I can’t quite believe that I’ve never written about spirit guides. The subject comes up A LOT in my life. But, as it turns out, when I sat down to write today’s post, originally planned to be a short but informative piece on how our spirit guides can change as we evolve, I realized that I’d never addressed the subject at all. My bad, people. I shall make up for this oversight forthwith (as in, today, y’all).
Are spirit guides real?
Yes.
Ah, you want more information than that? Well, then I suggest you ask a better question. No, I’m not being difficult, I’m just being all spirit guidey. Just like the Law of Attraction (actually, because of it), they will make you define and refine your question until you’re clear about what it is you’re actually looking for. Annoying, I know… So, what is it that you really want to know?
What are spirit guides, exactly?
Now, you see? That wasn’t so hard! Let me start off this explanation by telling you what spirit guides are NOT. Spirit guides are NOT dead people, related to you or otherwise. They’re not really people, at all. Or entities. Or angels. Or aliens. Although, it’s totally ok if you think that they are.
When we connect with what we consider to be our “spirit guides”, we are simply connecting with and translating non-physical energy. Think of it like having access to a Universal Database, where all information and wisdom is stored (and yes, I do mean ALL, not just information gathered by humans, or Earth, or this dimension.) As you raise your vibration, you get access to higher and higher levels of this Database. Which levels you have access to has nothing to do with your worthiness, level of education, intelligence, or devotion. You always have access to the highest level of information that you’ll be able to understand. Higher levels of vibration come with more clarity, bigger perspectives, and deeper abilities to understand Universal Knowledge.
When you connect with this energy, your brain has to translate the information and input you get into something you can understand. Often, we decide to interpret this energy as guides, as people or entities or angels who can speak to us. And there’s nothing wrong with that (see below). But really, it’s all just a big pot of energy soup. Conscious, loving and wise energy soup, but soup all the same.
Do your guides have names?
When asking about their spirit guides, a lot of people will want to know if their particular guides have names. And there are a lot of people out there who will oblige. But truthfully, naming your guides is for YOUR benefit, not for theirs. You can choose a name for your guides (I do, I find a name that represents – to me – the energy I’m feeling). So, asking someone else to name your spirit guide is like asking someone else how chocolate cake tastes. It will be their interpretation, not yours.
Assigning a name and physical attributes to the frequencies you’ve been able to connect with will make it easier for you to find that energy again. It’s a bit like tagging the energy – you label it and give it a symbol that helps you focus on that particular frequency again. It also makes it all seem more personal.
But they, themselves, don’t have names. They are not people or entities. Going back to the database metaphor – it’s like naming certain files or directories. The data doesn’t care what you call it, but doing so certainly makes it easier to find your way back to places you’ve previously visited.
Do each of us have our own spirit guide?
This one is going to be hard for some of you to hear, but, no. You don’t have your own, personal, butler in the sky. You do have your own, personal interpretation of energy that you’ve accessed. Think of it this way: When you access the database, you do a search using very specific criteria. The database then spits out a result. This result is unique to you, because your search criteria was unique to you. So, the way the data is presented is your manifestation, while the data itself is not and is accessible by anyone.
What about channeled entities like Abraham?
Abraham has pretty much said exactly what I’ve said – that they are a constantly changing stream of consciousness that Esther named “Abraham” because that name most closely resembled the energy she was perceiving. Most people think that “constantly changing stream of consciousness” means that there are a bunch of souls up there, like a group of experts or professors, who take turns “speaking” depending on which question was asked. I, personally, find the database metaphor more accurate (it holds up under more conditions. Oh, and my guides, including Abraham, agree. So there). “Abraham” is kind of like a specific search engine – a portal that represents a certain frequency, through which answers can be accessed. That’s right, I’m saying your spirit guides are pretty much like Google. Once you know the web address (the name, the symbology, the physical representation of a person), you can access that search engine over and over again.
