to us. The term ‘gut feeling’ is a good one because it quite rightly indicates that we often receive the information within our bodies rather than in our minds. While frequently it is the stomach area that we are most aware of in this respect, the chest, heart and solar plexus are also particularly sensitive.
TELEPATHY
Beloved of science fiction and horror writers, telepathy is often associated with stories about psychic spying, brainwashing and manipulation. The reality is quite different, far less sensational but much more satisfying and, on the whole, quite safe. In fact, we are all telepathic to some degree and go about our daily lives transmitting and receiving information without being consciously aware that we are doing so for much of the time. While we each transmit and receive in different ways, the basic principle is the same: we all act like radios which are able to tune in to information and send out our own signals on certain frequencies. Some of us have a greater ability to receive, others are more able to transmit.
Our individual telepathic abilities are closely linked to our other psychic gifts. If we are more clairvoyant than clairaudient, for instance, then we are much more likely to receive our telepathic information in the form of visual images or symbols than to ‘hear’ the thoughts of other people in our head.
Telepathic clairsentients may receive a sense of another person’s physical or emotional state, even at a distance.
Telepathy can operate at short distances and at great ones. We certainly experience short-distance telepathy on a regular basis with our families and close friends. In these cases, our telepathic abilities become entwined with our other abilities to read and transmit information. For instance, we often know when someone we are close to is angry with us, even when she or he does not express it openly. We may pick up a combination of signals that includes body language, tone of voice, changes in behaviour and clairsentient emotional messages as well as telepathic thoughts that the person transmits and we receive, loud and clear. In addition, most of us at some time experience having the same idea as our partner, parent, friend or child at exactly the same moment as she or he has it.
Long-distance telepathy can be just as common as the telepathy we experience at close range, though perhaps it can appear more remarkable because we do not have the more obvious physical signals to rely upon. I regularly think about friends from around the world just as they are writing me a letter or as they are contemplating telephoning me. In fact, even at close range I frequently think about people before they contact me or before I bump into them. Of course, it is not always clear who thought of whom first!
HANDS-ON HEALING
Hands-on healing has been given many names and is taught and practised using a variety of systems world-wide, but the essential nature of this healing art remains the same. Hands-on healing is the ability to channel a range of spiritual, magnetic or vital energies for the purpose of stimulating the innate self-healing abilities of others. Often these energies are transmitted from one person to another via the hands, hence ‘hands-on’ healing. A healer may physically place her or his hands upon the head or body of the recipient and allow the energy available to flow through him or her and into any area, physical, mental or emotional, that is in need of healing support. However, physical contact is not an essential part of this process, and many healers work by placing their hands near the recipient rather than on her or his body, sending energy through the auric body first, which finds its way to wherever it is needed physically.
Traditionally this kind of healing has often been called spiritual healing or faith healing. The term spiritual healing is relevant because the healing does occur on the spiritual level first and, through the spiritual, is then able to affect changes holistically throughout the entire system. ‘Faith healing’, although a term that is still commonly applied to these abilities, is inaccurate and greatly misleading. It implies that faith is essential for healing to occur and suggests that these abilities are inextricably linked to religious beliefs. Neither is true; the recipient just needs to be willing to experiment with this kind of healing for it to be of benefit. Many people who have no spiritual or religious beliefs, and who are initially cynical about the efficacy of consulting healers, have benefited greatly from healing treatments. For the healers themselves, there is no need to subscribe to any particular faith or creed in order to develop these abilities successfully.
The exchange of healing energy can be given by people of all ages and from all social, economic, cultural and religious backgrounds. Similarly, everyone can benefit from healing, regardless of condition, background or beliefs. You do not even have to be sick to benefit. Many people who are essentially healthy visit healers on a regular basis to help maintain their health and to enhance the quality of their lives.
Some healers do not even get physically close to the people they are helping, but are instead able to channel healing energy from the other side of a room or even from a great distance. Good counsellors frequently channel healing energy to their clients, often without being consciously aware of what they are doing. Numerous healers engage in distant or absent healing, and it is possible to send healing energy even to someone on the other side of the world.
Everyone can learn to give healing. Some people have a highly developed healing gift, but with practice and a willingness to experiment it is something that we can all do. I have often taught complete beginners to give hands-on healing in under two hours; even if some individuals are unsure of the quality or the validity of what they are doing, the recipients usually report tangible feelings of peace, relaxation and harmony, and derive great benefit from the experience. Of course, as with any other skill, mastery comes with time, patience, persistence and fine tuning.
CHANNELLING
The word ‘channel’ appears to have come from America and covers a broad spectrum of psychic abilities and creative expression. Any of us can be said to be channelling when we lose ourselves in the creative process of painting a picture, writing a book or at any other time when we let go to our creative muse. Some channelling is similar to old-style mediumship, as the channel could be someone who acts as a vehicle for family or friends wishing to communicate from other realms. However, before you get visions of the comic, eccentric mediums found in old movies, let me give you the wider picture.
Healers channel healing energy, acting as a vehicle for healing light. Psychics can channel guidance or information in the form of mental pictures (clairvoyance), hearing subtle sounds or words (clairaudience) and in many other ways. Channelling can be directly spoken, or written in the form of automatic writing. Channels can pass on information from spirit guides and teachers. Some people also channel a form of their own higher mind or higher wisdom. There is really no mystery; we are all capable of learning to channel positive, inspirational guidance.
THE HIGHER MIND
The terms ‘the higher mind’ and ‘the higher consciousness’ are gaining mainstream recognition these days. They refer to the concept that each of us has a part of our consciousness that acts as a bridge between the spiritual and the mental dimensions of our awareness. Simply put, we each have a reservoir of higher thought and wisdom which helps to guide the course of our lives. This part of ourselves is better able to see the bigger picture of the daily events and dramas that we become engrossed in and, if we are willing to listen to it, will enable us to put everything into perspective. Acting with the grace of our higher self can help us to make the life choices that will best support our underlying spiritual purpose and guide us in the direction of our greatest joy and fulfilment. It is highly likely that the best decisions you have ever made began as ideas or impulses that were placed in your conscious awareness by your higher mind.
The process of actively developing your psychic potential will automatically strengthen your connection
