Diving Deeper

Mirror Meditations:

This is a very powerful, timeless tool for communicating with the dead through using a mirror gazing technique – used by just about every culture, country and century of human history.

Gazing into crystal, or a still body of water or even a blackened mirror (scrying) has been done for hundreds of years, and is still an amazing way of offering a sacred space for spirit to appear in our ordinary lives.

Did you know, for example that Dr Raymond Moody, the pioneer into modern study of the Near Death Experience (he actually coined the phrase) has written a little known book called _Reunions_. on using a psychomanteum, or a form of mirror mediation for communicating with the dead?

Dr. Moody collected over 300 accounts of people who had personal encounters with their loved ones, and often INSTANT hope and healing from grief, after these visitation experiences that take place in these special rooms.

Mirror technique 1

Step 1 – Sit down and get comfortable
Step 2 – Light Candles – or set an ambiance that is conducive to both comfort and an altered state
Step 3 – Do your Invitation/invocation
Step 4 – Set your Intention
Step 5 – Begin your meditation

Sit about 6 or 7 feet away from a mirror
Relax
Stare at a fixed point on your face.
Just look gently at your nose or chin or the spot between your eyebrows
Just be an open space of awareness and try not to identify with what you see
Don’t stress or strain or get overly intense
Allow your lids to go where they choose, but keep your focus fixed on your face
you will find yourself entering an altered state

You may find yourself no longer identifying with the face in the mirror
You may find yourself not sure of where YOU begin……and where you end.
This is a good thing….and is a sign that you consciousness is shifting into an altered state
You may begin to see colors, and shapes in the mirror
Many people begin to see forms appear in the mirror after 15 or 20 minutes of careful, continuous concentration
Don’t get excited, or scared or too intense
Notice what you notice with calm and clarity
Allow what comes through to come through.
If you need to reset your invitation – or intention – feel free to do so, preferably internally.

(not out loud)

Note – if you find yourself growing uncomfortable or even a bit frightened, change up the lighting, remove the candle, and do this exercise in ordinary light.

And of course, if ANYTHING I describe on these pages makes you uncomfortable, put down the book, grab a drink and watch some really bad reality TV 🙂 Don’t do any of these exercises if they don’t feel like something that you truly enjoy exploring.

Back to the mirror meditation:)

It’s really a hard meditation to describe, but one of the most powerful ways to have a visitation experience in your very own home, without much practice or persistence.

This is a great beginners exercise for emulating mirror gazing/scrying or the idea of a psychomanteum – something that has been done with lots of success for hundreds of years….by many thousands of people.

It CAN be a bit “spooky’ – but that’s only because we are conditioned to think that – due to scary movies – and the odd experience of staring at oneself for a long time can be unsettling, or that something scary is going to be “pop” out of the mirror.

It won’t.

Don’t let this dissuade you.

This can actually also be a GREAT meditative technique for discovering something profound about the true nature of YOUR spiritual self.

How so?

When you see yourself in the mirror and realize that the YOU that you see is not really your authentic self, but rather an image, or a reflection of what we THINK is “ourselves” – watching that image from a distance is profound.

It can lead to some pretty interesting insights about the pure energy of consciousness, which is what I believe we ALL are at our core, and where the “I” that we think we are, TRULY can be found.

Embracing altered states

Altered states, such as they hypnagogic state between wakefulness and sleep can be the most powerful place by which to get psychic messages, or to have a spirit visitation experience.

A little psychic and spirit history?

The late Louisa Rhine – the highly respected psychic researcher and wife of famed researcher and scientist JB Rhine (founder of the Rhine Institute at Duke University, which still studies psychic phenomena to this very day) found that the vast majority of her case studies of spirit communication occurred during the hypnagogic state.

Everything from daydreaming, to drowsiness, to intense periods of creativity, to even prolonged periods of single minded focus (like a long car ride, at the wheel……by yourself) seems to loosen “ego” awareness enough to allow the rational mind to drop its guard.

Interestingly, there are some GREAT case studies of after death communication where the spirit of a loved one shows up in the passenger seat, on a long trip.

