October 11, 2025 • 28 mins
What if fear was the doorway to your intuition?
In this episode, I sit down with my beautiful student Avanti, who courageously shares her journey through my Learn to Channel course. From overcoming fear and self-doubt to awakening her inner guidance, Avanti’s story reminds us of the magic that unfolds when we trust Spirit and allow ourselves to be guided.
As we talk, we explore the real-life moments of transformation that come from learning to channel, how Reiki deepened her connection, how group energy amplified her growth and how she discovered the confidence to follow her intuitive knowing.
✨ In this episode, I share and explore with Avanti:
- Breaking through fear and discovering intuition
- The beauty of spiritual awakening and growth
- How Reiki and channeling work together to heal and align
- Practical ways to connect with your spirit guides
- The power of group energy and collective support
Avanti’s journey is one of courage, surrender, and trust and I know it will inspire you to honour your own inner voice.
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Hosted by Lisa Brandis—bestselling author, founder of Intuitive Reiki International®, and intuitive channel for Anya—Connecting to Spirit is your sacred space for intuitive insight, energy healing, and soul-led transformation.
With over two decades of experience as a Reiki Master Teacher, channel, and spiritual mentor, I blend grounded wisdom with higher guidance to help you strengthen your intuition, trust your connection to Spirit, and awaken your gifts with confidence.
Each episode invites you to open your heart, raise your vibration, and remember the divine guidance that’s been within you all along. Whether you’re a healer, seeker, or spiritual teacher, you’ll find inspiration, real stories, and practical tools to support your journey of awakening.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Before we dive in, I wanted tolet you know that today's
episode is a special replay ofan interview I recorded with
Avanti Silver a few years ago.
The conversation was soinsightful and inspiring that I
knew it deserved to be sharedagain with you whether.
Hearing it for the first time orrevisiting it.
(00:22):
I hope you enjoy this timelessdiscussion with Avanti, one of
my learn to channel and Reikistudents.
Speaker (00:31):
Welcome to Connecting to Spirit.
I am your host, Lisa Brandis,and I'm here to help you unlock
your intuition channel withclarity and deep dive into
self-discovery, all whilenavigating the ups and downs of
personal and spiritual growth.
If you're ready to say goodbyeto self-doubt, embrace your
(00:53):
unique gifts and connect with asupportive community on the same
journey, then you're in theright place.
Whether you're just starting outor you've been walking this path
for years, this podcast is hereto guide you, support you, and
inspire you every step of theway.
So grab a cozy spot, settle in,and let's dive into some
(01:15):
empowering insights together.
Lisa Brandis (01:17):
I'm live here with one of my gorgeous students,
Avanti, who has been very bravetonight.
We were having a great chat onthe phone.
I was just chatting to her abouther personal experience,
attending my recent Learn toChannel course, and I thought it
might be a great opportunity toshare the reasons why she
decided.
(01:38):
To, learn to channel and whatshe got out of it.
So if you've been consideringwhat it means to learn to
channel and whether it's foryou, hopefully this chat with
Avanti will help you to makethat decision or at least to
answer some questions that youmight have about channeling.
So I'd like to welcome youAvanti.
Thank you so much.
It's quite nerve wrackinggetting on and also.
(02:00):
Offering to help demystify someof, the woowoo
Avanthi (02:05):
comes.
Yeah.
Hopefully I can help because Ifeel like that's where I was at,
before diving into the course.
And, that's probably one of mybiggest gains.
I think the clarity of it all,that's what I went in wanting,
and, that's definitely what Igot.
As with reiki, I felt like I wasguided to this on my spiritual
(02:28):
journey, which I feel like isquite new.
And I knew this was the nextstep.
So when it came up, all I wasfilled with was questions.
And you know, what exactly ishappening?
Like, I thought, it's a bit likea romanticized version of
something.
You think these things frommovies or wherever you get these
(02:49):
ideas.
But, it's not the type of thingI could turn around and ask,
friends and things like that.
And it was definitely, there wasdefinitely a trust aspect, with
you, Lisa, and it's definitelywhat I
Lisa Brandis (03:04):
got.
I.
Really to, just to give a littlebit of a timeline, you'd
actually done my Reiki trainingbeforehand.
So it is not imperative thatpeople learn Reiki, but I think
sometimes it gives you thatsolid foundation about energy,
about understanding the chakras.
And so for you, doing thetraining, did it give you some
(03:24):
kind of foundation that made youwanna learn more about your
intuition of Avanthi or was thatsomething you'd already been
doing when you came to thechannel course?
Avanthi (03:33):
For me, it's all about looking back and seeing how I
got to where I am on myspiritual journey.
My big make or break process waswhen I had my daughter and I was
laying sick on the floor.
So when I kind of came out ofthat, I knew that I was
rebuilding in a certain way.
And with the Reiki I don't evenhonestly know how I got there.
(03:55):
I was definitely guided there.
I was definitely guided to youspecifically, and I can see why
there's very, I, I'm, there's alot of practicality to me and I
do need, even if it's consideredspiritual or woo woo as some
(04:15):
call it, I now realize that Iappreciate the structure and
your insights.
But yeah, there was definitely,you know, a proper course going
through like step by stepbecause I was sitting in a room
even with Reiki of, you know,ladies or, and.
Yeah, there was one guy, whoknew about crystals and,
(04:38):
different angels.
And at that point, I wasn'tthere yet.
So I was sitting there thinking,is this for me?
And the story sort of.
Slowly started to unveil and Ifinished Reiki 2 end of 2019.
So little did I know what 2020had to offer, but it felt like
(05:00):
it really concreted.
Where I was at.
'cause I knew I was in, I was inthis transformational space
before, but now I had all thesetools to deal with all the
bombardment of the rest of theworld as well.
Lisa Brandis (05:16):
There's been growth and change hasn't there.
And I think Reiki as a tool anda system just gives us this
sense of stability and beingable to, you know, to really
come back to that sense of selfand that love and that
compassion that exists withinthe soul.
And it's such an important.
Um, thing, and I, I think thesystem of reiki makes it easy,
doesn't it?
Just to kind of.
