The Physical Manifestation Spectrum

I have been trying to find a way to express this idea of deities as physically manifest entities. It’s a bit intimidating for me, because it isn’t something I hear anyone else talking about. I feel a little crazy. Even when testing the waters, when I start to talk about it, people immediately assume that I am talking about possession. I’m not. It may be a type of trance, I really don’t know, but it has nothing at all to do with horsing or carrying.

I’m not saying that I at all know what causes this, or that I have any control over when it happens, or that I even have the slightest inkling about what makes it more likely to happen, but I have seen and felt deities physically manifest without a human proxy. The things I do know are what I’ve done that has halted the unfolding of a manifestation in its tracks.

I am going to try and outline the spectrum of experiences that I have had, and hopefully try to make sense of it, somehow.

Here are the stages:

Anticipation. Have you ever had the experience where you were sitting with your eyes closed, and you could feel someone looming over you? You weren’t seeing them, exactly, and maybe you didn’t hear them, they certainly weren’t touching you, but you could somehow feel them moving closer? That feeling you get, as that person is moving a finger toward your face, even though they have not yet poked you, is similar to the feeling that I am describing. I may or may not get an energy signature or a “presence” at this point in time. I may not know which entity it is, hovering over me. Energetically, or psychically, I may feel nothing at all.

Shivers, chills and color flashes. The feeling is a little like goosebumps, I guess. If you have ever spoken an invocation, and felt your skin shiver or tingle, you know what I’m talking about. This may or may not be accompanied by somewhat localized flashes of color appearing randomly in the air — easy to mistake for tracers (what you experience, for example, when you stare at a white piece of paper and then into a darker area), except that it can occur even when you have been in complete darkness for quite some time.

Highly located shivers or chills and color flashes. You have that same sense of skin-shiver or skin-tingle, but it is curiously located, such as being on one of your arms, or a single leg, or just in one spot of your forehead. Color flashes take on a humanoid (or other appropriate) shape but are fleeting. At this point, I think, it is easier for things to progress if you keep still, calm and quiet, while remaining alert and focused on your physical senses. Going into a trance state does not facilitate the development of the manifestation. I find that making an offering will likewise halt the progression.

Details begin to resolve. That skin-shiver or tingle may take on the exact shape of a human hand. The color flashes include a discernible outline of the entity’s characteristic staff or other garment. Ever think you heard your cellphone ring, but really, you didn’t? You might think you heard the entity say something, in a similar way. Again, I have found that getting excitable halts the development of the manifestation. If you were sitting on a fallen tree in the middle of the forest, and a deer started to inch over to you, any sound or sudden movement might cause them to bolt. Try not to tense up. In my experience, deities especially are very concerned that, during this process, they might hurt or scare you. Any sign that you are distressed will send them running.

Details solidify. Rather than a shiver or a tingle, you might faintly feel skin brushing against skin. It has, at this point in time, no sense of weight or permanence, for lack of a better description. Color flashes have solidly resolved into the image of the entity, though parts of the image may seem out of proportion, and will almost certainly be translucent. You may hear their voice, seldom above a whisper, or footsteps, perhaps sounding like they are far away, while being right there. At this point, the manifestation is going to be somewhat stable, but still, don’t make any sudden movements. You no longer need to focus on staying calm. Being excited is ok. Wiggling your toes or shifting the position of your arms, slowly, is ok. Be careful not to try to touch the manifestation at this point, because, even though they can touch you, if you try to touch them, your hand will pass right through, which will trigger cognitive dissonance, and the manifestation will vanish.

Reality concedes defeat. The entity appears and feels fully solid, complete with apparent weight, and their voice is very clear, but the environs no longer look quite right. The colors of the room are off. The outlines of solid objects may wiggle. Smaller objects may appear to vanish from the environment. Your thoughts are clear, and you are fully yourself, but your ability to move your physical body may be impaired. It is totally ok to shift positions and move at this point, or to touch the entity. They will feel completely solid to the touch. Even a bear hug won’t cause the manifestation to budge. You can speak, if you are able. If the deity feels fully solid, but has manifested behind you, I advise you not to turn around. Wait for them to come around to your front. They may have manifested behind you for your safety. I get the sense that deity bodies may be more than 3 dimensional. Parts of their bodies may strangely shrink and grow without moving or losing solidity. Having once looked at a deity who appeared to exist in the physical plane in a way that I could only describe as, “insulting to Euclidian geometry,” I do not actually recommend the experience.

As a sort of disclaimer, all of my experiences with this have been private. I’m rather interested to know if it is possible to have these experiences with multiple humans present. Just in writing this, I have clarified some ideas in my head about what to try next, so, if nothing else, I have found writing this out to be very helpful.