# Is the Law of Attraction true? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 1, 2013, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146 "2013-10-01T23:49:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/81 "2013-10-04T00:49:35Z")
> [@nosceteipsum](#): > > How could you possibly claim a single system of thinking is the only way to reach truth, when we have been proven over and over again that no single system works, no constitution, no religion, no culture, nothing can be dynamic enough to keep up with this static cosmos that unfolds before us. With that attitude, claiming that science is the best, is just evidence of self glorification and ignorance and builds boundaries to discoveries of more knowledge. You are so solid about the idea that science is it all that you prohibit your own progression. > > I am saying, I keep an open mind, I do not discriminate information, information is information and what people choose to do with it is their decision. I’m no the one asserting anything, I am merely presenting opinions and ideas which are subjective, that I admit to. > > The statement you Make that results should be reproducible is … Strange. We know that change is the only constant in this world, and the closest thing to solid truth that we are aware of. > > You’re doing what is recognized as dichotomy way of thinking, that if someone is not with you, they are against you, without realizing that this entire world is not based on black and white thinking, of face value, and the biggest point is we are hardly ever certain about anything and all we can do is bounce ideas around and try to come close to the truth but also being mindful that more information will emerge. > > You call what you don’t understand as “magical thinking”, you haven’t even tried to see things from different angles and perspective and try to get the birds eye view. > > I never said I believe in anything indefinitely, I allow my understanding to change constantly, and that is my form of adapting to this universe, instead of sticking to whatever regime that seems comfortable and correct. I’m not responsible for your bias and apathy. That’s the false mindset of Woo. Just because we don’t yet know \*everything \*does not mean that _anything_ could be true. And stop throwing religion into it. We are talking about science and natural law not myth and sky fairies. Show one shred of verifiable proof and we will all line up to listen to more. It would be great if we lived in a world where magic and woo were real. We don’t. ---
**Author:** ![nosceteipsum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/8797f3/32.png) [@nosceteipsum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nosceteipsum)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/82 "2013-10-04T01:00:06Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > That’s the false mindset of Woo. Just because we don’t yet know \*everything \*does not mean that _anything_ could be true. And stop throwing religion into it. We are talking about science and natural law not myth and sky fairies. Show one shred of verifiable proof and we will all line up to listen to more. It would be great if we lived in a world where magic and woo were real. We don’t. I am not claiming that magic works, the “law” has been stigmatized as “magic” and I have tried to present with Information that may support it. The idea that humans have a magnetic field that they emit that influences the world around them. What s the first response? No it doesn’t exist? Have you tried searching the trials and evidence that does suggest that concept? The existence of the placebo effect. We know it works. Not all the time, but yes it works. It has been scientifically proven. They suggest there may be something. No we do not know everything, and yes there are a few things we believe that are the truth, but we can be overconfident and overestimate what we know. It would be humble to admit that. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/83 "2013-10-04T01:08:01Z")
> [@nosceteipsum](#): > > How could you possibly claim a single system of thinking is the only way to reach truth, when we have been proven over and over again that no single system works, no constitution, no religion, no culture, nothing can be dynamic enough to keep up with this static cosmos that unfolds before us. With that attitude, claiming that science is the best, is just evidence of self glorification and ignorance and builds boundaries to discoveries of more knowledge. You are so solid about the idea that science is it all that you prohibit your own progression. This is unmitigated proof that you have no understanding of how science works. Science is constantly adapting to new information. The difference is that science changes based upon proof. > [@nosceteipsum](#): > > The statement you Make that results should be reproducible is … Strange. We know that change is the only constant in this world, and the closest thing to solid truth that we are aware of. Wrong on a fundamental level. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/84 "2013-10-04T01:31:58Z")
