Going Deep: Explore Seven Planes of Your Inner Life
Doing nothing can get stuff done.
Although it's evening and I'm tired, and have already written a piece of content, I decided to tap into my creative space and see if anything came up. I pondered the creative space itself and how it's achieved. The result is this piece about developing an inner life.
Because I like to frame things in terms of multidimensional consciousness, in this article I have mapped out a step-by-step process to help you move progressively through different dimensions of consciousness. It's basically a mindfulness exercise, but it's also the process I use to tap into my own creativity. Whether I'm tapping into the plane of words, pictures or symbols, there's a preliminary process - a turning away from ordinary consciousness - toward the inner life.
Our hectic paced lives can make it harder than ever to maintain an inner life. Bright lights and continual stimulation lengthen the amount of time we spend in the active phases of personal energy management. The active expression of human energy is highly valued because it is obviously getting stuff done.
But the receptive, reflective expression of living energy is also vital to maintaining balance. Simply put, it's Yin and Yang, receptive and active, inflow and outflow. When we think about productivity, we need to be aware of the importance of the rest and rejuvenation aspects of the cycle.
When I reflect on the past - prior to electricity - I imagine that the hours between dusk and sleep could be long, the darkness promoting quiet reflection and sedentary activities in the focus of candlelight or by an actual fire. Entertainment might come in the form of music, dance, conversation and storytelling, but mostly we would have been left with our thoughts, our inner life.
Since TV first became a normal household item in the 70s we've become more reliant on the light of various devices to entertain us. By looking outside of ourselves in this way, the gentle light of the inner life can start to fade.
Although the presence of technology is inevitable and useful, it doesn't have to mean the demise of the inner life. A small decision to turn away from the external screens each day, can help you stay connected to the internal screen, where your imagination fires up your visionary potential.
Because we are multidimensional, developing a complex inner life can be broken down into seven easy steps. Each step requires less effort than the one prior. Actually getting yourself to make physical space and time in your life is the hard part, and represents the first step. Once you have carved space into your physical life, attuning to your inner life can happen immediately.
Although it's evening and I'm tired, and have already written a piece of content, I decided to tap into my creative space and see if anything came up. I pondered the creative space itself and how it's achieved. The result is this piece about developing an inner life.
Because I like to frame things in terms of multidimensional consciousness, in this article I have mapped out a step-by-step process to help you move progressively through different dimensions of consciousness. It's basically a mindfulness exercise, but it's also the process I use to tap into my own creativity. Whether I'm tapping into the plane of words, pictures or symbols, there's a preliminary process - a turning away from ordinary consciousness - toward the inner life.
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| Multidimensional Consciousness |
Our hectic paced lives can make it harder than ever to maintain an inner life. Bright lights and continual stimulation lengthen the amount of time we spend in the active phases of personal energy management. The active expression of human energy is highly valued because it is obviously getting stuff done.
But the receptive, reflective expression of living energy is also vital to maintaining balance. Simply put, it's Yin and Yang, receptive and active, inflow and outflow. When we think about productivity, we need to be aware of the importance of the rest and rejuvenation aspects of the cycle.
When I reflect on the past - prior to electricity - I imagine that the hours between dusk and sleep could be long, the darkness promoting quiet reflection and sedentary activities in the focus of candlelight or by an actual fire. Entertainment might come in the form of music, dance, conversation and storytelling, but mostly we would have been left with our thoughts, our inner life.
Since TV first became a normal household item in the 70s we've become more reliant on the light of various devices to entertain us. By looking outside of ourselves in this way, the gentle light of the inner life can start to fade.
Although the presence of technology is inevitable and useful, it doesn't have to mean the demise of the inner life. A small decision to turn away from the external screens each day, can help you stay connected to the internal screen, where your imagination fires up your visionary potential.
Why Foster an Inner Life?
Erupting from the inner realms we find inspiration, dreams and imaginings. We find original ideas and solutions. Most of all, we find our own unique voice. One not shaped by screens, censors or agendas. It is personalised, subjective and instinctive, but connects us to something universal, objective and wise. It's also the voice of our intuition, which is capable of processing vast amounts of information, both conscious and unconscious.Because we are multidimensional, developing a complex inner life can be broken down into seven easy steps. Each step requires less effort than the one prior. Actually getting yourself to make physical space and time in your life is the hard part, and represents the first step. Once you have carved space into your physical life, attuning to your inner life can happen immediately.
