Why Are Spirit So Vague With Messages?

One common reason the majority of people choose to disbelieve we can communicate with the spirit world is the absence of indisputable evidence supplied by mediums. But if we can communicate with the afterlife, and we’ve been able to do this for thousands of years, why is there still so much doubt and disbelief? Why is there a lack of proof? To understand this, we must first understand the processes involved. 

The personalities of the spirit world communicate with people on earth using whatever means they can, not just through mediums. But no matter how they relay their message, people have a natural and correct desire to rationalise and to seek alternative reasons for where the message came from. A timely white feather on the doorstep of a grieving person may be considered as a sign from the lost one, but there’s no evidence to substantiate it. It could be from a passing pigeon! For that message to be accepted by the grieving person, they must first desire to receive such signs. Otherwise, it remains just a random feather on the doorstep – not exactly a rare occurrence.

The spirit person might choose many ways to communicate with someone this side of life. But most attempts will go unnoticed if the intended person doesn’t believe in an afterlife, or doubts communication is possible. None the less, this person might choose to visit a medium. It might be at a public demonstration, community hall, local spiritualist church, or inviting one to their home. Surely an actual trained and able medium can bring that proof that their lost one lives on? 

There are different types of mediums, the most common being those that work with their minds—mental mediums. This means the medium uses their mind as the canvas to connect to the spirit world. There are many other types of medium communicators, such as physical mediums, who bring evidence that can be seen or heard. Physical mediums are few and far between because the training often takes years to develop. Because of their rarity, they demand a premium for their services. Sadly, that’s a fact of life nowadays. The majority of people will never get to experience a physical medium and the incredible miracles they can present. Physical mediums usually work in a strictly controlled environment, commonly referred to as a seance. Such occasions are life-changing for the sitters. The evidence is often indisputable, unbelievable, and thought-provoking. Invitations to attend a seance by a physical medium are rare, due to the conditions required to attend one. 

The most readily available communicators are the mental mediums, working with their minds and voicing the words of the person connecting to them from the other side. Most people will know one, either directly as a friend, or through a friend, or from someone that has witnessed one at work. I am an evidential medium, so even you now know of at least one!

Unfortunately, the process of mental mediumship is complex. From here on in, we’ll drop the word mental. It would be impossible for me to describe in detail how this process of communication works in this relatively short article. I’ll briefly outline the process and suggest why this form of spirit communication is debatable, often dubious, and lacking evidence that cannot be disputed. 

The spirit world is one of energy and vibration. Here on earth, everything is nothing more than energy. The solidness we experience, the touch, mass and weight of everything is created from energy fields. Atoms and molecules vibrating at a specific rate according to the compounds within the mix. Explaining this in more detail would require a degree in physics, so go with me for the moment. The earth as a planet has a vibration rate, as do we all. This vibration rate differs from that of the spirit world, where it is believed to be a faster rate. Trust me on this!

A medium connects to the spirit world after learning to attune their vibration rate – raise it. This is done by slowing down the activity in the mind through meditation practice and deliberate focus. Less activity in the mind raises the vibration rate. These states of mind are known as alpha, beta, theta and so on.  In a normal state of being, the conscious mind is in the beta state. When we sleep, the vibration rate rises and the mind passes through various states of vibration, alpha being the first and theta being a deep sleep state. Too much science here!

Basically, the medium adjusts their mind state to raise their vibration to get nearer the vibration rate of the spirit world. The personalities in the spirit world, lower their vibration rate in much the same way as we do, reversed. Somewhere in the middle, they are able to connect to the subconscious minds of mediums. Here, they can draw on memories stored in the mind of the medium and communicate with the medium. Bingo – we got there right? Well, yes and no. (I hate it when people say that!). Yes, that is effectively the process loosely summed up, but that is only the beginning of it for both parties involved.

The connection is very fast and requires a lot of energy to sustain. So the spirit people use it sparingly and wisely. Get it wrong and they effectively transmit wrong information. It happens, though not as often as some mediums would like to believe. The information they transmit is often not the most important stuff. You and I would love it if they were to introduce themselves with their name, gender, age, reason for passing, relationship to the recipient, and their message, all in one go. That is rarely going to happen as easily as that! 

The information the spirit person tapped into the subconscious mind to leave has to be drawn on by the medium. There is the first challenge for the medium. They have to interpret that information into a form of communication that makes sense. This is why you often hear a medium ask such rhetorical questions as “Why does this person in spirit bring memories to my mind of a red car I once owned?” The person in spirit has drawn on that memory for a reason. It might be a straightforward translation that is required, or it might need the medium to question the spirit person further.

“Why are you showing me my old Ford Capri?” asks the medium in their mind or aloud. The medium next thinks of a holiday they once had in the Mediterranean.

“Now I’m being reminded of a holiday in the med. Would you understand the Isle of Capri with this person?” Hey presto, assuming that makes sense to the recipient, the medium has successfully established who the person in spirit is. Easy right? Far from it. If the medium had remained hung up on the car’s colour, the communication would likely fail from that point. That simple example should help you appreciate that communications are often vague because of all the factors involved in producing it.

Of course, it goes without saying, the more skilled the medium is, the clearer the communication is likely to be. The medium may have previously established a method of communicating with their spirit team using symbols and specific memories, pictures, sounds and aromas, for example. The best mediums are often born aware of their gift from a young age. Therefore, they have years of understanding and practice as they grow older and use this gift. That said, mediumship can be learned at any age, given the time, devotion and learning of the craft. 

