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Power Called “The Law”

1969-04-21LectureFull transcript
The 'Power Called The Law' is your imagination, which is the sole cause of all events in your life. By assuming your wish is fulfilled in imagination, you set a spiritual cause in motion that must produce a corresponding natural effect.
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Executive Summary

In this lecture, Neville presents a two-tiered approach to his teaching. He first introduces “The Law,” the practical and testable power of imagination to shape one's present reality. By proving that imaginal acts are the sole cause of life's events, a student can build the faith necessary to then comprehend “The Promise”—the ultimate purpose of life, which is the awakening of the divine pattern of Jesus Christ from within the individual.

Key Concepts

  • Imagination is the Only Cause: Every natural effect has a spiritual, or imaginal, cause. Physical causation is a delusion resulting from faulty memory that cannot connect current events to past imaginal acts.
  • The Law vs. The Promise: “The Law” is the creative principle of imagination that can be used now to achieve desired outcomes. “The Promise” is the ultimate spiritual destiny of humanity, where the pattern of Jesus Christ awakens within each person.
  • Prove the Law First: To interest people in the truth, one should first teach them how to use the Law to get tangible results. Once they prove it for themselves, they may become receptive to hearing about the more fantastic Promise.
  • The Method of Prayer: To use the Law, you determine what you want, imagine a scene implying it is fulfilled, enter the scene with sensory vividness, and feel its reality. You are not responsible for the means.
  • Jesus is an Inner Pattern: Jesus Christ is not a historical figure but a plan of salvation buried in every person. Direct, visionary experience of this pattern is the truth, while external religious traditions make this word of God void.

Detailed Explanation

This lecture distinguishes between two fundamental aspects of reality: “The Law” and “The Promise.” The Law is presented as the immediate, practical power that governs our world. It is the principle that imagination is the one and only cause of all phenomena. Every event, object, and circumstance in the physical world is the effect of a prior imaginal act. Neville emphasizes that what appears to be physical causation is merely an illusion, as man’s poor memory prevents him from tracing current effects back to their true imaginal origins.

To illustrate the Law, Neville shares stories of a man who successfully used his imagination to reverse a child's cancer diagnosis and to receive an unexpected salary increase. The technique involves constructing a scene in the mind's eye which implies the wish is already fulfilled. By entering this scene, giving it sensory vividness, and feeling its reality, one impresses the subconscious. The individual is not responsible for the means by which the desire materializes; their only responsibility is to remain faithful to the unseen reality of their imaginal act.

Once a person has tested and proven the Law for themselves, they may become interested in the deeper mystery, which Neville calls “The Promise.” While the Law pertains to life in this world, the Promise concerns our ultimate destiny. Neville explains that Jesus Christ is not a historical person but an eternal pattern of salvation buried within every human being. In the fullness of time, this pattern awakens, and the individual experiences the entire drama of the gospels—crucifixion, burial, and resurrection—from within. This is not a story about another person, but the blueprint for humanity's transformation into a divine, fiery being of light.

Neville strongly contrasts this direct, visionary experience with institutional religion. He argues that by perpetuating traditions of a physical Jesus and external worship, organizations have made the true “word of God” void. The truth is not found in ministers without vision or in historical claims, but in the personal eruption of God's plan within one's own consciousness. The ultimate goal is to awaken as the being you were chosen to be before the foundation of the world.

Important Quotes

To the world it is the height of insanity to believe that imagining creates reality, yet every mystic knows that every natural effect has a spiritual cause.

Power Called “The Law”

Your imagination sets everything in motion, but your memory is faulty; therefore you may look upon one who claims life is caused by imagination as a fool...

Power Called “The Law”

You are not responsible for making it so, you simply imagine it is so and let it be so! That is how the world in which we live came into being.

Power Called “The Law”

For the sake of your traditions you have made void the word of God.

Power Called “The Law”

Common Misunderstandings

  • Causation is Physical: This lecture corrects the common belief that causes are physical. It teaches that all causation is imaginal and spiritual; physical events are only effects.
  • Jesus Was a Historical Person: Neville teaches that the belief in an external, historical Jesus makes the true word of God void. Jesus Christ is an internal pattern of salvation that awakens and is experienced by the individual.
  • You Must Figure Out the 'How': The lecture explicitly states that you are not responsible for making your desire happen or figuring out the means. Your only task is to imagine your desire is already an accomplished fact and remain loyal to that assumption.

