Rethinking The Creative Process
The Metaphysics of Idea Generation
What does it take to form an idea and bring it to life from nothing?
The subject of the creative process has always fascinated me, as it’s an inherently esoteric exercise yet we often think of it as being mundane.
Creating characters and worlds out of thin air while imparting powerful ideas that resonate with millions and last generations. Ideas that can even change public thought or change the course of history.
This is a form of primal magick.
Tales that teach, stories that caution, and worlds so rich they almost jump off the page. Very rarely do we stop to think about how this is done or what it implies about the nature of reality.
Many of the greatest works of humankind, from the Bible and the wisdom of Plato, to the Bhagavad Gita and the essays of countless philosophers and theologians down through the ages, either contain bits of fiction or are entirely “fictitious,” yet they still hold transformative power and the ability to captivate. Perhaps more so than many dry accounts of history.
Fiction as a genre dates back to prehistory. There is no telling when the first person decided to recount a story not of his or her own adventures, but those of an entirely “made up” individual.
The entire concept is sort of bizarre if you really think about it. The power to weave a captivating tale, the events of which having never transpired, purely by arranging our thoughts a certain way.
How do these stories truly come about? That is what interests me and is a subject that I have dwelt on for decades.
Are we to believe that these tales are entirely the end-result of chemical impulses firing in our brains? Or is there something a bit more esoteric at work here?
What the Creative Process Reveals About the Nature of Reality
There is good reason to believe that many of the “ideas” that we think are created out of thin air are more accurately “learned of” via our connection to the collective unconscious.
What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. - Ecclesiastes 1:9
I used to think this bit of esoteric wisdom referred to samsara, the spiritual cycle of life, death, and rebirth. However, I find this saying can only be properly appreciated when looking at things from a metaversal perspective.
While most mundane ideas are surely conjured within our brains, I would argue that a great deal of the more creative and inspirational constructs we come up with are more likely divined from other spheres, parallel worlds, other minds. The collective, in other words.1
In this model, many of the people, places, and things we “think up” are actually real, not just figments of our imagination. Therefore the creative process can be likened to a ritual, and the pen a wand.
These conclusions are not novel of course. Any student of hermetics knows that information is energy and that the collective can be tapped at any time. There are no borders between us, no boundaries in the physical sense, and so much of what we can access in the ether is wholly alien to this world and its history.
We don’t need to go down that rabbit hole in order to support the idea that the creative process is more than just brain juices sloshing together, of course. Divination is an ability more commonly practiced and widely known and is very much related to what I am discussing here.
The sensations associated with the act of divination are nearly indistinguishable from the creative process. It is merely our perception or outlook on what’s happening that alters where we believe the information originates.
You sit down to write a scene. Two long-time friends have lunch together outside of a cozy cafe in an unknown city. You visualize the setting, the ambient noise, the food. You have never seen any of this before, you just “thought it up.”
Or did you?
That sensation of thought-forms taking shape within the mind and playing out into a scene that can then be communicated on paper is considered a form of divination among occultists. You have no idea where that data came from, you are plucking it from the ether.
Historically, many writers experience walls that hamper the creative process. They can’t seem to further a story along or build a world on command, and this we call writer’s block.2
For those who have encountered this phenomenon before, it is like looking at a puzzle with a missing piece. The picture is there, but the image isn’t whole. And no matter how hard you “think” at it, nothing logical fits into the slot. For some, writer’s block can last days or even weeks. Why do you think this is?
Furthermore, some writers, including famous names you might be familiar with, have claimed publicly that many of their ideas come from “elsewhere.”
They can’t accurately describe where these ideas come from, only that they seem to alight in the mind, at times unbidden.
Personally, I have had entire cities, with cultures, faces, histories, and even languages appear to me without warning. Once you open yourself to these channels of communication, “inspiration can strike” when you least expect it.
Our brains do have a part to play in all this, but I suspect it is a marginal one. The bulk of the “work” is in establishing a bridge, or channel, through which the free transfer of information can flow.
Once you become attuned to the accuracy of the information you uncover, you begin to recognize when your own thoughts clash with this information.
Most stories demand to be told a certain way, and cannot be altered within our minds, as many writers would attest.
The creative process is a form of divination. According to the great minds of the mystery schools, to create is to communicate between dimensions.
You are a vessel, a messenger. Transmuting ethereal data into digestible ideas.
Thinking of Creation Metaphysically
Everything, including thought, is made up of energy.
To bring about an idea on paper so that it can be shared with others, the “idea” must first exist in the mind.
Because this idea has its own energy, it exists as a part of the Collective. Technically, it is accessible by anyone, and can be experienced by anyone.
Some thoughts may be genuine acts of creation, or the bringing of a new set of data into being. Other ideas, however, may involve reaching into the collective unconscious and becoming aware of someone else’s ideas, or even their memories.
During the course of writing a piece of visionary fiction, a combination of processes could be at work. Some of the information gleaned may be ideas held by another person, while other parts are downloads from other worlds.
Many of the “fantasy” worlds that are featured throughout our works of fiction are likely nothing more than bits and pieces of these other dimensions or planes. This is the secret that most artists already understand on a visceral level, but that few ever admit to.3
The notion that writers are mediums or channelers is not new of course. In the Hermetic traditions, writers and scribes were considered oracles. The mouthpieces of the gods.