And yes, another person can learn that web address. By listening to a lot of Abraham Hicks, I was able to identify how that frequency feels and access it myself. Incidentally, it’s very interesting to experience Abe “raw”, and see which parts of the translation are Esther Hicks and which parts are, um, original (although, I suppose that totally “raw” isn’t possible, since I’d still only be experiencing MY interpretation…). The first time I disagreed with something Esther said, I panicked a bit (because Esther’s translations have been so important for me) and went directly to the source. It turned out that the way I was interpreting Abe fit for me, while the way she was interpreting that particular bit fit for her. It was a huge lesson in how the same core bit of information can be interpreted very differently and not be “wrong” either way.
Can guides change?
Yes. Guides can definitely change. I have gone through 2 complete spirit guide overhauls in my life, with access to the third group being granted just a few weeks ago. My first guide, whom I named “Michael”, was with me in my teens and twenties. He was the gentle spirit (or search engine) who guided me through my fears of being crazy (you’re getting information from where now?!), who patiently answered the same questions over and over again as I tried to trip him up, and who finally got me to accept that the information I was getting wasn’t just coming from my own mind. And yes, you’ll notice that I’m describing him as a person. Even though this is “just” data, this type of data is full of love and compassion. The reason we personify this stream of consciousness, is because the only way we can even begin to comprehend the complexity of this information is to translate it with more than one sense. These guides feel a certain way. They have personalities of sorts. Accessing this data is more like getting a full body, multisensory download than reading a computer screen.
On my flight back from Peru, after having spent a month intensively working with a Shaman (and therefore having radically changed my vibration), I was presented with a new guide. Because he seemed a bit cold and distant, I named him Alistair. The proper demeanor was due to my inability to, at first, fully comprehend this energy, however, and I later interpreted Alistair as warm, loving and incredibly accessible. Alistair explained that I could talk to Michael anytime I wanted, but that it was as if I’d just graduated and gone on to a new grade, taught by a new teacher. I now have a more in depth knowledge of what happened – my new, higher vibration gave me access to a higher frequency, which, because it felt different, had to be interpreted as a new guide. The old guide, or information, if you will, was a part of the new guide. It was all still in there, I simply had access to more.
After a little while, Alistair was joined by the spirit or energy of Ayahuasca (a master healing and teaching plant which shamans use and which I had used in the Rainforest), Abraham, and several others who would pop in. In other words, I had access to all kinds of datasets at this frequency, which my mind interpreted as different “guides”. I began to trust the information I was receiving from my guides more and more and came to rely heavily on them for guidance and support. They have NEVER steered me wrong.
About three weeks ago, I lay down to meditate and met a whole new guide – Elijah. I have to tell you, this guide is almost impossible to describe in words. I have never felt such unconditional love, such warmth and compassion, such support. The only word that comes close is intimate, but not in a sexual way. This is spiritually intimate. The next night, a second guide showed up – a powerful shamanic healer and teacher. He doesn’t speak much but I can feel him chanting over me, supporting me powerfully, when I’m releasing something. I have a strong feeling that I’m going to learn a great deal from him.
How can you “meet” your guides?
So, now that I’ve shattered all your illusions about guides (buwahahahaha!), I’ll get to the question you’ve been wanting the answer to all along: What can you do to connect with your own search engine/portal/ok fine, spirit guides? It’s actually quite simple (remember, simple doesn’t necessarily equal easy):
- Start meditating regularly. You can’t even begin to “hear” or access this non-physical information if you can’t stop the ruckus in your mind. Also, the higher your vibration is when you connect, the better the information you receive will be. Just because you’re translating non-physical energy, doesn’t mean it’s enlightened energy. Just saying.
- After meditating for a few minutes, ask a question. Make it a simple one, not something you NEED to know the answer to RIGHT NOW! This neediness will make it much more difficult for you to receive an answer.
- Relax and open your mind. Remember that the frequency of a question and the frequency of the answer are not the same. As long as you’re focused too much on the question, you can’t hear the answer to it.
- Be ok with NOT receiving the answer. Again, neediness will not get you what you want. And if you’ve noticed that receiving information this way is much like manifesting then, congratulations, you’ve really been paying attention. It’s exactly like manifesting. That’s because it IS manifesting (just like everything. Duh.)