Dream journaling

Embracing altered states for direct experience of spirit_

Altered states, such as the state between wakefulness and sleep can be the most powerful place by which to get psychic messages, or to have a spirit visitation experience.

A little psychic and spirit history?

The late Louisa Rhine – the highly respected psychic researcher and wife of famed researcher and scientist JB Rhine (founder of the Rhine Institute at Duke University, which still studies psychic phenomena to this very day) found that the vast majority of her case studies of spirit communication occurred during the hypnagogic state.

Everything from daydreaming, to drowsiness, to intense periods of creativity, to even prolonged periods of single minded focus (like a long car ride, at the wheel……by yourself) seems to loosen “ego” awareness enough to allow the rational mind to drop its guard.

Interestingly, there are some GREAT case studies of after death communication where the spirit of a loved one shows up in the passenger seat, on a long trip.

If you are new to all of this and find the meditations to be a bit daunting or overwhelming, beginning your spirit communication exercises in the dream domain is a great place to begin.

Why?

Because they happen here regularly.

And whether you actually intend for them or not.

The good news is, much like setting intention and invitation through mediations, you can do the same thing before you fall asleep and have powerful, and even life changing experiences with loved ones who have crossed.

Features of dream visitations that are different from normal dreams of loved ones that you have lost?

1 – There tends to be a hyper lucidity to them. They feel REALER than real.
2 – Veridical or evidential information is conveyed. (something that validates the visit was real)
3 – They often have a precognitive or future oriented advice element to them. (where spirit will offer you something verifiable that later comes true)
4 – Dream visitations experiences are often remembered in INCREDIBLE detail for weeks, months or even years thereafter…in the exact, minute details in which they occurred. compared to other dreams, even those that are meaningful – are often remembered in fragments that grow fuzzy over time. (even those that have loved ones within them)

Apply INTENTION and dedication to the space between waking and sleeping…….or sleeping and waking.

To begin this exercise, all you really need to do is follow the same basic steps we’ve covered above, and then DO what you ordinarily do at the end of each day. (go to sleep! 🙂

• Invitation/Invocation
  Set the intention.
  Use the breath to enter a light altered state before sleep.
  Breathing in deeply, imagine your loved one appearing in a specific location in the room.
  Breathing out, imagine safety, serenity and feelings of anticipation and expectation in their visit
  As you begin to feel lighter and closer to sleep……picture your room being a sacred spiritual space that the both of you share

Try identify a sensation that you will look for as a sign that spirit is here – either a smell – or a sound – or a bodily tingling that an energy in the air has shifted. (many people report a gust of wind during dream visitation experiences, which precedes the appearance of your loved one in spirit)

Keeping a journal is often very helpful – even though people tend to remember these experiences hin hyper detail, having the ability to write down exactly what happened – after it happens, is a great way of reassuring yourself it was real, and having the written record to look back on for a long time to come. (especially when you are asking for, and getting evidence based information – or precognitive information – or advice or opinion from spirit on a big life event or decision)

Also:

Remember not to over think it, or push too hard or feel too much pressure.

The truth is, you may have your first experience with a dream visitation on the very FIRST night you try and apply the techniques we’re talking about, or it could take days, weeks or even longer to appear.

Many times, the simple mental preparations and energetic directions will naturally allow and expedite what probably WOULD happen on it’s own either way.

(as more than 50% of people who have lost a loved one report a dream division at some point – some more powerful and persuasive than others)

The more you do these exercises, the more powerful and persuasive YOUR experiences will become.

Listen with your skin

One of the first things people will report are senses of spirit – they may not see – or hear spirit….but in a way that is hard to define, quantify or capture, we FEEL spirit in such a strong way as to know that they are there.

Your WHOLE integrated body – or higher self – or whatever you want to call it – is the “self” that is dominant during spiritual experience.

**Listen with your skin**

One of the first things people will report are senses of spirit – they may not see – or hear spirit….but in a way that is hard to define, quantify or capture, we FEEL spirit in such a strong way as to know that they are there.

