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Think & Grow Rich
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CHAPTER 9
PERSISTENCE
THE SUSTAINED EFFORT NECESSARY TO INDUCE FAITH
The Eighth Step toward Riches
PERSISTENCE is an essential
factor in the procedure of transmuting DESIRE into its monetary equivalent.
The basis of persistence is the POWER OF WILL.
Will-power and desire, when properly combined, make an irresistible pair.
Men who accumulate great fortunes are generally known as cold-blooded, and
sometimes ruthless. Often they are misunderstood. What they have is
will-power, which they mix with persistence, and place back of their desires
to insure the attainment of their objectives.
Henry Ford has been generally misunderstood to be ruthless and cold-blooded.
This misconception grew out of Ford's habit of following through in all of
his plans with PERSISTENCE.
The majority of people are ready to throw their aims and purposes overboard,
and give up at the first sign of opposition or misfortune. A few carry on
DESPITE all opposition, until they attain their goal. These few are the
Fords, Carnegies, Rockefellers, and Edisons.
There may be no heroic connotation to the word "persistence," but the
quality is to the character of man what carbon is to steel.
The building of a fortune, generally, involves the application of the entire
thirteen factors of this philosophy. These principles must be understood,
they must be applied with PERSISTENCE by all who accumulate money.
If you are following this book with the intention of applying the knowledge
it conveys, your first test as to your PERSISTENCE will come when you begin
to follow the six steps described in the second chapter. Unless you are one
of the two out of every hundred who already have a DEFINITE GOAL at which
you are aiming, and a DEFINITE PLAN for its attainment, you may read the
instructions, and then pass on with your daily routine, and never comply
with those instructions.
The author is checking you up at this point, because lack of persistence is
one of the major causes of failure. Moreover, experience with thousands of
people has proved that lack of persistence is a weakness common to the
majority of men. It is a weakness which may be overcome by effort. The ease
with which lack of persistence may be conquered will depend entirely upon
the INTENSITY OF ONE'S DESIRE.
The starting point of all achievement is DESIRE. Keep this constantly in
mind. Weak desires bring weak results, just as a small amount of fire makes
a small amount of heat. If you find yourself lacking in persistence, this
weakness may be remedied by building a stronger fire under your desires.
Continue to read through to the end, then go back to Chapter two, and start
immediately to carry out the instructions given in connection with the six
steps. The eagerness with which you follow these instructions will indicate
clearly, how much, or how little you really DESIRE to accumulate money. If
you find that you are indifferent, you may be sure that you have not yet
acquired the "money consciousness" which you must possess, before you can be
sure of accumulating a fortune.
Fortunes gravitate to men whose minds have been prepared to "attract" them,
just as surely as water gravitates to the ocean. In this book may be found
all the stimuli necessary to "attune" any normal mind to the vibrations
which will attract the object of one's desires.
If you find you are weak in PERSISTENCE, center your attention upon the
instructions contained in the chapter on "Power"; surround yourself with a
"MASTER MIND" group, and through the cooperative efforts of the members of
this group, you can develop persistence. You will find additional
instructions for the development of persistence in the chapters on
auto-suggestion, and the subconscious mind. Follow the instructions outlined
in these chapters until your habit nature hands over to your subconscious
mind, a clear picture of the object of your DESIRE. From that point on, you
will not be handicapped by lack of persistence.
Your subconscious mind works continuously, while you are awake, and while
you are asleep.
Spasmodic, or occasional effort to apply the rules will be of no value to
you. To get RESULTS, you must apply all of the rules until their application
becomes a fixed habit with you. In no other way can you develop the
necessary "money consciousness."
POVERTY is attracted to the one whose mind is favorable to it, as money is
attracted to him whose mind has been deliberately prepared to attract it,
and through the same laws. POVERTY CONSCIOUSNESS WILL VOLUNTARILY SEIZE THE
MIND WHICH IS NOT OCCUPIED WITH THE MONEY CONSCIOUSNESS. A poverty
consciousness develops without conscious application of habits favorable to
it. The money consciousness must be created to order, unless one is born
with such a consciousness.
Catch the full significance of the statements in the preceding paragraph,
and you will understand the importance of PERSISTENCE in the accumulation of
a fortune. Without PERSISTENCE, you will be defeated, even before you start.
With PERSISTENCE you will win.
