Development Methods

Concentration. In the first place, the student should cultivate the

faculty of Concentration, that is the power to hold the attention upon

an object for some time. Very few persons possess this power, although

they may think they do. The best way to develop Concentration is to

practice on some familiar and common object, such as a pencil, book,

ornament, etc. Take up the object and study it in detail, forcing the

mind o examine and consider it in every part, until every detail of

the object has been observed and noted. Then lay the object aside, and

a few hours after pick it up again and repeat the process, and you will

be surprised to see how many points you have missed on the first trial,

Repeat this until you feel that you have exhausted your object. The

next day take up another object, and repeat the process. A drill of

this kind will not only greatly develop the powers of Perception, but

will also strengthen your powers of Concentration in a manner which

will be of great value to you in Occult Development.



Visualizing. The second point of development for the student, is the

development of the faculty of Visualization. In order to Visualize you

must cultivate the faculty of forming Mental Pictures of distant

scenes, places, people, etc., until you can summon them before you at

will, when you place yourself in the proper mental condition. Another

plan is to place yourself in a comfortable position, and then make a

mental journey to some place that you have previously visited. Prepare

for the journey, and then mentally see yourself starting on your trip;

then seeing all the intermediate places and points; then arriving at

your destination and visiting the points of interest, etc.; and then

returning home. Then, later try to visit places that you have never

seen, in the same way. This is not Clairvoyance, but is a training of

the mental faculties for the exercise of the real power.



Psychometry. After you have developed yourself along the lines of

Concentration, and Visualization as above stated, you may begin to

practice Psychometry, as follows: Take a lock of hair; or handkerchief;

or ribbon; or ring; belonging to some other person, and then press it

against your forehead, lightly, closing your eyes, and assuming a

receptive and passive mental state. Then desire calmly that you

Psychometrize the past history of the object. Do not be in too much of

a hurry, but await calmly the impressions. After a while you will begin

to receive impressions concerning the person owning the object pressed

against your forehead. You will form a mental picture of the person,

and will soon begin to receive impressions about his characteristics,

etc. You may practice with a number of objects, at different times, and

will gradually develop the Psychometric power by such practice and

experiments. Remember that you are developing what is practically a new

sense, and must have perseverance and patience in educating and

unfolding it.



Another form of Psychometric development is that of tracing the past

history, surroundings, etc., of metals, minerals, etc. The process is

identical to that just described. The mineral is pressed against the

forehead, and with closed eyes the person awaits the Psychometric

impression. Some who have highly developed the faculty have been able

to describe the veins of mineral, metal, etc., and to give much

valuable information regarding same, all arising from the psychic clue

afforded by a sample of the rock, mineral, metal, etc. There are other

cases of record, in which underground streams of water have been

discovered by Psychometrists, by means of the clue given by a bit of

earth, stone, etc., from the surface. In this, as in the other phase

mentioned, ~practice~, ~practice~, ~practice~, is the summing up of

the instruction regarding development.



~Crystal Gazing.~ We consider the use of the Crystal Glass Ball,

or other forms of what the ancients called "The Magic Mirror," to be

the best plan of developing Psychomantic Power. As we have already

explained, this method serves to focus the concentrated desire, will,

and thought of the person, and thereby becomes the starting point for

the Astral Tube, of which we have frequently spoken in this work. The

student becoming proficient in this class of phenomena, passes by easy,

gradual and natural stages to the higher and more complex phases of the

subject. The "Magic Mirror" (of which the Crystal is but a form) was

used by the ancient Occultists in developing the powers of their

students, and in all countries, and in all ages, it has played a

similar part in the process of developing psychic powers, and serving

as a focal point for the erection and operation of the Astral Tube, in

Psychomancy and other forms of occult and psychic phenomena.



At this point, we wish to tell you that there is no special virtue or

magical properties or qualities in the Crystal itself--it is merely an

instrument for Astral Vision, just as the telescope, microscope and

other optical instruments are instruments employed in the phenomena of

physical vision. It is true that the atomic and molecular

characteristics of glass, crystal, etc., tend to produce the best

results, but, after all, water, ink, etc., have been, and may be

similarly used. No, there is no special "magic" in the crystal itself,

so do not allow yourself to fall into any superstition regarding its

use.