- Allow the answer to come in whatever way it wants to. Do your best not to censor anything you receive. You may not get the answer you’re looking for, or in the way you’re looking for it. It could come in as a thought, as a “voice”, you could see a vision with your third eye, or you could actually see something with your physical eyes. The answer could come to you a day or two after you asked the question, in a book, a song, a blog post or a seemingly unrelated conversation. Let it come in whatever way it can.
- Choose to accept the information as truth. In order to build trust in what you receive, you’re going to have to operate on a bit of faith for a little while. This means that you choose to accept the answers you get as truth, and then see what happens. Write them down, check them out, but act as if the information was correct.
- If the info you got wasn’t correct, go back and check how it felt when you received it. Where you hunting for signs? Did you, in your urgency to get an answer, choose to interpret something as a sign, even though you weren’t intuitively led to do so? Did you censor the information? Or were you, perhaps, not connected to a high frequency?
- If the information was correct, notice how you felt when you received it, what you did to connect, and how it came to you. As you receive more and more “hits”, your ability and trust will grow.
It’s like learning to swim
Learning to connect with your “guides” is a bit like learning to swim. You can study theory all day long, but you’re not going to actually learn to tread water unless you jump in the pool. You learn by doing, by practicing and by trial and error. But remember, just as babies instinctively know how to swim, so do we know how to translate energy from the non-physical. We do it all day long. So don’t overcomplicate things. Don’t expect Jesus to appear, arm and arm with the Buddha, waiving a big old flashing neon sign reading “We’re Your Spirit Guides, Homey!” It’s going to be a lot more subtle than that. Just like with any manifestation, you can only receive what you’re ready for. This means that it has to feel almost normal, like no big deal. Spirit guides tend to appear more like a whisper than a shout, especially at first.
Bottom line
I’ve always said that anyone can learn to connect with their guides. A friend of mine recently pointed out that me saying this is like an elite athlete telling people that “anyone can complete the Ironman”. Ok, I admit, it’s taken me A LOT of hours and A TON of effort to get to this level (don’t worry, though, it’s not hard work, I honestly can’t help myself). And, I’ll concede that maybe not everyone will be willing to put that kind of time and effort into their abilities. But getting messages for yourself, at least to some degree, doesn’t require nearly the commitment and investment that channeling for others takes. A bit of asking and allowing will get you there. Why not give it a try? You might just “discover” the next Abraham. 😉
Is it possible to have many guides at the same time? I think I have four (or even more). And unlike them being something “different” or “otherworldly”…they feel as much a part of me as I feel a part of them, yet each of them has a defining character different from others and me. They don’t guide me by pointing towards physical things that are taken to be a sign nor do they give me visions or anything of that sort. If I ask guidance, sometimes they respond, sometimes they don’t. When they respond depending on the situation one of them does, irrespective of my choice. Even if I ask a particular one a question, another may respond indifferent from the specificity of my request, they never argue or contradict. If they desire to provide me with a solution, they just state it and I “know”. And this solution doesn’t come in any language or sign or vision. Suddenly, I just know and I know that it’s been provided by a particular one. I know it is not my intuition because their solutions and my intuition sometimes contradict(which makes me really really confused as to which one to follow and when I do follow my own intuition they even giggle saying, “I’m still too human, it’s only natural. Do as you wish” -(WTF does that mean?)) and there are times when I’ve intuitively come up with a solution and then they provide one after some time(or even after the event is over) and they are the same. (They just do as they please, not in a bad way. They don’t suddenly flood my mind with stuff. It’s only when I ask.)
Either way, I know that my intuition feels different from their knowledge. It has a different feeling. Things I probably couldn’t have known suddenly become known, should they please to let me know. That’s it…they just leave me stuff….how and if i work with that stuff is not their concern. It is really strange… but in a way that’s neither good nor bad. Please do let me know what you think about this?
