Your Intuition Style: The More You Use It – the Stronger It Gets
July 2009
Articles
by Katherine Opashinov
There are many different types of intuition: everyday intuition, such as the “phone psychic” who knows who it is before answering; and the “parking space diviner” who can always find that primo spot. Then there’s profound intuition, such as working for the police on a murder case. There are also different styles of intuition.
Everyone has some intuition or you wouldn’t survive everyday circumstances, such as crossing a busy street, shopping for a used car or even going out on a date. When people say “I don’t have any intuition,” what they really mean is “I don’t have what I recognize to be intuition.” If their yardstick is Medium or The Mentalist, then no, they don’t have any intuition and neither does 99% of the population. That is extreme intuition (clairvoyance). Instead, let’s look at the different intuitive styles, based on the chakra system, and see which ones you already possess and which ones, with practice, you could develop.
Intuition has been connected to the chakra system as the perceptive aspect of each chakra. Each of the seven energy centres in our body has its own unique physical, emotional, psychological and perceptive abilities. Intuition becomes more subtle and complex the higher up the chakra system we go.
The first chakra (at the base of the spine) is in charge of existence or survival. Its intuitive style is instinct. It is the sensation to pull back before a car comes careening around a corner or to go home before a party gets rowdy. It is quick, non-thinking, usually physical information like a gut feeling or twitchiness.
The second chakra (located an inch below the belly button) governs sensuality, sexuality, sensations and connection to people. It has an intuition most people call chemistry. With it, we sense instant connection to people for romantic or platonic relationships. We do not sense the character of the person from this chakra but whether we “click” with them, be it boss, lover or friend. We feel it quickly, without thinking, as a physical comfort and excitement in our body.
The third chakra (located at the solar plexus) governs will, autonomy, action and metabolism. It is what we call gut feeling. Unlike instinct, it is more developed and intellectual than survival. When asked why you have a “bad feeling” about something, with the third chakra you can answer something vague. With the first, there is no answer and no thinking.
The fourth chakra, located at the heart, is about emotions and love. Although the second chakra is about feelings, they are more sensations than emotions. The Tibetan chakra system considers the heart to be the true centre of our being, not our brain. There we experience more complex dynamics, and resolve not only emotional matters but all matters of life in an emotional way. The ability to feel what others feel – empathy – is the intuition of the fourth.
The fifth chakra (at the throat) governs truth, expression and the creative manifestation of our life purpose. But our ability to speak and live truth is premised on our ability to hear and receive truth. So, the intuition for the fifth chakra is the ability to hear the supernatural, such as a channeler or medium. Some will hear guides, spirits or loved ones who have passed over. A milder version of this intuition is the ability to hear what is not being said, the ability to hear the truth underneath the surface. If you can tell when someone is lying or saying they are OK when they’re not, then you have auditory intuition.
The sixth chakra, often called the third eye, is located between our eyebrows and slightly above. Credited for being the chakra where intuition is strongest, this chakra governs vision, clarity and imagination. Intuition from this chakra may look like the ability to see in your mind’s eye where your lost keys are or to have a dream that comes true the next day, or to see through a complex, muddled situation to a clear resolution when those around you could not. Taken to its extreme form, this intuition is clairvoyance.
The seventh chakra (at the top of the head) governs spirituality and collective consciousness. The hallmark of this chakra’s intuition being present is the strong sensation of “just knowing” without instinct, physical sensation, emotion, hearing or seeing. When mothers are asked how they knew their child was in trouble they always say “I just knew.”
It is the most difficult intuitive style to ascertain because it can be confused with so many others. It can only be arrived at by process of elimination. When none of the signs of the other intuitive styles are present, and yet the strongest sense of “just knowing” is all that remains, then it would suggest a strong seventh chakra’s intuition.
By knowing which intuition style you have, you can pay more attention to it when it arises and not confuse it with hunger, pain, fear, restlessness, your own feelings, etc. The more you use your intuition style, the stronger it gets — just like a muscle. You can also build other intuition “muscles” by practising exercises to develop a particular intuition style. Why bother? Because the more ways we can perceive our world, the more ways we can interact with our world.
Check out September’s column at www.vitalitymagazine.com for exercises to help you develop your intuition.
