NIne Kinds of Soul Mates and How to Recognize Them

Types of soul mates

Are there people you feel like you were destined to meet or people who make you feel at home the moment you are in their presence? These same people can occasionally drive you crazy or even contribute to your most transformational wounds. These are people you have a strong soul connection with – or what we often call soul mates.

What is a soul connection?

A soul connection is when two people feel connected on a soul level in a meaningful or extraordinary way. It's the feeling that your bond transcends the earthly plane — beyond the practical details of your relationship, like being co-workers or lovers — and that something much more important has brought you together or is at stake. You may feel like you knew each other in a past life or that your souls agreed before this life to meet now.

When I hear someone use the word 'soul mate' it often seems to connote exclusivity,” spiritual teacher and best-selling author Tess Whitehurst tells MBG. Ms. Whitehurst, who has been romantically involved with the same partner for 20 years, thinks the opposite is true: we actually have several soul mates. And since we are all part of common humanity or spiritual consciousness, we are actually all connected at the soul level.

How to recognize a soul mate? Let's take a look at the different types of soul ties – keeping in mind that there may be some overlap. Someone can be your soul mate in many different ways.

1. Partner Souls

There are certain souls you have agreed to associate with in this lifetime – the most common type of soul mate. You may have agreed to be best friends, and in-laws, raise children together or start a business together. A soul partnership can be with someone you know intimately for your entire life, such as a beloved brother or sister, or with someone you barely know for a short time, such as an influential person in your industry who offers you great advancement in your career. Soul Partners are specifically designed to help support you in this life emotionally, professionally, or in any other way, you need to accomplish and experience what your soul has intended to do here on earth.

2. Soul Ties

When you feel a soul link, it is simply the feeling that another soul is in your life for a reason. For example, if your life is very busy and you meet a potential new friend or a potential business partner, the feeling that you have a soul connection with this person could encourage you to make room in your life for this relationship. . Maybe you are not looking for a pet, but when a friend tells you that he has to part with his pet because he has to move abroad unexpectedly, your clairsentient, or felt, psychic pathway could give you the feeling that you have a soul connection with this animal and that bringing it into your home is the right thing to do for both of you. You can think of soul ties as the ties that bind,

3. Soulmates from past lives

Many Eastern religions and philosophies evoke the concept of past lives. I can always tell when a client has met someone they knew well in a past life by how they describe the connection. If the bond manifests in the form of a romance, he may say, "I've never felt this before!" ". When two souls have shared a significant past life together (or perhaps several), if they meet again in this life, they may be inexplicably drawn to each other – and the sexual chemistry may be off the charts.

What people feel is the energy built up over other lifetimes together and soul recognition. While you can have soul recognition with any type of soul mate, those from past lives (whether you were at odds or best friends in a past life) are extremely powerful. According to Brian Weiss, MD, psychiatrist, and past-life regression expert, two souls could agree to reincarnate and sail to each other after spending 1,000 Earth years apart – which is pretty romantic!

Still, just because you had a significant past life with someone and are experiencing all the feelings, doesn't necessarily mean you're meant to partner up, romantically or otherwise, in that life. Judge the relationship by who you two are today and how you treat each other today. If you suspect a past-life connection with a current lover, try to bring more healing to the situation, even if you are breaking up. This can be lovingly releasing him, wishing him out of your life. Often when souls find themselves in this lifetime, they are looking to heal something or do something better this time around.

4. Karmic kindred spirits

Karmic soulmates are sometimes referred to as "wrecking ball soulmates". But instead of thinking of karma as good or bad — or a system of punishment and reward — think of it as just plain neutral cause-and-effect energy. The earth plane is a dimension of cause and effect. We create karma with other people all the time, through interactions big and small. Every interaction with another person creates an energy that can turn into karma. Don't be afraid of it, just be aware of it. Karmic relationships can enter our lives as agents of change that facilitate – through positive interactions, negative or neutral – opportunities or invitations to improve our karma (how we act in our lives and in the world) so that we can grow and evolve. Keep in mind that the soul craves new experiences, growth, and evolution.

5. Romantic Soulmates

After giving thousands of insight readings to clients around the world, there are a few things I know for sure, as Oprah would say. The first is that when we enter into a significant romantic relationship or fall in love, we may associate with that person. What is not only possible but certain, is that we have the opportunity to heal, learn and grow through this relationship. Even in the happiest or healthiest of relationships, romantic soulmates can tend to tap-dap your biggest wounds or challenge you in uncomfortable ways. When two souls engage in a romantic relationship, they also walk into a classroom together.

I've had many clients who've met their perfect match and said, "I feel like I've waited my whole life to meet this person." The wait is always worth it! Find ways to fall in love with life, work on the belief that a great romantic relationship is possible for you, and get help healing those romantic wounds from the past.

6. Twin Flames

This popular term describes an intense soul connection, and some people believe that twin flames are actually a single soul that has been split into two bodies. According to this theory, twin flames can love, challenge, teach, and heal each other in unique and powerful ways. However, Whitehurst cautions against feeling like you need another person to complete you. Remember there can be a dark side to trying to fit people into a certain category in your life, including a spiritual category. While some think twin flame is the ultimate romantic experience, remember that every relationship you enter with another person – romantic or otherwise – has the potential to help you achieve greater enlightenment.

7. Soul Mates, aka Soulmate Friends

Not all soul mates are romantic. Your pet soulmates — aka soulmate friends — can be just as important in your life. If you view life on earth as a temporary journey for the soul, as some spiritual people do, you'll want to have interesting and supportive travel companions, just like any character in an epic story or a legend finds companions along the way. Think of them as spiritual sidekicks, people who seem destined to stand in your way so that both of you can, in turn, give each other love and encouragement when needed to continue your earthly odyssey. Don't underestimate the importance of soulmate friends. Whether they are in your life for the long haul or just a few months, soul mates are necessary nourishment. Just as the human body needs food and water, the soul needs soul mates.

8. Soul families and soul groups

Large groups of souls can be linked into soul families. They may be actual family members in this lifetime, such as a cousin who is not only part of your earthly family but also your spiritual family, or people working toward common goals who never meet, such as activists around the world working for a similar cause or spiritual seekers working to bring more love and awareness to the planet. Sometimes a soul will incarnate in an attempt to heal something in the family line, such as a pattern of addiction, abuse, or illness.

9. Kindred Spirits

Soulmates aren't always kindred spirits, but they certainly can be. Soulmates are simply people who truly understand you. You may think of a soul mate as someone who shares the same spiritual beliefs as you or who agrees with you on cultural issues to the point that you could finish each other's sentences. A soul mate can also be someone who has had a similar experience to yours – for example, you are both elementary school teachers, both mothers of newborns, and both married to working artists. It's incredibly peaceful to be with another soul who has it all figured out, for you.