The Dangers of Dealing with Exotic Guides

I have always respected Mediums who are able to conjure up descriptions of Guides, including North American Indians, Chinese and African Guides, Door Keepers, Spirit Helpers, Fairies, Angels and many others’ of exotic origin who, whilst alive on this earth plain, were held in high honour amongst their societies.

The platform Medium

During the early years’ of my Spiritualist career I recall the feeling of unreserved upliftment and calm whenever the platform Medium described my Indian guide, watching over me and caring for me. During sickness and during despair I recall the sense of total protection by the words handed to me by the platform Medium.

Several years on, I am still assured that my ‘Greek philosopher’ guide is working with me, waiting for me and guiding over me in a manor which sustains my personal strength, so that I may live on through each day. Albeit, I have noted a faint change in the way I respond with my much-admired Spirit Guides.

To a certain extent, I do not rely entirely on their never-ending powers of guidance and protection. Quite the opposite, I accept their company and carry on living regardless!

Similarly, I see spiritualists and non-spiritualists alike who gain enormous comfort and strength from the news that their ‘Tibetan Monk’ is sending strength and love to his chosen scholar.
I repeatedly think to myself that this flow of information surly cannot be unconstructive, in the company of a Medium who is able to communicate with such powerful spirit communicators and with such awe and wonder of the message that leaves it’s recipients uplifted and ‘on top of the World !.’

From an evidential point of view I will argue that the communication of exotic Guides does not necessarily constitute absolute proof of survival after death. The portrayal of exotic guides, including North American Indians, Chinese and African Guides, Door Keepers, Spirit Helpers, Fairies and Angels cannot be discounted entirely as proof of spirit survival.

Nonetheless, this type of ‘evidence’ should be rejected because it is based from start to finish on a physical description of an unknown personality.

Most, if not all people are unable to affirm any information about their ‘spirit guides’ from a previous encounter in this life. This includes the images of guides that have been drawn by psychic artists. People simply cannot accept the image of a red Indian as proof of the hereafter.
A growing number of Mediums will contend that spirit often appears in the guise of an ‘exotic` soul, with the idea that ‘exotic’ spirit is more easily accepted by the congregation or recipient as absolute proof of power and almighty of the Spirit World.

I vehemently believe there are two potential dangers associated with accepting ‘exotic guides’ as absolute proof of spirit communication:

The communicating Medium may become a victim of his own delusion by accepting every spirit guide in the form of an ‘exotic soul’. Can we absolutely discount the possibility that low-life spirit forms are attempting to enter this World through a Medium who is either susceptible to the dangers of deception or is harebrained enough to accept every spirit upon ‘face-vale’?. My own experience has offered discipline against the possibilty of negative spirit energies, who may never be too far away and who persistently endeavour to trick the communicating Medium, so as to get a foothold into our atmosphere. It is well known that negative forces can disrupt and even possess individuals for their own ends!.

The communicating Medium may simply fool the audience into believing that a spate of ‘exotics’ is unequivocal proof of life-after-death, without giving a shred of real objective evidence from a deceased person. From my own experience, I have personally received messages from Chief Sittingbull and Jesus, advising me on how to go about my daily life. It would be arrogant presumption to write off the possibility of a message from someone famous. Even so, a message that is delivered by a notability embraces an ingredient of power and status which may be too irresistible to reject by some people, including the Medium.

The next time you receive a message from a Medium, which contains an exotic ingredient, take note and comfort from the words, feel uplifted in their presence but above all else, throw caution to the spiritual wind until your spirit guide provides you with absolute proof of life-after-death, by way of substantial evidence.

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Psychics - Making Ends Meet !

What strikes me most about the classified advertisements of mainstream psychic publications, which includes amongst other magazines, Psychic News and Spirit Destiny is the diversity of services offered by Psychics and Mediums in the United Kingdom, Europe and beyond.

Of course, as you might expect, many listed services include Runes readings, Horoscope, Spiritual healing and Tarot cards. Many of these services are traditionally accepted within the scope of adopted practices that have existed for a thousand years and more.

Reading further down the list of psychic related advertisements, I come across the most obscure departments, all of which exist under the umbrella of ‘psychic services’:

Spell casting
How to get your ex- partner back
Return your lover

Be that as it may, the objective of this article is not concerned with the diversity and relevance of the services offered by psychic consultants as this will be the subject of my next article which will appear in the very near future. My main consideration here is charged against the validity and range of fees demanded by Psychics and Mediums.

The principle of charging clients for a psychic consultation is, in my mind, acceptable to most people who seek out the services of professional psychics. After all most of us willingly engage the services of professional accountants and solicitors and we might pay a handsome sum of money for their time. In like manner, there is no reason why a psychic consultant should withhold charging a reasonable fee from their clients for services rendered. After all, psychic consultants have their need to pay bills and buy food.

However, what sticks in my mind as I read through the classified advertisements are the extortionate fees which are demanded by some Psychics. For example, I note one advertisement which features an internationally renowned Medium who is offering a private reading at the rate of £30 per 20 minutes consultation ( that’s £90 per hour! ). Similar advertisements demand fees which range from £1.50 per minute to £20 for a postal reading.