(05:36):
Tune back into the seat of thesoul.
And I know for me, and it wasprobably the same for you, you
know, is that once you start toget a taste of what this
intuitive world is like, it'salmost like a door to this
magical and mystical world opensand you kind of pop out and it's
like, oh, you know what?
There becomes this thirst formore knowledge, more
understanding, and also deeperexperiences on a spiritual
(05:58):
level.
And I know.
That, the learn to channel canfeel a bit woo woo for people, I
know even in the class that youwere in with me, there was a
couple of, students that didn'tknow Reiki hadn't done Reiki.
Also you who had done reiki.
There was a couple of othersthat, probably were on the
spiritual journey 10, 15 years.
So they were kind of wellexperienced, but just again,
(06:18):
looking for.
The education, but also thatsupport in deepening the
connection with their guides andreally learning all the
different ways we can channeland how it can benefit us in
life.
So I was really conscious aboutthat.
When I, pulled this coursetogether, I really wanted to,
give solid, intelligentunderstanding too.
(06:39):
This mysterious world of, ofenergy healing and of
spirituality and who are ourguides and how do we connect
with them?
I really knew that people knewthey were there.
They had a sense that there wasguidance there, but they just
wanted more of that, concreteknowing and more experience to
trust in the messages and theguidance that are coming
(06:59):
through.
When we get the energy of thegroup, something magical takes
place.
I remember specifically.
There was one night when youchanneled the most incredible
message and it wasn't just foryou, and that was the end.
I tend to not tell my studentswhat's coming up.
I don't let them get too much intheir thought preparation about
it.
'cause otherwise they're active.
(07:20):
So I'll usually.
Still a little bit of a trick.
I shouldn't be giving away mytechniques, but a little guide
of meditation where everyone'sreally comfortable and then my
guide Anya will come in and willguide them through a
step-by-step process too.
Um, and, and for this particularone, it was the automatic
writing.
Do you remember doing that?
Yes.
Yeah, definitely.
After you got that messagethrough and when you shared it
(07:42):
with the group, because it was ajaw dropping moment.
It was, yeah.
It was like, am I really readingthese five sentences that have
now changed my world?
Um, yeah.
Just pure love and so profoundin, and I think this is this
what I love about spiritualmessages is they just cut to the
(08:04):
point and give us words andwisdom and understanding in ways
that we couldn't come up withourself.
Did you find, yeah.
And
Avanthi (08:13):
also knowing that there's no, well, it is a
relationship, but it's not a twoway relationship.
There's no give or take.
They are here for our greatergood and that's amazing.
I think for me.
That connection of talking tosomeone and working through all
(08:34):
of that.
Sometimes when I am working onthe intuitive side of me, it's
hard to verbalize those thingsand I then feel like I'm
unsupported or I second guessmyself.
And this was my tool to reallyalign and trust myself.
I knew there was, and.
(08:54):
It's been a phenomenal journey.
I actually didn't think that, Ithought Reiki was more of part
of my service to, going forward,but I found that, the channeling
has really sort of added a wholedifferent layer and, yeah, I've
had some beautiful experiencessince finishing the course.
(09:15):
Have you,
Lisa Brandis (09:16):
that's so, and I love that.
I love that once, that, oncethat.
Definite knowings been createdwith your guide, and you have
that visceral experience, which,um, it happens because there's
this group energy dimensionwhere all the guides come
together in the room.
My guides come together andthere's this, there's this shift
in consciousness and it's acollective of the group.
(09:37):
And what I feel is that we allride on each other's energy.
There's this beautiful harmonythat takes place.
And, you know, we build thatenergy over the.
Six weeks.
So we're building trust, we'reconnecting every week.
We're sharing the benefits weare getting.
We're practicing at home.
There's, guided meditations thatI've prerecorded.
With my voice and any comesthrough my guide to help just to
(10:01):
facilitate that pure place ofconnection.
And you know, I think thebiggest thing is we get these
intuitive messages and they feeland resonate, but where it
really becomes solidified for mystudents, I found is when
everyone in the group.
Sits there and just goes, oh myGod, that was, and they give you
(10:22):
that feedback because then whenwe unpack, what did that message
mean to you?
And quite often they'll sharewith you personally what they
got out of it.
And I think that's, that's whatguides do they bring.
They bring messages that aregeneral of nature, but everyone
can find their own meaning init.
And usually it's profound, it'sloving, it helps us to break
(10:43):
barriers and to shift and changeand release fears and, I think
the evolution is being our bestself and discovering how to love
ourselves more once.
We do that and we find thatlevel of self comfort and
self-love, we then have that asa gift to offer to others.
I really do think that I havethis big vision that in the
(11:06):
future everyone will channel,everyone will have a deep,
connected relationship withtheir guides.
It will be weird not to havethat.
Divine guidance that they tuneinto for their own wellbeing and
for the wellbeing and the loveof those who they are closest
to.
(11:26):
I believe that people will tuneinto channeling in order to
develop that creativity and toconnect with that inspiration
and to feel into who to employand to feel into, what move we
are meant to do next.
Whether it's a business move,and I know you are a very
academic and you come from, thatlevel and that side of
understanding things from a verypractical mind.
(11:47):
This is what I love and part ofwhy I wanted to talk to you,
Avanthi, because the people Ilove helping the most are those
that are, used to working intheir mindset and in their
intellect and just breakingthrough into this creativity and
the spiritual side and thefeminine energy.
When we bring this synergybetween the left and the right
brain, and we find this harmony.
(12:08):
We work with the mind and theego and we work with the spirit
and the soul and that broaderperspective.
When we can do that, it reallyanchors us and up levels us into
a different kind of, energy andlife just seems to become
miraculous.
And I found.
I don't know if you found somesimilarity with me, but it's
(12:29):
just, have you hadsynchronicity, events just kind
of line up, even just thisconversation and how it flowed
and it came directly from myguides to call you and connect
with you and it, because thetime's right and there was.
Nothing in the way to make thishappen.
You know?
It, it just, yeah, it justflowed effortlessly.
