I have received a request to talk about visualizing and whether or not it is necessary to visualize. In this post I will try to condense everything that I have already said about techniques and especially about mental images. However, before we get started, I would like to ask you a question instead: do you believe it is necessary to visualize?

I understand that the first and probably most known method that Neville talked about is SATS. This requires you to get into a state akin to sleep and visualize your desire has been fulfilled until you catch the mood of the wish fulfilled. After that, you must persist in that feeling and do your best not to dig up the seed with a bad mental diet, right? I believe everybody is already familiar with this, but is it really necessary to visualize in order to achieve something? The answer comes from Neville himself:

“Mastery of self-control of your thoughts and feelings is your highest achievement. However, until perfect self-control is attained, so that, in spite of appearances, you feel all that you want to feel, use sleep and prayer to aid you in realizing your desired states. These are the two gateways into the subconscious.” Feeling is the Secret by Neville Goddard

So, you see, it is not necessary to visualize but it makes things easier for you! Therefore, your real goal should be to actually master your mind, and not to master your visualization skills. I know, that may sound contradictory if you are a beginner because you may have been thinking that Neville is all about SATS. I’ve been there. When I first started the journey of mastering my mind, I thought that SATS are the only way to achieve what I want. But… My visualization skills weren’t really that developed so this created a struggle for me and eventually a block because I would just give up. With time, I developed this muscle but at the same time I also realized that everything that I have brought to life in my physical reality wasn’t imagined only before sleep. I am imagining all day long. This doesn’t only include deliberately inducing state akin to sleep. It includes my thoughts and my feelings. My life is a result of my own assumptions that I have accepted as true. It’s a result of the things that I allow to enter and influence my concept of self!

When you are visualizing, your primary goal should be catching the feeling of the wish fulfilled. Some people visualize because they want to create the exact scene that they want to experience in their physical reality. There is nothing wrong with that, but the main point of visualization should be catching the feeling of the wish fulfilled. This also goes for any other method you may be using to achieve your desires. This is why the relaxation is so important. Once you are relaxed enough, it is easy to imagine and to fully experience your end result. Experiencing it on that deep level will no doubt help you deal with doubts and negative thoughts throughout the day as well, if you felt that it is done.

I have talked about this in another one of my posts as well but here is a little reminder: thinking of an object automatically creates an image in your mind, no matter how blurry it may look at first. Think of a desk. Are you merely thinking of a desk? Or did you actually see it, even the shadow of it, in your mind’s eye? I would bet it was the latter. This right here is the proof that you have nothing to worry about. You don’t need to see a clear picture of something in your mind and it is wrong to think that things won’t manifest unless you see them clearly in your mind’s eye. You are unknowingly creating mental images all day long. Your subconscious doesn’t recognize words, it recognizes images. You can create images using words, be it by using the name of the thing that you wish to see or setting up a description of it on top of that. But, you are not creating things from scratch. You already know what things look like. Think of a pear. You can see it, can’t you? Think of a banana. Think of Mark Zuckerberg. Now relax knowing that your mind knows what you are talking about even if you don’t go into a meditative state and experience it there.

So you see, visualizing is not essential to manifesting what you want but it is a great tool. Many great manifesters use it as their tool, as their technique. You can do it as well. Why wouldn’t you? However, you always have to keep in mind that your end goal is mastering your mind. In Neville’s words…

“A man’s mental conversations attract his life. As long as there is no change in his inner talking, the personal history of the man remains the same. To attempt to change the world before we change our inner talking is to struggle against the very nature of things. Man can go round and round in the same circle of disappointments and misfortunes, not seeing them as caused by his own negative inner talking, but as caused by others.” Mental Diets by Neville Goddard