Showing results by author "L. Ron Hubbard" in All Categories

In his search to understand Man, Ron discovered that there is a single common denominator to existence: Survive! No matter the varied experiences or activities of individuals, everyone is seeking to survive and that is the only common denominator to all life. Then, examining life still more closely, he further discovered that survival subdivided into eight separate urges or drives, known as the Eight Dynamics.

Help pervades every part of life. Yet few people realize the degree to which it determines their survival. For the willingness to give and receive help lies at the foundation of all human reactions and behavior. How does one increase a person’s confidence, improve his ability to communicate with others and heighten his interest in life? The answers all start with help, and they are contained in a series of techniques so effective they can practically “awaken the dead.”

In a world of unpredictable forces racing headlong toward an uncertain future, how can a single individual control his own fate? How can he safeguard the well-being of his family, the prosperity of his group and the security of his nation? Must he mutely await the next unforeseen blow, which might well signal the end of all dreams and aspirations? Or should he endeavor by whatever means, through whatever plan, to secure the future for those he cherishes and the society in which he lives?

Since the deployment of the first atomic weapons, people everywhere have lived with the possibility that everything they hold dear - their lives, their families, their careers and even the human species itself - could be extinguished in a few moments of devastation. Such consequences would be so overwhelming that, for many, the only defense is a hope it will never happen.

Money is, of course, something with which everyone is familiar. But how many people truly understand the role money plays in the society? Judging from the duress and anxiety associated with this subject, few people are aware of the real purpose and function of money. Here Ron delineates its proper role in assisting the survival of individuals, groups and cultures.

It has no mass or location. It is not energy. Yet it is alive. And it gives life. Such are the characteristics of “a life-giving unit” - the source not only of all thought, but of all that is decent, ethical and noble. Indeed, this is you. The discovery that each individual is, in fact, a source of life radically alters the relationship between Man and the material universe.

Today weapons exist powerful enough to annihilate whole nations. And violence has become commonplace, often in disregard of human life. Why has there been such a lessening of moral responsibility and, most important, what can be done about it? In providing the answers to these questions, Ron explores the history of Man’s research and investigation in the field of the human spirit.

It is upon the individual that the success of an organization and, indeed, the civilization depends. Those who accomplish more with less effort are more willing, more capable and, in fact, more efficient. They suffer less emotional stress and strain. They are better suited to make key decisions. And as efficiency increases across whole industries, so the whole of society benefits. Such is the subject of Increasing Efficiency, wherein Ron reveals discoveries that provide a wholly new perspective on efficiency - not in a mechanical sense, but in terms of thought, emotion, and effort.

When still a young man attending university, Ron observed that those working in the humanities had no training in the exact sciences. Believing that the precision of the scientific method might furnish a solution to the problems of life and livingness, he urged faculty members of the psychology department to apply the principles of physics to the field of the mind. It was an entirely novel approach. And when no one took up the challenge - either then or in later years - Ron undertook the task himself.

From the dawn of time, Man has cherished the hope he could achieve a greater freedom. That hope, articulated by the greatest religious leaders across the centuries, has time and again renewed his strength to face the future. But with no practical means to convert hope to reality, the goal of a greater freedom remained, for most if not all, a distant and unattainable dream. Then, with the onset of the 20th century, came the rapid and unprecedented advance of the physical sciences.

Here is a story that begins with Ron’s immersion in a deeply spiritual, deeply traditional Asia, where he met and befriended - among other savants - the last of the great magicians whose predecessors served in the court of Mongol emperor Kublai Khan. Yet notwithstanding the feats that testified to remarkable powers, here was a land where wisdom was deemed sacred - so sacred, in fact, these Oriental holy men declined to use their considerable abilities to solve the real and urgent problems of living.

It has been bought and sold in a thousand dramas. It has been preached about from every pulpit - debated, contested, condemned, and exalted. And with no means to accurately measure or quantify it, the physical sciences either ignored it or denied its very existence. The human soul. Here, then, is a discovery all the more remarkable for being grounded not merely on faith and belief, but on proofs as irrefutable as any in science.

The single word liberty articulates not only basic rights, such as freedom of speech and religion, but many other vital concepts: opportunity, choice, security and even happiness. Indeed, it is a word that symbolizes the dreams and goals of every human being. Yet its very power makes it liable to abusive ends entirely opposed to its true meaning. In consequence, both individual and national freedoms can be eroded in a manner that escapes detection.

To overcome tyranny is to win freedom as a people, anation or even Mankind. Yet to benefit fully from theirliberties, each man and woman must also be free - asindividuals.In regard to freedom as a nation, here is the remarkable story of howone man, the Athenian statesman Pericles, envisioned a better futurefor Mankind - a future free from tyranny.

An extraordinary drama played out across thousands of years, Man’s long search to penetrate the mystery of “the other fellow” - and thereby to know himself - found its expression not only inphilosophy and religion, but even in war and conquest. Yet in spite of, or perhaps because of, the crucial intensity of this quest, its continuing failure down the centuries accumulated ever-deepening problems for Man.

No civilized culture has failed to recognize the importance of education. And it is widely acknowledged that in today’s fast-paced society, success depends on the ability to swiftly understand and use information. What lies behind the crisis in education? Are some subjects simply hard to teach? Are some teachers just not good at imparting knowledge?

Everyone performs certain routine tasks automatically. Driving a car would be awkward indeed if one had to think newly of every tiny procedure. But what happens when someone puts a whole field of thought and action "on automatic"? His education, for example? Or his work? Or even his entire life? The answers are here and they open a completely new perspective on the mind.

Your mind: It is your constant companion. You live with it 24 hours a day, every day of your life. Yet Man has known practically nothing about how it works. And from marriages that end in divorce to careers that wind up in frustration, from tensions that interfere with work to conflicts that divide nations, virtually every human crisis can be traced to Man's ignorance of the mind. Imagine, then, the potential benefits of finding the answers.

Since time immemorial, Man has sought to liberate the soul from the body and so achieve immortality. In this account of the religious heritage that stands behind Scientology, Ron recounts the extraordinary story of Man’s epic quest for a way to attain that goal. Embracing a tradition from the very dawn of civilization, here is the history of Man’s relentless pursuit of the knowledge which inspired this planet’s great philosophies and religions.

Every human being seeks to know the truth about himself and to resolve to his own satisfaction the mysteries of life. And therefore, for many thousands of years, countless philosophical and religious teachings have sought to enlighten people with answers. But where their practitioners insisted - indeed, demanded - that their answers must be the answers, they blocked the road to greater freedom for millions of people.