Imagination — The Genie Within | Catherine Shainberg, Ph.D.

In times like these, where one after another headline reinforces our feelings of isolation, anxiety for our survival and even for that of the planet itself, it is natural to contract in fear or to barricade ourselves against perceived threats. Instead of letting ourselves be seduced into defensive positions, let us instead view these unsettling times as an incredible opportunity to step beyond our usual, limited points of view. This way, we can see the very obstacles and challenges we fear the most as an invitation for us to embrace a new and expansive path forward.

But how? What changes the world? There is a simple answer.

What gets us moving and changing is our imagination.

If we want to reverse what could become a dangerous slide into chaos, we must fire up our imagination again. This is done through the simple action of turning our gaze inward.

We do this every night when we dream. This inner gazing is how visionaries and prophets have changed the world. We, too, can become the visionaries and prophets of our future by reconnecting with the creative flow in ourselves. Our dreams will show and guide us to change ourselves, our circumstances and the world around us.

“Your imagination is your preview to coming attractions”

That was said by Albert Einstein, a man who radically changed our perception of the world.

Let us make our coming attractions something to look forward to.

I invite you to turn your eyes inward. Bring your conscious mind back to its home base, the subconscious. It is your experiencing body — the subconscious mind at work — that knows what’s good for you. Inner gazing, when done using Saphire imagery techniques, which we teach at the School of Images, brings about a jolt — a sudden pop-up — of the amazing potential in you. Ask it a question, and your night dream or daytime vision will provide you with an entirely fresh new perspective.

Imagination is not fantasy, which is merely a mental trick of using the imagination to serve its predestined goal.

Imagining is a life affirming action in the way we do it. It is what William Blake calls “true imagination” or what Scheherazade, in the story of Aladdin, describes as the “genie in the bottle.”

What are those burning questions you want to ask your genie? Ask, turn inward, and watch: answers from your subconscious mind are endlessly creative. You couldn’t have invented them even if you tried.

As Napoleon Hill tells us,

“Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.”

So, start inner gazing now! Your consciousness and life will begin expanding again and so will the radically new and generous future you are envisioning!

By Catherine Shainberg