Katherine Opashinov is a psychotherapist, professional intuitive and founder of Intuitive Centre, one of the country's most comprehensive programs for intuition studies for personal and professional development. For more information or to contact her with questions or comments on this article, visit her website at www.KatherineOpashinov.com or the school’s website at www.IntuitiveCentre.com
by Katherine OpashinovThere are many different types of intuition: everyday intuition, such as the “phone psychic” who knows who it is before answering; and the “parking space diviner” who can always find that primo spot. Then there’s profound intuition, such as working for the police on a murder case. There are also different styles of intuition.
Everyone has some intuition or you wouldn’t survive everyday circumstances, such as crossing a busy street, shopping for a used car or even going out on a date. When people say “I don’t have any intuition,” what they really mean is “I don’t have what I recognize to be intuition.” If their yardstick is Medium or The Mentalist, then no, they don’t have any intuition and neither does 99% of the population. That is extreme intuition (clairvoyance). Instead, let’s look at the different intuitive styles, based on the chakra system, and see which ones you already possess and which ones, with practice, you could develop.
Intuition has been connected to the chakra system as the perceptive aspect of each chakra. Each of the seven energy centres in our body has its own unique physical, emotional, psychological and perceptive abilities. Intuition becomes more subtle and complex the higher up the chakra system we go.
The first chakra (at the base of the spine) is in charge of existence or survival. Its intuitive style is instinct. It is the sensation to pull back before a car comes careening around a corner or to go home before a party gets rowdy. It is quick, non-thinking, usually physical information like a gut feeling or twitchiness.
The second chakra (located an inch below the belly button) governs sensuality, sexuality, sensations and connection to people. It has an intuition most people call chemistry. With it, we sense instant connection to people for romantic or platonic relationships. We do not sense the character of the person from this chakra but whether we “click” with them, be it boss, lover or friend. We feel it quickly, without thinking, as a physical comfort and excitement in our body.
The third chakra (located at the solar plexus) governs will, autonomy, action and metabolism. It is what we call gut feeling. Unlike instinct, it is more developed and intellectual than survival. When asked why you have a “bad feeling” about something, with the third chakra you can answer something vague. With the first, there is no answer and no thinking.
The fourth chakra, located at the heart, is about emotions and love. Although the second chakra is about feelings, they are more sensations than emotions. The Tibetan chakra system considers the heart to be the true centre of our being, not our brain. There we experience more complex dynamics, and resolve not only emotional matters but all matters of life in an emotional way. The ability to feel what others feel – empathy – is the intuition of the fourth.
The fifth chakra (at the throat) governs truth, expression and the creative manifestation of our life purpose. But our ability to speak and live truth is premised on our ability to hear and receive truth. So, the intuition for the fifth chakra is the ability to hear the supernatural, such as a channeler or medium. Some will hear guides, spirits or loved ones who have passed over. A milder version of this intuition is the ability to hear what is not being said, the ability to hear the truth underneath the surface. If you can tell when someone is lying or saying they are OK when they’re not, then you have auditory intuition.
The sixth chakra, often called the third eye, is located between our eyebrows and slightly above. Credited for being the chakra where intuition is strongest, this chakra governs vision, clarity and imagination. Intuition from this chakra may look like the ability to see in your mind’s eye where your lost keys are or to have a dream that comes true the next day, or to see through a complex, muddled situation to a clear resolution when those around you could not. Taken to its extreme form, this intuition is clairvoyance.
The seventh chakra (at the top of the head) governs spirituality and collective consciousness. The hallmark of this chakra’s intuition being present is the strong sensation of “just knowing” without instinct, physical sensation, emotion, hearing or seeing. When mothers are asked how they knew their child was in trouble they always say “I just knew.”
It is the most difficult intuitive style to ascertain because it can be confused with so many others. It can only be arrived at by process of elimination. When none of the signs of the other intuitive styles are present, and yet the strongest sense of “just knowing” is all that remains, then it would suggest a strong seventh chakra’s intuition.
By knowing which intuition style you have, you can pay more attention to it when it arises and not confuse it with hunger, pain, fear, restlessness, your own feelings, etc. The more you use your intuition style, the stronger it gets — just like a muscle. You can also build other intuition “muscles” by practising exercises to develop a particular intuition style. Why bother? Because the more ways we can perceive our world, the more ways we can interact with our world.
Check out September’s column at www.vitalitymagazine.com for exercises to help you develop your intuition.
Katherine Opashinov is a psychotherapist, professional intuitive and founder of Intuitive Centre, one of the country's most comprehensive programs for intuition studies for personal and professional development. For more information or to contact her with questions or comments on this article, visit her website at www.KatherineOpashinov.com or the school’s website at www.IntuitiveCentre.com