Practical Applications

To apply the power called “The Law,” you must first decide exactly what you want to experience. Once your desire is clear, follow these steps:

  • Imagine a Scene: Construct a short scene or an action in your imagination which implies that your desire has already been fulfilled.
  • Give it Sensory Vividness: Do not be a passive observer. Enter into the scene and participate in it. Feel what you would feel, see what you would see, and hear what you would hear if it were true right now.
  • Feel its Reality: Lose yourself in the spirit of the scene until it feels real. The feeling of the wish fulfilled is the key.
  • Have Faith: After your imaginal act, relax and trust that it is done. Faith is loyalty to your unseen reality. Do not concern yourself with the means that will be employed to bring it to pass.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between 'The Law' and 'The Promise' in this lecture?

The Law is the creative principle of imagination that you can use now to change your circumstances and achieve your goals. The Promise is God's ultimate plan of salvation, which awakens within you in the fullness of time, transforming you into a divine being.

Why does Neville suggest teaching the Law before the Promise?

He advises teaching the Law first because it offers tangible, immediate proof that imagination creates reality. Once a person proves the Law's power for themselves, they build the faith required to accept the more fantastic story of the Promise.

How do I use the Law for something like money?

Following the lecture's example, you would imagine a scene implying you have the money. For instance, you could imagine crisp currency raining down on you for a moment, losing yourself in the feeling of having it, and then drop it.

Is Jesus a historical person, according to this lecture?

No. The lecture states that Jesus Christ is not a physical being from history but is the name of God's plan of salvation, an eternal pattern buried within every person that awakens through direct, visionary experience.

Full Lecture Transcript

Read Neville Goddard's complete lecture below — the actual transcript this study guide is drawn from. Highlight any passage and ask the AI to explain it.

≈ 19 min read · 3,738 words

Neville 04-21-1969

POWER CALLED "THE LAW”

Any presentation of a doctrine must show that it has specific reference to life now, as well as hereafter, for secularized man is far more concerned with the present than with the future. So, if you would interest anyone in the truth, you must first appeal to the power they can experience here and now; for the promise is so fantastic that if they heard it first they might turn away in disgust. Show them what they can do right here and now. Get their interest in the power called "The Law," and then perhaps they will desire to know of the promise. Let me share with you now a couple of stories a gentleman shared with me this week. He said: "About ten days ago my wife told me of a little girl only fourteen months old who had developed lumps on her neck [in] which - when the doctor removed and tested a lump - there were signs of cancer. Three specialists had been brought in and each separately had declared the child had cancer. Only one doctor, looking at the results questioned the verdict, but they were keeping the child in the hospital for further examination. As I listened to her story I cued my wife's voice out to the point that I couldn't even hear what she was saying, but hearing her voice, I reconstructed the story and heard its revision in my minds eye. That night as I fell asleep I listened again and heard my wife tell me the revised story. A few days later the doctors made another test from another lump and the vote was unanimous, the child did not have cancer. And since they had performed no remedial treatment in the hospital, they determined she never did have cancer, for without treatment the child could not have overcome the condition. When my wife heard the new verdict she told the grandmother and the mother what I had done, but they could not believe that an imaginal act has any power of causation." To the world it is the height of insanity to believe that imagining creates reality, yet every mystic knows that every natural effect has a spiritual cause. A natural cause only seems to be. It is a delusion of this world, as man's memory is so poor he cannot relate what is taking place now to a former imaginal act. Always looking for physical causation, man cannot believe he imagined anything that could have produced such a physical effect; yet I tell you: as you sit alone and imagine you are setting a cause in motion, and when you see its effects you may deny the imaginal state, but your "now" is alive and real to you because of an imaginal act on your part and for no other reason. Your imagination sets everything in motion, but your memory is faulty; therefore you may look upon one who claims life is caused by imagination as a fool - yet Blake would call you an idiot reasoner, not a man of imagination. Now, my friend continued, saying: "Driving home from work the other night I was thinking I could use a little more cash, as Uncle Sam would be making demands upon my income. Then I began to imagine lovely, green, crisp currency raining down on me. For about one minute I lost myself in a little shower of green currency. Then the traffic demanded my attention and I assumed my normal, alert state and forgot all about my imaginal act until the morning of the fifteenth of April. At that time my boss entered the office and said: `You will receive a ten per cent raise in salary retroactive to April first,' and handed me a check."

