Intuition 101: Developing Your Clairsenses

Early on when I was developing my spiritual connection, I battled with tremendous self-doubt. It was hard for me to not compare my particular style of connecting with other mediums' experiences. It was clear to me that many mediums actually did "see" dead people or ghostlike apparitions. I wondered, "If I'm not seeing these ghosts standing next to the person I'm reading for, does that mean I'm not really connecting to spirit?" Meanwhile, I was, in fact, receiving profound validations or evidence from spirits to convince both the people I worked with and myself. There was a genuine connection being made.

As I started to explore the language of spirit and better understand how intuition works, I realized that my dominant way of receiving intuitive information was a more auditory experience rather than a visual one. The irony was that once I let go of my desire to "see," I started to recognize spirit energy as sparks of light, orbs and swirling wisps around the room. With time, I learned that while we have one or two dominant physical senses, we also have dominant intuitive senses and that we all connect with spirit in our own unique way. Our job is to figure out what way that is and then simply embrace it. And that's exactly what I'm going to help you to do.

Like radio waves, spiritual information is constantly being broadcast around us, so it's really just a matter of learning how to tune in to it. To interpret what spirit is broadcasting, you'll be using your five senses just like you do in your day-to-day life. And just as you may feel that some of your senses are more reliable than others for making everyday judgments, you have senses, or clairs, that are stronger for connecting with spirit.

The clair senses are types of psychic abilities that correspond with the five senses of seeing, hearing, feeling, smelling and tasting. When I tap into my intuition and spirit energy, my mind and body become flooded with mental impressions: thoughts, feelings, images, sounds, tastes and smells. To help you determine what your dominant clairs are, let me start by first explaining what they are and how our preferred senses shape our lives.

Defining the clair senses

Clairvoyance means clear seeing. 
This is when visions past, present and future flash through our mind's eye, or third eye, much like a daydream. Many of us are highly visual and able to understand an idea best when we see it written or sketched out as an image on a computer screen or on a canvas. Visual people often choose to be artists, builders, photographers, decorators, designers and so forth. If this sounds familiar, your clairvoyance is most likely a dominant sense.

Clairaudience means clear hearing. 
This is when we hear words, sounds or music in our own mind's voice. On rare occasions, spirit may be able to create audible sound, though this takes a tremendous amount of focused energy. Some of us best retain and comprehend information when we hear it spoken aloud. Our natural talents tend to lie in our auditory faculties, often making us gifted musicians, singers, writers and public speakers. If this feels right to you, clairaudience may be a leading sense for you.

Clairsentience means clear feeling. 
This entails feeling a person's or spirit's emotions or feeling another's physical pain. Many of us are clairsentient without consciously being aware of it. When we get a strong "gut" feeling, positive or negative, about someone we just met or when we get the "chills" for no apparent reason, we may be tuning into the emotional energy of a person or a spirit around us. When we are highly sensitive and are in tune with not only our own feelings, but also the feelings of others, this makes us natural healers and caregivers. We often feel inspired to pursue careers as doctors, therapists, counselors, nannies and teachers. If this is you, clairsentience is at the top of your senses list.

Clairalience means clear smelling. 
This is being able to smell odors that don't have any kind of physical source. Instances of this could include smelling the perfume or the cigarette smoke of a deceased relative, used as a sign of their presence around us. When our sense of smell is strong and distinct, we may find that certain smells connect us to past memories or we may be drawn to working as a florist, a wine taster or a perfume fragrance creator.

Clairgustance means clear tasting. 
This is the ability to taste something that isn't actually there. This experience oftentimes comes from out of the blue when a deceased loved one is attempting to communicate a memory or association we have with a particular food or beverage that reminds us of them. If we have a heightened sense of taste, this would make us natural chefs, bakers or food critics.

Claircognizance means clear knowing. 
This is when we have knowledge of people or events that we would not normally have knowledge about. Spirit impresses us with truths that simply pop into our minds from out of nowhere. An example of this would be a premonition: a forewarning of something that will happen in the future. Claircognizance requires tremendous faith because there's often no practical explanation for why we suddenly "know" something. Many philosophers, professors, doctors, scientists, religious and spiritual leaders and powerful sales and business leaders tend to be highly intuitive and seem to just know the facts with a sense of certainty. If this is you, consider claircognizance as one of your dominant senses.

How to recognize your dominant style of sensing

Now, how do you recognize what your preferred or dominant style of sensing is? Begin by sitting in a comfortable place where you won't be distracted for a few minutes. Scan the area around you, taking in all details and feelings of where you are. Then close your eyes and focus on your breath. Breathe deeply and slowly as you mentally review what caught your attention when you scanned the room. Was it the sight of something that stood out, the sound of something that you heard, the feeling of something registering in your stomach or heart, a taste or smell that suddenly appeared or a strong thought about something that hit you from out of the blue?

Still not sure what your dominant clair is? In my book Spirited: Connect to the Guides All Around You,chapter 5 "Tap the Source" offers a variety of exercises that pertain to each clair to help you better understand and sharpen your particular style of sensing. Believe it or not, we have access to all clairs and can strengthen them with practice and time.

Once you are aware of the different ways your intuition and Spirit can speak to you, a door is opened to this powerful guidance, which will assist you in creating a meaningful and magical spiritual journey.

Rebecca Rosen has served as a bridge between this world and those who have crossed over to the other side for the past 10 years. Her work has led to many guest appearances, including Entertainment Tonight, The Rachael Ray Show and Nightline, and her first book, Spirited: Connect to the Guides All Around You (HarperCollins). Due to the high and growing demand for spiritual truth, she has committed herself full time to serving as a medium and also educates thousands of people around the country with her seminars, lectures and workshops. Learn more about Rebecca by visiting her website.

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