Avanthi (12:49):
It did flow and, yeah, I've definitely, when you talk
about, you know, well, when Iwas saying that Reiki was my,
where I thought I could be ofservice where my, you know, my
daughter.
Sick.
And that could be my hands onher.
That's how I could, help her andon in that way.
Um, but channeling has, yeah, Ireally went into this purely for
(13:14):
some self love and some selfguidance as well.
Because.
Who doesn't want, the bestestfriend for your greater good and
all the time that you can tapinto, who's just ready and
waiting.
Lisa Brandis (13:29):
And that is the truth, you know, it really is
like, Anya is my guide and, andyou know, and she represents a
team of a spirit team and theyalways want what's best for us,
but they don't, they don't comein and dictate what we should
do, or, you know, they, they'rehere to align with.
What we want as well.
So I found that, um, yeah, it islike having this great cheering
(13:53):
squad that sees our potentialand will when we ask for help.
'cause we have to ask, we haveto, I've been doing this for 17
years and I've been channeling,I still get to a point where I
get stuck in my own stuff and Ican't hear my guide because my
head's too active in all myfears.
(14:14):
And this is where sometimes weneed to reach out to others to
get clarity because, we can'tsee the wood for the trees'cause
we're too invested in whateverthe resistance is.
And someone else can just like,I love this saying that.
It's like I've got a problem.
I dunno what it is.
And someone else can be like, wehand on your face.
Oh, okay.
Because we're so close to theproblem, we just can't see.
That thing that's getting in ourway.
(14:35):
And for most of the studentsI've worked with, it's us.
We up all the resistance in ourlife and when we can, you know,
just gently shift that amazingthings happen, you know, and
people have these innerresources in order to heal
themselves.
I don't heal anybody, you know,we hold this space and our
guides help us to facilitatethis.
(14:57):
Incredible possibility of changeand growth and healing.
And it's in the presence oflove.
Like when you have two people,one's willing to change'cause
they're ready.
And that's always necessary.
It's needed.
They've gotta be wanting tochange, they've gotta be willing
to move in a differentdirection.
(15:18):
And there's this.
This readiness, they may be shitscared about what's gonna happen
or whether they think that canhandle it.
There's usually fear.
I've had people walk in asession, sit down and start
crying.
It's like, okay, that's alright.
That's what happens.
But, and in the presence of loveand then with these guides and
angels, you know, that theuniverse has a way of just
(15:39):
beautifully unfolding andunpacking and releasing the
pain.
It just happens.
Have you experienced that?
Where it's just this shift thattakes place and it feels almost
effortless?
There's usually tears, but it'sa relief because they're finally
letting go of the pain orthey're letting go of the
resistance and, and once they doand accept and acknowledge and,
(16:03):
and.
Understand what's happened.
Um,
Avanthi (16:06):
yeah, I remember, most of our group coming in and
saying, you know, we hadn't, wehad either not told very many
people we were coming to thecourse, didn't kind of mention
it, wasn't really sure what todo.
so, but.
Yeah, so it, it was amazing howwell, yeah, the synchronicity
(16:27):
for sure.
Like, I had a, a girlfriendwho's in the US and she, we're
quite close, but yeah, she'slike, I really feel called to,
you know, having youspiritually.
At my home birth it was abeautiful experience of, how I
could, tap in and hold space andnot be anywhere physically close
(16:50):
to that.
It was beautiful also, and Icould see.
What she couldn't see.
I could see all these beautifulspiritual beings who, were Yeah.
At her feet and there tosupport.
Yeah.
All.
And it is all there and it'samazing and we all have it
(17:11):
within us to be part of that,um, remote, were
Lisa Brandis (18:08):
you doing that remotely?
Were you with her home birthremotely?
Avanthi (18:12):
Yes.
Lisa Brandis (18:12):
Yeah, she's in the US So, and you know, I have the
same thing when COVID hit.
I was so resistant to notteaching in room because I've
always done it that way, and I'ma bit stubborn when it comes to
change.
Sometimes I resist and my guidekept some coming through and
saying, love knows no bounds.
Lisa Love knows no bounds.
So.
And, and again, it was, it wasthis powerful experience I had
(18:35):
where one of my masters wasSpirit was giving us the, the
way in which to move forward andhow to adapt all the courses
online, and that was Reiki andalso the channeling and the
intuition courses.
It was all spirit of taught meall the way from the beginning.
None of my workshops are likeanyone else's.
They're all unique because.
Hand delivered to me how toteach, how to do attunements in
(18:58):
groups, how to, you know,channel messages to my
individual groups because theyalways would be life changing.
And it was no different when,when we went from in room to
online.
And even though I didn't trustand I argued with my guidance,
'cause we do that'cause we'rehuman.
I'll give you.
All resistance comes up.
And I remember going, okay,we'll just wing it.
(19:18):
And I did a practice sessionwith one of my masters, Fiona,
and we just sat there going, Idon't know what we're gonna do.
We'll just trust that spiritwill bring the answers through.
And oh my gosh, they did.
And the, the, the process waschanneled through beautifully
and we recorded the session.
She experienced the atunementonline and then I said, okay,
your turn, you attune me.
And so I was sitting theregoing, he, and she's okay
(19:41):
because I just didn't threwunder the bus.
And then I sat there and she didthe atunement on me
energetically just following theprocess that, and you just given
us.
And I had this wall of emotionthat I'd buried, that I had not
been acknowledging.
I'd just shoved it aside andkept working, kept busy'cause I
didn't wanna address it.
Literally, this wall of emotioncame up out of my body and I had
(20:04):
no, I, I couldn't do anything tostop it.
And I started sobbing.
And beautiful Fiona, it justkept going.
Like, you know, she was justholding space and finishing the
process and then it, it was likethis waterfall cascade of
emotion.
Grief.
It was grief and it just, itjust came out and I had tears
flooding down and then, and thenin its place came this profound
(20:26):
love and it channeled through myentire body all the way down to
my feet.
And then afterwards there wasthis other emotional release of,
oh my God, this all works.
Like I could see the biggervision of what I'd been.
Feeling and warning forintuitive reiki for years,
suddenly going, oh my gosh, thisis how it's gonna happen.
