KAJAMA.COM NEWSLETTER

October 30 through November 5, 2023

Things hum along pretty smoothly this week but don’t expect to get much done. The Moon cruises through Gemini the first three days of the week, inspiring social interactions and brain-storming sessions. We could be all talk and no action, but the ideas we share have seeds of truth in them that are sure to grow into real-world manifestations! We may feel like staying in bed Thursday and Friday, as the Cancer Moon combines with the Scorpio Sun to call us inward. Whether we’re in deep thought or a spiritual process, or maybe just turning into couch potatoes, this cycle is necessary to integrate all that’s happened in the last few weeks. Things liven up again on the weekend as the Moon dances into Leo and Saturn turns direct after 4 months of backward motion. Restrictions and confusion lift, making this a great day to set our goals and intentions for the remainder of 2023!

Gold and Alchemical Healing, by Chic Cicero

(Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal.)

The science of alchemy is first and foremost a spiritual process of transformation and purification. However, there are two types of alchemy that often overlap. Practical alchemy, also called laboratory alchemy, is concerned with transforming a base material into a higher and more purified substance, such as the turning of a base metal into gold, or the extraction of a medicinal substance from a plant in order to create a healing elixir. Spiritual alchemy, which is also called theoretical alchemy or inner alchemy, is concerned with the transformation of the human soul from a state of baseness to one of spiritual enlightenment.

The classical texts of alchemy are rich in symbolism and allegory. Some of these treatises contained little more than alchemical prints and illustrations. Alchemical works that contained numerous illustrations were far less concerned with the practical aspects of laboratory alchemy than with the esoteric knowledge of spiritual alchemy and the sublimation of the human soul. These books would become the illustrated textbooks of the Rosicrucian movement in the seventeenth century.

Contemplation of alchemical diagrams and pictorial symbolism is meant to intrigue and inspire the viewer on many levels—conscious as well as subconscious—and speak directly to the human soul on the true nature of the alchemist’s "gold."

The "gold" spoken of by the alchemists is not what most people think of as mundane gold, the gold used for currency and ornamentation. Alchemical gold has many names that help define its qualities. It has been called the Stone of the Wise, the Magnum Opus, the Celestial Ruby, the Elixir of Life, and Lapis Philosophorum (or The Philosopher’s Stone). Gold is a symbol of humanity's lower nature transmuted into the Higher Self. It represents true spiritual attainment, enlightenment, and illumination. The search for the Philosopher’s Stone is the search for ultimate Truth and Purity. In spiritual alchemy gold refers to the transmutation of the Lower Self into the Higher and Divine Self.

The Philosopher’s Stone, published in 1938, was Israel Regardie's first in-depth examination of spiritual alchemy. At the time it was written, Regardie was convinced that practical alchemy was a blind for what was actually a psycho-spiritual process of inner growth. He maintained that the laboratory operations of alchemy said to work on various substances in order to change "lead into gold" were, in reality, focused squarely at man's mind, soul, and spirit. The goal of alchemy was, according to Regardie, the internal wellbeing of the human soul.

The main text of Gold: Israel Regardie's Lost Book of Alchemy was written between 1938 and 1941 as a sequel to The Philosopher’s Stone. Like his earlier book, the subject of Gold was spiritual alchemy. However, Gold takes up exactly where the earlier book left off, comparing the Great Work of alchemy to the goals of Eastern mysticism—samadhi of yoga and satori of Zen Buddhism. At the same time he was writing Gold, Regardie was also immersing himself in the study of psychology and psychotherapy, just as he had studied Golden Dawn magic a few years before. He applied much of what he learned in the pages of Gold, and extended the spiritual teachings of inner alchemy into the realm of psychotherapy, providing readers with a systematic and holistic approach to physical, psychological, and spiritual healing on all levels.

In Gold, Regardie describes the symbols of alchemy as focal points for visualization and the willed manipulation of vital and cosmic forces. Magnetism, or the energetic stimulation of invisible natural forces, can result in real, physical effects, including healing. Regardie firmly held that the transmission of vital power was a valid and tangible reality that could be taught and mastered by any average person. Personal experience with this power over a number of years enabled Regardie to develop a simple therapeutic method based on internal stimulation, using Golden Dawn techniques of color visualization, magical correspondences, applied willpower, and the vibration of divine names associated with specific forces. He described how the colors of the various energy centers can be utilized for healing, physical and mental regeneration, and inner alchemy. Regardie’s ingenious technique for healing illness in oneself as well as in others is included in Gold. One example of this is our own Healing Ritual of Hod, given below.

