Channelers and Mediums: History, Major Teachings and How to Evaluate Them

Channeling is the practice in which a person says they receive messages from a non-physical source. This guide covers the difference between channelers and mediums, the history, the major channeled teachings, NLS conversations with leading voices, what skeptics and researchers say, and how to evaluate a reading.

What Is Channeling?

Channeling is the practice in which a person says they receive messages from a non-physical source and speak, write or sense them. The source may be called a guide, a spirit, a higher self, an ascended master or a group consciousness. A medium usually communicates with the spirits of the deceased, while a channeler often brings through teachings from a named being or collective. The two overlap. Skeptics see imagination, suggestion or cold reading. Believers see real contact. This guide gives the history, the major figures, how to evaluate a reading and what the research says.

Medium, Channeler, Psychic: What Is the Difference?

A Brief History of Channeling and Mediumship

Major Channeled Teachings

Channelers and Mediums on Next Level Soul

• The Seth material with David Cielak. What channeled master Seth said about the true Jesus. Listen to the episode
• The Guides with Paul Selig. Channeled guidance and what it asks of you. Listen to the episode
• Higher guidance with Michael G. Reccia. A conversation about spirit teachers and their messages. Listen to the episode
• Contact beyond the veil with Daniel Joseph Gobin. Exploring communication with other realms. Listen to the episode
• Conversations with God with Neale Donald Walsch. The author of the best-selling dialogue series. Listen to the episode

What the Research and Skeptics Say

The evidence is mixed and debated. Researchers such as Gary Schwartz (The Afterlife Experiments, 2002) and Julie Beischel of the Windbridge Institute have run controlled mediumship studies with small samples and mixed reception. Critics, including magician and skeptic James Randi, point to cold reading, where a reader draws information from your reactions, and to the human tendency to find meaning in vague statements. Scholars such as Jon Klimo (Channeling, 1987) and Michael F. Brown (The Channeling Zone, 1997) study channeling as a cultural and psychological phenomenon without settling its source. Psychologists note that trance states, dissociation and creativity can all produce voices that seem to come from outside the self.

You can hold both: take the teachings that help you, and keep a healthy question mark about the source.

How to Evaluate a Reading or Channeled Teaching

1. Check specifics. Did the reader offer details you did not give?
2. Look for helpful, not fearful, messages. Be wary of dire predictions or pressure.
3. Watch the money. A good practitioner explains fees up front and never demands more.
4. Keep your own authority. Good guidance returns you to your own discernment.
5. Never delay medical, legal or financial decisions because of a reading.
6. Notice how it lands. Does it bring clarity, calm or courage?

Cautions

Grief can make people vulnerable. If you are mourning, choose a practitioner who is kind and transparent, and bring a trusted friend if you wish. Avoid anyone who claims a curse on you or who asks for large sums to remove it. If you are in emotional crisis, contact a mental health professional. In the U.S., call or text 988.

Developing Your Own Intuition

• Keep a dream and intuition journal.
• Practice daily meditation. See our meditation guide.
• Ask your guides for help in writing, and notice what rises. Read our guide to spirit guides.
• Test impressions against reality and keep records.
• Learn about the Akashic Records, another form of guidance.

Books on Channeling and Mediumship

• Seth Speaks by Jane Roberts. The classic channeled text.
• A Course in Miracles by Helen Schucman. A channeled spiritual curriculum.
• Conversations with God, Book 1 by Neale Donald Walsch. A dialogue with God.
• I Am the Word by Paul Selig. Guidance for awakening.
• The Law of One by Don Elkins, Carla Rueckert, Jim McCarty. The Ra Material.
• The Channeling Zone by Michael F. Brown. A scholarly look at American channeling.

As an Amazon Associate, Next Level Soul earns from qualifying purchases.

Watch and Listen on Next Level Soul TV

These titles from the Next Level Soul TV catalog go deeper into this topic.

• NLS: The Channeling Sessions. Show on NLS TV.
• Ascended Masters Channeled. Show on NLS TV.
• Channeled Masterclass. Show on NLS TV.
• Top 10 Channelers. Show on NLS TV.
• Psychic Awakenings. Show on NLS TV.
• Mediumship Mastery. Audio course.
• NLS Mastery: Awaken the Inner Medium. NLS Mastery training.
• The Higher Self and Trance Mediumship. Audiobook on NLS TV.
• Jesus’ Jewels of Joy. Audiobook on NLS TV.
• Psychic Scams Exposed: How to Protect Yourself with Isabeau Maxwell. Episode.

Where to Go Next

• Spirit guides
• The Akashic Records
• Ascended masters
• Shared death experiences
• Angels
• Go deeper with Next Level Soul Mastery, our collection of in-depth courses.

A Free Gift

Hear Bashar channel, then try the ideas for yourself.

Reading about channeling is one thing. Hearing it is another. We recorded an original 20-minute Bashar channeling exclusively for Next Level Soul, and it is yours free in the Sacred Awakening Toolkit, along with meditations and a grounded roadmap for your awakening.

• Exclusive Bashar Channeling (20 Min). An original channeling recorded exclusively for Next Level Soul, with direct insights from one of the most influential channeled teachings of our time.
• 5 Sacred Meditations. Calm the mind, open the heart and reconnect with inner presence.
• Bonus: Cosmic Chakra Meditation (30 Min). Align and activate your energy centers.
• Spiritual Awakening Roadmap PDF. A clear, grounded guide to the awakening process.

First nameEmail addressSend Me My Toolkit

Free. Unsubscribe anytime. Your email is safe with us.

Meet channelers in their own words: Eluña Noelle and Belinda Womack.

Frequently Asked Questions