By Shakti Gawain
P. 2-3 “Creative visualization is the technique of using your imagination to create what you want in your life….you are already using it every day, every minute in fact. It is your natural power of imagination…whether or not you are aware of it.”
“In creative visualization you use your imagination to create a clear image of something you wish to manifest. Then you continue to focus on the idea or picture regularly, giving it positive energy until it becomes objective reality.”
P.4 “…you must be willing to entertain certain concepts as being possible….The only thing necessary is that you have the desire to enrich your knowledge and experience, and an open enough mind to try something new in a positive spirit.”
“It involves understanding and aligning yourself with the natural principles that govern the workings of our universe, and learning to use these principles in the most conscious and creative way…once you do so, it may seem that you are working miracles in your life…and you truly will be!”
P.5-7 Principles to Consider:
- The physical universe is energy
- Energy is magnetic: Energy of a certain quality or vibration tends to attract energy of a similar quality and vibration
- Form follows idea: Thought is a mobile form of energy; it manifests instantaneously (we always create something first in thought form)
- The law of radiation and attraction
- the principle that whatever you put out into the universe will be reflected back to you
- from a practical standpoint, it means that we always attract into our lives whatever we think about the most, believe in most strongly, expect on the deepest levels, and/or imagine most vividly
- …so, the more positive energy we put into imagining what we want, the more it begins to manifest in our lives
P.7 “Learning to use creative visualization can become a process of deep and meaningful growth. In the process we often discover we have been holding ourselves back, blocking ourselves from achieving satisfaction and fulfillment in life through our fears and negative concepts. Once seen clearly, these limiting attitudes can be dissolved…”
P.10 “Always end your visualization with a firm statement to yourself
“This, or something better, now manifests for me in totally satisfying and harmonious ways, for the highest good of all concerned.”
“If doubts or contradictory thoughts arise, don’t resist them or try to prevent them. This will tend to give them a power they don’t otherwise have. Just let them flow through your consciousness and return to your positive statements and images.”
P.11 “IT IS IMPORTANT TO RELAX!!!”
P.13 “Don’t get stuck on the term ‘visualize’. It is not at all necessary to mentally see an image.”
P.14 “There are actually two different modes involved in creative visualization. One is the receptive, the other is active.”
- In receptive, we relax and allow images or impressions to come to us without choosing details of them; we take what comes.
- In active, we consciously choose and create what we wish to see or imagine.
“Occasionally a person has completely blocked his ability to visualize or imagine at will…usually arises from a fear and it can be worked through if the person desires to do so.”
P.15 “As a rule, creative visualization comes naturally, and the more you practice it, the easier it will become.
P.16-18 Four Basic Steps for Effective Creative Visualization
- Set your goal
- Create a clear idea or picture
- Focus on it often
- Give it positive energy
P. 21 “An affirmation is a strong, positive statement that something is already so. It is a way of making firm that which you are imagining.”
P. 22 “The practice of doing affirmations allows us to begin replacing some of our stale, worn out, or negative mind chatter with more positive ideas and concepts….it can completely transform our attitudes and expectations about life, and thereby totally change what we create for ourselves.”
P.24-25 Important things to remember about affirmations:
- Always phrase in the present tense, not the future. It is acknowledging that everything is created first on the mental plane, before it can manifest in objective reality.
- Always phrase affirmations in the most positive way that you can. Affirm what you DO want, not what you don’t want.
- The shorter and simpler the affirmation the more effective.
- Always choose affirmations that feel totally right for you.
- Always remember when doing affirmations that you are creating something new and fresh. You are NOT trying to redo or change what already exists.
- Affirmations are not meant to contradict or try to change your feelings or emotions. It is important to accept and experience all your feelings, including the so-called negative ones without attempting to change them.
- When using affirmations, try as much as possible to create a feeling of belief, an experience that they can be true. Temporarily suspend your doubts and hesitations, and put your full mental and emotional energy into them.