Your WHOLE integrated body – or higher self – or whatever you want to call it – is the “self” that is dominant during spiritual experience.

This is especially true when doing the exercises that are meditative in nature.

We all THINK that we “think” with our heads.

Or that our awareness is trapped in our head, behind our eyes.

But the truth is, you can see, sense, smell and hear with your full self. Your expanded self. And when you do, you allow these experiences to touch and TRANSFORM you in part of your body that you don’t necessarily associate with specific senses.

There is a well known Buddhist meditation instruction that goes something like this:

In the hearing, only the hearing.
In the seeing, only the seeing.
In the smelling, only the smelling.
In the tasting, only the tasting.

This is the experience of immersing oneself in the sensation of a single action, and as silly as it sounds, it is the most beautiful, blissful and spiritual experience one can have.

For simplicity?

I call this listening with your skin as a simple metaphor. Your whole body will be immersed in the experience, until you have no body left to feel. (it’s just YOU and the energy of aliveness that is underneath it all and all distance disappears)

Just allow yourself to be immersed and absorbed in the experience when it happens.

One of my first OBE experiences I literally found my whole ‘body” felt like a tingling, nerve of amazing sensation…….and I could hear with what felt like my spiritual skin.

I think you’ll find the idea of listening with your skin really powerful when trying some of the ideas and approaches below, especially the ones that are visualization and meditative in nature

Automatic Writing & Spirit Boards

Automatic is the direct channeling or transmission of messages from spirit, through your creative consciousness (some would argue the SUBCONSCIOUS) and manifests through the physical body, in the form of written communication.
Spirit boards can represent a wide variety of items used to channel messages from spirit…..but for our purposes, and to keep it simple, we’ll simply discuss the most popular example – the OUIJA board.

Both approaches are simple, inexpensive, easy to do, and can be a great way for feeling connected to your loved ones in a very structured way.

The funny thing is, many spirits seem to enjoy structure in the next world, as much as they enjoyed it here.

In my own experiences, I have found that both of these approaches are great for “spirits on a schedule” 🙂
People who were creative, highly organized and very structured in their earthly lives, tend to be the very BEST types of candidates for appearing through automatic writing exercises, and through the regular use of a spirit board. (especially if you use the board at a certain time and place every day – getting regular communication is actually relatively easy)

Whether the messages come from a supernatural, a spiritual or even a subconscious source, the one thing that can’t be argued, is that incredible messages DO come through…..often baffling even the most hard core skeptics.
It’s funny, my first “spiritual” experience was using a ouija board in college with an old friend, at the end of a late night of cramming for exams and having a little bit too much energy left over.

We picked up an old HASBRO ouija board and began to goof around with it, not expecting anything interesting to arise.
After only a few minutes….the planchette was moving around the board vigorously on it’s own, offering specific answers to very pointed questions…….with barely our fingers touching the tops of it’s smooth surface.
It continued like this for several hours…..and was truly an incredible thing to witness, let alone participate in.

My friend had a loved one who had recently died – and was 100% convinced that we were in contact with his dead uncle. (I remember him calling his parents at 5 or 6 AM – startling them awake, and sharing what he believed were messages for his parents that only his Uncle could know)

It was a odd, exciting and very strange experience.

It opened me up to the wide world of spirit,.and yet, as one does with strange experiences in our teenage years, I filed it away and over time, and as the memory faded.

Like most practical and pragmatic people, I came to believe that we were probably influencing it on our own, using some variation of wishful thinking, tiredness and the ideomotor effect. (a subconscious process skeptics like to use to “disprove” spiritual experiences like ouija, channeled creativity, automatic writing and more)

Looking back on it now, knowing what I now know and having seen and experienced what I’ve now experienced, I’m pretty confident that this WAS a genuine spiritual experience.

I can’t be sure if it WAS my friends uncle of course, but short shrift scientific theories about “wishful thinking” or unconscious muscle movements no longer make so much sense. (with hundreds of similar personal experiences now to compare it to…and hundreds more I’ve had described to me by credible people from all walks of life)

As a quick side note, and synchronicity, at a time in my own life when I was rediscovering my own spiritual path, and exploring my innate intuitive abilities? Here is a quick story that was interesting.

