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Good Magical Hygiene: Essential Personal Energy Management for The Spiritually Gifted, by Tess Whitehurst

(Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal.)

One of the most interesting conversations I ever had was with a professional dancer who had been diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder at a young age. She described how frightened and out of control she felt...until she discovered dancing. Then, her mind's obsession with ascribing patterns to things, and her body's compulsion to move in prescribed patterns, had an outlet, and while she still noticed symptoms occasionally, she finally felt comfortable in her own skin. Additionally, while she regularly practiced dancing to a degree that some might consider obsessive, she soon became quite happy in her life and successful in her chosen profession.

The main reason why this was so intriguing to me was because I quickly recognized a similar pattern in my own past. For many years my mood was a roller coaster of highs and lows. I generally felt dis-empowered and I alternated between anxiety and depression more often than not. In retrospect, I realize that it felt sort of like I was driving a car but I couldn't see out the windshield.

Although I had been reading about and practicing magic and metaphysics for some time, a big turning point for me was when I cleared a bunch of clutter out of my apartment and suddenly felt so much lighter and more joyful. It was then that I experienced firsthand the connection between the seen and the unseen realms. I realized that the so-called "mundane" world and the so-called "magical" world were not separate, but two sides of the same coin.

Once that occurred, it wasn't long before I looked at everything from both perspectives (energetic and physical) simultaneously, and constantly worked with the principle that seen and unseen realms are not only inextricably linked, but that they constantly interact with and affect each other. I began to put this principle into practice through things like space clearing and daily visualization rituals to clear my chakras and protect my energetic field (like the one below). I also went to feng shui school and began practicing feng shui and energy work professionally. During this time, my life momentum turned around and I began to feel more consistently happy, joyful, safe, and empowered.

So, after considering the dancer who had danced her way out of the most painful aspects of OCD, as well as my own personal healing experience, I started thinking: I wonder if what we call "mental disorders" could sometimes actually be latent talents? In other words, what if talents are like electric wiring, and until they are located, grounded, and properly directed, their power flies around our lives dangerously, creating unpleasant and challenging conditions in their wake?

Thinking back to a number of people I have known or encountered who suffered from things like anxiety and depression, or even more serious conditions like schizophrenia, this hypothesis began to make even more sense to me as I saw a pattern of especially creative, gifted, and intuitive people whose spiritual talents may have remained largely unfocused because they were devalued or overlooked.

As a result of all this philosophizing, I have concluded that for sensitive and spiritually gifted folks like us—and I can't believe you would have continued reading this article for this long if you weren't sensitive and spiritually gifted—consciously managing our considerable supply of spiritual energy is a must if we are going to feel happy, joyful, and empowered on a regular basis. Since it keep our energy clear and flowing in an ideal way while helping us manifest positive conditions in every area of our lives, I sometimes call it "good magical hygiene."

In The Good Energy Book, in addition to good magical hygiene practices, I provide a whole system of personal and environmental energy management for people like us, so that we can retain all the desirable aspects of our spiritual sensitivity while setting healthy boundaries and deciding what types of energy we do and do not want in our mind, body, spirit, personal energy field, and home environment. Additionally, the practices included in The Good Energy Book can help us focus and direct our significant spiritual power toward healing ourselves, healing others, consciously releasing the conditions we don't desire, and consciously manifesting the conditions we do desire—not just during rituals, but all the time, no matter where we are or what we are doing.

The following meditation is an example of one of these practices. In fact, it is perhaps the most vital aspect of my spiritual practice when it comes to staying positive and directing my spiritual/magical energy in constructive and life-affirming ways. It gets all the compulsories covered and keeps my energy as clear and focused as possible throughout the day, so I do it (or something like it) almost every day. You might want to commit to doing it every day for a week or two, and then, once you experience its benefits firsthand, ease yourself gently into the habit.

Please note that as you begin to practice this meditation, you might find that variations on the theme work better for you—if this happens, then definitely go with them.

