The "Secret" Fear...

Here’s something rather strange that I’ve noticed about “The Secret,” – and I’m guessing that with the imminent release of The Secret Sequel, I’ll notice even more and more of it (and so will you, if you care to join me in noticing these things…).

Here’s what I mean: have you noticed how many people seem to outright, categorically, and unhesitatingly REJECT everything about The Secret? It almost seems to border on hate. Why such rejection; why such hate?

I’ve reflected on this for a while, and the only answer that I can come up with (at least for now) is that deep down inside, people who go out of their way to tell you how much they hate or reject The Secret are not operating from the “calm, cool and collected plane” of logic and reason (think “Mr. Spock” from Star Trek) from which they claim to make their “arguments”. Instead, they seem to be coming from a place that is familiar to all of us in some way: fear.

Yup. Plain, ancient, ordinary, destructive fear. And what they fear is even more…interesting (for lack of a better word) than the fact that they’re afraid.

In my view, these people aren’t actually afraid of anything that the teachers on The Secret are saying. Why should they be? Why should anyone be? It’s not as if The Secret is advocating hatred, intolerance, violence, or anything harmful. Why be afraid of a bunch of people popping up on a DVD, politely and respectfully suggesting different ways of living, behaving and being? What’s so scary about that?

Here’s what’s so scary to these people. People who categorically and very defensively reject The Secret – and we’re not talking about people who disagree with it, but people who go out of their way to ensure that you and me disagree with it, too – are afraid of their OWN life and how it relates to what The Secret is saying.

Or, in simpler terms: many people have invested HEAVILY into a particular “life strategy.” They may have believed, for decades, that the problems and obstacles they encounter are 100% external and “out there” – other people, other situations, other blocks.

And now, a bunch of strangers show up on a DVD (of all places!) and politely suggest – just as teachers and mystics have been suggesting for…well, forever – that many of the problems we face aren’t “out there” at all; they’re merely reflections, projections, or extension of what is within us.

To a lot of people, that very POSSIBILITY that this could be true – even partially true, even barely true – is seen as an attack on that “heavy investment.” And so to avoid even the possibility of assessing The Secret; to avoid even speculating on whether there may be something “to” it or not, some people swiftly take an antagonistic position.

Of course, they use the standard tactics that you’d expect from people who, themselves, aren’t fundamentally convinced of what they’re saying, but instead operating from fear of what MAY be inside: mockery, fear-mongering, cynicism, sarcasm, and pretty much anything that can undermine the flight of another person who may be gently spreading vulnerable wings, ready to experience the possibility of living life in a new way.

The fact that others are willing to courageously attempt to fly – who knows where – is a threat to those who have invested heavily in chains that keep people on the ground. The flight of another is proof that flight is possible.

So the next time you see someone (usually in a blog, but sometimes perhaps right in your own home) ranting and raving about “The Secret” and how it’s a bunch of crazy new age nonsense (for lack of a harsher word :), before you respond in-kind, take a moment, step back, and ask yourself: is this person’s opinion coming from understanding…or from fear?

And if it’s coming from fear, remember: that fear probably has nothing to do with The Secret.

The fear is coming from within themselves. The “certainty” of their life – certainly miserable, yes, but still certain – is not-so-certain anymore. Other possibilities are presenting themselves; other options; other paths.

It takes no courage – at all – to crush the wings of one who is ready to try flying.