Glyn Edwards
A Renowned Medium Remembered

Q&A section on Spiritual Implications of Mediumship with Glyn Edwards

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When did you start to notice that you had the abilities you have? Have they caused you any problems in your development and what has been the spiritual implications of these abilities?

   I can remember having experiences that could be classed as mediumistic when I was around four years old. But it was not until I was older and about the age of 18 that I realised the significance of these experiences. In my teenage years I experienced what could be classed as a spiritual crisis, as the experiences were making me take a much broader view of some of the things I had been brought up to believe. And when I started to investigate and be involved in Spiritualistic fields of work I also encountered problems, but of a different kind. As certain abilities unfolded I was given advice that now seems to me to be limiting and does not take into account the spiritual whole of our being. For instance, I was often given the impression that gifts such as mediumship, healing and teaching were abilities that worked separately from one another and if I concentrated on only one area it would not necessarily help with the development of other abilities. Yet as I progressed I found that this was not the case. Like a layer upon layer I discovered that all abilities are interconnected as they are after all parts of our being and link us with the creativity of all life. It is through this that I discovered the need to be open to and realise the oneness and wholeness of spiritual unfoldment.
   I realised that any kind of healthy development needed to include and work with many facets of our being, including conflicting parts or any set-backs on the spiritual path in order to unfold an integrative awareness of a sacred wholeness that has the power to bring balance into our lives. From this we realise the true centre of our being that radiates out through all that we do and are. I realised that there could be no limits or boundaries placed on the ultimate essence of our being. For if the divine is limitless and in all, and all is in the divine, then the creative abilities we have must also be limitless.
   I have come to see that the spiritual potential within us is not confined. It is we who place restrictions upon it. In my early years I realised that I had to be careful when listening to those who sought to impose rigid beliefs about a separation between different areas of life. What I have now found is that we need to find a sense of freedom within ourselves to face our journey of unfoldment, from which comes a discovery of an inclusive and compassionate understanding that trusts and nurtures the whole of our being. Ultimately, the spirit, the true Self that we are, is deathless, changeless and full of infinite positive potential and seeks harmonious expression through all.

 

The spirit world as mediums and shamans generally think of it is not always there in the same way in other traditions. Can you possibly explain why? Further to this, mediums and shamans often paint a physical and dualistic view of the afterlife that seems rather like life as we already know it, except with a spirit body instead of a physical one. Contemporary science, as well as many mystical insights, talk more about an interconnected oneness. Where do you stand on this?

   An interconnected oneness fits more with my own understanding. Beliefs as we know are invariably influenced by the cultures we grow up in and even spiritual experiences are influenced by set beliefs. It is easier for us to grasp aspects of a spiritual dimension if we think of it in similar ways to everyday life. For some it is a helpful way of relating to the spirit world. But we can see that it creates a sense of physicality about it as a means to explain a dimension that is ultimately bound up with and interacting with and through all. 
   All the great wisdom and mystical traditions have beliefs about an afterlife. Yet all have slightly different perspectives. When it comes to beliefs, I feel we have to consider the point you raised in this book and fleshed out in The House of Wisdom about I am right and you are wrong approaches, as they can only lead to divisions and conflicts instead of a respectful acceptance of difference or a mature spirituality that allows us to agree to disagree without being unsettled by another person’s opinion. For me and knowledgeable teachers I have felt privileged to have met from numerous disciplines and if we look at what some of the great spiritual teachers of history have had to say about what this other dimension encompasses, we come to realise there are realms where we go beyond concepts and definitions. 
   I believe just as physical existence is unfolding that the life of a disembodied spirit personality is also evolving toward an interrelated state of pure being and consciousness that is about unity and interconnectedness rather than individual separateness. As to how much my own acquired beliefs have influenced this view, who can say. However, contemporary scientific investigations are starting to confirm much of this understanding, which can be traced back to the insights of various mystical traditions. I do feel however that prevalent beliefs we hold prior to and after death of the physical body can create the image of a physical realm. But from my experience as a medium, this image appears to be quickly dropped as a wider expanse of experience is awakened to. 
   Other areas of interest are found in the way some spirit communicators describe after-death states as being similar to our physical world and yet others do not. We will have to decide for ourselves what is true or not instead of relying on what others tell us to believe. 
   An individual may undergo spiritual and mediumistic types of experience that seem very real to him or her. Nonetheless, modern psychology warns us that all experiences are invariably coloured by present as well as past systems of belief and previous experience. I think we have to be careful about seeing things as either black or white and accept that there are many grey areas of development before arriving at a clear understanding about some things. This is after all what the word ‘development’ implies – an ongoing process of evolvement, which includes an evolvement of our beliefs. 
   Discovering spiritual truths does not always happen overnight. We need to encourage each other and ourselves to work deeply and probe within ourselves and any experiences or openings we have in order to arrive at what is truly valid and ultimately real. For me, one test for contemplating whether something is spiritually valuable or not is if it allows for an inclusion, acceptance and compassionate embracing of others. If it does not, it surely has not gone far enough. For it has not reached that understanding of an interconnected oneness you mentioned.

 

On the one hand some people might think being in touch with spirit people a bit strange. On the other hand, these same people might consider being in touch with divinity as more of a natural experience. What would you say to such people?

   We cannot separate the spirit world from the divine as everything is interrelated. If as I believe all life survives and is interconnected, then why should it appear strange to commune and be in contact with different realms of existence? In all the great wisdom and mystical traditions this contact with other realms has been mentioned and has at various times throughout history to the present day been practised. In some traditions, people who walked this Earth have come to be revered as saints, gods or goddesses and there are accounts of communication with these people in nonphysical after death states. 
   We also need to consider how throughout the ages ancestor worship has been intrinsically bound up with many traditions even to this day, how there are accounts about those that have been described as angelic beings communicating with various people, and how some have prayed to different individuals such as saints, as they are seen as intercessors before God who will act on people’s behalf. There are also shamans and oracles who are consulted in various traditions and many renowned mystics have displayed mediumistic types of abilities.
   It seems to me that there has always existed in humankind’s psyche the belief in nonphysical realms of existence. Early indigenous people and shamans were the first humans to connect with a spirit world permeating nature and to communicate with their departed ancestors. Others have looked towards the more transcendent areas of spirituality. Although there are some who have never completely separated themselves from some of the early indigenous beliefs and practices, there are some who have, which has led to an unhealthy separation between nature and the spirit. All areas need to be included in the search for the one ultimate reality that expresses itself in and through all. 
   If we accept that life is eternal and there are other realms of existence intertwined with our physical world, then it must surely be a natural step in our evolution to be able to communicate with these other realms and with those who are living on. We need to recognise that there are different ways in which to approach the many-faceted dimensions of spirituality and be open to numerous areas that can lead us to healthier states of spiritual being and embrace the all-ness of what eternal life is about.

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