Also, like B in the comments above, I’ve had encounters other than the ones that I always have with me (well, I think they’re always there). My first encounter was with a huge conference of crows perched on an acacia tree in front of my house. They were all quite (which was strange) and looking at me (stranger) and suddenly they started behaving normally, cawing and all.. and then flew away. This event was followed by my Grandma’s death (of which I was already aware of ever since our last departure at the train station). The second was when we were on a trip on a hill station in the Himalayas called Kasauli..There are a lot of tracks where you can go exploring, and I was doing just that…aimlessly, earphones stuffed into my ears..enjoying the view. And then around the bend I encountered him – A HUGE GREY Himalayan Langur. Huge..I was scared. coz I was alone and no one knew where I was. HE just looked into my eyes and had a sort of sad understanding look. I would never forget those eyes.. Silver Mane, golden eyes. And then it jumped off the cliff onto a branch and disappeared. And nothing really happened after that…expect from the fact that I was very very happy and at peace, I felt a part of the whole, of the mountains and valleys and the sky and the clouds. My third encounter was direct – on a breezy autumn night after having a couple of beers, I was out on the roof top taking it in..the moon light and all…and then I turned and saw her (IDK if it was a him but since “her” came first, I’d stick to that) A huge owl perched on a neon sign that no longer functions. She was looking at me or through me (it was weird) and the words that came into my head was – I’m here to test, and I’m watching. She stayed there for a while and then flew away.
I’m sorry, I have a tendency to write too much. Let know what you think. 🙂
Hello !! What drugs (hallucinogenics) or meds r u on ??????!! and where can i get them ? Great post thanks!
Thanks Mike. No drugs at the moment, unless you count chocolate. I’m on loads of that. But make sure you get the good kind, don’t buy it on the street. They’ll cut that stuff with milk and sugar to make it stretch, and it’s just not the same, I tell you. If you promise to be discreet, I might be able to hook you up with my Belgian dealer. Shhhhhh.
I’ve never known where I stand when it comes to the subject of spirit guides…but this post has really put things into perspective for me.
I loved this post Melody…and thanks as always for the hilarious graphic at the top. They make my day!
I love the idea of the guide as spiritual search engine. That’s certainly been my experience. I had been getting an uncontrollable shaking when meditating, and had stopped doing it, until a wonderful spiritual coach suggested maybe I was connecting to my guides. Once relaxed into it, it became incredibly powerful. Love love love love your blog.
Love this stuff Melody, when I was in school, I was a pretty angry kid and I’d meditate every now and then, and I remember heading through an open window into a forest in my mind, then inside a cave only to find a mountain with ledges, bridges and staircases up the sides (hard to imagine and harder to explain, but made perfect sense to me at the time xD) and I recognised my ‘spirit guide’ as a giant white wolf. She appeared to me on the mountain and her small pack of regular sized wolves would circle me in welcome. None of them have names, and none really ‘spoke’ to me as such, but always gave me some kind of answer in some strange emotionally telepathic way, and I go there occasionally to see them, sometimes just for comfort 🙂
I believe I found my ‘Source’ recently as well, and she told me that there are many things in the world that I don’t know yet, and that it’s ok to not know them, and that I will complete these lessons when I’m ready to do so. Surprisingly I was ok with this answer, since if it came from anyone else I probably would have behaved rather defensively towards them xD
my spirit guide hangs around my shoulders and neck, more to the left side, l call it she. she lets me know when l am eating bad food. my son did a quick xray healing
scan and saw alot of red under the left ribs. a deep cycst. diet and eating healthy foods will help to reduce the size. l do love my chocolate and cakes etc. there is this carrot cake with icing alittle slice l buy at lunch time. both times a very strong feeling on my left back of shoulder and neck is felt. she is telling me not to eat the cake. also last night l ate a small packet of straws again the warning. the junk food is my bad no no and l asked them for help with my diet. the guides are there but l choose to eat the junk food. which now l know l must stop. woke up .last night with bad pain under left rib vey hard to breath. fell back to sleep and the pain was gone in the morning. so back on the healthy food and l will listen and thank my spirit guide for helping to heal me ~
Thank you so much for this post. I have been pondering and struggling with this issue for a few weeks now. I have felt for some time that I did have access to a higher source of answers and ‘saw’ that as a male form or sometimes two male forms during meditation. But these guys have never answered anything. They are sort of kindly but enigmatic. And a few weeks ago I lost my rag with this. I got really angry that there was just nothing coming back. I then started to worry a bit about lightning after my tantrum!
