Albert Einstein once said, “Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, all that there ever will be to know and understand.” Wow! Powerful words!
As someone who finds tremendous value in the study and use of guided imagery, I resonate deeply with Einstein’s thinking about imagination. In fact, my interest in the use of imagery is one reason I was excited to attend a recent Wayne Dyer event titled, Mastering the Art of Manifestation. With a reported 1,500 people in the room, I wasn’t alone in my excitement!
It was during the event that Dr. Dyer, from a similar mindset as Einstein’s, indicated that imagination is our greatest gift. To be more specific, Dyer proposed that in order to manifest the things we desire, we must imagine, “What already is, rather than what is not.” Seems simple enough, but what is simple in theory can be difficult in practice. Why is that?
To start, consider childhood thinking. Children are blessed with imagination and use this gift to explore, create, and dream of a future of their creation. When asked, children might say they are going to be baseball players, dancers, astronauts, explorers, princesses, teachers, farmers, and even the President of the United States!
In a child’s mind, options are both real and endless. Unlike their adult counterparts, children don’t see barriers to achieving their dreams, which is a good thing for growth and development. According to child behavior experts, imagination is of great importance to cognitive development. The limitless imagination of a child has been associated with learning creative thinking and problem-solving skill.
Fast forward to adulthood and imagination loses much of its former appeal and focus. Sadly, years of subtle and not so subtle messages from parents, religious institutions, schools, peers, work environments, media, etc. encourage us to live what Dr. Dyer called during his presentation, “An ordinary life.” Negative messages we download into our subconscious include, “Good things come to those who wait,” “Life isn’t easy,” “Keep your feet on the ground and your head out of the clouds,” and “You have to work hard to get ahead.” From these all too familiar messages we come to believe that we can’t be whatever we want, life is full of barriers, and options are limited.
So where do we go from here? How do we regain a belief in and respect for the power of imagination? Dr. Dyer offered a number of steps to mastering the art of manifestation through imagination. Here are a few:
- Have a mind that is open to everything and attached to nothing.
- Write down as “I AM” statements that which you wish to manifest – I AM well, I AM content, I AM forgiving, etc. Put the list under your mattress and recount them before you go to sleep.
- Use imagery to assume the feeling of what you want to experience.
- BELIEVE in imagination and use it to your advantage.
I dream of things that never were, and ask why not? ~ Robert F. Kennedy
Leave a Reply