Glossary
Anniversary
A non-interactive, residual occurrence which, as the name suggests, only manifests
on the anniversary of a significant event. These are usually historical events,
which often involved trauma, death or tragedy such as a battle, suicide or
murder. It can also include other meaningful events that were of significant
importance to the deceased. These mostly re-play on the same day or night
each week, month or year (depending on which calendar was in use at the time).
Also known as:
Imprint, Residual Energy
Apophenia
The sponteneous perception of connections and meaningfullness of unrelated phenomena. Basically, a person may see a pattern where there isn't one. For example; when August Strindberg (playwright) saw sticks lying on the ground, he believed them to be greek letters when in fact they were sticks lying in a random pattern.
See also: Pareidolia
Astral
Astral is a spiritual, ether-like substance composing the astral material that
makes up the astral body and aura. The astral substance and ether are not
synonymous but produce similar effects. Thoughts and actions are impressed
on the astral material, which are duplicated in the human, or physical body.
Both bodies are subjected to injury, the astral substance in its fabric,
and the physical body by its skin. The astral fabric is material that comprises
the astral light, the creative medium of magical manifestations.
Astral Body
Astral Body is the spiritual, ether-like counterpart of the physical body.
The body is composed of astral material and is an exact energy duplication
of the physical form that it encompasses. This energy body is attached to
the physical body, usually at the naval, by a silver-like cord. The astral
body accompanied by the mind is capable of travel during period in which
the physical body sleeps.
Astral Light
This is a term for an occult energy field that comprises the astral material.
Astral light, according to many occultists, is the substance that forms images
from thoughts or thought-forms.
Aura
The aura is a field of energy that emanates from matter, especially around
living things. These are often seen as different colours depending on mood
and health etc of the person.
Boggart
The name Boggart is mainly used in Northern England and describes a particularly
nasty type of ghost. Boggarts are said to have the habit of crawling into
peoples bedrooms at night, pinching, slapping and biting the unfortunate
victim. They are described as being fearsome to behold sharp, yellowing teeth.
Bogie
Another rather unpleasant spirit, fond of haunting children hence, "The
bogie man will get you". In British folklore, bogies are black in appearance
with ugly grinning faces. Short and hairy with a foul smell. They were once
thought to the most powerful form of ghost, as they had once served the Devil.
They often seem capable of wailing like banshees.
Channeling
This is a form of spirit communication. Normally the unseen entity takes possession
of the medium to talk directly to whomever they want.
Clairvoyance
A person who claims to have powers to see the future or see things which other
people cannot see or are beyond normal sensory contact.
Clairvoyance is similar to telepathy, in that a person uses their mind but not their normal senses to obtain information, which they should not otherwise have access to. However, the basic difference between the two is that whereas telepathy involves an interaction between two minds, clairvoyance only involves a single person.
Clairsentience
This is the umbrella term for the psi (or psychic) sense of touch. A clairsentient
person is able to perceive energy fields (through physical sensations), including
a person's aura and vibrations (such as voice and how words are strung together).
This may also explain the ability to "sense" the presence of non-corporealentities,
such as ghosts.
Clairsentience is often mistaken for empathy. Though the psychic is aware of a person's aura, they may think they are picking up on emotions, but instead is mentally describing the kind of energy the subject is transmitting. The difference being that aura is an external vibration, while an emotion is internalized.
Clairaudience
This is the ability to hear things not audible within normal hearing ranges.
This is an example of extra-sensory perception (ESP). It includes the audible
perceptions of ghosts, spirits and those who are in the astral realm.
The definition is debatable at length, although the main point being that clairaudience is essentially the ability of hearing the paranormal as opposed to seeing it. (Although in various reports, there are some who have sight as well as hearing)
Clairgustance
This is defined as a form of extra-sensory perception that allegedly allows
one to taste a substance without putting anything in one's mouth. It is claimed
that those who possess this ability are able to perceive the essence of a
substance from the spiritual or ethereal realms through taste.
Cold Spots/Hot Spots
These self-contained patches of cold/warm air are said to be where a ghost
is trying but unable to materialise by absorbing the energy in that area.
Closing Down
When a medium shuts out the spirit world in order to recharge, or carry on
with their life without the distraction of spirits. Mediums all have they
preferred method of closing down, e.g., meditation.
