Body and Spirit

What is the difference between spirit, ancestors and ghosts? We all know that when we speak of ghosts we usually speak of entities with some unresolved. Ancestors don’t necessary have any unresolved. The term is often used in spiritual circles to imply people who have passed away a long time ago and have wisdom to share through their story. Spirit is a generic word that speaks of entities without a physical body. Yet, First Nation traditionalists will often use the word to imply that something or someone holds a story. A house for example can have Spirit because it harbours memories. A locket, a car, a book or a river, a tree or a mountain can be referred to as having Spirit because it shows personality and tells a story.

I often work with real estate agents and their clients who are either selling or buying homes. Believe it or not more and more people are influenced by their hypersensitivity to Spirit. We all have the ability to sense and to read Spirit. Yet like any other skill if we don’t learn, don’t develop and don’t practice the ability it won’t be useful to us. Most people know very little on the topics of hypersensitivity and / or Spirit and so they are unaware that some of their indecisions or even emotional reactions are connected to how they are unconsciously interacting to their environment. In some cases where it’s important to be practical, rational and make quick decisions finding ways to step out of our extrasensory is helpful. When clients have visited over a dozen homes and are always complaining about “the vibe of the place” over the architecture or the design it’s a good indication that they are being hypersensitive to Spirit.

I recently visited a home with an real estate agent who couldn’t explain why her listing wasn’t selling. The house was in a great neighbourhood; a brand new construction; beautiful inside and out; and not at all over priced. Even the landscape was attractive along with a decent size back yard. The real estate agent explained to me that 3 out of 5 people who visited the house expressed that “it made them feel sad and boxed in.” After suggesting brighter colors on the walls and the removal of a few window coverings the complaints didn’t change and so I was called in.

“Is the house haunted?” is often the question that is asked.

What people don’t understand is that it doesn’t take much to give a house a “bad vibe” and it doesn’t mean that because a house holds “bad spirit” that it is haunted by ghosts. For example when I toured the house I was able to pick up on the fact that the people who owned the home were having marital problems. On the second floor I felt the heart of the family. There the mother and children interacted; but I couldn’t pick up on the husband or father. In the basement you could feel the strong presence of the man in the house but if felt as if he was hiding down there. It wasn’t difficult to conclude that the husband was probably working nights and that his wife tried to keep herself and the children still or silent during the day in order not to disturb him; hence dividing their living experiences on different floors. The strong sense of anxiety and stress all through the house gave me the impression that the man was probably in law enforcement. The real estate agent was stunned at how accurate I was. She actually confirmed me on everything. I explained to her that she would have a difficult time selling this home to budding new families because they would undoubtedly pick up on the present family and marriage crisis.

“What can you do?” is always the next question.

The idea is to change the vibe in the house. With people who are open to trying anything it’s as easy as giving them a few suggestions. For example in this case, the husband may want to try playing with his children up in their rooms a few hours a day rather than sleeping in his quarters downstairs. If he’s moved out of the home already, he may want to move back in for a week and adopt one or two new behaviours. In many cases when people have accepted to implement some of my ideas -- not only has it helped in selling the house but also in fixing some of the issues. Ironically it doesn’t take long for things to change. A day or two and often the home is sold.

People are always impressed with how accurately and unconsciously they pick up on the stories of others especially when people like me point them out. What stuns most people is how strongly they can react to the hypersensitive reading of their environment. Some people will get incredibly angry or upset for what seems like no apparent reason. Most explain it as “having difficulty with change.”

Usually we buy homes from people who are compatible to us. There are many different ways to be compatible. We may share a similar story; or we may hold the wisdom necessary to heal a particular story; or we may need to be challenged by a story in order to grow. One way or another when we buy a home we don’t just buy a building but we buy all of the memories etched into the fabric of this home. There are positive and negative influences; which stem from the Spirit living in our homes. Both are usually beneficial to our learning, healing and growth. Of course, having conscious access to these memories often makes the experience more pleasurable and easier to surf through.

I’m always impressed with how much our walls pick up from our life story. Our pagan ancestors used to use jewellery, masks and other objects to hold memories and do magic. Antiques hold all kinds of stories. A decade ago I traveled to Lyon, France. We were giving a workshop there. At some point during the weekend everyone was complaining of back and shoulder pains. On the Sunday afternoon I decided that we were going to go outside for a walk. I thought it would help us stretch a little. It was then that we found ourselves in a park behind the building. There we found the remains of an archaeological dig. Scientists had found an old Roman cart and it was basically cemented to the ground for tourists to enjoy. While I stared at the monument I realized suddenly why our shoulders and back were aching so much. We had literally picked up on the memories of the land. For a moment we were actually Romans after a long day’s work. When I pointed it out everyone cried out in astonishment. For many it was their first experience in becoming aware that their physical body gives them access to the memory of the land and the ancestors.


P.S. Picture of a Mayan Pyramid in Costa Maya.