Most mediums appreciate that relaying evidence of a continuing life is essential. What would be the point otherwise? It is the role of the medium to seek that evidence through the connection with the person in the spirit world. The topic of what counts as evidence is subjective to the recipient. Often, good, strong evidence strengthens a connection by raising the energy – positive energy is light and faster. It might be in the form of a name, a date, a specific event memory, or something as simple as a scar on the left arm. It is up to the medium to relay the finest of details without using their normal mind too much to filter it. It is during the filtering through the mind that much detail is often lost. So, the medium has to remain alert and attuned throughout a communication. 

This is why some mediums will often make random statements, such as “My throat has just gone dry.” or “I feel I want to sit down.” or “I’m unusually nervous today.” Often, there are reasons for these statements being made and each might contain a snippet of valid evidence from the personality in the spirit world. That is why the medium should ignore nothing. 

Moving on, there are other obvious factors to consider. The first, and most important, is regarding the medium. Have they taken the time to establish a connection with the spirit world? This process is made harder when the medium has an audience with expectations. Nervous energy is negative and works against the connection process. Trained mediums have learned to overcome this and ideally will have established their own routine for connecting to the spirit world. Sadly, more often than we care to imagine, a medium will feel obliged to perform and the inexperienced one will attempt to fake a connection unwittingly. They often don’t set out to do that, it’s merely their desire to produce something that drives them to do so.

A mentor once taught me that honesty is the best policy. If I’m not connected to the spirit world, and can’t, for whatever reason, confess so. Step back, take a few moments and try again. I once held a demonstration near my home where the audience were rowdy, drinking, and enjoying a laugh about this new medium to the area from the south. No matter how I tried, I could not establish a connection with the spirit world. The pressure was on, and I was both nervous and sweating. After about fifteen minutes, rather than continuing to look a fool, I said I was sorry that I could not continue. I left the platform and called it a night. The circumstances were wrong, and my ability to connect was non-existent. That was the first time I’d ever had to do that, and it emotionally set me back. I care about my mediumship, and I was not prepared or experienced enough to deal with my lack of performance on that occasion. The audience will, of course, declare that Trevor’s a rubbish medium!

One of the most important aspects of a successful communication with the spirit world lays with the recipient. There are three people involved in a communication: The personality in the spirit world, the medium interpreting, and the recipient of the message. All are equally essential. When I first moved to the north of England, after a decade of learning and practising mediumship in the south, there was a massive culture difference. The northerners were less willing to speak during my mediumship demonstrations. They were often tight-lipped, taking away any bodily clues or facial expressions for me to rely on.  One lady that visited my home for a reading remained completely silent throughout her reading. Whenever I asked her anything, she ignored me and continued to remain silent. At the end of the hour long reading, I thought I had failed. But suddenly, as I looked beaten up, she said, “Now I will speak.“

She had been making notes throughout the reading. One by one, line by line, she reviewed everything I had said during her reading. Validation after validation followed. When she finally finished sharing her comments, she concluded with an absolute gold nugget piece of evidence I had given her. Is the approach she took with me the best? No far from it. She might well have got her proof that her late husband was around her, but her approach meant she missed out on an opportunity to speak to him. Though I was proud that I’d done an excellent job as a medium, I felt disappointed that the lady hadn’t got everything she could have from the occasion.

Nobody should ‘feed the medium’, but there is a fine line between that and helping strengthen the connection. Mediums often state at the beginning of a demonstration how important it is for your voice to be heard if the medium comes to them. It’s a vital ingredient. Even the statement, “I don’t understand that,” helps the connection become stronger. That’s not a negative energy, it’s neutral and honest. Understand that when a medium relays a message to you, the medium might have interpreted it wrong from the person in spirit. Have a flexible attitude and especially take note of all the details, including the phrasing from the medium, their mannerisms, and even the way they look at you. 

The standard of mediumship varies, but even a good medium can have an off-day. Mediumship is not guaranteed, nor is a connection, especially not to specific people in spirit. Finding a reliable medium can be hard, especially if your close family and friends don’t know of one. Word of mouth tends to be reliable, though it’s worth considering whether the medium is a friend of the person recommending them. There might be a bias. It’s also not about how much a medium charges. Some of the best mediums often don’t charge, though it is worth compensating them for their time and expenses. There are a few professional mediums available, but be cautious. Professional simply means they earn their living from mediumship and doesn’t automatically make them any better than anyone else. 

In summary, this brief article has offered many explanations why some mediums appear to give vague messages from the spirit world. For the most part, it’s generally due to the quality of the medium’s work. If you’ve parted with hard-earned cash and the medium has given nothing of value in their reading to you, perhaps you’ve grounds to complain. Most mediums recognise whether they’ve connected and given good evidence. They’ll know if their evidence was weak and might choose not to charge you. 

Remember this: for most people, the notion of receiving an evidential communication from their loved one in the spirit world is precious, and some might suggest it is miraculous. What price is that worth to you? Consider also that the medium might have spent thousands of pounds training, with hundreds of hours developing and learning their craft. You are paying for their time and their abilities, so don’t feel you should get a reading for nothing.

If you’re in the presence of a medium, have a notebook at hand. Better still, use your smartphone (in silent mode) to record the session. Later, you can listen back and most likely pick up many details you missed during the actual reading. This is how you get the best from your investment.

Finally, as with any occupation, there are many mediums to choose from. Some are better than others. Don’t let an experience with a not-so-good medium put you off. There are many more, and the next one might bring you the message you’ve longed for.