What Is Channeling? A Connection To The Spirit Realms

Most people have come across channeled messages at some point in their life, whether on social media or unwittingly in your everyday life. But what is channeling? And how does channeling work? 

In this post, I’m going to guide you into the fascinating—and sometimes mysterious—world of channeling. We’ll explore what channeling is, how channeling works, and how you can start your own channeling journey. 

My goal is that you better understand what channeling is all about, what are channeled messages and how they can benefit you, and share some of my personal experiences and expertise as a semi-conscious trance voice channel.

What is Channeling?

Before we dive into the depths of channeling, let's start with some basics. Like most things in the spiritual world, there are a lot of definitions of channeling out there and a lot of them are confusing and conflicting.

At its core, channeling means connecting with energies in the non-physical realm and bringing them into our physical reality. This could mean sharing messages from spirits, creating art inspired by divine connection, or even channeling energy through practices like Reiki. 

Channeling is all about transforming non-physical energy into something tangible that can guide, heal, and enrich our lives.

I want to make sure we’re on the same page with a shared vocabulary because there are so many variations and nuances in understanding channeling. Having a strong foundational vocabulary helps us navigate the channeling world more easily together!

For me, channeling is an inclusive, broad practice by definition. However, most of the time when I speak about channeling, I focus on channeling as receiving information, energy, and guidance from higher vibrational beings and bringing it into our world. But for this post, I want to give you a broader perspective of the channeling world.

Examples of Channeled Messages and Channeled Material

Channeled means that the content, message, artwork, or creative work is from a source outside of the person who created it. Channeled messages are messages that come from a channeled source of guidance, like a spirit guide or angel, while channeled materials are often creative works that are inspired by or created by a non-physical energy source.

Channeled messages and material can show up in a lot more ways than you probably realize! Examples of channeling include a lot of different forms of creative expression:

• Spoken words

• Written text

• Painting

• Sculpture

• Architecture

• Dance

• Energy healing

Creating channeled materials can be intentional or unintentional. If you’ve ever felt like you were “in the zone” when you were in the mode of creating something, you may have actually been channeling! 

When we channel intentionally, we connect to a specific source of guidance, like a spirit guide or guardian angel, and create with them collaboratively, which is what most people refer to when they talk about channeled material or messages. A channeler is someone who serves as the conduit for the energy that’s coming into the physical world. They can also be called spiritual conduits. 

You’d also be surprised to find many channeled works you already know. Some famous examples include:

• The Lord of the Rings - Tolkien described the process of writing his epic fantasy as discovering a story that already existed, rather than creating it.

• Sagrada Família - Gaudí's organic shapes reflect the mystical connections between his creative process and higher guidance.

• Works of William Blake - Blake claimed to have visions of angels and prophets, which heavily influenced his mystical and symbolic works.

• "A Love Supreme" by John Coltrane - Coltrane described the composition of this jazz masterpiece as a spiritual awakening and a direct expression of his spirituality.

• Choreography by Isadora Duncan - Duncan believed in dance as a spiritual expression and drew from inner inspiration, channeling her higher self.

• Carl Jung’s Red Book - Channeled from his unconscious, Jung explored creativity and spirituality through journaling.

These are just some of my favorite examples—but honestly the list is pretty endless! You’ve definitely enjoyed some channeled material and messages without knowing it before, trust me.

A Brief History of Channeling

Channeling may be a trending topic lately but it is an ancient practice rooted deeply in human history. I can imagine spiritual leaders in prehistoric times connecting to the spirit world, channeling through guidance for their communities to develop their beliefs as well as practical guidance like when to move, when to plant, or when to harvest. 

The Delphic Oracles are my favorite historical example of channelers. Women chosen from the nearby village would channel information from the god Apollo in a small room at the back of the temple. While there’s been a lot of debate about how the channeling happened and whether hallucinogenic gasses impacted the channeling, oracular channelings operated for thousands of years in the area, well into the Christian age, until it was eventually disbanded. For a practice to keep up that long and have such a strong tradition as the center of the ancient Greek religious and political world, you have to suppose the channeled messages were extremely accurate and helpful. 

