Do You Believe in Ghosts?
- Thread starter Vapor Pete
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Nope. I don't believe in the soul, so I don't believe in ghosts or spirits either. That said, if verifiable evidence was presented that supported the existence of ghosts, I might change my mind. However, in the whole of human history, there has been not one shred of credible, verifiable evidence that suggests ghosts exist. For now, case closed. Ghosts are figments of the active human imagination.
Well, its almost Halloween....... who believes in ghosts?
My best,
-VP
I spent a week at the Southhampton Princess hotel in Bermuda on business about 10 years ago. My room was haunted. Mischievous poltergeists making havoc of my room.
Absolutely I do. I have friends here who live in a house that's visited a few times a year by the ghost of the guy who owned it before them. The whole family has experienced the ghost, especially when he gets upset and starts really stomping around. He's able to throw small objects, like rolls of masking tape. Most of the adults find the ghost just grumpy, but a couple of the younger kids are scared to death of him.
Also: I went to college in Pennsylvania. I invite anyone who doesn't believe in ghosts to visit the graveyard in St. Anthony's in eastern PA some night. Scariest night of my life was when we went there with a guy who had a book of incantations, hoping to call up the ghost of Revolutionary War general "Mad" Anthony Wayne. I know four other guys beside myself who will tell you we saw a ghost that night and we were glad to get out of there.
I've seen a few other things, but it comes down to: no doubt in my mind that ghosts - or whatever they are - exist. If you've never experienced them, it's fine to be a skeptic. For most, it's probably better that you never have to find out for certain!
Also: I went to college in Pennsylvania. I invite anyone who doesn't believe in ghosts to visit the graveyard in St. Anthony's in eastern PA some night. Scariest night of my life was when we went there with a guy who had a book of incantations, hoping to call up the ghost of Revolutionary War general "Mad" Anthony Wayne. I know four other guys beside myself who will tell you we saw a ghost that night and we were glad to get out of there.
I've seen a few other things, but it comes down to: no doubt in my mind that ghosts - or whatever they are - exist. If you've never experienced them, it's fine to be a skeptic. For most, it's probably better that you never have to find out for certain!
Short answer: No.
Long answer:
To believe in ghosts, one first has to believe that there is a "soul" i.e. a substance/entity that is not corporeal and that somehow inhabits the body. This is already a bit of a stretch because it begs the question of how this "soul", being non-corporeal, interacts with the physical body.
Further, one then has to believe that this "soul", after the body stops functioning, lingers around and spends its time moving furniture and playing tricks with lights and drafts. Why it would do this, rather than try to communicate with say morse code, is beyond me.
Finally, there remains the question why only very few souls interact with the physical world after their bodies have died. Since we have to believe that the non-corporeal soul CAN interact with the physical world in order to inhabit a body in the first place, why is it that, of the billions of people who have already died, only very very few hang around.
Not to mention that there is not even the beginning of a meaningful scientific explanation on what ghosts are and what rules they are subject to.
So no, no ghosts for me.
Long answer:
To believe in ghosts, one first has to believe that there is a "soul" i.e. a substance/entity that is not corporeal and that somehow inhabits the body. This is already a bit of a stretch because it begs the question of how this "soul", being non-corporeal, interacts with the physical body.
Further, one then has to believe that this "soul", after the body stops functioning, lingers around and spends its time moving furniture and playing tricks with lights and drafts. Why it would do this, rather than try to communicate with say morse code, is beyond me.
Finally, there remains the question why only very few souls interact with the physical world after their bodies have died. Since we have to believe that the non-corporeal soul CAN interact with the physical world in order to inhabit a body in the first place, why is it that, of the billions of people who have already died, only very very few hang around.
Not to mention that there is not even the beginning of a meaningful scientific explanation on what ghosts are and what rules they are subject to.
So no, no ghosts for me.
I believe in ghosts because when the disciples saw Jesus and thought he was a ghost he said ghosts don't have bodies. I think he would have said there is no such thing as ghosts if there werent.
Ghosts - What is a Ghost?
