Spirit Actualized

[Zzyzxd]

I’m trying to frame this question properly, so bear with me. For most of my life I’ve been pretty sceptical when it comes to spirits in a literal sense. I’ve always leaned more toward seeing things like angels or demons as archetypal or energetic expressions, something real in a symbolic or non-physical way, but not necessarily something that could take on a formed presence.

At the same time, I do believe in consciousness, energy, and reality as an emanation of a deeper source, and have come to find magick is real, so I’m not coming at this from a purely materialist angle either.

What I’m genuinely curious about is this, has anyone here had a direct experience where a spirit seemed to actualise in a formed, perceivable way, something that felt distinct from imagination, symbolism, or internal vision, something that presented itself as an external presence with its own agency?

I’m not asking about general feelings, intuition, or altered states alone, but rather experiences where you felt you encountered something that was, for lack of a better term, a formed spirit, not just spirit as an abstract or underlying essence.

Would be really interested to hear how people interpret or make sense of those kinds of experiences, especially from those who didn’t always believe in that sort of thing.

 

[Ohana]

I encountered something once. It was at night and I woke up and I'm pretty sure I saw a ghost look down at me. It was kind of blue-ish and its form didn't look stable so when I moved it vanished.

I always thought it was just my mind playing tricks on me since I was asleep but it seemed real. It was kind of vaporish but had heavy feeling of disappointment? Judgement? I don't know. It looked like my late grandma.

Even after expierencing this I still didn't fully believe in really spirits still since it at night and I thought I might have been dreaming. It was a little weird though because the spirit was watching me sleep.

 

[borbponderer]

If you believe in "archetypal or energetic expressions" why not just call it a spirit? Having to rationalise this stuff in psychological terms gets old pretty fast. I experience it as if it's real, so it is real. It doesn't matter what anyone else thinks.

 

[Zzyzxd]

If you believe in "archetypal or energetic expressions" why not just call it a spirit? Having to rationalise this stuff in psychological terms gets old pretty fast. I experience it as if it's real, so it is real. It doesn't matter what anyone else thinks.

I guess i am just trying to figure out if an archetypal energy could actualise, or is an energectic expression different to an actual spirit?

 

[borbponderer]

I guess i am just trying to figure out if an archetypal energy could actualise, or is an energectic expression different to an actual spirit?

I would be inclined to treat them as the same or closely related, but someone else with a different cosmology might differ. Perhaps an energetic expression is more like a created thoughform, whereas a spirit is something different? The etheric realm is supposed to be of a denser substancel, closer to the material realm than the astral, and tends to be more like what I think of as "energy". Perhaps the differing densities of substance form a continuum? I don't really have a firm cosmological model for all of this.

I've seen and heard things as if they were through with my literal senses, but a skeptic would argue that I was hallucinating and/or delusional at the time. It's something that only happens rarely for me. One time auditory, but otherwise awake. The visual is more associated with near sleep/hypnogia/dream type visions.

As I've developed my practice my inner sight has gotten stronger. Less of visualising what I want to see, and more looking to see what is already there. A couple of recent pathworking were really clear and vivid. I tend to just take it all at face value

Not sure if I'm talking about the same thing as you are..?