64 The Law of the Rhythmic Breath 



terial for the Spirit's activity, therefore, lacking 

 entirely the spiritual fire which sustains enthusiasm 

 and gives electrical force to every thought and act 

 thus inspired. 



It is this spiritual energy which in rare emer- 

 gencies and moments of supreme excitement en- 

 ables people to forget the limits of physical 

 strength and to execute the ordinarily impossible. 

 I knew a very delicate young girl, the accepted es- 

 timate of whose strength and endurance exempted 

 her from even the usual exertions of daily life in 

 the home, who, under the excitement caused by 

 a disastrous fire very near, moved several inches 

 out from the wall a bookcase eight feet high which 

 was filled from floor to top with heavy books. It 

 was all that three strong men could do to put the 

 case back in its place the next morning. We can 

 train ourselves to employ this spiritual energy at 

 need, and thus eliminate many of the most trying 

 conditions in life. The wastefulness of common 

 methods of thought is a constant drain of psychic 

 energy which we can better employ. 



Every fact that has been stated can be verified 

 by personal experiment, which means persistent 

 practice of the breathing and concentration exer- 

 cises already given; not intermittent practice when 

 you are reminded of it by bad feelings or when 

 you happen to think of it or have nothing else you 

 would rather do. To derive the benefit, spirit- 



