Imagine a loving friend
I spend all my morning with the muses; -- and they bless me also in my walks.
- Beethoven to his nephew Kurt, October 12, 1825
Carl Jung, a psychologist whose work explored deeper levels of consciousness including dreams and images, conversed with spirit guides on his inner journeys. One, Philemon, was a particularly close “friend.”Jung thought of Philemon as an entity of wisdom who existed separately from himself but within his inner world:
I observed clearly that it was he who spoke, not I. . . . Psychologically, Philemon represented superior insight. He was a mysterious figure to me. At times he seemed to me quite real, as if he were a living personality. I went walking up and down the garden with him, and to me he was what the Indians call a guru.
Philemon and other figures of my fantasies brought home to me the crucial insight that there are things in the psyche which I do not produce, but which produce themselves and have their own life. Philemon represented a force which was not myself. In my fantasies I held conversations with him, and he said things which I had not consciously thought.
- Carl Jung, Memories, Dreams Reflections
Imagine a loving friend who holds only your best interests and greatest potential in mind. Ask this spirit guide for advice. Write down what it, he or she has to say. Your inner world works in mysterious, often roundabout ways. Try opening the back door. Jenny Garrison explores this subject in depth in her book Imagery In You.
When you engage your imagery and invite a friend to come to you from within your deepest self, you are requesting the presence of an inner companion who can help, guide, and accompany you. I will refer to this inner being as your “inner friend.”
Call forth a “wise” friend, because that is calling forth an inner realm companion who can offer advice and assist in your behalf on many levels.
Think about friendships in life. What is required to sustain them? Some attributes that come to mind are kindness, consistency, authenticity and honesty. Some form of time spent together establishes the friendship, and time is spent getting to know one another. This time of getting to know one another is also very individual in quality. Different friendships yield different ways and styles of being together. Some are characterized by immediate affection; some are built on play and adventure, and some center upon conversation levels ranging from light to intimate. The style of friendship that evolves for you and your inner friend will depend on who you are and who comes to you from your inner world.
Ask your inner friend what needs to happen to deepen your friendship.
Jung called it a guru. Others have named it conscience, muse, or the still small voice. Whatever the name, the practice is the same: a question asked inward, and the willingness to wait for an answer that does not come from the thinking mind.