spirit realm
Receiving Spiritual Guidance From Your Ancestors
The ancient tradition of ancestor worship is a powerful, yet often misunderstood spiritual practice. It is typically viewed as a form of idolatry, mainly because of the inaccurate use of the term ‘worship.’
In truth most cultures practicing such rites do not refer to it as ‘ancestor worship.’ The more appropriate terms to use is ‘ancestor reverence’ or ‘ancestor veneration,’ because it is about living descendants paying respect to and seeking the guidance of their loved ones in spirit.
It is a common practice among indigenous people and an integral component of most shamanic traditions. It is not the same as the worship of gods or deities.
In fact, as a spiritual practice it is not much different from looking at old pictures of departed loved ones and rememembering them fondly. We might even tell them how we miss them or share our problems with them. Some of us have even asked them to help us find solutions to problems, or pull a few strings on our behalf from the Other Side.
Although I cannot say I have any special reverence for my ancestors, I do respect them for all the trials and tribulations they experienced while they were in this life. In my ancestral lineage there were courageous prisoner-of-war experiences, the conquering of grievous setbacks and material harships, and even suicides, to mention but a few. Several of my predecessors had truly unique, and even exceptional life stories that still dwell in my cellular memories.
The ancestral technique I use in my spiritual practice is similar to that of the Yoruba people of West Africa. My greatest connection is with my father, and he is the one I communicate with daily in the Yoruba fashion. You can create an altar or sacred space in your home for this purpose.
Spirit Channeling In The Trance State
The term ‘trance’ is sometimes misunderstood in psychic mediumship. The trance state is an altered state of consciousness that enables a medium to communicate with spirit. This shouldn’t be confused with spirit possession, as depicted in some Hollywood films and television shows. There is nothing evil or demonic about mediumship and trance channeling!
In a trance state, the psychic medium’s consciousness serves as a conduit for spirit. It is a two-way communication, and the purest and most trusting form of partnership between the physical and spiritual worlds.
There are essentially two levels or types of spirit channeling, namely mental mediumship and physical mediumship.
Mental mediumship, sometimes also called ‘telepathic mediumship,’ is what most people are familiar with namely to communicate with spirit while fully conscious. Mental mediums use various levels of trance to channel spirit messages.
One of the most famous mental mediums was as the American psychic Edgar Cayce, also known as the ‘sleeping prophet,’ who channeled his higher self while in the trance state. Cayce was a devout Christian who in in a trance state with his eyes closed would answer questions on a variety of subjects, such as healing, dreams, the afterlife, past lives and reincarnation.
While mental mediumship is communication experienced only by the medium or channeler, physical mediumship is also evident to everyone who is with the medium. Mental mediumship involves only the mind of the medium, while in physical mediumship the body of the medium is used to channel information from spirit.
Physical mediumship can involve various physical manifestations of spirit energies, such as the moving of objects, table rapping, and spirit materializations. These phenomena usually occur during séances. There are not many physical mediums these days because this form of channeling requires extensive training and is a psychic practice that can take many years to develop.
What Happens Between Lifetimes?
We are so much more than this physical body we currently inhabit, and for most of us this is not our first lifetime on this planet. Using past life regression therapy and past life psychic readings we can learn much about who we were and what we did before we were born into this current life.
Past-life regression is mostly done with hypnosis, but it can also be accomplished with deep meditation. I do recommend hypnotherapy, because it is safer to be guided by a professional hypnotherapist while going through these experiences. During these sessions we can learn about our soul, which is the true self, and how our soul is progressing through its many different learning experiences. Sometimes fascinating information about our life between lives comes to the surface during these regressions.
When we cross over at the end of our life we meet familiar spirits or our special spirit guides who accompany and guide us during our crossing. Then we meet very special Angelic beings who are full of Love for us. They join us for help and support.
We are next brought before a Council of Elders, a panel of highly evolved spiritual beings, to discuss the life we have just left behind. They also explain to us what we can do to progress in our future lives. A life review is a phenomenon often reported by people who have experienced near-death.
If a person passes from a really extreme or difficult physical life, there usually follows a healing period on the other side. There are Master Beings of Light who help us to heal from all our earthly suffering. We learn during this healing retreat how to deal with certain traumatic incidences we may have experiences in the mind and body.
Mediums To The Rescue
When some people pass away, they are taken by surprise and in shock. These souls aren’t sure what is going on, where they are now, and how they got there, while wondering where everyone else has gone. These individuals find themselves stuck in a physical, human mindset and unable to progress in the spirit realm.
How can such a confused soul energy become unstuck and cross over into the light? Well, that’s where spirit rescue work comes in! Some of the most rewarding spiritual experiences in my own mediumship career have been during rescue sessions that I used to attend. Once every month, a group of mediums would gather in a séance circle and with the aid of a facilitator we would engage in the rescue process. In the trance state, one of us would then begin to channel the energy of someone who needed assistance to cross over and reach the Other Side.
There are several rescue sessions that particularly stand out in my memory, even after all these years. The first was the spirit of a young woman about 35 years of age. She had been sitting on her kitchen counter in Indiana for months, wondering where the rest of her family had gone? We soon discovered that they had all been killed in a car accident and only she had returned home to search for everyone. The facilitator encouraged her to look to the light, reach for their outstretched hands and join her husband and two children.
