Written by Wes Annac, The Culture of Awareness

The basic philosophy that underlies channeling and the ‘new age’ community is that there are higher, spiritually refined planes of existence beyond the physical earth. In these realms are believed to exist all kinds of spiritually evolved entities who, in service to Source, attempt to communicate with beings in lower realms.

Their objective is to connect with us and help us spiritually evolve, and a lot of different channeled messages glitter the internet these days. There are messages that claim to come from angels, archangels, extraterrestrials, ascended masters – the list goes on and on.

While each message is unique, they all share a common theme, which is that the channeled entity gives spiritual advice that’s meant to help us learn, grow and refine our consciousness to the point that we can spiritually evolve.

Extended from this philosophy is the idea that humanity’s already spiritually evolving, which is where the idea of a ‘new age’ comes in.

We’re shifting from the Piscean to the Aquarian age, and according to some spiritual and ‘new age’ philosophy, this will herald a collective shift from our former ways of hatred and separation to a new way of life that entails love, respect, harmony and cooperation from one person to the next.

Not only will we treat each other with love and respect – we’ll realize how devastating the things we’ve done to the plant and animal kingdoms are and we’ll change our ways so we can live in harmony with all life.

Here, I’d like to address a few basic questions about channeling that newcomers to the concept might have when they read the various messages published to the internet every day. We can benefit from some channeled messages if we’re willing to open our minds a little, but it’s hard to be open to something we don’t understand.

First, we’ll address the most obvious question.

1. What is channeling?

Channeling is the act of getting into a meditative state of consciousness to communicate with non-physical entities who are believed to want to help humanity spiritually evolve. Like I said above, all kinds of different entities have been claimed to be channeled, and they all share the common interest of helping us along the spiritual path.

A medium or channeler uses meditation to connect with these entities, and depending on what type of channeling they practice, they either leave their body to let an entity speak or they receive the entity’s messages, which the mind translates into physical words, during their meditation.

If it isn’t channeled in front of a live audience, the resulting message is usually posted as a video, a sound clip or an article for people to watch, listen to or read later on, and some channelers bring through multiple messages a week.

Some even channel every day, giving themselves a large following of loyal viewers/readers who enjoy hearing what the channeled entities have to say each day.

2. How do channeled entities communicate with people?

I mentioned that a channeler usually uses meditation to connect with an entity, and the entity is basically allowed to use their body (or portions of their body, like their fingers) to deliver messages.

I can’t claim to know what the channeling process would be like from the other side of the veil, but I’m sure some kind of connection would be made with the channeler’s higher self before a connection with the channeler could be established.

We obviously have a better understanding of how channeling is done from our side than we do the other side, and when it comes down to it, the methods a channeler uses to connect with their source are unique to them. I’m sure every channel uses different methods and practices, but meditation and other forms of spiritual attunement are popular.

Anyone who wants to channel would probably want to find some way to get into a deep state of consciousness before, during and maybe even after the session, because it’d increase the potential legitimacy of the message.

3. What kinds of things do channeled entities discuss?

The main things most channeled entities talk about are life, growth and spiritual evolution. They give their readers tips on how to make life better, smoother and more enjoyable, and they also talk about the things we can do to stay consistently aligned with spirit, ward off negative or selfish thought forms, and eventually ascend.

Some channeled entities have been known to describe the higher realms, and the terms some of them use can be complex and hard to decipher. Especially when it comes to descriptions of the higher realms, some channeled messages can be a little hard to follow because of the complex philosophies and terminologies that are expressed.

You’d have to already know what most of the terms mean to benefit from the denser, more cryptic messages, but some channeled entities speak a little clearer. When it comes down to it, the kind of information you read in a channeled message depends on the channeler and the source itself.

Some channelers use the opportunity to have their sources talk about love, self-growth and similar concepts that are easier to decipher and understand, while some seek complex, scientific and pseudo-scientific explanations about the higher realms, the structure of the universe and various other related subjects.

Some messages talk about concepts that are so rooted in spiritual and ‘new age’ philosophies that they’re as hard to interpret as the scientifically dense messages, and we’ll know to walk away from a message if its explanations just don’t make sense to us.

4. Why should I believe channeling is real?

You don’t have to! Channeling is one of those concepts that’s so far out there, even for some spiritual seekers, that it’s just too hard to wrap one’s head around, much less advocate.

There have been a lot of problems with channeled messages over the years, and one is that some channeled entities are followed without question, as if they or their channelers can never err or say anything wrong. I think this is an unhealthy way to look at the messages, and we’ll want to question anything we read – especially something that’s claimed to come from an exalted source.

There’s also the problem of popular channeled entities promising that amazing, revolutionary changes will happen ‘soon’, and a lot of channelers have lost their followers because of these predictions, which prove erroneous nearly every time.

The general problem with channeled messages, which is at the root of the problems mentioned above and any other, is that some followers don’t yet understand the importance of self-empowerment. Some seekers will basically glue themselves to any spiritual source or teacher they think is exalted, and it’s a habit that’s embedded into our DNA.