If you have ever experienced a nightmare, you will realize the value of
persistence. You are lying in bed, half awake, with a feeling that you are
about to smother. You are unable to turn over, or to move a muscle. You
realize that you MUST BEGIN to regain control over your muscles. Through
persistent effort of will-power, you finally manage to move the fingers of
one hand. By continuing to move your fingers, you extend your control to the
muscles of one arm, until you can lift it. Then you gain control of the
other arm in the same manner. You finally gain control over the muscles of
one leg, and then extend it to the other leg. THEN— WITH ONE SUPREME EFFORT
OF WILL— you regain complete control over your muscular system, and "snap"
out of your nightmare. The trick has been turned step by step.
You may find it necessary to "snap" out of your mental inertia, through a
similar procedure, moving slowly at first, then increasing your speed, until
you gain complete control over your will. Be PERSISTENT no matter how slowly
you may, at first, have to move. WITH PERSISTENCE WILL COME SUCCESS.
If you select your "Master Mind" group with care, you will have in it, at
least one person who will aid you in the development of PERSISTENCE. Some
men who have accumulated great fortunes, did so because of NECESSITY. They
developed the habit of PERSISTENCE, because they were so closely driven by
circumstances, that they had to become persistent.
THERE IS NO SUBSTITUTE FOR PERSISTENCE! It cannot be supplanted by any other
quality! Remember this, and it will hearten you, in the beginning, when the
going may seem difficult and slow.
Those who have cultivated the HABIT of persistence seem to enjoy insurance
against failure. No matter how many times they are defeated, they finally
arrive up toward the top of the ladder. Sometimes it appears that there is a
hidden Guide whose duty is to test men through all sorts of discouraging
experiences. Those who pick themselves up after defeat and keep on trying,
arrive; and the world cries, "Bravo! I knew you could do it!" The hidden
Guide lets no one enjoy great achievement without passing the PERSISTENCE
TEST. Those who can't take it, simply do not make the grade.
Those who can "take it" are bountifully rewarded for their PERSISTENCE. They
receive, as their compensation, whatever goal they are pursuing. That is not
all! They receive something infinitely more important than material
compensation— the knowledge that "EVERY FAILURE BRINGS WITH IT THE SEED OF
AN EQUIVALENT ADVANTAGE."
There are exceptions to this rule; a few people know from experience the
soundness of persistence. They are the ones who have not accepted defeat as
being anything more than temporary. They are the ones whose DESIRES are so
PERSISTENTLY APPLIED that defeat is finally changed into victory. We who
stand on the side-lines of Life see the overwhelmingly large number who go
down in defeat, never to rise again. We see the few who take the punishment
of defeat as an urge to greater effort. These, fortunately, never
learn to accept Life's reverse gear. But what we DO NOT SEE, what most of us
never suspect of existing, is the silent but irresistible POWER which comes
to the rescue of those who fight on in the face of discouragement. If we
speak of this power at all we call it PERSISTENCE, and let it go at that.
One thing we all know, if one does not possess PERSISTENCE, one does not
achieve noteworthy success in any calling.
As these lines are being written, I look up from my work, and see before me,
less than a block away, the great mysterious "Broadway," the "Graveyard of
Dead Hopes," and the "Front Porch of Opportunity." From all over the world
people have come to Broadway, seeking fame, fortune, power, love, or
whatever it is that human beings call success. Once in a great while someone
steps out from the long procession of seekers, and the world hears that
another person has mastered Broadway. But Broadway is not easily nor quickly
conquered. She acknowledges talent, recognizes genius, pays off in money,
only after one has refused to QUIT.
Then we know he has discovered the secret of how to conquer Broadway. The
secret is always inseparably attached to one word, PERSISTENCE!
The secret is told in the struggle of Fannie Hurst, whose PERSISTENCE
conquered the Great White Way. She came to New York in 1915, to convert
writing into riches. The conversion did not come quickly, BUT IT CAME. For
four years Miss Hurst learned about "The Sidewalks of New York" from first
hand experience. She spent her days laboring, and her nights HOPING. When
hope grew dim, she did not say, "Alright Broadway, you win!" She said, "Very
well, Broadway, you may whip some, but not me. I'm going to force you to
give up."
One publisher (The Saturday Evening Post) sent her thirty six rejection
slips, before she "broke the ice and got a story across. The average writer,
like the "average" in other walks of life, would have given up the job when
the first rejection slip came. She pounded the pavements for four years to
the tune of the publisher's "NO," because she was determined to win.