Looking to the Christian era, saints like Joan of Arc, Hildegard of Bingen, Francis of Assisi, and many others were considered channelers by their contemporaries. They connected with higher guidance in the form of divine beings or saints and transmitted the guidance. Some of the channeling was about mystical experience—but also included channeled cookie recipes! 

That’s not even to mention the traditions of channeling in ancient indigenous cultures around the world, much of which we know very little about. Some of those traditions are being preserved today by channelers carrying on more ancestor, earth, and herbal-focused traditions than western channeling traditions. 

We still feel the effects of past channelers and their channeled messages today, as they shaped our modern world in innumerable ways for our collective benefit. 

Famous Modern-Day Channelers

Edgar Cayce, known as the “Sleeping Prophet,” was a popular channel in 1920s and 1930s that brought channeling more into the mainstream awareness. He gave well over 14,000 psychic readings while in a deep trance state, working with his Higher Self. His work mainly focused on holistic health, spiritual growth, and the potential future of humankind and many New Age concepts can be traced back to his work.

The famous channeler we have to thank for the resurgence of interest is Jane Roberts, who channeled an entity named Seth in the 1960s and 70s. Her Seth Material books started a new spiritual awakening, bringing new ideas to the New Age movement and kicking off a renewed interest in channeling. 

Roberts’ works piqued the curiosity of what may be the most famous channeler today, Abraham-Hicks, a team of channeler Esther Hicks and a non-physical group of entities known as Abraham. Before beginning channeling, Esther Hicks read the Seth Material and became interested in Roberts, eventually leading her to try channeling herself. Today, Abraham-Hicks tours the world channeling in front of huge audiences on the laws of attraction and manifestation in a Q&A style format where attendees are selected to ask Abraham-Hicks questions. Many of their sessions are available on Youtube as well as a number of books on manifestation. 

Two other current famous channelers that work with collectives similar to Abraham-Hicks are Lee Harris, who channels a collective consciousness called the Zs, and Sara Landon, who channels a collective known as The Council. Both deliver messages about navigating today’s world, deepening spiritual practices, and living purposeful, abundant lives.

But not all famous channelers today work with higher vibrational collectives, illustrated by Darryl Anka who channels Bashar, an extraterrestrial who shares guidance about a wide variety of topics in a Q&A style format, in a lovingly pithy way.

There are countless channelers today, demonstrating the variety of channeling sources and types of channeling. A simple search on any social media platform and you’ll find thousands, if not millions, of videos of channeled messages.

Types of Channeling

With such a rich history of channeling and so many channelers to choose from today, it can actually make understanding the process of channeling more difficult. This is because there are multiple different styles and types of channeling. 

What qualifies as channeling and what doesn’t? I personally have a broad definition because I don’t believe one type of channeling is superior to others—they each have their own benefits and serve different purposes. Each different type can help you depending on what kind of information or energy you want to receive.

Spirit Channeling

This is the type of channeling I perform and what I talk about here in my other content and on my social media profiles and is the one I’m personally the most familiar with. Spirit channelers connect with high vibrational beings, like spirit guides, guardian angels, extraterrestrials, dragons, divine aspects, collectives, and more. 

You’ll want to seek out spirit channeling if you want to get guidance from a higher perspective on your life, loving support and wisdom, and a profound impact on your life and spiritual journey.

Mediumship

Mediumship, on the other hand, focuses on connecting with passed loved ones and ancestors. While I’ve performed mediumship a few times, it’s not something I have a lot of experience with. Some mediums refute that mediumship falls under channeling but with my broad definition, I include it.

Evidential mediumship is the practice of receiving information from the source the medium is connecting with to share verifiable information about the deceased. Evidence can include names, life events, preferences, or more that is only known to the receiver (also known as a sitter in mediumship). 

Mediums focus more on helping people find peace after the passing of a loved one, affirming beliefs in the afterlife, and helping their sitters process and deal with grief. 

Psychic Channeling

Psychic channeling is probably the most tenuously categorizable of the kinds of channeling but I like to include it because it is still taking energies and bringing them into the physical. Instead of receiving insight and energies from specific entities, psychic channels use their psychic abilities to read unseen energies to understand present situations, past influences, or future probabilities. 

