Neville Goddard on Bridge of Incidents

Executive Summary

The 'bridge of incidents' is the sequence of events that your assumption of the wish fulfilled creates to bring about its physical expression. After you successfully imagine your desire as a present fact and return to your ordinary state, a path will unfold in a way you do not consciously devise. You will be led across this series of seemingly natural events, which serves as a bridge to the fulfillment of the state you assumed.

Key Concepts

• The bridge is a series of events that appears after you have lived in the end of your desire in imagination.
• You do not consciously plan, devise, or build this bridge; it appears automatically and is not rationally determined.
• It leads you from your current state to the physical fulfillment of your assumption.
• The imaginal act is the one and only cause; the bridge of incidents is the effect.
• The term 'series of events' is also used to describe the predetermined mystical experiences of God awakening within man.

Detailed Explanation

The 'bridge of incidents' is the inevitable pathway that leads from an imaginal act to its physical fulfillment. The process begins when you mentally move into your desired state and live in it as though it were true. After impressing this reality upon yourself, you return to your current physical circumstances. In the interval that follows, a series of events will mold itself, creating a bridge over which you will walk to the realization of your aim.

You do not consciously create or plan this bridge. Having assumed the end, the end itself devises the means. The series of events simply appears, and you move across it without any need for conscious, rational effort to determine the steps. It is a process that unfolds naturally, leading you to the fulfillment of your assumption.

It is a common error to mistake the bridge for the cause. Observers, and even you yourself, might point to the specific events on the bridge as the reason for your success. However, the true and only cause is the initial imaginal act. The bridge of incidents is merely the effect, the means by which the unseen reality of your assumption is made visible in your world.

The source material also uses the phrase 'a series of events' to describe the predetermined spiritual awakening that occurs within an individual. This refers to the mystical experiences, such as awakening within your skull, through which God reveals Himself for the salvation of man. This parallels the creative process, suggesting that both personal desires and ultimate spiritual salvation are fulfilled through a sequence that unfolds from within.

Important Quotes

If you do, yes, a bridge of incidents will appear in your world, and you’ll walk across some series of events leading up to the fulfillment of the imaginal state.

— Live In The End

You do not have to go out and devise the means to the end. Having assumed the end, the end will devise the means – a series of incidents across which you will move.

— If You Can Really Believe

A series of events will mold themselves, across which you will walk, leading up to the fulfillment of that state.

— Faith

Related Concepts

• Law of Assumption: The bridge of incidents is the direct effect of successfully applying the Law of Assumption. The assumption, if persisted in, builds the bridge.
• Imagination: The imaginal act is the sole cause that brings the bridge into being. The bridge is the means by which the imagined state becomes a physical fact.
• Living in the End: You must first go to the end and dwell there in consciousness. Only after preparing the state in imagination does the bridge appear to take you there physically.
• States: You mentally move into a desired state. The bridge is the series of events that allows you to physically occupy and experience that state.

Common Misunderstandings

• Mistaking the Bridge for the Cause: A primary error is giving causal power to the physical events of the bridge. The source material warns that people will point to the series of events as the cause, but the only cause is your imaginal act.
• Believing You Must Plan the Steps: You do not need to consciously figure out 'how' your desire will come to pass. The sources state that you do not devise the means; the bridge appears and unfolds without your rational effort or planning.

Practical Applications

To apply this principle, you must first assume the feeling of your wish already being fulfilled. Live in this imagined state until it feels real and natural. Then, you return to your present moment with faith in the unseen reality.

You are not to consciously engineer the circumstances or devise a plan. Your only responsibility is to remain faithful to your assumption. A series of events will then begin to unfold in your world. You will be compelled to walk across this bridge of incidents, and these steps will lead you, in a perfectly natural way, to the physical fulfillment of the state you imagined.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to figure out the steps to achieve my desire?

No. The source material explicitly states that you do not devise the means to the end. Once you have assumed the end, a bridge of incidents will appear and you will be led across it.

Are the events on the bridge supernatural?

The events themselves appear natural. Others will observe them and give credit to the physical steps as the cause, not realizing the true cause was your imaginal act.

What is my role after I have imagined my desire as fulfilled?

Your role is to persist in the assumption that your desire is a fact. You then walk across the series of events that naturally appears, leading you to the fulfillment of that assumption.