Then came the "payoff." The spell had been broken, the unseen Guide had
tested Fannie Hurst, and she could take it. From that time on publishers
made a beaten path to her door. Money came so fast she hardly had time to
count it. Then the moving picture men discovered her, and money came not in
small change, but in floods. The moving picture rights to her latest novel,
"Great Laughter," brought $100,000.00, said to be the highest price ever
paid for a story before publication. Her royalties from the sale of the book
probably will run much more.
Briefly, you have a description of what PERSISTENCE is capable of achieving.
Fannie Hurst is no exception. Wherever men and women accumulate great
riches, you may be sure they first acquired PERSISTENCE. Broadway will give
any beggar a cup of coffee and a sandwich, but it demands PERSISTENCE of
those who go after the big stakes.
Kate Smith will say "amen" when she reads this. For years she sang, without
money, and without price, before any microphone she could reach. Broadway
said to her, "Come and get it, if you can take it." She did take it until
one happy day Broadway got tired and said, "Aw, what's the use? You don't
know when you're whipped, so name your price, and go to work in earnest."
Miss Smith named her price! It was plenty. Away up in figures so high that
one week's salary is far more than most people make in a whole year.
Verily it pays to be PERSISTENT!
And here is an encouraging statement which carries with it a suggestion of
great significance— THOUSANDS OF SINGERS WHO EXCEL KATE SMITH ARE WALKING UP
AND DOWN BROADWAY LOOKING FOR A "BREAK"— WITHOUT SUCCESS. Countless others
have come and gone, many of them sang well enough, but they failed to make
the grade because they lacked the courage to keep on keeping on, until
Broadway became tired of turning them away. Persistence is a state of mind,
therefore it can be cultivated. Like all states of mind, persistence is
based upon definite causes, among them these:—
a. DEFINITENESS OF PURPOSE. Knowing what one wants is the first and,
perhaps, the most important step toward the development of persistence. A
strong motive forces one to surmount many difficulties.
b. DESIRE. It is comparatively easy to acquire and to maintain persistence
in pursuing the object of intense desire.
c. SELF-RELIANCE. Belief in one's ability to carry out a plan encourages one
to follow the plan through with persistence. (Self-reliance can be developed
through the principle described in the chapter on auto-suggestion).
d. DEFINITENESS OF PLANS. Organized plans, even though they may be weak and
entirely impractical, encourage persistence.
e. ACCURATE KNOWLEDGE. Knowing that one's plans are sound, based upon
experience or observation, encourages persistence; "guessing" instead of
"knowing" destroys persistence.
f. CO-OPERATION. Sympathy, understanding, and harmonious cooperation with
others tend to develop persistence.
g. WILL-POWER. The habit of concentrating one's thoughts upon the building
of plans for the attainment of a definite 164 164 Page 165 166 165 purpose,
leads to persistence.
h. HABIT. Persistence is the direct result of habit. The mind absorbs and
becomes a part of the daily experiences upon which it feeds. Fear, the worst
of all enemies, can be effectively cured by forced repetition of acts of
courage. Everyone who has seen active service in war knows this.
Before leaving the subject of PERSISTENCE, take inventory of yourself, and
determine in what particular, if any, you are lacking in this essential
quality. Measure yourself courageously, point by point, and see how many of
the eight factors of persistence you lack. The analysis may lead to
discoveries that will give you a new grip on yourself.
SYMPTOMS
OF LACK OF PERSISTENCE
Here you will find the real
enemies which stand between you and noteworthy achievement. Here you will
find not only the "symptoms" indicating weakness of PERSISTENCE, but also
the deeply seated subconscious causes of this weakness. Study the list
carefully, and face yourself squarely IF YOU REALLY WISH TO KNOW WHO YOU
ARE, AND WHAT YOU ARE CAPABLE OF DOING. These are the weaknesses which must
be mastered by all who accumulate riches.
1. Failure to recognize and to clearly define exactly what one wants.
2. Procrastination, with or without cause. (Usually backed up with a
formidable array of alibis and excuses).
3. Lack of interest in acquiring specialized knowledge.
4. Indecision, the habit of "passing the buck" on all occasions, instead of
facing issues squarely. (Also backed by alibis).
