Messages from Michael

Messages from Michael #1

by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro

The true story of our first contact with the supernatural.

Genres: Spirituality, Nonfiction, Metaphysics, Philosophy, Paranormal, Occult, Self Help

284 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1979

About the author

A professional writer for more than forty years, Yarbro has sold over eighty books, more than seventy works of short fiction, and more than three dozen essays, introductions, and reviews. She also composes serious music. Her first professional writing - in 1961-1962 - was as a playwright for a now long-defunct children's theater company. By the mid-60s she had switched to writing stories and hasn't stopped yet.

After leaving college in 1963 and until she became a full-time writer in 1970, she worked as a demographic cartographer, and still often drafts maps for her books, and occasionally for the books of other writers.

She has a large reference library with books on a wide range of subjects, everything from food and fashion to weapons and trade routes to religion and law. She is constantly adding to it as part of her on-going fascination with history and culture; she reads incessantly, searching for interesting people and places that might provide fodder for stories.

In 1997 the Transylvanian Society of Dracula bestowed a literary knighthood on Yarbro, and in 2003 the World Horror Association presented her with a Grand Master award. In 2006 the International Horror Guild enrolled her among their Living Legends, the first woman to be so honored; the Horror Writers Association gave her a Life Achievement Award in 2009. In 2014 she won a Life Achievement Award from the World Fantasy Convention.

A skeptical occultist for forty years, she has studied everything from alchemy to zoomancy, and in the late 1970s worked occasionally as a professional tarot card reader and palmist at the Magic Cellar in San Francisco.

She has two domestic accomplishments: she is a good cook and an experienced seamstress. The rest is catch-as-catch-can.

Divorced, she lives in the San Francisco Bay Area - with two cats: the irrepressible Butterscotch and Crumpet, the Gang of Two. When not busy writing, she enjoys the symphony or opera.

Her Saint-Germain series is now the longest vampire series ever. The books range widely over time and place, and were not published in historical order. They are numbered in published order.

Known pseudonyms include Vanessa Pryor, Quinn Fawcett, T.C.F. Hopkins, Trystam Kith, Camille Gabor.

Reviews

[Amanda M. Lyons · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whether you take this book as factual or not the ideas presented here are quite interesting. I read many new age, afterworld and other religious and supernatural books looking for my own beliefs. Here I found several points that seemed quite valid to what I feel the afterlife might be like. If nothing else it's an interesting book to read and consider.

[Rogier · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is very interesting.

It offers a view from a higher framework of our apparent holographic reality in this worldly experience, based on a channeling experience over many years with an entity of many "souls."

It is not particularly easy to frame this book, or summarize it, other than to say that it is clearly very authentic, and may be helpful to some as a paralell to the notion of a holographic reality, and a description of more of the mechanics of what that means, and how patterns fit into this. It would also seem to facilitate forgiveness, simply because of what it implies about the roles we are playing in this experience.

Some of the comments on figures of history are very interesting indeed, such as one that Lao Tzu, Sri Krishna, Jesus, and Siddharta Gautama (Buddha) would be the only manifestations of what it calls "Infinite Soul" in this particular Time-Space framework.

Further, its explanations may give one a lot more insight in the why and how of relationships both good and bad which we have in this life, which also can only be helpful.

[Tom Palmer]

One of my core metaphysical books. The start of a series of four enlightening adventures into personal existence. Keep in mind that this is is not intended to cover all there is to know on the subject. Like a teacher in school, Michael is focusing on one single aspect of human life, particularly, the personality, how it is constructed and how it expresses itself. It all might seem crazy at first, but please stick with it and you will gain many insights into the people you encounter.

[Janelle Trees · Rating 4 out of 5]

A peculiar book, not for everybody. But it resonated with me. I found it fascinating.

[CAPTAIN CAPSLOCK PHD · Rating 5 out of 5]

Messages from Michael is essentially my Bible. Sure, folks can laugh that it's collected by a lesbian fantasy erotica author and derived from decades of Ouija board sessions, but I don't see that as any less valid than a farmer dictating holy books from gold plates of questionable existence in a hat, or books written thousands of years ago from multiple sources we can't trace.
Laughing at the source is denying the content, and that content is... well, if there's anything out there that makes more sense than Messages, I haven't discovered it. Like in Hindu, reincarnation is a thing that's real and you just have to deal with that. Animals have souls and deserve our respect. Like in Bushido, you are the one in control of your life and decisions - no one else. You find strength from within and self-realization is the goal. Like in Buddhism, the middle path is key, and like in Satanisim, the only real sin is a lack of empathy.
There's no dogma, there are no rituals, there's no leadership, there's no cult. It takes someone who doesn't seen a father figure in the sky watching you to keep you from wreaking havok. Best of all, it helps you understand people. I'd say my social skills have improved substantially thanks to these books. Once I understand someone enough to identify their age, role, and overleaves, I can adjust my understanding and behavior towards someone to get along better and the results are often fantastic.
If you are interested in alternative theology, have an open mind, and are struggling with your place within humanity, by all means give it a try.

