Finding Your Inner Silence (Protecting Your Peace)

One of the first things to do in awakening the Spirit senses is to get in touch with your inner silence so that you will be able to hear information the Universe sends you. This recipe gets you started on preparing your senses to receive information by engaging in a practice of meditation. If you are interested in more ways to awaken your Spirit senses, check out more recipes in the S is for Spirit Magick eBook. 

Ingredients

• Comfortable place to sit
• (Optional) candle, incense, or essential oils
• At least 15 minutes of quiet, uninterrupted time

Recipe Directions

1. For at least 15 minutes, sit in a comfortable position with closed eyes, hands in your lap with right hand cradled in the left.
2. While you are aware of your thoughts, remain unattached from them. Be aware especially of your sensations.
3. If you have trouble relaxing, try lighting a candle to center your concentration, burn soothing incense, diffuse essential oils, or sit near a running fountain.
4. Now begin feeling your natural breathing as the breath moves in and out of your body. Don't force your breathing or change it any way, just feel and be aware of your body's own natural breaths.
5. As you become aware of thoughts popping up in your mind, let them pass through without focusing your attention on them. Think of this as sitting on a shoreline watching boats pass by. If you find your attention drawn to one thought in particular or find yourself hopping on that boat to explore, get off and return to shore. Simply return your focus to your breathing and let the thought pass by.
6. After at least 15 minutes of sitting in this manner you can get up and end your meditation time.

If you are interested in hearing how to use the results of this recipe and other ways of being more in tune with your Spirit Senses, please check out our S is for Spirit Magick book on Amazon!

Finding Your Inner Peace

Whenever you are trying to get in touch with your Spirit Senses, it is first important to find inner silence so you can what the Universe is actually trying to tell you. This recipe will teach you how to meditate to find your inner peace. If you enjoyed this recipe or want to get more in touch with your Spirit Senses, be sure to check out our S is for Spirit Senses Magick eBook.

How to Find Inner Silence

Time Needed: 15 minutes a day

Ingredients

• Comfortable place to sit
• (Optional) candle, incense, or essential oils
• At least 15 minutes of quiet, uninterrupted time

Recipe Directions

1. For at least 15 minutes, sit in a comfortable position with closed eyes, hands in your lap with right hand cradled in the left.
2. While you are aware of your thoughts, remain unattached from them. Be aware especially of your sensations.
3. If you have trouble relaxing, try lighting a candle to center your concentration, burn soothing incense, diffuse essential oils, or sit near a running fountain.
4. Now begin feeling your natural breathing as the breath moves in and out of your body. Don't force your breathing or change it any way, just feel and be aware of your body's own natural breaths.
5. As you become aware of thoughts popping up in your mind, let them pass through without focusing your attention on them. Think of this as sitting on a shoreline watching boats pass by. If you find your attention drawn to one thought in particular or find yourself hopping on that boat to explore, get off and return to shore. Simply return your focus to your breathing and let the thought pass by.
6. After at least 15 minutes of sitting in this manner you can get up and end your meditation time.

8 Corners of Meditation to Restore Your Spirit

With the start of the school year and also having a job, your mind can sometimes feel very hectic and cluttered. Today, Esoteric School is going to share with you a great way to declutter your mind and restore your spirit to give you more spirit for the rest of the day. If you enjoyed this, make sure to check out our Java Magick eBook on Amazon!

8 Corners of Meditation

Time Required: 15 Minutes

Ingredients Needed:

• A square or rectangular room
• A comfortable place to sit in that room (DO NOT lie down)

Recipe Directions:

1. Seat your body in a comfortable and stable position in the approximate center of a square or rectangular space or room.
2. Locate the four corners of the area that you are in at floor level (that means all around you at floor level). Hold all four in your awareness simultaneously.
3. Keeping your hold on the floor level corners, locate all four ceiling level corners with your attention.
4. Hold all 8 corners simultaneously in your awareness and don’t think. Maintain your awareness but do not focus interest on any particular thoughts, sounds, etc. that may occur. The 8 corners should receive all your interest.
5. Do not lie down to do this meditation and do not fall asleep. You can tell your mind or your body that you are fine and a sleep field is not called for.
6. If you feel in any way peculiar when you decide to end the meditation, use this relocation procedure:
   • Locate in-head points first in the center of your forehead between your eyebrows and then a point in the back center of your skull directly opposite the first point you located in center of your forehead. Then move your awareness to a location between these two points.
   • Locate your hands, then feet, and then thoughts with your awareness.
   • Locate your body relative to floor, walls, ceiling, and some random objects in the room with your awareness.

When you find yourself stressed or in a low energy state, Mind tends to take over and give directions to Body. Using the 8 Corner Meditation can also bring the Spirit out to lead you. If you enjoyed this Java Magick recipe, check out our eBook to learn more!