Instead of getting guidance from a spirit, psychic channelers and psychic mediums gather information through observing energy. They can tell you about your own energy, surroundings, or potential outcomes based on the energy they read. This type of channeling is more about interpreting energies rather than receiving direct messages from a spirit or entity but definitely still falls under the channeling umbrella.

If you’re looking for help with energetic issues, predictions about future events, or to make sense of an intuitive feeling that doesn’t quite make sense to you, psychic channeling may be what you’re looking for.

How Does Channeling Work?

Now, let’s dive into how channeling works! Channeling styles vary a lot depending on how you use your channeling skills, so I’m going to cover how channeling works in broader strokes so you understand the general process.

Styles of Channeling

The channeling process is very similar between types of channeling but they all involve some level of altering one's consciousness. 

There are two main styles of channeling: 

• External Channeling: This is like having a chat with someone, keeping the spirit being outside the channeler's energy. The channeler uses their psychic skills to have observational and conversational interactions, using their different psychic clairs to receive information. This method is often used by evidential mediums and helps maintain clear energetic boundaries but requires raising consciousness to the spirit realm level. This is where I recommend beginners to start.

• Internal or Blended Channeling: This requires a deeper change in consciousness, raising and moving the channeler’s consciousness aside to let the spirit enter into the channeler’s energy. The spirit can then speak or create through the channeler, controlling their body or voice. This method is commonly used in trance channeling, which can vary from semi-conscious states to deep trance states where the channeler is unaware of their physical surroundings. This requires a higher level of skill and can take some time and training to work up to.

Personally, I use blended channeling when I’m in a semi-conscious state and allow spirit guides to speak through my voice and use my body to express themselves. However, it is a more intensive process so this is something I do in client sessions or for myself, only a few times a day at maximum. If I need some quick guidance for my day to day, I’ll use external channeling for a brief check in with my spirit team!

How to do Channeling: The Process

For how many different styles and types of channeling that are out there, there are even more ways to channel! There are certain similarities on how to channel across different types and they all tend to use the same general steps. 

I’ve also found that different styles may call things by different names (such as “sitting in your power” for mediums) but often focus on the same intentions.

For me, the process includes several steps:

• Invocation: I start by expressing gratitude and appreciation to the Universe, my spirit guides, and Earth. In energy, like attracts like so this sets my energy into a high-vibrational, positive energy state, allowing me to attract only high-vibrational beings.

• Grounding: Grounding helps me stay anchored during channeling, allows me to receive support and abundance, and helps me to return to my personality base easily after channeling is done.

• Energizing: I raise my vibration by connecting with Source energy and clearing my energetic centers, also known as chakras. I also focus on opening up these energy centers to receive energy from my source of guidance, allowing me to receive more fully. 

• Setting Aside the Thinking Mind: To channel, I set my logical, analytical mind aside so it doesn’t interfere with channeled messages as they come through.

• Clearing Energetic Boundaries: I make sure my space is free from any other energies than my own, Source, and Earth. This involves politely asking any spirits or entities to leave and disconnecting from energy cords temporarily. This prevents any confusion between different sources or impact of energetic cords on the messages..

• Calling in the Spirit: I call in the specific spirit being I want to work with. For the most part, I work with a specific group of spirit guides and spirit beings. I have deep relationships and developed trust with them.

• Use Discernment: As the final step before I start to blend my energy or begin asking for guidance, I check to make sure that I know who I’m connecting with and it is the spirit I called in. 

• Get Guidance: At this point, I start to receive guidance in whichever style I’m using. I make sure to check on my thinking mind and any energies that may be interfering with the guidance, while staying in the flow of energy. 

• Thank The Source and Disconnect: To finish channeling, I send thanks and appreciation to the source of guidance, disconnect, and ground down my energy again to return.

The process of channeling relies on foundational energy skills rather than a big emphasis on psychic abilities. Which also means that it’s relatively easy to start to learn how to channel, especially if you’re using external style channeling. 

