WHY THE DARK IS AS IMPORTANT AS THE LIGHT

As energy workers, intuitives, and healers, our focus (usually!) is on the light. Spreading it, working with it, trying to stay within it.

But, life is about balance, and dark is part of that. At this time of the year as Halloween comes near, the focus turns to the dark. In our primarily Christian culture (in the US), we've been taught that it's something to fear or something that shouldn't be focused upon.

But, what if that's not correct?

We know that when we die, something comes next. Most of us have had experience with the dead in some form, seeing a 'ghost' or having 'that feeling' from time to time that we're not alone. And, though our body may initially react with a feeling of fear, deep down we know that sharing space with those who have gone on before us isn't truly an UNhealthy thing at all. The dead around us are part of a healthy spiritual ecosystem.

It's also very important that even as we work in the Light and continue to strive to be the best human we can be, that we explore the 'dark' sides of ourselves, too. The baser human sides of us that struggle with Ego and pettiness, sadness and disappointment, bad habits and Ego (yes, I meant to say that twice because it truly is a struggle). And that's every bit as important as focusing on the Light, if not more so, as understanding our Dark helps us understand ourselves as a Whole.

Something to do as we near Halloween, also called Samhain (pronounced sow-en) or All-Hallows' Eve, is to recognize that it's the perfect time to send some energy towards those close to us who have died. As the veil between our world and theirs becomes thinner and thinner, it's also much easier to communicate. You might notice songs on the radio that remind you of them. You may come across something in your home that they gave you that you'd forgotten about, almost as if it were left there intentionally (it probably was!). They may be in your dreams. You may catch a whiff of their perfume or cologne. All of this is a wonderful loving reminder that they're not truly GONE; they're still around us, still loving us, and still missing us as much as we miss them.

Ways to honor that can be varied, from the simple act of thinking of them (and don't forget to tell them how much you love and miss them, as you don't need an intuitive intermediary like me to do that for you! They can hear you directly!), to going to a favorite place you shared such as a park or restaurant, listening to music you loved together, and even setting a place for them at dinner inviting them to join you for something very human: A meal.

Know that everything you do in their honor is seen and acknowledged, and take the opportunity that this "dark" time of the year provides to participate in those things you may not be able to see. But, be assured in your heart that they're very real and that you ARE being heard. 

What Happens When We Die?

As you can imagine, I see a lot of dead in my work, whether I'm just out and about on my own, or when I'm called by clients who are having issues in their home or work space with dead who are stuck and seem unable to move on and are either causing serious issues or just disruptions in the lives of the living.

I think that I've talked here a few times about how puzzling it is to me in dealing with the dead in that

it seems that when we die there's oftentimes really no one there to tell us what comes next. To help us figure out where we go from here. To point us in the right direction.

I can only see so far after someone crosses. What I KNOW to be true from the years I've done this are:

• First, time doesn't seem to pass in quite the same way once we die as it does when we're alive. I haven't quite figured that one out, yet...
• When someone dies, they don't become wiser. They can't see the past, present, and future. They don't generally change in any real way (other than their form, obviously), so any character traits that were acquired on this side roll over into that side, too. For instance, a racist while living will still be a racist on death until he moves through the processes of dying and transition. In other words, we don't seem to fundamentally CHANGE when we die. We're still the same spirit we were in life. When people first die, they spend a bit of time mourning what THEY lost. After all, just as the living have to deal with the loss of this person in their world, the person who died mourns what he's leaving behind. This can include visiting family members, going to his funeral, and trying to wrap up any loose ends he's left which can also include finding someone like me who can reach out to the living and act as their voice.
• What happens immediately after he dies is also tied to his beliefs about death while he was alive. It would appear that, if we have a strongly-held belief about, say, purgatory, we experience something very like purgatory. If someone believes that nothing happens when we die, they have a very difficult time coming to terms with the fact that they are dead and something is definitely going on as they've not just ceased to exist in any form. Whereas someone who really has no idea of what happens next, but is open to anything that might happen tends to move on to whatever's next with relative ease. After the initial mourning period is over and the person has come to terms with the fact they're no longer physically present in this world, they generally go somewhere where I can't see them. BUT, I can feel them there and know that they're with their loved ones and Guides/angels who are helping them learn the lessons that they needed to learn from this lifetime before moving on to whatever's next.

