How do you experience energy?

[Jenett]

I mentioned elsethread that I mostly get magical energy perception as musical/audio data, rather than other forms, and from comments there, it seems like that might be an interesting discussion, so here's a place for it.

Some questions to get us started, but please expand into other directions!

1) Do you perceive energy (in the magical/ritual sense) in a particular way? Light? Colour? Texture? Sound? Air pressure? Something else?

2) When you're trying to focus or harness energy to do something, what kinds of things work for you? Alternately, are there approaches that really don't work for you?

3) Have you noticed similarities or differences when you're doing other kinds of magical or ritual work? For example, deity-focused rituals, meditation, daily practices vs. group ritual practices, etc?

[Jenett]

So, there are theories out there about learning styles - basically, that people have preferences about how they take in and incorporate new information. (Howard Gardner's multiple intelligences theory is perhaps the best known.)

Some of this has been disproven (and the idea that you can only learn best in your preferred mode definitely has been) but I personally find the ideas still very helpful, especially when it comes to problemsolving or magical work.

(More on my Seeking site, if you'd like a lot of examples of applying this to magical and ritual work.)

Complicating this is the fact that modern Western society heavily privileges visual information, and English as a language often doesn't have very good vocabulary for other senses (or if we do, it gets very technical, very fast. I have a lot of formal musical education in my background, so I do have language for things, but most people I want to talk to about it don't, so it doesn't help as much as you'd think.

Perceiving energy:
My primary mode is musical. Sometimes I hear melodies, sometimes I hear particular instrumentation. (A cast circle often sounds like a very soft light tremulo to me, for example.)

For complex magical work with other people, I definitely hear it as a multi-voiced musical piece (and interestingly enough, often decidedly different but complementary music to anything we might be singing as part of that ritual work - though sometimes it's hard to hear the energy side because of audible sounds in the space.)

I do get some kinesthetic impressions, too - there's a spot on my right shoulder blade that is very reactive to some kinds of magical work, a cast circle has a sense of light pressure (somewhat akin to being in the water rather than the air), I get other specific physical sensations for some kinds of deity interactions or magical techniques

It took me years of formal training and regular practice in group (so I was working off material I didn't control) to get visual impressions in meditation - I still do much better with kinesthetic ones.

Other notes
One thing I've noted is that deity work for me comes through strongly visual (with very little sound, which is a bit tedious) - one of the reasons I have been stuck with further detailed research about M'Lady is that what I have is a strong visual of a particular location, a strong visual and scent impression of specific flowers, and almost no language of any kind.

It's happened enough times that it has become a clear marker for me of 'there is someone else present here, this is not just inside my head' because it's so outside how my head usually works. That turns out to be extremely useful in evaluating specific experiences. (Among other benefits, it's a really hard one for other people to manipulate or fake.)

[Uneryx]

I mentioned elsethread that I mostly get magical energy perception as musical/audio data, rather than other forms, and from comments there, it seems like that might be an interesting discussion, so here's a place for it.

Some questions to get us started, but please expand into other directions!

1) Do you perceive energy (in the magical/ritual sense) in a particular way? Light? Colour? Texture? Sound? Air pressure? Something else?

2) When you're trying to focus or harness energy to do something, what kinds of things work for you? Alternately, are there approaches that really don't work for you?

3) Have you noticed similarities or differences when you're doing other kinds of magical or ritual work? For example, deity-focused rituals, meditation, daily practices vs. group ritual practices, etc?

Energy has always been visual/tangible for me. Learning to see energy was one of the first forays I had into magic, back in college, and once I learned to see my own energy I'd lay in bed at night and play with the energy emanating from my hands (creating bands/bridges between my hands, playing ping-pong with a small ball of it, etc). Somewhere along the line I pushed it all away (fear? IDK) so now I'm trying to get back to where I was ten-ish years ago.

Its almost always silver/white with hints of color, which depend on the person its coming from and what mood they're in. For me, it's a lot easier to see auras/energy in dim lighting or against a stark white wall. But I've also noticed quite recently that there's an emotional/tangible component to energy as well. Anxious energy is skittery/scratchy, looks like little kinetic scribbles and feels like icy sleet on bare skin, for example.

As far as working with the energy, though, I'm still pretty new to things. I did have an "aha!" moment a few weeks ago, and it finally clicked on how to direct energy away from myself and into objects/space. As of right now, the most expedient way for that is purely emotion-based. It's a lot easier to drum up an intense feeling of joy (peach-pink, bubbly and wispy, like clouds and soda) than it is to conjure a specific "I need this good thing to happen," but what I'm presently working on is connecting the two things ("this thing and this feeling are linked and therefore the energy I'm raising is for this thing").