5. The habit of relying upon alibis instead of creating definite plans for
the solution of problems.
6. Self-satisfaction. There is but little remedy for this affliction, and no
hope for those who suffer from it.
7. Indifference, usually reflected in one's readiness to compromise on all
occasions, rather than meet opposition and fight it.
8. The habit of blaming others for one's mistakes, and accepting unfavorable
circumstances as being unavoidable.
9. WEAKNESS OF DESIRE, due to neglect in the choice of MOTIVES that impel
action.
10. Willingness, even eagerness, to quit at the first sign of defeat. (Based
upon one or more of the 6 basic fears).
11. Lack of ORGANIZED PLANS, placed in writing where they may be analyzed.
12. The habit of neglecting to move on ideas, or to grasp opportunity when
it presents itself.
13. WISHING instead of WILLING.
14. The habit of compromising with POVERTY instead of aiming at riches.
General absence of ambition to be, to do, and to own.
15. Searching for all the shortcuts to riches, trying to GET without GIVING
a fair equivalent, usually reflected in the habit of gambling, endeavoring
to drive "sharp" bargains.
16. FEAR OF CRITICISM, failure to create plans and to put them into action,
because of what other people will think, do, or say. This enemy belongs at
the head of the list, because it generally exists in one's subconscious
mind, where its presence is not recognized. (See the Six Basic Fears in a
later chapter).
Let us examine some of the symptoms of the Fear of Criticism. The majority
of people permit relatives, friends, and the public at large to so influence
them that they cannot live their own lives, because they fear criticism.
Huge numbers of people make mistakes in marriage, stand by the bargain, and
go through life miserable and unhappy, because they fear criticism which may
follow if they correct the mistake. (Anyone who has submitted to this form
of fear knows the irreparable damage it does, by destroying ambition,
self-reliance, and the desire to achieve).
Millions of people neglect to acquire belated educations, after having left
school, because they fear criticism.
Countless numbers of men and women, both young and old, permit relatives to
wreck their lives in the name of DUTY, because they fear criticism. (Duty
does not require any person to submit to the destruction of his personal
ambitions and the right to live his own life in his own way).
People refuse to take chances in business, because they fear the criticism
which may follow if they fail. The fear of criticism, in such cases is
stronger than the DESIRE for success.
Too many people refuse to set high goals for themselves, or even neglect
selecting a career, because they fear the criticism of relatives and
"friends" who may say "Don't aim so high, people will think you are crazy.
When Andrew Carnegie suggested that I devote twenty years to the
organization of a philosophy of individual achievement my first impulse of
thought was fear of what people might say. The suggestion set up a goal for
me, far out of proportion to any I had ever conceived. As quick as a flash,
my mind began to create alibis and excuses, all of them traceable to the
inherent FEAR OF CRITICISM. Something inside of me said, "You can't do it—
the job is too big, and requires too much time— what will your relatives
think of you ?— how will you earn a living?— no one has ever organized a
philosophy of success, what right have you to believe you can do it?— who
are you, anyway, to aim so high?— remember your humble birth— what do you
know about philosophy— people will think you are crazy—( and they did)— why
hasn't some other person done this before now?"
These, and many other questions flashed into my mind, and demanded
attention. It seemed as if the whole world had suddenly turned its attention
to me with the purpose of ridiculing me into giving up all desire to carry
out Mr. Carnegie's suggestion.
I had a fine opportunity, then and there, to kill off ambition before it
gained control of me. Later in life, after having analyzed thousands of
people, I discovered that MOST IDEAS ARE STILL-BORN, AND NEED THE BREATH OF
LIFE INJECTED INTO THEM THROUGH DEFINITE PLANS OF IMMEDIATE ACTION. The time
to nurse an idea is at the time of its birth. Every minute it lives, gives
it a better chance of surviving. The FEAR OF CRITICISM is at the bottom of
the destruction of most ideas which never reach the PLANNING and ACTION
stage.
Many people believe that material success is the result of favorable
"breaks." There is an element of ground for the belief, but those depending
entirely upon luck, are nearly always disappointed, because they overlook
another important factor which must be present before one can be sure of
success. It is the knowledge with which favorable "breaks" can be made to
order.