Seven Planes of the Inner Life
1. Clearing the Physical Plane
First I deal with the needs of physical dimensions. That just means I make sure I'm not going to be distracted by hunger, thirst or cold. For me, this Winter's night, it means that after dinner I got into P.J's and grabbed a cuppa. By changing the environment a little, we can create what I call 'a new event horizon.' This means consciousness begins to move away from the ordinary concerns of the day. It's like walking into another room. It helps me to shift my focus toward the inner life, the world between worlds - place of subtle sensing and inner knowing.
Lighting a little incense and/or a candle helps too, especially if your space is shared, or the aroma of dinner still hangs in the air. My primary tool for shifting consciousness is music. My favourite artists are the ones who assist me to tune out from a noisy environment and tune into my creative musings. My rocking chair helps so much that I've begun calling it The Magic Chair. The simplicity of listening and rocking to music shifts my consciousness, connecting me naturally to my inner life.
The physical dimensions define and give form to the unseen dimensions. So part of preparing physically for inner work is to have some way to easily record your impressions in physical form. Personally, I use a notebook. Writing is my thing. You might keep a sketchbook handy. Whatever is your preferred way of noting things down that you want to remember. If you use a tech device for such things, that's fine, as long as it doesn't distract you from the personal reflection bit. You might have your device away from you as you ponder the universe, then grab your device and start typing when the creativity peaks.
Lighting a little incense and/or a candle helps too, especially if your space is shared, or the aroma of dinner still hangs in the air. My primary tool for shifting consciousness is music. My favourite artists are the ones who assist me to tune out from a noisy environment and tune into my creative musings. My rocking chair helps so much that I've begun calling it The Magic Chair. The simplicity of listening and rocking to music shifts my consciousness, connecting me naturally to my inner life.
The physical dimensions define and give form to the unseen dimensions. So part of preparing physically for inner work is to have some way to easily record your impressions in physical form. Personally, I use a notebook. Writing is my thing. You might keep a sketchbook handy. Whatever is your preferred way of noting things down that you want to remember. If you use a tech device for such things, that's fine, as long as it doesn't distract you from the personal reflection bit. You might have your device away from you as you ponder the universe, then grab your device and start typing when the creativity peaks.
2. The Emotional Plane
When you have started to settle into your space, the first thing you will probably notice is your emotional state. It will determine how easy it is to relax into a reflective state. Emotions affect the quality of our inner life in various ways. Emotional energy can stimulate, inspire or diminish, depending on how it's used. Artists harvest their valuable emotional energies to create inspired, emotive art works. By refining our emotional energy to express it in a disciplined way, we gain more control over the emotional dimension of consciousness. We can then wade into the wisdom of our emotional currents without wallowing.
Although wisdom can be found by exploring our emotions, if we become overwhelmed with stronger emotions it can be hard to function. The inner life can become something negative and tormenting, where fearful images are played out over and over. This is not the time for tuning into your inner life. During times of stress I find it helps to actually turn on the TV or grab a device or book. Anything to distract me from an inner life tormented by fear and worry.
Our emotional energy forms part of a complex energy manifestation process. Undisciplined emotional energy can cause cycles of cause and effect that go around in unproductive loops, draining our creative potential and getting us nowhere. Emotional energy is precious. Like any precious resource, it deserves to be seen and acknowledged. The emotional plane helps to lift us toward new heights or drop us into rest, depending upon our instinctive needs.
Once we turn toward our inner life, feelings become more apparent. Their raw instinctive energies can cause us to question and observe ourselves. Once we do that, we have raised our consciousness to dimension three, the mental plane.
Although wisdom can be found by exploring our emotions, if we become overwhelmed with stronger emotions it can be hard to function. The inner life can become something negative and tormenting, where fearful images are played out over and over. This is not the time for tuning into your inner life. During times of stress I find it helps to actually turn on the TV or grab a device or book. Anything to distract me from an inner life tormented by fear and worry.