Benefits of Channeling

Channeling has been profoundly life changing for me and for my clients. Not only has channeling helped me make changes in my life, it’s also helped to change my energy, be more peaceful and calm, and feel more at ease with my world. What channeling does for you depends on your intentions with channeling and what you’d like to get out of it but the benefits are pretty powerful!

Even as someone receiving channeled messages, there’s a lot of benefits. 

• Guidance and Clarity: Channeling gives you a higher perspective and clarity on your life and challenges you’re facing. Most people feel they’re finally able to see situations clearly and start taking steps forward after channeling.

• Healing and Comfort: Besides being able to receive higher vibrational energies through channeling than other methods, channeling also gives you a sense of calm, peace and ease. My clients and students almost always say they find deep peace and a sense of inner calm after a channeling session. 

• Enhanced Intuition: Regular channeling practice can help you develop your intuition and psychic abilities, strengthening your ability to see the unseen world of energy and spirit.

• Personal Growth: Channeling asks you to take big steps forward while empowering you to make your own decisions and be responsible for your own choices.

• Creativity: There’s a reason why channeling has produced so many amazing creative works across all disciplines! Tapping into the spirit world allows you to access unlimited creative possibilities.

• Connection to the Divine: Channeling allows you to build a direct relationship with the divine and feel a sense of connection with the spirit world, the Divine, and the wider Universe.

It’s a bit hard to quantify exactly how channeling can help you in your life until you try it yourself. But I promise, it’s one of the most powerful things I’ve ever done in my life and I bet it may be for you too.

How to Start Channeling

If you feel drawn to begin your channeling journey, I’m here to help! I’ve taught students how to start channeling and confidently connect with their guides to get actionable, meaningful guidance. 

The best way to start learning channeling is to focus on the foundational skills necessary to connect with the spirit world and to focus on external channeling styles until you feel more comfortable navigating the spirit world and trust your intuitive discernment. 

My biggest recommendation for beginners is to try connecting with your spirit guides first. Your spirit guides are around you all the time so your energy is already familiar with them. It’s also much easier for us to trust energies we’re familiar with than totally new, unknown energies. 

Remember, patience with yourself and persistence are key to channeling! Channeling can take time to develop, especially if you haven’t done a lot of energy work before.

Is Channeling Real? Skepticism and Science of Channeling

As our societies became more focused on science and less on mystical experiences, channeling fell by the wayside and even became a taboo practice in much of the western world. Today, we still feel a lot of that stigma about channeling.

There’s a lot of healthy skepticism around channeling and that’s brought forward a lot of studies by different research institutes and universities around the world. Despite that we can’t exactly measure the energetic beings we’re connecting with, there is scientific evidence that channeling is real. 

The biggest discussion point is whether or not messages are just coming from the subconscious mind of the channeler or if they’re connecting to something bigger. 

Thankfully there have been a number of brain scan studies on experienced channelers that have found evidence that channelers actively turn off portions of their brains that would indicate subconscious use. Studies also showed this ability comes with practice and time, indicating that channeling is a learned skill.  

When it comes to psychology, channeling studies have also found that channelers are not experiencing dissociative disorders or personality disorders when they channel. In fact, channelers have often been observed to have even stronger personality bases than the average person, showing the exact opposite of personality disorders.

If you’re curious about skepticism in channeling, Jon Klimo (The American Schools of Professional Psychology, Argosy University) and Michael F. Brown (Harvard University) are both researchers who extensively studied channeling and channelers.

Despite that I’m a channeler myself, I believe that doubt and skepticism are healthy, especially in the world of channeling. Experiencing channeling for yourself and using your own discernment can help you understand it more deeply and allow yourself to shift perspectives based on your experiences. 

I’ll be the first to admit I’ve had doubts myself, especially early on in my channeling journey, and my spirit guides always showed up with irrefutable proof to remind me that channeling is very real and helpful. 

Next Steps To Start Your Channeling Journey

Channeling is an enriching, transformative practice that can deeply connect you with higher realms of wisdom and guidance. Whether you're interested in spirit guides, mediumship, or psychic channeling, there's a vast, supportive community and numerous resources to help you begin or deepen your journey.

I hope this helped you understand channeling more and answered some of your questions about channeling.