Can't speak to other types of rituals, since I'm taking it at my own pace and trying to learn building blocks. But I can say getting a handle on how to raise/direct my emotions has done a LOT of good for keeping my anxiety at a manageable level... there were several instances over Thanksgiving week where I felt it ratcheting up and stepped aside to put all the scribbles away and returned to the stress in the kitchen, instead of having a meltdown in the bathroom like I really wanted to.
 
The sound thing you describe is interesting, Jenett. I'm so sensitive to sounds (they affect my mood and sometimes affect me physically) that I'd be freaking out if energy manifested as music. Does it ever affect you that way, and do music/singing bowls/humming have any impact on your practice?

[Uneryx]

/snip

Also I'm super curious as to how the rest of the board experiences energy. Does anyone ever feel physical pain in their arm/wrist?

[Ashmire]

1) Do you perceive energy (in the magical/ritual sense) in a particular way? Light? Colour? Texture? Sound? Air pressure? Something else?

Drastic mood/personality changes.  I don't know a great deal about Voodoo, but from what I've read of the concept of being ridden by the lwa, I relate very much to that as how magical processes work  for me. 

2) When you're trying to focus or harness energy to do something, what kinds of things work for you? Alternately, are there approaches that really don't work for you?

Well, I have an issue with visualization that is different from any that I've read others complain of.  It's not that I *can't* visualize, in fact I do so quite easily, it's just that it seems like, the clearer I visualize results, the less likely anything is to manifest in the real world. It's like all the energy gets dissipated into my mental image instead of going anywhere.   So I have to make effort not to do that. 

[Sefiru]

1) Do you perceive energy (in the magical/ritual sense) in a particular way? Light? Colour? Texture? Sound? Air pressure? Something else?

I usually get body sensations, like a tingling in my fingers or in the pit of my stomach. ('tingling' isn't quite the right word for it, but see what Jenett wrote about lack of vocabulary.) Occasionally I'll get the feeling of something/someone touching my skin, but usually it's internal.

There are two difficulties with this, I find: I can't really sense energy at a distance, and I have trouble separating energy-feelings from my physical alertness/tiredness feelings.

I don't have enough experience to answer the other questions though.

[Emma Eldritch]

1) Do you perceive energy (in the magical/ritual sense) in a particular way? Light? Colour? Texture? Sound? Air pressure? Something else?

I can visualise energy when I work if I want to, but I don't actually see it. Like if you asked me "what colour is my aura?" I'd be standing there going, "uhh... piiink?" It's like if I construct the energy myself or I'm in a meditative state I can see it in my mind, but that's it.

So in a practical real-world setting, I feel it. Air pressure is a good description, actually, or a sense of heat.

2) When you're trying to focus or harness energy to do something, what kinds of things work for you? Alternately, are there approaches that really don't work for you?

Breath work, straight up just glaring at shit, chanting, dance. I don't think I've found anything yet that flat out won't work for me, but some approaches I just enjoy more than others. (Dance, for example, is super fun and also one of the ways I got decent at firing sigils back in my weekly clubbing days.)

3) Have you noticed similarities or differences when you're doing other kinds of magical or ritual work? For example, deity-focused rituals, meditation, daily practices vs. group ritual practices, etc?

Mostly I notice differences. Deity stuff, depending on what it is, feels bigger and occasionally like, "okay, shove over, I'm driving." Spirit work there's a sense of presence and an energy that is Not Mine, for sure.

Group stuff is something I'm only recently getting used to after many years of only working with family. It's definitely very different from what I'm used to - finding the rhythms and climaxes are much more complicated. I've not done anything TOO heavy yet, but I am very interested in seeing where it goes with some other people. (Got a bro who I think I can talk into going into the woods with me. ...which makes me sound like a serial killer...)

The most unexpected thing I encountered when trying to play with others had to do with trust and openness. I was running very informal group get-togethers and it very quickly became apparent that someone with a closed-off energy can tank an entire evening. I was worried about trying to combine group energy, and honestly hadn't even considered that someone who wanted to be there would essentially wall themselves off because of trust issues. So that was a learning experience.

[Jenett]

The sound thing you describe is interesting, Jenett. I'm so sensitive to sounds (they affect my mood and sometimes affect me physically) that I'd be freaking out if energy manifested as music. Does it ever affect you that way, and do music/singing bowls/humming have any impact on your practice?

It's mostly not something that I hear actively - it doesn't get in the way of other things.