During the depression, W. C. Fields, the comedian, lost all his money, and
found himself without income, without a job, and his means of earning a
living (vaudeville) no longer existed. Moreover, he was past sixty, when
many men consider themselves "old." He was so eager to stage a comeback that
he offered to work without pay, in a new field (movies). In addition to his
other troubles, he fell and injured his neck. To many that would have been
the place to give up and QUIT. But Fields was PERSISTENT. He knew that if he
carried on he would get the "breaks" sooner or later, and he did get them,
but not by chance.
Marie Dressler found herself down and out, with her money gone, with no job,
when she was about sixty. She, too, went after the "breaks," and got them.
Her PERSISTENCE brought an astounding triumph late in life, long beyond the
age when most men and women are done with ambition to achieve.
Eddie Cantor lost his money in the 1929 stock crash, but he still had his
PERSISTENCE and his courage. With these, plus two prominent eyes, he
exploited himself back into an income of $10,000 a week! Verily, if one has
PERSISTENCE, one can get along very well without many other qualities.
The only "break" anyone can afford to rely upon is a self-made "break."
These come through the application of PERSISTENCE. The starting point is
DEFINITENESS OF PURPOSE.
Examine the first hundred people you meet, ask them what they want most in
life, and ninety eight of them will not be able to tell you. If you press
them for an answer, some will say— SECURITY, many will say— MONEY, a few
will say— HAPPINESS, others will say— FAME AND POWER, and still others will
say— SOCIAL RECOGNITION, EASE IN LIVING, ABILITY TO SING, DANCE, or WRITE,
but none of them will be able to define these terms, or give the slightest
indication of a PLAN by which they hope to attain these vaguely expressed
wishes. Riches do not respond to wishes. They respond only to definite
plans, backed by definite desires, through constant PERSISTENCE.
HOW TO
DEVELOP PERSISTENCE
There are four simple steps which
lead to the habit of PERSISTENCE. They call for no great amount of
intelligence, no particular amount of education, and but little time or
effort. The necessary steps are:—
1. A DEFINITE PURPOSE BACKED BY BURNING DESIRE FOR ITS FULFILLMENT.
2. A DEFINITE PLAN, EXPRESSED IN CONTINUOUS ACTION.
3. A MIND CLOSED TIGHTLY AGAINST ALL NEGATIVE AND DISCOURAGING INFLUENCES,
including negative suggestions of relatives, friends and acquaintances.
4. A FRIENDLY ALLIANCE WITH ONE OR MORE PERSONS WHO WILL ENCOURAGE ONE TO
FOLLOW THROUGH WITH BOTH PLAN AND PURPOSE.
These four steps are essential for success in all walks of life. The entire
purpose of the thirteen principles of this philosophy is to enable one to
take these four steps as a matter of habit.
These are the steps by which one may control one's economic destiny.
They are the steps that lead to freedom and independence of thought.
They are the steps that lead to riches, in small or great quantities.
They lead the way to power, fame, and worldly recognition.
They are the four steps which guarantee favorable "breaks."
They are the steps that convert dreams into physical realities.
They lead, also, to the mastery of FEAR, DISCOURAGEMENT, INDIFFERENCE.
There is a magnificent reward for all who learn to take these four steps. It
is the privilege of writing one's own ticket, and of making Life yield
whatever price is asked.
I have no way of knowing the facts, but I venture to conjecture that Mrs.
Wallis Simpson's great love for a man was not accidental, nor the result of
favorable "breaks" alone. There was a burning desire, and careful searching
at every step of the way. Her first duty was to love. What is the greatest
thing on earth? The Master called it love—not man made rules, criticism,
bitterness, slander, or political "marriages," but love.
She knew what she wanted, not after she met the Prince of Wales, but long
before that. Twice when she had failed to find it, she had the courage to
continue her search. "To thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the
night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man."
Her rise from obscurity was of the slow, progressive, PERSISTENT order, but
it was SURE! She triumphed over unbelievably long odds; and, no matter who
you are, or what you may think of Wallis Simpson, or the king who gave up
his Crown for her love, she is an astounding example of applied PERSISTENCE,
an instructor on the rules of self-determination, from whom the entire world
might profitably take lessons.
When you think of Wallis Simpson, think of one who knew what she wanted, and
shook the greatest empire on earth to get it. Women who complain that this
is a man's world, that women do not have an equal chance to win, owe it to
themselves to study carefully the life of this unusual woman, who, at an age
which most women consider "old," captured the affections of the most
desirable bachelor in the entire world.
