Visualization
The ability to visualize and manipulate objects in the "mind's eye" is a very valuable talent to have. Some people seem to have a natural ability for visualization, but others need to practice "seeing" 3D objects in their minds. Developing the ability to create and manipulate images in our mind offers more potential for mental leverage than anything else. In addition to enhancing your creativity, developing this mental muscle can improve your memory, reading effectiveness and the speed at which you can think.
Creative Visualization, also sometimes called Guided Imagery is useful for many aspects of inner work, self healing, and magical workings.
Uncovering personal obstacles and blocks.
Finding "spirit guides" or "power animals".
Healing, yourself and others.
Clarifying your aims and goals.
Tapping into deep levels of creativity.
Along with meditation, may allow you to access the "collective unconscious".
Relieving stress and tension
Past life exploration
Precursor to astral travel.
Promoting your connection to the divine.
Increasing effectiveness of magickal workings.
Any time you have a free minute AND it is safe to briefly close your eyes, look at a nearby object, close your eyes, and notice if you can see its image in your mind's eye. If not, look at the object again, noticing more of the details, and close your eyes again. With your eyes closed, try to "zoom-in" on the image and notice the lines, colors, dimensions, etc. If don't "see" the mental image, try leaving your eyes open and defocusing. If you have ever looked out across the distance or at a blank wall and noticed that your mind wandered somewhere else where you weren't seeing the distant scenery or the wall, this "daydreaming" state is what I mean by defocusing. Try "daydreaming" the object.
Now sense (see, touch, hear, taste, smell) the object with your minds eye.
Choose a Tarot card from the Major Arcana, and study it. Try your visualization, prop the card up in front of you, turn down (or off) all the lights, and light one candle to illuminate the card, preferably in a place where you don't see the candle, just its light. Now ground and center yourself, focus on steady breathing, and relax, now and then looking at your card but not staring at it. Finally, when you can call a pretty detailed version of the card into your memory without looking, close your eyes and start. Imagine the card in front of you growing larger and larger, until it is the size of a large screen, something bigger than yourself, like a doorway you can step through. Take a deep breath and step over the edge of the card into the realm shown. Now wander into the card, looking at your surroundings. Don't necessarily go into the card with an idea of what you want to do; let it happen naturally. Look around you, and don't go beyond the horizon of the card. Most Major Arcana cards picture at least one person; you may choose to talk to that person, or look inside a hidden box, or whatever. Do what interests you, what you might really do if you came upon a situation like this. Try to really experience it, as if in a dream, and see, hear, feel, and experience everything as if it is real. Nothing especially interesting or amazing has to happen (though it might!), but try to do something in the card and then return to the real world by backing out the way you came and stepping into reality, then making the card shrink again in front of you. Should you wish to try this with other cards at other times, feel free; just make sure you don't get lost and "pop" back out, that is very bad for visualization skills. But when you've finished the visualization, it's important to ground yourself in reality again, just put the card face down and get up and do something mundane.
In magick visualization is used to direct the energy of spells, meditations, raising energy, etc. Visualization is the ability to form and hold images within your minds eye. If you can think up a picture mothers face right now, remember what a childhood toy looked like or see a wilderness scene in your mind that's visualization! To practice visualization examine an object before hand such as a feather or pencil or vase and then close your eyes and try to reform the image you saw in your minds eye. Try to see it clearly as if you were looking at it. Once you can do that, mentally turn the object as if you were turning it around with your hands physically. Mentally make it grow and shrink. See it from above and below. In your minds eye imagine yourself viewing it from the perspective of an ant walking along the objects surface, see what the ant would see. If your mind wanders gently bring your attention back to the image you were visualizing. Frusteration will only hinder you. Your goal is to hold the image of one object in your mind to the exclusion of any other thoughts or images. Take about 5 minutes a day twice a day practicing this.
Subject: Visualization 
Sun Aug 23, 2009 2:10 am
