A Crash Course on Channeling
Channeling is allowing a nonphysical entity to use your physical body, in order to accomplish something. If that sounds, vague, it’s because it is. Channeling takes many different forms and intensity levels! Depending on how it’s done, it can be a medium-difficulty task or one of the most advanced things a spirit worker can do.
I once heard channeling described as a car ride, and in my experience that’s very accurate. The car is your body, and you’re in it with an entity. Sometimes you’re in the driver’s seat, and the entity is in the back seat giving directions. Sometimes you or the entity is in the passenger’s seat: not calling most of the shots, but able to reach over and grab the wheel if needed. Sometimes you’re in the backseat watching the entity drive, and sometimes you’re in the trunk. In practice, this can take a number of forms.
Speaking on Behalf. This is the kind of channeling people do most often. The entity isn’t controlling you, just feeding you lines which you can then relay to a third party. You’re translating their messages to something other people can comprehend. If you’ve ever answered a question for a spirit in their words, you’ve done this.
Isolated Channeling. The entity takes control of just a part of the body, usually the hands or fingers. This is mostly used for things like automatic writing.
Assuming Form. Also known as consensual possession. The entity is in the driver’s seat, speaking and acting for themselves without your help. Some people will call this “horsing.”
Possession. While the word “possession” could technically cover all of this, within the spirit work community it’s usually reserved for channeling where the human did not consent beforehand. This doesn’t necessarily mean in a violating way- I once had a friend who got possessed just long enough for an entity to yank them out of danger; once I was taken for just a moment to convey a quick (but very direct) message to a devotee, and snapped out of it right after.
Everyone will have a different reason to channel but most of them fall under a few categories:
Helping Someone Else. You’re channeling on behalf of someone who can’t [easily] reach the entity themselves, in order to ease communication between the two parties. This is often seen with mediums contacting spirit guides and Ancestors.
Aid in Other Works. The entity is better suited to accomplish a certain task than you, so you let them take the lead. This is often seen with a familiar or spirit companion, someone the practitioner works with closely enough to know their strengths and trust them.
Easier Communication Overall. Channeling is a way to get really familiar with an entity’s energy. Again, we often see this with spirit companions and is more to bond than to achieve another goal. This would include automatic writing or letting a spirit experience things “through” you.
Ritual Invitation. In some traditions, it’s common to invite deities to ritual events. Often, some type of channeling/possession is expected and is usually reached through ecstatic experiences. It’s taken as a sign the deity has arrived at the party, either a sign the offerings have been received or a time for the deity to convey important messages.
Before-You-Begin Essentials
Know How To Protect Yourself. This is non-negotiable. Is your discernment tuned enough to spot an impostor or malevolent entity? Do you know how to end a session early? Do you know how to banish a spirit in an emergency? If the answer is no, then study up and return to channeling when you’re ready.
Know Your Entity. Channeling, by nature, puts the practitioner in an intimate and vulnerable place, so you don’t want to give that access to an entity who may misuse it. If it’s your first time channeling, make sure you trust this entity with your life.
Don’t Channel Alone. When you channel, you’re in an altered state of consciousness. Having someone grounded near you helps keep the session on track and keep you out of trouble should you need it. (Either by forcing an entity out if needed or just keeping you from climbing that tree.)
It’ll Probably Take a Lot Out of You. Have something ready to ground and rehydrate yourself after a session, and make sure you don’t have anything high-demand planned after.
Start Small. No need to jump head-first into the most advancecd and high-intensity types of channeling! Start with automatic writing or painting and get used to the feeling and work your way up.
Don’t Make It Weird. Basic etiquette still matters. Channeling is not a pass to give unsolicited messages to other practitioners, speak on behalf of their deities to them (unless they’ve specifically asked), or say hurtful things cushioned by: “What? It wasn’t me who said it.”
Messages Are Rarely “Pure.” This means everything is still filtered through you, the practitioner. Your values, morals, biases, and beliefs can inform what messages get through and how they are conveyed. Nobody wants to send out a message they disagree with, after all. This becomes less of an influencing factor with experience as one learns to hone their skill and let go more, but it’s important to always keep in mind. (If a channeling friend says a deity doesn’t accept your gender identity or something, that’s a good sign that really your “friend” doesn’t accept it.)
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