Now, let me warn you tonight, wait until you get home to try it. It's much better to imagine the crisp currency falling on your bed than on the freeway! But do it, for I tell you everything is an imaginal act. There is no such thing as physical causation. It's all imaginal, but the world will not accept it. They laugh at the man of imagination but they cannot disprove it. A man may physically strike another. That was the physical cause while the blow he received was the effect; therefore the whole thing appeared to be constructed physically, but I ask you: what preceded the impulse to strike? That impulse was the unseen cause, which was an imaginal act. The world is brought into being by imagination and sustained by imagination, and when imagination no longer sustains it, it dissolves and leaves not a trace behind. One must approach the gospel on this level first. If one's interest is aroused on this level and it is proved to be true in the testing, then they may be interested in hearing about the promise. Now I go back to the little girl. Judged by human standards the garment she wears is only fourteen months old, but the wearer of that garment is as old as God himself, and God has no beginning and no end. He chose us in him, not when we came out from our mother's womb, but before the foundation of the world. Before physical creation you and I were chosen in him for a purpose, for without purpose what would anything matter if death was final? Many tyrants believe that, and with those kinds of thoughts you cannot blame them for being a tyrant. If you believed death ended it all you would no doubt do as they do. You would agree with Macbeth, when Shakespeare had him say: "It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury signifying nothing." That's what the world would have to be if there was no promise, no purpose or meaning behind it. But if you can get their interest in the law enough to test it and it proves itself in performance, then you can tell them the greatest story in the world in the hope that they will believe or begin to believe it. Not a thing said of Jesus can be proved outwardly. He can only be known by the visionaries. While living in this mortal body and known only by the mask I wear, the incredible story called Jesus Christ has unfolded in me. I have taken you, my friends, into my confidence and shared my experiences with you in the hope that you will believe me. You see me as alive and well, yet I know what it is to be crucified, buried, and resurrected. While in my heavenly body I chose one among you to give my immortal eyes that have been turned inward, not outward, that confirmation of my words may come from her. She has seen me nailed on a cross, which was burned to the ground leaving golden, liquid light at its base, just as I told her it had happened to me. No one can persuade her that she did not have that experience, any more than someone could persuade me that I did not have the experience. Now this lady knows who Jesus is. Knowing me as a man with all of the weaknesses of the flesh and its limitations, she had gone beyond the mask through vision and seen who Jesus really is. He has made known unto me the mystery of his will according to his purpose which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, that he may unite all things in him - things in heaven and things on earth. Jesus is God's plan of salvation which is in you. That plan has erupted in me and I have shared my experiences with you who come here, and also in my book, Resurrection. Now, only the visionary, only he who has the immortal eyes, will actually know who Jesus is, for he is from above and is not of this world at all. It was he who said: "You are from below and I am from above. You are of this world and I am not of this world"; yet, throughout history, man has been looking for Jesus in the Near East. Those who have not had the visions claim they know the spot where he was crucified and buried, the road he walked, and even claim to have a little piece of wood from the cross upon which he was nailed. They