> [@nosceteipsum](#): > > I am not claiming that magic works, the “law” has been stigmatized as “magic” and I have tried to present with Information that may support it. The idea that humans have a magnetic field that they emit that influences the world around them. What s the first response? No it doesn’t exist? Have you tried searching the trials and evidence that does suggest that concept? . . . But that is the very scientific method you have been questioning. The laws of magnetism are very well understood. Yes, the human body has a very small magnetic field. You couldn’t pick up a pin with it, let alone cause major changes in one’s life. The very phrasing is contradictory to all known evidence. It’s like people who say that flying saucers “ride the lines of force” of the earth’s magnetic field. No, they don’t. That violates the definitions of the terms. (You might as well try to argue that, literally, “love is blue.” No, it ain’t.) ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/85 "2013-10-04T03:43:09Z")
> [@DrFidelius](#): > > Yes. I am aloof and condescending. I have an annual review telling me that from a few years back. > > My personal failings aside \ Eh, I wouldn’t consider them personal failings. I usually get a kick out of reading your posts. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/86 "2013-10-04T19:40:16Z")
> [@nosceteipsum](#): > > Your ad hominem assertion defeats the purpose of “fighting ignorance” which is heavy with anger and a negative attitude… You have no idea what that term means. At no point did I attempt to discredit your idea by discrediting you personally. This isn’t about looking at different points of view as if they were of equal standing. Defense woo by saying you’re just asking questions and not asserting anything is worthy of derision. It’s very simple. The “law of attraction” can not be shown to work at all, therefore it doesn’t work. That’s it. What makes it worthy of anger is that people make money by selling the idea to unsuspecting victims. It’s snakeoil. It’s robbery. ---
**Author:** ![Phil\_CostaMesa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Phil\_CostaMesa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phil_CostaMesa)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/87 "2013-10-04T20:04:32Z")
> [@Gateway](#): > > What are your thoughts, and hopefully your reasoning. Yes. But it helps to know what it is NOT. It’s NOT just thinking about something, and then that something manifests like you want it to. It has to do with HOW you think of things, and you can know HOW you’re thinking of things by how you FEEL. For example,… If you think about girls and get excited, it would probably mean that you will see girls and get excited. But if you think about girls and FEEL you can’t get to first base with them, then that is the outcome you will tend to experience (attract). So, you can ‘work’ with this law by practicing, over and over in your imagination, seeing and feeling yourself getting along with girls, just like you want to. If you do this enough you will create actuall neural pathways in your brain that become virtually exactly like the neural connections that give us memory. To your subconscious, once you create these kinds of neural connections, you will begin to FEEL as if you already ARE the kind of guy who gets along easily with pretty girls and whatever else you’ve imagined. Btw, this is what your FEELINGS are. They are your indication of the strong neural paths in your brain, aka BELIEFS. (We FEEL what we BELIEVE.) (So, if you don’t like how you feel about something, know that you can change that.) This is why you can just think of biting into a lemon and your mouth starts to water. Even though you’re just imagining the experience, your subconscious reacts to it as if it’s really happening. So, if you were to practice enough to get to where you actually, easily FEEL it, you could make yourself someone who: makes plenty of money, has a great physique, learns easily, enjoys great health, etc. Btw, this doesn’t mean you will always succeed. It just means you can become very good at whatever. Not even the best in pro sports or the best in business, science or art always do well, for example. ---
**Author:** ![Phil\_CostaMesa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Phil\_CostaMesa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phil_CostaMesa)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2013, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/88 "2013-10-05T20:22:51Z")
> [@Gateway](#): > > The Law of Attraction essentially states that what you think or feel you draw to you. Such as if you think about money or health, you will draw them to you. Yes, but you need to realize that if you think about money and feel bad, you are actually thinking and feeling about the LACK of money. So what you attract is more lack of money. So, you need to ‘watch’ how you’re thinking about things, like money, health, the relationship and circumstances you want. You really need to ‘observe’ how you’re feeling, and improve how you feel about the things you want. One way to improve how you feel (about anything) is, find a better way of thinking about the thing. For example, about money, instead of thinking about you don’t have much, think about how it’s possible for you to have more. Think about how there are MANY people who have over a million (over 300 million millionaires in the U.S.). So, it can’t be that hard, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2013, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/89 "2013-10-05T20:31:23Z")