By Thomas Shea
The question "What is a ghost?" has been asked by millions of people for thousands of years. Every culture across the planet views ghosts differently. Some believe that ghosts are evil spirits that should be feared, while others believe that ghosts are here to help and protect the living.
Ghosts are generally thought of as the apparition ( the appearance of) or spirit of someone or some thing that is no longer living. Many theorize that a ghost is simply caught between the world of the living and the afterlife. Possibly confused about their own death. This is why many people believe that ghosts are often found in places of terrible tragedy and sudden death.
Other theories regard ghosts as just another form of energy. We are all made up of energy. Some scientists believe that energy doesn't die, but simply changes form. Ghosts could be the same energy in a new form, without a physical body. Another theory is that ghosts are only imprints left on the atmosphere around us by what some call our "life force".
Although there may be no definite explanation for what a ghost is, it is hard to deny that there is definitely something about them that has captured the minds of millions. With thousands of reported sightings and encounters for centuries, it is also hard to deny that ghosts just might be real. The thought of a ghost being real is scary to some and fascinating to others. Can they see us? Do they hear us when we speak?
There are different types of ghosts that people have reported encounters with as well. History will tell us that not all ghosts are considered friendly and some actually create feelings of sadness and terror.
A poltergeist is said to be one form of a ghost that is reported to move objects and make noises to let it's presence be known. Poltergeists are often regarded as bad or evil spirits and are sometimes even associated with demons. A poltergeist is said to sometimes center around one person in a household. This person is usually someone who may be suffering from some form of emotional turmoil or change. Adolescents are often associated with this type of ghost.
Demons are often referred to as ghosts, but are theorized by many to be a completely different thing. Demons are most commonly believed to be fallen angels or forces of pure evil. Some believe that there are two basic forces that hold our world into place. One being in the form of goodness and purity, while the other takes the form of absolute darkness and evil. Demons are believed by some to a manifestation of that influence. They are also believed to have the power to inhabit the bodies of humans or animals.
Apparitions are the most common type of ghost and involve the appearance or sighting of someone that is no longer living. Apparitions can be full body or partial in appearance. Some apparitions are said to appear only in places that were familiar to them in life, while others remain a mystery. Some say that this type of ghost can appear to relatives or loved ones and have been said to warn of imminent danger.
There are many other types of ghosts and paranormal activity and the best way to get the answers that you may be seeking is to do some investigating of your own. Research and theorize for yourself. "What is a ghost?" just might be a question that can never be completely answered. People will continue to investigate and theorize, but we may not get the answer to this age old question until we become ghosts ourselves.
Ghost...So what are they?
There are several different theories of what ghosts might be. In an effort to be fair and balanced, we'll also be examining the skeptic's point of view. Interestingly, even those folks that agree that there is a strong case for the existence of ghosts, tend to keep their distance
from total acceptance. Some of the current theories used to "explain" ghosts involve hallucinations, the creative power of the mind, dreams, telepathy, glitches in the fabric of time, and ghosts as energy.
Are Ghosts a Bundle of Energy?
The energy theory, while somewhat similar to the "creative power of the mind" theory, seems to be the most common, and generally agreed upon. This theory a to define what a ghost is comprised how it goes about manifesting itself.
According to this theory, a ghost is a disembodied cloud of intelligent energy that has somehow discovered a means of manifesting itself within the physical realm of the living.
Ghosts have often been know to pull power from the batteries of research equipment during
paranormal investigations and cause electrical disturbances.
Energy theory suggests that ghosts may be able to utilize ions, the byproducts of electrically unbalanced atoms (which exist all around us in abundance) to form visible plasma. A candle flame consists of plasma.
Do ghosts then employ this most common state of matter, to achieve manifestation?
While this theory is the most widely accepted by most researchers, it W still cannot provide the exact details of how, or by what mechanism a ghost is able to accumulate energy.
Are Ghosts a Dream?
In an attempt to explain away something that just can't be pinned down, some scientists have put forth the dream theory which suggests that ghosts are nothing more than a product of the subconscious imagination.