Our emotional energy forms part of a complex energy manifestation process. Undisciplined emotional energy can cause cycles of cause and effect that go around in unproductive loops, draining our creative potential and getting us nowhere. Emotional energy is precious. Like any precious resource, it deserves to be seen and acknowledged. The emotional plane helps to lift us toward new heights or drop us into rest, depending upon our instinctive needs.
Once we turn toward our inner life, feelings become more apparent. Their raw instinctive energies can cause us to question and observe ourselves. Once we do that, we have raised our consciousness to dimension three, the mental plane.
3. The Mental Plane
Clearing the mind doesn't have to mean literally clearing the mind of all thought. Most people find that intimidating. Clearing the mind simply means being mindful of the quality of our attitude. If you are in a negative mood, the quality of your thoughts will reflect your mental state. That's why it's important to consider mental health when developing an inner life. Out of control thoughts can dominate the mind and become an 'inner negative voice' that disrupts any chance of wise contemplation.
Part of developing an inner-life is learning how to recognise the quality of your thoughts. When you begin noticing how your thoughts fire you up or blow you down, you can start taking more control of how to psych yourself up toward achieving the life you want.
The best attitude to invoke when delving into the inner life, is curiosity. Curiosity opens the mind and asks 'I wonder what will happen if I follow this train of thought?' When you begin exploring how your decisions either connect or separate you from opportunities in the world, you are entering the plane of connection, dimension four, also known as the heart chakra.
Part of developing an inner-life is learning how to recognise the quality of your thoughts. When you begin noticing how your thoughts fire you up or blow you down, you can start taking more control of how to psych yourself up toward achieving the life you want.
The best attitude to invoke when delving into the inner life, is curiosity. Curiosity opens the mind and asks 'I wonder what will happen if I follow this train of thought?' When you begin exploring how your decisions either connect or separate you from opportunities in the world, you are entering the plane of connection, dimension four, also known as the heart chakra.
4. The Plane of Connection
The stories that play out in our inner world are a reflection of our outer world and vice-versa. Through them we can assess the nature and flow of our human energy. We can also observe the quality of our relationships as they play out in our minds in their inner form. It is also where we gain the ability to empathically imagine ourselves in another's place and become more considerate of our effect on others.
Are our friends presenting as helpful influences, positive in word and action? Or are the people around us projected within as critics, judges, even abusers? Our collective experience of the world becomes a combined story that plays out on the inside, forming the narratives inspiring our relationship to the world.
This kind of energy sits within our chest as the stories of our heart. From there, (if you let it) the energy rises toward expression, inspiring the hand and the voice toward art. From the myriad forms come myriad forms, arising from the heart through the plane of expression, dimension five.
Are our friends presenting as helpful influences, positive in word and action? Or are the people around us projected within as critics, judges, even abusers? Our collective experience of the world becomes a combined story that plays out on the inside, forming the narratives inspiring our relationship to the world.
This kind of energy sits within our chest as the stories of our heart. From there, (if you let it) the energy rises toward expression, inspiring the hand and the voice toward art. From the myriad forms come myriad forms, arising from the heart through the plane of expression, dimension five.
5. The Plane of Expression
Where your myriad expressions come to be, there grows your life. The result of what you create with your organs of expression. Whether spoken aloud in your life or whether spoken quietly in your inner life, the sum total of your words has a value that affects you, and the people around you, for better or worse. Whether you are creating a work of art that will be seen by many, or a sentence uttered to be heard only by yourself, all have a value that marks our characters and generates the energies of our lives.
Our inner life animates our experience with multidimensional layers of intuitive perception and understanding. First we experience intuition at an emotional level as gut instinct. It then evolves into empathy at the heart, and finally the intuitive voice.
Once heard, the voice of intuition remains audible. It becomes your higher self, gently guiding you through life in basic and profound ways. The reason we prepare ourselves by checking our emotions and attitudes, is that we want to make sure our intuitive voice is grounded in positive intent. With practice, the intuitive voice will be understood as a voice of love and pure, helpful intent. The scrappy negative thoughts that erupt from our more wounded influences become easier to identify.
The inner life is a pathway to universal consciousness, where we can tap into greater awareness, creativity and invention. The instinctive, emotional levels of our being can then be managed by a wiser, guiding self that is forged from our most valued principles including our vision of the kind of world we wish to create. Our inner vision represents dimension six, where we envision.
