In “No Other Foundation,” Neville Goddard asserts that human imagination is the sole bedrock of reality, equating it with Christ’s power and wisdom as described by Paul. He critiques external systems—astrology, chain letters, rituals—that divert individuals from their inherent creative capacity. Through vivid anecdotes of dreams and astral experiences, he demonstrates that subjective inner worlds are as real as waking life. Goddard urges listeners to reject intermediaries and stand directly on the “I AM” consciousness. By assuming the feeling of fulfilled desire and maintaining unwavering faith, one compels external events to conform. The lecture concludes with an invitation to recognize and build upon this one unshakable foundation of imagination.
By this time I had outgrown my belief in monkey bones, astrology, teacup leaves, numerology,
or anything outside of my own wonderful human imagination;
for having tested myself, I knew that all things were possible to the imagination.
Defining Christ as God’s power and wisdom, Paul makes this statement: “No other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Christ. If you build on it with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay or stubble, your work will become manifest. It will be revealed by the day. If the work survives, you will receive a reward. If it is destroyed, you will suffer loss; but you yourself will be saved, but only as through fire.” Then he adds this thought: “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (1 Cor. 3)
Paul was made an apostle for the purpose of laying the foundation of Jesus Christ. He did not commission himself as a physical man, but was drafted, called, and sent through an act of grace. When I was drafted, called, and sent, it was with the command: “Down with the bluebloods.” In other words, down with all church protocol, with anything that would interfere with the individual’s direct access to God. There is only one foundation upon which to build. That foundation is I am, and there is no other!
The temptation is always there to build upon other foundations. This morning I received a chain letter telling me that I would receive a great fortune if I would send twenty copies of the letter to friends. If I did not, something terrible would happen to me. After reading the stupid thing I threw it away. Had I accepted that letter, I would have been building on a foundation other than the one foundation, which is Christ.
In his infancy, man thinks everything outside of himself is the cause of the phenomena of life. Many believe in astrology. I must confess at one time I did also. Years ago I taught astrology to a dear friend who was a retired school teacher. Desiring to augment her retirement income, she became an astrologer. One day I found her in tears. It seemed that she was sitting next to an open window when a breeze blew the papers, causing her to draw the chart of a man who was born ten years later than her customer. Not realising this, she convinced herself – and the man – that his business venture would be a success. The customer promised to wire her $100 if this were true.
Norma saw in the chart what the man wanted to hear, and she believed her little hieroglyphics. That is all that mattered. She was self-persuaded, so the whole thing was done. This is based upon the foundation: “Whatever you desire, believe you have received it and you will.”
By this time I had outgrown my belief in monkey bones, astrology, teacup leaves, numerology, or anything outside of my own wonderful human imagination; for having tested myself, I knew that all things were possible to the imagination. Although I told Norma this, I could not console her. But that evening I was there when a Western Union messenger brought her a check for $100 from the man who had promised it. Even though Norma understood the truth of the one foundation, astrology brought her a small income, so she remained a professional astrologer until her death.
Norma is not alone. Many a minister, priest, or teacher, knows that what he teaches is not true; but he is not willing to stand on his own feet and believe in the one foundation. But I was sent with the words, down with the bluebloods, knowing I had to eliminate every intermediary between myself and my God – for he and I were one.
God is your own wonderful human imagination and there never was another. He actually took upon himself all of the limitations and weaknesses of the flesh that you – in turn – may discover who God is, believe in yourself, apply your belief, and awaken one day to the realisation that you are he in every sense of the word.
I was sent by the same being who sent Paul. I stood in the presence of the Risen Lord. I answered his question, and as we embraced we fused into one body. At that moment I was united to the Lord by becoming one spirit with him. Then I sent myself, so when you see me, you see the one who sent me, as I am never alone. You cannot see me with the mortal eye, for I am spirit, one with my spiritual sender. The same thing is true in this statement: “There is only one foundation, which is Jesus Christ, and besides me there is no other.” (1 Cor. 3)
Now, if to dream is to dwell in unreality, not known for such, what is life but one long, uninterrupted dream? Many times I have gone to bed, closed my mortal eye, to see a room – vivid in every detail, yet unseen from my bedroom. While my body is stretched out on the bed, I have stepped into that room, which – upon entering – became three-dimensional to me. As I did, that world closed in around me and this world was shut out. My wife, my children, all that I know as real here, was but a dream – a memory image -compared to the world into which I had stepped.
One night in particular I stood in a hotel lobby. Remembering what I had done to get there, I tried to explain to two ladies that it was a dream. They became so frightened, I realized that I must return to my bed before they called the police and had me arrested. So I closed my eyes to the hotel lobby and opened them, thinking I would see the familiar bedroom where my physical body was, only to discover I was still standing in the lobby. Then I realized that, although I had entered an entirely different world consciously, I did not know how to return.