perpetuate a tradition, making void the word of God as told us in the 15th chapter of Matthew. Keeping the traditions of a physical Jesus alive, the truth has been made void, as Jesus is not a physical being but a pattern buried in every one. When this pattern erupted in me, I was as surprised as anyone could be, and although I still remain in this weak little garment of flesh and continue to suffer through all the temptations of the world, I cannot deny my visions. Now I have given my immortal eyes to one who in turn gave them to another, who will in turn give them to another, that they may all become eyewitnesses, as Luke speaks of in the beginning of his story, saying: "Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things which have been accomplished among us, just as they were presented to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses..." Then he added this thought: "…and ministers of the word, it seemed good to me also, to write a narrative, most excellent Theophilus, concerning the things which have been accomplished among us.” Luke was able to tell all who loved God (called Theophilus) the truth because of the eyewitnesses. But when the eyewitnesses depart this world the ministers multiply. They are men without vision who never knew the one who, while walking in the flesh, gave his eyes to those who bore witness to his story. Having witnessed the drama as it unfolded within him, they depart this world and leave only the ministers of the word, who build organizations and make a little god out of the man who - while like all other men - experienced God's plan of salvation in him. They say nothing of the pattern’s eruption, but only of the external man - when there is no external Jesus. You could look from now until the end of time and never find any convincing evidence of the historicity of one called Jesus - yet he is real. He is your true being, your hope of glory. Do you not realize that Jesus Christ is in you? Unless, of course, you fail to meet the test. Test him on his level. Test your creative power, called the law. Imitate my friend and allow a gentle shower of currency to fall upon you. Believe you have received them and you will. Then share your knowledge with others and show them that scripture has a specific reference to life, now! Do not start with the hereafter. You can tell them of the promise later. And remember: nothing is impossible to imagination and the world is created in the imagination. As a reasoning being you are not responsible to make anything happen. But as a man of imagination you simply imagine it is! My friend knows nothing about cancer. If he saw a cancer cell under a microscope he wouldn't recognize it. He is not a doctor and knows no more about the human body than I do, but he does know what his wife would tell him if the verdict was reversed and the child was well. When his wife told her friend of her husband's imaginal act, the friend (as the world) dismissed the idea, for she could not believe that causation was mental. To her everything has a physical cause and must be cured physically, yet I tell you: life itself is an imaginal journey. My friend heard his wife tell him of the child and then, knowing what he wanted to hear, he changed her words in his imagination. That is all he did. And those words could not return unto him void, but had to accomplish that which he purposed on the inside. He did nothing on the outside to bring it to pass. He simply remained faithful to his imaginal act and it was fulfilled. I ask you to try it, and then turn to your neighbors and say: "Did it ever occur to you that your world is caused - not by the obvious, but by an unseen imaginal act?" You may interest them that way and if you do, ask them to try it. If they do, and it comes to pass then you can present them with the promise. You can tell them how their weak little garment is transformed as they rise from the dead into life everlasting. I tell you: you will be a completely transformed being with a human face, human hands and voice; but the form you wear cannot be described other than light.

The one thing that separates man from all other creation is his hand. The monkey doesn't have a hand. It cannot fashion, but with a hand you can become a builder. The first word in the name YOD HEY VAV HEY means "hand." It is the hand of the creator that fashions. If you could not fashion a suit of clothes for your body you would have to go nude, but given a hand you can turn yourself into the Father's image, which is a fiery being that you will awaken and know yourself to be. The majority of the people you speak to will not listen to you. They would rather remain the same little being they know themselves to be and to continue to wear a garment of flesh and blood which must be taken to the bathroom several times a day to perform its normal functions. Can you imagine the hell you would experience if restoration were perpetuated forever? But this is not the body you wear when you know yourself to be God. It is entirely different. It is a heavenly body - a body of fire and air that you are destined to awaken as, for that is the one body we will all know ourselves to be. But while you are here, don't neglect the law. Use it every moment of time. Nothing is beyond your ability to imagine it. You are not responsible for making it so, you simply imagine it is so and let it be so! That is how the world in which we live came into being. Before you judge me I ask you to test my words. It would be foolish to pass judgment on something you haven't tested. I have known those who claim they do not like something even though they have never tried it, but I tell you: you can acquire a taste for anything. I remember the first time I had an oyster. I was about eleven years old when mother and I visited the little island of St. Croix. In those days there were no hotels, only rooming houses and we all sat at the same common table. Everyone there spoke Danish and I couldn't understand one word they were saying, so I watched and did as they were doing. On the plate before me sat a dish with six little things in shells placed on it. Since I had never seen anything like it before, I watched the hostess. She picked up a little fork, stuck it into one of the things, and as she placed it in her mouth her face burst into a wonderful smile. Expecting the same thing, I picked up my fork, stuck it in the thing and put it in my mouth. Well, it wouldn't go down and I couldn't spit it out. Paralyzed, I realized that if I died in the attempt I had to swallow that thing, and when I did I looked down and turned green as I realized I had five more to go. But I did it, and now I love oysters in any form. So I say: you can acquire a taste for anything in this world as well as the heavenly world. Start with the law. Learn how it works, and after proving it in performance you may desire to discover who Jesus really is. You may have been taught that a woman called Mary was impregnated by God and brought forth a physical son who was named Jesus; yet I tell you: I am a normal person, not formerly educated, married, once divorced, with two children - but I have experienced everything said of Jesus Christ in the gospel. And I gave my immortal eyes to a friend (who, married twice, with children from two different men) that she may see me hanging on a cross which was set aflame and reduced to molten, golden liquid light. Seeing the body that sleeps on the bed placed on a pallet, and then on a cross, she has seen the body I wear at night, and now knows who Jesus really is. No, he is not the little garment of flesh you wear, but an eternal pattern of redemption who sleeps in it. He awoke in a garment the world knows as Neville. Having awakened, I know I am He who became humanity that humanity may become God. God now sleeps in you. He will awake and you will experience the identical drama as recorded in the gospels by one called Jesus Christ, for there is no other and there never will be another being. Those who have been enriched by the law you have taught them may turn from you, because it takes quite a while for traditions to die - as told us in the 15th chapter of the Book of Matthew: "For the sake of your traditions you have made void the word of God." Keeping traditions alive by wearing all these silly little red and purple robes on the