For people who have no strong belief about what happens after we die, they seem to move through this process and then to whatever's next in a relatively fast way in weeks to months. If they were ready to die when they left, all the faster.

But, I've always found it extremely odd how many dead are 'stuck' here. Seemingly as if no one ever met them when they arrived there, or provided any sort of direction as to what was going to happen next or what was expected of them in order NOT to be stuck.

I've pondered this for years. I'm serious. For YEARS. But a few weeks ago, I had an especially puzzling client/haunting situation and was thinking about this again when talking to my Guides and asked them if this meant that there was no god, stating that it seems fundamentally unfair that we should die and have no direction or help when we cross. But, his answer sorta blew my mind:

"Why is it so puzzling? It's how you're born into THIS life, isn't it? Not knowing anything, having to learn it all by trial and error? With no guidance other than experience?"

Right. Totally right. That's EXACTLY how we come into this world. So, now my question isn't whether or not that's an indication of the existence of a higher power/god, but rather, is death from here rebirth somewhere else?

Meet The Clairs

The Clair Senses

This collective word phrase includes any or all types of psychic sensitivities that correspond to the physical senses of sight, sound, touch, smell, taste, and sense/intuition.

The first that we’ll discuss is Clairvoyance.

Clairvoyance:  1.  A person who has a supernatural ability to perceive events in the future or beyond normal sensory contact. 

Synonyms:  Psychic, fortune teller, medium, telepath, mind-reader, remote viewer

Clairvoyance literally translated means clair, French for “clear”, and voyance meaning “vision”.  It is that ability to reach into that psychic frequency and visually perceive “within the minds’ eye” something not physically known.  A person with this ability is called ‘a clairvoyant’, or “One who sees clearly”. They generally receive extrasensory impressions, sometimes in symbols, sometimes in ‘moving picture’ form or mental images, but are seen without using the physical eyes.  The information is generally outside the limits of time and space.

The clairvoyant may reach the mental space in which to perform this through meditation, or sometimes it can happen spontaneously.  Clairvoyance, in a nutshell, is one who receives their psychic/extrasensory information in visual images as opposed to smells or sounds (though these two might also be present in a clairvoyant).

Clairaudience

Noun 

From the French, clair (clear) audience (hearing).

The power to hear sounds said to exist beyond the reach of ordinary experience or capacity, as the voices of the dead.

Synonyms:  Psychic, telepath, medium, fortune teller.

A clairaudient is someone for whom their ‘knowing’ “comes in the form of sound in the form of ‘inner ear’ or a mental tone perceived without the aid of the physical ear and beyond the limitations

of ordinary time and space.  This can be in full sentences or single words, sometimes alone, and sometimes also as clairvoyance, which may or not be present, the ability to also see as well as hear, though they are often both present in a person with this ability.  It’s not unusual for an intuitive who is clairaudient to also be clairvoyant, though usually one or the other clair- is the primary ability while the other ability is secondary.  Clairaudience is hearing, either internally within ones’ mind, or externally through ones’ ears, something outside of oneself speaking.  In other words, the clairaudient hears words spoken either inside or outside of their mind.  This gift often first manifests as hearing ones’ name called while sitting in silence.  Clairaudience can also be present on a temporary basis, such as when an intuitive or someone sensitive to the ‘other side’ is in a specific location known, though not available to the person at will.

