If you are seriously troubled by a haunting, seek help from someone who has experience clearing places. I do not recommend attempting to clear a space yourself unless you are very sure that you know what you are doing. So in that spirit, I am only going to talk about clearing here in very general terms.

In order to clear a place successfully, you must be completely confident and fearless. If you are in fear about it at all, don’t try it. It’s that simple. If you’re afraid of the spirit or entity, you are giving them your power, and they will use it against you. The more afraid you are, the more fun you will be for them. They will be able to scare you and manipulate you. Essentially, you may make the problem worse.

When you're working with haunting spirits, you must protect yourself. There are a variety of ways to do this. One is to create an energetic circle of protection, invoke the Archangels to protect you, and ensure that you don't leave the circle. You can draw a physical circle if that helps you visualize it. You can use chalk, crystals, or salt, for example.

Another method is simply to surround yourself with violet light with the intent that darkness cannot penetrate your field, again asking the Archangels to help you. Archangels Michael and Azrael are the primary ones to ask when clearing, but ask any of them for help, and they will come.

If you intend for the place to be cleared, it must be. However, I would always, always ask the Archangels to help you. The easiest way to get the spirits to their respective homes again is to open a portal—with the stipulation that only Light can enter through it—and ask the Archangels to return the spirits and/or entities to a place where they can grow and evolve. This ritual should be done with compassion, because these beings are in pain.

Once the spirit (or spirits) has moved through the portal, close it again.

During the process, the spirit or entity may resist. Be loving; be compassionate; do not fear. They may try to scare you by shaking things, moving objects, or any number of dramatic methods. Ignore this. They are trying to rattle you. Know that you are protected, and have confidence in the abilities of the Archangels to help you do this.

When you have successfully cleared the space, you can smudge to remove residual negative energy.

Defense Against the Dark Arts training

I’ll borrow the phrase for a moment from J.K. Rowling. You don’t have to go to Hogwarts to receive training like this. All you have to do is ask the Universe for it, then prepare yourself. The Universe will send learning opportunities your way. You may receive numerous trainings at night, while your body sleeps. These trainings are not dreams; they are spiritual travels and adventures, and your guides will provide the instruction if you feel called to do this.

Be aware, however, that such training can be pretty intense. The lessons are not nightmares, but they are very real, and you may wake up feeling more tired than you would like. That being said, your guides will help you to learn how to deal with the darkness. Viscerally. And it’s not what you might think. Great energy battles between Light and Dark are not really the way. Love is. Love stops darkness in its tracks, every time.

Related articles:

• Hauntings by earth-bound spirits
• Hauntings by entities
• Hauntings:  How entities come into our world
• Returning to Light:  What happens when we cross over
• We are One:  All of our past lives