Crisis Apparition
These are said to manifest to loved ones at moments of extreme crisis. This
would usually be when they are about to die, or at the moment of death. It
is said to be either the spirit trying to say goodbye or just checking their
loved ones are safe before crossing over.
Direct Voice Phenomenon
- DVP
When a spirit takes possession of a medium’s voice box in order to directly
communicate. The voice often takes on the accent or inflection of the spirit’s
character.
See also: Channelling
Doppelgänger
The word is derived from German and usually is the expression for a ghost who
is either still living or is their exact double. Those who have experience
seeing their double are said to heading for misfortune, rarely may indicate
good fortune. They are often experienced by friends or family of the person
they are haunting but in a place where the living counterpart was nowhere
near.
Drude
This is an ancient English expression for a nightmare ghost - normally that
of a mature witch, well versed in the arts of black magic. They are able
to inflict their ghost into the dreams and nightmares of their chosen victim.
Ectoplasm
A substance that is believed to surround ghosts and other creatures that are
connected with spiritual activities.
This viscose substance is supposed to exude from the body of a medium during a spiritualistic trance and form the material to allow the manifestation of spirits.
Electromagnetic Energy (EMF)
A hybrid of electrical charges and electrical fields that bind nature.
Electronic Voice Phenomena
(EVP)
(EVP) concerns unexpected voices found in recording media. It is a form
of after death communication. ITC is a newer term that includes all of the
ways these unexpected voices and images are collected through technology, including
EVP. Of the many hypotheses designed to explain these phenomena, the
Survival Hypothesis has been found to be most effective in answering the evidence.
Elementals
These strange ghosts are said to be spirits that have never existed in physical
form, unlike 'normal' ghosts and spirits that have at one time lived in a
physical form either human or animal. Occultists declare them as being ancient
spirits that predate mankind and fall into four categories comprising; Earth,
Air, Fire and Water. Elementals are often associated with woodland, mountains
or uninhabited valleys.
Exorcism
Exorcism is mainly thought of as the rite of driving out the Devil and his
demons from possessed persons. Exorcism is mainly performed in incidences
of demonic possession that is generally distinguished from spiritual possession.
A general assumption is that the Roman Catholic singularly practices the
rite of exorcism, but some Protestant denominations such as the Pentecostals
and other charismatic groups practice it as well
ESP
Extra-sensory perception is an alleged ability to acquire information by means
other than the known senses, e.g. taste, sight, touch, smell, hearing.
Fireball or Lightball
Frequently reported in haunted locations. The fireball or lightball is said
to move in a slow and smooth manner. They are also frequently reported near
to stretches of water. They are believed by some to be the souls of the departed
returning to Earth in order to guide the souls of the newly departed to the
next world.
Ghost
Ghosts are believed to be the appearance of a dead person that manifests itself
to the living, typically as a nebulous image. They have also been reported
to look indistinguishable from a living person, and was only when it vanished
did the witness realise it was a ghost. Mediums mostly refer to ghosts as
a non-interactive recording as described under the definitions - Residual
Energy and Imprint and mediums
use the term Spirit for interactive
entities.
Also known as:
Apparition, Entity, Manifestation, Phantom, Spirit, Spook, Spectre,
Wraith
Ghoul
An evil spirit or phantom, especially one supposed to rob graves and feed on
dead bodies.
Glass Divination
This is a method of communicating with spirits. People sit around a table with
an upturned glass in the centre. The group all place a single finger upon
the glass and ask the spirits present to move the glass in answer to their
questions. If successful the glass is moved across or around the table.
Grounded Spirit
Grounded spirits are earth bound, meaning they cannot move on because of a
number of reasons:
- They do realise their physical body has died.
- They died in a manner that makes their spirit seek justice or revenge such as being murdered.
- They are afraid to pass over through fear of reprisals - such as a murderer or thief fearing being sent to hell.
- They may not want to let go of loved ones or their home.
- Or any number of reasons that are personal to that particular spirit.
See also: Visitation
Harbinger
These are said to be ghosts of the future that bring warnings of impending
events.
Infrasound
Infrasound refers to extreme bass waves or vibrations, those with a frequency
below the audibility range of the human ear (20 Hz to 22 kHz). Even though
we can’t hear these waves, they can be felt and have been shown to
produce a range of effects in some people including anxiety, extreme sorrow,
and chills. Loud infrasound in the range of 0.5 to 10 Hz is sufficient to
activate the vestibular, or balance system, in the inner ear. Some psychologists
believe that the odd sensations that people attribute to ghosts may be caused
by infrasonic vibrations.