Various teachers use different forms of the Crystal, or substitutes for

it. Some of the teachers whose patrons are among the wealthier classes

of the community, insist upon their pupils possessing globes of pure

crystal, insisting that the latter alone gives the best results. But

others who have pupils among people with shorter purses, have found

that their pupils obtained just as good results by the use of a ball of

plain glass, which is inexpensive. Others have advocated the use of

watch crystals laid over a piece of black cloth, preferably velvet.

Others have used polished steel objects, or pieces of polished metal of

various kinds, a new silver coin, for instance. Others still, have used

a large drop of ink poured into a small dish, etc. Others have had cups

painted black on their inner surface, into which they poured water, and

claimed to have obtained the finest results. All the old talk about

magic ceremonies and incantations being necessary in manufacturing the

Magic Mirror, is pure nonsense, which has grown around the scientific

facts of the case, as is so often the case. Do not be deceived by any

such tomfoolery. A number of persons prefer to gaze into the bright

substance of a precious stone. So you see, when we use the term

"Crystal," we mean that the student may make his choice of any, or

several, of the above-mentioned objects, or that he may even substitute

some other object of his own choosing, possessing the requisite power

of reflection.



There are but very few directions to be given in the use of the

Crystal. Read what we have to say at the conclusion of our lesson on

"Crystal Gazing" in this book, (Lesson VI). The principal point

insisted upon by nearly all the teachers, is that of placing the back

of the gazer to the light, instead of having him face the light.



The simple general direction is that the gazer should practice by

himself, at first, in a quiet room, sitting with his back toward the

light, with the Crystal placed before him on a table, on a piece of

black cloth, or other dark material, and then gaze calmly at the

Crystal. Do not be afraid of winking, and do not strain or tire the

eyes. Some prefer making funnels of their hands, and gazing through

them just as if they were opera-glasses, and we think this plan a very

good one, for it serves to shut out distracting light, and sights. If

you fail to see anything at the first trial, do not be discouraged, but

persevere. A number of trials are necessary in some cases, while in

others wonderful results have been obtained at the first experiment.



An English authority recommends that beginners failing to get direct

results, then try to "visualize" something that they have already

seen--something familiar, such as a chair, a ring, a face, etc., and

then turning to the Crystal endeavor to reproduce it there. It is

claimed that this practice will often gradually lead to actual "seeing"

in the Crystal.



~The first signs of the actual "seeing" in the Crystal, comes in the

form of a "cloudiness," or "milky-mist" in the crystal, which slowly

resolves itself into a form, or scene, which appears gradually like the

precipitation of a photograph upon a sensitive plate in the developing

room. In some cases, the "misty" cloud deepens into a black one, from

which the pictures appear.~



~General Advice.~ In this work we give you a comprehensive, although

condensed, account of the various phases of the phenomena of

Psychomancy, together with a number of instances of typical

manifestations. By reading the following lessons, after having read

the present one, the student will be able to gather much practical

instruction on the subject of the manifestation of the power. He will

be able to understand the nature and general workings of the

phenomena, so that, when he undertakes the work of developing the

power within himself, he will recognize the indication of his

increasing power and unfolding faculties, which otherwise would "be

Greek" to him. In order to get the very best results of instruction in

this line, the student would of course do well to secure some

competent instructor who could give him personal lessons. But, the

person who has the patience and perseverance to "work the thing out

for himself," as many before him have done, will obtain results none

the less valuable because they were worked for without assistance.



We feel that we have given the students of this little work, such an

idea of the general subject, and its fundamental laws, together with

such general instruction in the methods of developing and manifesting

the power that it will be one's own fault if he fails to get at least a

fair degree of success from his undertaking self-development along

these lines. There is no royal road to occult or psychic power--or

"magic word" which when once pronounced will prove an "open Sesame" to

the Doors of Psychomancy. And we would warn the student against persons

who undertake to impart the "Secret" upon the payment of a goodly sum

of money. There is no "Secret" to be so imparted--it is all a matter,

first of general understanding, and then practice and work. To some it

comes easier than to others, but even to such, the higher degrees mean

work and practice. We trust that we have given you food for thought and

material for practice. The rest depends upon yourself.