The Door to a Forgotten Life

“Your visit has been approved. The Archive has prepared twelve personal finds. Their contents will be revealed only once the recipient has chosen.”

The letter arrives with no sender. The envelope has turned yellow, the wax seal bears the image of an old key, and the date is several centuries old. The most curious thing is that your name is written on it, in handwriting you have never seen before. On the back you find another message: “The recipient has visited the Archive before. On their last appearance they left twelve sealed chests, with express instructions that they be opened on their next return.”

You read it once more. When did you ever visit a place like this? What could you have left there, and why would you have wanted the contents kept for so long? And, more intriguing still, who decided that now was the moment for you to receive the letter?

I admit I would set off straight away. Especially if I had once left twelve chests behind and today had no memory at all of what I’d put in them. I only hope I had the good sense to keep something valuable, and not just old love letters from someone who, in the previous incarnation too, kept promising to call and is clearly still waiting for the right moment.

You follow the address and arrive in front of an old building with tall windows, a heavy wooden door and a brass plaque that reads “Archive of Forgotten Lives”. Inside you are met by long corridors, shelves of yellowed documents, old maps and books whose titles you can barely make out. At the end of one of the halls you find a massive wooden table with twelve chests laid out on it. Each one is different. One holds old letters, another a key, a third some mysterious object, and among the rest you can see traces of forgotten documents, maps and memories. Each carries a number, but nowhere is there any explanation of what it contains.

Beside them lies a note: “The chests may be opened in whatever order the recipient chooses. It is recommended that the first be chosen by feel.”

Think about the places that draw you, even though you have never been there. About the person you met and, from the very first conversation, felt unusually close to. About the favourite pastime you keep coming back to, the stories that repeat themselves in your relationships, or some wish of yours that seems to have been with you since time out of mind. If you could peek into an imagined story from another life, what would you want to find out?

“The Door to a Forgotten Life” was created for people who are interested in past lives, karmic bonds and the secrets of the human soul. For those who love to explore their own feelings, their recurring choices and that strange sense that certain people or places have been familiar to them for a long time. It is also for anyone who wants to set aside some time for themselves, sink into an unusual story and find a fresh way of looking at their present life.

In each chest a different guided symbolic journey awaits you. You will pass through a story that gradually reveals its images, people, choices and messages. You might picture an old town, a distant harbour, someone’s home or a stranger. You may come across an object, a promise, a meeting or a wish that reminds you of something in your own life. At the end of the experience you will be able to write down your impressions and reflect on what they mean to you personally.

These journeys use imagination, music and karmic symbolism as a way of exploring yourself. The pictures that appear may be inspired by your own memories, stories you have read, dreams and associations, and they are no proof of actual past lives.

How to open your chest

How to open your chest?

Choose a time when you can be alone with yourself. Settle in comfortably, turn off the notifications on your phone and, if you like, put on the instrumental music. Let it play softly, as a background to the story. Twelve numbered chests will appear in front of you. Look at them carefully and choose the one that catches your eye most strongly. It might be the key that intrigues you, an old document, an unusual decoration, or simply the feeling that you want to find out what is hidden in that particular one.

The music starts softly the first time you touch the page. The bar at the bottom centre of the screen stops it, turns it down and turns it up.

Once you have made your choice, your personal journey will open. Read slowly and give your imagination time to build the scenes. You can close your eyes for a moment after each part or keep your gaze on the image. Move on to the next step whenever you wish. If a particular image becomes unpleasant for you, you can skip that part, stop the experience and turn your attention to the familiar space around you.

Let the story unfold naturally. You may see clear pictures, or only separate impressions may come. Remember the details that draw you most strongly — a face, a place, a colour, an object, a word or a feeling. At the end you will have the chance to write them down in your “Return Journal”.

After the first journey the choice will be yours again. You can end your visit, open another chest or explore all twelve. Each will take you to a different symbolic story, and your impressions may be different every time you come back.

To the twelve chests

Choose your chest

Now look at the twelve chests. Somewhere among the old keys, the yellowed letters and the forgotten objects, the first story you will want to discover is waiting for you.

Choose one chest from 1 to 12 and break its seal. The Archive is open.