Hod is the Eighth Sepirah on the Qabalistic Tree of Life. On the human body this energy center is located at the right hip joint, but it also relates to the planetary energy of Mercury, which rules over the respiratory system, central nervous system, the brain, the thyroid, and the hands. The energies of Hod could be used to aid the healing process due to an illness or imbalance in any of these body systems.

If the magician is performing this ritual to heal him or herself, the receptive or Queen Scale color of Hod (which is orange) will be used. This is because the feminine color tends to make one's aura open, passive and receptive. If the ritual is to be performed for the benefit of another, then the Projective of King Scale color of Hod (violet) will be used.

A Healing Ritual of Hod
Begin by establishing a pattern of deep rhythmic breathing and relaxation.

Follow this with the basic Exercise of the Middle Pillar:

• Vibrate the divine name "Eheieh" and imagine a sphere of white light at the Kether center (at the crown of your head).
• Vibrate the name "YHVH Elohim" and imagine a sphere of white light at your Daath center (at your throat).
• Vibrate the name "YHVH Eloah ve-Daath" and imagine a sphere of white light at your Tiphareth center (at your heart).
• Vibrate the name "Shaddai El Chai" and imagine a sphere of white light at your Yesod center (at your groin).
• Vibrate the name "Adonai ha-Aretz" and imagine a sphere of white light at your Malkuth center (at your feet).
• Imagine the Middle Pillar complete. Then using rhythmic breathing, circulate the light you have brought down through the Middle Pillar around the outside of your body to strengthen your aura.
• Focus some of the energy back into your Tiphareth or heart-center, the seat of equilibrium and balance.

If you are performing the ritual for your own benefit, visualize your Hod center, located at the right hip, filled with a bright orange light. Concentrate on this warm orange color—the Queen Scale color of Hod—at your right hip. With rhythmic breathing, see this orange glow begin to expand outward from Hod until it fills your entire aura. Imagine yourself completely bathed within a brilliant orange egg of light. Vibrate "Elohim Tzabaoth," the divine name of Hod, several times. Concentrate on the specific healing that you wish to attract into your sphere, firmly visualizing the illness or imbalance being dissolved away, leaving only healthy tissue.

When you feel that the work of the exercise has been accomplished, complete and seal the ritual by performing the Qabalistic Cross.

If you are performing this ritual for the benefit of another person, perform the preliminary Middle Pillar Exercise as described above. Visualize your Hod center filled with violet—the King Scale color of Hod—at your right hip. With rhythmic breathing, see this color begin to expand outward from Tiphareth until it fills your entire aura. Vibrate "Elohim Tzabaoth," the divine name of Hod several times, while continuing to visualize the color of violet. Concentrate on the specific healing that you wish to project to the other person. When you feel that sufficient energy has been generated from Hod, visualize and project the violet energy from your Tiphareth center (the center of balance and projection), to the Hod center of the other person. Visualize his or her aura filling up with this color and its corresponding Hod energy. Then visualize the aura of the other person changing color from violet to bright orange as the light transmutes your projected Hod energy to the receptive Hod energy of the person receiving the beneficial effects of this force. Concentrate on the specific healing that you wish to attract into the other person’s sphere, firmly visualizing the illness or imbalance being dissolved away, leaving only healthy tissue.

Once you feel that the work of the exercise has been accomplished, complete and seal the ritual by performing the Qabalistic Cross.

Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal. Copyright Llewellyn Worldwide, 2015. All rights reserved.

A while ago I heard that some people dream in black and white (at least some of the time), and that dreams in black and white have some special meaning but I don't remember what it was. I can't remember ever dreaming in black and white, but then recently, I was talking with a friend who said that she has never had a dream in color! Can you explain what the difference may be?

L.

Astrea:

Dreaming is such a personal, individual experience; everyone is different. Most scientific research says that we all dream in color all the time. Apparently, people who think they dream in black and white aren't aware of that.

Most people who believe that they dream in black and white do so because they've seen that information somewhere. They believe that they don't dream in color or only dream in color every so often. If that is what they believe, then that's what they'll see in their dreams.

When we're dreaming, many of the details in our dreams that aren't central or relevant to their meaning aren't specified. In other words, unless our attention is directly drawn to something, we miss a lot.

I often ask my clients for some of these details, such as what they remember wearing, what the closest landmark was, if the room they were in seemed familiar, etc., and most of the time they can't remember those details for me. When they can, they remember them in color. That's one way that I know that those particular items are telling or significant elements in those dreams.