Our inner life animates our experience with multidimensional layers of intuitive perception and understanding. First we experience intuition at an emotional level as gut instinct. It then evolves into empathy at the heart, and finally the intuitive voice.
Once heard, the voice of intuition remains audible. It becomes your higher self, gently guiding you through life in basic and profound ways. The reason we prepare ourselves by checking our emotions and attitudes, is that we want to make sure our intuitive voice is grounded in positive intent. With practice, the intuitive voice will be understood as a voice of love and pure, helpful intent. The scrappy negative thoughts that erupt from our more wounded influences become easier to identify.
The inner life is a pathway to universal consciousness, where we can tap into greater awareness, creativity and invention. The instinctive, emotional levels of our being can then be managed by a wiser, guiding self that is forged from our most valued principles including our vision of the kind of world we wish to create. Our inner vision represents dimension six, where we envision.
6. The Visionary Plane
Imagination is more than just making stuff up. By imagining, we have become seers. The boundaries between intuition and imagination are debatable. I would say that nothing is created from nothing. We are influenced and imprinted by forces beyond our knowing. Beyond our conscious perception. Beyond our timelines. I believe that imagination contains the memories we are not aware of having. The lives we are not aware of living. The dreams we don't remember dreaming.
Also, by tapping into the visionary plane, we can envision our future into being. We can plan, invent and rehearse things in our minds, our inner vision. Combined with our inner ears at dimension five, our inner eyes imagine what could be possible. Together they form what I call the 'inner-screen.' For creatives, it is the goal of the inner life to attune to the inner screen. To see with the inner eyes and hear with the inner ears.
What are we seeing and hearing? I can't speak for others, but when I access these levels of consciousness I see poems, books, choreographies and symbols. These potentials become manifested into action if my mind allows it through making a decision, and my heart is open.
By accessing higher dimensions of consciousness where our inner screen opens, we can access consciousness that is increasingly aware of our place in the universe. When we can consider ourselves as planetary beings, our inner life has opened to dimension seven.
Also, by tapping into the visionary plane, we can envision our future into being. We can plan, invent and rehearse things in our minds, our inner vision. Combined with our inner ears at dimension five, our inner eyes imagine what could be possible. Together they form what I call the 'inner-screen.' For creatives, it is the goal of the inner life to attune to the inner screen. To see with the inner eyes and hear with the inner ears.
What are we seeing and hearing? I can't speak for others, but when I access these levels of consciousness I see poems, books, choreographies and symbols. These potentials become manifested into action if my mind allows it through making a decision, and my heart is open.
By accessing higher dimensions of consciousness where our inner screen opens, we can access consciousness that is increasingly aware of our place in the universe. When we can consider ourselves as planetary beings, our inner life has opened to dimension seven.
7. Planetary Consciousness
It might seem isolating to ponder the inner realms, but it can also help us to tap into something from the collective unconscious, channelling stories never told, yet still seeking a voice through a willing channel. Our inner voice can then speak the voices of many who have no other way to speak. I think lots of fiction comes to writers this way. They tap into something beyond themselves and their current identity, to empower and give voice to something real, from another place and time that is beyond the ordinary senses of the writer.
When we find our inner life we find that we are never really alone. Because within we find a place where all is felt and all is known by all, and all is understood. When that happens, we have stretched ourselves beyond planetary consciousness to embrace cosmic consciousness. There we find ourselves part of a unifying pattern of principles that links to all, not just on our planet, but throughout the eternal universe.
When we find our inner life we find that we are never really alone. Because within we find a place where all is felt and all is known by all, and all is understood. When that happens, we have stretched ourselves beyond planetary consciousness to embrace cosmic consciousness. There we find ourselves part of a unifying pattern of principles that links to all, not just on our planet, but throughout the eternal universe.
Leading an Inner Life – In Summary
1. Carve out some space and time
2. Observe emotional state
3. Observe mental state
4. What does your heart wish to connect to?
5. Listen to your inner voice
6. Watch your inner screen
7. Consider your place in the story of the World
I'll be speaking about my new book, Multidimensional Meditation, at Seville House on October 5th 2019.
Leanne Margaret © 2019
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