Yoga and Meditation for the Rest of Us

Yoga, meditation, chanting ... mmmm, all great things for your body, mind and spirit. But sometimes, in the hectic rush of everyday life, thinking of bending your body into a pretzel, or even breathing slowly, can be a huge challenge. How can you possibly relax when you have bills to pay, work to do, and life to attend to?

Don't worry. Relaxing is easy. Healing yourself and your life is not as hard as you think. You don't need to read 20 books on self-help or sit at the feet of the guru. Remember, magic, healing, and enjoyment of life are all your natural birthrights as a human being. You just have to remember how!

In fact, did you know that you've already done all 84 poses of yoga before? Fetuses go through all 84 yoga poses before they are born, so we've all done yoga! The real yoga starts, though, when we take our first breath. Breathing is the very first step in yoga.

Just Breathe, Really!
So if you really want to give yourself a huge gift of healing and relaxation during the day, breathe. Set aside three minutes to give yourself this gift. Turn off the phone, close the door, dim the lights, and just breathe. You can either breathe deeply and deliberately, holding inhales and exhales for several counts, or you can relax by just following your breath but exerting no effort.

Breathing not only increases circulation and oxygen in your body, but it nourishes your lungs, which according to Chinese medicine guards your chi or life force. Talk about the "breath of life"-breathing really can bring new energy, vitality, and zest into your life. You'll feel better, think more clearly, and act from greater inspiration.

Adding More to Your Meditation
If you've got more than three minutes to spare, you can add even more layers to this quick "meditation" with some colored candles. Burn a sun yellow candle for more joy, bright red for more energy, light blue for more understanding, grass green for grounding and physical healing or water blue for calming and connection with your Spirit. Candles actually "push" the colors at you, so you absorb those energies without effort.

If you take a few minutes each day to breathe, be present in your body, and be connected to Life, you can say that you do yoga and meditation every day. Quantity isn't all that counts, quality counts too. When you're deeply present, even for a few moments every day, you can take great strides in both your physical and spiritual life!

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to the feed to have future articles delivered to your feed reader. Or, visit our website for more great resources.

On the Magic of the "In-Betweens"

Magic lives in the "in-between" moments of our world. Think about it. Do you ever wonder why children can see fairies and angels, but adults usually can't? It's because as adults we have learned to see the concrete fixed objects in our world, not the shadows between the objects. We've learned to focus our attention on the tasks of our day, not the moments between tasks. In other words, we've lost the magic of the "in betweens" in our lives.

Why Magic Happens "In-Between"
If you read a lot of different esoteric authors, you'll find that most of them tell the same message, which is that magic tends to appear in-between things rather than directly. For instance, Carlos Castaneda writes about how Don Juan taught him to view the world in terms of the shadows that were present, instead of seeing the world of light. Other writers talk about the real essence of music is the space between the notes, rather than the notes themselves. Meditation masters strive to lengthen the gap between thoughts, so the magic can slip in and miracles can happen.

So why does magic happen "in-between"? Because by its definition magic is, well, magical. It surprises and astonishes us. It seems miraculous, impossible, and amazing. By definition, none of the things we can see, touch, and move directly in this world meet those criteria. It's not magic if we take a lot of action and achieve something. It is magic if we wish for something but take no action, and our wish becomes manifest.

How to Expand Your "In-Between" for More Magic
There are lots of magical ways to create and expand the "in-between" moments in your life, so magic can sneak up on you and surprise you. Flipping your world on its head is one fun way to do this. How do you flip your world upside down? Easy. Here are three ways to get you started:

1. See the World in Terms of Shadow
This is the exercise Don Juan gave to Carlos Castaneda. With this exercise when you look at a scene, try to see only the shadows, not the objects in the light.

2. Listen for Silence
We are constantly drowning in sound, even though we may not notice it. During the day, see if you can hear the silence instead of any concrete sound. What is the sound of silence? Many people hear it as a low ringing or buzzing in their ears, and some magical practitioners actually use this sound as a magical power source for spell work and other energy work.

3. Create Pauses Between Action and Reaction
Most of the time, we cruise around the world mechanically, and react automatically to any stimulus that hits our senses. When someone says, "Hi!" we automatically respond with a "Hi, how are ya?" We may not even really notice the interaction, or remember it later. To create more in-between times in your day, create a pause between the time a stimulus hits your senses and the time you respond. For instance, when someone says, "Hey, how are ya?" instead of sending back an automatic reply, take a moment to pause, stop, look the person in the eyes, and then reply. This pause can take all of one second, but the deliberate insertion of a pause between input and output creates an "in-between" moment. You can do the same thing when the phone rings. Stop a moment before your reach out to answer the phone ... wait for a couple of rings ... and then answer.

