Hi’iaka provided this one and the deceptively simple exercise will pay off later in a lot of different ways – from reducing material consumption to connecting to targets without destroying a photo/taglock. I would have put it in her section, but felt it needed to be given earlier on, for those wanting to work on this exercise to improve themselves before tackling the larger workings presented. Here was the conversation.
H: “Take a plant. Feel its spirit. Now replicate the spirit in energy and see that (replication) link itself to the plant (on its own)”
M: “I’ve done similar things with parasites to question them. What’s to be gained?”
H: “If you practice this and do it with ever-expanding life forms (and objects), you can recreate a place to have more of an effect there” (The example I saw in my head was of effecting a place, such as casting a ward over a remote location)
M: “That’s interesting. (I then got a mental impression of how a photograph would provide a similar means, if one recreated it energetically in a physical or astral space, based on the signature of each item)”.
H: “That (the final thought) is a bit much for now. The next step would be to use a picture of hawthorn or mandrake root to recreate the energy obtained when using them in ritual (to use the energy in place of consuming the item)”
M: (I then saw an impression that a servitor consisting of the energy of the item could be used for more expensive and rarer items. Or living plants and animals you don’t want to damage.). “That has serious potential.”
H: “And it stems from a simple exercise. Do not forget that.”
The Initial Exercise
Find a living plant.
Create a psi-ball or similar collection of energy to form into your item (here, it’s a plant).
Direct the energy with your Mind and let your Will recreate the item. Keep it in your mind that it will connect energetically when it resembles the item closely enough. I’ve done it without the explicit attempt to connect to the base item and nothing happens, so be sure to put the intent at the beginning to connect to the base object.
Keep practicing this with different items until you become more comfortable with the technique. Keep in mind that this will be a very light connection, not a binding or similar. Its purpose is to connect to a target energetically, not thoroughly enough to attempt to directly control their thoughts or actions. It could be deepened, but isn’t necessary.
How closely does it have to resemble the object? Just until it connects to it. Anything after that is a bonus. For an object’s energies, it’s better to replicate those, rather than draw from it or it will deplete. That is why this isn’t a vampiric exercise. It’s the complete opposite of that.
What if I can’t visualize the whole object (such as a tall tree with many branches)? Pick one part of it and energetically recreate that. You will be able to connect to the whole tree that way. I tested this on a picture on my phone where a friend had a knee exposed.
Why not just use a photograph or a taglock? The purpose isn’t to do away with those things, but to have other options. All of those options are for energetically linking to our targets. We may have taglocks or mementos that we don’t wish to destroy or alter.
What else is it useful for? It’s a useful exercise for forming our goals into an energetic signature to be used in ritual when words don’t quite convey what we want or they just don’t come out quite right. I can visualize and imprint the desire to sail to specific places and feel certain ways more easily than I can describe that on paper.
It’s also a good way of connecting with a Deity/Entity that has no sigil, enn, or (public, usable) chant. It allows one to connect to the entity and (with the same mechanism), transfer that connection to an idol or similar object. Once the connection has been established, the ritual/altar item can then be used. The connection would be strengthened as it is used for that entity. For people that are leery of even respectful evocation, this is another route to connect an object/idol/icon to a spirit for similar effect.
Another way this is useful is for psychopomp purposes. I have a tendency to sever the connection of roadkill animals to set them free. I can do this by feeling the spirit link in the bones, evoking it, and severing it’s connection right there on the spot or I can remember it, create the link, and do it this way from my ritual space, without having to stop traffic or advertise to the neighborhood that I’m doing something they wouldn’t understand. I prefer my neighborhood anonymity, concerning my practices.