P.28 “This is the process known as enlightenment…it is an ongoing evolution for every individual, which cannot be complete until all our fellow beings are sharing in it. So we are all equally responsible for our own enlightenment and the enlightenment of all fellow beings on our planet.”
P.28-29 “…the first and foremost lesson to be learned is just to LET GO. You must relax, stop struggling, stop trying so hard, stop manipulating things and people to try to get what you want and need, in fact just stop doing so much and have an experience of just being for awhile.
When you do this, you suddenly discover that you’re really perfectly okay, in fact you feel quite wonderful, just letting yourself be, and letting the world be, without trying to change things. This is the basic experience of being here now and it’s what the Buddhist philosophy means by “letting go of attachment”.
P.29 “Let us imagine that life is a river. Most people are clinging to the bank, afraid to let go and risk being carried along by the current of the river. At a certain point, each person must be willing to simply let go, and trust the river to carry him or her along safely. At this point, he learns to ‘go with the flow’ and it feels wonderful.”
P.33 “Don’t feel discouraged if you don’t immediately feel totally successful with your creative visualization. Remember that most of us have years of negative thought patterns to overcome. It takes time to change some of these life-long habits.”
“Two things I have found most important in my growth process with creative visualization are:
- Regular reading of inspiring and uplifting books to help me keep in touch with my highest ideals and aspirations
- Having a friend or a community of friends who are also tuned into learning to live more consciously and who will support you and help you in your efforts.”
P.34 “If it feels like you are forcing, pushing, straining, don’t do it. If it feels positive, releasing, opening, strengthening, inspiring, do it.”
P.36 “Often people attempt to live their lives backwards. They try to have more things, or more money, in order to do more of what they want, so that they will be happier. The way it actually works is the reverse. You must first be who you really are, then do what you need to do, in order to have what you want.”
P.37: Three necessary elements:
- Desire
- Belief
- Acceptance
The sum of these is your intention.
P.42 “Going with the flow means holding onto your goals lightly (Even though they may seem important) and being willing to change them if something more appropriate and satisfying comes along.
P.45 “Prosperity programming means having the understanding of consciously taking the point of view, that the universe is totally abundant…”
P.47 “We have to understand in a deep way that having what we want in life contributes to the general state of human happiness and supports others in creating more happiness for themselves.”
P.49 “In order to use creative visualization to create what you want in life, you must be willing and able to accept the best that life has to offer you – your ‘good’.
P.53 “Once we begin to learn to accept the goodness of the universe, we naturally want to share it as well, realizing that as we give out of our energy, we make space for more to flow into us.”
P. 60 “Healing always comes from within.”
P.98-99 “…the trickiest part of getting what you want in life is just figuring out what you really want! And yet it is certainly the most important part of all.”
“Remember also that setting goals does not mean that you have to pursue them through effort, striving or struggling. It does not mean that you have to become emotionally addicted to achieving them. On the contrary, setting goals can help you flow through life more easily, effortlessly and pleasurably.”
P.102-103 Some general rules to setting goals:
- Be fairly simple and realistic (for short range goals)
- When you find that you have not accomplished some of your goals (which will inevitably happen) do not criticize yourself or assume that you have failed. Simply acknowledge clearly to yourself that you have not accomplished that goal, and decide whether it is still a goal for you.
- When you find that you have accomplished a goal, even a small one, be sure to acknowledge yourself for that.
- Don’t take on too much at once. Set goals that feel good to you. If you feel overwhelmed, confused or discouraged…simplify.
“Your goals should make you feel good – uplifted, expanded, pleasured, challenged. If not, find ones that do!”
P.121 “A basic need of all human beings is to make a positive contribution to the world and to our fellow beings, as well as to improve and enjoy our personal lives. We all have a great deal to offer the world and to each other, each in our own special and unique way.”
Abby Scott
Reviewed 10/09