Terminating the Space
The ending is just as important as the
beginning. The exit door is the entry door to another place. Closing the space is like the
first breath the baby takes after coming out of the womb. The baby will be an unfinished
product without this last, small thing. It is setting up the alarm when you walk away from
your car; the hand-shake after signing a contract. It is the kiss that seals the marriage
vows. Closing the space is looking at your empty house when everything has been loaded
into the moving van, saying good bye under your breath, and turning the lights
off before you finally close the door and leave. The ending is important. There is no
entity until the beginning meets its mirror image: the end.
Experiment 1
Go into a room and close the door. Ideally
this room is the room that you use for your shamanic magickal experiments, but if there is
no room designated for this, any room will do. (As long as there is an actual door that
you can close.)
Stand in the middle of the room and place your
attention on the room as a whole. Inhabit the room with your whole being.
Allow your attention to leave any other worry
or preocuppation and focus completely on the room: its physical contents, its emotional
implications, its mental ramifications...anything as long as your attention is on the
room.
Now close your eyes and count to 7 while
keeping your attention on the room.
Open your eyes when you finish the count. Step
out of the room and close the door behind you. And inmediately place your attention on
something else... anything else except the room.
This exercise may seem very simple, but it will
take a lot of practice to master it.
Experiment 2
Go to the bank or the supermarket or any
store... any situation where you have a short interaction with a clerk or salesperson.
Pay attention to the way the interaction
begins and how it progresses.
When the business is finished, look quickly
but firmly into the person's eyes. Say "Thank you" and nod your head.
As you walk away take a deep breath and exhale
slowly.
The objective is to go past the
"lingering" mood as quickly and as smoothly as possible. Be present at the
moment the space ends and release it in an instant. Don't try to extend it beyond its
borders. This will only hurt the space itself and any efforts that follow. As short or as
long as the space was, it is over and you are back to being your "regular" self
(whatever that is!).
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