Visualizations
Sitting in silence, Ask “How can I use the energies of Sagittarius for the upliftment of creation as a whole?” Align with the universal realm of ideas. In receptivity, allow yourself to await new inspirations, new impressions. With a joyful heart, receive and resolve to manifest these new ideas into the world as an act of service to humanity.
Sitting comfortably in silence welcome the fiery, passionate, and expansive energies of Sagittarius in. Practice being mindful of the destructive potential of these energies by allowing thoughts of lower nature to come in, and release them out with each breath.
At this time, it is essential that we choose to fill our mental and emotional natures with temperance, silence, and mindfulness. Only from this place can we find alignment and sense the vision of what is possible. Allow your body to relax completely and focus on using your energy to renounce all obstacles that might be hindering the union of achieving your highest spiritual goals.
Note:
This meditation is great for when there is a New or Full Moon in Sagittarius, it is also appropriate when the Sun is in Sagittarius, or if your birth sign is Sagittarius, or you have a special affinity for Sagittarius.
Source: The Hood Witch
Select a variety of obsidian stones that intuitively draw your attention and is pleasing to your senses. The shape of the obsidian that you choose is also a matter of personal preference, but spheres and eggs seem to be the most popular meditation shapes. After cleansing and blessing your stone as well as the space where you will be practicing your meditation, you are ready to begin.
Begin your meditation by situating yourself in an upright position with feet booth flat on the floor. the room should be dimly lit, and quiet.
Once you are seated in a comfortable position, begin a rhythmic breathing sequence by inhaling deeply through the nose, holding the breath for three seconds and slowly exhaling from the mouth. As you inhale, visualize cleansing golden/white light vibrations entering your body through your nose, and traveling down your trachea and filling your lungs, chest cavity and heart center with warm, glowing sensations.
As you exhale, visualize discordant vibrations, tension, confusion, and stress leaving your body through your mouth in dark, cloudy swirls of energy. Bless yourself, and your discordant vibrations in the name of Spirit or any deity you deem fitting when you seek comfort, protection, and solace. Cast these discordant vibrations unto the ether to find peaceful resolution.
While sitting in silence welcome the energy of Aries and it’s rulers Mars and Mercury. Hold the intention of transmuting the Warrior energy within to the higher plane of mind. Take this time to breathe deeply, and focus your vision onto your stone. Choose to use the dynamic Aries electric fire to stimulate your intuition and to bring forward new ideas and ideals for the upliftment of humanity.
Begin to visualize golden/white light surrounding you and entering your nose, filling your chest, and heart center with warm loving sensations. As you exhale, visualize frustration, resentment, anxiety, and anger leaving your body in dark, cloudy swirls. Bless this discordant energy in the name of any higher or divine power you feel most comfortable with.
Pick up your obsidian in your left hand and begin to gaze upon it. Notice the depth of its color, the rich, dark, satiny luster of your black crystal. Now repeat: “Attune, Balance, Integrate, Ground” three times, then place the index of finger of your right hand upon your obsidian and began to stroke it gently. “Attune to the depths of obsidian. Attune to the depths of the black ray.”
After a time you might experience some warmth or tingling, especially along the spinal column, from your crown to your base chakra, down your legs and into your feet. This is the effect of your energy system attuning to the divine vibrations being amplified through your obsidian and should not cause alarm. Relax, breathe deep, and allow yourself to merge with and absorb the energies being transmitted by your obsidian crystal.
Visually fix the black color of obsidian at your base chakra, see your base chakra as a liquid pool of black obsidian, pulsating with the black light vibration that grounds you through your base chakra to the very consciousness of Earthly existence. If you’re using a colored obsidian, visualize the shimmering colors within your obsidian as swirling divine light vibrations above your head. Now allow those swirling divine lights to slowly travel the length of your crown chakra down into the liquid pool of obsidian at your base. Watch the shimmering colors mingle, integrating the etheric with the dynamics of Earthly survival modes.