The term for this is hypnagogia. This theory suggests that ghosts only exist as a type of hallucination that occurs when a person is in between deep sleep and full consciousness.
Many people have reported having had ghostly encounters "just before they woke up" but were quite adamant that they were not dreaming.
The theory of hypnagogia does not explain how complete strangers have had almost identical encounters with the same entity many months, or even years apart. Can people share a dream?
If so, perhaps that can explain those instances when an entity appears to more than one person at a time. Lastly, if ghosts are all dreams, does that mean that during all ghostly encounters, the living must be asleep?
Are Ghosts Telepathic Images?
Parapsychologists are increasingly beginning to believe that ghosts are capable of communicating with us through telepathy.
The telepathy theory claims that ghosts may be able to produce an image of themselves in our minds. It is our senses that mistakenly believe that what we perceive in our mind's eye is physical reality.
One problem with this theory is that if a ghost only exists in our minds, how then is it able to be caught on film?
When two people see the same ghost, is that ghost in both individuals' minds simultaneously?
If ghosts can actually "get into our heads", why are they experienced so rarely? One reason may be that most ghosts are unaware that they possess this ability. Another reason for the rarity of this situation may be that many ghost simply have no desire to communicate with us.
Are Ghosts a "Glitch in Time?"
The time glitch theory relies on the premise that time is fluid and not linear, as most of us currently believe it to be.
This theory suggests...
That the person in the American colonial garb that is walking through a wall in your dining room may not be a ghost at all, but a living person from a "past" time period simply going about his or her daily routine.
This situation differs from an imprint (which we'll discuss later), as this person is not just remnant energy imbedded in the environment, but a living person from a different time, and perhaps a different plane of existence.
Why this person typically does not interact with those in the present as it would if this were a time warp is not understood, but the concept of one plane (or time period) overlapping onto another has been tossed about.
Are Ghosts a Hallucination?
The hallucination theory contends that people are only able to see ghosts because they have a need to see them and thus simply hallucinate them.
It is the converse of seeing-is-believing -- they believe and so they see. Proponents of this theory cite cases where a person has a need to see ghosts to comfort themselves that a deceased loved one is well, or to convince themselves of their own desired immortality.
The intense pain of losing a loved one or the overwhelming fear caused by the realization of one's own mortality could very likely provoke hallucinations.
However, this theory does not explain the fact that the majority of the people who have reported having ghostly encounters were neither grieving nor pondering the afterlife.
The majority of people who have these encounters are typically considered to be quite sober and balanced with no real interest in seeing anything supernatural.
Are Ghosts the Creation of a Discarnate Mind?
According to the power-of-the-discarnate-mind theory, the mind can survive the death of the physical body and is able to manifest itself through its sheer power of will.
The combination of a disembodied mind and the ability to manufacture plasma from an ambient energy source then results in a ghost that is visible to the living
By Thomas Shea
The question "What is a ghost?" has been asked by millions of people for thousands of years. Every culture across the planet views ghosts differently. Some believe that ghosts are evil spirits that should be feared, while others believe that ghosts are here to help and protect the living.
Ghosts are generally thought of as the apparition ( the appearance of) or spirit of someone or some thing that is no longer living. Many theorize that a ghost is simply caught between the world of the living and the afterlife. Possibly confused about their own death. This is why many people believe that ghosts are often found in places of terrible tragedy and sudden death.
Other theories regard ghosts as just another form of energy. We are all made up of energy. Some scientists believe that energy doesn't die, but simply changes form. Ghosts could be the same energy in a new form, without a physical body. Another theory is that ghosts are only imprints left on the atmosphere around us by what some call our "life force".
Although there may be no definite explanation for what a ghost is, it is hard to deny that there is definitely something about them that has captured the minds of millions. With thousands of reported sightings and encounters for centuries, it is also hard to deny that ghosts just might be real. The thought of a ghost being real is scary to some and fascinating to others. Can they see us? Do they hear us when we speak?
There are different types of ghosts that people have reported encounters with as well. History will tell us that not all ghosts are considered friendly and some actually create feelings of sadness and terror.
