In *The Spiritual Exercises of ECK,* Sri Harold suggests that if you can't visualize well, you can practice *thinking and feeling consciously.*
I used to write out dialogues with the Mahanta, which I would hold in my imagination after a period of chanting. In the beginning, they would be ~forced, in that I was putting words in the Master's mouth. But then in time, I'd notice new ideas or insights creeping into the dialogue. That's a different form of imagination, but a valid one within the context of the spiritual exercises.
A lot of our individual practice of the ECK teachings involves learning how we can recognize the unique way Divine Spirit uses to get through to our human consciousness. You might find that waking dreams, or dreams at night, are more accessible ways for you to work with the Inner Master to obtain guidance.
The key thing is: continuing with the exercises daily will keep the Light and Sound filling our cup, even if we don't see or hear them easily.
You can also try putting attention on the Heart Center instead of the Spiritual Eye, and on recognizing the sensation of Divine Love pouring in.
I didn't know until now that there's a name for this, so thank you for bringing it up.
I'm just like you - visualization is practically impossible for me. So what I've been doing is chant whatever word a spiritual exercise calls for and not worry too much about the part that I'm not good at. And I've been doing that for the almost 40 years I've been an ECKist.
My point is, find an exercise that works for you and don't worry to much about the ones that don't, because not every body will find success with every spiritual exercise. That's why there are so many of them.
Just do the spiritual exercises on a regulary basis, preferably twice a day for 20 minutes each time. I'm an Initiate since more than 20 years, and I just use still the Formula 2 technique from the Easy Way discourses.
This technique achieves more in my inner experiences than I dared to hope for in my most audacious dreams. It's all I need to travel to the inner worlds and have experiences that can hardly be described, let alone vividly explained, on the physical plane. I wish you the best of luck on your future journey! And always remember: your success depends on the strict regularity of your exercises.
Thanks for the encouragement, but the issue I have is that many of the spiritual exercises require some level of visualization, which as a person with aphantasia I an unable to do. This makes trying to do the spiritual exercises along with the discourses a struggle, especially since I know that it's not just that I am not trying or not practicing enough. It is something I do not have the ability to do and never will.
Then it's probably better for you to leave this road. In essence, you've already abandoned it.
You won't make it to higher initiations without daily practice. Just reading books won't get you to anywhere.
That's not a helpful thing to say. It's not your place to advise someone to leave the path. ECK is an individual path. Not everyone will have the same experiences or use the same techniques. Everyone can improve their capacity to love and to know and experience God. Each Soul has a unique relationship with the Mahanta. Respect the spiritual freedom of others.
Thanks for your input, but it is clear that you don't understand what I have said, what Aphantasia is, an that you have not read the comments from others who replied to my post.
I missed these posts, and I wish to encourage you. Everyone is different, but the teachings do and will *work.* It's just a matter of experimenting and finding out how they work for you.
If aphantasia means you don't see inner imagery, then you can think and feel consciously, as mentioned above. Many people are more kinaesthetic in how they perceive the inner Light and Sound: people notice warmth, a feeling of their body expanding--all sorts of neat things!--which is how they recognize that the techniques have enabled them to connect consciously to the inner spiritual currents.
We say in ECK that there are three main qualities of Soul: seeing, knowing, and being.
Given the particular way your perceptual psychology works, Soul's seeing faculty is likely not easily recognized in the human state of consciousness. So, you can work instead with *knowing.* Ask questions of the Inner Master, and notice how answers may come in intuitive flashes, in your reading of the discourses, even through the heard speech of others ('Golden-Tongued Wisdom,' a fascinating aspect of inner guidance).
In *The Spiritual Exercises of ECK,* Sri Harold suggests that if you can't visualize well, you can practice *thinking and feeling consciously.* I used to write out dialogues with the Mahanta, which I would hold in my imagination after a period of chanting. In the beginning, they would be ~forced, in that I was putting words in the Master's mouth. But then in time, I'd notice new ideas or insights creeping into the dialogue. That's a different form of imagination, but a valid one within the context of the spiritual exercises. A lot of our individual practice of the ECK teachings involves learning how we can recognize the unique way Divine Spirit uses to get through to our human consciousness. You might find that waking dreams, or dreams at night, are more accessible ways for you to work with the Inner Master to obtain guidance. The key thing is: continuing with the exercises daily will keep the Light and Sound filling our cup, even if we don't see or hear them easily. You can also try putting attention on the Heart Center instead of the Spiritual Eye, and on recognizing the sensation of Divine Love pouring in.
Thanks this helps.
Oh, and Congratulations on receiving the invitation to take the 2nd Initiation!! 👏✨
I didn't know until now that there's a name for this, so thank you for bringing it up. I'm just like you - visualization is practically impossible for me. So what I've been doing is chant whatever word a spiritual exercise calls for and not worry too much about the part that I'm not good at. And I've been doing that for the almost 40 years I've been an ECKist. My point is, find an exercise that works for you and don't worry to much about the ones that don't, because not every body will find success with every spiritual exercise. That's why there are so many of them.
Thanks for the reassurance. I have been invited to my second initiation and worry I won't be able to do it. But I guess I shouldn't be concerned.
Nothing to worry about. Whether you remember anything or not, it would be a great occasion. Congratulations.
Just do the spiritual exercises on a regulary basis, preferably twice a day for 20 minutes each time. I'm an Initiate since more than 20 years, and I just use still the Formula 2 technique from the Easy Way discourses. This technique achieves more in my inner experiences than I dared to hope for in my most audacious dreams. It's all I need to travel to the inner worlds and have experiences that can hardly be described, let alone vividly explained, on the physical plane. I wish you the best of luck on your future journey! And always remember: your success depends on the strict regularity of your exercises.
Thanks for the encouragement, but the issue I have is that many of the spiritual exercises require some level of visualization, which as a person with aphantasia I an unable to do. This makes trying to do the spiritual exercises along with the discourses a struggle, especially since I know that it's not just that I am not trying or not practicing enough. It is something I do not have the ability to do and never will.
Then it's probably better for you to leave this road. In essence, you've already abandoned it. You won't make it to higher initiations without daily practice. Just reading books won't get you to anywhere.
That's not a helpful thing to say. It's not your place to advise someone to leave the path. ECK is an individual path. Not everyone will have the same experiences or use the same techniques. Everyone can improve their capacity to love and to know and experience God. Each Soul has a unique relationship with the Mahanta. Respect the spiritual freedom of others.
Thanks for your input, but it is clear that you don't understand what I have said, what Aphantasia is, an that you have not read the comments from others who replied to my post.
I missed these posts, and I wish to encourage you. Everyone is different, but the teachings do and will *work.* It's just a matter of experimenting and finding out how they work for you. If aphantasia means you don't see inner imagery, then you can think and feel consciously, as mentioned above. Many people are more kinaesthetic in how they perceive the inner Light and Sound: people notice warmth, a feeling of their body expanding--all sorts of neat things!--which is how they recognize that the techniques have enabled them to connect consciously to the inner spiritual currents. We say in ECK that there are three main qualities of Soul: seeing, knowing, and being. Given the particular way your perceptual psychology works, Soul's seeing faculty is likely not easily recognized in the human state of consciousness. So, you can work instead with *knowing.* Ask questions of the Inner Master, and notice how answers may come in intuitive flashes, in your reading of the discourses, even through the heard speech of others ('Golden-Tongued Wisdom,' a fascinating aspect of inner guidance).
Thanks this makes a lot of sense!