School of Meditation: Image Meditation (how to meditate on a picture)

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The first thing, one usually thinks when imagining their selves performing meditation, is that one should close their eyes. Although this is a useful helper, it is not a mandatory step for most of the meditation techniques. Even more, in some cases, like the one here, one should keep their eyes open.

In this technique we are using an image or a picture to meditate on it. Although it may seems like creative visualisation, and it is true that there is some common ground in the two of them, it is something quite different.

Choose a picture that makes you feel nice, inspired, or gives you a feeling you would like to make your own. You can use a clear or an abstract image. You can use an archetype symbol or something as simple as a nice post card. There isn’t really right or wrong. Some pictures may work miracles for one person, and do nothing to another, or some pictures may be suitable for one purpose and useless for another. So chose your pictures according to the feeling they are giving you, experiment, and then decide if you want to keep working with this image.

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Find a place to put the image on. For best results, while looking to the picture you should not have anything interesting in your field of view. So, use a simple coloured wall or table, or a simple coloured piece of cloth to put behind the image. Of course, after some training you will be able to keep your concentration regardless the background. For the same reason try to use a picture that is large enough, but the whole picture should be in your sight while focusing at its centre. Also, from your relaxed sitting position you should be able to effortlessly focus at the centre of the image.

Now, sit comfortably and relax your body and mind by taking some deep breathes. For this step, you can close your eyes if you prefer, but I wouldn’t recommend it. Let them stay open, but keep them unfocused. You are not interested in what’s happening around you. Not even in the picture in front of you. Your only interest is your breathing.

When feeling ready, focus your eyes at the centre of your picture and relaxingly keep on your deep breathing. Some feelings and thought soon will start occurring. Take a notice of them but don’t dwell in them. Observe them like they are the feelings and thoughts of somebody else. Your main interest is your breathing. When and if your eyes want to move around the image, let them do so. And then let them focus wherever in the image they want. Don’t force them to stay focused in the centre or any part of the image, and don’t impel them to change place. Just keep your head motionless, focus on your breathing and trust your eyes.

Keep the procedure as much as you want, but for beginners, fifteen minutes is the minimum time. Your mind may refuse to express itself loudly enough if it doesn’t feel comfortable with the procedure, so you need to give it time. Whenever you want to terminate your meditation, just let your eyes close, relax them and end your meditation as you usually do. After that, write down your experience. Also, state in your journal what picture or image you have used. That’s it. After some time and repetitions read your journal. You will find it very informative about yourself. You may use this method to help you become more connected with your tarot or oracle deck. Use the cards of your deck as images and meditate on them. Your readings will become more clear and detailed. You may also use this method to help your connection with your favourite deity or being. Use their image and meditate on them. Is there a person you admire and you want to become like him or her? Use their image to meditate on it. It doesn’t matter if these persons are dead, alive or even imaginary. It doesn’t even matter if they do really posses the qualities you think they do. What matters is what you feel about them. Are you pregnant and you wish to help your unborn child to become as good-looking as possible? Use images of people of the sex of the child, if know, or both sexes if not, that you find them to be of great beauty and meditate on them daily, if possible. Keep in your thoughts that you want this blessing for your child. You can help yourself to evolve your beauty by meditating for a period of time in pictures of people that posse the kind of beauty you want for yourself. Practice on this for at least three months. If you can do something to help the procedure, like for example start a diet, or some exercise, do so. The tricky part in this is that you should admire the appearance of these people, without feeling disappointed of your looks. If you are facing problems of this nature, use The Ultimate Beauty Spell first and then empower it even more with these meditations. These are only a few of the many ways you can employ this meditation technique to help yourself and your life to become better. Have fun!

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