The Game of Life And How To Play It

By Florence Scovel Shinn

In the Game of Life and How to Play It, Florence Scovel Shinn gives us the rules to the game of life. But more importantly she also gives us a manual that instructs us on how to win the game. A wonderful and simple-to-follow book on the power of right thinking.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Wilder Publications, Inc.
• Release date: Jul 2, 2013
• ISBN: 9781627553926

Florence Scovel Shinn

Florence Scovel Shinn (18711940) was an influential New Thought teacher, metaphysical writer, and artist whose work continues to inspire personal growth and spiritual awakening. Originally a successful illustrator in New York, Shinn transitioned into spiritual teaching, drawing from esoteric principles to help people align with prosperity, intuition, and success. Her most well-known book, The Game of Life and How to Play It (1925), distills complex metaphysical ideas into practical wisdom, emphasizing positive affirmations, visualization, and the power of intention. Shinns teachings on manifestation and self-healing were ahead of her time, laying a foundation for the modern self-help movement and contributing to the popularity of concepts like the law of attraction. Her work, blending spirituality with actionable advice, remains a beacon for those seeking empowerment and inner transformation.

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The Game of Life And How To Play It

Florence Scovel Shinn

Sublime Books

Copyright © 2014 Sublime Books

All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.

Manufactured in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

ISBN: 978-1-62755-392-6

Table of Contents

The Game

The Law of Prosperity

The Power of the Word

The Law of Nonresistance

The Law of Karma And The Law of Forgiveness

Casting the Burden

Love

Intuition or Guidance

Perfect Self-expression Or The Divine Design

Denials and Affirmations

Denials and Affirmations

The Game

Most people consider life a battle, but it is not a battle, it is a game.

It is a game, however, which cannot be played successfully without the knowledge of spiritual law, and the Old and the New Testaments give the rules of the game with wonderful clearness. Jesus Christ taught that it was a great game of Giving and Receiving.

Whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap. This means that whatever man sends out in word or deed, will return to him; what he gives, he will receive.

If he gives hate, he will receive hate; if he gives love, he will receive love; if he gives criticism, he will receive criticism; if he lies he will be lied to; if he cheats he will be cheated. We are taught also, that the imaging faculty plays a leading part in the game of life.

Keep thy heart (or imagination) with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life. (Prov. 4:23.)

This means that what man images, sooner or later externalizes in his affairs. I know of a man who feared a certain disease. It was a very rare disease and difficult to get, but he pictured it continually and read about it until it manifested in his body, and he died, the victim of distorted imagination.

So we see, to play successfully the game of life, we must train the imaging faculty. A person with an imaging faculty trained to image only good, brings into his life every righteous desire of his heart—health, wealth, love, friends, perfect self-expression, his highest ideals.

The imagination has been called, The Scissors of The Mind, and it is ever cutting, cutting, day by day, the pictures man sees there, and sooner or later he meets his own creations in his outer world. To train the imagination successfully, man must understand the workings of his mind. The Greeks said: Know Thyself.

There are three departments of the mind, the subconscious, conscious and superconscious. The subconscious, is simply power, without direction. It is like steam or electricity, and it does what it is directed to do; it has no power of induction.

Whatever man feels deeply or images clearly, is impressed upon the subconscious mind, and carried out in minutest detail.

For example: a woman I know, when a child, always made believe she was a widow. She dressed up in black clothes and wore a long black veil, and people thought she was very clever and amusing. She grew up and married a man with whom she was deeply in love. In a short time he died and she wore black and a sweeping veil for many years. The picture of herself as a widow was impressed upon the subconscious mind, and in due time worked itself out, regardless of the havoc created.

The conscious mind has been called mortal or carnal mind.

It is the human mind and sees life as it appears to be. It sees death, disaster, sickness, poverty and limitation of every kind, and it impresses the subconscious.

The superconscious mind is the God Mind within each man, and is the realm of perfect ideas.

In it, is the perfect pattern spoken of by Plato, The Divine Design; for there is a Divine Design for each person.

There is a place that you are to fill and no one else can fill, something you are to do, which no one else can do.

There is a perfect picture of this in the super-conscious mind. It usually flashes across the conscious as an unattainable ideal—something too good to be true.

In reality it is man’s true destiny (or destination) flashed to him from the Infinite Intelligence which is within himself.

Many people, however, are in ignorance of their true destinies and are striving for things and situations which do not belong to them, and would only bring failure and dissatisfaction if attained.

For example: A woman came to me and asked me to speak the word that she would marry a certain man with whom she was very much in love. (She called him A. B.)

