Clairvoyance is likely the most well-known of all the psychic senses. It is the visual psychic sense, the sense associated with our human sense of vision. It is the realm of the third eye, and because of that is suited to slick visuals on the big screen, which is how many of us are familiar with the term clairvoyant. (Or perhaps the line, “I see dead people.”)
Who can forget M. Night Shyamalan’s The Sixth Sense?
In real life, clairvoyance isn’t nearly as heart-pumping.
That doesn’t mean it isn’t exciting.
Clairvoyance roughly means “clear seeing.”
As with any psychic sense, energy flows the path of least resistance. If you are someone who is fairly visual in your waking world, you are likely stronger in your clairvoyance than some other psychic senses. And like any psychic skill, clairvoyance can be developed.
What is it like to see clairvoyantly?
It is honestly a hair’s-breadth away from imagination. Images are mostly seen in your mind’s-eye (third eye). This looks like what you see when you are visualizing the setting and action in a novel you are reading.
Occasionally you see clairvoyantly with your own eyes; something that doesn’t happen as often for me. (Although, I do have a friend who sees earthbound individuals-ghosts-much like Haley Joel Osment’s character in The Sixth Sense. Her case is rather unique, and not many people see the earthbound in this way.)
When I started my awakening, I hadn’t had many clairvoyant experiences, and I was a little scared to. I thought it would look like something out of a horror movie.
I was wrong
The first time it happened, I was home alone. (Of course.) My partner was on a hunting trip in South Dakota. My folks were out of town in Michigan. Some weird things had happened earlier in the night, it felt like energy was building up to something big.
I did my best to ignore it. I had work the next day, and needed to sleep.
Finally, with all the lights on, I got to sleep, soothing music piped in through my earbuds.
At 3:30 AM, I woke up and sat bolt upright in bed. Someone was there.
I looked around the room, and listened into the house’s silence.
Nothing.
But, each hair on my arms was standing up.
At this point I knew to trust my clairsentience. Something was up.
And then I blinked.
I closed my eyes and in the space of 10 seconds my life changed completely.
I saw a series of crystal clear images accompanied by a movie that featured someone I had the pleasure of knowing in life. A beautiful soul who had crossed a few months earlier. They had been sick in life, and suddenly they were in my mind’s eye, healthy, healing, and positively filled with joy and happiness.
This soul had a birthday coming up in two days time, and it was their first since they had crossed.
They were so excited to make contact, but it was the first time this had happened to me that I could remember-I was scared shitless. Where were these images coming from? It was like I was dreaming, but wide awake-and seeing crystal clear images as though I was looking at a photograph in front of me. These were not my thoughts or imaginings. They were interrupting thoughts coming from an outside source-and they were somehow in my head.
I was simultaneously overjoyed and felt totally unsafe.
I loved this person in life, but they were creeping me out. If they could get to me, who else could?
It wasn’t that my house was haunted, I felt haunted.
And the guilt that came with these feelings was immense. This was someone’s favorite person on the planet, and I was totally freaked out by them. I fought with my fear, my sorrow, my guilt, the giddiness of seeing them.
I don’t remember if I made it back to sleep that night or not-but my fear effectively shut down my clairvoyance for quite some time, all because of ten seconds.
Paralysis
At first that suited me just fine. But over time, it was frustrating. I have these amazing psychic and mediumistic friends, and I felt like everyone could see clearly-but I had a blockage in my third eye. Just blackness. A void. The energy wasn’t flowing. I wrestled with the idea of that special visit as a fluke, and that maybe I wasn’t meant to have this particular clair.
So I tried locating resources for developing other clairs. At the time, articles and classes seemed so focused on clairvoyance. I felt like I was a total failure because the things I tried just weren’t working.
This is what I mean about energy following the path of least resistance.
I was resisting.
I could see things that startled me, when unseen souls or guides wanted me to see them. But I couldn’t see my spirit guides or tap into anyone when I wanted to.
I felt like I’d never get anywhere, and honestly thought about trying to drop the whole idea of exploring spirituality.
I had to work through those feelings of fear and frustration for some time. Both of these can be huge blocks to clairvoyance.
I needed to live my daily life. Stay grounded and present. Recognize that my very strong sense of clairsentience is AMAZING and such a beautiful gift to work with.
As I relaxed, things gradually started to open up.
I started seeing colors during chakra meditations.
I remembered vivid clairvoyant experiences from childhood.
The Shift
Finally, I decided it was time to actively go for it. A friend who is a wonderful medium and heavily clairvoyant, volunteered to come over for a night of meditation and intuitive development. That night, we both experienced pivotal moments in our own development.
She connected with a land guide, someone I’ve known who has watched over me as I grew up. As a child I always felt him, but never saw him, when I was running through the woods of northern Michigan or swimming in the cold waters of Lake Superior.