Hold this visualization for up to 10 minutes. allow your obsidian to illuminate those aspects of yourself and your Earthly reality that you have been keeping hidden away from view. Allow the light of truth to illuminate the chambers where delusion, self-importance, and compulsions for material greed lie veiled by the ego- facilitated conditioned attitudes that may be keeping you from your highest potential.
Allow your obsidian to assist you to clearly see the reality of your thought patterns as to how it pertains to your survival on Earth. Allow the light of truth to penetrate and illuminate the depths of darkness, and know that the light and darkness exist as one.
When you are ready to end the meditation, slowly count backwards from ten to one. at the count of one, open your eyes and breathe deeply several times. Remain seated until you feel fully integrated, and reflect upon your meditation experience. This is an excellent meditation for journal writing after.
From: The Hood Witch
Am I willing to be born anew…again and again, and again?
Light a deep red candle and burn incense of or oil of Myrrh. Sitting in silence, breathe in the sign of Scorpio and place it in your heart center. Visualize the color scarlet surrounding you, and breathe that color into your heart, allow it to fill you with strength, courage, intensity, and passion. Honor these powerful energies and ask that they be used to assist in the journey to transform lower nature into your highest good.
- Note:
This meditation can be done when the Sun or Moon is in Scorpio, or if your birth sign is Scorpio. If you are not sure of the dates for the Sun or Moon, you can check with Google, or The Pagan Calendar.
Found at: The Hood Witch
Begin by taking some full, deep breaths. Don’t try to force anything, just relax and breathe deep.
As you breathe, imagine yourself standing in a grove of tall, strong trees. See yourself as one of those tall, strong trees. Breathe deep and feel the ground beneath you and the sun shining down upon you. Feel your connection to the Earth and become aware that you now have roots where your feet were.
Breathe deep and on an exhale, slowly begin to send those roots deep into the ground. Down, down through the grass and the topsoil, Down through soil and rock and the roots of other plants and trees. Through water tables and bones and all the many layers of Earth. Continue to send those roots down, down in search of the Source at the center of the Earth. Begin to feel the energy pulsating as you draw near and feel the heartbeat of the Earth.
When you reach that source of energy deep within the Earth, let it take a form in your minds eye. It may be a huge crystal cluster, or the hot molten core of the Earth. With your roots, tap into that source of energy, breathe deep and feel the energy slowly begin to rise, traveling up your root.
Up, up through the layers of Earth and soil and rock. Through roots and seedlings and water tables. Feel the energy rise up your roots, through your feet, your calves you thighs. Let that Mother Earth energy rise through your trunk, your torso, and up, up through your chest and arms and neck. Let it reach your head and just fill you. Stay with this feeling for a moment and just breathe.
Now, imagine you have branches that are tall and wide and reach up to the sky. Feel the air rushing around your branches and the warmth of the sun as it caresses your leaves. Take a deep breath and with it, take in the energy of the sky and the sun. Let it tickle each leaf before being drawn into your branches.
On another in breath, take that sky energy deep into your tree and feel it flow down through your head, your shoulders, your arms and chest. Breathe it into your torso, hips and legs. Feel it mixing and mingling with the energies of the Earth. Stay with this feeling for a while and just breathe.
~ Sacred Path Reiki
How do we get to travel beyond our own limitations and out and beyond the old barriers and cages of self? The ice river is a very ancient and also, a very well known way to do just that. It exists in many different permutations across the widest range of cultures; and it is a truly magical occurrence. Just as magical are the winter lands.
There is no accident in the fact that Superman’s “Fortress of Solitude” can be found at the North Pole, the palace of the Ice Queen and Father Christmas’s multi-coloured magical workshop “where all the toys in the world are made”. This is deep magic, very old, very powerful.
On this journey we do nothing but to scout these lands “beyond” and become more familiar with them, re-claim them as our own and begin to make a first connection to the magic which resides here and which truly, “cannot be found in any other place, in any other way”.
