Who are spirit guides and how can people connect with them

We live in an extremely chaotic and unpredictable world today. Our best friends can turn out to be jealous people, and people from our family could start conspiring against us. These things can often be seen or realised without having some ‘external help’. So spirit guides become the helpers.
Spirit guides are basically energetic beings, or divine guardians as some people say, who help you through the journeys of life. Be it being happy for you when you win an obstacle, or letting you know about the challenges ahead.

Well, this question does not have one single answer. To some, spirit guides are the true, divine beings who have forever been looking out for them, and for others they are just ‘concepts’ whipped by some overly-spiritual people. For some people, the presence and the feeling of having a spirit guide is pure and true and undeniable, but for others it is a disturbing experience to think about.
Some people also claim that spirit guides are nothing but just your inner wisdom or your subconscious trying to tell you something, while you deny your ability to think better for yourself.

Now for people who believe, spirit guides are of many different types. Some feel that guardian angels are the spirit guides, some come in the forms of ancestral guides, and some even manifest as spirit animals! The ancestral guides are the deceased family members who continue looking out for us, from the divine spaces. These guides are for protection and giving us wisdom. Guardian angels too protect us and guide us throughout our lives. Many say that their guardian angels give them comfort and help them walk on the right paths.In many ancient cultures, we also have nature spirits and animal guides. Spirit animals are loyal to us and remain with us in times of need, and the nature spirits find us in the energy of trees, rivers, the mountains, and the likes.

Spirit guides help people in more than one way. They do not just protect people from harm, but also give them intuitions and insights about what is to come next. Some people believe that when you have a very strong gut feeling, where in your heart you know something will turn up in a way, it is your spirit guide giving you a hint about what is to come next.
Similarly, if you have ever cried too loud and too much, and all of a sudden you feel a wave of comfort spread over you, this might be your guardian angel looking out for you.

Connecting with a spirit guide often just happens naturally. You don't select or choose a guide, they are just there for you in a way. So connecting to them does not mean doing any rituals, or elaborate practices, but rather just look out for them and their guidance here and there.
Pay attention to your intuitions, keep in mind what thoughts you had about a certain situation, if your gut feeling tries to tell you something is wrong, listen to it once or twice, and the likes. Many people say that spirit guides often use symbols and numbers to communicate with you, so look out for the subtle messages.

Self-realisation is the biggest help when connecting with your spirit guide. When you know you have ‘divine’ help, or a certain power that is looking out for you, it is easier to connect the dots and stay in guidance. Be it the loyal animal for which you are called a ‘whisperer’ or the subtle hints you get when venturing into new territory are the spirit guides around you.

Another way to connect with the spirit guide is to speak the language of love. Not just with others, but also with yourself. Be it the affirmations you speak for yourself in the morning, or the belief you hold in the divine powers, it all comes as the language of love, and helps you stay connected to your spirit guides.