This particular gift comes with most of the “mental instability” baggage.  After all, when you’re filling out new patient paperwork at a new doctor’s office and come to the question, “Do you hear voices”, the logical answer is an emphatic “NO”, despite truth to the contrary!   An online medium, Amanda Meder, states, “While clairaudience and mental illness can both consist of voices within the head – the similarities stop there.  Clairaudient mediums can learn to control these voices.  Spirit voices tend to not be constant, but instead, are more brief and to the point.  Spirit voices tend to engage in a genuine dialogue with you, answering questions that you have and providing feedback.”   She goes on to say that another distinguishing factor that separates the voice of Spirit from an internal mental illness, a true “hearing voices” such as seen in schizophrenia, “…generally do not prevent functionality, nor do they suggest harmful behavior.  Spirit voices are gentle, safe, rational (often more rational than your own), and usually quite compassionate”, and we disagree on this point.  It is entirely possible to be clairaudient when surrounded by negative entities and is, in fact, a diagnostic process when dealing with these situations.  So, yes, it does take some discernment on the part of the hear-er to determine whether one is truly clairaudient, or might possibly require medical diagnosis.

Again, Clairaudience is often present with one or more of the other ‘clair’s, as we will discuss further in the coming days.

Clairsentience

Noun 

From the French, clair (clear) sentient (feeling).

The power to hear sounds said to exist beyond the reach of ordinary experience or capacity, as the voices of the dead.

Synonyms:  Empath, empathic ability, psychic, telepathic, medium, sixth sense.

A clairsentient is someone with the ability to feel the past, present, or future physical and emotional

states of others, both living and dead, without the use of the other five senses.  In general, clairsentient is the catch-all name for an intuitive.  Some call it a ‘gut feeling’ that, over time, proves itself to be far more than just a “feeling” and more accurately described as a “knowing”.  

In discussing clairsentience, it’s also useful to describe two types of intuitives:  A Physical Medium and a Mental Medium or Psychic Knower. 

Mental Medium – The mental medium is the most common type of the two mediumships with hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of mental mediums all over the world.  It’s also an innate skill that, if present, most people can develop with practice and discipline, even a little bit.  A mental medium is one who is either of the three Clairs we’ve discussed so far:  Clairvoyant, Clairaudient, or Clairsentient.  Each of these three mediumships is a type of mental medium, wherein the intuitive is SENSING something without using the other five senses.  (For example, I am a mental medium.)

Physical Medium –  A physical medium is completely different than a mental medium, and the ability is quite rare, and isn’t something that can be learned or taught.  One is generally born with the ability.  A physical medium is when a person has the ability to allow external entities to act through their physical body, and can also be called a spirit communicator.  Rather than a ‘knowing’ that involves only the mind as in mental mediumship, the physical medium will actually experience the memories of whomever is being channeled, oftentimes taking on their death state, the pain of their death (or life, for that matter), and the physical symptoms of the person being channeled.  A Physical Medium actually experiences the experience of what they ‘know’ rather than just knowing it.  Physical mediums tend to have much shorter lifespans than mental mediums due to the punishment the body undergoes with this gift.  (For example, Amy Allen, the intuitive from the Travel Channel show The Dead Files, is a physical medium).

Clairsentience also encompasses one who is empathic, who feels the emotions of others either spontaneously (without control) or on purpose (with control).  Emotions are a huge part of clairsentience.  Sudden inspiration, insight, or instinct that just pops in out of the blue is oftentimes clairsentience.  A sudden ‘gut feeling’ which often allows one to get the sense of a situation or event very quickly, almost like a computer download.  Clairsentience can also manifest as an almost physical feeling that some describe as “being pulled towards”, or a nudging towards.

Clairtangency, Clairolifaction, and Clairgustant

Today, we’ll discuss three other kinds of Clair- that aren’t as well known as those we’ve discussed previously.

Clairtangency (more commonly known as Psychometry)

Noun 

From the French, clair (clear) tangent (touching).

The ability touch an object or area and perceive through the palms of ones’ hands information about the article or its owner or history that was not previously known to the person.

Synonyms:  Psychometry.