Many people spend a lifetime “looking for their magic” and this journey will show an aspect of this magic which is perfectly ours, perfectly our own and perfectly reachable – if we make the effort and seek it out with volition, get to know it and when the time is right, re-awaken it from its frozen sleep.
On a personal note, it was Ice River directly which taught me how to use my “night eyes” – to see the patterns of the energy world with a set of other senses than the physical eyes. What it might do for each individual of course, I cannot know – but I do know that I would like each person to at least travel there once and just make that first contact, so their own “north poles” are once again, a part of their world in awareness at least.
~Sylvia Hartmann
Ice River
Let’s transport ourselves for a moment
to a different place, a different time
of where the autumn turns to winter
scapes, a gentle merging as the sun
is low on the horizon and the air
tastes sharp and clear.
We would stand
in warming furs, well covered
snug within
and we would see ahead
a river white and wide
straight river, out into
the far perspective where
the banks have merged
before the low horizon
meets the single point
in distance.
And we would step upon
our starting point,
a frozen lake
so deeply frozen,
thickest glass
of white and blue
so solid now
beneath our feet
and as our feet
would quite without
our mind’s command
would now begin
to move and slide
and skate in
rhythmic pulses
left to right
and as our bodies
bend into the movement
and our arms begin
to reach as well
thus we begin
our journey
forward
upward
on the river white
and raise our eyes
to where the point
of far perspective lies
and we begin to travel
Faster, faster still
and lighter,
each forward pulse
increases the momentum
each forward pulse
adds speed and now we
seem to fly towards
the point of far perspective
where the land must
meet the sky and all is
one, and silent white,
pulse travelling
pulse carrying
pulse flying
as the point expands
and seems a light
that seems to grow
in brightness and
you know
the doorway
lies before you
as you keep your eyes
towards the gate of far perspective
as you approach
and it grows more defined
and clearer
in your vision
soft white
and pulsing with a beat
that is the same
that pulses in your body
that brings you closer
closer with each beating
of your heart
It grows
the doorway grows
and now it fills your vision
here it is,
here you are
here you have arrived
at the gate of far perspective
and another pulse or two or three
bring you into the white
and white is right
and all there is
and for a moment there is
nothing but the movement
on continuing and phasing
slowing from the impetus
relaxing down and slowing more
until you passed the gate
and you become aware and see: T
he winter world before you
and the river still
and frozen still it is for
you to travel glass and icy smooth
and yet it is a river and it turns
and loops through winter land.
Slowly and without the slightest effort
you begin to glide the Winter River
and you see all along
the banks on either side
fantastic landscapes, crisp and white
the sky so radiant blue above
and all is winter still
and winter reverend.
Gently you glide by
and you perceive
enchanted castles,
frozen wells
and there’s a knowing
that there’s sleeping things,
snug and safe
in timeless slumber
deep beneath
the sweeps and crests
of ancient ice
that lie a frozen ocean
stretching far
and further still.
Gently you glide by
and you perceive
ice mountains,
sparkling glass
fantastic sculptures
that are beautiful
and they are here
as they could be
not anywhere
but here
Gently you glide on
and know that this
is now a world
that others never seek
to seek, nor seek to
travel.
And as you travel,
and observe,
and as you travel
and you marvel at the beauty
and the clarity
the timelessness
and perfect beauty of the white
your world grows larger
and a part that has been
long denied
has taken and is taking now
its rightful place
at last.
And you can know
as darkness falls
and Northern Lights play
in the sky
beneath your closing arc
that there is magic here
that there is much
you never thought to seek
that you might think
of coming here again
to seek and find
to learn and love
to stand before
the vastness and the beauty
and you might find
the kind of treasure here
that simply cant be known
in any other way
in any other place.
