It seems to me that one of the most underrated programs at the Monroe Institute is Exploration 27 (X27). We hear so much about many of the others, but X27 tends to get overlooked. For me, however, it was the most beneficial program I’ve taken to date. Unlike some of the other ones that seem to have a single specific focus, X27 takes you  through a variety of experiences in Focus level 27 (and beyond) and teaches you how to feel comfortable in your own energies while healing, planning, learning, and growing. I left Exploration 27 feeling stronger and more confident, with a plan in place for my life—and nothing is of greater value to me than that.

Your special place

I found that X27 focused heavily on the group energy and meetings before going off on our own experiences. I’ve never felt a group energy more intensely, and it was a wonderful feeling in contrast to many of our exercises that took place in our “special places.” I’ve written about these special places before, which you build for yourself in Focus 27. They are energetic places, spaces, or signatures in which you become increasingly comfortable. They can also consist of strong visualizations of things that make you happy.

My special place became a place of safety and peace as I explored Focus 27 throughout the program, and it held some of the most important experiences for me. I was able to connect there with those I love dearly who have passed away. I was able to use a library I visualized in my special place to manifest from Focus 27 by visualizing myself writing the story of my life in a blank book. It’s a place where the sky is the limit. A place of great imagination. A place of creativity. A place where you can connect with your higher self and feel joyful, safe, and confident. Finding this place in X27 was one of the highlights of my experience, and it made the program stand out as such a special adventure. It’s the only program I’ve attended that allowed me so much time to really get comfortable exploring my special place with such great detail.

The healing and rejuvenation center

One of the reasons X27 is so important to me is the time spent in the healing energies there. People perceive the healing and rejuvenation center in many ways, whether visually, emotionally, or mentally. For me, it provided one of the strongest healing forces I’ve ever experienced. I saw it as a pure white crystal facility that I could visualize myself getting healed by as I walked through it. Others felt it metaphorically, i.e., they could feel the healing rather than see a place. It resonated with me so powerfully that I can now easily and quickly connect back to those healing energies at any time in any place if I ever need to, and I’m not one to feel particularly comfortable in a healer capacity. Finding the key to connect to that energy was another valuable tool I took away from my experience.

I found that X27 focused heavily on the group energy and meetings before going off on our own experiences. I’ve never felt a group energy more intensely, and it was a wonderful feeling in contrast to many of our exercises that took place in our “special places.”

The planning center

Part of the Exploration 27 program has you visiting the planning center, where you can map out and manifest what you want in your life. I had an especially strong visual connection to these exercises. I saw myself walking over a large globe structure and planning out my future by sending code to it from crystal-like computers. It was the way I needed to perceive it to get the most out of those planning energies, but again, it’s more of an energetic signature we can connect to in that focus level. I titled the exercises in the planning center “My Mission in Life,” as they helped me to clearly visualize, plan out, and meticulously schedule the future I want for myself. They allowed me to leave Exploration 27 with a sense of clarity and purpose that I had before, but now with a strengthened connection. I even got this fun response when meditating on what I needed to get out of the planning center experience:

“You are a being of great compassion. You have a hard time sitting back and letting things come to pass. You prefer to make change. You change the world on assignments from a greater force, hoping to make the world a better place. You prefer to start from places of suffering and make changes for yourself, turning your life around for the better. You claw your way up to importance even if you don’t come from it so you can change the world in your own way.

Malorie, listen closely to me, your guides try to help you stay on the paths you create for yourself. You come to earth regularly and die young, trying to accomplish much each time. There are other worlds you could go to, but you choose this one. You have compassion for this one because of the animals in it and the natural life of this particular world, though there are others. This Earth is important to you, as your greatest experiences happen here. The people you love usually have experiences here, and you feel a connection to change. You would make the most change here, so you chose here. Perhaps, this time around, part of this life should be for you.”

I think I’m still allowing this to resonate and sink in even after a year of processing.

The educational center

I loved the education center. It held particular interest to me because every person in my group experienced it extremely differently than the next person. I was reminded to come from a more childlike perspective while there. It was a clear, easy, visceral  exercise that brought me back to the inner child I love to connect with.

All in all, Exploration 27 is my favorite program, even looking back on it over a year later, because it offers so many vastly different opportunities to learn about yourself and grow, and every person I’ve seen attend it has had a distinctly unique experience of it. If you haven’t taken it yet, I strongly recommend that you do so. It’s a hidden gem, one that can benefit you in a great variety of ways.