Magical States of Consciousness: Pathworking on the Tree of Life - Melita Denning 1985

Individual Working

If you don’t belong to a Pathworking group and if you see no prospect of joining one which already exists, the ideal answer is to form your own. Even if you plan to do that, however, maybe you have no experience of Pathworking and want to get the feel of it in a practical way before asking others to join you.

Whatever your plans, this chapter is specially for you if you are on your own now, to show you how best to succeed in your Pathworking program as an individual unit.

In reading through this book, you will have perceived that even for people who are Pathworking as members of a group, the main action is essentially inward and individual. It is also a fact, however, that this inwardness is by no means isolation. Whether physically we are alone or in the company of others, we are all part of an immense psychic network which extends at all levels of being: the unity of all life, the unity of the human race, special psychic contacts with friends known and unknown, the deep mind’s contact with the archetypal powers, and the unique link between the individual and his or her Higher Self. Nor is that all: for the Divine Flame which is the source and center of your individual being is itself a part of the divine mind, and thus (no matter what divisions among people you may see or experience in the outer world) is in direct and loving contact endlessly with the Divine Flame of each and every other person soever.

People sharing an activity can keep one another “up to the mark,” can stir up one another’s enthusiasm and sense of commitment to a project. In planning any “lone” activity, decision and organization are of great importance.

The simple white robe, preferably hooded, which is recommended for members of Pathworking groups, is more emphatically recommended for “solitary” Pathworkers. To put on a special garment regularly for an activity carries your sense of the high worth of that activity right through all levels of your being. Your body and your deep mind are as much involved as your conscious emotions and your higher faculties. Besides that, it helps again to remind you that you are not really alone. You are one of the great number of explorers of the inner worlds who, whether in groups or singly, sit down and cut out distractions for a span of time while they gather spiritual strength, perception and illumination.

In setting up your place of working, you will need but one chair: this is required as, unlike the director of a group, you will be seated while reading the text of the Pathworking. In all other particulars, have your place of working as nearly as you can in accordance with the directives in Chapter 5, adapting according to your own needs.

In the formula for Opening a Pathworking which is given in Chapter 5, instead of the Uniting of Energy you will use the circulation of Energy which is given below: the subsections iv., v., and vi. differ most notably from the one technique to the other.

For the Use of Mandala and Correspondences you can employ either Method A or Method B on the day before, just as is suggested for members of a group: or else, on the occasion of the Pathworking itself, you can use Method A in place of the procedure outline in sections 4, 5 and 6 of the formula for Opening a Pathworking.

Circulation of Energy

i. Stand facing your altar, in an upright and balanced posture, but not “to attention.”

ii. Visualize, at a little distance directly above your head, a sphere of white light.

iii. Visualize the sphere growing brighter and more radiant.

iv. Visualize a continuous anti-clockwise spiral of white light descending from the sphere: it whirls rapidly downwards around you, and its lower end can be imagined as disappearing at your feet.

v. In addition to this continuous descending spiral of white light, visualize, just within the limits of your place of working, a wall of blue light, strong and steady, revolving slowly in a clockwise direction.

vi. After a few moments, allow all visualizations to fade from your consciousness.

vii. Seat yourself in a balanced, easy posture, relaxed but not slumped, which you can maintain, or easily resume, throughout the working. There should be no crossing of arms, legs or ankles. Breathing should be steady and even, and such as you can comfortably maintain whenever you are not reading aloud.

Do not read the text of the Pathworking silently unless this is really necessary: to read aloud will keep your attention better fixed upon the complete succession of ideas. Read slowly, allowing yourself time to visualize each scene and to assimilate each succession of ideas. At the end of the Pathworking, allow yourself a period of reflection before sounding the battery.

Another activity which can help intensify and extend the experience of Pathworking for the “lone” Pathworker particularly, is the keeping of the Dream Journal. You should read Chapter 4 with special attention to see how much you can make of this. Your Journal of Dreams can become a real log-book of exploration and discovery.

Through reflection upon the Pathworkings and upon your dreams, you will develop a great understanding, and the initiations of the Paths will be yours. The day may come sooner than you think, when you will feel ready and resolved to call others together, to find with your guidance their own inner adventures and initiations upon the Paths which you will have come to know so deeply, and to love.