And what of King Edward? What lesson may we learn from his part in the
world's greatest drama of recent times? Did he pay too high a price for the
affections of the woman of his choice?
Surely no one but he can give the correct answer. The rest of us can only
conjecture. This much we know, the king came into the world without his own
consent. He was born to great riches, without requesting them. He was
persistently sought in marriage; politicians and statesmen throughout Europe
tossed dowagers and princesses at his feet. Because he was the first born of
his parents, he inherited a crown, which he did not seek, and perhaps did
not desire. For more than forty years he was not a free agent, could not
live his life in his own way, had but little privacy, and finally assumed
duties inflicted upon him when he ascended the throne.
Some will say, "With all these blessings, King Edward should have found
peace of mind, contentment, and joy of living."
The truth is that back of all the privileges of a crown, all the money, the
fame, and the power inherited by King Edward, there was an emptiness which
could be filled only by love.
His greatest DESIRE was for love. Long before he met Wallis Simpson, he
doubtless felt this great universal emotion tugging at the strings of his
heart, beating upon the door of his soul, and crying out for expression.
And when he met a kindred spirit, crying out for this same Holy privilege of
expression, he recognized it, and without fear or apology, opened his heart
and bade it enter. All the scandal-mongers in the world cannot destroy the
beauty of this international drama, through which two people found love, and
had the courage to face open criticism, renounce ALL ELSE to give it holy
expression.
King Edward's DECISION to give up the crown of the world's most powerful
empire, for the privilege of going the remainder of the way through life
with the woman of his choice, was a decision that required courage. The
decision also had a price, but who has the right to say the price was too
great? Surely not He who said, "He among you who is without sin, let him
cast the first stone."
As a suggestion to any evil-minded person who chooses to find fault with the
Duke of Windsor, because his DESIRE was for LOVE, and for openly declaring
his love for Wallis Simpson, and giving up his throne for her, let it be
remembered that the OPEN DECLARATION was not essential. He could have
followed the custom of clandestine liaison which has prevailed in Europe for
centuries, without giving up either his throne, or the woman of his choice,
and there would have been NO COMPLAINT FROM EITHER CHURCH OR LAITY. But this
unusual man was built of sterner stuff. His love was clean. It was deep and
sincere. It represented the one thing which, above ALL ELSE he truly
DESIRED, therefore, he took what he wanted, and paid the price demanded.
If Europe had been blessed with more rulers with the human heart and the
traits of honesty of ex-king Edward, for the past century, that unfortunate
hemisphere now seething with greed, hate, lust, political connivance, and
threats of war, would have a DIFFERENT AND A BETTER STORY TO TELL. A story
in which Love and not Hate would rule.
In the words of Stuart Austin Wier we raise our cup and drink this toast to
ex-king Edward and Wallis Simpson:
"Blessed is the man who has come to know that our muted thoughts are our
sweetest thoughts.
"Blessed is the man who, from the blackest depths, can see the luminous
figure of LOVE, and seeing, sing; and singing, say: 'Sweeter far than
uttered lays are the thoughts I have of you. '"
In these words would we pay tribute to the two people who, more than all
others of modern times, have been the victims of criticism and the
recipients of abuse, because they found Life's greatest treasure, and
claimed it. Mrs. Simpson read and approved this analysis.
Most of the world will applaud the Duke of Windsor and Wallis Simpson,
because of their PERSISTENCE in searching until they found life's greatest
reward. ALL OF US CAN PROFIT by following their example in our own search
for that which we demand of life.
What mystical power gives to men of PERSISTENCE the capacity to master
difficulties? Does the quality of PERSISTENCE set up in one's mind some form
of spiritual, mental or chemical activity which gives one access to
supernatural forces? Does Infinite Intelligence throw itself on the side of
the person who still fights on, after the battle has been lost, with the
whole world on the opposing side?
These and many other similar questions have arisen in my mind as I have
observed men like Henry Ford, who started at scratch, and built an
Industrial Empire of huge proportions, with little else in the way of a
beginning but PERSISTENCE. Or, Thomas A. Edison, who, with less than three
months of schooling, became the world's leading inventor and converted
PERSISTENCE into the talking machine, the moving picture machine, and the
incandescent light, to say nothing of half a hundred other useful
inventions.
