Hooboy. (rubbing my palms together) let's see now.
Please keep in mind these are just my opinions. I'm not trying to be a know it all - I'm retired so I have the time to spend on these Qs. Give it a few days & others will contribute too. These are great people with many varied experiences.
Do I meditate? Nope. I've just been started listening to some meditation music. (Saturday I think I started that) (before Saturday, nope). Now is always good time to start
. I recommend keep it simple & IMO it's better to do short 10-20 minute sessions. Mileage varies.
I have no idea what a closure is. As for psychic readings, are you talking about cards? Palm reading?. Yup I'm talking about card reading you'd mentioned. Some people do both an opening & a closing of their chakras & some don't. it activates sensitivity or shuts it down.
In meditation you'd move from the lowest chakra to the highest to open, and then reverse from highest to lowest to close. The chakras are where vital magnetism enters the body. Each is associated with a color in rainbow sequence (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet) & they spin alternating clockwise and counterclockwise as you move thru the line. Google some images if you aren't familiar with chakras.
There's various ways to work sensory opening/closing. Visualize each chakra in sequence with it's color lighting up to open & see it toned down to close. Or, with or without color imaging, just hold your open palm facing you at each chakra in sequence & think at it to either open or close.
Re 3rd Eye Squint:
Honestly, I literally told my mind, no more. (and screaming at the evil, to be cast out.) I kinda had enough after I was thrown into a wall. (Scared the literal shit out of me.- sorry for language.. Yeh, wall slamming sucks. Manipulative SOBs are few & limited in my experiences & were dealt with similarly to your instinctive outpouring from the gut.
Also see
http://everythingunderthemoon.net/forum ... 27796.html
in Kassandra's Metaphysical Basic section.
OK so i gather you were successful in channeling your innate energy & that would seem to be a good thing. In my experience, before I was introduced to the Craft, I'd had sensory over load with multiple daily visions 'til I didn't know if I was coming or going & i'd pretty much done similarly: welled up a command from the gut and commanded to shut down. Eventually I stumbled over grounding/shielding as a routine which was lots easier.
One very slim booklet I've found is "Entity Attachment Removal - Self Help Procedure" by Rise Harrington. ISBN 9781977067258 if you want to order it thru a book store or $9 from Amazon. It's only 51 pages of text followed by glossary &' bibliog. It explains why attachments occur & how to detach. I can't quote the whole thing without plagiarizing. It is the only simple, how-to instruction I've found specifically for spirit attachments & nothing else. The author is a medium. It's also available on Kindle. IMO attachments occur because we're ungrounded & leaking bio-energy. We emit an emotional field that attracts feeders. Our emotional energy matches what the feeder can use such as groundless anxiety & fear. We get manipulated in a repetitive cycle. Once we become aware we can break the cycle, cut off the source & detach the baggage. Lead them to cross over.
I have learned that if we keep our interior hailing frequencies open then we're like bait to energy feeders. Some feeders are helpful and relieve excess emotional baggage & then release, moving on to the next resource. The hangers-on simply become more baggage. We have to shut off their access or supply. Grounding, centering, shielding. Learn as many ways as you can find.
Re why AP interests you -
Astral projection for me is, is well, kinda like dreaming, but different. I don't think I've 100% projected on purpose. ... But using astral projection for learning, knowledge, and maybe find out what or why things follow me, find me, stick to me. See Entity Attachment Removal previously mentioned.
OK, this sounds like you've been aware of quite a bit. Recognizing when we're out of body (OOB) & what reoccurring locations or frequently traveled routes we've taken is helpful. To me paths can be as thin as threads to an individual person only occasionally visited or like thick cords of light leading to astral plane teachers with frequent fliers. My guide always accompanies me on these OOB dream-like outings to lecture halls & individuals. Any type of vehicle might be present to symbolize travel & freeways with entrance & exit ramps feature in my dreams indicating I've been traveling. Ley lines can also be traveled in the earth realm level like with remote viewing. Your experiences will feature whatever symbolizes these things to you.
