Whether you know it or not, you have a full team of spirit guides cheering you on and subtly guiding you through all of life’s ups and downs. No matter your cultural or spiritual background, these beings are here to give you an added layer of knowledge, wisdom, and protection.
The idea of spirit guides isn’t just new age fluff —it’s a belief system that spans many cultures and religions. And although different cultures may call their guides by different names, they all share remarkable similarities.
There are numerous ways to meet your guides and foster relationships with them throughout your lifetime. This article will cover just a few ways to identify your guides, receive their wisdom and counsel, and foster lasting relationships with your soul’s team.
Different cultures and spiritual traditions may hold wildly different beliefs and practices when it comes to contacting ancestors and other spirit guides. If you’re curious about your unique lineage, look up ancestral spiritual and healing practices in your families’ countries of origin. From there, you can begin to read more about how your ancestors met and fostered lasting relationships with their spirit guides and see how it feels to you.
Have you ever felt like something or someone was watching over you? Or, maybe you’ve heard a whisper or heeded a thought that led you away from danger or a terrible decision. If any of this resonates, then you’ve already had contact with your spirit guides.
Spirit guides are non-physical beings that have signed a soul contract to help you navigate the material realm, and guide you toward your greatest potential on earth. Also referred to as totems by Anishinaabe people (also called Ojibwa or Chippewa), angels, and nature spirits, your guides can take many different forms.
While they sometimes show up as ancestors or animal spirits, voices and visions, they always vibrate at a higher than human frequency. You can think of them as light beings, energy, or souls that have made their way to a higher plane.
Some belief systems maintain that you’re assigned a specific team at birth, while others believe that guides come and go as you need them throughout your lifetime.
Your spirit guides are definitely here for your benefit, even if you’re not sure how to “access” them. And they’re already showing up for you (and have been all along), even during times you’ve felt completely alone.
They speak to you in dreams, signs, and symbols. Sometimes, these entities will send small clues or leave breadcrumbs that lead you toward a bigger idea or goal. These usually show up as gut instincts, ideas, “downloads,” and synchronicities.
Your guides can protect you from negativity or harmful thought loops, usher you through anxious or depressive thoughts, increase creativity, and help connect you with your soul’s true purpose.
They’ll help you make tough decisions and often bring the right people into your life at the right times or send you clues that it's time to leave a relationship or remove your energy from a situation.
When it comes to types of spirit guides, there really are no rules. Spirit guides take many forms, from an ancestor you once knew on earth to pure light being to… well, alien. Here are a few forms your spirit guides might take, but if these don’t resonate, don’t worry —there are plenty of ways to connect more deeply. Here are some of the most common guides:
This is one guide you always have access to, no matter what. That’s because your higher self is already… you. Instead of being a separate spirit-based version of you, it’s simply the part of you that’s deeply connected with the divine and can easily see past a lot of the earthly things that can get in the way of divine reasoning.
Your higher self is the kind of guide that sees beyond the surface of things and ushers you forward with deep and loving wisdom. They also have access to way more information than your conscious mind —all you have to do is tap in and that wisdom is yours! This might feel like your intuition or a “sixth sense.” Whatever form it takes, acknowledging it can become your most powerful tool.
You might have learned that angels are only for those with religious beliefs, but that’s just not true! Angels are non-denominational and many people receive messages from specific angels regardless of their religious background.
Archangels are powerful spiritual figures that tend to come with a “specialty.” For instance, Archangel Michael represents protection, courage, and truth, so you can call on that energy anytime you need it.
Other angels may not come with a specific name and may feel like they’re yours and yours alone. If you sense an angelic presence, feel free to ask them their name and what they’re here to teach you.
There’s a theory that when someone dies, their spirit ascends to a higher plane where it can stay and assist humans on their earthly paths before reincarnating again.
DjinnThese can be relatives you knew in this lifetime, people or ancestors from previous lives, and spirits your soul has never had contact with before. These particular spirits come with a wealth of information they acquired on earth, plus they gain the knowledge of all that is simply by being in an ascended form.
Some people refer to ascended masters as the big guns like Buddha and Jesus. But I’ve seen these come through as any spirit energy with impressive things to teach and share.
When you connect with guides like ancestors and ascended masters, it’s good to tap into the energy and advice they can offer from their unique experiences and perspective.
Animism is the belief that objects, creatures, and even places all have a soul or distinct spiritual essence. And for many people, their guides come in the form of plant or animal spirits.
These guides often come in the form of signs and signals, like seeing a hawk every time you have a specific thought or experience. It’s also common to see animal guides in dreams, meditations, and visions.
Plant spirits can pop up when you’re working with a specific herb or flower, or if you spend a lot of time in nature. Feel free to assign your own meaning to these guides or ask them what they’re here to show you.
Every culture has a strong connection to a deity or multiple deities. These belief systems usually consist of one or more gods and goddesses, some imparting judgment or punishment, and all of them with a set of supernatural powers.
Every culture has a strong connection to a deity or multiple deities. These belief systems usually consist of one or more gods and goddesses, some imparting judgment or punishment, and all of them with a set of supernatural powers.
If you feel drawn to particular deities or certain god or goddess energy shows up in your life often, foster that connection by learning more about them. Read up on their stories and characteristics —each one comes with its own rich mythology and many lessons to teach.
Some people believe that many of us have ancestral connections to different galaxies. This system suggests that souls haven’t just reincarnated here on earth but on stars and planets lightyears away. If you feel like you’ve never really belonged here on earth or feel a spark of energy when you hear about the potential of being related to star-based spiritual teams, then these guides might be for you.
Many people don’t see, sense, or hear any particular guide but instead, tap into the all-knowing energy of the universe. This is the collective sea of unconscious energy that connects us all, a spiritual source energy that is all around us and also of us. You can call it universe, spirit, source, or god. You always have access to it and always have.
If you don’t feel connected with a specific spirit, animal, plant, or galactic energy, this might be the way to go. Of course, you can have deep connections to your spiritual guidance team AND a more universal energy.
Communication with your guides will vary wildly, and some will come in more “loudly” than others. Your only job is to “listen,” which means listening with more than just your ears. Here’s how:
Your guides might send information through certain books, “random” people, or practitioners. If you see something more than a couple of times, or synchronistic events tend to happen frequently, pay close attention to it.
Many guides send messages in the form of numbers or symbols. Again, if you get the inkling that something might be a message, write it down and track how often it comes up in your life. Note what you’re doing, how and what you’re feeling or thinking at the time.
Guides often show up with messages in the dream space when conscious thought can’t get in the way. Dream tracking is a wonderful way to heed guidance from your team.
The first (and best) thing you can do to begin fostering a connection with your guides is simply acknowledging that they’re there —no complex rituals or meditations required!