burning gold after the dross had been removed, and a perfectly pure
and enlightened being could not suffer.

The circumstances, which a man encounters with suffering, are the
result of his own mental in harmony. The circumstances, which a man
encounters with blessedness, are the result of his own mental
harmony. Blessedness, not material possessions, is the measure of
right thought; wretchedness, not lack of material possessions, is
the measure of wrong thought. A man may be cursed and rich; he may
be blessed and poor. Blessedness and riches are only joined together
when the riches are rightly and wisely used; and the poor man only
descends into wretchedness when he regards his lot as a burden
unjustly imposed.

Indigence and indulgence are the two extremes of wretchedness. They
are both equally unnatural and the result of mental disorder. A man
is not rightly conditioned until he is a happy, healthy, and
prosperous being; and happiness, health, and prosperity are the
result of a harmonious adjustment of the inner with the outer, of
the man with his surroundings.

A man only begins to be a man when he ceases to whine and revile,
and commences to search for the hidden justice which regulates his
life. And as he adapts his mind to that regulating factor, he ceases
to accuse others as the cause of his condition, and builds himself
up in strong and noble thoughts; ceases to kick against
circumstances, but begins to _use_ them as aids to his more rapid
progress, and as a means of discovering the hidden powers and
possibilities within himself.