SEVEN STEPS IN PRACTICAL OCCULTISM

LESSON FIVE

You never have to lie to subconsciousness in order to set it to work building the
conditions which will transform your desire from a mental fact into a physical
reality. Be
sure you understand this. A story went the round in England, which is an amusing
illustration of popular misconceptions on this point. An amateur psychologist was
trying to
explain applied psychology to a friend. Said he:

“Bill, the ‘ole gyme’s jest this. Yer gets hup of a mornin’, feelin’ orl dahn in
the
mouth, an’ yer kids yerself till yer smilin’, an’ then--blimy if yer don’t find a
pun in yer
pocket!”

Now, that is just what occult psychology is not. You don’t “kid yourself.” You make
no attempt to deceive subconsciousness. You learn the truth about yourself, tell
yourself
that truth, and act upon it.

All that keeps anybody sick, miserable, or in want, is ignorance of the truth about
human personality, its place in the scheme of things, and its powers. This
ignorance colors
and shapes the suggestions which are passing continually from the self-conscious
level of
our minds to subconsciousness. It makes us tell lies to ourselves. Because
subconsciousness
is always amenable to suggestion, these lies become its patterns which it proceeds
to work
out. The remedy is truth,

People accept the lie that sickness is to be expected every little while and
subconsciousness does its best to fulfill that expectation. They accept the lie
that ail the
resources and most of the opportunities have been appropriated by a few lucky
individuals.
Because they expect to be poor, subconsciousness works hard to give form to that
expression. They accept the lie that happiness is for the few and number themselves
among
the many. The only pattern they give subconsciousness is one which brings the
misery they
invite.

The occult aspirant should reject these and similar lies. In their place he should
constantly affirm the truth. Namely:

Sickness should be a rare exception. We have every reason to expect continual good
health. There is enough wealth for everybody--an inexhaustible supply always
available for
any person who knows how to get in touch with it. Any one can be happy, and will be
happy, when he learns to live by the laws of his own spiritual nature. An occult
aspirant,
therefore, trains himself to expect health, to create specific images of prosperity
and
happiness. He makes no attempt to deceive his subconsciousness. His knowledge of
that
plane of mental activity enables him to understand that it possesses power, wisdom
and
materials more than sufficient to bring into full manifestation any desirable
condition.
Rightly instructed human beings learn that through subconsciousness they are
already in
touch with everything in the way of raw material required for conversion into any
particular
forms or conditions they may desire to see made manifest as actual physical
realities in
their immediate environment.
2 SEVEN STEPS: 5

Such a person knows that in a sense he already has what he wants, just as a
goldsmith in a perfectly appointed workshop knows that in the raw gold on his
bench, in
the tools before him, and in his own skill, he already has the beautiful chalice
which

presents itself to his mind’s eye.

The outward circumstances of many persons seem to be in direct contradiction to the

conditions they desire. Millions of human beings are actually sick, actually poor,
actually
unhappy, yet we know that the power which enters into every human life through
subconsciousness is fully able to change these conditions whenever we work with it
in the
right way. Because this knowledge has been subjected to rigorous tests, we know
that you
possess, at this moment, everything essential to the actual physical expression of
every
detail of the aim you formulated while you were studying the first lesson.

Getting in touch with the exhaustless riches of the Limitless Substance involves a
transformation of old habit-patterns of thinking, feeling and expectation. When you
learn
how to feel rich in spirit, you will have access to the fountain which never runs
dry. You do
not lie to yourself when you learn to pour out gratitude to the Lord of Life for
inner riches.
For the miracle of sight which enables you to experience a tree, a sky, a bird on
wing--the
face of a loved one. For the miracle of sound, bringing awareness of the song of
Life as it
expresses through music, the human voice--and the symphonies of Mother Nature. For
the
miracle of touch, the breeze caressing your cheek--the touch of God, through the
myriad
forms. These are riches indeed, and as you practice feeling and expressing your
growing
awareness of these blessings, you start opening up the channels through which
fulfillment
comes. We quote from MATTHEW 13:12-13: “For whosoever hath, to him shall be given,
and he shall have more abundance: but whosvever hath not, from him shall be taken
away
even that he hath.

“Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing
they hear not, neither do they understand.”

Though these ideas are probably familiar to you, the important thing to realize is
that you are going to be given very specific instructions so that you will truly
learn how to
“see” and “hear” and “understand.” The first seven lessons are condensed re-
statements of
occult principles which also aim to get you started into motion towards Self-
fulfillment. The
Tarot studies will help you to dissolve the negative subconscious patterns and
replace them
with the vital conscious images you are now building.
At this moment, you possess what you want as a mental fact. A mental fact is just
as real, just as actual, as a physical fact. You can’t wear a mental dress, to be
sure, nor ride
in a mental automobile. Yet you will never wear the physical garment, nor drive the
physical car, until you grasp and apply the truth that the mental picture of a
desirable
condition is a real possession which you must cling to until it is materialized as
a physical
actuality.