He used his appearance to get his hello across.
She asked me to visualize him, “what is he wearing on his head?”
I sat there, eyes closed, trying to grasp for something, trying to see ANYTHING at all.
Nothing was coming up. It was just black.
I had just about given up.
And then I saw it clearly. It was just a flash. Less than a second.
I saw an old photograph I’d looked at earlier in the week. The photo wasn’t my guide, it was just a reference tool.
“He’s wearing a top hat with feathers!” I shouted.
She laughed and we both started jumping up and down.
That was when I realized I had the ability of clairvoyance, I just needed to allow, and practice, but to let things unfold on their own time.
I still had many doubts, and spent a long time after that session wondering: did I pick up on what she was seeing in her mind?
I noticed that my clairvoyance kicked up a lot around friends who were naturally clairvoyant themselves. Was it due to my empathic and clairsentient nature? (I often feel like an antenna or amplifier for other people.)
It’s amazing how doubt can cling on.
Other Visions
At this point I had seen very vivid, very clear images and movies in my mind’s eye. Some were put there by deceased individuals, others were reference photographs, like the one of my spirit guide. Sort of like, “remember when you saw this? Yeah, that’s what it is!”
I’d also seen vague shapeless colors during meditations.
Sometimes people’s faces flew through my mind at a breakneck speed as I was falling asleep. I had no idea who they were.
All of these experiences were internal, as though I was seeing using my imagination. They weren’t always clear, they weren’t always obvious. I really had to settle into myself and concentrate to see them. And at this point, I was no longer afraid.
Then I saw a woman walk through a wall.
I was visiting a rather active building in the city where I live. My two friends and I all saw a transparent brunette woman, clothed in a high-necked dress (it looked like something from the late 1800’s) walk into the building we were about to go into. She didn’t use the stairs, but walked smack through a wall on the first floor. That was one of the first times I saw something clairvoyantly in real life, and we were totally excited about that experience.
As an adult going through this awakening, I confided in my mom. Mom recalled an incident from childhood that I had completely forgotten about.
While on vacation in Michigan with family friends, a ghostlike apparition rose out of a woman’s body while she was sleeping in the loft with my sister and I. It stuck its tongue out at me. I was totally terrified. When I looked at her sleeping form again, it happened a second time. I don’t remember if I ever made it back to sleep that night or not. I think I turned my back to the friend and prayed until it was all black.
The next morning, I ran down the stairs of our cabin, telling Mom what I saw.
What do all parents tell their children who see things?
“It was just a bad dream.”
This time she said, “maybe it wasn’t a dream.”
I had totally suppressed that memory.
And I think there may be more.
I believe that was the root of my fear over seeing clairvoyantly. It was something from childhood that was scary enough that at the time, I had totally blocked it.
And as an adult, what would have happened had I experienced the same thing? I might have been scared ten years ago. But now? An apparition sticking its tongue out? I might have laughed. And that may have been an ancestor, trying to get me to laugh!
Suddenly things made much more sense. I was able to shift into a space of gratitude for that initial visit from the deceased friend. My perspective completely changed.
And that visit is what made me believe in the afterlife.
I am forever grateful for that gift.
Seeing Clearly
Clairvoyant images can look like images, impressions, colors, clear photos of people you know, or references to things you’ve seen or done, or these images, movies, and experiences can be layered into the real world. Other folks see auras around the living, can observe medical issues within the human form, or view scenes and places far away (known as remote viewing). There are MANY more ways to see clairvoyantly. It all depends on the person and their unique gifts in this incarnation.
The night I was awoken by the visiting deceased friend, I saw some of the clearest images I’ve ever seen. It was like seeing with my eyes wide-open. Often though, clairvoyance is much more subtle, and the images are almost faded, like they are overlaid with black. Sometimes they happen quite quickly, and you can’t catch all of the information that is there.
While I was first developing this clair, I often saw large blocks of text, which was a nice intermediary way to get information visually without seeing anything too startling. I attributed this to being a big reader. I thanked my guides for this. Sometimes I still see this way, but often it’s more movies and images nowadays.
If I’m not sure about something, I check in with my strongest intuitive sense, clairsentience. If I feel something accompanying the images, then I know it is clairvoyant energy coming in and not my imagination.
The more I have grounded myself, worked on myself, and just decided to be comfortable with where I am, the stronger the clairvoyance has become. Pictures are more clear, I can enter and exit visions to write something down, then go back in again.
This has been incredibly helpful in working with my spirit guides, getting information for friends, and working with clients on their chakra system.
You can do all of this too. It just takes intention, practice, and allowing.
Have you had clairvoyant experiences? What are they like for you?
In the next article on clairvoyance we’ll look at signs that you may be clairvoyant.
I’m looking forward to seeing you then!