> [@Phil\_CostaMesa](#): > > (over 300 million millionaires in the U.S.) Everyone in the U.S. is a millionaire? :eek: Heck, I’m coming over, make room… ---
**Author:** ![Phil\_CostaMesa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Phil\_CostaMesa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phil_CostaMesa)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2013, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/90 "2013-10-05T20:36:13Z")
> [@Eutychus](#): > > In one word, no. > > There is no evidence that by merely thinking of the result you want that the universe is going to bend and bring that result to you. > > That being said, there is a psychological factor where, if you concentrate on the result you want you’re more apt to do the things yourself that will being about that result. But that’s just psychology in action; there’s no magic involved and there’s no scientific “law of attraction.” Actually, what you just said is a premise of science, e.g., "an object in motion will tend to stay in motion, an object at rest will tend to stay at rest,’ Sir Isaac Newton Noticing tendencies is a matter of science. The ‘tendency’ to get what we focus on, in the way that we focus (e.g., how we feel) is what the Law of Attraction is, basically. Law of Attraction might be also understood as an aspect of the law of Cause and Effect. In the realm of human experience, what we think, believe and feel affects not only what actions we will or won’t take, it also affects how others will or won’t respond to us. So, all added together, on just this premise, the Law of Attraction has its merits. ---
**Author:** ![Phil\_CostaMesa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Phil\_CostaMesa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phil_CostaMesa)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2013, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/91 "2013-10-05T20:41:39Z")
> [@Gateway](#): > > What are your thoughts, and hopefully your reasoning. Gateway, check out this linked video. It’s over 4 hours of interviews of notable people who share their successes and personal expeirences with the ‘Law of Attraction.’ I would be surprised if it didn’t inspire or empower you in some way. https://www.youtube.com/embed/3BmDLHwXU7c?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2013, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/92 "2013-10-05T20:42:54Z")
> [@Phil\_CostaMesa](#): > > Gateway, check out this linked video. It’s over 4 hours of interviews of notable people who share their successes and personal expeirences with the ‘Law of Attraction.’ > > I would be surprised if it didn’t inspire or empower you in some way. > > [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BmDLHwXU7c](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BmDLHwXU7c) Why, do you think he’s gullible? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2013, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/93 "2013-10-05T20:47:31Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#): > > Everyone in the U.S. is a millionaire? :eek: Heck, I’m coming over, make room… There are only about 10 million millionaires in the whole world. edited to add: 5,231,000 millionaires in the U.S. as of the end of 2012. ---
**Author:** ![Phil\_CostaMesa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Phil\_CostaMesa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phil_CostaMesa)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2013, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/94 "2013-10-05T20:52:44Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > So people who are assaulted, robbed, raped, or murdered suffer as they do because they were thinking about being the victims of such crimes? In my teens I was beaten and assaulted a few times. it didn’t happen after I turned twenty. My guess is, my thinking and/or beliefs and feelings must have changed. So, it seems to me, I might have ‘attracted’ those experiences, and then learned something that makes me no longer ‘attract’ such experiences. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2013, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/95 "2013-10-05T21:00:40Z")
> [@Phil\_CostaMesa](#): > > In my teens I was beaten and assaulted a few times. it didn’t happen after I turned twenty. My guess is, my thinking and/or beliefs and feelings must have changed. So, it seems to me, I might have ‘attracted’ those experiences, and then learned something that makes me no longer ‘attract’ such experiences. Wow. I would never have thought I would hear something so unbelievably misinformed on this board. I wonder what I did to attract it :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2013, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/96 "2013-10-05T21:05:46Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > There are only about 10 million millionaires in the whole world. > edited to add: 5,231,000 millionaires in the U.S. as of the end of 2012. Half the millionaires in the world are in the U.S.? That’s still pretty interesting. OK, I’m still coming over, make room… ---