Which specific psychic abilities do you want to improve?
Well, I'd like to learn how to focus my energy, meditate- go to the plains, learn healing. Find a deck that is blessed and protected from, evil spirits. (I realize that I may have to cleanse/bless/ protect the deck myself)
Focussing energy can be learned by casting circles for practice. It's like a free bonus. Always ground what you raise when finished. See "Getting Started" - the link is noted below. YouTube beginner videos of ti chi qui dong are really helpful.
Traveling the planes takes desire-to-will IMO through self-programming just before bed time. Herbal & crystal pouches tucked into a pillow can help. Herkemer quartz aids dreams. Rutile quartz aids travel. Moldavite can be a heady OOB aid & a piece as small as a pea is sufficient. Rosemary aids recall. Chamomile & lavender aid relaxing. Use 'em to stuff the pouch &/or make an herbal tea before bed (if your bladder is up to it).
For
hands-on healing I like "Therapeutic Touch" by Delores Kreiger, a nurse. Also TT has various websites as a topic to search in general.
Re: Tarot decks with attachments. Yea, you have the right idea about you doing a cleansing & protecting. Fume a deck with white sage smoke to cleanse. Store the deck wrapped in silk to protect. Keep a protective amulet like a pentagram or stone with the deck when not in use. Personally I'm lousy at Tarot so it'd be best to re-ask that specific Q in the Tarot section so interested & resourceful folk will see it if no one replies to it here in the laundry list.
I also have a pendulum, that responds very well for me. Learn some proper ways to dowse.
There's plenty of info on the Internet. Just do it & learn as you go. You can check
dowsing associations booklets for good tips. There's no one right or wrong way. Just keep your mind on what you seek. One author I've read uses a pendulum with a 24" string & feels length makes his results results more reliable. I have cheap L-rods off Amazon that work fine.
Connect with my familiar. There are shamelessly pop culture definitions of familiars and there are historical, well researched definitions. Be sure you know which is which. Edit: Use telepathy & agree on a recognition signal (image or sound) that indicates only the spirit familiar's contact. Ask for the signal just before sleep.
Improve my ability to read and focus energy around me, in objects.
I've described some ways to focus &
set intention in Witchcraft & Wicca 101 section topic called
http://everythingunderthemoon.net/forum ... 34769.html
Edit: your phrasing may also refer to
psychometry - to read or sense the energies left on an object form handling. You can create reading games for yourself. Collect 10 items - 5 that have been regularly used by another person & 5 used by yourself. Get a pack of new, unused identical paper lunch bags from the grocery store. Wrap the items in paper towels so they don't rattle. Place one item inside each bag. Staple the bags closed. Rearrange their order like shuffling a deck so you don't know which is which, then put a number on each bag to identify it. Use objects that have similar weights so you can't make guesses based on heaviness of the bag. Do not cheat by squeezing the bags. Keep all bags stapled closed until the very end of all readings. Then sit with one bag at a time. Drop into
center to pull your power within. Tell yourself to "know" about the item. Record any thoughts, feelings, images that pop into your mind in a notebook. Identify each bag by the number you gave it. After you've read all the bags match each to it's number in your note book, open the bag & record the owner, actual item, & description. Then review & see how you did. Repeat as desired.
Sensing, picking up or reading energy can be practiced by laying hands on a tree - use a few different tree species for exposure to a full spectrum. Got a dog or cat? Read their emotions. Center to pull your power within, then open your hailing frequencies & talk to the tree or your pet. Really just listen & sense any emotions, images, words, blocks of thought. Trees are so big you can't miss 'em. Pets love to share (whatever you're eating)
.
And when I say open hailing frequencies I have to trust that you already have identified your inner sense of incoming info. telepathically or empathically. You'd illuded to many random psychic experiences so you have the gist of it already and are just learning to trust it. Giving vocal instructions to our inner selves works when we speak from the gut.
I'm just now learning/ well, finding out about grounding, centering, and shielding. see "getting started" & search other posts to browse as it comes up often.