My Neville GoddardNeville Goddard on Living in the End
Executive Summary
Neville's teaching on 'the end' has two distinct but related meanings. Primarily, it is a practical creative principle: to realize a desire, one must 'live in the end' by assuming the feeling of the wish fulfilled. This involves mentally entering the desired state and thinking from it as an accomplished fact. On a deeper, spiritual level, 'the end' refers to the culmination of the individual's journey through human experience. This is not the end of the world, but a personal awakening from the dream of life into one's true, divine identity.
Key Concepts
- To realize a desire, you must think from the end, not of the end.
- This requires imaginatively occupying the state of the wish fulfilled, entering the image and feeling it as real.
- It is a mistake to expect a wish to be realized by the mere passage of time; active imaginative occupancy is required.
- The term 'the end' also describes the culmination of an individual's spiritual journey through the tribulations of human experience.
- This spiritual end is a personal awakening into eternal life, not a cosmic catastrophe or the end of the physical world.
Detailed Explanation
The most practical application of this teaching is the principle of assuming your wish is already fulfilled. To 'live in the end' is to stop thinking of your desire as something you want in the future and to start thinking from the state of it being a present reality. This is an act of creative imagination. You must enter the mental image of your fulfilled desire and experience it as if it were happening now. One example provided is of a couple who desired a new apartment building. They mentally constructed it, drew physical plans to solidify their mental picture, and took 'imaginative trips' through the completed, occupied building, renting units to imaginary tenants. They were thinking from the end.
Beyond this creative principle, Neville uses 'the end' to describe the culmination of the soul's journey. This is not the end of the physical world, as is commonly believed, but the end of an individual's personal journey through what is called 'this world of death' or 'the tribulation of human experience.' It is a pre-scripted play in which every person must experience all the parts before awakening.
This spiritual end is an eschatological event, but a personal one. It marks the point where human history ceases for the individual and they awaken to their true identity as God. This awakening comes after one has gone through all the 'fires of experience' and played all the necessary parts. The signs of this end are not cosmic catastrophes but inner, spiritual events that unfold within the individual, culminating in the realization that 'Self in Self and Risen' is the end of the play.
Important Quotes
But unless you, yourself, enter the image and think from it, it is incapable of birth. Therefore, it is the height of folly to expect the wish to be realized by the mere passage of time.
— The Law And The Promise
Never forgetting to think from the end (in our case, the completed, occupied building,) we took many imaginative trips through our apartment house, renting the units to imaginary tenants, examining in detail every room and enjoying the
— The Law And The Promise
When I speak tonight of the end, I mean your end, the individual’s end, in the journey, when he leaves this world of death and enters the world of Eternal Life.
— The Signs Of The End
It hasn’t a thing to do with the end of the world. It’s the end of your journey through the tribulation of human experience.
— Experiencing Scripture
The end of the play is “Self in Self and Risen.”
— Self In Self And Risen
Common Misunderstandings
- The End of the World: Neville explicitly corrects the interpretation that 'the end' refers to a cosmic catastrophe or the end of the physical world. He states it is the individual's end of their journey through human experience.
- Passive Waiting: It is a misunderstanding to think that after a single imaginative act, one can simply wait for the result to appear. The source material calls it 'the height of folly to expect the wish to be realized by the mere passage of time,' emphasizing that it requires active 'imaginative occupancy.'
Practical Applications
To apply this teaching, you must first clearly define your desired outcome. Formulate a mental picture of the completed structure of your wish. Then, instead of viewing this scene as a future possibility, you must enter it in your imagination. Think from this state. Feel what you would feel, see what you would see, and hear what you would hear if your wish were already a solid fact. For example, if you desire a new building, take imaginative trips through it, examine the rooms, and interact with it as if it were already built and occupied. This imaginative occupancy of the end state is the key to its physical embodiment.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Neville mean by 'thinking from the end'?
It means to mentally occupy the state of your wish as if it were already a physical fact. You experience it in your imagination from a first-person perspective, rather than observing it as a future possibility.
Is 'the end' that Neville talks about the end of the world?
No. The source material is clear that 'the end' is not a cosmic event but the end of an individual's personal journey through human experience, culminating in an awakening into eternal life.
Can I just imagine my desire once and then wait for it to happen?
No. Neville teaches that it is 'the height of folly' to expect a wish to be realized by the mere passage of time. The process requires your active and persistent 'imaginative occupancy' of the state of the wish fulfilled.
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