Contrastingly, some Mediums and Psychics suggest donations instead of fixed fees or request much smaller fees for their services. I personally know of several Mediums in the Hampshire area who charge between £15 and £20 for an hourly session.

The point I am making here refers to the fact that there is no official regulatory body in the United Kingdom which supervises the conduct of Mediums and Psychics who are free to set their own fee at a rate which they feel is appropriate for their services. Consequently the likes of bad psychics and charlatans have the potential to out price or even undercut the fees which are set down by genuine clairvoyants who perhaps deserve better.

As luck would have it, nowhere in the advertisements have I seen reference to money back guarantees for clients who are dissatisfied with their consultation!.

Spiritualism - The Comfort Zone

Each and every one of us has the instinctive need to belong to someone or something - at least for some of the time - and to be accepted by others so we may feel good about ourselves.

Not so many years ago I became a member of a Spiritualist church which was not too dissimilar to the local stamp-collectors' alliance or chess club where associates of like-mindedness would engage in frivolity and other out-of-the-ordinary activities. In due course, a bond of momentary friendship or more lasting association would develop in the midst of the group.

The age range of the members varied between 18 and 80. And like countless other clubs, the socio-economic makeup was a mixed bag of wealth and poor alike. One outstanding feature of the group was the ratio of women to men - approximately six to one. Our group would meet once or perhaps twice each week at an established venue in the heart of old town Brighton; a community which is celebrated for new age idealism and forward thinking arguments.

What sticks in my mind is the very ceremonial procedure at the heart of our association whereby a guest speaker would be invited, twice weekly, to grace our presence with the human ability of wisdom, laughter and song. Of interest, I recall, were the guest-speakers who made a lifelong impression on me. One such speaker in particular spoke for almost 45 minutes on the topic of gardening and endeavoured to liken the arranging of flowers with the life-challenges that all of us must face. Another speaker opted to share with us her very singular account of personal success in family and work-life and attempted to compare this ‘material’ success with spiritual accomplishment. To this day I fail to see the analogy.

I started as an ordinary member, the main function of which focused on the need to be visibly present on a weekly, if not in twice-weekly basis. Then, as time passed, I was assigned greater responsibilities such as collecting money from ordinary members and manning the music system and lighting controls for the purpose of entertaining our members, committee and guests alike. These assignments, like any other stepwise responsibility, grew to be out-placed by more senior tasks that consisted of booking our guest speakers and raising funds from time-to-time. Several years into my membership, I too become a guest speaker on the platform which I shared with a very experienced group-member. Finally, in the second part of my membership within this group, I was entrusted the vice presidency; a position which required the most tactful diplomacy at all times.

Another sacrament of the group's was the informal gathering of members and guests alike immediately after the closure of ‘official business’ - the serving and eating of as much home-made cakes and tea as possible before the end of the evening. The cakes were meticulously baked by our President who possessed the ability to craft the most spectacular ‘eats’ that anyone could conceive of. From time to time, the committee would co-ordinate a day trip outside of the town for the ordinary members, families and friends.

Some of the more admired venues included public gardens, visitor centres, and shopping malls, to mention a few. I call to mind the actual planning of the day amongst the committee members, many months in advance which included the momentous responsibility of booking the coach, collecting members at prearranged halts and making contingency plans in case the final head count on the return journey confirmed a missing person. Some of our excursions would customarily end in a sit-down meal, affectionately known as the 'psychic supper'.

So now you know how I spent five ritualistic years of my life, every week for six hours, every week applying the rules that governed our group like so many other groups of similar make-up. I thoroughly enjoyed being a part of the Spiritualist church and by offering my help wherever I could be of service and partaking in the ceremonies and excursions afforded by the church, I benefited enormously. As did so many other people, from the friendship, warmth and feeling of belonging. Curiously, however, I eventually distanced myself from the association after so many years of service and after so many years of friendship, warmth and feeling of belonging.

On reflection, I recognise why I had to dissociate myself from orthodox spiritualism and therefore reject the friendship, warmth and feeling of belonging. I was very aware that finding the centre ground within our group was without a solution and that if I cast off one part, I was to all intents and purposes rejecting the whole lot.

I therefore opted to cast-off the deeds, which govern the people that support the seven spiritual principles, on account of my own sense of the way forward - in favour of uncertainty ahead and unchartered terrain.

I do not reject Spiritualism's optimism and the belief that the soul continues after bodily death. Quite the opposite, I consider that I have witnessed sufficient evidence to confirm the existence of the ‘spirit world’ and the people that live within that world.

For that reason I reject the tea and cakes, the day trips, the belonging and the cosy set of connections which drive the spiritualist movement today and I choose to embrace change and discover the challenging unchartered terrain.

Above all else, I accept the priority to improve mediumship and to discover new ways to work. To cut a long story short, I have abandoned the comfort zone.

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