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Power of Thoughts That Prompt

Gain a clear understanding of suggestions and their effects upon the mind. You should be
careful in the use of suggestions. Never give wrong suggestion which will have destructive
results to anybody. You will be doing a great harm and a disservice to him. Think well before
you speak.
Teachers and professors should have a thorough knowledge of the science of suggestion
and auto-suggestion. They can educate and elevate students in an efficient manner.
In Southern India, when children cry out in houses parents frighten them by saying:
“Look here, Balu! Irendukannan (the two-eyed man) has come. Keep quiet, or I will hand you
over to this man.” “Puchandi (or ghost) has come,” and suggestions of this sort are very
destructive. The child becomes timid.
The minds of children are elastic, tender and pliable. Samskaras are indelibly impressed
at this age. Changing or obliterating the Samskaras becomes impossible when they grow. When
the child grows into a man, he manifests timidity.
Parents should infuse courage into the minds of their children. They should say: “Here is
a lion. See the lion in this picture. Roar like a lion. Be courageous. See the picture of Shivaji,
Arjuna or Clive. Become chivalrous.”
In the West, teachers show the pictures of battlefields to children and say: “Look here,
James! See this picture of Napoleon. Look at his chivalry. Won’t you like to become a
Commander-in-chief of the army or a Brigadier-General?” They infuse courage into the minds of
children from their very childhood. When they grow, these Samskaras get strengthened by
additional external stimuli.