IT IS fun to go shopping; fun to go to the stores and buy what you need, but oh, when you go to the dentist! Before I relate a few of my experiences I should like to leave a little advice with you: There is only one dentist, and that is the Lord God Almighty. Everybody can employ that dentist if he so chooses. The fees of that dentist are tremendously high, but everybody can pay them; the fees are absolute steadfastness in the consciousness that the very life that is in you is God. If you will go to that dentist, if you will pay that price, you need not go to any man in this city or any other city to have dental work performed.
"As he thinketh within himself, so is he" is a statement of fact regarding one's world of actuality, and means simply that man's experiences depend wholly on his consciousness of the one presence, one power, one mind, and one life that we call God.
Presumably some reader might like to know whether it is advisable to employ a dentist in the event of any imperfection in the teeth and their surrounding tissues. Another might want to know whether it is possible to have a third set of teeth, while someone else might feel that it is inconsistent for a Truth student to have anything done in the way of prophylaxis, filling of cavities, replacement of teeth by artificial dentures, or any of the innumerable operations that a dentist is called on to perform.
Your body is the temple of the living God and it should be kept in excellent order. One should not depend merely on the thought of cleanliness to keep his body free from dirt. In order to accomplish anything, one's thought must be carried into action. Many persons allow the mouth to become unclean through carelessness. Possibly a person who thinks nothing of having a filthy mouth and foul breath would be very much offended if he were told that his hands and his face were soiled or that his clothing needed brushing. We all recognize that the use of soap and water is good. Similarly a good toothbrush with tooth paste or tooth powder will assist in keeping the mouth sweet and clean. One need not feel that the use of a dentrifice is inconsistent with Truth, for it is not. Furthermore it is advisable to have dental prophylactic treatments regularly in order that the deposits of calculus may be removed and the teeth kept thoroughly polished.
Whenever you brush your teeth, speak the word of Truth to them. Recognize that they, being manifestations of pure Spirit substance, show forth the wholeness and perfectness of life. Remind yourself of this:
My teeth and gums continually manifest the beauty, purity, and strength of Spirit substance.
In the dental world we have heard of those who have grown a third set of teeth. Such instances are rare and by the majority are considered as freak cases. The cells of the body however are self-renewing and there is no reason why the tooth cells should not renew themselves, thus forming new organs of mastication, whether part or all of the tooth has become lost, either through decay or extraction. When a person realizes that the life of which his teeth are made is continuous in its activity, as well as omnipotent and omniscient, then he will see clearly the reasonableness of producing teeth whenever it is necessary to do so. This point of view will do away with the race thought that man is supposed to have but twenty deciduous teeth, and later thirty-two permanent teeth which, if he is so unfortunate as to lose them, must be replaced through artificial means.
But should you for the sake of personal appearance or otherwise need to have cavities filled, dentures made, or other dental operations performed, there is no reason for criticism or self-condemnation.
To those who find it necessary to visit the dental office, we shall give a few suggestions as to the attitude in which to go. All such treatments are merely aids that give temporary relief. Nothing will give release from tooth troubles except one's consciousness of the perfectness of the life that he is. Those who seek the services of a dentist should take the attitude of nonresistance. They should not become tense in their thoughts nor in their actions during the operations. They should relax and let the Spirit of intelligence express in, through, and for them. Should they find it difficult to keep their thoughts steadfast upon the Truth when they see the various instruments that are being used, they should close their eyes.
Perchance a definite statement of Truth does not come into their consciousness at the time. The writer has found that by speaking the word "peace," either silently or audibly, satisfactory results are obtained. Any word of Truth spoken in the spirit of the word accomplishes results, according to the law of the universe that like produces like.
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