Imagination, inspiration and intuition are all faculties or states related to that which is the highest within us – the Spirit. In several of his books, Samael Aun Weor has spoken about imagination, inspiration and intuition as something that goes together, or that is tied to one another when looking at it from the point of view of higher knowledge. From his explanation, we can deduct that the first degree of knowledge is imaginative (or clairvoyant) knowledge, but that this type of knowledge in itself is lacking if it does not come with inspiration and intuitive knowledge. Here is what Samael has written in his book the Major Mysteries about imagination and imaginative knowledge:

“Imagination is clairvoyance. To imagine is to see.

“The inventor who imagines his invention is indeed clairvoyantly seeing it. Before appearing in this physical world, any invention already exists in the internal worlds. Thus, all inventions previously existed within the internal worlds. The inventor imagines them, and thereafter he makes them concrete in this physical world. If the painter captures the images of the painting that he is going to paint, it is because the painting already exists within the internal worlds.

“In order to develop clairvoyance, it is necessary to know how to be silent. Clairvoyants who boast about their visions are worthless. These types of sacrilegious individuals must be cast out of the Gnostic sanctuaries.

“When we impel the frontal chakra to spin, then within it, images are reflected full of light, colour, and sound; this is trained clairvoyance. Thus, the clairvoyant must know how to suffer, how to abstain, and how to die.”

The connection between the Ajna chakra and the faculty of imagination is something that anyone practicing visualization can verify for themselves. However, the ability to imagine is different from fantasizing, because when we imagine (or visualize) an object or a place, we have our consciousness active, and it is this consciousness that is in the background of such activity, whereas fantasizing is lacking conscious will and direction, and instead it is guided by whims of subconscious desires. This makes the activity of the usage of thought scattered and shallow in comparison to focused direction of the conscious visualization.

This was phrased very well by Paracelsus when he stated:

“The visible man has his laboratory (his physical body), and the invisible man works there.
The Sun has its rays which are not possible to seize with the hands. Nevertheless, these rays are very strong (if they are brought together by means of a lens) and can burn edifices.
Imagination is like a sun, it operates within its own world wherever it glows. Man is what he thinks. If he thinks in fire, then he burns. If he thinks in war, then he is warring.
Imagination becomes a sun by means of the power of thought.”

The more we improve our ability of visualization, the clearer become the images that we imagine. In this we may sense that there is more to this ability than something that is only of the mind; we notice that, if we practice visualization diligently, it can affect and develop our third eye chakra, as well as the part of brain responsible for receiving the extrasensory sight perception, enabling us to glimpse into the reality of higher knowledge.

Imagination can connect us to higher realms, it can help us make contact with the masters and the beings who live in the higher dimension, and it can lead to clairvoyant perceptions.  However, clairvoyance is not complete without other degrees of knowledge, namely the inspired knowledge and the intuitive knowledge.

Inspiration

“When we learn how to interpret the symbolic images of the internal worlds, we have then attained inspired knowledge. Internal images are interpreted based on the law of philosophical analogies, the law of the analogy of opposites, the law of correspondences, and the law of numerology.
What does an enemy resemble? It resembles a furious bull. What does the rain look like? It looks like tears.”

Intuition

“When we see a symbolic image within the superior worlds, and we instantly know its meaning, it is because we have attained intuitive knowledge; this is to know without any need for reasoning. The intuitive person knows everything without the need for reasoning. The new Aquarian Age is the era of intuition.

[…] Imagination, inspiration, and intuition are the three obligatory paths of initiation.
~ Samael Aun Weor, Major Mysteries

The symbolic images that we may see in our meditation or in the practice of visualization, can be interpreted correctly through the psychic faculty of intuition. With the inner work we can develop a higher emotional center, which enables us to feel more and more profoundly. This feeling develops and becomes more refined, until we can use it in our inner journey. Intuition is related with a higher emotion and with the heart chakra.

We can also look at the topic of imagination, inspiration and intuition in the following way: by developing conscious imagination through the practice of visualization, we understand that new doors open up before us; we see that this ability is like a gate through which we can explore other realms of existence and arrive to new knowledge. When this is coupled with the continuous increase of consciousness and the inner work in general, the imagination gains power and has other qualities of the spirit in the background, such as higher emotion, access to deeper understanding etc. When arriving to such a deeper stage of imagination, we can be inspired by what we imagine, particularly if that is something that kindles the spirit. For example, we can visualize ourselves in an ancient spiritual place that we feel drawn to. When this is done correctly, with good concentration, we can be inspired, i.e. the spirit is moved and triggered within us. This can manifest images that are beyond our conscious scope of knowledge, as well as intuitive feelings for what is taking place and other particularities pertaining to that imagination.

We can see then how imagination, inspiration and intuition naturally lead one into another, and it is not difficult to accept that such development of inner abilities is necessary in order to go through esoteric initiations. The process of self-realization is a continuous unfolding of higher abilities, some more obvious than others, but all of them serve to perfect us and make us ready for the entry of the Being.

HDP, May 2021.