The Alchemy of Intentionality: Manifestation and the Magician
What is it that you really want? Have you paused amongst the seemingly never-ending whirl of the day to day, the constant, kinetic movement of yourself on this hurling orb, to ask yourself that question? When was the last time? Have you ever?
Not what you think you’re supposed to want. Not what you were raised to want, or what your loved ones want for you. Definitely not what the crushing weight of societal expectation—that knows nothing of your wildly idiosyncratic inner-landscape—convinces you that you want. Only the things that you wish for this life. Is it a career? A creative pursuit? A loyal partner? Many loved ones? A chosen family? Attention to your physical and mental health? A deep relationship with yourself? A connection to your spirit? All/some/other? And how are you—right now—attending to these precise, personal desires?
The speed at which society whirs us forward through the courses of our lives doesn’t encourage us to ask this crucial question. Even so, we are at all times in an endless state of manifesting something. What that something is can absolutely be chosen, if we take the time to sit with ourselves and critically, introspectively consider our distinct desires. What might happen if we paused, much more often, to acknowledge the inner-connectedness of energies inside and outside of ourselves? And our hand in them? What more could we accomplish if we knew our deep longings intimately?
Maybe you’ve never been told: you are the Magician of your own life. Whether you are aware of it or not, everything you do has an effect on what you are creating; everything you embody, everything you ingest and take it, everything you surround yourself with regenerates and ultimately becomes the very stuff of your realm. This includes how we treat ourselves and let ourselves be treated, what we let our inner voices tell us, and what we choose to listen to, to be persuaded or guided by.
Carl Jung, the Swiss psychoanalyst and founder of analytical psychology, wrote heavily on the concept of individuation—a process of psychological integration, wherein the personal and collective unconscious are brought together. He asserted, “Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.” When we find ourselves wondering how did I get here or how has it come to this we must ask ourselves what we’ve done (or not done) to contribute to the creation of our specific situation—how we’ve had a hand in spinning our fate.
Pausing to consider what we’ve been making of our lives—and what we’d like to make of them—allows us to exist wisely inside the collision of the subconscious/conscious, the internal/external, the day-to-day/higher self. It’s here that we get to experiment with the alchemy of intentionality. It’s here that we can establish a detailed, clear vision of what we want to create, then evaluate the tools, resources, energy, mentors, and inspiration we already have available to us. In time, intentional manifestation becomes easier, gentler, more methodical. We learn about ourselves while being patient with the process and not forcing anything into being.
My poetry teacher taught me that manifestation work is delicate, serious, and a real thing, reminding me that if I want writing to be my life’s work—it will be. “Be very specific about what you are manifesting for yourself,” she said, “and make sure you are extremely clear when asking something of the universe.” Let’s give ourselves a moment of pause, a quiet space inside to consider: what is it we are asking for? What are we spinning into being?
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Emily Mundy is the co-author of the Dark Days Tarot Guidebook. Sign up below to receive notice of new posts.