Since I became a part of the conscious community in 2011, I’ve been interested in channeled messages and the idea that we can communicate with higher aspects of our consciousness. I was introduced to spirituality through the communications of apparent enlightened beings who, in their words, want to help us raise our vibration.
I was more heavily involved in channeling when I first emerged than I am now. Whereas I was interested in connecting with specific entities before, I now see that channeling can be a helpful tool to communicate with what I call the ‘higher self’, which is an evolved part of our consciousness that offers advice and guidance in meditation (and in general).
I think the higher self (which we all have) intuitively guides its individualized lower consciousness on earth, and this is one reason we’re encouraged to listen to our intuition. I think the intuition is actually our link to the higher self, and not only do we receive explicitly personal guidance from it – we can also channel it for the benefit of others.
I’ve went back and forth lately from supporting channeling to being more discerning about it, and I recently stumbled upon the mainstream explanation for it.
Apparently, the mainstream explanation for channeling is that it’s really automatism, which is condition we reach in meditation where the mind throws out random words and images that channelers pick up on and assume are the results of communication with a higher entity. Live Science explains.
“The real explanation for channeling lies in psychology, not psychic powers. As psychologist James Alcock of York University notes in ‘The Encyclopedia of The Paranormal,’ ‘the supposed phenomenon is actually very old, for it is simply automatism — automatic behavior over which an individual denies any personal control …
“‘Today we recognize that automatism is a form of dissociation, an altered state of consciousness, in which an individual is capable of speaking or acting without awareness of deliberately doing so.’
“In other words, when a person [meditates] and clears his or her mind, random thoughts, images, and symbols may spontaneously arise. In this harmless dissociative state, though it may seem that this information is coming from another consciousness outside the body, in fact it is generated by the mind itself.
“It’s the same process by which artists and musicians may suddenly be inspired by a great thought, or how we dream of things we’d never have imagined or thought of.” (1)
When I found this explanation, I was surprised that the mainstream had addressed channeling at all. I’d thought it was something they more or less ignored, but it’s good that our society’s at least attempting to understand it.
We can’t blame society for its unwillingness to believe channeling could be more than simple automatism, because people are nothing if not discerning. Discernment’s a helpful quality to have, but the paradigm of materialistic science unfortunately sweeps a lot of revolutionary spiritual ideas under the rug.
Automatism would be a great way to debunk channeling, and some ‘channeled’ messages out there probably really are products of random thoughts that are generated by the mind. I’ve channeled for a few years, however, and I can say from experience that it’s more than picking up on random words and phrases.
The mainstream explanation mentions that automatism takes place with little to no influence from the mind, and this makes it difficult not to associate the concept with channeling because channelers strive to transcend the mind’s influence when they connect.
Random, flowing words and phrases are routinely received during a channeling session, but they don’t solely constitute the ability to channel. Nor is the mind alone responsible for them, in my opinion. Beyond the random words and phrases, the higher self (and other entities) actually give a lot of clear, direct information.
There’s also the phenomenon of channeled sources knowing what’s in their questioners’ minds and giving answers to questions the channels didn’t know they’d be asked. Various phenomena surrounds channeling that only the people who believe in it seem to pick up on, and we can’t explore the potential realities of something we don’t believe is real.
The spiritually and scientifically minded will probably continue to butt heads, because the ladder will only consider things that can be physically proven or studied (such as automatism) while the former’s more than willing to explore spiritual concepts.
We’ll just have to use discernment with everything we’re asked to consider, but after my experiences with channeling, I’m convinced that it’s more than automatism. Call me naïve or new-agey, but there’s something realer to this connection. The mainstream explanation, however sensible and grounding, doesn’t do justice.
I’m not defending every channeled message, and some of them can’t be taken as seriously as others. I’ve said this for years, but just because one or two apples are rotten doesn’t mean there isn’t a whole orchard of fresh ones waiting to be picked.
An open mind is definitely required for anyone who wants to consider that channeling or any other spiritual concepts are real, and the mainstream’s skepticism doesn’t bother me. The fact that the mainstream has explored the subject at all shows that we’re making progress, even if they only explored it to debunk it.
There’s no reason everyone should believe the things we do, and as long as we’re comfortable and secure in what we feel in our hearts to be true, I think we should let everyone else follow their path – whether or not it includes channeling.
The last thing we want to do is go against people who don’t believe in channeling or spirituality in general, because we could come off as zealots who are no better than those who’ve been brainwashed by contemporary religion and knock on people’s doors telling them they need Jesus.
It’s understandable that some people don’t believe in channeling, because it’s kind of a hard thing to believe in. It’s so far outside our established social paradigm that people can’t help but debunk it, but their disbelief doesn’t have to keep us from embracing it if it helps us along our journey.
I think we should embrace whatever helps us, and if the things we embrace alienate us from those who wouldn’t believe the things we do in a million years, we’ll just have to accept that it’s part of the territory and show them the same respect we’d want to be shown, even if they don’t show it back.
The world will open up and consider these hyper-spiritual concepts when it’s ready, but for now, we’ll have to accept that they’re radically different and, if they resonate enough in our hearts, embrace them nonetheless.
My intuitive connection with my higher self has helped me so much in the past that I’m confident there’s more to it than simple automatism. I can’t vouch for the accuracy of every channeled message that’s put out there, but I can vouch for the benefits I’ve received from connecting with my higher self and spiritual guides.
Discernment’s important when it comes to anything, and in all things, let’s take what resonates with us and let the rest fall away without condemning people who believe things we don’t.
Footnotes:
- “Channeling & Spirit Guides: Voices From Within, Not Beyond” by Benjamin Radford, Live Science – https://www.livescience.com/38561-channeling.html
Written by Wes Annac, The Culture of Awareness, January 4, 2015 – https://tinyurl.com/nplnbbk
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I’m a twenty-one year old writer, musician and blogger, and I created The Culture of Awareness daily news site. The Culture of Awareness features daily spiritual and alternative news, articles I’ve written, and more. Its purpose is to awaken and uplift by providing material about the fall of the planetary elite and a new paradigm of unity and spirituality. I can also be found on Facebook (Wes Annac and The Culture of Awareness) and Twitter.