What is meant by the term "collective consciousness?" It is a collection of thoughts shared by all beings that has as its source the oneness of the universe. Other terms for collective consciousness are "mass consciousness," "collected thought forms," or "universal consciousness."

Mass consciousness grows from energy-the energy that is accumulated from every thought or word spoken by every person. We all contribute. All thoughts are energy-powerful energy-and energy attracts like energy. Love attracts love; fear attracts fear. Remember that whatever you add energy to multiplies-it does not add, it multiplies. It multiplies because it grows not only from your own energy, but also from the contribution of what other people are thinking. This collection of thoughts creates a "collective consciousness." Every thought contributes to this pool, actually creating an energy form, which is otherwise known as a "thought form." The thought form is real-people who are attuned to and can see energy fields usually describe it as a cloudlike formation, varying in color and sometimes accompanied by a sound or smell.

A visual analogy of the creation of thought forms and their attraction of like forms is found in outer space. Have you ever seen pictures of astronauts in space trying to eat or drink? Because of the lack of gravity, liquids are covered so they do not float out of their containers. Imagine there are two astronauts trying to drink two juices-one grape and the other orange. They knock into one another, spilling their juices into the empty space of the cockpit. Since there is no gravity, the splash of juices separate into individual droplets and float around the cockpit. As the individual droplets float, they begin to merge with other droplets. Eventually a mass of juice floats in the cockpit, a puddle suspended in space. Amazingly, all of the grape juice droplets merge together and all of the orange juice droplets merge together, each attracted to their like and creating two complete puddles of juice. This is a visual representation of the law of attraction, the process by which energy is attracted to like energy.

Every thought you think or word you speak is like those individual droplets of juice. All float into space and go somewhere. The word and thought energies connect with similar thoughts and words. This collection of thought and word energy grows and grows as it is fed by more individuals' thoughts and words. This energy manifests and creates a reality of some sort. There are positive and negative realities created in this process. Fear, worry, hatred, greed, and dishonesty all create incredibly negative thought forms, with many people continually feeding them and contributing to their manifestation. We have examples of negative realities all over our planet. Let me share some examples that may coincide with your own experiences and give you a more tangible connection with the concept of collective consciousness. Take a moment to think about some of the cities you have visited. Cities usually have a distinctive feel to them. You may have felt energized, nervous, scared, or enveloped in the history of a particular city you have visited. I remember a client of mine saying, "I do not know what happened to me. I was driving on the highway in Los Angeles and I found myself honking my horn and flipping people off. That is just not like me. I have never acted like that before. It is totally against my principles." What happened? The collective consciousness lingering around that highway affected her. The accumulation of negative energy generated in that area by continual driving irritation, frustration, and rudeness entered her own consciousness, and she responded in a like manner.

Places hold collective consciousness in them. When you walk into buildings, they each have a "feel," especially the old ones. I was nearly brought to my knees when I walked into the Sistine Chapel in Italy. The magnificence of that place was truly overwhelming. I was only 22 years old, with absolutely no wisdom concerning spiritual matters, and had not entered looking for or expecting spiritual energy. Yet when I walked in, my knees started to buckle and I got goose bumps all over my entire body. I was awestruck. Millions of people had walked into that chapel before me and shared their awe, their prayers, and their love of God. The energy of those feelings lingers and grows. I had a very different experience when I visited the concentration camps in Germany. I cried uncontrollably. The terror, sadness, and depth of despair still linger there; it was a horrific experience. Although these are examples of two extremes in accumulated energies, they describe the phenomenon. All places have an energy to them-even your home or the individual rooms of your home. Become aware of what the energy of places feels like. As you tune in to these feelings and understand them in terms of energy, you enhance your work with energy.

Thought forms can control behavior and influence thinking because, knowingly or unknowingly, individuals tap into a collective consciousness, which actually exists. Even though you may not be able to see it, it is there. Remember, we are made of energy and are affected by the energy around us. Ideas, concepts, experiences, events, issues, cultures, and spiritual doctrines all have prevailing thought forms connected to them, which may represent hundreds of years of accumulated energy.

Thought forms follow the laws of energy. When you look at all-encompassing attitudes such as hatred, you can understand how massive some thought forms are and why they seem so impossible to heal. However, since all thought forms follow the laws of energy, it is entirely possible to change general attitudes and realities based in hatred or fear. Remember, manifestation comes about from an accumulation of energy. Thus, when you pray for global peace, visualize a healed planet, or speak of brotherly love. The energy of these actions has a powerful impact. Positive ideology and prayer adds positive energy to the collective consciousness, creating the possibility for hopeful change. The more people who add to this consciousness, the greater the likelihood for positive change.