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

What motivates life? What motivates Man? Those were the questions Ron posed when seeking workable answers to the problems of both the individual and society. After examining the whole of life in its variety and complexity, he isolated a common denominator to all living things - the Dynamic Principle of Existence: Survive! Here was a watershed breakthrough in Man's understanding of Man.

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".

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.

It betrays the brightest hopes of individuals, drives familie sapart, incites organizational turmoil and pitches nations into chaos. What malignant seed grows in the human mind that not only prevents individuals from “thinking straight”, but forces them to act out their irrationalities? Man’s failure over many millennia to find the cause of aberration has exacted an incalculable toll in personal unhappiness andruined lives. But were the answer found, the horizons would be unlimited. Individuals could achieve the lasting success they desire. Families would thrive, united and strong. Groups and organizations would reach new levels of prosperity.

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 subdividedinto eight separate urges or drives, known as the Eight Dynamics.

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. Yet as the number of countries with atomic and nuclear weapons has risen and an international black market actively trades nuclear materials, action is likely to prove a far stronger deterrent than hope.

What is life? Such was the central question Ron posed when setting out to unravelthe riddle of human existence. Afterexamining all aspects and elements of existence, hearrived at an altogether startling discovery - one which suddenly clarified all life’s various phenomena: Life is a game.

In a world of unpredictable forces racing headlong toward an uncertain future, howcan 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? Here, then, is Ron’s unforgettable answer to such questions.

In his lifelong quest to uncover the answers to life and Man, Ron discovered that all life forms, from the lowest to the highest, are motivated by a single command: Survive! Yet questions still remained. What exactly is life and how does it accomplish its purpose of survival? Is life merely live matter? Or does it contain another quality altogether? Thus Ron set out to isolate and identify the very essence of life itself.

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.

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.

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? The proposed solutions are as varied as the problems, but many are based on labeling students as unable to learn.

To overcome tyranny is to win freedom as a people, a nation, or even mankind. Yet to benefit fully from their liberties, each man and woman must also be free - as individuals. In regard to freedom as a nation, here is the remarkable story of how one man, the Athenian statesman Pericles, envisioned a better future for mankind - a future free from tyranny. Thus developed a principle at the heart of modern civilization - specifically, that the individual citizen has a right to his own opinions....

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.

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 in philosophy 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.

Through his extraordinary journey to the founding of Dianetics and Scientology, Ron did just that. From his adventurous youth in a rough-and-tumble American West to his far-flung trek across a still mysterious Asia; from his two-decade search for the essence of life to the triumph of Dianetics and Scientology — such is the story Ron recounts in a lecture so legendary, it has been heard by millions.

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.

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.

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.

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.