What kinds of magic will creep into these deliberately created moments between things? Only you will know. Magic can be very personal at the level of these exercises, so how it manifests in your life will also be personal. Be on the lookout for the magic, though, because the more "in-betweens" you create, the more magic will show up in your life!

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to the feed to have future articles delivered to your feed reader. Or, visit our website for more great resources.

How to Meditate with Animals

Meditating with Animals

We all know that watching fish swim, chickens peck, or cats stretch can be very relaxing, but did you know that you can actually extend the art of animal watching to a meditation that can offer you deep insights into the wisdom of animals?

One of our favorite teachers, Abraham-Hicks, likes to say that whenever you want to attract something into your life, feel the desire for that thing and then pet the cat. Why should you pet the cat? Because almost by osmosis you get that relaxed, go-with-the-flow, allowing feeling that cats automatically exude, and Abraham teaches that allowing is the key to manifestation.

Animals, by their very nature, are more in touch with Spirit than we are, and tend to be connected to all that is higher. If you want to relax, get back in touch with Spirit, and connect with the higher, try this simple animal meditation.

1) Get into a comfortable position where you can see the animal you want to meditate with. Make sure the animal you've chosen is in a relaxed state of being. You can choose a cat, dog, horse, cow… any animal that seems to have the spiritual energy you're looking for.

2) Observe the animal closely. Notice the color of their coat or skin, the way the light catches different parts of their body. Notice anything that comes to you about the animal's appearance. Keep this level of observation for a minute or two.

3) Next, begin to mimic the animal's breathing. Match the animal breath for breath. Now extend that mimicry to include the animal's expression and focus of attention. Are the eyes open or closed? Where is the animal's attention? What is he or she looking at? Is the animal's attention inwardly or outwardly focused? Stay focused on this aspect of the meditation for a few minutes, until you really begin to feel that you are being "breathed" by the animal's rhythm.

4) Finally, if you want, mimic the animal's action. If a cat is twitching its tail, imagine you have a tail, then twitch it in the same rhythm. If the horse you are watching is chewing grass, move your jaw in the same motion. How does that feel? Stay with the meditation as long as you wish, or until you get the connection you're looking for.

If you've chosen an animal that is truly in a connected state of being, and you mimic that animal's actions, expressions, breathing and attention, you will begin to feel the same sort of spiritual connection that most animals feel all the time. Plus, it will give you a lot of insight into how your animal perceives the world.

This exercise works because of the law of "as above, so below." When you physically mimic your chosen animal, your mind and spirit will also mimic the animal's mental and spiritual state. In fact, some horseback riding trainers encourage their (human) students to follow their horses around for an entire day, mimicking everything they do. This gives the students an opportunity to really understand the world from the horse's point of view.

Animals have so much wisdom and connection to share with us, and we often miss their special gifts because we don't take the time to really "be" with them. To learn more about how to communicate directly with animals, check out Leta Worthington's beginning animal communication ebook.

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to the feed to have future articles delivered to your feed reader. Or, visit our website for more great resources.

Three Magical Rituals Before Breakfast

Magic is part of life, not something you do separate from your everyday life. Therefore magical rituals should be a part of life, which means that, for the most part, they can't be these horribly complicated events requiring lots of tools, smoke, and mirrors.

If you want to have magic in your life, you have to practice magic all the time. Think that's too hard or that you don't have enough time to do that? Think again.

My Three Magic Rituals Before Breakfast
I do at least three separate magic rituals every single day before breakfast, and it's no sweat, really. Want to know what they are? Simple.

1. Sit
Sitting, or meditating, is one of the best ways to invite magic into your life. I sit every single morning and surround myself with quiet. I tend to sit in lotus position, because it's a stable position and I like it, but you don't have to. Just sit (or lie down if sitting is too uncomfortable). It doesn't matter whether you sit for 5 minutes for 50 ... just as long as you are quiet for long enough that the magic can slip into your life, between your thoughts as it were. The magic happens in the space between thoughts.

2. Greet the Day
I go out and greet the day using the Navajo Beauty Way Day Greetings every single morning before breakfast. It's my way of making contact with powers and beings, acknowledging their presence, making any special requests for help, and generally getting in touch with my magical allies. If you want to know how to do the Beauty Way, check out these articles:
The Beauty of the Navajo Beauty Way
Personalize Your Magic to Make it One of a Kind – The Art of Cut and Fit
Life Hit You With a 2' x 4'? Use This Quick Magickal Solution

3. Do a Reading
I'm usually reading some esoteric text or other, and I'll spend a few minutes in the morning immersing myself in some good spiritual material. I like readings from Gurdjieff, Abraham-Hicks, Carlos Castaneda, Edgar Cayce, and some more esoteric authors as well. A lot of people like to pull a card from the Medicine Cards or Sacred Path Cards, or flip open an angel book to get an "angel thought" for the day. Whatever floats your boat, pull some spiritual material from somewhere to get your day started on a magical footing.