Keep your mental pattern steadily before your mind’s eye. Think of it as an actual,
present reality. Dream of it. Dwell upon it. Perfect its details. Then turn it over
to
subconsciousness as explained in this and the following lessons. As day follows
night, what
you have created mentally will be experienced by you as a visible, tangible,
physical reality.
SEVEN STEPS: 5 3

Visualization, or making definite mental images, is of utmost importance in

practical
occultism. The more detailed the picture, the clearer will be the pattern. Sir
Francis
Galton, a leader among the older Psychologists, wrote:

“The free action of a vivid visualizing faculty is of much importance in connection

with the higher processes of generalized thought .. . A visual image is the most
perfect form
of mental representation whenever the shape, position, and relation of objects to
space are
concerned ... The best workmen are those who visualize the whole of what they
propose to
do before they take a tool in their hands . . . Strategists, artists of all
denominations,
physicists who contrive new experiments, and in short, all who do not follow
routine, have
need of it... A faculty that is of importance in all the technical and artistic
occupations,
that gives accuracy to our perceptions and justice to our generalizations, is
starved by lazy
disuse instead of being cultivated in such a way as will, on the whole, bring the
best return.”

By making up your mind, when first you began to study this course, what it is you
want next, you have taken the first step toward the formation of mental images to
be
materialized by subconsciousness. Now you will be instructed in specific practices
which
will enable you to complete those images, and will show you how to impart to them
the
magical suggestive power which will cause subconsciousness to bring them into
actual
physical form.

Whatever your aim may be, when it has been accomplished it will take some physical
shape. Just what will it be? To get a specific answer to this question is the next
step in
your progress toward actual realization. Take pencil and paper, and write down
replies tc
the following questions:

1, What color will be shown by the thing which embodies your desires? Suppose you
want a healthy body. Your mental image must include the ruddy glow of health in the
cheeks; the clear whiteness of the eyeballs; the wholesome tint of normal skin; the
translucence of healthy fingernails. These are just a few of the color details
which go with a
healthy body. Find out what the others are, and build them into your image.

Suppose you want a house? What is to be its color outside? What is the color
scheme for the rooms? For the furniture?

Suppose you want to be “of service,” or to “evolve spiritual consciousness.” These

are essentially good aims, but in this form they are too indefinite. To be of
service means
doing something, and you can’t do anything that doesn’t involve physical details.
What
colors have these details? To evolve spiritual consciousness will make a difference
in your
body and its surroundings. Find the colors which go with that difference.

2. What sounds will be characteristic of the embodiment of your desire? If health

is
your aim, do you know how the voice of a perfectly healthy person sounds? At first
you
may not be able to think of many sound images in connection with your ideal of a
house,
but try. You will be amazed. No matter what you want, sounds are connected with it.

Imagine them.
4 SEVEN STEPS: 5

3, What characteristic movements, and directions of movement, will. be manifested

by the thing to be brought into existence by the materialization of your desire?
Here is
scope for a great many vivid details.

4. Of what materials will it be composed? Are they coarse or fine? Hard or soft?
Warm or cold? Light or heavy?

5. What other sensations, besides those included in your answers to the foregoing
questions, will be aroused by the thing you want?

Go over every detail of your image. Set down every one on paper. Use definite
words. If you describe a color, find out just what color it is. When you consider
size and
weight, be specific.

Do this work with pencil and paper. You will find your mental image growing
clearer, more vivid. Details of movement are particularly important. They apply
also to
stationary things like a house. See yourself approaching from the street, entering
the front
door, walking through every room. See yourself in every room doing the things for
which
that room is intended. The more detail you put into this kind of imagery, the
better.

Make your image in the present tense. See whatever you imagine as a present
reality. If your image has to do with some pursuit, some kind of endeavor, some
personal
relationship with other people, mentally go through the various actions involved
and see
them as they actually are, that is, present realities on the mental plane.

This is mental creation. Your mental pictures are realities which you possess at
the
moment you contemplate them.’ They may be mere outlines or they may be living
pictures.
If they are living pictures, in three dimensions, having solidity, weight, form,
color and
action, they will materialize more rapidly than mere outline sketches in black and
white.
Follow the instructions carefully and even your first attempts will have a good
deal of body
and color. Eventually you will find yourself doing mental sculpture instead of
rough
sketches on a flat surface.

This practice in making mental images has to do with the physical results of
realization.
It is preliminary to the special imagery which will call forth subconscious powers
that bring
these results into actual manifestation. That is another kind of imagery. You will
find it
described in Lesson 7 which begins giving explanations of the significance of Tarot
symbolism.

For the present, practice seeing what you want and keeping it before your mind’s
eye
as a reality. Devote at least a week to carrying out this instruction.

You have now learned how to make patterns. In Lesson 6 you will be told how to
transfer them to subconsciousness.