I rented a vacation home for a few weeks for the purposes of trying to meditate, write about my experience with my friend who had appeared to me that strange night, and try to wrap my head around the idea that there was more to life than meets the eye and that I was meant to explore what that was.

The home I rented was really nothing more than a small shack – a sparsely furnished one bedroom cottage just outside the Florida, Keys.

There was only one book in the entire cottage – a huge book of poetry.
Or, as I soon discovered – one REALLY, really LONG poem.

I’m also not a big fan of reading poetry, but it was sitting there, so I picked it up.

And for the first few nights, considering I had nothing else of my own to read that wasn’t electronic, I would lie in bed and pore through the pages until I fell asleep.
The book was called: “The Changing Light of Sandover
It was written by Pulitzer Prize winning poet – James Merrill. (someone I had never heard of at the time, and have never read anything else from, since)

This book is considered his grand achievement.

The crown jewel of his collection.

It is also, I learned, a book of channeled messages.

560 pages of communications from beyond, transcribed my Merrill and his life partner, over the course of 10 years in their Key West home, directly from a ouija board.
He takes no credit for any of the passages.

Instead, he claims the entire thing was written by spirits he came to know and love, and who, by virtue of giving him an epic book he is remembered for more than any other – apparently loved him back.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The\_Changing\_Light\_at\_Sandover

And for me?

That was my sign it was time to start

Quick notes on Automatic Writing

Set aside a time and sacred space to do this exercise everyday

Try to avoid caffeine, alcohol or doing this while stressed or overly anxious

A detached mind is ideal

Use a pen or pencil and NOT a keyboard for automatic writing

2 forms of communication we’ll discuss here are:

Getting answers from spirit (asking for answers)
Getting validation from spirit (proof that they’re around)

The primary difference between the approaches is simply the intention you set when you begin.

For answers** – you would ask spirit to advise you – or your loved one – this is often used in cases of family stress, strife or internal struggle, when one of the family matriarchs and patriarchs have recently died. (in a family business for example)

Asking for Validation is a more of becoming an empty space – you aren’t looking for anything specific in the message itself, just validation that they are there, and around and can authenticate that by communication through your physical body.

Invitation or invocation**
Set the Intention (be it for specific guidance, or simply an appearance) **

Your basic responsibility is simple.

Allow yourself to become an instrument for spirit.

Touch the tip of the pen to the paper and lightly graze it without making words…….moving only your elbow if possible, until an altered state arises.

You are doing this only to begin the process of writing, and to expedite the process of allowing the energy work through you.

(this is the same thing for OUIJA, gently moving the planchette in a circular motion around the board, while setting both your invitation and intention is a great way of speeding up the process by which spirit can come forth – maybe – by speeding up the energetic vibration in the body)

YOU may feel a buzzing, or a vibration in your body, particularly on the side of your body that you use to write.

The key is to keep your detachment and not to not overthink it.

• When you feel words spilling out….don’t read them.
• Don’t think about them.
• Let the message spill through you
• Don’t edit
• Don’t sensor
• Don’t speculate
• Just write

The central idea is simple.

**Allow yourself to be an instrument for spirit.**

One approach to automatic writing is this:

Have a list of questions prepared for your loved ones in spirit
Follow the steps above
Step back and simply prepare yourself to be infused with answers
And then allow the process to unfold as it will

When you feel the pen or pencil stop moving……it’s done.

There have been MANY many channeled texts over the years that have used this exact method – from a Course in Miracles to the SETH books and many, many other great pieces of art, music, literature and more.

Sometimes people have exceptional experiences with automatic writing and then wonder afterward, no matter how real it felt – if it was them doing the writing.

The answer is simple.

Of course it WAS you.

It’s always a cooperative effort.

Your body is always the instrument, and that should never detract from the magic, and the mystery of the experience.

