The path from thoughts to action to character.

Many of you I am sure have heard the saying, “Be careful what you think…Your thoughts become your words, your words become your actions, your actions become your habits, and your habits become your character.”

In this short article I will shed some light, on this statement. The flow from thought to habits and character isn’t always as direct and as smooth as it sounds.

Mysticism explains, the highest internal faculty of the soul is intellect. After that goes the emotions which most of the times is the outcome of intellect.  Intellect, rational and logical discernment and emotions, will project themselves towards the outside of the person through three garments, thought, speech and deed.

In order that intellect or emotions should come to deed, it must go through the channels of thought and speech, at the very least speech as it is within thought. We think in terms of words and language. Once a person determines in his intellect that he wants to do something it will not happen automatically that he will be moved to do anything at all.  He must give conscious thought towards action, as to how and what he wants to do.This thought towards action is something additional and apart from the intellect that concluded that it’s important to do. Thinking to act, requires making the additional effort to think.

The same hurdles and hitches exist from thought to speech. Speech which is focused entirely to the outside is on a soul spiritual lower level   than thought which is entirely within oneself. Speech is also more superficial and posturing and since it is on the outside of the person it doesn’t happen automatically.

Thought in itself doesn’t dictate or oblige speech, just like concluding something is important in ones intellect will not force a person to think and consider how and what to do in order to act on those conclusions. It is entirely possible that a person can think about anything and will never consider speaking about it. He may even doubt whether he should speak at all about what he is thinking.

The same is also true from the garment expression of speech to action. Action is separate from the person and is totally an external garment expression of the soul. Therefore from speech to deed there are the same two catches. #1, speech will not necessarily lead to action and in order that there should be deed and action, an intentional consideration is necessary in that direction.

The distance and therefore the effort to have ones speech lead to action is even greater than that from thought to speech since action is even further from speech than speech is from thought.

The driving force that propels and pushes this process is will. This will, resolve and motivation is born as a result of one’s intellect.

Now here is the gigantic however. When will, resolve and determination comes not because of logical reasoning but because of pleasure and enjoyment, the will to do wasn’t born out of intellect but because of a deep desire for the results, this is so powerful, that it influences and guides the intellect and emotions through all the steps of expression and will automatically accelerate the flow to action, without any delays. “Nothing stands in the way of a desire.”

This desire for something because the person internally feels a pleasure in the results, sways the mind to understand and fires up the emotions to feel and directed automatically through thought speech and deed, quickly with a minimum of hindrances. Because of the intense will infused with pleasure he will not rest or stay quiet until the goal is reached.

So back to where we started. The procedure that starts with thought and makes a bee line to character, for it to work smoothly and effortlessly, must be preceded with a personal pleasure and passion, in the end results.