Most religions have an aspect of ‘blind faith’ involved somewhere, as does spirit work and anything metaphysical. After all, we have to have at least some moderation of faith in something intangible and unquantifiable for us to actually believe in it.
However, no matter how much ‘blind faith’ is involved, we still need to practice discernment to separate the real from the imagination.
Feel free to send me an ask if you have any questions regarding discernment and how to incorporate it into your practice/religion!
What is discernment?
The very basic and straightforward dictionary definition of discernment is “the ability to judge well”. To me, this means being able to understand what is true (and what is not true) when it comes to any of my practices.
Why use discernment?
Not everything you see and hear is true, and discernment is how you scour through what you learn (and what you experience) in order to flesh out what is accurate.
This could be done for a variety of different things: for example, I use discernment to see which articles or posts I find are true. On the flip side, I also use it in the metaphysical version of my practice to figure out if I actually had some sort of experience, or if it was just the wind.
It helps add truth to my practice, and helps me learn from any of my experiences. Sure, I could let myself believe that I had the experiences that were just my imagination, but I wouldn’t learn or grow.
How does discernment work with the metaphysical and religions?
When interacting with deities or spirits, it’s helpful to break the experience into sections and ask yourself a myriad of questions for each part of the experience. I had compiled a list of helpful questions from my previous blog and have them listed below.
It’s extremely helpful to keep track of any and all experiences you may have as well! Compare them to each other. Do you notice trends? Are there specific things that pop out to you? Do these experiences coincide with any specific mental states or feelings? Would there be any other reason for it to occur (ie mundane causes)?
For audio experiences (ie hearing voices/noises/etc) ask yourself:
Is this something you would actually say? Is this something you would actually think?
Are there words you wouldn’t normally say? Are there words that you don’t even know?
Is it a coherent thought? Does it make sense? Is there a reason that thought would appear?
Does it feel like you said it or does it feel like it originated from an outside source? Does it catch you off guard or startle you?
Is there an accent? Any sort of tone or inflection that does not sound like your own?
Is it normal for you to have random thoughts? Do you normally respond to yourself in your head?
Is the thought a response to something you said? How does it relate to what you said?
Ask multiple questions- do the responses all sound the same? Do they all add up?
Does it sound like an actual conversation with someone else (even if it sounds like your voice)?
Do they coincide with a spirit visiting? Try practicing with and without a spirit around to create a baseline for your experiences.
If the voice is telling you to do something: what are they telling you? Why would they tell you to do it? What would they have to gain from it?
Do a reading- does it confirm what you heard?
For physical experiences (such as phantom touches, seeing things, etc.) ask yourself:
Is there a breeze even without the airflow? Is it warm or cold? Is there normally a breeze like that? Do you feel the breeze if you move to another area? Is it the same strength and feeling?
Do you feel unusually hot or cold? Is this normal for you? Does it cover your entire body or stay in one spot?
Is there a feeling of pressure? Is it in one spot? Move that body part, is it still there? Is it natural for you to feel pressure?
Do you feel tingling? Does it cover your entire body or stay in one spot? Is it natural for you to feel tingling? Does it go away when you move?
Is there a feeling of discomfort in a particular spot? Move that body part, is it still there? Is it natural for you to feel discomfort in that area?
Walk around, do you still feel those sensations? Do you feel them in another position?
Do you still feel those sensations when repeating this exercise?
Do you still feel those sensations outside of the exercise?
Do these sensations change or move? Do they get stronger or weaker over time?
Do they coincide with a spirit visiting? Try practicing with and without a spirit around to create a baseline for your experiences.
If you work with a spirit, ask them to touch your shoulder, and then a different body part. Do you feel any sort of sensation? Is it consistent even in different areas?
Do a reading- does it confirm what you felt?
As you may have noticed, I mentioned doing follow up readings for verification on experiences. It’s also helpful (especially when working with spirits/deities that have mythology tied to them) to do research and see if that fits into what’s already known about them and how they act. Obviously no one person or entity fits into a box, but it is helpful to see how your experience compares to what is known.
When looking at others experiences and posts (and academic journals, books, etc) to help verify your experiences, it’s helpful to ask yourself:
Who is the author?
What experience does the author have/how long have they been working with their craft? Are they an expert in the field or your average Joe?
How long ago was it published? Who published it?
What do they have to gain from their work? Are they using it to boost themselves/their shop/sell their book/etc.
Are they an unbiased source? Are their sources unbiased?
Do they site their sources if pulling from other works? What is the original work focused on?
Is this the most recent version of the work? What has been changed or edited? Why was it changed or edited?
Additional Resources
[Psychic Abilities, Communication, and Discernment Masterpost] by me, from my previous blog (deactivated)
[Discernment and You] by another mod, from my previous blog (deactivated)
[Differentiating Reality and Imagination] by @ershiqi
[Ask: How do you know what the gods are telling you?] by @thetwistedrope
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