If meaningful messages come through that resonate, that FEEL right and reveal something sacred and special about your loved ones, that should be all you need to embrace the magic and the mystery of these amazing experiences

**Spirit Board/Ouija**

Invitation
Intention
Preparatory Words (some people like to say a little prayer)
Begin asking questions.

Continuing to offer a verbal invitation, and continue setting and restating your intention for speaking with specific spirits.

Don’t just sit there and wait.
Be proactive
Ask questions
Sometimes “strange” spirits or messages will come through
Don’t judge.
Go with it.
You may have several “drop in” spirits come through before your loved ones, or those you want to connect with are able to step forward

NOTE: I’m NOT a big believer in protection prayers and belief in negative energies while using OUIJA. I simply have never had a negative experience of my own.

However, if you feel nervous or are getting messages you aren’t comfortable with, simply thank them, and the board and say goodbye.

Any board will do.

The key to ouija is NOT the power of the board.

Instead? It’s your ability to allow yourself to be used as an instrument of spirit.

To allow energy to flow to and through you and affect the planchette in a purposeful way

Having questions in advance is helpful as you get started, and becomes less important with each subsequent session

Remember, any type of ouija board will work, from something antique or exotic, to something you buy in Walmart, to a Ouija board you construct on your own.

(I wasted hundreds of dollars buying “speciality” boards when I first started doing this with others)

The magic is NOT in the board itself, but rather….in that strange and sacred space we don’t quite understand that allows the interaction of energy, emotions and information between windows….and worlds.

**Sidebar:** I DO personally prefer to use an old, antique board with a lot of history, simply because it “feels” right and it sets the mood in the room for something extraordinary to come through.

Often, especially if you are doing this in a small group and there are skeptics and cynics in the room, using a cardboard OUIJA from your local department store may be more likely to draw groans and objections from the participants.

That aside, the board is just a conduit for connection.

It’s the energy in the room, and the excitement, and the EMOTIONS of the primary players that play a huge role in what, or who comes through.

So the best argument for getting a “genuine” spirit board rather than a game, is that the people participating may FEEL more positive about the experience – and their energies, emotions, intentions and general psychic state of mind may be much more aligned with those in spirit.

If there is one thing that science and spirituality agree on, it is that this DOES, without a question, play a role in ALL psychic and spiritual experiences.

Even in scientific lab settings where psychic phenomena are studied, INTENTION and belief and a certain amount of positive predisposition to the possibility of spiritual experience IS in fact a factor in how much information, or evidence comes through.

The truth is, impartial scientists who study psychic phenomena, and communications from spirit through mediums and other channels find that those who believe, as a rule, tend to have much better EMPIRICAL experiences in a lab setting, than those who think all of this is new age nonsense. The same applies for YOU at home.

Lastly –

More people is always better than one, but you CAN use the ouija board yourself, even though you’ll read otherwise, elsewhere.

I’ve had many incredible, inspirational and enlightening experiences with a spirit board on my own….and have never had a negative or scary experience.

EVP (how to do it)

EVP might be the easiest, hands off way to have a direct, personal, ONGOING and interactive conversation with spirit that there is.

EVP stands for Electronic Voice Phenomena, and is the process of recording “voices” from spirit, using digital devices like a hand held voice recorder, or a small computer work station.

A quick disclaimer: I DON’T do EVP myself, and have never personally recorded an anomalous voice, simply because, with so many choices, it’s not my TOPchoice for interacting with spirit. I enjoy the other methods outlined in the book, and am much more a “meditation” junkie than an EVP type of person/

I do however, have good friends and spiritual explorers who not only LOVE EVP, but who really have gone from being skeptical or agnostic about the spirit world, to true blue believers….all based on the amazing, inexcusable and often crystal clear messages they’ve captured unexpectedly – and often in the most mundane circumstances.

(such as – in a random suburban home on a Tuesday afternoon – or overnight in a local strip mall convenience store – places NOT typically thought of as haunted, or overcome with apparitions!)
A few years ago, I had some good friends set up a $50 dollar digital voice recorder while we were experimenting with a new spirit board. While the spirit board session was entirely UNEVENTFUL, later that night, and then the next morning, I got excited and amazed emails about a few of the voices that had come through while we were goofing around.
Having been in the room at the time – and listening to the recordings the next day – the voices were so incredibly clear – although none that I recognized – and certainly NO ONE in the room at the time – it was impossible to not be at least somewhat impressed with the notion that we had a few extra visitors sitting around the table that night, in a spare bedroom in the house I was living in at the time.