[Keith · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very thought provoking book covering 25 years of encounters with Spirits via an Ouija Board. Highlights include 7 types of soul’s which don’t change life to life(reincarnation):
Servers, Artisans, Warriors(via online test - this is my soul type), Scholars, Sages, Priests, Kings. Jesus is an infinite soul.
In each life you choose one major task and work to accomplish it. You pick spirit guide to help you through your life - open up your mind(i.e. Meditation) to communicate with them.

[Joel Salomon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Open your mind to the possibilities and the messages will change your life.

[Pilar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing, mind blowing... food for thought

[Erin Newton · Rating 1 out of 5]

This has to be the most whack a doo book I've read in a long time. Michael gives therapy to a group of people on the regular. People who have families and careers but have time to devote their Saturdays to communicating with Michael (an entity of several persons, not just one). Paragraphs of information communicated through a Ouija. Paragraphs. I hope someone checked with this group years later to record the only cases of carpel tunnel through excessive use of a Ouija. I'm glad I only paid $.50 for this "nonfiction" book.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five star rating is for those who have not yet experienced this incredible book.

Returning readers -- If you are already versed, however, and are considering purchase for the last bit of new material, it is not necessary or significantly different from Michael's channeled messages in the totality of the original texts. I bought for the revision and do not suggest that expenditure unless you peruse this material with great enthusiasm.

[Sophia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Do not trust the concept of you have to finish all the lessons before you can stop reincarnation, you are powerful, and you can skip it. Do not trust any being tells you that you have to come back to complete the "karma", they distorted the truth karma concept to trap us here.

[Carson hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really wish that more INFPs knew about this. So many followers are INFPs and I can understand why. Amazing!

[Tambre Bryant · Rating 5 out of 5]

An awesome introduction to the truth of our existence.

[Sammie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Old soul Scholar gives this 2 thumbs up.

[La Coccinelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This material has been around for over thirty years, and yet this is the first book about the Michael teachings that I've actually read. I was somewhat familiar with some of this stuff, having read about it online.

"Michael" is the name given to a group essence from the Mid-Causal plane that comes through a Ouija board to impart wisdom to humanity. Yes, you read that right. No, I'm not kidding. How the message was delivered doesn't really bother me; I've read quite a few of the Seth books by Jane Roberts, so channeling wasn't really a new idea to me. However, I did have a few issues with the teachings... and even more with the book itself.

I was bothered at times by what seemed to be the influence of human minds on the material. Perhaps back in the 1970s, people thought that all mental illnesses (everything from depression to autism) were just mental illnesses. But we know today that that's not true; there are biological factors with many "mental" illnesses. (This sort of issue is not that uncommon. I once read an outdated New Age book that claimed that ulcers were not caused by bacteria, but by stress. Come on, people... get with the times!) There was also the question of homosexuality. While Michael does not disparage it, he claims that it is a choice that is made in early childhood. This contradicts much of the other Michael teachings, which talk about planning your life before birth. If part of your plan is to experience parenthood, and you incarnate into a society where homosexuality is illegal, and then you choose to be homosexual... well, you're not going to get very far with your goals, are you? I would expect that something as important as sexual orientation would be chosen before birth (along with all the other important stuff). This attitude made it seem like there was a certain amount of bleed-through from human minds... and that makes me question the accuracy of the rest of the information.

My issue with the book was that it is a piece of crap. The cover looks like a four-year-old made it with Photoshop. And the typos... Oh, my lord, the typos! I understand that this is a channeled work, and that most Ouija boards don't have punctuation marks (which means that any punctuation has to be added later at the editor's discretion). However, there is no excuse for things like forgetting the opening quotes when people are speaking and using commas to end sentences. And considering that this was the 25th-anniversary publication... well, that's even worse. If you're going to re-release a book and add some new information, go over the rest of it with a red pen and see if you can't spruce it up a little. If this had been an assignment handed in for a class, I'm sure there are a lot of teachers who would have failed the student based on the typos alone.