It's different to what I thoughtit would be.
Yeah.
And then, and then having thatkind of wave of, oh, there's,
(20:49):
this works because I had thatvisceral physical experience
that it's undeniable for me,and, and it really did set.
Framework for taking all thecourses online in 2020 with
COVID.
And it's been incredible.
Like it's been intimate, it'sstill been life changing.
And the Channelings nodifferent.
Same.
(21:10):
We started within room, COVIDcame.
Avanthi (21:14):
Yeah, we did two.
Uh, yeah, yeah, a couple out.
From home and we
Lisa Brandis (21:21):
save time driving there.
You know, it could groundweather to get you to come into
the center.
I'm at work at the moment andwe're like, oh, well we can do
it online from home.
We don't need to be in room.
Let's save.
And it's convenient, isn't it,to be able to Yeah,
Avanthi (21:35):
we were all sitting there in our pajamas with our Oh
yeah.
Someone had their cat, you know,running past the screen and
Yeah, it was.
Um, but we could stilldefinitely feel each other.
Like I could definitely stillfeel that, se like we, yeah, we
did sit in a circle, but wecould feel that, you know, that
(21:57):
space everyone was holding foreach other.
And, um, I, I believe thatanything's.
Spiritual.
It's a bit like someone askingyou where Reiki is.
Show it to me.
You know?
Um, you know, it, it, yeah.
Well, it's everywhere.
Yeah.
Um.
(22:17):
It's, it's a bit like that.
It is a personal journey of whatyou may or may not yet
physically experience in theprocess of channeling or not.
Um, so yeah, there's, there,there was, yeah, I didn't feel
different or any less supporteddoing it, doing a couple, online
(22:39):
for sure.
That connection was definitelythere.
And, and your, yeah, yournurturing angelic wings
definitely held space for us asusual.
Lisa Brandis (22:48):
if there's someone sitting on the fence kind of
wondering whether they should.
Come and join the Learn toChannel course.
What would you say to them ifthey're thinking about whether
it would be too scary or ifthey're not?
Sure.
Yeah.
Do you have any, um, yeah.
Well,
Avanthi (23:04):
my insight is that there's always.
Exciting stuff.
On the flip side of fear, Ibelieve
Lisa Brandis (23:12):
always summarize this, isn't it?
Get outta here, get, getuncomfortable.
You know, usually the biggesttransformations they do happen
when we're uncomfortable, isn'tit?
And the only way you're gonnaknow is through experience and
action.
Avanthi (23:25):
Yeah.
We can all, yeah.
And everyone's takeaway was alsodifferent.
Everyone is at different, youknow, levels of.
Their journey and or, um, evenresistance in a certain
Lisa Brandis (23:36):
so and I, that kind of teacher that pushes
people, I can feel intuitivelywhen someone's ready.
I'll push a little bit if I knowthat it's just fear, but I know
that they're ready and there's apart of them that can do it.
Yeah, I have that, you know,that's a blessing of, I know
exactly how much to pushwithout.
You know, upsetting anyone.
And that's really important tome that I hold that nurturing
(23:56):
space, that it's still, kind,you know, it's really important
to me that, that as a teacher,that people feel safe.
And, and you know, there havebeen some students that just
weren't ready, but, you know,part of their energy was to hold
space for the group and theywere almost, you know, or
someone that had just recentlygone through grief and she just,
she was there to be loved by thegroup.
(24:18):
So.
There's always a reason whysomeone's drawn to these
classes, and sometimes it's notwhat we think.
And usually the ones that end upbecoming the most incredible
channels and will bring through,you know, mind blowing wisdom,
are the ones that sat there,didn't think that they could do
it, and, surprise themself, youknow?
So there's, you know, uh, everylevel's tailored for I think,
you know, and the universe andspirit only gives us what we.
(24:41):
Able to cope with at the time.
So, and again, it develops inyour own time outside of the
course as well.
Once you've got that framework,you've got it for life.
So when students have, might notbeen ready in the course to
really fully expand into thatchannel state, or they were
getting channeled messagesthrough, their intuition and
their clairvoyance, but notquite direct channeling yet,
(25:01):
that's fine.
They'll come to it when they'reready or it'll just happen
spontaneously in a reallygentle.
Nurturing way.
And really it's us that actuallylet, we are the ones that let
that happen.
No one, no spirit being evertakes us over or does anything
against our will.
We're always a participatingcomponent of that ability to
channel.
And that's a framework I teachas well.
(25:24):
You know, we actually say, yes,I want to, and we invite that,
and I'm a conscious channel, soI'm always a part of it.
I'm not unconscious and notaware or participating.
I see it as we're both in thedriver's seat.
You know, I'm in there.
Driver's seat, but move to thepassenger seat is the best way I
describe it.
So I'm aware and feeling allthose sensations of when the
guide comes through in order todirectly channel.
(25:46):
And that's exciting.
It's just an amazing feeling.
Avanthi (25:49):
And it's working, working through your individual,
resistance, I suppose to, yeah.
To when it does, come in.
And yeah, for me that was a hugepart of it.
Like, but I didn't even realizethere was different ways to
channel.
Like again, that was my trustfactor.
So if there is anyone out therethat does feel, I remember with
(26:11):
the reiki course I was lookingat different stuff online and
it's almost like it, yeah, itwas just, um, you, some might
say it's the algorithm, but itwould, or something like that.
But it was just come, it keptcoming up and I kept looking at
other things and I'm like, no,I'm really drawn to you.
And like years on I dounderstand why that is.
(26:34):
And, I'm so, so grateful.
That I've gotten here.
I have all this love for myselfat the same time, and so, and
guidance now as well.
So
Lisa Brandis (26:48):
it's so beautiful and thank you for, yeah, for
being able to be a voice andshare for others that have no
idea what this means.
I could talk until the cows comehome about what I teach and how
I do it, but it's, you know,it's really, it's really
important to me that.
That people considering doingthis, actually hear from my
students and hear what it meantfor you in order to learn, reiki
(27:10):
and also channeling and how it'shelped you in your life.