outside, the unthinking millions consider themselves blessed if - as he walks by - they touch his garment, or attend a service where the great one is conducting mass. But because of those traditional beliefs the word of God is made void. I am telling you what I know from experience. Take me seriously, because I must soon depart and those of you with the incurrent eyes will see as I have told you that you would. Then you will depart to leave behind only the ministers, who will turn my experiences into their institutional concept and once again void the word of God. Tonight use the law and prove its power by becoming the man you imagine yourself to be. But don't forget the promise, for without the promise what would it matter if you owned the earth? I recently read the book Stalin's daughter wrote about her father. In it she told of being present when he died. She said that he was paralyzed on one side, his brain was gone, and he was physically blind; yet he saw something that caused him to raise his good hand and motion with, it as an expression of extreme hate covered his face. It was as though he were defying the devil himself who stood before him. He could have seen a composite picture of the twenty million lives he destroyed, personified as one man, causing his little hand to be raised in defiance as he departed. He didn't believe in life hereafter. He didn't believe he would be restored to life, therefore he felt free to do everything and anything he wanted to. Standing on the balcony watching thousands cheer him, he would say: "Fools!" He saw them as the chaff of life, yet today these trivial people balloon Stalin as an important figure in history. But, he has to face himself now. No longer playing the part of Stalin, the same being is now a young man, healthy and strong, continuing his life, doing something that is consistent with his life to bring out that plan of salvation called Jesus, which - hidden in him - he denied while he was here. I ask you to use this power called the law. Simply determine what you want and imagine a scene which would imply you have realized it. Enter into the spirit of the scene. Participate in it by giving it sensory vividness. Then relax as you feel its reality. Don't consider the means. Know your desire is already an accomplished fact and you are now reveling in it. Then have faith, for faith is loyalty to your unseen reality. Your imaginal act, although unseen, is reality for God did it. If I asked you who is imagining it, you would respond: "I am" and that is God's name forever and forever. Learn to live in your imagination morning, noon, and night. This gentleman whose experiences I shared with you tonight told me that when he first heard me he thought I was crazy; but he tried it, and although it didn't make sense it worked. I know the law and the promise do not make sense from a worldly point of view, yet I tell you: there is a plan of redemption buried in you which will erupt in the fullness of time and you will experience all that is said of a man called Jesus in scripture. Then you will know he was never a physical being, but the name of a plan. Jesus is Jehovah, who is your own wonderful I AM. The root of the Greek word translated "gather" in the expression used in the first chapter of Ephesians is "head." That is where we will all gather together, for that is where we were all crucified and buried. And it is from the head that we resurrect. Returning from this external world, we gather all together into the one state which is in the head. James Dean once said: "The creator of this infinite unity resembles an infinite brain and we but brain cells in the mind of the dreamer." And now the brain cell is expanding within the one brain! Now let us go into the silence.

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Source-checked against Neville Goddard's lectures & books · 2026-06-01.