I replied that this would be a violation of spiritual law, but that I would speak the word for the right man, the divine selection, the man who belonged to her by divine right.

I added, If A. B. is the right man you can’t lose him, and if he isn’t, you will receive his equivalent. She saw A. B. frequently but no headway was made in their friendship. One evening she called, and said, Do you know, for the last week, A. B. hasn’t seemed so wonderful to me. I replied, Maybe he is not the divine selection—another man may be the right one. Soon after that, she met another man who fell in love with her at once, and who said she was his ideal. In fact, he said all the things that she had always wished A. B. would say to her.

She remarked, It was quite uncanny.

She soon returned his love, and lost all interest in A. B.

This shows the law of substitution. A right idea was substituted for a wrong one, therefore there was no loss or sacrifice involved.

Jesus Christ said, Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you, and he said the Kingdom was within man.

The Kingdom is the realm of right ideas, or the divine pattern.

Jesus Christ taught that man’s words played a leading part in the game of life. By your words ye are justified and by your words ye are condemned.

Many people have brought disaster into

Reviews for The Game of Life And How To Play It

[Kyra · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great book, reminded me that the spritual aspect of life is important to get what you desire in life.

[Aurora Winter · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Clear, concise, accessible. This slim book is a valuable addition to teachings such as Science of Mind.

[Ore · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Superb. I enjoyed the reading. It was really amazing read.

[Darin Lewis · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Pure blasphemy prosperity gospel and manifestation foolishness. Don't recommend anyone to read

[kurt.rocourt · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

There's some good stuff in this book

There's some good stuff in this book. The problem is that stuuf is hidden behind lots of Christian ideology. If your a non-Christian this book will be hard to navigate. You can take the useful stuff and leave the rest. The other thing is I think this writer gives lots of examples of her practicing witchcraft or some form of sorcery. There are lots of examples of her giving "treatments" to people. The "treating" of all these peoples problems makes me wonder if it's her advice that helped these people or was it something magical on her end. That takes away from whatever her message is in the book. If you can get pass that this is a good book to learn from.

[lis · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wonderful & simple book on how to manifest. Through your Higher Self, all things are possible. We are boundless supreme beings!

[trina zamora · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book is really helpful if you want to really improved your life!!

[Gboea · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Life changing! Must read. The book has changed my entire life.

[Lucy Oora · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It’s an amazing book. I’ve always believed in what is written in this book but sometimes I am in thoughts but reading this book has made it all very clear.
Happy I took time to read this book.

[charles ogbu · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The game of life and how to play it is simple: just believe and it is done.

[RaQu · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I came across this book at the most perfect time. It was in my divine right to receive and implement this information into my life. Exactly what I needed when I needed it!

[Ann Adejo · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Such an amazing book and easy to comprehend. I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT

[Rochelle Harms · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Every book has a little bit of truth within it...this one had many and was a easy read/audio!

[Charles Kim · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

She does such a great job making universal spiritual principles easily digestible through great stories and such simplicity. The game of life and how to play is a must read especially during a time of such profound change and how so many of us are really not letting the divine shine through all the clutter of the digital age.

[gnorma_2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Written in 1925, this book preceded Norman Vincent Peale's The Power of Positive Thinking, by 27 years. It is based on the simple premise that your words (and thoughts) are what determine your experiences. It is full of personal examples and useful affirmations. Biblical references are extensive, remember this was 1925, when being a church goer was pretty much a common denominator for Americans, not the cultural divisor it is today. This message, 88 years later, is still relative and riveting. It's all you need to change your life.

[dip2atl · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Its amazing how relevant this book is today although it was written many years ago!!

[ivanmoya · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A wonderful book that changed my life. (Translated from Spanish)

[drj_6 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Classic text on new thought philosophy written by a woman through the harsh times of the Great Depression, yet the ideas are still valid today.

[Cris ¿Qué libro leo? · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A book that teaches you to solve problems that arise throughout your life. It is based precisely on changing your beliefs, as life is neither a fight nor constant suffering... but rather wonderful. (Translated from Spanish)

[RubyEsmeraldam · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Excellent book to read (Translated from Spanish)

[Jgarcia36 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

In life, there must be faith to create incredible things; God is the supreme being who allows miracles to be performed. (Translated from Spanish)

[Arisbe · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A highly recommended book for the spiritual journey. (Translated from Spanish)

[SalcedoMX · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Excellent spiritual book, it precisely tells you that... how to play the game of life, recommended for those starting in these topics. (Translated from Spanish)