I had the happy privilege of analyzing both Mr. Edison and Mr. Ford, year by
year, over a long period of years, and therefore, the opportunity to study
them at close range, so I speak from actual knowledge when I say that I
found no quality save PERSISTENCE, in either of them, that even remotely
suggested the major source of their stupendous achievements.
As one makes an impartial study of the prophets, philosophers, "miracle"
men, and religious leaders of the past, one is drawn to the inevitable
conclusion that PERSISTENCE, concentration of effort, and DEFINITENESS OF
PURPOSE, were the major sources of their achievements.
Consider, for example, the strange and fascinating story of Mohammed;
analyze his life, compare him with men of achievement in this modern age of
industry and finance, and observe how they have one outstanding trait in
common, PERSISTENCE!
If you are keenly interested in studying the strange power which gives
potency to PERSISTENCE, read a biography of Mohammed, especially the one by
Essad Bey. This brief review of that book, by Thomas Sugrue, in the
Herald-Tribune, will provide a preview of the rare treat in store for those
who take the time to read the entire story of one of the most astounding
examples of the power of PERSISTENCE known to civilization.
THE LAST
GREAT PROPHET
Reviewed by Thomas Sugrue
"Mohammed was a prophet, but he
never performed a miracle. He was not a mystic; he had no formal schooling;
he did not begin his mission until he was forty. When he announced that he
was the Messenger of God, bringing word of the true religion, he was
ridiculed and labeled a lunatic. Children tripped him and women threw filth
upon him. He was banished from his native city, Mecca, and his followers
were stripped of their worldly goods and sent into the desert after him.
When he had been preaching ten years he had nothing to show for it but
banishment, poverty and ridicule. Yet before another ten years had passed,
he was dictator of all Arabia, ruler of Mecca, and the head of a New World
religion which was to sweep to the Danube and the Pyrenees before exhausting
the impetus he gave it. That impetus was three-fold: the power of words, the
efficacy of prayer and man's kinship with God.
"His career never made sense. Mohammed was born to impoverished members of a
leading family of Mecca. Because Mecca, the crossroads of the world, home of
the magic stone called the Caaba, great city of trade and the center of
trade routes, was unsanitary, its children were sent to be raised in the
desert by Bedouins. Mohammed was thus nurtured, drawing strength and health
from the milk of nomad, vicarious mothers. He tended sheep and soon hired
out to a rich widow as leader of her caravans. He traveled to all parts of
the Eastern World, talked with many men of diverse beliefs and observed the
decline of Christianity into warring sects. When he was twenty-eight,
Khadija, the widow, looked upon him with favor, and married him. Her father
would have objected to such a marriage, so she got him drunk and held him up
while he gave the paternal blessing. For the next twelve years Mohammed
lived as a rich and respected and very shrewd trader. Then he took to
wandering in the desert, and one day he returned with the first verse of the
Koran and told Khadija that the archangel Gabriel had appeared to him and
said that he was to be the Messenger of God.
"The Koran, the revealed word of God, was the closest thing to a miracle in
Mohammed's life. He had not been a poet; he had no gift of words. Yet the
verses of the Koran, as he received them and recited them to the faithful,
were better than any verses which the professional poets of the tribes could
produce. This, to the Arabs, was a miracle. To them the gift of words was
the greatest gift, the poet was all-powerful. In addition the Koran said
that all men were equal before God, that the world should be a democratic
state— Islam. It was this political heresy, plus Mohammed's desire to
destroy all the 360 idols in the courtyard of the Caaba, which brought about
his banishment. The idols brought the desert tribes to Mecca, and that meant
trade. So the business men of Mecca, the capitalists, of which he had been
one, set upon Mohammed. Then he retreated to the desert and demanded
sovereignty over the world.
"The rise of Islam began. Out of the desert came a flame which would not be
extinguished— a democratic army fighting as a unit and prepared to die
without wincing. Mohammed had invited the Jews and Christians to join him;
for he was not building a new religion. He was calling all who believed in
one God to join in a single faith. If the Jews and Christians had accepted
his invitation Islam would have conquered the world. They didn't. They would
not even accept Mohammed's innovation of humane warfare. When the armies of
the prophet entered Jerusalem not a single person was killed because of his
faith. When the crusaders entered the city, centuries later, not a Moslem
man, woman, or child was spared. But the Christians did accept one Moslem
idea— the place of learning, the university."
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