Although I knew of no road that would lead me back, I knew that feeling was the secret. So, while standing in a solidly real body, I imagined my head was on a pillow. I persisted until I knew I was there. Then I realised that my body was dead. That I was a living presence which had moved into it. It seemed like an eternity before I could move my little finger, my arm from the elbow down, and finally to feel the warmth of my wife’s body and know I had returned.
The world we enter at night is just as real as this one. Like this world, everything there contains within itself the capacity for symbolic significance. At the end of your day (or night) dream, try to interpret it symbolically, as there is only one foundation for your dreams; and that is your own wonderful human imagination.
A friend wrote telling of a dream which, although it seemed as though years separated the events, it took place in one night. At four different moments in time, he entered a very plush eating establishment in England, where he was recognised and greeted as royalty. Deciding to disguise himself, he entered the rear door, when the maitre d’ pointed to him and said to a waiter: “He really is the Lord.”
This experience is more than a dream; it is a memory of a previous experience which must now be interpreted on a different level. My friend has reached the point where his shadow world is recognizing him as the Lord. Only when he reaches the end of his journey, will confirmation come to bear witness to his true identity.
May I tell you all: it does not matter what part you play in this dream of life. What does matter is that you are destined to become the Lord. You could be playing the part of a thief, judge, prisoner, or warden; but one day you will awaken and know yourself to be the Lord.
Now, when you think of your dream of the night, it will appear to be an experience in a shadow world; but if you had awakened there you would have known its reality. If I had not deliberately stepped into the hotel, but unconsciously found myself there, I would have called it a dream; for an experience, knowingly executed, seems real – while those slipped into unknowingly seem unreal. Yet all unrealities, not known to be such, are real; for the reality of a dream does not differ from the reality of this world – for it, too, is a dream.
Let nothing come between you and that foundation of which Paul speaks and defines as the creative power of God and the wisdom of God, no matter what it may appear to be. Allow no one to come between you and God, for God is your own wonderful human imagination, and who can lead you there?
Every moment of the day you are thinking. Be careful what you think, for your thoughts will be tested by fire, and if they survive you will receive a reward. Your thought (your imagination) is fireproof. But if you believe fulfillment is conditioned on a chain letter, another person, or going to church and praying to an unknown God, then something has come between you and the one foundation. Nothing must come between you and your imagination (thought), who is the Lord Jesus Christ.
Believe me. Make imagination your one solid foundation. Do this and you will enjoy a freedom you have not known before. It is a fantastic freedom! Just imagine and it’s done!
Imagination is the only foundation. No other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Man has tried to lay other foundations in the many isms of the world. These are not Jesus Christ, for he is man’s I amness, man’s human imagination, and there is no other God. Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one, whose name forever and ever is I AM!
Accept awareness as your way of life, and you will find a freedom you have never known before. You will become aware of the fact that everyone and everything is yourself pushed out. You will awaken as God, the father of all life, to realise that although things appear to die they do not, for nothing dies in Christ.
I know in my own search I laid many foundations. I was taught to believe that eating meat was one, so for seven years I was a strict vegetarian. I was so good I was good for nothing. I didn’t eat meat. I didn’t smoke. I didn’t drink and I was a celibate. At my tender age I did not realize that my attempt to be the celibate came from my complete disgust in my first marriage, so when we separated I took the vow of celibacy. I was not physically prepared for it, as I was every inch a man, but fortunately the starvation diet of vegetable life aided my decision.
At that time I was a professional dancer. While traveling across the country I would go into a restaurant and order soup, provided there was no meat stock in it. Now, what restaurant worthy of the name would make a soup without meat stock? Well, I would believe the waiter and have a good meal once in a while. Then one day before leaving for Barbados, my friend Ab said to me: “You will die, but you will not surely die.”
His prophecy proved to be true, for when I returned, I had died to everything I had not done for the previous seven years. He knew the time had come to break that spell within me. I do hope you don’t have to go through it. There is only one foundation and no other foundation – be it diet or celibacy – can anyone lay, but that which is laid, which is the human imagination.
My friend, Norma knew that her hieroglyphics meant nothing; yet she could not give up the money she derived from her clientele. She had almost everyone in the Metropolitan Opera as a client. You see, just because one breaks into the artistic world, it does not mean that he is wise. He can be just as stupid as all outdoors.
I have said to Norma: “You know I don’t believe in astronomy any more, but I do believe in my intuitive power. Tell me what the man wants and I will show you how to see it in the charts, that you may be self-persuaded. And when you are, where is the power of persuasion but in your imagination? It certainly isn’t in the chart!”
I urge you not to go to anyone on the outside. The desire you seek is housed within you. You can become self-persuaded of anything, and if you do, it will project itself on your screen of space. Take gold, the wisdom of revealed truth. Take silver, the knowledge which comes from experience, or the precious stones of noble and lovely thoughts; for fire will not destroy them. When you are in doubt, do the loving thing. If you think something terrible is going to happen, rub it out of your mind. There is no plot to destroy you as an individual, race, or nation. It’s not in scripture! Causation is in the mind of the one who is self-persuaded; and there is no other cause, for the world is awareness pushed out.
