Note: this is the first article I've written in which I enabled a blog feature that automatically inserts search links into the text, other than the ones I add myself, so I have no idea if it will be more or less helpful for readers.
I came across people saying professional psychological help should go hand in hand with magical training. It has the benefit of allowing the magician to better identify internal blockages and overcome them easier. I for one don't doubt that. Instead, I doubt the ability of many psychologists out there who, to me, do nothing more than parrot paragraphs from Freud. I also think they are unable, more like inept at adapting their knowledge and expertise to case by case basis and instead try to force each case to fit the theoretical models they've memorized.
Therefore, I've always found such help more of a hindrance. I also dislike psychology as a whole for reasons having to do with my background in researching conspiracies and from having observed its impact on society in a case by case observation over the years. I do not adhere to the magical psychological model although I recognize the microcosmic role and influence within the magical act itself. Furthermore, I've never followed a predetermined magical curriculum, derived from structured magical orders, where inner work also has psychological components. Instead, I've carved my own path into the unknown.
When it comes to psychology, I found that I was more drawn to the Jungian teachings solely because they best suited my needs and I felt comfortable using that framework. Even so, I don't reduce otherworldly entities to archetypes from my unconscious or something. At best, I'd say those inner archetypes are complementary to those entities existing outside of one's personal sphere, something akin to being their reflections. "As above, so below" and all that.
That being said, I started on that path into the unknown out of desperation. It's pointless to go into details because I'd basically have to write my entire life story so far, but I was desperate to first know myself wholly and, at the same time if possible, completely change my external circumstances. Whereas the latter needed no psychological analysis, unless I was aiming to disrupt a status-quo involving key people with their own inner motivations and so on, the former did.
I thus found myself in a situation where I constantly needed to perform at least some basic form of psychology on myself. I received criticism from some, who said it can't be done and that I was wasting time while overlooking key issues within myself. What they didn't know is that for many years I lacked the sense of individuation and my personality was a patchwork of elements I had borrowed from others over time. Just so you'd get a better understanding of what I mean, whenever someone recollects a memory, they're doing it from a first person perspective. I used to do it mostly from a third person, sometimes from a second person perspective. This "trait" is what facilitated my working on myself, even though my sense of individuation increased gradually as a result of my efforts.
Notwithstanding the aforementioned, not everyone is able to do this because no two people have personality flaws of this kind they could start using to their advantage. Even so, I think self reflection is a good tool for works of self improvement. Unfortunately, this is more or less easy depending on the individual. Someone with increased solar strength in their chart may be too self concerned to care, or able to analyze one's self objectively. Their solar nature may be blinding them to their flaws. Someone else may not have a potent solar influence, but their lunar strength is weak or distorted by others. They may try self reflection but would have a hard time sorting through misleading answers. There are also those with little to no Water in their system, so to speak. They would have issues feeling their way through their inner world, which may cause them to neglect certain important areas.
Even so, there are ways to overcome these setbacks and still perform self reflection in a meaningful manner and for the one's benefit. I am going to present two such methods and anyone interested can try either or both. They first method is more accessible for reasons that will become obvious. It should also be less emotionally demanding although this doesn't imply the person will be free of experiences they will find unpleasant. People might find the second method overwhelming, brutal, even excruciating at times, but this again depends on the individual.
1. Moon
The Moon can provide great aid for self reflection. Just as the physical moon reflects sunlight onto us, so can the lunar forces assist us in analyzing our self. Even someone with too strong an ego can apply this method and reap at least some rewards, so long as he or she is willing to be true to themselves.
For improved results it is better to call on at least one lunar entity for assistance. Then you are to use spirit vision and meet that entity in the astral, asking it to help you by increasing your discernment and clarity. Afterwards, visualize a mirror in front of you and your reflection in that mirror.
Ask for your character and personality flaws to be revealed to you in the mirror. Additionally, you can ask to be shown any mental conditioning loops that have been holding you back or are working against you, or any extra load you are carrying that you're better releasing. They may show up as images depicting various scenes from your past where you behaved in ways that revealed those flaws or patterns, etc. They may also manifest through emotions and feelings accompanying those scenes, or apart from them. Whichever the case, it is important to pay attention to them but only as an onlooker. Do not allow yourself to be dragged into some kind of scenario that plays out in your mind, in which you'd be reliving those events from your own perspective. Do not attempt to intervene to change anything either. Simply observe, feel, let them pass and settle down for good. Once that is done you will open your eyes and record your experience.
You can repeat this as often as you want. You can ask to be shown various things a number of times in order to comprehend the message better. You can ask for additional help in order to gain a better understanding of what you are being revealed. It is also a good idea to ask for the best ways in which you can deal with whatever you have been revealed.
This method can prove inaccessible to many because it requires another as a focus. You don't need the actual flesh and blood person, but for you to be aware of their presence in your life in some form or another. Moreover, that other person is not your average buddy, coworker or whatever. It's someone who's been having a tremendous impact on you from as early as you saw them first. It does not have to be someone from your immediate environment, or even someone with whom you've interacted in person. It may very well be a public figure you've seen on TV or internet. It can be someone from any walk of life.
That particular individual generates feelings of intense attraction in you, most often not of the fluffy kind. You usually find them both very mysterious and highly magnetic. You may want not to think of them but find your thoughts converging back to them often (and this may give you the chills). On top of that, you may receive signs in your environment pointing surreptitiously towards that person. At some point you may find yourself having developed obsessions for the individual, the need to see and be close to them becoming unbearable by the day. You may also experience sensations of wanting to possess them, as in your consciousness to inhabit their body. Ultimately, you may feel the need for your essence to merge with theirs.
This, in a nutshell, is how Black Moon Lilith acts in synastry, especially when involved in hard aspects with things like the Sun, Venus, Marts, even the Ascendant. I've gone a bit into BML in synastry in this article and you can additional details about this force here and here although from another perspective. At any rate, unlike the previous method, this one can prove ego shattering, or at least humbling. The reason for this is the Black Moon does not hold back from being vicious when it comes to making itself known.
For this method it is best to to call on the goddess Lilith. Then close your eyes and imagine the aforementioned person in front of you. You may feel anxious but it's ok. Don't panic, just go along regardless of any uneasiness you may experience. Say to the image what you feel like telling that person. Because you had projected the image of your Anima/Animus onto the actual person, you'd actually be saying it to that projection, thus to a part of yourself you've kept hidden from people (and from yourself, at least at times), even those with whom you've had intimate romantic or sexual bonds. Thus, it shouldn't surprise you if you find yourself feeling like saying certain things but at the same time ashamed or terrified of what you feel like saying. If that is to happen, it's a definite sign you should go ahead and speak from the heart. Don't hold back no matter what. If you feel like crying, cry. If you feel like you're close to experience a nervous breakdown, allow it to happen. Push yourself through to the end, then take some time to compose yourself and write down your experience.
As with the previous method, you can repeat as often as you want.
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