From my own experience in working with others on their dreams, I can tell you that most fire signs will say they dream in color and most air signs will tell you that they don't. Before I did some research, I believed this was because air signs don't seem to settle down in sleep the way many other signs do. They're usually lighter sleepers, so the color details of their dreams may be more fleeting than with others.

The more fleeting the dream, the more likely we are to remember it as being in black and white. In truth, however, black and white dreams are simply colorful dreams that fade as we move into our waking hours.

Also, television and movies are powerful influences on our lives. For some people, the fading of their dreams makes it appear that they're always dreaming in black and white. I predict that as times change and black and white images become a thing of the past, more people will begin to say that they dream in color.

To learn to remember your dreams in color, try this exercise: When you get up in the morning, choose a color, and at least once an hour, notice something that is that color. Study the color. Do this exercise every day for 21 days, and you will immediately notice that the dreams you remember are in vivid color and no longer in the gray tones of your memories of your dreams.

*****

Susyn:

Endless mysteries surround our dreams, such as where they come from, why we have them, and what they mean.

Until the dawn of television, which was originally presented in black and white, the concept of colorless dreams was as unfamiliar to us as the idea of aliens landing in Roswell, New Mexico was in the 1940s.

While colors can be significant indicators of the messages we are receiving, a lack of color is merely a trick of the mind. Scientifically, if we watch an old I Love Lucy rerun and then dream of Lucy trying to engage us in her latest antics in black and white, our minds are merely repeating aspects of the show to bring us important messages. As Ted Turner became fond of doing, often our brains will even colorize these images.

There is no research to explain the significance of dreaming in black and white. More important are the messages our dreams are trying to send us through the symbols, situations or people that appear in them.

Most dreams are designed to work out our fears or frustrations as we sleep. They can also contain important messages, and tend to recur if we don't get the hint the first time around. Prophetic dreams are also important to pay attention to; when we remember them and then the scenario we experienced comes to pass in real life, we realize we've had a prophetic dream.

For many years I dreamed of a particular house, and it wasn't one I had ever come across in real life. In these dreams, the house always had a different tone and look to it, yet I knew it was the same house. Sometimes it was vacant, other times it was filled with people.

It would appear friendly or inviting in one dream or run down and in disrepair the next. In researching this dream, I came to realize that this house was always a direct reflection of my life's current state. Once I came to see that it represented where I was physically, emotionally or spiritually, I could go back to my dream journal and confirm that with each appearance of the house, I could connect the conditions in my life with its appearance.

I recommend you keep a dream journal to gain more understanding of your dreams and their meanings. If you have trouble recalling them, set your alarm an hour earlier than you normally would, and keep a notepad handy to jot down everything you remember. This is the best way to get the most out of your dreams and decipher the spiritual purpose they hold for you.

Astrea:

Many times in life we hear, "You will always have what you NEED, but not necessarily what you WANT." Your spirit must have needed to experience the feeling of leaving your human body, and the suggestion in the next chapter of Sylvia Brown's book was all it took to get you there.

Even though you hadn't read it yet, your SOUL recognized the title of that chapter as something it had been seeking, and your soul, knowing that you had that reference to read after your experience, got with it and out you went!

While I don't usually recommend her books, Sylvia Brown has a wide reaching and powerful effect on lots of people. A Gemini like you would be able to relate easily to her writing and put it to good use. Synchronicity - you gotta love it!

I like your description of "getting caught." That's exactly what it feels like, isn't it? One minute you're free and hovering above the room, and the next minute, ZAP! back down into your corporeal form you go!

As a little kid, I loved that "feeling of return." With practice, most of the time we can control that event, but sometimes, when our physical ears hear a distracting noise or something else occurs to knock us back into reality, back we go. With practice you will be able to control your return better.

I find it interesting that you were visiting your mother-in-law and not someone in your own genetic family. Evidently, you and your husband got married for reasons that are even deeper than love. His family's interest in "psychic stuff" will nurture your children in such matters and help them to grow into their own abilities.

You'll never have to be concerned that when your daughter visits them, she'll be discouraged from exploring her own psychic life and power. My parents encouraged me to develop my psychic senses in a time when it wasn't nice to even discuss such things in public. Heck, it's STILL not considered a great topic at the dinner table in some families!

Your kids will get to talk about it ALL and ask questions and read and study. This is going to give them such an edge in life! Talk with your husband about how you want to present this to your kiddos, so that you are united in your approach and ready to tell them their experiences are all natural and okay.

A word or two of warning: Geminis often have difficulty staying grounded in REAL LIFE. Don't get so strung out on your ASTRAL life that you neglect what you're doing here on Earth.

You are at the beginning of a long journey to learn where your power really lies. Try to be patient with this process and take your time.