For centuries, we’ve been taught to give our power away to external religious or spiritual figures who promise to show us the way out of our suffering; the way into the metaphorical ‘land of milk and honey’, and things are no different in this day and age.

Whether it’s a spiritual teacher who talks about enlightenment, a channeled source that’s claimed to come from the higher realms, or a spiritual writer/blogger who claims to have it all figured out, a lot of people – even spiritual seekers – are willing to bow at the feet of someone who’ll help them see the light.

What they don’t yet understand is that this light already lives within, and all we need to do to access it is realize that we’re the exalted spiritual forces that are meant to change the world.

It’s understandable that some of us want a ‘savior’ figure to look up to, but a lot of teachers and channeled entities have encouraged us not to see them in such a light. I’m open to the idea that higher-vibrational entities exist and we can communicate with them, but you won’t see me worshipping them or giving all my power away to them.

Nor will you see me giving all my power away to a spiritual teacher who claims to be enlightened, and it’s all the same thing. It all leads back to the idea that there are figures out there (or within) who are more spiritually evolved or knowledgeable than us, and all we need to do to become as enlightened as them is listen to what they say.

Most of us know better by now, and I’m sure even followers of channeled material have learned to be a little more levelheaded with it all. Discernment, self-empowerment and the willingness to question things led most of us to our current perspective on life, and we don’t want to scrap those qualities just because we find an appealing concept like channeling.

You don’t have to believe in channeling, and unless it’s explicitly meant for you, whether or not you believe in it won’t affect your spiritual path at all. You’ll have plenty of sources of guidance to choose from if you do decide to believe – some more genuine and some less – but the same can be said with any other belief system.

Whether or not you believe in it, it has a huge following and I’m sure it’s popularity will continue to increase. My hope is that the conscious community’s discernment will increase as channeling becomes more popular, because there are some messages out there that really can’t be taken seriously and we’ll need to maintain our levelheadedness as we read them all.

Now, for the final question.

5. I want to channel. What should I do?

Try it out! Channeling definitely isn’t for everyone, but you could have a hidden talent without even realizing it. It takes trying something to know if you have a knack for it, but I’m not saying you should rush to channel an archangel or extraterrestrial.

Some channelers take this route and it works for them in the end, but I highly recommend connecting with your inner intuitive voice first, which I call the ‘voice within’ but other people call the ‘higher self’. I actually want to encourage any potential channel not to try to connect with an angel, extraterrestrial or ascended master at all.

Instead, bypass all that for a direct connection with the higher self. If we turn to our higher self, we’ll empower ourselves by making our channeling more of a personal practice and there won’t be any popular labels like ‘Archangel Raphael’ attached.

Given that the higher self constantly communicates anyway, we might as well try to use that connection for the benefit of others instead of connecting with an angel or any other popular entity.

Even channeled entities will tell you that the purpose of spiritual evolution is to get to know ourselves as our creator; to empower ourselves and eventually understand that we’re Source in limited, individualized forms who are remembering our divine origins and reconnecting with our essence.

Rediscovering ourselves is the entire purpose of enlightenment and spiritual evolution, and one of the most direct ways to do it is to connect with the higher self; the inner voice; whatever you want to call that aspect of our consciousness that’s connected with us and the spiritual realms at the same time.

I definitely recommend connecting with that part of us over any popular channeled entity, but connecting with a popular archangel is the best way to go if you want a lot of people to see your messages.

In conclusion, I can’t tell you whether or not channeling is real, because I know as much about it as anyone else. I can say that some messages out there are very informative and uplifting, and things have been said in them that really helped their readers in one way or another.

I follow a few channeled sources with enthusiasm, but for the most part, I try to be discerning with it all. When it comes down to it, we really don’t know if these messages are from who they’re claimed to be from because we haven’t yet raised our consciousness enough to actually see into the higher realms, so we’ll have to go on faith.

That automatically raises alarm bells in the minds of some spiritual seekers, but faith doesn’t have to be the boogeyman it’s sometimes made out to be.

I choose to have faith when I read an uplifting channeled message that helps me along my path, and I know in the back of my mind that even if that message came from the ego (or higher self) of the channeler instead of a disembodied source, the help it gave me made it worth my while.

That alone keeps me reading some channeled messages, but again, we don’t want to take anything we read or listen to at face value.

Hopefully, this article has answered some of the questions a newcomer to channeling might have, and when it comes to anything spiritual, we’ll want to be discerning without descending into egoism or claiming something that really helps people is inaccurate.

We have to find what works for us along this crazy evolutionary path, and whether or not you believe in channeling, you can empower yourself and raise your vibration enough to spiritually evolve. Then, you’ll know for sure if the messages are real.

By the time you raise your vibration that high, however, you won’t care one bit whether or not any concept is real. You’ll be immersed in pure bliss, and that’s exactly what spiritual sources and teachers want for us.

Share this article freely.

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’ve contributed to numerous spiritual websites including The Master Shift, Waking Times, Golden Age of Gaia, Wake Up World and Expanded Consciousness. I can also be found on Facebook (Wes Annac and The Culture of Awareness) and Twitter, and I write a paid weekly newsletter that you can subscribe to for $11.11 a month here.