Channeling For Fun And Prophet
Farrell J. McGovern
Channeling is one of the more popular parts of what is call the "New Age". It is also one of the most controversial aspects of this movement.
To properly channel someone, be it Marylin Monroe, Aliester Crowley (I have been told this doesn't work well...) or Devine, one must know something of this person. The easiest way is by reading about this person. Autobiographies are the best, of course, but biographies, news reports, or even old photos are almost as good. You need some connection...
In Pagandom, and Wicca, popular beings for channeling are various aspects of the God and the Goddess. Again, one must know as much as possible about the Lady or Lord that you are going to bring into yourself for the enjoyment, edification and education of the others in the Circle with you.
The most popular source of information on Gods and Goddesses is again in books. Since there are many aspects of deities, there is a great deal of literature about these beings. Most of this literature that is over a couple of hundred of years old is usually in the form of Fables or Epics, which have more literary content than reality. One could easily call these works Docu-dramas, but they are still fiction.
"But..." I hear you ask, "How can they channel these beings if all they know about them is fictional?" Well, there seems to be enough consensus on certain deities, but not on all. But these rituals work, as anyone who has attended the beautiful "Drawing Down the Moon" ritual of Wicca.
So it seems to me that the idea of a "consensual reality" is created from the energies that all these people put into their concept of whatever God or Goddess they believe in. There are hundreds of thousands, maybe even millions of people who believe in Cerwdwin, Eris, Hecate, Cherenous, and others. But...are there not also millions of people who believe in Captain James T. Kirk? Arthur Dnt? Catwoman? Batman? Smurfs?...or even Peewee Herman?
Imagine some Circle performing the Drawing Down The Moon ceremony, and due to a lack of concentration by the priestess, she channels, not Athena, but Marry Tyler-Moore?!?!?!? Or the priest channeling PeeWee Herman?!?!?!
We shall leave the further exploration of this to some experimental coven...but please! If you manage to channel Papa Smurf...we DON'T want to hear about it!