Clairvoyance is a French word meaning ‘clear vision’ (clair means clear and voyance means vision). Voyant is the adjectival present participle of voyance, so a clairvoyant is someone who ‘sees clearly’. This is a literal translation; when the word is used in French it merely means someone with excellent vision. Of course, that?s not what we mean when using the word in English.
One thing that further complicates the definition is the fact that the term ‘clairvoyant’ has been used over the years to refer to different things. ‘Clairvoyant’ has gradually been used as a term that applies to an individual that displays various ranges of psychic or paranormal abilities. The definition that accurately sums up what a clairvoyant is a person that is able to know specific thins about a person, location, event, or object with a means other than the five physical sense. In summary, clairvoyance refers to the use of ESP or extra-sensory perception.
Clairvoyance normally involves a person with clairvoyant abilities knowing that something is taking place at that moment, but in a distant location that would be out of their normal range of physical senses. There have also been cases documented of various clairvoyants knowing about things that have happened either in the past or in the future. Due to this, clairvoyance is often considered by many people to be some sort of prophecy or precognition.
The means that a clairvoyant uses to discover the mysterious information can vary, but it generally breaks down into 1 of 6 different categories. Clairvoyance is likely associated with the first form, the phenomenon of remote viewing. While engaging in remote viewing, a clairvoyant is able to see a location, person, event, or object that is not in their view. This can take the form of some sort of visual hallucination or may be seen in their mind’s eye.
Clairaudience is another means by which the clairvoyant may receive information. As the name suggests, in this case this is in the form of sound which they and no one else can hear. Some clairvoyants may even hear the voices of people who are dead; these cases are more properly termed mediumship.
Clairsentience (also known as psychometry) involves knowledge in the form of tactile sensations. The clairvoyant may feel objects which are not there or a generalized physical sensation which may be related to another place, event or person.
The fourth form of clairvoyance is clairalience. In this, the clairvoyant is able learn about remote events or locations through their sense of smell. As an example, they may smell the wildflowers and grass of a peaceful meadow, then the smell of gunpowder and blood. Nobody else is able to smell these different things and there appears to no source for the different scents.
Clairgustance is the fifth form or type of clairvoyance. In this form an individual can taste the different flavors, despite the fact there is no apparent sauce and since they have not eaten anything. They are able to describe the flavor that they are tasting even though they are a distance from any source.
Claircognizance refers to a clairvoyant ‘just knowing’ something without any explanation for their having received this knowledge. There is no sensory analogue to claircognizance, making it a difficult phenomenon to explain.
Clairvoyance is known around the world and is something which figures into every one of the world?s cultures. It is also something which makes up a part of many major religions.
In Buddhism for example, clairvoyance is considered of the six special senses humans are capable of at advanced levels of meditation. In this case, it refers to being able to feel vibrations put out by other people.
Clairvoyance in Catholicism has been consider a miraculous ability. A disciple of Saint Francis, Saint Claire, had a vision over five hundred years ago. In this vision she witnessed the death of Saint Francis while she was miles away at the time. She was made the Saint of television. The literal meaning of television is seeing over a distance.
There are plenty of people that are skeptical of clairvoyance. It is human nature for people to deny that something exists just because they don’t understand it. Take for example the scientists that not so long ago denied the existence of electricity or magnetism.
We might not quite understand how it works, but this doesn?t mean that clairvoyance should be discounted. Many believe that with the proper training and effort, anyone can develop clairvoyance and other psychic abilities.
We still do not understand how it works, but there is no reason to deny its existence. Its been suggested that all humans were clairvoyant in the past, but have lost their powers for some reason or other. The ability remains dormant, but it is thought that anyone who wants to activate that dormant power, could do so with an effort on their part.