And especially as a mother andhaving young children.
You know, there's so manybenefits.
I've got reiki babies, my actualage in.
Out there waiting for me at themoment, so I better wrap it up.
Um, thank you so much, Avanti.
Um, I'm just so grateful thatyou came on and spoke to
everyone today and shared yourexperience, so thank you, thank
(27:33):
you, thank you.
I adore you.
You're such a beautiful soul andyou brought so much light to the
group as well.
And, um, and just this gorgeousopen-hearted willingness to
learn and to.
Discover something new.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Oh, thank you.
Yeah, I could definitely, yeah.
Avanthi (27:50):
Feel it right here, but thank you.
So, yeah, that was beautiful andum, yeah, I hope, um, I hope
people do trust that intuitionand, yeah.
Follow.
Before we dive in, I wanted tolet you know that today's
episode is a special replay ofan interview I recorded with
Avanti Silver a few years ago.
The conversation was soinsightful and inspiring that I
knew it deserved to be sharedagain with you whether.
Hearing it for the first time orrevisiting it.
(00:22):
I hope you enjoy this timelessdiscussion with Avanti, one of
my learn to channel and Reikistudents.
Speaker (00:31):
Welcome to Connecting to Spirit.
I am your host, Lisa Brandis,and I'm here to help you unlock
your intuition channel withclarity and deep dive into
self-discovery, all whilenavigating the ups and downs of
personal and spiritual growth.
If you're ready to say goodbyeto self-doubt, embrace your
(00:53):
unique gifts and connect with asupportive community on the same
journey, then you're in theright place.
Whether you're just starting outor you've been walking this path
for years, this podcast is hereto guide you, support you, and
inspire you every step of theway.
So grab a cozy spot, settle in,and let's dive into some
(01:15):
empowering insights together.
Lisa Brandis (01:17):
I'm live here with one of my gorgeous students,
Avanti, who has been very bravetonight.
We were having a great chat onthe phone.
I was just chatting to her abouther personal experience,
attending my recent Learn toChannel course, and I thought it
might be a great opportunity toshare the reasons why she
decided.
(01:38):
To, learn to channel and whatshe got out of it.
So if you've been consideringwhat it means to learn to
channel and whether it's foryou, hopefully this chat with
Avanti will help you to makethat decision or at least to
answer some questions that youmight have about channeling.
So I'd like to welcome youAvanti.
Thank you so much.
It's quite nerve wrackinggetting on and also.
(02:00):
Offering to help demystify someof, the woowoo
Avanthi (02:05):
comes.
Yeah.
Hopefully I can help because Ifeel like that's where I was at,
before diving into the course.
And, that's probably one of mybiggest gains.
I think the clarity of it all,that's what I went in wanting,
and, that's definitely what Igot.
As with reiki, I felt like I wasguided to this on my spiritual
(02:28):
journey, which I feel like isquite new.
And I knew this was the nextstep.
So when it came up, all I wasfilled with was questions.
And you know, what exactly ishappening?
Like, I thought, it's a bit likea romanticized version of
something.
You think these things frommovies or wherever you get these
(02:49):
ideas.
But, it's not the type of thingI could turn around and ask,
friends and things like that.
And it was definitely, there wasdefinitely a trust aspect, with
you, Lisa, and it's definitelywhat I
Lisa Brandis (03:04):
got.
I.
Really to, just to give a littlebit of a timeline, you'd
actually done my Reiki trainingbeforehand.
So it is not imperative thatpeople learn Reiki, but I think
sometimes it gives you thatsolid foundation about energy,
about understanding the chakras.
And so for you, doing thetraining, did it give you some
(03:24):
kind of foundation that made youwanna learn more about your
intuition of Avanthi or was thatsomething you'd already been
doing when you came to thechannel course?
Avanthi (03:33):
For me, it's all about looking back and seeing how I
got to where I am on myspiritual journey.
My big make or break process waswhen I had my daughter and I was
laying sick on the floor.
So when I kind of came out ofthat, I knew that I was
rebuilding in a certain way.
And with the Reiki I don't evenhonestly know how I got there.
(03:55):
I was definitely guided there.
I was definitely guided to youspecifically, and I can see why
there's very, I, I'm, there's alot of practicality to me and I
do need, even if it's consideredspiritual or woo woo as some
(04:15):
call it, I now realize that Iappreciate the structure and
your insights.
But yeah, there was definitely,you know, a proper course going
through like step by stepbecause I was sitting in a room
even with Reiki of, you know,ladies or, and.
Yeah, there was one guy, whoknew about crystals and,
(04:38):
different angels.
And at that point, I wasn'tthere yet.
So I was sitting there thinking,is this for me?
And the story sort of.
Slowly started to unveil and Ifinished Reiki 2 end of 2019.
So little did I know what 2020had to offer, but it felt like
(05:00):
it really concreted.
Where I was at.
'cause I knew I was in, I was inthis transformational space
before, but now I had all thesetools to deal with all the
bombardment of the rest of theworld as well.
Lisa Brandis (05:16):
There's been growth and change hasn't there.
And I think Reiki as a tool anda system just gives us this
sense of stability and beingable to, you know, to really
come back to that sense of selfand that love and that
compassion that exists withinthe soul.
And it's such an important.
Um, thing, and I, I think thesystem of reiki makes it easy,
doesn't it?
Just to kind of.
(05:36):
Tune back into the seat of thesoul.
And I know for me, and it wasprobably the same for you, you
know, is that once you start toget a taste of what this
intuitive world is like, it'salmost like a door to this
magical and mystical world opensand you kind of pop out and it's
like, oh, you know what?
There becomes this thirst formore knowledge, more
understanding, and also deeperexperiences on a spiritual
(05:58):
level.
And I know.
That, the learn to channel canfeel a bit woo woo for people, I
know even in the class that youwere in with me, there was a
couple of, students that didn'tknow Reiki hadn't done Reiki.
Also you who had done reiki.
There was a couple of othersthat, probably were on the
spiritual journey 10, 15 years.
So they were kind of wellexperienced, but just again,
(06:18):
looking for.
