Stillness · “Stillness Reveals”
Preliminary Training
To settle body and mind through progressive relaxation and rhythmic breathing, then train single-pointed concentration on one object until attention can be held steady at will — the groundwork Conway requires before any magical practice.
Relax the body part by part until all tension is gone. Settle into slow rhythmic (“Moon”) breathing to calm the emotions. Rest the whole attention on one simple object, excluding all else; when the mind wanders, return it gently. Extend the holding time day by day, then close the eyes and rebuild the object in the mind’s eye. Short, daily, repeated.
What it is
Before any ritual, talisman, or astral work, Conway insists the student first train the instrument. The opening discipline of Magic: An Occult Primer is a plain regimen: relax the body completely, breathe in a slow steady rhythm, and then hold the attention on a single object without wavering.
It is the beginner’s groundwork — steadying attention (The Inner Creates the Outer), settling body and mind into stillness (The Inner Creates the Outer), and built into a reliable habit through daily repetition (The Inner Creates the Outer).
Stripped of its occult vocabulary, it is a sound relaxation-and-concentration routine; Conway’s distinctive emphasis is that concentration must be pushed until a chosen image can be held in the mind as vividly as a real perception.
The Method
From Conway’s preliminary instructions in Magic: An Occult Primer (Ch. 4, “Visualization and the Training of the Magician”):
- Relax the body first. Sit or lie comfortably and work through progressive muscular relaxation — passing attention over the body, tensing and then releasing each group in turn until all residual tension is gone. Conway treats a relaxed body as the precondition for a quiet, focused mind.
- Breathe rhythmically (“Moon Breathing”). Settle into slow, even, rhythmic breathing to calm the emotions and deepen the relaxed state before concentration begins. Keep it gentle and unforced.
- Fix on a single object. Choose one simple object — Conway uses a plain physical object or simple form — and rest the whole attention on it, excluding every other thought. When the mind wanders, return it without strain.
- Build the holding time gradually. Begin with short periods and extend them as control improves; the aim is to keep attention single-pointed for steadily longer, day after day.
- Carry the object inward. Once the object can be held steadily in perception, close the eyes and reconstruct it in the mind’s eye as fully as possible — the bridge from outer concentration to the trained inner imagination.
- Practise daily. Short, regular sessions are the rule; the value is in consistent repetition, not occasional long efforts. (Sourcing: the relaxation → rhythmic breathing → single-pointed concentration → inward reconstruction sequence is Conway’s stated preliminary teaching, faithfully ordered; “Moon Breathing” and “Visualization and the Training of the Magician” are his terms.)
Source & Lineage
Set out in the practical section of Magic: An Occult Primer (1972), where Conway frames relaxation and concentration as the indispensable first stage of a self-taught magical course. It descends from the ceremonial-magic training tradition (Golden Dawn discipline, Levi’s “trained will”) and parallels the relaxation-and-concentration groundwork of his contemporaries.
Common refinements
Skipping the relaxation. Conway is explicit that concentration on a tense body fails; relax first.
- Forcing the breath. Keep the rhythmic breathing gentle; straining defeats the calming purpose.
- Wrestling the mind. Return wandering attention gently and repeatedly rather than fighting it.
- Over-long early sessions. Build the holding time gradually; short and daily beats long and sporadic.
- Treating it as optional. Conway positions this as the prerequisite for everything later — not a warm-up to rush past.