The Path; A Visualization and its Interpretation

I first experienced The Path visualization a long time ago when I was in college. I was at a party in a sorority house and a young woman offered to take me through it. It was a fascinating experience, one which has stayed with me for sixty years, as of 2021. So, in that spirit, I offer it to you. It is best if you have a close friend read it to you step-by-step, while you sit or lie down with eyes closed. That is the most effective way to experience it.


The Path Visualization

Imagine that you are alone, walking along a path. Visualize yourself on the path. Imagine it in as much detail as you can. 

What kind of a path is it? What is the time of day and season of the year? Does the path climb, or descend, or is it level? Is the path smooth or rough, straight or winding, through an open field, a wooded forest, or someplace else? Is the path dirt, paved, brick, or what? Is the weather warm or cool? What are you wearing? Are you comfortable, refreshed and happy or uncomfortable, weary and sad?

As you walk along the path, you notice a cup by the side of the path, at your feet. Visualize the cup in as much detail as possible. What is the cup made of? Is it old or new? Is it intact, cracked or broken? Is its design simple or ornate? What do you do with the cup? Do you pick it up? If you do pick it up, do you take it with you or put it back down?

As you walk further along the path, you notice a key by the side of the path. Visualize the key in as much detail as possible. What kind of a key is it? Do you recognize it? What material is it made of? Is it modern or antique? Do you know which lock the key fits? What do you do with the key? Do you pick it up? If you do pick it up, do you take it with you or put it back down?

As you continue to walk along the path, you notice a wall built directly across the path, in front of you. Visualize the wall in as much detail as possible. How tall is the wall? How wide is it? Of what is it constructed? Can you see over it or around it? What do you do at this point? Do you go over or around the wall? If you do, are you still on the path? Is it the same path or a different one? Is the slope the same? What about the scenery, the weather, the time of day, season of year? Are these the same or different? Are your clothes the same or different?

Interpreting The Path Visualization

The path we have been visualizing is our life path, our journey through this life. The path, rough or smooth, easy or difficult, ascending, level or descending, through open fields or dense forest, is our vision of our life. The time of day, season of year, weather, are all how we see life as we move through it from day to day.

The cup is a vessel, a chalice. Our image of the cup parallels our image of the feminine principle, the yin element of life, of the Earth, Gaia or Mother Nature. It also corresponds to the degree to which we honor the feminine principle within ourselves. The cup represents the lovers, friends and acquaintances we have collected and nurtured throughout our life. What we did with the cup parallels how we have treated the human relationships in our life, as well as how we have treated the Earth.

The key is that which unlocks something hidden or secret. Our image of the key and what we did with it parallels our relationship with the masculine principle, the yang element of life, and the degree to which we have honored the masculine within ourselves. The key also represents power and knowledge. So what we did with the key corresponds to how we have treated and valued knowledge throughout our live.

The wall symbolizes death. Is it an insurmountable barrier or can we walk around it, or climb over it? What do we do when faced with the wall of death? What is the environment like on the other side of the wall? Our answers to these questions tell us a great deal about how we regard death, whether we look forward to an afterlife, and what we think that afterlife will be like.

Hopefully The Path visualization and its interpretation has been helpful and revealing. Thank you.