The education, but also thatsupport in deepening the
connection with their guides andreally learning all the
different ways we can channeland how it can benefit us in
life.
So I was really conscious aboutthat.
When I, pulled this coursetogether, I really wanted to,
give solid, intelligentunderstanding too.
(06:39):
This mysterious world of, ofenergy healing and of
spirituality and who are ourguides and how do we connect
with them?
I really knew that people knewthey were there.
They had a sense that there wasguidance there, but they just
wanted more of that, concreteknowing and more experience to
trust in the messages and theguidance that are coming
(06:59):
through.
When we get the energy of thegroup, something magical takes
place.
I remember specifically.
There was one night when youchanneled the most incredible
message and it wasn't just foryou, and that was the end.
I tend to not tell my studentswhat's coming up.
I don't let them get too much intheir thought preparation about
it.
'cause otherwise they're active.
(07:20):
So I'll usually.
Still a little bit of a trick.
I shouldn't be giving away mytechniques, but a little guide
of meditation where everyone'sreally comfortable and then my
guide Anya will come in and willguide them through a
step-by-step process too.
Um, and, and for this particularone, it was the automatic
writing.
Do you remember doing that?
Yes.
Yeah, definitely.
After you got that messagethrough and when you shared it
(07:42):
with the group, because it was ajaw dropping moment.
It was, yeah.
It was like, am I really readingthese five sentences that have
now changed my world?
Um, yeah.
Just pure love and so profoundin, and I think this is this
what I love about spiritualmessages is they just cut to the
(08:04):
point and give us words andwisdom and understanding in ways
that we couldn't come up withourself.
Did you find, yeah.
And
Avanthi (08:13):
also knowing that there's no, well, it is a
relationship, but it's not a twoway relationship.
There's no give or take.
They are here for our greatergood and that's amazing.
I think for me.
That connection of talking tosomeone and working through all
(08:34):
of that.
Sometimes when I am working onthe intuitive side of me, it's
hard to verbalize those thingsand I then feel like I'm
unsupported or I second guessmyself.
And this was my tool to reallyalign and trust myself.
I knew there was, and.
(08:54):
It's been a phenomenal journey.
I actually didn't think that, Ithought Reiki was more of part
of my service to, going forward,but I found that, the channeling
has really sort of added a wholedifferent layer and, yeah, I've
had some beautiful experiencessince finishing the course.
(09:15):
Have you,
Lisa Brandis (09:16):
that's so, and I love that.
I love that once, that, oncethat.
Definite knowings been createdwith your guide, and you have
that visceral experience, which,um, it happens because there's
this group energy dimensionwhere all the guides come
together in the room.
My guides come together andthere's this, there's this shift
in consciousness and it's acollective of the group.
(09:37):
And what I feel is that we allride on each other's energy.
There's this beautiful harmonythat takes place.
And, you know, we build thatenergy over the.
Six weeks.
So we're building trust, we'reconnecting every week.
We're sharing the benefits weare getting.
We're practicing at home.
There's, guided meditations thatI've prerecorded.
With my voice and any comesthrough my guide to help just to
(10:01):
facilitate that pure place ofconnection.
And you know, I think thebiggest thing is we get these
intuitive messages and they feeland resonate, but where it
really becomes solidified for mystudents, I found is when
everyone in the group.
Sits there and just goes, oh myGod, that was, and they give you
(10:22):
that feedback because then whenwe unpack, what did that message
mean to you?
And quite often they'll sharewith you personally what they
got out of it.
And I think that's, that's whatguides do they bring.
They bring messages that aregeneral of nature, but everyone
can find their own meaning init.
And usually it's profound, it'sloving, it helps us to break
(10:43):
barriers and to shift and changeand release fears and, I think
the evolution is being our bestself and discovering how to love
ourselves more once.
We do that and we find thatlevel of self comfort and
self-love, we then have that asa gift to offer to others.
I really do think that I havethis big vision that in the
(11:06):
future everyone will channel,everyone will have a deep,
connected relationship withtheir guides.
It will be weird not to havethat.
Divine guidance that they tuneinto for their own wellbeing and
for the wellbeing and the loveof those who they are closest
to.
(11:26):
I believe that people will tuneinto channeling in order to
develop that creativity and toconnect with that inspiration
and to feel into who to employand to feel into, what move we
are meant to do next.
Whether it's a business move,and I know you are a very
academic and you come from, thatlevel and that side of
understanding things from a verypractical mind.
(11:47):
This is what I love and part ofwhy I wanted to talk to you,
Avanthi, because the people Ilove helping the most are those
that are, used to working intheir mindset and in their
intellect and just breakingthrough into this creativity and
the spiritual side and thefeminine energy.
When we bring this synergybetween the left and the right
brain, and we find this harmony.
(12:08):
We work with the mind and theego and we work with the spirit
and the soul and that broaderperspective.
When we can do that, it reallyanchors us and up levels us into
a different kind of, energy andlife just seems to become
miraculous.
And I found.
I don't know if you found somesimilarity with me, but it's
(12:29):
just, have you hadsynchronicity, events just kind
of line up, even just thisconversation and how it flowed
and it came directly from myguides to call you and connect
with you and it, because thetime's right and there was.
Nothing in the way to make thishappen.
You know?
It, it just, yeah, it justflowed effortlessly.
Avanthi (12:49):
It did flow and, yeah, I've definitely, when you talk
about, you know, well, when Iwas saying that Reiki was my,
where I thought I could be ofservice where my, you know, my
daughter.
Sick.
And that could be my hands onher.
That's how I could, help her andon in that way.
Um, but channeling has, yeah, Ireally went into this purely for
(13:14):
some self love and some selfguidance as well.
Because.
Who doesn't want, the bestestfriend for your greater good and
all the time that you can tapinto, who's just ready and
waiting.
Lisa Brandis (13:29):
And that is the truth, you know, it really is
like, Anya is my guide and, andyou know, and she represents a
team of a spirit team and theyalways want what's best for us,
but they don't, they don't comein and dictate what we should
do, or, you know, they, they'rehere to align with.
What we want as well.