All three of these little rituals take about 30 minutes total. That's not a whole lot of time to dedicate to living a truly magical life, and that's about all the Universe requires to bring the magic into your life. Pretty simple, huh?

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to the feed to have future articles delivered to your feed reader. Or, visit our website for more great resources.

Want Some Magic Tomorrow? Imagine it Today!

Imagination Today = Magic Tomorrow

Most of us know that creative visualization is an important magical tool for attracting what we want in life. When I teach seminars on meditation and creative visualization, many attendees nod their heads and say, "Oh yes, I know about creative visualization and meditation."

But if you want some magic in your life, the question isn't whether or not you know about creative visualization. The question is, "Do you practice creative visualization?" If not, here's a quote that might help you realize the importance of practicing visualization as a magical tool on a daily basis. This quote is from one of our favorite teachers, Abraham-Hicks:

"Everything that you will some day live, in terms of life experience -- and by some day, we mean as soon as right now, tomorrow, the next day, or some day -- anything that you will some day live, you have first imagined. Because nothing will manifest in your experience without the imagination process happening first."

Did you get that? Nothing will ever manifest in your life unless you imagine it first. Think about that. Hasn't your life so far been the translation of your imagination and beliefs into reality?

If so, then wouldn't it be worth your time to really spend time on creative visualization? Magic, like any other area of expertise, is a matter of practice. In magical circles, we say, "If you pay into your practice, it will pay you back!"

How much have you paid into your magical practice? How much do you pay into it daily? How much do you expect it pay you back? To get some magic into your life tomorrow, what might you be willing to do today?

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to the feed to have future articles delivered to your feed reader. Or, visit our website for more great resources.

On the Magic of the "In-Betweens"

Magic lives in the "in-between" moments of our world. Think about it. Do you ever wonder why children can see fairies and angels, but adults usually can't? It's because as adults we have learned to see the concrete fixed objects in our world, not the shadows between the objects. We've learned to focus our attention on the tasks of our day, not the moments between tasks. In other words, we've lost the magic of the "in betweens" in our lives.

Why Magic Happens "In-Between"
If you read a lot of different esoteric authors, you'll find that most of them tell the same message, which is that magic tends to appear in-between things rather than directly. For instance, Carlos Castaneda writes about how Don Juan taught him to view the world in terms of the shadows that were present, instead of seeing the world of light. Other writers talk about the real essence of music is the space between the notes, rather than the notes themselves. Meditation masters strive to lengthen the gap between thoughts, so the magic can slip in and miracles can happen.

So why does magic happen "in-between"? Because by its definition magic is, well, magical. It surprises and astonishes us. It seems miraculous, impossible, and amazing. By definition, none of the things we can see, touch, and move directly in this world meet those criteria. It's not magic if we take a lot of action and achieve something. It is magic if we wish for something but take no action, and our wish becomes manifest.

How to Expand Your "In-Between" for More Magic
There are lots of magical ways to create and expand the "in-between" moments in your life, so magic can sneak up on you and surprise you. Flipping your world on its head is one fun way to do this. How do you flip your world upside down? Easy. Here are three ways to get you started:

1. See the World in Terms of Shadow
This is the exercise Don Juan gave to Carlos Castaneda. With this exercise when you look at a scene, try to see only the shadows, not the objects in the light.

2. Listen for Silence
We are constantly drowning in sound, even though we may not notice it. During the day, see if you can hear the silence instead of any concrete sound. What is the sound of silence? Many people hear it as a low ringing or buzzing in their ears, and some magical practitioners actually use this sound as a magical power source for spell work and other energy work.

3. Create Pauses Between Action and Reaction
Most of the time, we cruise around the world mechanically, and react automatically to any stimulus that hits our senses. When someone says, "Hi!" we automatically respond with a "Hi, how are ya?" We may not even really notice the interaction, or remember it later. To create more in-between times in your day, create a pause between the time a stimulus hits your senses and the time you respond. For instance, when someone says, "Hey, how are ya?" instead of sending back an automatic reply, take a moment to pause, stop, look the person in the eyes, and then reply. This pause can take all of one second, but the deliberate insertion of a pause between input and output creates an "in-between" moment. You can do the same thing when the phone rings. Stop a moment before your reach out to answer the phone ... wait for a couple of rings ... and then answer.

What kinds of magic will creep into these deliberately created moments between things? Only you will know. Magic can be very personal at the level of these exercises, so how it manifests in your life will also be personal. Be on the lookout for the magic, though, because the more "in-betweens" you create, the more magic will show up in your life!

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to the feed to have future articles delivered to your feed reader. Or, visit our website for more great resources.

 Image courtesy of  phanlop88 / FreeDigitalPhotos.net