I guess I have been looking for the answers in all the wrong places. Perhaps they have been replying, loudly, through this blog and books and people and I have just been fixated with on the thought of getting my answer directly. So thank you so much. And I guess I can venture out in in the rain now?
Off to read the post again now, and then I’ll read it again.
Oh what a great post Melody! You’ve answered some questions I’ve had about spirit guides!! One of these days I’d love a whole reading from you!
Oops sorry about this “invites you to read”..don’t really know how to remove it…
Are spirit guides and guardian angels considered the same? And do you think we can have more than one guide/angel at a time?
I’m thinking given your metaphors that it would make sense that it’s a matter of the energy/frequency you are able to feel/get in touch with. But not totally clear on that.
I have many times asked a question, one like you’ve suggested to, that I don’t NEED the answer to, but one I’d like the answer to and I’ve gotten my answer more times than not (pretty quickly) and it does come in forms of blog posts, something I read in a book, conversations and even TV.
But also on the guardian angel topic…I feel very strongly that I’ve been protected in some situations that could’ve ended badly because I was truly may have been in danger, particularly at times in my late teens. Being around someone who could’ve done something awful and didn’t.
Do you think this is the same sort of thing, only a different frequency?
I know that at times, I’ve received answers/guidance from a source other than my own mind. Until now, I’ve always been confused on the topic of spirit guides. There’s so much conflicting information out there and the majority of it never rang true for me. Until this! Great job, Melody!!! Your gift for metaphors is unequaled and the perfect teaching tool for my learning style!!!! You rock.
Well, my day is complete. This morning I watched an Abraham Hicks video on channeling, Googled “spirit guides” & went to your site to see if you had a post on it. Guess I was early lol Anyway, great post! Just what I was looking for 🙂
Hi Melody,
This is so funny. Your post comes at the right time. Actually, this past weekend I think I have had my first encounter with my spirit guide. Her name is Alaya and I felt her protective, loving, compassionate and warm. But mostly protective. Not sure if this was just a product of my imagination or I did accessed this non-physical energy as you said. But it’s awesome. I am determined to spend time and effort in developing these abilities that will help me get in touch with my spirit guides as much as possible. YAY
Hi Melody:
You say that it is necessary to meditate to get answers to questions from the energetic search engine/spirit guides. However, I find that I have the most helpful insights and discover the best answers to my questions when listening to loud music. It’s opposite to the standard “meditate in a quiet place” approach. I theorize that this could be occurring because I am letting go of resistance when listening to loud music, but in the end this is just my own idea and I’m a LOA beginner.
What would your explanation for this be? Is it possible that I am entering a meditative state when listening to loud music?
OH MY GOD THIS IS CRAZY. I read your blog posts everyday cos im really into LOA and that. You’ve helped me so much in life its crazy! Anyways, i dont usually comment on your blogs but i just had to today!
I was excercising a couple of hours ago, and after my intense session I lay on the ground, no thought and stared at the ceiling. I wasn’t meditatiing because I never do, but suddenly I felt weird, like in touch with my ”angel”. I suddenly thought I wonder if there is a way to talk to/meet your angel. THEN I thought ”well if I do have an angel I think his name is Michael”. I am a teenager by the way and I noticed how you said your ”angel” was called Michael when you were a teen!
BUT what is really weird was I sat up and shrugged and thought ”I must google later on if there is a way to get in touch with your angels. I bet Melody has wrote something about it in the past”. Then I just sat down a minute ago, completly forgetting about my angel thing earlier on, and my phone was flashing saying I had new e-mails.ONE OF MY E-MAILS WAS NOTIFYING ME THAT YOU’D WROTE A BLOG ON SPIRIT GUIDES! I think this is totally crazy!
Anyways thanks so much for this post, it has given so mcuh information and it’s brilliantly written!
Hi Melody,
Talking about spirit guides, how should I know the difference when my higher self speaks to me (in my mind) or when a spirit guide? Also are there “bad” spirit guides? I mean I often feel like something tries to make me things or say thing which I know is bad but quit often I just can’t resist this negative force.
Regards,