**Author:** ![Phil\_CostaMesa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Phil\_CostaMesa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phil_CostaMesa)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2013, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/97 "2013-10-05T21:30:19Z")
> [@glee](#): > > Yes, I’m sure I didn’t use the ‘Law of Attraction’: > > - I didn’t hear of it until a few years ago (by which time I was already happily retired) > - I worked for 35 years and saved money for things I wanted (the complete opposite of the ‘Law’) > - I’m an atheist > - I’ve got an international chess rating; I’ve also spent over 10,000 hours practising and playing chess > > There are plenty of people who’ve achieved things by hard work. Gary Player (international golfer) liked to say “The more I practice, the luckier I get.” > How many people have received things under the ‘Law’ by lying in bed all day ‘asking and believing’? One: Just because you didn’t know of it by the term “Law of Attraction” doesn’t mean you didn’t ‘use’ it. It’s also known as the “Law of Reaping and Sowing,” or the Law of Cause & Effect and Karma. Two: Saving for things you want is not contrary to the Law of Attraction, but it’s not the only way either. Three: Principle work regardless of one’s religious affiliations, or lack thereof. Four: I don’t understand what your chess rating has to do with it, except, it could be evidence that you ‘attracted’ your rating, because you spent a lot of time happily engaged in everything chess. Four: There are also plenty of people who worked hard there entire lives but are broke. So, hard work cannot be the key. Five: Well, on this point I might agree, but then, I’ve had good things practically ‘drop’ into my life, when I changed from, for example, a resentful attitude to a compassionate, loving one. So, it seems to me, while I was resentful (irritated, frustrated, etc.) I repelled good of some kind, and when I got to a better attitude, I allowed or ‘attracted’ some good things that I’d previously been repelling. ---
**Author:** ![Phil\_CostaMesa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Phil\_CostaMesa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phil_CostaMesa)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2013, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/98 "2013-10-05T21:32:16Z")
> [@zoid](#): > > Wow. I would never have thought I would hear something so unbelievably misinformed on this board. I wonder what I did to attract it :rolleyes: What do you mean by misinformed? It’s simply facts. I got beaten a few times as a teen, but never have after I turned twenty. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2013, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/99 "2013-10-05T22:34:07Z")
And magic is the only reason you can think of to explain it? Not your age, your physical growth, society’s different ways of treating kids and adults, your legal status, or any other physical, real, concrete difference? It must be something in your way of thinking? The conventional laws of cause and effect do a much better job of explaining the observed universe. There is no evidence for laws of karma, the three-fold way, or other magical ideas. There is no “prayer effect.” Transcendental Meditation does not reduce the crime rate. Wishes aren’t horses. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2013, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146/100 "2013-10-05T23:23:26Z")
> [@Phil\_CostaMesa](#): > > One: Just because you didn’t know of it by the term “Law of Attraction” doesn’t mean you didn’t ‘use’ it. It’s also known as the “Law of Reaping and Sowing,” or the Law of Cause & Effect and Karma. > Two: Saving for things you want is not contrary to the Law of Attraction, but it’s not the only way either. > Three: Principle work regardless of one’s religious affiliations, or lack thereof. > Four: I don’t understand what your chess rating has to do with it, except, it could be evidence that you ‘attracted’ your rating, because you spent a lot of time happily engaged in everything chess. > Four: There are also plenty of people who worked hard there entire lives but are broke. So, hard work cannot be the key. > Five: Well, on this point I might agree, but then, I’ve had good things practically ‘drop’ into my life, when I changed from, for example, a resentful attitude to a compassionate, loving one. So, it seems to me, while I was resentful (irritated, frustrated, etc.) I repelled good of some kind, and when I got to a better attitude, I allowed or ‘attracted’ some good things that I’d previously been repelling. Reminds me of the punchline to an old joke: “Aren’t you a little old to be believing in magic, sonny?” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-law-of-attraction-true/670146.md?page=6)