Okay... now that that's out of the way, I want to talk about the good things. Michael does offer some interesting information about us (as "fragments") and our evolution as souls. Everything is divided into seven, so we have seven Roles, seven Goals, seven Attitudes, etc. Knowing these things can help us understand ourselves (and the people around us) better. Unfortunately, there's not much information given on how we're supposed to know these things. I guess we're just supposed to meditate on it.

I'm not sure I'd recommend this book, especially not to people who are new to this sort of material. Last year, I read a similar book called The Instruction by Ainslie MacLeod. Instead of everything being in sevens, everything was in groups of ten. But the teachings were much the same, and the book was laid out much better and in a way that was easier to follow. For people who are just starting out with channeled teachings, that's probably the book I'd recommend. (The Seth teachings are excellent, too, but not the easiest things to read.)

I see that the publisher for Messages from Michael has More Messages from Michael coming down the pipe. It appears that they've already chosen to use the same icky cover for the second book. I just hope they run the text through a word processor and give it a good editing before they release it. There's just no excuse for something that bad to be released when today's technology is at their disposal.

Interesting: 4/5
Informative: 3/5
Writing: 1/5
Message: 4/5

Overall: 3 out of 5

[Wesa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book back in the early 80s, and I'm currently re-reading the 25th anniversary edition, which is essentially the same book, but has additional comments from Michael as notated by other people than those used in the original edition. The differences are quite small but potentially important.

I don't know if Michael is what they say they are: a group entity of human souls on their way back to re-integration with the source of all souls. At this particular stage in their evolution, it is their task to impart what they see as reality to those of us on lower planes of existence.

Personally, this makes a lot of sense to me. To quote Heinlein, "God split himself into a myriad parts that he might have friends. This may not be true, but is no sillier than any other theology." (Lazarus Long, Time Enough for Love) It really explains *why* God created man, in a way that religion never has.

[Robbt E · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book years ago, and it was the first "channeled" book that I read. I found the ideas refreshing and speculation inducing to my teenage psyche. I haven't read it again even though I found it at a thrift store. I really don't know how I feel about writers utilizing the narrative of the channel to proclaim a somewhat omniscient perspective or at least whether it comes from a higher self, a imagination or whatever. The prevalence of channeled ideas creates an interesting belief memesphere that the "new age spirituality" thrives in and at the same time runs wild with craziness that has no basis in peoples verifiable experiences. I mean it's interesting nonetheless and a good idea to question our belief systems.

[jacqs · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting account about the spiritual planes and reincarnation and souls, as told through an ouija board by an entity known as Michael (not the arch-angel). As such channelings go, this one seems like a classic. I like the fact that the spiritual "system" is cohesive, coming from a single divine source, rather than an author creating a mish-mash of his or her favorite ideas and philosophies. The ouija board messages are quoted directly, and the rest of the text is a personal account of the group of people that formed around the ouija board.

[yamiyoghurt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting. I'm not sure if I understood all of it, probably need a second go at it sometime later. It offers a higher perspective of life.

"Why should we bother with this stuff?"
Because you choose to do so.
"Will any of us understand it in this lifetime?"
If you work very hard.
"Is it even necessary that we understand it?"
It is not necessary. Eventually, in other lives, it may be.
"Then why should we bother?"
To learn. To know. To satisfy your curiosity. To be free.
"Is that enough?"
It is all there is.

[Robert Morrow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whether or not you buy into channeling spirits, reincarnation or the eternal soul, the theory of human personality behind the "overleaves" is brilliant. Yarbro's chapters are somewhat pedestrian; the real meat is in the words of the entity Michael, written in big capital letters throughout. If you can overcome your prejudices about "New Age" literature, you might gain a different and helpful perspective on life and your fellow humans.

[michelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I met Chelsea Quinn Yarbro 10 yrs ago 'by accident" (there are no accidents) and she took one look at me, held my hands and told me I am a young warrior soul. I believe she is right. This genre takesyou out of your comfort zone and you must suspend disbelief. And yes, I met Michael.

[Poett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maybe it is my time now, but I really enjoyed the ideas here

[Sandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

[Brenda Bishop]

I loved the book....different way of thinking

[Dawn Mattson]

Otherworldly. The ideas of "clusters" of souls who each have their own paradigm: scholar, priest, care-giver, warrior, etc., that comprised a single entity "soul" was an interesting plausibility. Aristotle (384-322 B.C.) said, "Probable impossibilities are to be preferred to improbable possibilities." I took that to mean to have open mind but don't believe everything you read.

[Darlene (Dar) Wyckoff]

Well, I was at a lot of those sessions. And I typed the manuscript for publication. Co-authored a parody of the whole thing... Perfectly good book, if you believe in that sort of thing. (I don’t.)