The ability of being able to see the history of an object through touch isn’t as common as other forms

of Clair, though it can be present in combination with any of the other Clair senses.  For me personally, it’s not as reliable as my other Clair senses, but I find that I’m drawn to old irons when I’m at an antique store.  The first time it happened to me was quite by accident.  I was browsing through an antique store and happened to pick up an old-fashioned iron, the kind that had to be set in hot coals to heat, just because I was curious how heavy it was.  As soon as I wrapped my fingers around the handle, I could see through the eyes of whomever it was who had owned it, and saw that I/she appeared to be standing next to an open window that looked very old, late 1800s I think.  I could see clotheslines outside the window with sheets on it, and could hear the sound of a boy outdoors playing.  It took me totally by surprise as nothing like that had ever happened before.  I started picking up items at random, and found that I would have a similar experience with other irons, but not necessarily with any other objects.

Clairolifaction

Noun

From the French clair (clear) olifact (smell).

The ability to smell a fragrance or scent that isn’t physically present in ones’ surroundings.  The odors are perceived without the aid of the physical nose and beyond the limitations of ordinary time or space.  

Synonyms:  Clairscent (not to be confused with Clairsentient).

Again, this is a Clair that can be experienced in conjunction with any of the other Clairs.  One may smell the scent of their mother’s perfume who passed.  The smell of pipe tobacco that they remember from their grandfather.  Generally, one with the ability of clairolifact perceive information from smell which most often manifests while using one of the other Clairs.  For example, one might be giving a reading to another person and suddenly have a very strong smell of fresh-cut wood.  In sharing this with the person for whom the reading is being performed, it might trigger a memory or other event in which trees played a large role (i.e., a father who was a lumberjack).  Often, clairolifact comes into play in the presence of a loved one who’s crossed, a way of letting us know that they’re present and visiting us.

Clairgustant

Noun

From the French clair (clear) gustance (taste).

The ability to taste a substance without putting anything in the mouth.   It is claimed that those who possess this ability are able to perceive the essence of a substance from the spiritual or ethereal realms through taste.  

Synonyms:  None.

The example is given of a death-scene investigation in which the intuitive person suddenly has a very strong taste of chemicals in their mouth, later to find that the person died of a drug overdose, poison, or was gassed.  As with Clairolifaction, this Clair is less common and can be present in conjunction with any of the other Clairs, particularly with Clairscent, the ability to smell scents not physically present in ones’ surroundings.

Help For The Haunted

On a Tuesday afternoon in September 2014, I created a Facebook page called 'Help For the Haunted'. This was a means by which people could find help they needed if they were experiencing signs of a haunting or possession.  Having been through similar in my early 20s, and having finally learned how to deal with the terror of that situation, I then needed a way for people find that help when they need it without actually advertising, though I suppose if one were to pay enough, they could talk the Phone Company (do they still make paper phone books?!) into letting them have a listing for Ghost Buster.

A few of my close friends and some recent clients were agreeable to being the first members of the group.

It's now 2017, and the page that started as a tiny little space to help people help themselves, is now close to 200 members strong.  And, I don't think it's unreasonable or self-aggrandizing to say that this is the very most supportive space on social media.  Each person, each member, has brought with them their own gifts and experiences, and their openness and willingness to share those sometimes very personal parts of themselves have made this space what it is today.

Having now grown so big, this blog will serve as the depository for our combined knowledge, searchable by anyone, and available to all.       ~Melissa

CONTRIBUTORS

Melissa Chatwell
UncommonShaman.org
Melissa works in close proximity to doctors providing complimentary therapies to assist in whole-body healing usually in tandem with talk therapy and Western medicine as she finishes her Reiki master certification. She works with realtors in the US & abroad, clearing space for sale or healing, & helping new home and business owners ensure the best start in their new location. She loves doing readings for people, whether in person locally, or over the phone internationally.  She hasn't met a haunting challenge yet that her Guides weren't capable of fixing.  She lives in Colorado with her husband & their two dogs. You may contact her here.

Tara Johanna
http://canadiancrystalhaven.weebly.com/

Tara Joanna is a certified Ambassador of Divine Love, certified in numerology, Reiki Level 2, certified Crystal Healer, Realm Reader, and Tarot Reader. She can help with angel healing, energy healing, crystal healing, and only promotes love and light.  You may contact her here.

Julia Kollo
https://www.facebook.com/kjkniagara/

You may contact her here.