Visualization

by Rainsong

In many books and websites about psionics, "visualization" is mentioned. The same is true here, in fact. Sometimes, it seems that skill in visualization itself is the only thing needed to cause any number of nifty effects, from psiballs to teleportation, judging from the instructions bandied about. This impression is false, in spite of its popularity. "Visualization" is nothing more or less than "picturing something in your mind". It is the use of your imagination. Can you picture your dog or your sister's ugly boyfriend? See them in your mind? That is visualization.

If all you had to do to make something happen is to visualize it, all dreams would come true. Literally. Even if we restrict this to "visualize it deliberately", that still includes a goodly number of dreams, and most daydreams...and most movies, comic books, novels, and paintings! No, there is more involved in making something happen than just visualization.

So, what good is it, you ask? There are a number of purposes to which visualization may be put, and we'll get to those in a moment. However, in psionics particularly, being able to visualize clearly is an aid to communicating with your subconscious. Most psionic effects appear to be accomplished by the subconscious, rather than the conscious, level of the mind. Unlike the conscious mind, the subconscious seems to prefer pictures and symbols over words and numbers. When "explaining" to your subconscious what you want it to do, you are likely to find that a picture is indeed "worth a thousand words". When making a force-bubble, for example, imagining a force-field effect from a cartoon appears to work more easily than describing in detail what you want in a series of words and phrases. The visualization need not always be literal, though. Using visual metaphors and so on can be very effective. An example of this is to imagine your psi as water flowing through pipes or streams around your body, when you are first beginning to learn how to move it around at will.

Another use for visualization in psionics is in telepathic transmission. For many people, Sending an imagined picture of something red (a fire engine, perhaps, or some cherries) will get through more readily than Sending the word "red". If your Sending is a bit weak, "using your imagination" might help your accuracy. This will also be useful if you are Sending to someone who does not speak your language. Sending a series of pictures of red things will probably get the idea across, even if you have no idea what word the Receiver would use as a descriptor. The same applies to Sending to animals. Obviously, most members of other species do not speak English, French, Swedish, and so on. It also becomes more complicated when you consider that they do not all have quite the same range of senses. "Red", to an earthworm, is meaningless, no matter how it is conveyed.

Take a moment and imagine a coffee mug. Picture it in your mind, as clearly as you can. What colour is it? Are there pictures on it, or words, or is it plain? Is there anything in it, such as some steaming coffee or hot chocolate with marshmallows? Where is it...on a table, in someone's hands, floating in space, or drawn on a chalkboard? That is a simple exercise in visualization.

Now, try picturing a ball rolling on the floor. How big is it? What colour? In what direction is it rolling? What is the floor like: a bowling alley, the carpet in the living room, and so on....

Practice visualization when you have a spare moment, such as waiting in line at the grocery store, or sitting on the bus. Picture animals, flowers, abstract shapes, faces of people you know, and so on. Penguins, roses, dodecahedrons, your second-grade Math teacher.....

When picturing random objects is nice and comfy, create entire scenes in your mind, one detail at a time. Then, expand the scene into a sort of mental video game or your own personal movie. This is entertaining, if nothing else, and is a good way to pass the time. Making your "movie" about practicing a skill such as archery or basketball can actually improve your skill in that sport. Picture yourself performing the skill perfectly, repeatedly, from the first-person perspective. Repeated visualizations of this kind are a sort of mental rehearsal. It sounds corny, but it works. It is very important to pay attention to the details in that imagined "perfect performance", or you might teach your subconscious some rather odd habits. Keep your body relaxed when engaged in this mental practice. Avoid tensing the muscles which would be used in the real-life version of the sport.

Visualization is an important skill for a budding psionicist, but you can see that it is not a psionic skill in itself. Practice it anyway. Incidentally, "visualization" does not need to be "visual", entirely or at all. Imagining the sound of your favourite singer, or of water spilling over a waterfall, is the same basic ability. Likewise, imagining the feel of a warm cup of tea between your hands, or your cat's soft fur as you stroke her back, is the same idea. The more clearly you can call these sensations to mind, the better you'll be able to use them in your psionic practices. Have fun.

-Rainsong

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Last Modified on November 29 2003