Glide by
Beneath the banding lights
of dancing jade and purple,
celestial blue and green
in hues you’ve never known
you glide on by to find
the gate of far perspective
for your journey here
was one of recognition
and of admiration
and of re-connection
to a something
that you might have thought
you had forgotten
and yet that lives
and sleeps and breathes
forever in a beauty
that cannot be found
in any other place.
Beneath the diamond stars
in stillness you return
and close the distance gently
as the gate grows from the point
of far perspective
widening on your approach
and with a tiny sense
of deep regret
at leaving once again so soon
and with a small decision to return
when time is here and time is right
you move towards the growing gate of white
that takes you back and through into
your time of mind,
and back and through
into your time of here and now,
a gentle dis-so-lucian
of the magic and
a gentle drifting back to self
in thought, in mind, in
physicality
as your awareness of the here-and-now
comes back in gentle waves,
in gentle waves of feelings and sensations
here and now
and bright aware
retaining and remembering.
~Sylvia Hartmann
If you could shift
your point of view for just a moment, as you
now grow still
and silent within,
without a thought or care,
without a thought of worry or desire,
then you might just begin to feel:
A power tingling in your fingertips,
a breath that draws to you
a part of all there is, of which
you are a part,
and that surrounds you, buoys you, nourishes, protects
and reaches far and wide
and further still
into the deepest blues of oceans
the deepest greens of mountain lakes
and all the creatures that reside
in forest groves, eternal deserts
as above,
the stars are dancing.
Oceans of energy
and they lie at your fingertips,
for you to navigate and learn
to know the ancient arts
of balance, deep release
and once again restore
the Even Flow,
the perfect state of being.
Silvia Hartmann, 2001
Please take a seat and clear your mind of what fills it now and hear my words:
As you are sitting, close your eyes and feel the yellow of the sun..Reach up with your arms and let your fingertips touch that yellow..Now, lay back, with your arms extended and become a ray of the sun..As we all lay in a circle, we form the sun – we are all rays of this vivid starburst.
Look down to the Earth and see the fields ripe with the summer’s abundance..Find your self in the center of this abundance holding a large willow basket, eager to begin your autumn harvest.
Step first into an expanse of sweet corn..See the erect, regal, green stalks of corn..Observe a ripe ear on a particular stalk which extends to you..Under its scruffy whiskers kernels that sparkle like gold shine through. You are reminded of your own riches – both tangible and intangible..Reach out and pick this ear and put it into your basket.
Leave the corn field and enter an orchard; an apple orchard..See the beauty of these trees, these majestic symbols of the Goddess..Feel the fullness of her boughs – full of ruby red apples of knowledge..Reach up, way up, and pick two. Put one in your basket and eat the other. Taste and enjoy this fruit – for in this garden tasting an apple is not forbidden.
Now move toward an onion field which beckons you..Once green, now browning spikes point up to you, tempting you to dig below…Pull gently and the ground gives birth to aniridescent, opal bulb, full of body and character and strength..A vegetable with the power to make you feel the power of tears..Add this to your growing harvest.
Notice ahead thick bushes of ripened raspberries..Sharp brambles protecting their precious, succulent garnets..The sweet nectar of these berries remind you of your own sensuality – your own ability to feel, express, extend all that is soft and loving and warm to others..Take your time here and pick plenty of these supple jewels for your basket.
Step away now and look around you..Find a patch of fruit or vegetables that appeals to you..Enter it, admire its offerings, select a precious gem of your own to harvest..Choose a resource to sustain you in the rapidly upcoming time of cold and darkness…Capture some warmth and light and savor its presence.
With your arms now laden with this basket of bountiful treasures, it is time now to rest..Take your harvest to the grassy knoll in the sun just beyond and sit and bask in the glory of its healing heat..Rest in contentment knowing you have collected that which you need to give you strength and nourishment in the winter days to come.
