Imagination · “Feel It Real”
Collier's 'Man Inside You'
At the threshold of sleep, fill the mind with the desire or problem, hand it over to the subconscious (‘the Man Inside You’), then relax and drop off — letting the answer or the realised wish surface on waking.
At bedtime, fill your mind with the problem or desire (visualize a wish in full detail). Lie comfortably, dwell on it calmly, then hand it to “the Man Inside You”: “You know the answer — work this out for me.” Give thanks, utterly relax, and fall asleep on it. Collect the answer or the assurance on waking, doubt-free. Repeat nightly.
What it is
This is Collier’s sleep-onset method for reaching the subconscious. In the chapter “Aladdin & Company” he teaches that “whatever thought, whatever problem you can get across to your subconscious mind at the moment of dropping off to sleep, that ‘Man Inside You,’ that Genie-of-your-Mind will work out for you.” You fill the mind with the desire or problem, place it in the hands of the subconscious like an order to a trusted servant, and then relax and let yourself fall asleep on it — collecting the answer (or the felt assurance of the wish) on waking.
It is Collier’s borderland-of-sleep practice, drawn partly from the older “subconscious brownies” idea he quotes.
The Method
For a problem to solve:
- Fill the mind with the material. “First, fill your mind with every bit of information regarding that problem that you can lay your hands on.”
- Get physically comfortable and forget the body. “Pick out a chair or lounge or bed where you can recline in perfect comfort, where you can forget your body entirely.”
- Dwell on it placidly, then hand it over. “Let your mind dwell upon the problem for a moment, not worrying, not fretting, but placidly, and then turn it over to the ‘Man Inside You.’ Say to him — ‘This is your problem. You can do anything. You know the answer to everything. Work this out for me!’”
- Utterly relax and drop off. “And utterly relax. Drop off to sleep, if you can. At least, drop into one of those half-sleepy, half-wakeful reveries that keep other thoughts from obtruding.” — “Do as Aladdin did — summon your Genii, give him your orders, then forget the matter.”
- Collect the answer on waking. “When you waken, you will have the answer!” For a desire to realise:
- Visualize it fully first. “If it is something that you want, VISUALIZE it first in your mind’s eye, see it in every possible detail, see yourself going through every move… Build up a complete story, step by step.”
- Give thanks, then release into sleep. “Be thankful for this gift that has come to you. Then relax; go on to sleep if you can; give the ‘Man Inside You’ a chance to work out the consummation of your wish without interference.”
- On waking, re-hold it briefly, without doubt. “When you waken, hold it all pleasurably in thought again for a few moments. Don’t let doubts and fears creep in.”
- Persist. “Not everyone can succeed in getting the right thought across… at the first or the second attempt… But keep on trying… Try this method every night for a little while.” (Sourcing note: quoted phrases are verbatim from “Aladdin & Company”; the structure is a faithful paraphrase.)
Source & Lineage
Robert Collier, The Secret of the Ages (1926), Vol. III, “Aladdin & Company.” Collier explicitly borrows the “subconscious brownies / storehouse” framing he quotes at length, then adds the sleep-onset timing.
Common refinements
Skipping the prep. Collier wants the mind filled with the material first; you incubate what you’ve loaded.
- Straining at sleep onset. The move is to hand it over and relax, not to grind. Effort defeats the drowsy state.
- Re-opening it anxiously. “Don’t let doubts and fears creep in” — and don’t “dig up the seed” each night to check.
- One-shot expectation. He explicitly says it may take several nights; persist.
- Using it to dodge action. The answer is meant to guide waking effort, not replace it.