A friend of mine fell deeply in love with a girl. He saw her several times a week and they went on trips together. He was very keen that they should marry, but she refused to consider doing so. After some years, my friend dropped the relationship, realizing he wasn't getting anywhere with his hopes for a happy marriage partnership. The girl called on him some months later, wanting to renew the friendship, and he agreed. But from then on, he felt that he couldn't break free from the situation—it was like a black cloud hanging over him.
Eventually he confided in a fellow Christian Scientist. At her recommendation, he researched Mary Baker Eddy's writings to find all she had written about what she identifies as animal magnetism. He set out to make a thorough investigation of the subject in order to gain a deeper understanding of what animal magnetism is and what it isn't. Within the first four days of using his spare time to do this, he found that the black cloud in his thinking had lifted, never to return. He was free at last! His friendship with this woman continued for a little while longer, but on happier terms, and eventually it faded out. He later met another woman, with whom he has shared a very happy marriage.
The turnaround in my friend's experience shows that knowing what animal magnetism is and what it isn't can make a big difference. In the chapter called "Animal Magnetism Unmasked," Science and Health describes animal magnetism in this way: "It is the false belief that mind is in matter, and is both evil and good; that evil is as real as good and more powerful. This belief has not one quality of Truth." Science and Health, p. 103.