Somewhere where you will not be disturbed, sit comfortably with your spine straight. Close your eyes, take some deep breaths, and relax. When you feel relaxed and centered, feel your weight upon whatever you are sitting on. Consciously connect with the comforting and supportive earth beneath you. Then, visualize/imagine/feel that you are growing roots of light. Send these roots down into the earth. See them going down and down, past layers of rock, water, and dirt. See them looping and spiraling as they continue to reach down further and further, toward the center of the earth. Eventually, when it feels right, visualize/imagine/feel these roots entering the core of the earth. See this core as a blindingly bright, golden-white sphere of concentrated, magnetic light. This light gently yet powerfully tugs you down, anchoring your body even more securely in the earth via your roots.

Now, see this golden, magnetic light traveling up your roots toward your body. Drink it upwards at a good pace. Now, see it enter your root chakra, the area at the base of your spine where your body connects with the earth. As the light reaches your root chakra (which is a horizontally spinning wheel of ruby red light), your chakra spins faster and gets brighter, any and all stagnant energy or debris spinning off and immediately dissolving. See this light continue upward until it reaches the vertically spinning wheel of orange light halfway between your bellybutton and your sex organ. This chakra—the sacral chakra—also spins faster and gets brighter as it is immediately cleansed of all energetic debris. Visualize this cleansing action continue with each chakra progressively, in this order:

Solar Plexus: Yellow, vertically spinning, halfway between your sternum and bellybutton

Heart: Green, vertically spinning, in the center of your sternum

Throat: Blue, vertically spinning, in the center of your neck

Third Eye: Indigo, vertically spinning, in the center of your forehead just above your eyebrows

Crown: Violet or white, horizontally spinning, at the very top of your head like a small hat

Now, see a column of light continue upward, past the top of your head, as if you are growing a tree trunk of light. See this light move up and up, until it exits the earth's atmosphere and connects with the cosmic realm of pure light, where it branches out like a tree soaking up the sun. See this cosmic light as blindingly bright white light with rainbow shimmers or sparkles, and drink this light in. See it moving down your trunk, back toward your body at whatever pace feels right. Then, see it enter the crown of your head and fill your head completely with this light. See/feel it continue to move down to your neck, shoulders, heart, arms, hands, belly, organs, legs, and feet. Visualize/imagine/feel this cosmic light merging with the earth light within you, and feel at once grounded in the earth and inspired by the heavens.

Next, visualize a glowing vacuum tube of light moving through and around your energy field, removing any and all lingering heaviness, stagnant energy, fear, guilt, and negative attachments. When this feels complete, see yourself bathed in a sphere of very bright, glowing white light and then a sphere of glowing indigo/violet light. Charge this indigo light with the intention that inside of it, only love remains, and through it, only love may enter.

Finish by setting intentions and consciously directing your spiritual energy toward creating the conditions you desire. For example, you might like to invoke divine help for protecting your home, vehicle, and loved ones, and visualize the successes you'd like to experience throughout your day. You might also like to take some time to feel the feelings and see the pictures associated with the things you'd like to manifest in your life: your dream car, job, or relationship. Or you can get creative: if you'd like to manifest more prosperity for example, you might visualize a fountain of sparkly gold coins moving throughout your entire energy field. Or, if you'd like to call in more romance in your marriage, you might send a waterfall of rose petals through the roof of your bedroom.

As you can imagine, getting in the habit of performing a meditation like this before you begin your day can really lend itself to a beautiful and successful life. It not only clears you, grounds you, and connects you with the realm of all possibility, it also gets your energy moving in the right direction with regards to your mood and general life conditions. And, once you do get in the habit, it doesn't have to take much time at all. Even five minutes can do the trick.

Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal. Copyright Llewellyn Worldwide, 2012. All rights reserved.

Financially I can't afford to move right now, so I'm writing to ask you for an effective spiritual method for dealing with an angry neighbor. Both my car and my boyfriend's car were keyed. His car was the focus before, and now that he's moved away, my car has become the focus. For some reason after that incident, I see more and more of this angry neighbor. For example, we'll both emerge from our apartments at the same time, or run into each other outside. I feel very uncomfortable around her and her son. Also, every time I get into my car I see those marks on the passenger side and become very upset about what she did, so every time I get in my car, I am reminded of her and this upsetting situation. I'm planning to have my car repainted, but I haven't had the time or money yet. What can I do so I don't attract this kind of angry person in my life anymore? C.

