In Dynamic Thought William Walker Atkinson sets out a theory to reconcile the "realities" of science with the "realities" of the mystic view of the oneness of the universe, demonstrating the similarities that lay at the root of the efforts of both schools of thought to explain the universe as humans perceive it, providing a framework for understanding many of the phenomena which science can not explain, but which have long been recognized by occultists and mystics and, in more recent times, paranormal researchers:

...The reader will see, readily, that this theory of Dynamic Thought, and the facts noted in the consideration thereof, give an intelligent explanation for the respective phenomena of Hypnotism, Mesmerism, Suggestion, Thought-transference, Telepathy, etc., as well as of Mental Healing, Magnetic Healing, etc., all of which are manifestations of "Dynamic Thought." Not only do we see ... that "Thoughts are Things," but we may see "just why" they are Things. And we may see and understand the laws of their production and operation. ...

The very existence of "paranormal psychology" and "paranormal research" in scientific circles today bears out Atkinson's prediction that science would one day, slowly, begin to explore the concept of the "cosmic mind" or "universal mind," by which he means a force, as opposed to a substance, surrounding and connecting everything and everyone in the universe. While science, in Atkinson's day, still clung to the concept of "the ether" to explain the mysterious "something" that clearly filled the "void" between physical objects, but could not be measured or observed, today "dark matter" fills a similar role in scientific theory, an undefined "something" that can explain the otherwise scientifically inexplicable. In Atkinson's theory, this undefined "something" is not an inert physical substance, but rather a universal force or energy which encompasses "thought" as we know it but is a far more complex universal phenomenon than mere conscious human thought. It is the concept of this universal consciousness, or cosmic mind, at work in a multitude of manifestations, which forms the basis for Atkinson's theory of what he calls "Dynamic Thought."

Atkinson's work provides a useful, accessible guide to the concept of a universal consciousness, sometimes called "the universal mind" or the "cosmic mind" which is common to both eastern mystic and religious thought and the more westernized doctrine of theosophy.

William Walker Atkinson (1862-1932) was an incredibly prolific American writer, also widely known by his pseudonym, "Yogi Ramacharaka," who published extensively in areas of yoga, the occult, eastern mysticism, personal development, and related subjects. A successful businessman and attorney, Atkinson suffered what may have been a nervous breakdown in the late 1880's and, in the course of his recovery, became immersed in the "new thought" movement, eastern mysticism, and yoga.

Atkinson was a popular self-improvement and personal development writer, a leading voice in the New Thought movement and a serious and devoted student of Hindu philosophy and yoga, and was a major force in introducing these concepts to the United States. His writings are still widely read and well-respected, and his "Yoga Philosophy and Oriental Occultism" is considered an excellent basic text for the western layman.