manifestation: hate it or love it, there’s something intriguing about it

tea on The Secret, manifestation's online reputation and more

Manifestation has long been in the minds of people, far before but especially since 2006’s sandstorm of The Secret. I describe it this way because a sandstorm's beige cloudy exterior actually looks quite nice from afar, almost desert-like and scenic, but get close or set foot even just a little into this storm and you’ll feel the abrasion of its superficial and controversial claims. The impression that I have of The Secret is this: its glossy pages (that flip at a hefty 120gsm or more – because the thicker a book, the better) read like an infomercial for positivity with quotes from gurus and ‘thought leaders’ on every page; the only thing missing is their headshots with folded arms, tilted chins and wide grins.

The whole book from the outside looks like it would be written entirely in Papyrus font (semi-redeemingly, its body text uses a serif font). I could’ve sworn the cover drew inspiration from Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code (2006) film which was released in May of the same year, but the release dates make this unlikely (though really, who knows?). To be honest, if it were true, I see the vision, even now. Dan Brown had made a solid buck from his tome; Tom Hanks was featured in its film (and who doesn’t love him). Naturally, coming up on the rear end of the 2000s’ spy-tech phase, who wasn’t into the ink pots, wax seals and quill pens of medieval/renaissance core?

Which came first? The Secret or The Da Vinci Code?

I swear The Secret documentary showed cut scenes of The Vitruvian Man, but memory and the ick factor we have for the past can do wild things.

This sandstorm, largely facilitated by Oprah and her two TV specials on The Secret, led to this book selling widely around the world, only for her to later release a radio interview distancing herself from the generous promotion she gave it earlier. Amongst the controversy that surrounded The Secret, including some spicy allegations of author Rhonda Byrne swindling and defrauding her co-writer for the direct-to-DVD movie adaptation that made millions (here’s a second article on that; sip away), there are many things that lead people to refer to its title reluctantly, with flat-lidded eyes and maybe even an eye roll.

To the average person, the main idea from The Secret comes off as too idealistic and over-simplified: visualise a thing, believe it’s yours, and it will come to you. And rightly so. To hear the general idea: ‘don’t lift a finger, don’t leave your house; just imagine it’s yours, and boom, all success to ya’ and to believe it unquestionably is to leave planet earth and pass even mars. Yet millions of people bought this book and played the DVD in their DVD players (and multiple times if there’s anything we remember about owning a home library).

In short, this book has made manifestation a repugnant concept for many people, and justly so. Go to places like TikTok and Instagram, and you’ll find little evidence to think otherwise. A few scrolls on TikTok after searching ‘manifestation’ will have you meet a wide-eyed somebody chanting, scribbling or speaking at 1.5-speed about affirmations that you can claim in the comments to change your life. The nonsense of it all is enough to make you feel it’s something of a cult.

Head over to Instagram and accounts after accounts with almost identical feeds will welcome you into their ‘energetic container’ where impossible growth happens and abundance is your ‘new vibe’, but it will cost you an arm and a kidney (some may even ask for your first-born). And whilst a 22-year-old me once bought into this paradigm, and contributions were made, they were done with good intentions, integrity simmering in the back until the level of deception around me caused it to bubble over and tell me to leave.

It’s very clear to me that times have changed. I see the manifestation surge on Instagram all very similarly to the ‘fitspo’ and health foods phase that boomed in 2013/2014 on Instagram and Tumblr that on the flip side spurred unhealthy body image and problematic eating habits for many people; we now know the harmful effects that material can have despite such posts and videos being widely accepted and popular at the time. I guess the lesson is: what was once acceptable over time may no longer be. The choice to continue acting the same way or change and grow is our own.

Despite the scam culture, hazy ethics and misleading claims in its online world, however, manifestation continues to be a hot topic even today. Elle has an article titled Everything You Need To Know About Manifestation (Including How To Do It), Vogue published Welcome to the Year of Manifestation Dressing, and in both articles, Hailey Bieber features as the thumbnail image. This is nothing of what you would have seen in 2018 where most podcasts on manifestation were hosted by crusty white men or heavily committed spiritual thinkers. The podcast I ran for five years that explored manifestation in a ‘modern’ way reached a million downloads before I archived its episodes; my thoughts have changed on many topics, and I wanted to minimise confusion for what I now stood for. During the time I hosted it, many podcasts featuring a modern style popped up, and now podcast apps are overrun with current takes on manifestation to varying degrees of delusion and realistic-ness.

Some consider manifestation witchy and of the occult. And with all the crystals, candles and whispering of affirmations cemented in its image from long ago, it’s no surprise people might think it’s just about casting spells. I have no defence for this (nor do I necessarily feel the need to have any) other than saying that people have all manner of time and ways to brand things differently. You can get a burger from McDonalds, or a burger from a cosy, ambient bar; it’s your pick of the patty and bun — if you wish.

How people think of me when I say I wrote a book on manifestation

According to Google Trends, in English-speaking countries like the US, UK and Australia, searches of ‘manifestation’ are rising and continuing to stay relatively high.

I know this graph is ugly but, you know, just for a visual

So what’s drawing people to want to read about it? What is so intriguing about manifestation despite the messiness surrounding it?

To me, a 30-year-old teenage girl, it’s the possibility of the magic we’ve read in books, for even the slightest bit, being real in our everyday lives. To me, it’s the fact that some of the ‘tools’ involved in manifestation are sometimes practical and have positive effects even if their magic is only felt in the hope we feel for a desired future being close. Maybe it’s having a few guidelines that we can follow to move ahead to what we’d like that someone else tried and found helpful. Because that’s really all manifestation (in a self help context) is: a human idea or construct that people have decided is a thing. And that thing can vary because it’s just an interpretation or series of ideas one person or more found helped them to bring a desire into reality. 

I think manifestation is best had when taken not so seriously. I think it’s best served with a decent helping of reality, and a spoon or ten of scepticism. I think manifestation is a concept worth exploring, but should only concern you as much as you wish. To me, it’s interesting to read how other people interpret the world and the challenges within it. And manifestation is just another concept that intrigues those with an interest for the poetry of life itself.

Though I haven’t found a book from anyone else that views manifestation this way (many seem to want to convince readers of its veracity rather than being realistic and open to other possibilities for cause – and just being overall chill by it), the one I can endorse is my own: The Manifestation Diaries. It’s a book written with a love for the English language (poetically and creatively) that brings you on the journey I had exploring manifestation as a sceptical, realistic person. It doesn’t wish for the reader to be converted – heck, the writer isn’t one fully ‘converted’ even today. You could say that it’s for those who are averse to the reputation of manifestation in mainstream contexts and are yet intrigued by its concept still.

So what does the future of ‘manifestation’ look like? Honestly, even if it doesn’t stay a topic of interest for the next year, I think it’s a topic that will continue to come back around every 10 to 15 years or so. Just like fashion comes back in trends, so do phases and ideas. I think the way in which we think about things certainly evolves; personally, I like to think nuance becomes more and more present.

I think that as long as magic* stays a topic of interest, I think manifestation will too.

(* magic as in Santa Clause type of magic. Easter bunny type of magic. Moon magic. Life magic. None of this makes sense, but I think that’s what makes magic* magic.)

Thanks so much for reading! If you enjoyed any part of this piece, I would be so grateful if you could give it a heart to help others maybe find it too :)