Put yourself back in the sky now..Become the sun once again..Shine down upon yourself and your gatherings..Absorb the energy of the fruits of your labors, bless these seeds you planted in the Spring and nurtured to fruition through the summer..Be the sun..Shine down upon all that is good and good-giving..Give the light of hope to all you shine upon.
When everything you have touched with your rays is full of your brightness, open your eyes and rejoin our circle.
By: Angelica
Found at: Magickal Winds
At Lughnasadh (August 1st), the harvest is kicking in. This is a time of year when the masculine energy of the earth is in full swing. For starters, it’s the season of the spirit of grain, and a time to honor Lugh, the craftsman god. Lugh was not only a craftsman, but a gifted smith and swordsman. The season from late summer to the middle of fall is often a season of heightened energy for those who identify with the warrior soul.
Who Is the Warrior?
The warrior in today’s society is someone who understands the idea of right action. He or she follows a code of honor, and abides by that code even when it may be inconvenient or unpopular. The warrior recognizes that the forces of creation and destruction must be balanced. The warrior is empowered because he or she knows his own circumstances, limitations and goals. Perhaps most importantly, the warrior is someone who has made past mistakes, owned up to them, and learned not to repeat them.
A note on women and the concept of warrior:
The notion of masculine energy and a warrior soul is not exclusive to men. Many women have powerful warrior spirits. Think of the warrior soul as an archetype of personal empowerment. Indeed, throughout history, many women have been known as mighty warriors. If it helps you get in touch with your inner warrior, envision some of them as you work. Picture Boadicaea of the Iceni, conquering the Roman army, or Penthesilea battling her lover, Achilles. If you lean towards more current history, consider France’s Jeanne d’Arc, or Grainne’ ni Mhaille, the Irish pirate. For those who connect best with pop culture, even television’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly’s Zoe, or Xena make perfectly good warrior woman archetypes.
Setting the Mood:
You may wish to prepare your mind and body prior to starting the meditation. Some people like to take a ritual bath as a method of cleansing the body, and clearing the mind. If you wish, you can anoint yourself with Blessing Oil or another oil of your choice before beginning. Since you’re performing a warrior meditation, why not try adding a bit of war paint to your face amd body?
Before getting started, make sure you can work undisturbed somewhere for about an hour. Turn off the cell phone, get off the Internet, and send the kids off to play with friends for a while. Perform this meditation outside if at all possible. Set up a small altar that you can sit in front of. Since you’re working outside, consider using a flat stone or a tree stump as a natural altar. On it, place symbols of the warrior spirit: a knife, a drum, an arrow, a shield — anything that helps you connect with your inner warrior. If you have ancestors or loved ones that represent the warrior archetype to you, feel free to include photographs or other heirlooms. Finally, add a purple candle – purple is the color of royalty and power, and of honor.
Although this meditation is designed to be performed solo, it can easily be adapted into a group practice, or turned into a full-fledged ritual.
Welcoming Your Inner Warrior:
Sit before your altar, and light the purple candle. Focus on the flame, and visualize the fiery passion of the warrior soul. Think about the things you’ve done in your life, incidents in which you should have taken one path, but instead chose another. Consider mistakes you’ve made, and how they’ve affected not only you, but other people. Think about the consequences of these actions. Did you learn anything from these events?
Take this knowledge of past action, and move it into the present. As a warrior, you have followed a particular path to get to the present, one with many roadblocks, twists, and obstacles in the way. How has this helped to shape the person you are now? Think about the person you have become, and how you have grown during the different experiences you’ve had.
Now, think about the person you wish to be, and how the past and present will influence the future. Understand that for you to follow a principle of right action, there may be times when you make decisions that are unpopular. Are you willing to stand up for your convictions? Are you willing to live in a manner that will earn you the respect and honor of others? To do this, you must first and foremost honor and respect yourself. One way to live rightly and with honor is to make a pledge, both to yourself and to the gods of your tradition.
As you focus on the burning flames, say:
I am a warrior.
I am one who lives with honor and pride,
in my deeds, words, and actions.