A poltergeist is said to be one form of a ghost that is reported to move objects and make noises to let it's presence be known. Poltergeists are often regarded as bad or evil spirits and are sometimes even associated with demons. A poltergeist is said to sometimes center around one person in a household. This person is usually someone who may be suffering from some form of emotional turmoil or change. Adolescents are often associated with this type of ghost.
Demons are often referred to as ghosts, but are theorized by many to be a completely different thing. Demons are most commonly believed to be fallen angels or forces of pure evil. Some believe that there are two basic forces that hold our world into place. One being in the form of goodness and purity, while the other takes the form of absolute darkness and evil. Demons are believed by some to a manifestation of that influence. They are also believed to have the power to inhabit the bodies of humans or animals.
Apparitions are the most common type of ghost and involve the appearance or sighting of someone that is no longer living. Apparitions can be full body or partial in appearance. Some apparitions are said to appear only in places that were familiar to them in life, while others remain a mystery. Some say that this type of ghost can appear to relatives or loved ones and have been said to warn of imminent danger.
There are many other types of ghosts and paranormal activity and the best way to get the answers that you may be seeking is to do some investigating of your own. Research and theorize for yourself. "What is a ghost?" just might be a question that can never be completely answered. People will continue to investigate and theorize, but we may not get the answer to this age old question until we become ghosts ourselves.
Ghost...So what are they?
There are several different theories of what ghosts might be. In an effort to be fair and balanced, we'll also be examining the skeptic's point of view. Interestingly, even those folks that agree that there is a strong case for the existence of ghosts, tend to keep their distance
from total acceptance. Some of the current theories used to "explain" ghosts involve hallucinations, the creative power of the mind, dreams, telepathy, glitches in the fabric of time, and ghosts as energy.
Are Ghosts a Bundle of Energy?
The energy theory, while somewhat similar to the "creative power of the mind" theory, seems to be the most common, and generally agreed upon. This theory a to define what a ghost is comprised how it goes about manifesting itself.
According to this theory, a ghost is a disembodied cloud of intelligent energy that has somehow discovered a means of manifesting itself within the physical realm of the living.
Ghosts have often been know to pull power from the batteries of research equipment during
paranormal investigations and cause electrical disturbances.
Energy theory suggests that ghosts may be able to utilize ions, the byproducts of electrically unbalanced atoms (which exist all around us in abundance) to form visible plasma. A candle flame consists of plasma.
Do ghosts then employ this most common state of matter, to achieve manifestation?
While this theory is the most widely accepted by most researchers, it W still cannot provide the exact details of how, or by what mechanism a ghost is able to accumulate energy.
Are Ghosts a Dream?
In an attempt to explain away something that just can't be pinned down, some scientists have put forth the dream theory which suggests that ghosts are nothing more than a product of the subconscious imagination.
The term for this is hypnagogia. This theory suggests that ghosts only exist as a type of hallucination that occurs when a person is in between deep sleep and full consciousness.
Many people have reported having had ghostly encounters "just before they woke up" but were quite adamant that they were not dreaming.
The theory of hypnagogia does not explain how complete strangers have had almost identical encounters with the same entity many months, or even years apart. Can people share a dream?
If so, perhaps that can explain those instances when an entity appears to more than one person at a time. Lastly, if ghosts are all dreams, does that mean that during all ghostly encounters, the living must be asleep?
Are Ghosts Telepathic Images?
Parapsychologists are increasingly beginning to believe that ghosts are capable of communicating with us through telepathy.
The telepathy theory claims that ghosts may be able to produce an image of themselves in our minds. It is our senses that mistakenly believe that what we perceive in our mind's eye is physical reality.
One problem with this theory is that if a ghost only exists in our minds, how then is it able to be caught on film?
When two people see the same ghost, is that ghost in both individuals' minds simultaneously?
If ghosts can actually "get into our heads", why are they experienced so rarely? One reason may be that most ghosts are unaware that they possess this ability. Another reason for the rarity of this situation may be that many ghost simply have no desire to communicate with us.
Are Ghosts a "Glitch in Time?"