Another time, I channeled the energy of a little boy about six years old. He was hiding under one end of his bed, which was on an angle forming a tent over him. He had perished in a house fire in Nebraska and couldn’t find his parents. We encouraged him to look towards the light and reach for his waiting mother’s hand.
Another unusual case was a patriotic young WWII soldier who had been killed in combat, but refused to abandon his post. Our facilitator had to give him a direct order to look to the light and immediately report to his commanding officer!
The Babysitter’s Near-Death Experience
While I was working out at the gym one day, I saw a little old lady who used to babysit me and my brothers when we were little children. I will never the wonderful times we had with her. She was always making it so much fun. She wasn’t on the phone all the time or watching television. She wasn’t ignoring us kids like so many of the other babysitters my mother sometimes hired for us.
When I spotted her and her daughter in the gym, I walked over to greet her, and told her that I remember her very well. I also thanked her for giving me some wonderful memories and teaching me so many valuable life lessons. The one thing I specifically remember her telling me was to always be careful about what we “put into our minds.”At a young age she had already made me realize that what we think about can either help us or harm us. I have always held on to that wisdom in my life. Because it is truly worth more than gold.
One time, I asked her how she knew so much about things. She looked at me and said,“Moon, you know what, I died once.”
“What? No way!” I responded. I went to catholic school growing up, and near-death experiences were certainly not the kind of thing we were learning about in class.
“Yes, I was in the hospital,” she continued. “I had a major operation and I could not wake up afterwards.” Apparently, she had flatlined during surgery and they had struggled to revive her.
“I am very lucky to be here,” she said and then shared some very interesting things with me about her near-death experience (NDE). I still remember that when she first left her body her parents were both there to meet her and she could hear loved ones on the other side of the tunnel having fun. I also remember she said she felt like a ball of light at the time and that it felt so good. The next moment she was being pulled back into her body. Continue reading
The Spiritual Path Of The Wandering Nomad
A recent chat with a relative about my plans for the future reminded me of a first cousin who once remarked on my nomadic lifestyle, “You really don’t seem to stay in one place for more than ten minutes!” A friend once also pulled my leg about needing to buy a new Rolodex, because I was filling hers up with all my constantly changing addresses from all over the world (those were the days before contacts could be more easily stored on a smart phone).
According to Astrology, I was supposed to get settled early in life as a Cancerian, by creating a permanent home and haven, and having a family with several children. Well, this was never the case. I thought the desire to settle down might come as years passed, but it never happened.
I also never became broody. I would become motherly over a puppy, kitten or other young animal, but I never felt the desire to have children of my own.
Over many years of personal growth and spiritual exploration, I have gained a deeper understanding and greater clarity regarding the choices I have been making in this lifetime.
Astrologically, for example there is a strong Gemini influence in my natal chart which is contributing to my restlessness, as well as Leo fueling my creativity and my sense of determination. I am not am expert astrologer by any stretch of the imagination, but the way it was explained to me by a professional astrologer made perfect sense.
A past life regression session also revealed that I had conceived many children in previous incarnations and that the desire to have offspring of my own this time around was not a part of the blueprint.
I found the matter particularly challenging when I was younger. I would be dating a wonderful guy who really wanted to settle down with me and longed to have a family, but the mere thought of having my wings clipped by marriage and motherhood was always unthinkable to me. So, many good relationships ended because we really were not on the same page about settling down and having children.
Let Us Be Kind To One Another
We live in a strange world where we place so much importance on who we know, what we own, what we be believe, who we vote for, and (as silly as it is) what we look like. Instead, we all should be placing more value and importance on how we treat one another, and not be so unkind, selfish, and judgmental. Not to mention all the distractions created by modern technology and materialistic pursuits.
It is very hard for anyone to be truly spiritually aware and live a life of higher consciousness in today’s mad world. Living in a holy way, like the Saints of the Catholic faith, is almost completely out of reach these days. The Saints got it right first time around, and they are an example of how to live in a selfless, ‘do unto others’ kind of way.
We will ultimately be held accountable for every thought, word, action and deed. I think it is very egotistic to think that all that is needed is one lifetime around and then ‘ta-da,’ you get granted entry to eternal bliss. Just for claiming your are religious, a ‘good person,’ or spiritually ‘evolved’? Never! Doesn’t work like that.
Do you consider yourself a saint? None of us are. I certainly don’t consider myself one; not by a long shot. But one does notice the self-righteous attitudes of some among us, like they are better than the rest. Spirit doesn’t condone that kind of pride one bit.
Faith and spirituality is indeed a personal choice for every person. But there are some undeniable, eternal truths and universal laws that apply to all of us, no matter what we choose to be believe or who or what we worship.
For me faith and spirituality is about believing and doing what the Bible recommends. But it is not just about attending church services on Sundays, and then going against God’s Word the other six days. It’s about being humble, being pure of heart and mind, and being kind to one another. We are all connected and until we begin treating everyone as our neighbor we shall know no lasting peace or harmony.