Astrea:

Some people enjoy being angry and upset all the time, for it's the only way they know to FEEL anything. I know it sounds ridiculous, but for some people, unhappiness, anger and drama are all that matter, for they are absolutely addicted to those energies. It sounds like your neighbor is one of those people.

The thing to remember here is even though you're the current target of her animosity, there isn't anything personal about it. If someone else were living next door to her, they would be suffering in the same way.

Difficult people have a hard time of it. Usually they've been that way all their lives, and won't change until they want to. You can't force a person to be nice, but you CAN make things better for yourself while you're living there.

Since you can't avoid seeing her altogether, speak nicely to her whether she acknowledges you or not. Meet her dislike of you with love. It may not change her, but it will make YOU feel better.

When negative meets positive, eventually the positive will win. Even difficult people wear down after a while of being greeted with positive energy, so the longer you keep being nice to her, the better chance you'll have of resolving this situation. I know you're uncomfortable around her, but if you dwell on her negativity, it will rub off on you, and you certainly don't want that.

Having the constant reminder of the car door doesn't help, but until you get it fixed, you might cultivate a different reaction when you get into your car. Say to the Universe, I feel sorry for this person because she has to hurt others to feel validated. Pray daily in your own way for her to be liberated from her negative feelings, and then try to put her out of your mind.

There are all sorts of magickal remedies for making nasty people behave in nicer ways. One of my favorites is to make a batch of Angel Sugar (that's a cup of sugar to one teaspoon of vanilla, dried on a cookie sheet in your oven) and sprinkle it lightly where you know the angry person will step.

Even if the person isn't aware the Angel Sugar is there, the sweetness will rub off on them. This is one way to silently combat a miserable person's bad vibes.

You probably didn't attract her; some things are just random. Sometimes we are unlucky when it comes to neighbors. Since you can't change them, you have to change your attitude and your response.

By trying to find the positive side and learn from this experience, you'll free yourself from the ugly feelings you're having about her, and by consistently meeting hatred with love, you will attract more and more love into your life from now on.

******

Susyn:

There are a number of ways to alleviate the trouble you're having with your neighbors, and mainly, they're designed to create a stronger field of spiritual protection around you. Once these protective rituals are in place, you'll experience the negative energy you feel each time you see the damage to your car or run into your neighbor beginning to melt away.

One of the most powerful methods I've ever discovered, and one that I use or recommend on an almost-daily basis, is the ritual of freezing. This is a spiritual tool that is remarkably effective in blocking and eliminating the negative vibrations and actions from others that are upsetting your life. This ritual brings no harm to your neighbors, but instead simply blocks them from taking any action against you in the future.

Tear a small piece of brown paper off a lunch sack or grocery bag. Write your neighbor's name on it in this form: I ask the Universe to freeze any and all negative, destructive, angry and unwarranted energies coming from (insert neighbor's name here). I ask that this person be blocked from causing me any further harm, and I promise to do my part too.

At the bottom, sign and date it. The phrase and I will do my part is a commitment that you will not aggravate, facilitate or encourage any action on their part; instead, you will remain neutral and let Spirit take over in this matter.

Fold the paper and place it in a zipping plastic sandwich bag, fill it halfway with water, add a pinch of salt, and then seal it and put it in the freezer. Once it is frozen solid, you'll start to notice things change. Do NOT remove the bag from the freezer until either you or the neighbors move, or your troubles could return as soon as it melts.

Another effective ritual is to carry a box of salt in your car, and each night after you park, sprinkle the salt on the ground in a fine line around the car. This will create a protective barrier to keep away not only the neighbors but any vandals who might happen to pass by.

You ask how to avoid attracting angry people into your life in the future. If this has been a recurring problem, the first step would be to write down the people and incidents and then look for common patterns.

You could be attracting them as lessons. For example, maybe you're to learn how to protect yourself more effectively. Journaling about this should also reveal ways you can break these patterns and eliminate this problem for good.

Good luck with your neighbors. I'm confident the problem will simply start to fade away once you've set up the spiritual boundaries I've offered you to protect yourself.

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.