The time glitch theory relies on the premise that time is fluid and not linear, as most of us currently believe it to be.
This theory suggests...
That the person in the American colonial garb that is walking through a wall in your dining room may not be a ghost at all, but a living person from a "past" time period simply going about his or her daily routine.
This situation differs from an imprint (which we'll discuss later), as this person is not just remnant energy imbedded in the environment, but a living person from a different time, and perhaps a different plane of existence.
Why this person typically does not interact with those in the present as it would if this were a time warp is not understood, but the concept of one plane (or time period) overlapping onto another has been tossed about.
Are Ghosts a Hallucination?
The hallucination theory contends that people are only able to see ghosts because they have a need to see them and thus simply hallucinate them.
It is the converse of seeing-is-believing -- they believe and so they see. Proponents of this theory cite cases where a person has a need to see ghosts to comfort themselves that a deceased loved one is well, or to convince themselves of their own desired immortality.
The intense pain of losing a loved one or the overwhelming fear caused by the realization of one's own mortality could very likely provoke hallucinations.
However, this theory does not explain the fact that the majority of the people who have reported having ghostly encounters were neither grieving nor pondering the afterlife.
The majority of people who have these encounters are typically considered to be quite sober and balanced with no real interest in seeing anything supernatural.
Are Ghosts the Creation of a Discarnate Mind?
According to the power-of-the-discarnate-mind theory, the mind can survive the death of the physical body and is able to manifest itself through its sheer power of will.
The combination of a disembodied mind and the ability to manufacture plasma from an ambient energy source then results in a ghost that is visible to the living
Oh boy, I KNOW I saw a couple of 'ghosts' when I was a kid about ten. Was just hanging around my backyard by myself and these two older people just appeared, and walked past me. I was living in a rural part of the SF Bay Area ( this was in the 60's!). To me they were older but they were probably late twenties at the time. I just stood there looking at them walk by me, they smiled at me, and I remember the woman was eating something out of a bag, I watched them walk over the rise and just disappear.
That night, laying in bed, they freaking came out of my closet! i looked at them, they smiled, and this time the woman who still had the bag she was eating from, offered me some, it was mini doughnuts?!
I remember saying ' No thank you', and they just walked out of my room, through the wall.
I know I was a kid, but i remember it like it was yesterday....
That night, laying in bed, they freaking came out of my closet! i looked at them, they smiled, and this time the woman who still had the bag she was eating from, offered me some, it was mini doughnuts?!
I remember saying ' No thank you', and they just walked out of my room, through the wall.
I know I was a kid, but i remember it like it was yesterday....
"Mad" Anthony Wayne is who the city of Ft Wayne Indiana is actually named after. I'm surprised he ended up buried somewhere in PA. Without thinking about it or seeing a grave site (though there is a Ft Wayne fort.. a historical site you can go to and I have been there) I guess I just assumed Mad Anthony (who has streets named after him as well in Ft Wayne) was naturally laid to rest in Ft Wayne. Surprised to learn he wasn't. Learn something new every day.
My first apartment was the upper story of a former house converted to two apartments (top and bottom). My front door was at the bottom of a flight of indoor stairs that had a light fixture at the top (mine was where the original upstairs bedrooms had been, plus a bathroom. It was very obvious. One of the bedrooms had to be made into a kitchen).
for the aproximately 6 to 9 months I lived there I habitually heard loud as life SOMEBODY walk up my interior fight of stairs, banging on the common wall that was the stairwell side and my 'livingroom' (first bedroom converted to the livingroom area). I mean all the damned time.. I kept thinking somebody was in my apartment just big foot steps stomping up the stairs and rapping on the wall bang bang bang and never anybody there and I did get the sense this was a ghost, somebody who's whole intent wasn't actually to harm but just to scare (and job well done! Mission accomplished!) I quit even bothering to get up and look and one day a real person had wandered in and I had just ignored the habitual thumping and walking so I was caught off guard.. otherwise the whole 6 or 9 months it was ..
anyway after I moved out the woman who owned the building actually tried to fight me to try to force me to stay the full lease term.. turns out she had a hellofatime renting it, the locals in the small town knew the deal..
