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Aphantasia and Visualization

aphantasia visualization meditation practice

originally published 2025-03-27 on the previous static iteration of this website

Background #

Aphantasia is characterized as a lack of internal visual imagery during normal, waking consciousness. On a scientific basis, no conclusive etiology has been determined [1], whereas on TPOX, a lot of discourse has been entertained in regard to this subject already, especially roughly 2-3 years ago when 'shape rotation' was a hot topic (Lots of posts about people suddenly surprised that others could 'see' things in their mind's eye, and lots of people who were surprised that others couldn't, (un)ironic sectarianism, memes, etc.) Rather than rehashing this, I am going to focus on describing a non-scientific, subjective experience of the visualization process, and break down a reasonably sound method of moving mostly-aphantastic individuals towards visualization, as a practice; this post will make broad generalizations about the reader's wetware, but without any intention of being prescriptive.

Wetware #

For a related common experience, consider subvocalization. Generally, people tend to perform auto-narration of text they read, and many others auto-narrate written text, or their own thoughts, when they are not reading. During subvocalization, the individual not only 'hears' the words, but also engages in the entire process of producing speech, including the motor movements [tongue, lips, and vocal cords as a series of muscle movements], Broca's area, Wernicke's area, the motor cortex, and the working memory system. Thus, during subvocalization and auto-narration, a significant portion of the brain is engaged in the process of producing speech, even though the individual is not actually speaking.

In a similar vein, visualization is a process that engages a significant portion of the brain, and is not limited to the visual cortex: to visualize a scene, the individual must engage the entire chain of neurons that would be engaged in actually seeing the scene. Microsuccesive movements of the eyes, microsaccades, have been studied in relation to the process of visualization, and it is believed that these movements are a part of the process of visualization; recent studies[2] have shown that aphantastic individuals have restricted generation in these microsaccades when they are asked to visualize a scene. Furthermore, in quantifying the memory chain of aphanstastic individuals, it has been shown that they typically lack in object, but not spatial memory (which makes sense, because despite forming 2-5% of the population, aphantasia is not a significant evolutionary disadvantage, and it is likely that aphantastic individuals have developed compensatory mechanisms for spatial memory).

I am speculating here, but when aphantastic individuals are asked to visualize a scene, they are likely engaging the visual cortex, but not projecting this into the same working memory space that is used for actual vision. This seems well-founded enough, given a twin-study [3] which showed pronounced differences in the scene memory, and fMRI differences, despite genetic identity. This exegesis on neurons is not meant to be a formal explanation, but rather a way to frame the problem as a correctable coordination issue, so, like learning to ride a bike, it is possible to learn to visualize, if the wetware is present but not engaged.

Taking all of the above into account, rather than a neurological deficit, it seems like (most) aphantasia is a coordination problem: there is a lack of entrained response in the brain to produce the entire chain of neurons that would be engaged to generate a scene. Indeed, I'm going to proceed, with the overall idea that whereas speech is synthesized, and subvocalization is stopping just short of utterance, visualization is similar in that it is the process of engaging the entire chain of neurons that would be engaged in actually seeing a scene, but rather than projecting this into the visual cortex, the individual is projecting this into the working memory system, in the reverse order of the process of seeing.

Visualization as a Practice #

Magical practice and visualization have a long history, and many magical systems have visualization as a core practice. I am not here to advocate for any particular spiritual or religious practice, but rather, that these systems work because they, in fact, entrain the correct response in the brain to produce the entire chain of neurons that would be engaged to generate a scene.

Meditative practice, and magical practice, are perhaps the worst communicated practices in the world, especially in blog format. Even the psychedelic experience is better documented and communicated, and that is saying something.

I understand there is a certain irony to producing yet-another blogpost about this, but I am going to try to break down the process of visualization in a way that is accessible, as a series of (neuro)mechanical steps, for the purposes of learning to visualize, rather than as part of a larger spiritual or magical practice. Although I am going to purposefully abstract away from the spiritual or magical aspects of visualization, I am still beholden to the absolute truth that this will only work if you believe it will work. Giving into a little magical thinking when it comes to attempting to extend the boundaries of your own consciousness is probably for the best.

