SPIRIT GUIDES / GUARDIAN ANGELS By Betty Jantz   Belief systems throughout the world vary as to who or what watches over us. Belief that God sends a spirit to watch over us was common in ancient Greek philosophy, and Plato alludes to it in Phaedo, 108. As early as the third millennium b.c.e., the written records of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia recognized a hierarchy of supernatural beings that ruled over various parts of the Earth, the universe, and the lives of human beings. The Mesopotamians wanted to be certain that they were well protected by their spiritual guardians, the shedu and the lamassu. The lamassus were portrayed as grotesque creatures that looked like lions or bulls with human heads and large wings and were placed as statues at the entrances of temples to ward off evil. In Islam there are believed to be two angels or “honored writers” that guard over us, one on each shoulder. In many branches of Christianity it is believed that at birth everyone is given a guardian angel to who they can turn to in times of stress or temptation. The Christian concept of patron saints – St Christopher, for example, who is believed to protect travelers – may have developed from a belief in guardian spirits. This might also allude to the possibility that there is more than one angel/spirit that is assigned to us. It would appear that there has been some kind of tradition of a Guardian Angel or type of Spirit Guide assigned to each individual human soul in many religions and philosophies, however, not all. Many of us at one time or another has heard of Spirit Guides and Guardian Angels, but how many of us really know who they are, what they do, or how to communicate with them? Is a spirit guide the same as a guardian angel and/or is a guardian angel the same as a spirit guide or are they separate entities? Webster’s Dictionary starts the search to break down these terms. Webster’s defines Spirit as a supernatural being or essence. The dictionary defines a Guide “as one that leads or directs another’s way; something that provides a person with guiding information; a person who directs another’s conduct or course of life.” So we have a “supernatural being or essence that provides direction. A Guardian is defined as “one who has the care of the person or property of another; one that guards; a custodian. An Angel is defined by Webster’s as a spiritual being superior to humans in power and intelligence. In The Angel Bible by Hazel Raven, Hazel tells us that the word came from the ancient Greek word angelos, meaning “messenger”. Here we have a spiritual messenger believed to have special care of a particular individual. In Sylvia Browne’s book, Phenomenon, a fundamental difference between these entities becomes apparent. Sylvia tells us that angels never incarnate. Angels are able to take human form to accomplish brief missions here on earth, but they have never lived a life in a human body here on earth. Sylvia also tells us that spirits are beings who have traveled through the tunnel and made it safely to the Other Side. She also explains that Spirit Guides have experienced at least one incarnation, so they are able to empathize with the problems, mistakes, temptations, fears and frailties inevitable in the human world. The seventeenth-century mystic Amos Komensky (1592-1670) declared that each child has an angel “given to him by God and ordained to be his guardian, that (the angel) might guard him preserve him, and protect him against all dangers and snares, pits, ambushes, traps, and temptations.” It is easy to say what Guardian Angels do but to put it into a literal sense and be able to recognize it in our daily lives is quite another story. What might we need guarding from or protection from? How might we recognize a temptation? How might we recognize when our Guardian Angel has stepped in and protected us? Perhaps the best answer to that is to really become aware of our surroundings. So often we go about our daily lives without paying attention to what is actually going on around us. Have our lives become such a routine that we somehow are missing out on the “BIG PICTURE”? What usually comprises our daily lives does indeed include dangers and temptations. Every time we go for a ride in the car, on the bus, on the train or airplane we are at risk. How many “close calls” have there been. Many times accidents have occurred just before our arrival or right behind us. Just recently I experienced an episode of driving on ice in bumper to bumper traffic with extremely high winds. When the wind blew my car into a skid and ultimately off the road I knew right away I was in danger and so was everyone else around me. Looking back now, however, I remember that strangely enough, at the time I began skidding, there was no car beside me and the cars behind me had increased their distance. Coincidence or was my Guardian Angel in the car with me? For some, this incident might just appear as an accident and go on down the road. For others it would be a time to give