There is also a vibrant, enthusiastic and very active EVP enthusiast community online….and if it’s something you want to explore, there are more tutorials, tips and techniques available for free, than you could possibly ever want, or need to know.

Here is the best resource and community for both beginners, and those who are passionately committed to the art (and science) of EVP.

http://atransc.org/index.htm

How to start?

The good news?

It’s CHEAP, and easy and doesn’t require a whole lot of technical experience….or even a lot of time to commit to the process. (although once you start getting messages..especially if you think they are coming from your loved ones, you may find you want to spend ALL of your time doing nothing but)

Invest in an affordable voice activated digital recorder
Set aside a very specific period of day to record (you don’t even need to be there – but scheduling a structured time for “spirit” seems to be a smart strategy amongst those that do this well)
Do set an intention and invocation/invitation as normal.

If you want to speak to someone specific, ask them to appear.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with engaging an “imaginary” conversation with a loved one, or a spirit you’d like to show up during an EVP session in advance of the session, but i do recommend, especially if you are just beginning to set and forget the recorder thereafter, see what you see….hear what you hear, and notice what you notice. (without actively engaging in the Q and A process while the first few EVP session are taking place)
Some of the different types of recordings you may hear?

Without getting overly technical (and understanding that this is not my own area of expertise, plenty others have far more to say on this matter than I do) there are generally 3 different types of “results” you can expect./

1 – What are referred to as Class A recordings – where the specific messages are clear, and generally easy to understand and interpret by all objective parties. (e.g. – everyone who is listening to the messages can hear what comes through)

Here is what Sarah Estep, founder of the AA-EVP and designer of the widely used Estep EVP classification system says about Class A communications.**

_”A clear and distinct voice or sound that is universally accepted and undisputed, because it must be understood by anyone with normal hearing and without being told or prompted to what is being said or heard. It can be heard without the use of headphones.”_

Where are referred to as Class B recordings:
A message or a voice is identified – has good volume and such – but it’s clarity or communication is not 100% clear. People may disagree about what is being said – and quite often, those who agree about the contents of the communication may need to be told in advance what is thought to be said….PRIOR to hearing the same thing.
Here is the official EVP classification for type B communications:

_“A voice or sound that is distinct and fairly loud. This class of voice is more common and can be heard by most people after being told what to listen for. It is usually audible to experienced persons who have learned the skill of listening to EVP. It can sometimes be heard without the use of headphones.”_

What are referred to as Class C communications:

The recording is hard to decipher in both volume and clarity. It may be completely incoherent and unintelligible….but, retains some paranormal characteristics and seems to be of an unknown origin. Often these recordings are dismissed by serious investigators, or simply added to a larger pile of evidence or paranormal experiences in a given location.

**Here is the official EVP classification for Type C’s:**

_”A faint and whispery voice or sound that can barely be heard and is sometimes indecipherable and unintelligible. It may have paranormal characteristics, such as a mechanical sound. Most investigators would apply objectivity and disregard it, but may save it for reference purposes”_

Is EVP for people who want to simply communicate with our OWN loved ones that we desperately miss?

This is a good question!

EVP is something that is typically associated with ultra committed or “professional” spirit communicators rather than those of you who may simply want to reach out and have your first contact with your own loved ones on the other side.

That said, it CAN be a great way to have your first seminal personal experience with spirit…and lead to incredible insights and encounters thereafter!

If you really want to use EVP as a way to augment or supplement your own efforts, I recommend checking out some of the other resources mentioned at the end of the book, on our website and doing your own searches. (again – as above, there is a passionate and very active EVP community online, and you can often find people in your own community who are “teaching” EVP and demonstrating them via psychic and spiritual MEETUPS and similar local groups.