The Secret ~ The Magic ~ Rhonda Byrne

The Secret is a 2006 self-help book by Rhonda Byrne, based on the earlier film of the same name. It is based on the belief of the pseudoscientific law of attraction and manifestation, which claims that thought alone can influence objective circumstances within one’s life. The book alleges energy as assurance of its effectiveness. The book has sold 30 million copies worldwide and has been translated into 50 languages.

It re-introduces a notion originally popularized by persons such as Madame Blavatsky and Norman Vincent Peale that thinking about certain things will make them appear in one’s life. Byrne provides examples of historical persons who have allegedly achieved this. Byrne cites a three-step process: ask, believe, and receive. This is based on a quotation from the Bible’s Matthew “Whatever you ask for in prayer with faith, you will receive.”

Byrne highlights the importance of gratitude and visualization in achieving one’s desires, along with alleged examples. Later chapters describe how to improve one’s prosperity, abundance, relationships, and health, with more general thoughts about the universe.