For our first task, what I want you to do is to practice doing the opposite; I want you to practice REALLY SEEING something with your whole being, trying to understand every part of what it is, and then clearly visualizing it in your mind’s eye. I want you to be so good at it that you can recall that item, with perfect clarity, at least a week later. This isn’t going to happen right away, so keep practicing!

Exercise 1: Five Things

“Visualize” is really not the best word for what I’m trying to communicate, but it’s the name given to the skill in most magickal books. If you want to “see” something clearly in your mind’s eye, you need to use as many senses as possible. It’s like a piece of poetry; the more senses you bring to bear, the better you will be able to “visualize.”

So let’s start by considering the full use of our senses!

For daily practice, minimum of three months:

First, look all around you and notice five different things in the room or area that you see. They must be five entirely separate things. They can be anything, and it’s not really the details you want to focus on in this case, just the fact of their existence and what they are.

Next, close your eyes. Pay attention to five separate things that you hear. They must be entirely separate things, but could be the same things you saw, as long as you are clear that you are hearing them, and not thinking that you should be hearing them because you saw them in the first round!

Do you remember everything that you saw and heard? Good!

Keeping your eyes closed, pay attention to five entirely different things that you feel. Is there a wind? How warm are you? Are you itchy? Do your clothes have a texture? What about your jewelry?

Last round: focus on five entirely different things that you smell and taste! Yes, you really can do this; the air has all kinds of scents and flavors in it. Maybe your perfume has an odor, for example, or maybe the neighbor is barbecuing. Maybe you can still taste a hint of the coffee you drank in the morning. Can you smell the dust around you, or moisture in the air?

Now, open your eyes again, and notice four entirely separate things that you see. They must be different from the first five things. Again, they can be anything and the minute details really don’t matter. Close your eyes and focus on four entirely different things that you hear from the first round. Take note of four entirely different sensations that you feel. Notice four new scents/tastes.

You know where I’m going with this now, right? Open your eyes, and notice three entirely separate things. Close them and note three new sounds, then three new sensations, and three new tastes and smells. Open your eyes once more and focus on two new things. Close them and listen to two new sounds, feel two new feelings, and smell or taste two new flavors or odors. Last, discern one new sight, one new sound, one new sensation, and one new taste or smell.

Open your eyes. Do you remember everything that you noticed?

Practice this once a day for at least three months. After a while, it becomes a habit, and you always notice the world in this complete and all-encompassing way.

There is no test aside from the end result in your ability to do magick. Other than you, no one will know whether or not you did the homework. But remember what I said about focus and practice being a problem when you want to do magick? If you have the persistence to go the distance, the end result will pay off. And the world really is much prettier than we give it credit for, if you just take the time to pay attention! Consider that a study bonus!