I am a warrior,
and I pay tribute to myself, my family, and my gods,
by living rightly.
Honor is found not in the sword and the first,
but in wisdom, and courage, and strength.
I will make the changes I need to make,
that I may live in an honorable way
and follow the code of the warrior.
I am a warrior,
and I have control over my mind, my thoughts, and my sword.
I pledge to hold truth in my heart,
to hold strength in my hands,
to be honest in my words,
and to stand on behalf of those who cannot speak for themselves.
This is the way of the warrior,
and I shall live with honor.
While you do this, envision the warrior archetypes that you wish to emulate. Who are some warriors you look up to and hold in high regard? Think about them, and draw their energy into you. When you are ready to end the ritual, put the candle out.
Article by Patti Wigington
Mix your mind with the moonbeams at night. Wash your sorrows in their rays. Feel the mystic light spreading silently over your body, over trees, over vast lands. Standing in an open space with quiet eyes, behold, beyond the limits of the moonbeam-revealed scenery, the bedimmed fringe of the shining horizon. Let your mind, by steady wing-beats of meditation, spread beyond the lines of visible scenes and over the horizon. Let your meditation run past the rim of the visible to the lands of fancy.
Spread your mind from the moonbeam-visible objects to the dim stars and distant skies lying beyond in the eternal stillness of the ether, all throbbing with life. Watch the moonbeams spread, not only on one side of the earth, but everywhere in the eternal region of your spacious mind. Meditate until, in the cool moonbeams of your calmness, you race over trackless skies and, in realization, behold the universe as Light.
~Paramahansa Yogananda, Metaphysical Meditations
Sit in an upright position in a chair, with your back straight, feet flat on the floor, and hands comfortably in your lap. If you wish, play soft inspirational or sacred music in the background.
Slowly take three deep breaths. On each exhalation, release all tension or negative thoughts from your mind and body.
Keeping your heart open and receptive, close your eyes. Imagine a ball of rainbow-colored light at the top of your head. Visualize it descending into the center of your brain.
Concentrate on that glowing energy, and direct it down through your neck and into your heart, feeling warmth and love. Continue directing it downward into your stomach and the rest of your organs and finally down through your legs to the soles of your feet and into the ground.
Now visualize this healing and centering energy and light coming back up from the ground and up the back of your legs. Slowly direct it up through the core of your spine and back into your head.
Imagine yourself being lifted gently into the universe. Keeping a sense of your meditative posture, see and feel yourself floating gently in outer space, surrounded by the stars and planets.
Realize that your body and the manifest universe are an inseparable cosmic creation of vibrating atomic polarities.
Realize that all the atoms in your physical body are billions of years old – composed from the exploding light of ancient stars and other electromagnetic energies.
Imagine yourself being pulled into a black hole of radiation, going past time and space into the dark womb of the universe. The silence of this black hole is beyond description – it is intelligence, as yet unthinking. Experience the peace and bliss of this all-pervasive intelligence.
Imagine this intelligence beginning to think and creatively to dream. Suddenly you experience a roaring sound and a spark of visible light spreads. Somehow originating in the sound, the light begins to radiate throughout the darkness. Creation has begun. You perceive vast clouds of many-colored lights that are the formation of galaxies and all the other creations of Earth, including your physical body.
Imagine yourself as the soul within the human body and that the sun’s rainbow-colored light is entering into your physical body. Now imagine streams of electromagnetic energy and waves of visible light pouring out of your body and creatively interweaving with the streams of energy that compost the universe.
Meditate for a momentum this web of light streams that connects your soul, mind, and physical body to the universe. Realize that through the divine inner light of your consciousness you are participating in the creation of this tapestry of light and life.
Gently bring your focus back to the planet Earth and the spot you occupy physical. See with new eyes.
~from Mandala by Judith Cornell
I think it's time to go shopping... maybe even buy some really cool stuff at my online shops!!
