Intuition

William R. Colagrande, MS

If you are like most people, you have probably wondered at one time or another about intuition, What is it, where does it come from, is it real or should I be singing do-do-do-do, do-do-do-do theme from the Twilight Zone?

The dictionary defines intuition as quick and ready insight, the act or process of coming to direct knowledge without reasoning or inferring. It is derived from the Latin word intueri, which means to see within. It is a way of knowing, of sensing the truth without explanations.

In its more complicated form, intuition is lumped together with psychic phenomena. Though it sounds like fodder for an episode of the X-Files, scientists around the world have been studying the subject in their laboratories for over a century. The scientific evidence abounds with reported experiences such as telepathy (mind to mind communication), clairvoyance (information received from a distant place) and precognition (information received from a distant time). These studies suggest that we have ways of gaining information that bypass the ordinary senses. This extrasensory perception (ESP) refers to perceptual experiences that transcend the usual boundaries of space and time.

But it is the more common and humble form of intuition that I want to explore here. We could also call it a hunch or a gut feeling. We have all experienced them from time to time. First off, I find the term gut feeling highly informative in that it describes a communication that comes from our gut (or our heart), not our brain. This implies a commonly accepted understanding that the point of origin is different from ordinary thoughts and cognitive processes.

There are probably at least a dozen common explanations of this phenomena, but I will only go into the two that sound most plausible. One is that hunches emanate from the sum total of all our personal knowledge and experience, the vast majority of which is now lost to our conscious recollection but nevertheless still present like some old computer file only waiting to be opened. The idea follows that as we are struggling to come to a conscious decision about a given issue, all the previous related experiences we have had concerning the topic combine to help gently nudge our conscious deliberations in one direction or another.

The second theory would have our intuition functioning something akin to a conscience, an emanation of our personal values. Where the conscience might act in more clear cut and fully conscious ways (e.g. Gee the clerk gave me too much change back... I could keep it… naaaaw) intuition is more subtle and open to misinterpretation. It is often just a sense that something we’ve done or are about to do isn’t just right. It nags at us and is often troublesome in that it doesn’t always inform what should be done, only that something is off. It’s left up to our conscious minds to sift, trial and error-like, through the details to hit upon the proper solution.

Hunches, gut feelings, intuition, whatever you choose to call them are too important a source of information to ignore. Many people fail to recognize their value in the decision-making process. We each have within us a wisdom that goes largely overlooked and underutilized. Woman are usually more intuitive than men, probably because it is they who are chiefly responsible for sensing into the wants and needs of otherwise inarticulate infants (their young children, not their husbands.)

Hunches often will provide valuable data when problem solving. When you’ve gathered the facts and still can’t quite decide, go quiet, listen in and wait to see what presents itself. The light bulb could go off in a dream, a chance conversation, something you see in the newspaper, almost anywhere. You’ll find it only if you are looking, so stay relaxed, stay open and prepare to be surprised! Not only can this be a fun experience, but the better you get at looking, the more you’ll see.

If you want, you can start small, on less consequential issues, until your confidence in the process grows. Feel into what to have for lunch today or what type of movie you’d like to see. These are intuitive senses…you’re not actually thinking them, you are more feeling into or listening for what there is to be heard. Have these kinds of experiences more often. Experiment with and have fun with them.

Other things you can do to promote your intuitive functioning are to shut off the radio, TV, computer, cell phone, i-pod, blackberry, blueberry or whatever and cut yourself off from the ubiquitous stream of noise and distraction. Take some quiet time alone in nature. After everybody else has gone to bed, sit alone in the living room in the dark for fifteen minutes, just taking in the experience. You’ll catch on. Ask your friends about their experiences with intuition and what they do to relax and still their minds.

There is a lot of interesting, valuable and even frightening stuff that goes on within us that we largely ignore, the busier and more hectic we allow our lives to become. If you let yourself experiment with silence and insight in these or similar ways, you’ll soon see the truth and value in what I’m saying.

2007

www.i4hd.com

I’m always interested in hearing your comments and feedback on my essays. You can send them to be by e-mailing bill@i4hd.com