Only AFTER I was gone and out of there did I learn the situation:
It had been her house.. her husband Fred had hung himself on the light fixture at the top of the stairs, she couldn't stand to live there anymore so she'd converted it to the two story/two apartments like this... nobody wanted to live there.. I met another who'd lived there before me who had the same thing happen
Dead Fred (the original to me, before any movies came out using that name) was not the reason I moved out (I simply found a place that was in a location I needed to be in instead and was nicer too)... but having this invisible annoyed angry thumping walking thing (a ghost) didn't inspire me to stay either
It was like a grumpy person who just wanted to scare, I got that sense the whole time.. and he did scare, even if thats all he wanted to do and somehow I knew that..well he did scare me anyway.
It was really something to learn all about it and who that was only AFTER I had lived there.
PS, its been a steady part of my personal belief system and "spiritual theories' that actually trying to call up the dead is a really unwise and dangerous act to perform... I'll be honest that I'm not even sure what I mean there other than a sense that you might not get what you bargained for or asked for, we don't know enough about this and since anything is possible (there's the open ended 'agnostic' part of me again) its just one of the few places we (or at least I won't be playing with ouji boards.. had a thing happen with one of those that I'd really rather not even go into that cemented this notion) really ought not go, its just really best to not go disturbing the dead.
Even if somehow that's just a 'maybe' or somebody thinks its outright silly.. well there's certainly no harm done and nothing lost by my NOT personally participating in any dead-calling activities
I also believe (at least on some days) that when somebody dies those of us left behind if we're too distraught over it can actually sort of bind a person to the planet in an unnatural way.. I suspect there's been a certain famous person or two who may have had a hellofatime finally making it on their way, because of us left behind.
I believe its one thing if the dead can and do reach out to you.. however its another thing entirely for us to try to reach out to them.
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Well, its almost Halloween...
My best,
-VP
I've only had one weird experience when I was a teenager that I can not explain. My brother and I were playing around with a Ouija board and I asked for a sign from the "spirit". Several feet away from us, a mirrored music box lifted straight off of our night stand and landed back down. Both my brother and I were not within reach of the music box, nor from what I have tried to rationalize could we have caused it to happen.
I don't believe it was a ghost, I just don't have any explanation that would have caused it. Back then, I was into the new age stuff and would often ask "ghosts" to show themselves to me.. Something was bound to occur eventually.
The only other strange occurrence I had was when I was laying around on my couch after school. I remember while I was laying there feeling a tremendous amount of fear. I looked up to see a girl probably around seven years of age, dressed in what appeared to be a Victorian era dress. Her face was devoid of expression, and her eyes were lifeless. To me, it felt as though she were devouring the life out of me. A sense of hopelessness and fear took over, I tried to call out to my brother who was sitting on the floor watching TV, but I could not muster the strength to speak. I felt as though I were suffocating. Next thing I know, my brother had pulled me off of the couch.
The last story I can now attribute to sleep paralysis. The first still seems a bit of a mystery to me.
Do I believe in ghosts? No. Our minds are pattern recognition machines. It is for this reason that a lot of people say you gotta have faith, if you are actively looking for a particular patter (such as supernatural forces) your mind will filter out the environment and find such patterns. Such as when you look to the sky, and make animal imagery out of clouds.
Ghosts? Really? Is reality THAT boring for you?
What's next, a thread about boogieman stories?
What's next, a thread about boogieman stories?
Hmmm... dont really know but sometimes i wake-up in the middle of the night open my eyes and see a figure of a woman standing at a corner and looking at me. Sometimes she's sitting down beside me and her face about a foot away from mine.
When I was still smoking heavy I have a a big fan mounted on my window to suck the smokey air out. Sometimes i smell perfume right next to me. the smell just stayed between me and the fan set on high 6ft away.
When I was still smoking heavy I have a a big fan mounted on my window to suck the smokey air out. Sometimes i smell perfume right next to me. the smell just stayed between me and the fan set on high 6ft away.
You should tell the creepy lady next door to stop watching you while you sleep.
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