(I'm also pretty sound sensitive - some kinds of sounds are a migraine trigger for me, though I think a lot more so in situations where the physical sound and the energetic sound don't match.)

I do have stretches where I'll hear something - usually pretty well developed melody and harmonic structure - at totally random points (not just when I'm in bed, reading, and it's quiet, though that's one of the times it happens reliably, even when I'm really sure it's not music from somewhere nearby.)

Often it's just a sort of sense - a 'oh, that's tremulo' or 'wow, that's an oboe' or 'mmm, viola." and I have some ideas of what that maps to (the way people who see colours in auras and energy can often map colours to similar things over time) but I'm doing it on a very low-key level. Sometimes it's 'hearing' something in people being up front or there being something out of tune in the interaction.

I can't always tell what that is, or what's causing it (and it might be something totally different for that person - something in their personal life, medical issues, etc) and all I can tell is there's something out of tune. So I don't lean on it hard for decisions, just use it as a "Oh that's a thing to explore more" piece of data.

As to singing bowls - I don't hate them, but I don't generally find them very useful. (I suspect this is because the ones that are well-made enough to make me really interested are mostly outside my price range and I haven't been in places where I could test twenty or so to find the right one.)

For other forms of music, I go through patches of really regular music, and more complex bits (doing a music major as one of my majors in college was a decidedly mixed blessing) but the tradition I trained in uses music for some of its ritual work at various points, and I both use those and some kinds of toning/harmony/etc. when relevant to the ritual or magical work. And I do a lot of 'make a playlist for this goal/focus/thing' type stuff.

[Jenett]

Well, I have an issue with visualization that is different from any that I've read others complain of.  It's not that I *can't* visualize, in fact I do so quite easily, it's just that it seems like, the clearer I visualize results, the less likely anything is to manifest in the real world. It's like all the energy gets dissipated into my mental image instead of going anywhere.   So I have to make effort not to do that.

That sounds to me like a thing some people hit with writing (and that I mostly do except in very specific situations). There are some people for whom sitting down and outlining what they want to write excites them to write it, and makes the whole thing more real. And there are other people (lots of them!) for whom writing out the outline kills any desire they had to write that story. They know how it goes, it's over and done.

I'm more a plotter, but having learned how to sort of put energy into things I'm exploring, and gradually winnow it down to an actual goal, refining it slowly over time is a thing it took me a while to learn how to do. (It helped to have a couple of things where I had a clear end goal, but there were multiple realistic possible ways to get there - job hunting, for example. Lots of ways to find a job in my field, but a bunch of possible outcomes, several of which I'd be very happy with.)

[Kylara]

1) Do you perceive energy (in the magical/ritual sense) in a particular way? Light? Colour? Texture? Sound? Air pressure? Something else?

2) When you're trying to focus or harness energy to do something, what kinds of things work for you? Alternately, are there approaches that really don't work for you?

3) Have you noticed similarities or differences when you're doing other kinds of magical or ritual work? For example, deity-focused rituals, meditation, daily practices vs. group ritual practices, etc?

For me, energy is typically a body feeling, though I sometimes get a scent and or color (I know the smell/look of my own energy).  I most often feel energy in my hands, a warm almost tingly pressure, kind of like there is too much blood in them.

I struggled for years with visualization because it was so very visual!  Once I stopped trying to see a movie in my mind, I had no problem with it.  I almost always visualize with a sense of knowing, combined with touch.  I can describe the essence of a thing I've visualized, which may include visual clues, but I'm not always actually seeing it in my mind.  Sometimes I do get those crystal clear 'more real than the world in front of me' visuals, but that is more the exception than the rule.

Chanting tends to take me out of 'me' more than other forms of raising energy...but this also means I can become a channel to the chant, and I don't have to focus on or even know the words well.  I just chant.

Deity work is very heart space for me.  I first connected with the deities I work with because I got shivers every time I said their names.  I still get this, though not every time anymore.  But speaking to my deities gives me a warmth in the heart area.

[Kylara]

That sounds to me like a thing some people hit with writing (and that I mostly do except in very specific situations). There are some people for whom sitting down and outlining what they want to write excites them to write it, and makes the whole thing more real. And there are other people (lots of them!) for whom writing out the outline kills any desire they had to write that story. They know how it goes, it's over and done.

I'm more a plotter, but having learned how to sort of put energy into things I'm exploring, and gradually winnow it down to an actual goal, refining it slowly over time is a thing it took me a while to learn how to do. (It helped to have a couple of things where I had a clear end goal, but there were multiple realistic possible ways to get there - job hunting, for example. Lots of ways to find a job in my field, but a bunch of possible outcomes, several of which I'd be very happy with.)