So I found that, um, yeah, it islike having this great cheering
(13:53):
squad that sees our potentialand will when we ask for help.
'cause we have to ask, we haveto, I've been doing this for 17
years and I've been channeling,I still get to a point where I
get stuck in my own stuff and Ican't hear my guide because my
head's too active in all myfears.
(14:14):
And this is where sometimes weneed to reach out to others to
get clarity because, we can'tsee the wood for the trees'cause
we're too invested in whateverthe resistance is.
And someone else can just like,I love this saying that.
It's like I've got a problem.
I dunno what it is.
And someone else can be like, wehand on your face.
Oh, okay.
Because we're so close to theproblem, we just can't see.
That thing that's getting in ourway.
(14:35):
And for most of the studentsI've worked with, it's us.
We up all the resistance in ourlife and when we can, you know,
just gently shift that amazingthings happen, you know, and
people have these innerresources in order to heal
themselves.
I don't heal anybody, you know,we hold this space and our
guides help us to facilitatethis.
(14:57):
Incredible possibility of changeand growth and healing.
And it's in the presence oflove.
Like when you have two people,one's willing to change'cause
they're ready.
And that's always necessary.
It's needed.
They've gotta be wanting tochange, they've gotta be willing
to move in a differentdirection.
(15:18):
And there's this.
This readiness, they may be shitscared about what's gonna happen
or whether they think that canhandle it.
There's usually fear.
I've had people walk in asession, sit down and start
crying.
It's like, okay, that's alright.
That's what happens.
But, and in the presence of loveand then with these guides and
angels, you know, that theuniverse has a way of just
(15:39):
beautifully unfolding andunpacking and releasing the
pain.
It just happens.
Have you experienced that?
Where it's just this shift thattakes place and it feels almost
effortless?
There's usually tears, but it'sa relief because they're finally
letting go of the pain orthey're letting go of the
resistance and, and once they doand accept and acknowledge and,
(16:03):
and.
Understand what's happened.
Um,
Avanthi (16:06):
yeah, I remember, most of our group coming in and
saying, you know, we hadn't, wehad either not told very many
people we were coming to thecourse, didn't kind of mention
it, wasn't really sure what todo.
so, but.
Yeah, so it, it was amazing howwell, yeah, the synchronicity
(16:27):
for sure.
Like, I had a, a girlfriendwho's in the US and she, we're
quite close, but yeah, she'slike, I really feel called to,
you know, having youspiritually.
At my home birth it was abeautiful experience of, how I
could, tap in and hold space andnot be anywhere physically close
(16:50):
to that.
It was beautiful also, and Icould see.
What she couldn't see.
I could see all these beautifulspiritual beings who, were Yeah.
At her feet and there tosupport.
Yeah.
All.
And it is all there and it'samazing and we all have it
(17:11):
within us to be part of that,um, remote, were
Lisa Brandis (18:08):
you doing that remotely?
Were you with her home birthremotely?
Avanthi (18:12):
Yes.
Lisa Brandis (18:12):
Yeah, she's in the US So, and you know, I have the
same thing when COVID hit.
I was so resistant to notteaching in room because I've
always done it that way, and I'ma bit stubborn when it comes to
change.
Sometimes I resist and my guidekept some coming through and
saying, love knows no bounds.
Lisa Love knows no bounds.
So.
And, and again, it was, it wasthis powerful experience I had
(18:35):
where one of my masters wasSpirit was giving us the, the
way in which to move forward andhow to adapt all the courses
online, and that was Reiki andalso the channeling and the
intuition courses.
It was all spirit of taught meall the way from the beginning.
None of my workshops are likeanyone else's.
They're all unique because.
Hand delivered to me how toteach, how to do attunements in
(18:58):
groups, how to, you know,channel messages to my
individual groups because theyalways would be life changing.
And it was no different when,when we went from in room to
online.
And even though I didn't trustand I argued with my guidance,
'cause we do that'cause we'rehuman.
I'll give you.
All resistance comes up.
And I remember going, okay,we'll just wing it.
(19:18):
And I did a practice sessionwith one of my masters, Fiona,
and we just sat there going, Idon't know what we're gonna do.
We'll just trust that spiritwill bring the answers through.
And oh my gosh, they did.
And the, the, the process waschanneled through beautifully
and we recorded the session.
She experienced the atunementonline and then I said, okay,
your turn, you attune me.
And so I was sitting theregoing, he, and she's okay
(19:41):
because I just didn't threwunder the bus.
And then I sat there and she didthe atunement on me
energetically just following theprocess that, and you just given
us.
And I had this wall of emotionthat I'd buried, that I had not
been acknowledging.
I'd just shoved it aside andkept working, kept busy'cause I
didn't wanna address it.
Literally, this wall of emotioncame up out of my body and I had
(20:04):
no, I, I couldn't do anything tostop it.
And I started sobbing.
And beautiful Fiona, it justkept going.
Like, you know, she was justholding space and finishing the
process and then it, it was likethis waterfall cascade of
emotion.
Grief.
It was grief and it just, itjust came out and I had tears
flooding down and then, and thenin its place came this profound
(20:26):
love and it channeled through myentire body all the way down to
my feet.
And then afterwards there wasthis other emotional release of,
oh my God, this all works.
Like I could see the biggervision of what I'd been.
Feeling and warning forintuitive reiki for years,
suddenly going, oh my gosh, thisis how it's gonna happen.
It's different to what I thoughtit would be.
Yeah.
And then, and then having thatkind of wave of, oh, there's,
(20:49):
this works because I had thatvisceral physical experience
that it's undeniable for me,and, and it really did set.
Framework for taking all thecourses online in 2020 with
COVID.
And it's been incredible.
Like it's been intimate, it'sstill been life changing.
And the Channelings nodifferent.
Same.
(21:10):
We started within room, COVIDcame.
Avanthi (21:14):
Yeah, we did two.
Uh, yeah, yeah, a couple out.
From home and we
Lisa Brandis (21:21):
save time driving there.
You know, it could groundweather to get you to come into
the center.
I'm at work at the moment andwe're like, oh, well we can do
it online from home.
