted the secret into their lives. It’s pretty obvious that the teaching of The Secret which has been around for generations, has been lost or placed on the wayside as modern man has charged ahead and embraced the many distractions that life offers him.

Take it at face value and you’d realise that The Secret is really a reminder or more bluntly; a wake up call to a generation that plays the blame game for their failures or setbacks in life. The Secret does bring the message forth in a cool and entertaining style, albeit the message may be old but the packaging and delivery is superb. For the naysayers, the intent of the secret has been a powerful one and it has attracted a sizable following worldwide. It’s meant to be current and relevant to the present population who digest information through sensory platforms. On that ground, it has hit the the nail squarely on the head. If you are stuck to reading, please pick up a copy of either As a man thinketh or Think and grow rich or even The Secret in book form. The wine would taste just the same…Salute!