Funny, with writing I am very much a discovery writer.....I can sort of plan things out loosely in my head, but most of the time I just get ideas as I am writing, I don't outline at all.  If I do have to outline (like back in school where it was required), I struggle to keep to it.  Most of the times, when I had to write an outline, I'd just write the paper first, then go back and write an outline based on my paper.

But when working magic or doing other big projects, having a plan definitely works better for me.  It doesn't have to be super detailed, but it needs concrete, verifiable steps.  It can be as simple as "write about each moon phase for a year", but something like "work on divination this year" doesn't work for me.  I end up thinking about it a lot but never actually doing anything.  I need more structure or I tend to get sidetracked and not do things regardless of my good intentions.

[Kylara]

My primary mode is musical. Sometimes I hear melodies, sometimes I hear particular instrumentation. (A cast circle often sounds like a very soft light tremulo to me, for example.)

For complex magical work with other people, I definitely hear it as a multi-voiced musical piece (and interestingly enough, often decidedly different but complementary music to anything we might be singing as part of that ritual work - though sometimes it's hard to hear the energy side because of audible sounds in the space.)

I think I'm a tad bit jealous...this sounds amazing!

[Skumring]

I mentioned elsethread that I mostly get magical energy perception as musical/audio data, rather than other forms, and from comments there, it seems like that might be an interesting discussion, so here's a place for it.

Some questions to get us started, but please expand into other directions!

1) Do you perceive energy (in the magical/ritual sense) in a particular way? Light? Colour? Texture? Sound? Air pressure? Something else?

2) When you're trying to focus or harness energy to do something, what kinds of things work for you? Alternately, are there approaches that really don't work for you?

3) Have you noticed similarities or differences when you're doing other kinds of magical or ritual work? For example, deity-focused rituals, meditation, daily practices vs. group ritual practices, etc?

I perceive energy in several ways, depending on the circumstances and all. Mostly it's visual and touch. However, I alays know when Hela is near because in Her case it's my sense of touch and smell. Other deities or beings tend to be felt as more of a pressure or presence, in my case.

I come from a background using pure willpower to harness energy for work. And, fortunately for me, I'm a natural at this so it comes easily. When I was first starting out though I had to make do with visualizations. I still, on the rre occason that someone asks for a lesson, teach that tool. It's far easier and most seem to pick it up very quickly.

The only thing I've noted is that group work seems to go awry quickly. While I'm always fine others in the group tend to suffer physical effects. Consequently, I do not work in groups anymore. This doesn't always happen with one or two others but beyond that it seems that the energies involved become too complex for the lead to handle.

One thing I have noted is that, in my case at least, non-corporeal beings tend to be attracted to me when I use energy/magic. Anyone else have similar experiences?

[MeadowRae]

For me, energy is typically a body feeling, though I sometimes get a scent and or color (I know the smell/look of my own energy).  I most often feel energy in my hands, a warm almost tingly pressure, kind of like there is too much blood in them.

I struggled for years with visualization because it was so very visual!  Once I stopped trying to see a movie in my mind, I had no problem with it.  I almost always visualize with a sense of knowing, combined with touch.  I can describe the essence of a thing I've visualized, which may include visual clues, but I'm not always actually seeing it in my mind.  Sometimes I do get those crystal clear 'more real than the world in front of me' visuals, but that is more the exception than the rule.

Chanting tends to take me out of 'me' more than other forms of raising energy...but this also means I can become a channel to the chant, and I don't have to focus on or even know the words well.  I just chant.

Deity work is very heart space for me.  I first connected with the deities I work with because I got shivers every time I said their names.  I still get this, though not every time anymore.  But speaking to my deities gives me a warmth in the heart area.

My experience with energy is very similar! I have the tingling, pulsing warmth in my hands and chest. Visualizations come a bit easier to me, but usually I experience things as something/someone else. It's a first person perspective. So, I guess, like you I have to step away from the expectation that it will be like a movie and allow the experience to happen. (If that makes any kind of sense.) When I speak to deities I don't actual "hear" them, it's kind of like a thought appears in my head that doesn't seem to come from me, like an internal voice you aren't quite associated with/controlling.

Breath work helps, and having a scent that I associate with ritual helps me get into that space, too. On the very rare occasions that I do spellwork I feel that tingly feeling very strongly in my hands and chest. It also elevates my mood. It's nearly intoxicating, but in a good way.