Neville Goddard on Revision

Executive Summary

Revision is a technique to mentally alter past events. By re-imagining scenes as you wish they had occurred, you change the cause of present circumstances, thereby changing your life. The causes of any present evil are the unrevised scenes of the past. This practice, when done daily, is described as a form of repentance that repeals the unwanted effects of the past and awakens a higher consciousness.

Key Concepts

• Revision is mentally rewriting a past event to conform to an ideal.
• The causes of present unwanted conditions are the unrevised scenes of the past.
• By changing the past in imagination, you alter the present and future.
• The revised scene, when felt as real, will advance into your future to be experienced.
• Daily revision is a form of repentance and forgiveness of sin that repeals the effects of the original event.
• The underlying principle is that imagining creates reality.

Detailed Explanation

Neville teaches that your mind is a garden, and revision is the 'pruning shears' used to remove the weeds that have appeared as the undesirable conditions and circumstances of life. To change your life, you must change the past, because the past and present together form the entire structure of your being. The causes of any present negative situation are the unrevised scenes of the past.

The art of revision is the practice of going back in memory to any event that was unpleasant or imperfect and rewriting it. You mentally reconstruct the scene to conform to the ideal you wished you had experienced. Then, you replay this revised version in your imagination as though you had experienced it in the flesh. This must be done over and over until the revised scene takes on the tone of reality. This same principle applies to your inner conversations; you must revise any internal speech that contradicts your desired outcome so that it aligns with your wish fulfilled.

A revised moment does not recede into memory; it advances into your future to confront you as you have revised it. This is how revision results in a 'repeal' of the original event's consequences. Even if confirmation of the change does not appear immediately, the imaginal act is considered a fact that is done and will objectify itself in your world. Daily practice of revision is presented as a key to avoiding the recurrence of unpleasant events and is a means to awaken the spirit of Jesus, which is the continual forgiveness of sin.

Important Quotes

This going into the past and replaying a scene of the past in imagination as it ought to have been played the first time, I call revision—and revision results in repeal.

— The Law And The Promise

Changing your life means changing the past. The causes of any present evil are the unrevised scenes of the past.

— The Law And The Promise

I do it over and over until it takes on the tone of reality, and experience convinces me that that moment that I have revised and relived will not recede into my past. It will advance into my future to confront me as I have revised it.

— Awakened Imagination

Revision is repentance and revision results in repeal. When you revise a memory that is fixed you have repealed it.

— Christ In Man

Related Concepts

• Imagination: Revision is a direct application of the principle that imagining creates reality. It is using your imagination creatively to change the effects of prior thoughts and beliefs.
• Law of Assumption: The practice requires assuming the feeling of your wish fulfilled by experiencing the revised scene in imagination as though it were real.
• Consciousness: By revising, you are changing the contents of your consciousness. The revised past, once accepted as real, must be recreated in your world.
• States: Revision moves you out of the state where the unwanted event is a fixed memory and into a new state where the desired event is the truth.

Common Misunderstandings

• Misunderstanding: The past is fixed and unalterable.
  Correction: The source material teaches that you can change the past in imagination. Because imagining creates reality, this mental change results in a physical 'repeal' of the original event's effects.
• Misunderstanding: Revision is just ignoring or forgetting the past.
  Correction: Revision is an active, creative process of mentally rewriting and replaying a scene. You must experience the revised version in your imagination until it feels completely real, not simply ignore what happened.

Practical Applications

• At the end of each day, review the day's events in your mind's eye from morning until night.
• When you encounter any scene, conversation, or event that was unpleasant or not ideal, stop and rewrite it to conform to what you wish had happened.
• Replay this newly written scene in your imagination as if it happened that way in the flesh.
• Repeat this imaginal act over and over until it takes on the tones of reality and you feel a sense of relief.
• Apply this not only to major events but also to your inner conversations, revising any internal speech that contradicts your desire.
• Never let the sun set on an unrevised negative experience.

Frequently Asked Questions

What if I don't see results right away?

You are told to wait. If confirmation does not come tomorrow or the next week, know that the imaginal act is done and will come into your world, often in a way that you could not have devised.

Can I revise events from long ago?

Yes. The teaching is to 'go back in memory, seek for and destroy the causes of evil, however far back they lie.'

How do I know when I have revised an event successfully?

You persist in replaying the revised scene until it takes on the 'tone of reality' and you feel a 'breath of relief because it is done.'