thanks to our Guardian Angels. I am sure that if each of us stops long enough to think about it, we can become aware of incidences that perhaps it really wasn’t “dumb luck” that got us through. Sometimes “dumb luck” can happen so unconsciously that it is difficult to recognize it for what it actually is. Choosing a different direction to get to work than what you normally take is an example. We don’t consciously know why we feel this strong urge to go a different way but we follow that urge. Upon arrival we find out on the news that something happened on our normal route that could have, at the very least, delayed us or at the most harmed us. Again, was this coincidence or a bit of ethereal help? The cool thing is that if we are aware of a degree of danger in something that we have to do, such as getting to and from work each day, we can ask for protection from our Guardian Angels. That’s not to say that they will protect us from all reckless endangerment that we put ourselves in. We must remember to use our five senses and trust our “Higher Power and Sources” for the rest. Spirit guides can be equally elusive to our conscious awareness. They guide us everyday of our lives. Again, awareness is what is needed to recognize their presence. I was told, by a psychic, that my spirit guide is a Shoshone Indian girl. Curious person that I am, I chose to go to the computer to see what I could find out about the Shoshone Indian tribe. Where did they reside in the United States, etc? My search revealed a very well known Shoshone girl that acted as a guide for the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Her name was Sacagawea. Since I went into the computer with the intent of knowing more about my Spirit Guide, I concluded that this was indeed who my Spirit Guide must be. She assists me every day with how, where and with whom my daily activities take me. Many times we have heard stories of children and their “imaginary friends”. When open minded parents have asked the children to describe these friends and what their names are it has been discovered that a grandparent or other relative that crossed over to the Other Side before the child’s birth is that “imaginary friend”. Perhaps another term for these “imaginary friends” are Spirit Guides. Our Spirit Guides are here to guide and direct us to a higher level of understanding as well as help us with specific concerns. With this in mind, even though we might not take the advice of our guides, they offer unconditional love and do not judge us for not following their suggestions. Communication with our ethereal helpers is as easy as simply talking to them. Knowing their names is as simple as asking them. The most important thing is to listen. Some may call their answers intuition, some may call it their inner voice. Certainly there is our own logic and five senses that determines our daily decisions, but let’s not discount a bit of extra help along the way. And let’s not forget our manners…say “thank you”. According to a poll conducted by Time magazine and published in the December 27, 1993 issue, 69% of Americans believed in the existence of angels, and 46% were certain that they had their own Guardian Angels to watch over them and to guide them. Of those men and women polled by the magazine, 32% claimed that they had personally felt the presence and/or guidance of ethereal entities in their lives; and 15% believed that the heavenly helpers who ministered to them were the benevolent spirits of humans who had died, rather than higher spiritual beings with special powers. A similar poll conducted by Self magazine for its December 1997 issue found that 87% of readers believed in angels. It is welcome knowledge to know that we don’t have to think or feel that we must face our lives and everything that comes into it alone. Once we become aware of the presence of our Guardian Angels and Spirit Guides (we can have more than one of each) they are ecstatic that we know of them. It is with total love that they assist us in our everyday lives. When our Guardian Angels and Spirit Guides appear to us, what is actually happening is that we are allowing ourselves to become more receptive to their presence. They are always with us, 24/7 without exception. They never engender fear, anxiety, insecurity, or other discomforting emotions. Their glow of love for us and care is their calling card. Their presence will elicit feelings of acceptance, warmth, comfort, a sense of peace and always love. Some believe that the same Guardian Angel and Spirit Guide are with us throughout our lifetime. Others believe that as circumstances change in our lives so does the Guardian Angel and Spirit Guide. That many ethereal beings may be assigned to certain tasks, to help us with, is certainly open for debate. Perhaps it wouldn’t hurt for us to check in on our awareness on a regular basis. We just might find out that there is a multitude of loving help out there whether we remember to ask for it or not.

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