We don't need to be in room.
Let's save.
And it's convenient, isn't it,to be able to Yeah,
Avanthi (21:35):
we were all sitting there in our pajamas with our Oh
yeah.
Someone had their cat, you know,running past the screen and
Yeah, it was.
Um, but we could stilldefinitely feel each other.
Like I could definitely stillfeel that, se like we, yeah, we
did sit in a circle, but wecould feel that, you know, that
(21:57):
space everyone was holding foreach other.
And, um, I, I believe thatanything's.
Spiritual.
It's a bit like someone askingyou where Reiki is.
Show it to me.
You know?
Um, you know, it, it, yeah.
Well, it's everywhere.
Yeah.
Um.
(22:17):
It's, it's a bit like that.
It is a personal journey of whatyou may or may not yet
physically experience in theprocess of channeling or not.
Um, so yeah, there's, there,there was, yeah, I didn't feel
different or any less supporteddoing it, doing a couple, online
(22:39):
for sure.
That connection was definitelythere.
And, and your, yeah, yournurturing angelic wings
definitely held space for us asusual.
Lisa Brandis (22:48):
if there's someone sitting on the fence kind of
wondering whether they should.
Come and join the Learn toChannel course.
What would you say to them ifthey're thinking about whether
it would be too scary or ifthey're not?
Sure.
Yeah.
Do you have any, um, yeah.
Well,
Avanthi (23:04):
my insight is that there's always.
Exciting stuff.
On the flip side of fear, Ibelieve
Lisa Brandis (23:12):
always summarize this, isn't it?
Get outta here, get, getuncomfortable.
You know, usually the biggesttransformations they do happen
when we're uncomfortable, isn'tit?
And the only way you're gonnaknow is through experience and
action.
Avanthi (23:25):
Yeah.
We can all, yeah.
And everyone's takeaway was alsodifferent.
Everyone is at different, youknow, levels of.
Their journey and or, um, evenresistance in a certain
Lisa Brandis (23:36):
so and I, that kind of teacher that pushes
people, I can feel intuitivelywhen someone's ready.
I'll push a little bit if I knowthat it's just fear, but I know
that they're ready and there's apart of them that can do it.
Yeah, I have that, you know,that's a blessing of, I know
exactly how much to pushwithout.
You know, upsetting anyone.
And that's really important tome that I hold that nurturing
(23:56):
space, that it's still, kind,you know, it's really important
to me that, that as a teacher,that people feel safe.
And, and you know, there havebeen some students that just
weren't ready, but, you know,part of their energy was to hold
space for the group and theywere almost, you know, or
someone that had just recentlygone through grief and she just,
she was there to be loved by thegroup.
(24:18):
So.
There's always a reason whysomeone's drawn to these
classes, and sometimes it's notwhat we think.
And usually the ones that end upbecoming the most incredible
channels and will bring through,you know, mind blowing wisdom,
are the ones that sat there,didn't think that they could do
it, and, surprise themself, youknow?
So there's, you know, uh, everylevel's tailored for I think,
you know, and the universe andspirit only gives us what we.
(24:41):
Able to cope with at the time.
So, and again, it develops inyour own time outside of the
course as well.
Once you've got that framework,you've got it for life.
So when students have, might notbeen ready in the course to
really fully expand into thatchannel state, or they were
getting channeled messagesthrough, their intuition and
their clairvoyance, but notquite direct channeling yet,
(25:01):
that's fine.
They'll come to it when they'reready or it'll just happen
spontaneously in a reallygentle.
Nurturing way.
And really it's us that actuallylet, we are the ones that let
that happen.
No one, no spirit being evertakes us over or does anything
against our will.
We're always a participatingcomponent of that ability to
channel.
And that's a framework I teachas well.
(25:24):
You know, we actually say, yes,I want to, and we invite that,
and I'm a conscious channel, soI'm always a part of it.
I'm not unconscious and notaware or participating.
I see it as we're both in thedriver's seat.
You know, I'm in there.
Driver's seat, but move to thepassenger seat is the best way I
describe it.
So I'm aware and feeling allthose sensations of when the
guide comes through in order todirectly channel.
(25:46):
And that's exciting.
It's just an amazing feeling.
Avanthi (25:49):
And it's working, working through your individual,
resistance, I suppose to, yeah.
To when it does, come in.
And yeah, for me that was a hugepart of it.
Like, but I didn't even realizethere was different ways to
channel.
Like again, that was my trustfactor.
So if there is anyone out therethat does feel, I remember with
(26:11):
the reiki course I was lookingat different stuff online and
it's almost like it, yeah, itwas just, um, you, some might
say it's the algorithm, but itwould, or something like that.
But it was just come, it keptcoming up and I kept looking at
other things and I'm like, no,I'm really drawn to you.
And like years on I dounderstand why that is.
(26:34):
And, I'm so, so grateful.
That I've gotten here.
I have all this love for myselfat the same time, and so, and
guidance now as well.
So
Lisa Brandis (26:48):
it's so beautiful and thank you for, yeah, for
being able to be a voice andshare for others that have no
idea what this means.
I could talk until the cows comehome about what I teach and how
I do it, but it's, you know,it's really, it's really
important to me that.
That people considering doingthis, actually hear from my
students and hear what it meantfor you in order to learn, reiki
(27:10):
and also channeling and how it'shelped you in your life.
And especially as a mother andhaving young children.
You know, there's so manybenefits.
I've got reiki babies, my actualage in.
Out there waiting for me at themoment, so I better wrap it up.
Um, thank you so much, Avanti.
Um, I'm just so grateful thatyou came on and spoke to
everyone today and shared yourexperience, so thank you, thank
(27:33):
you, thank you.
I adore you.
You're such a beautiful soul andyou brought so much light to the
group as well.
And, um, and just this gorgeousopen-hearted willingness to
learn and to.
Discover something new.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Oh, thank you.
Yeah, I could definitely, yeah.
Avanthi (27:50):
Feel it right here, but thank you.
So, yeah, that was beautiful andum, yeah, I hope, um, I hope
people do trust that intuitionand, yeah.
Follow.
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