The moment in The Wizard of Oz when Glinda says, “You have always had the power, my dear. You just had to learn it for yourself.” is a profound metaphor for personal transformation. It is not just a whimsical line from a fantasy film. It is spiritual truth wrapped in story.[i]
The Secret to Change: Inner Realization Glinda did not withhold the truth out of cruelty; she honored Dorothy’s journey. If she had told her too soon, Dorothy would not have believed it. Why? Because belief is not just intellectual, it is experiential. We change our behaviors and beliefs not because someone tells us to, but because something inside us shifts. We see differently. We feel differently. And then, we act differently.
Spiritual Growth Requires Integration
- In Unity[ii] and New Thought teachings, this is the essence of spiritual unfoldment. Truth must be realized, not just received.
- Kabbalistic wisdom echoes this: the light must be earned through vessels of understanding. Otherwise, it cannot be held.[iii]
- Other ancient spiritual traditions echo the same premise.[iv]
Why Experience Matters
- A child can be told the stove is hot, but only after feeling the heat do they understand.
- Likewise, we can be told we are Divine, powerful, and whole—but until we walk through the fire of doubt, longing, and discovery, those truths remain dormant.
Glinda’s wisdom reminds me that no one can walk our path for us. We must awaken to truth through experience. The power to change, to heal, to forgive, and to rise is always within. But we must learn it for ourselves. And when we do, the world opens like a doorway of light.
The spiral of the yellow brick road, the glow of the sun, and her poised stance all echoed the moment of realization: the journey was never about finding something outside herself, it was about awakening to what was always within.
[i] https://kidadl.com/facts/quotes/glinda-the-good-witch-quotes-from-the-wizard-of-oz-and-wicked
[ii][ii] Unity.org
[iii] Wisdom of Words: Unearthing the Enigmas of Kabbalistic Insights
[iv] https://www.hindu-blog.com/2025/03/discovered-truth-and-revealed-truth-in.html