Seated Meditation Practice #

We'll begin with a seated meditation practice (which can also be done lying down, though be mindful of drowsiness). Unlike vipassana, zazen, or tantra, which all aim for specific mental states or energy work; instead, this meditation focuses on conscious coordination of typically autonomic processes, particularly breath and heartbeat. This coordination is a microcosm of the mental control needed for visualization and will serve as the foundation for later exercises.

Meditating with eyes fully closed is fine as long as the room remains somewhat lit, so that enough light passes through the eyelids to keep your brain alert. If you find yourself getting drowsy, open your eyes slightly, or meditate in a well-lit room. Meditation in darkness is not recommended for beginners, as it can lead to hypnagogic states, which are not the goal of this practice, and which can be disorienting and misleading. I would go so far as to say that the goal of this practice is to be as alert and focused as possible.

Intentionality is important. Please approach the following practice by grounding yourself in the intent to coordinate yourself.

  1. Sit comfortably, with your back straight, and your hands resting on your knees. Remain still.
  2. Close your eyes, and focus on your breath.
    • Inhale and exhale through your nose.
    • Gently align your breath with your heartbeat, aiming for one full breath cycle per 7 heartbeats.
  3. Focus on your breath. If you find your mind wandering, acknowledge that you are thinking of something else, and return your focus to your breath.

As a practice, meditation is about the process, and consistency. When starting out, it is best to meditate every day, in the same quiet place, if possible. As you become more comfortable with the practice, you can begin to meditate in different places, and for longer periods of time.

Seated meditation can be performed for as long as you like, but I would recommend starting with 5-10 minutes, and working up to 30 minutes. Visual experiences may occur spontaneously during seated meditation. Much like noting a wandering mind, acknowledge these experiences, and return your focus to your breath.

Visualization Practice #

Once you have achieved a level of comfort with seated meditation, you can begin to practice visualization within the practice of meditation. In this practice, you are going to be extending the previously coordinated breath and heartbeat into using this state to attain visualization.

I would recommend starting with a geometric shape, such as a triangle, or a square. I am of the biased opinion that triangles are a good place to start. It would be helpful, at this point, to have a physical artifact of the shape you are going to visualize, such as a triangle drawn on a piece of paper.

As a note on intent, the key intent is to see the shape. This is not a 'thinking' exercise, or a 'remembering' exercise, or 'imagination' as you thus far understand it.

The intent is to see the shape, as if it were in front of you, in between your eyes and the back of your eyelids. This is about sensory projection, rather than verbal description.

Intend to see.

  1. Before you begin, sit down, as in seated meditation, and focus on your artifact shape, the edges of the shape. You may want to trace the edges of the shape with your finger. Be mindful of your intent to see the shape.
  2. Begin with the seated meditation practice, and focus on your breath, and your heartbeat, coming to a state of calm and focus on your breath.
  3. Once focused, "project" the shape into the space
    • it is okay to move your eyes beneath your eyelids, as if you were looking at the shape or for the shape in space; if it helps, we are trying to 'see' the shape, peering as if through a veil
    • gently redirect to avoid subvocalizing or 'thinking' about the shape, if you find yourself doing this, acknowledge, return your focus to your breath and heartbeat.
  4. Hold the shape in your mind's eye for as long as you can
    • if the shape flickers, warps, or vanishes, return your focus to your breath, and try again.

This is the tricky part, and is likely to either cause frustration if the visual experience is not immediate. As a complete beginner, it is likely that you will not be able to hold the shape in your mind's eye for more than a few seconds. Phosphenes, or visual snow, are common experiences during this practice, and are not to be confused with the shape you are trying to visualize, but are a sign that you are on the right track: the visual cortex is being engaged.

Intermediate Practice #

If you find yourself with a clear, stable shape in your mind's eye, you can begin to work with different shapes, or more complex shapes. A good beginner practice after the equilateral triangle might be a 3-4-5 right triangle, square, or circle.

Beginning with geometric shapes, you can move on to something more complex (a common 'magical' practice is an equilateral triangle, circumscribing a square, circumscribing by a circle.)

A more intermediate practice would be to visualize a conceptual object, such as an integer, or a letter, and to keep the object of the visualization in your visual working memory, without 'thinking' or subvocalizing about the object. As you progress, you can begin to work on visualizing the connections between concepts or objects (diagrammatic reasoning), and eventually, even scenes.

I hope this post is helpful, or at least interesting and informative.