[Ed: Dennis taught this material in full over a weekend in Viroqua, Wisconsin, in 2009. The four lectures are available as Alchemy of Consciousness: Imagination as a Path of Healing.]

In the beginning, all transformation of the consciousness involves grounding the psyche in a concentrated form. This is represented by the earth stage of the mandala. Each element takes us along the spiral path towards perfection of the being who resides in the heart of each person. This being is the one who is capable of playing deeply and compassionately in the game of life. While Earth requires a deed of concentration, the water stage requires the release of the concentrated psyche into the state of perpetual transformation. When this is done in a precise way the forces of concentration are amplified into the capacity to hold several ideas in the mind simultaneously. This is drinking at the great creative fountain of humor, an essential for the transformation of confusion into error. The third stage of the mandala is the air stage, in which we learn to see everything in reverse. This is the great esoteric tradition of the contrary or Holy Fool.

The air image shows the great polarities of Sun and Moon. The Moon is reflected in the water of the unconscious that is flowing constantly through the ground of the soul. This type of reflected consciousness changes with the ebb and flow of the soul tides of emotion. In contrast to this the Sun is reflected exactly in a mirror. This is the reflective capacity of the trained heart to remember events in life without the influence of the flow of the emotions. Between the Sun and the Moon is the traditional gate through which the soul moves in the pursuit of higher knowledge.

An exercise in this air realm of the mandala is writing a letter to oneself. This is useful when life deals us a situation created by someone else that is disturbing to us, or where we feel hurt. In the letter we let our feelings reach a strong pitch and express our dissatisfaction with the train of events. It is ok to fix blame and get the hurt out. Then we write an envelope with our own address on it and before we put the letter in the SASE we white out the other person’s name and put our own in the salutation. Then give the letter to a friend and let them mail it to you in a week or two so that you forget about it. When you receive the letter you have done a potent alchemical air transformation in your soul. This separates the lunar force of unconscious motivations from the solar force of consciously directed soul impulses. Don’t forget to add any images or feelings arising in the process to the opus.