You are not fated to become wise or foolish, rich or poor. It’s entirely up to you what you build on the only foundation. If you had wise parents and they told you that you could live in comfort and freedom, be honored and wanted, because of your contribution to the world, and you believed them, you would become it. Many parents compare their children to the neighbors’ child and find theirs wanting, thinking that is the way to jack them up; but it is not. Instead, they are made to feel little and unwanted. But if you make a child feel noble and important, he will become it.
In scripture, the one who claimed that his father was God and that he was one with his father, was accused of blasphemy; but he walked as though he were, If you would do the work of God, you must assume that you are he. You cannot do the work of one that you do not feel you are. You must claim your awareness is Jesus Christ in order to know who you really are.
I tell you the world you step into tonight when you put your head on a pillow is just as real as this one. Men claim it is a shadow and unreal, yet from these so-called dreams, they interpret their state of consciousness. How can anyone interpret that which is unreal? The reality of that world, as opposed to this one, is solely produced from the level upon which consciousness is focused. If you are thinking from that world it seems the only reality. Focus your attention on this level, however, and that world will seem unreal. So, objectivity and subjectivity are solely determined by the level of consciousness upon which the individual is focused.
I hope you will take me seriously, as there is no other foundation. You need not be born into a certain nation, race, or religious belief to experience your desire. You can become the lady or gentleman you want to be by standing on the only foundation. Many successful people had no social, financial, or political foundation to get them where they are. They simply believed in themselves. They imagined they were what they wanted to be by living as though they were. Then in a way no one could devise, their assumption externalised itself.
Most people, after externalising their desire, forget the ladder by which they did ascend. I hope you will not. You don’t need to brag, but if anyone should ask you how you achieved your goal, tell them how – in spite of any so-called worldly requirements – you believed you already were the person you wanted to be, and possessed the section of the world you wanted to possess. Do this, that you may encourage him to do the same.
Can you believe in this one and only foundation? If the word Jesus Christ offends you, use another. I love the word because I know its meaning. Jesus Christ is the power and the wisdom of God who is your own wonderful imagination.
Dare to assume that you have your desire. You may feel you do not have the wisdom to find the means to get it, but you do. If it takes one thousand or ten thousand people to play their parts to bring you into the embodiment of what you have assumed you are, they will play their parts, knowingly or unknowingly. You don’t have to be concerned as to who is going to aid you. Simply dare to assume you are what you want to be, and you will compel everyone to play their part to bring about your assumption. That is life.
Live so that your mind can store a past worthy of recall, because any section of your past that cannot stand the fire will suffer loss. Build nobly, for you will continue to be confronted with your past until God awakens within you.
When this glorious knowledge awakens and you realise you are the one spoken of in scripture, you will be thrilled beyond measure. I know! And I will tell you from experience that the Bible is your biography and you are destined to experience everything recorded there as one called Jesus Christ. There never was another. He has always been you!
You are the dwelling place of God and the spirit of God dwells in you. His dwelling place is holy. That place you are, therefore you must be God. How will you know this? By dying to your delusions. Every foundation, every belief other than the belief in yourself, is a delusion that must die; for no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ, and that being you are!
Now let us go into the silence.
Neville Goddard’s central thesis reframes the biblical metaphor of Christ as an inward principle rather than an external deity. By identifying Christ with the creative faculty of the human imagination, he challenges conventional religious and mystical systems that place authority outside the individual. This radical subjectivism empowers listeners to reclaim agency and discard intermediaries—priests, rituals, or doctrines—that obscure direct communion with the divine I AM.
Goddard’s exposition of Paul’s teaching in 1 Corinthians underscores the permanency of this foundation versus the perishability of external materials—gold, silver, hay, or stubble. He interprets Paul’s warning about works tested by fire as an allegory for thoughts and beliefs subjected to reality’s proving ground. Only those thoughts arising from genuine self-identification with the I AM survive the crucible of experience.
Through the stories of Norma the astrologer and personal dream episodes, Goddard illustrates how belief systems based on superstition or accident momentarily yield results but ultimately falter. The chain-letter anecdote highlights how fear-based persuasion builds on false grounds, while dream narratives reveal the full reality of imagination unbounded by physical senses. These examples reinforce his claim that all phenomena are projections of the same creative source.
Goddard’s dream of being trapped in a hotel lobby becomes a powerful metaphor for awakening consciousness. It shows that returning to one’s body—or waking reality—requires inner feeling and intention rather than mechanical processes. This serves as a practical model for manifestation: by feeling oneself into the desired state, one recreates the experience in outer reality.
The lecture culminates in a call to practical application: assume the feeling of your wish fulfilled, and let no external circumstance interfere with your inner conviction. Goddard offers a psychological methodology for self-persuasion and visualization, rooted in the unassailable foundation of imagination. This pedagogical strategy not only teaches listeners to manifest desires but also to live in a constant state of creative awareness.
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