by Ronnee Ruselle

Here is some basic information that may help you to understand the role of your guide/s and their connection to you.

A guide is a spirit. We generally accept a spirit to be the soul of a person who has passed away, but a guide is much more.

Spirits who have passed away and are what is generally termed earth-bound still have a connection to the physical world so they do not get to feel the beautiful energy that is experienced on the other side. Guides are on the other side, but they are able to come to us and assist us get through our lessons in this lifetime so that we can achieve as much as possible.

Guides are love. They carry with them the beautiful energy experienced on the other side and this can sometimes be felt when you communicate with them. They still have their own personalities, but they do not have what are considered to be personality flaws associated with a physical existence. No greed, anger, impatience, fear or anything of the kind.

What are Permanent and Temporary Guides?

While we are in this lifetime, we will be guided by one or more permanent guides and we may also be assisted by temporary guides. A permanent guide is one who is with you from birth till death.

There can be any number of temporary guides. They will come for as long as they are needed and will leave when their service is no longer required. There is no typical period of time for this. It can be for days or even up to most of a lifetime.

Is it better to have more guides?

No. It makes no difference at all. The number of guides and the type of guides you have are determined by your needs in this lifetime, your compatibility with them etc. The person with 3 guides has no advantage or disadvantage over the person with one guide.

Why do we need guides?

When we enter into this lifetime, we have goals to fulfil. Guides are our aids or helpers. They do only what the name suggests - they guide. This means that they do not live the life for us. They do not give us the answers or tell us what to do and they do not interfere with our choices. They give us a direction to head in and try to help us stay on our path. As far as what experiences we have on that path and how we handle the situation; that is up to us. The guides may choose to assist us with things at times, but generally they prefer a hands-off approach, giving us more opportunity to learn through our experiences, decisions and choices.

How are our guides chosen?

There can be at least a couple of ways that our guides are chosen. We can ask them to guide us or they can ask us for the honour. To them, it is considered to be an honour to help another person to attain enlightenment which is basically what we are here to do. We may have met them before, they could have been suggested to us by another person or they may approach us and ask to help us.

The reasons we select certain guides depends upon a number of factors:

Personality and similarities - Guides can directly resemble the person they guide in some way whether that be through personality, experiences, likes and dislikes - it can be in any way, but there is always some similarity, This compatibility would help the Guide to understand us and connect with us.

Our Lessons - In our lifetime we can face any number of challenges. A Guide can be chosen because he/she has some expertise or experience that we need to help our learning.

Our needs - Apart from being able to understand us and guide us, our guides can also fill a role of supplying extra support when needed. For example, a very shy person may need an outgoing Guide or a person who suffers a lifetime filled with emotional pain may have a guide who is very good at healing emotional pain or a Guide who is protective may temporarily stay with someone to protect them from a dangerous situation.

So guides will be chosen to be compatible with our personality, strengths, weaknesses, experiences, decisions and lessons just to name a few. Ultimately, although we may know some reasons for why we choose a guide, only our higher selves know all of the reasons. Guides often will not go into detail about the subject.

How do they help us?

How our guides help us is known mostly only to them. They will give a vague idea of how they help us without giving specific information. They may protect us, heal us, educate us, lead us to what we need and who we are to meet - anything to do with 'guiding'. What they don't do is follow our orders, make our decisions for us, stop us from having experiences or rescue us from our own stupidity. They will guide and direct you, but they will not force you to follow their advice. The final decision in any situation is always yours and they will always respect that.

How do I get my guide to communicate with me?

Most of us don't hear our guides. Being able to hear guides requires a particular talent for clairaudience. This is not necessary for connecting with your guides as that can be achieved on a range of levels. In most cases, the lack of direct contact with our guides is deliberate. We are here to learn our own lessons and get through life using our own wisdom, courage and judgement. It's too easy for people to try and 'lean' on their guides, making the incorrect assumption that the guides are there to lead them by the hand and answer all of their questions, save them from making mistakes and protect them from all pain.

Many people think that we are meant to communicate with our guides and so they look for that communication. This is not necessary. Your Guides will know when and if they are to communicate directly with you.

The safest thing is not to make assumptions. If it's a guided message, it will become obvious, otherwise following your instincts will be your best way of connecting with your guide and following their direction. They will come to you when the time is right and if it is truly needed.

Should you need to know whether your guides are around you, remember the moments of emotional pain when you suddenly felt peace and the moments of doubt when you suddenly had answers. You will know that they are around. Remember the moments when you feel as if you're practically pushed into a situation that turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to you.

If you wish to communicate with your guides, then simply talk to them. They hear everything you say, feel and think. If you're unsure as to whether something is a guide 'message' then ask for another until you feel certain.

What reasons would a guide need to visit?

The reasons vary, but there are a few main reasons:

Comfort - To let you know that they are around or to give that person comfort in times of need or upset.

Duty - If you work with the Guides or pass on messages for them.

Last Resort - Sometimes a guide will need to make himself/herself known to the person they guide if you don't get their messages. If you constantly ignore the signs that are being given to you, the guides may be nice enough to bring your attention to them so that they can help you avoid unnecessary pain or wasted time. Sometimes they will draw your attention to situations of possible danger.

What ways can a guide communicate with me?

There is no limit to the ways a guide can communicate. They could:

• give you ideas and thoughts
• lead you to things and situations that are needed
• give you a sudden 'feeling' or desire to do something
• give you messages through tools such as tarot
• communicate with you in your sleep
• connect with you through meditation
• lead you in creative avenues
• communicate through your gut instincts
• speak to you directly whether you hear them with your ears or with your mind just like with your own thoughts

and more.

Can guides share past lives with us?

Yes, they can. They could also be guiding you for the first time with no previous connection to you.

Are all guides family members?

No. It's not uncommon for family members to join your guides for a time and help, but mostly they just come for a visit and then return to whatever they are doing on the other side. Some peoples guides have been related to them at some point in a past life. Not always of course. They could have been your teacher, friend, lover, dog, enemy - the list is endless. You can have family members from your current ancestry visit you or guide you. These would be people you never personally met.

Are there different types of guides?

Yes there are. The guide type is related to the role they are playing or the duties they are performing. They could be teacher, ange (healing and defence), guide, messenger, elder and there are probably many more.

Basically, following your instincts and recognizing the hint to move on with something in life etc. will help you to follow your Guides directions thereby staying on your path so listen to those instincts and you too will have a wonderfully close connection to your guides.