Those with artistic gifts have always gravitated toward the occult or have been products of mystery schools, colleges, and other branches of the esoteric.
Pattern Recognition
To write creatively is to open a door into other Spheres, downloading and filtering foreign information. That which you are able to comprehend from this alien data provide the basis for ideas in your subconscious, which then become pictures and scenarios in your head, and eventually words on a page.
The same process applies to all art forms to some degree or another, including the creation of movies and video games.
Great truths have been imparted through these mediums over the years, and attempts have been made to display the content of “other worlds,” with varying degrees of success.
Isn’t this all just a product of an overactive imagination? It’s easy to write our creative efforts off as simply the product of our imagination, but the issue here stems from a lack of understanding in regards to what “imagination” is in the first place.
Imagining, or visualization with intent, is a sacred practice. Written off as child’s play in modern society, this practice is at the heart of what it means to Be. We are Creators by nature.
To grasp what is happening, you have to return to the quantum nature of reality and the Laws of Hermetics. Everything in this world is numbers and patterns, and connecting those dots is one of the great joys that comes with an open mind and heart.
As you begin to delve into the esoteric sciences you realize that everything is algorithmic and that what we commonly refer to as ideas are nothing more than interference patterns. Two (or more) vibrations intersecting and meshing.
How many of the worlds found in movies and books are actually just different minds trying to comprehend the same places and things?
Once you learn how to visualize and manifest, you realize that the process of writing when you are in flow state actually feels exactly the same.
Either you are building a bridge to other worlds, or you are bringing those worlds into being. Regardless of which of these scenarios is the ultimate truth (perhaps it is a combination of both), the end result is still the same: writing has much wider implications than simply inventing stories and writing them down using an alphabet.
How to Improve Your Creativity
Finding inspiration can be difficult if you don’t take the right approach. Now that you have a better understanding of where your ideas come from, it’s time to learn how to access this pool of collective wisdom at any time.
For purposes of idea generation, keeping a dream journal has always been effective for me. Not only is this a great way to collect interesting ideas that can later be synthesized into story bits, this exercise will also help you dream more vividly.
Here are key steps to maximizing the creative process:
Don’t force anything. Like any form of manifestation, you must learn to be open and receptive.
Be open-minded. What you think your story / world / premise needs and what it “is,” are two different things.
Meditate before and after every writing session.
When writing, sit with good posture, in comfortable clothing, as you would when performing yoga or meditating.
Make sure you are properly hydrated. Dehydration leads to brain fog.
Write down / record any “impressions” or “feelings” you may receive during the creative process, even if they don’t make sense at the time. These fragments may take shape later on.
If you feel stuck, don’t focus on creating, but switch to a receptive and understanding mindset. Breathe slowly and evenly, allow your mind to reset, and take a short break if necessary.
Nootropic foods such as blueberries, turmeric, green tea, or coffee.
Try not to write when you are physically uncomfortable or pressed for time. Treat writing as a mindfulness exercise.
Whether you are in the process of telling a story purely for entertainment purposes or if you are putting together an informative work that centers around teaching or explaining deep truths, the process remains the same.
Developing an open mind and strengthening your ability to visualize will help you open those bridges and establish clearer channels of communication. Being creative isn’t an exact science, but students of hermetic principles have been using the same techniques for thousands of years to pen some of the finest works in all of history.
If you find it difficult to create, as if your every thought is impeded, this is a good sign that you are closed off psychically. I’ve found that the key to the creative process is maintaining that receptive state of being even when you are not actively trying to create anything.
In my own experience, the more you exercise your imagination and open your Self up to receiving impressions, the easier time you will have with creating. It’s a mindful way of living, a post-self perspective that will help you flow with the currents of the universe rather than fighting against them.
Don’t segregate your creative exercises to one area of your life. Don’t limit your imagination by applying it only to your preferred art medium. It is easier to become a naturally creative person if you remain in a constant state of wonder and receptivity.
Experience the world deeply, record your dreams in detail, practice visualization meditations. Let creativity become a part of who you are instead of something you exercise from time to time. This is how you open those creative channels and generate ideas that inspire and transform.
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Historically, a great deal of artist and writer inspiration can be attributed to dreams and spiritual visions. It’s only in the modern age that an emphasis has been placed on the concept that artistic ideas are wholly the product of our forefront conscious minds.
It is worth noting here that the further an idea strays from truth or the realm of possibility, the less it will resonate with others and leave an impact. Once you “think of” an idea, you might be tempted to reconfigure it to fit a new mold. Very often in these situations, writer’s block occurs. This is because you are attempting to artificially change the reality of a place or thing to fit a mundane framework not gleaned from the collective.
Many of these fragments share important similarities. It would be easy to write them off as patterns emerging from the noosphere but those who have studied this phenomenon in depth tend to agree that many worlds of fiction (literature, television, video games, etc.) are describing the same locality just in different ways based on the impressions they have received. At the very least, it reveals that there are certain places and concepts deep within our collective consciousness that resonate with us more so than others.
Really enjoyed this! It really resonated.
Loved learning something new to me, the Hermetic Principles 💜