Light Anomalies
Light anomalies are the appearance of unexplained lights or incandescent forms
that appear for no apparent reason. It is claimed that these could be linked
with spirits at an early stage of manifestation or a spirit trying to make
contact. Light anomalies are often caught on camera usually in the form of
Orbs and mists.
Manifestation
A sign of something existing or happening such as the appearance of a ghost
or spirit.
Medium
A person who claims to be able to contact and receive messages from people
who are dead.
Natural
A natural is a rare phenomenon that appears ghostly but in fact is created
by some scientifically unknown property of the present nature.
Necromancy
Necromancy is the act of conjuring the dead for divination. It dates back to
Persia, Greece and Rome, and in the Middle Ages was widely practiced by magicians,
sorcerers, and witches. It was condemned by the Catholic Church as "the
agency of evil spirits," and in Elizabethan England was outlawed by
the Witchcraft Act of 1604.
Necromancy is not to be confused with conjuring devils or demons for help. Necromancy is the seeking of the spirits of the dead. The spirits are sought because they, being without physical bodies, are no longer limited by the earthly plane. Therefore, it is thought these spirits have access to information of the past and future, which is not available to the living. It has been used to help find sunken or buried treasure, and whether or not a person was murdered or died from other causes.
O.B.E
OBE or Out of Body Experience is something which happens to a living person
who is able to leave their physical body and become an astral body able to
fly anywhere in the world. Sometimes it’s an experience caused by near
death trauma while some people claim to be able to do it at will.
Opening Up
A type of meditation used by mediums to contact and form a link with the spirit
world.
Orbs
These are most often considered to be photographed 'spirits' caught on film,
and digital cameras. They are seen as transparent or translucent balls of
light. Some claim them to be a pre-manifestation, others say it is the spirit
in its natural state and other groups say they are nothing more than natural
anomalies or contamination like dust reflecting light.
Night-vision cameras are especially good at capturing this phenomenon, as are those which use infrared. It has been speculated that ghosts are present in the infrared and ultraviolet spectrum of light. More here...
Ouija Board
Ouija (pronounced wee-juh or wee-jee) refers to the belief that one can receive
messages during a séance by the use of a Ouija board (also called
a talking board or spirit board) and planchette. The fingers of the participants
are placed on the planchette, which then moves about a board covered with
numbers, letters and symbols so as to spell out messages. More here...
Pareidolia
A type of illusion or misperception of a vague or obscure stimulous that is percieved as something clear or distinct. For example, seeing faces in clouds. Pareidolia can also be auditory when you think you hear one thing when it is actually something completely different.
See also: Apophenia
Passing Caller
The spirit manifestation of somebody who has recently died. They often present
themselves to a significant other and then are never seen again. In other
words, they do not haunt.
See also: Revenant, Crisis Apparition
Poltergeist
German name for "noisy spirit". Attributes of poltergeists are noise,
items being thrown and a general disturbance. Poltergeists are generally disruptive
and are not limited to one place. The activities often centre on, but are not
limited to, pre-pubescent females. This would suggest that the activities are
attributable to the person rather than the location. They person may unknowingly
be acting as a natural medium or manifesting repressed emotions. More here...
Portal
A portal is theoretical doorway of energy through which spirits may be able
to enter or exit a location.
Psychic
Having a special mental ability, for example so that you are able to know what
will happen in the future or know what people are thinking.
Relates to faculties or phenomena that are apparently inexplicable by natural laws, especially those involving telepathy or clairvoyance.
Psychometry
This is related to clairsentience. The word stems of psyche and metric, which
means, "to measure with the mind". This ability appears to be a
hybrid of clairsentience and clairvoyance. The psychic is able to touch an
object and know of its past, visualise the person connected to it as well
as convey its current physical condition by reading the energies stored within
it.
Residual
Like anniversary appearances, residuals are like tape recordings, which usually
appear in the same location. They replay the same non-interactive ghostly
scene over and over to different people.
These recordings are usually the result of a traumatic event that has been imprinted onto a building or location. They may be seen as a glimpse of the past, re-enactment of a traumatic event, or simply heard as footsteps, voices or other noises.
Also known as:
Imprint, Residual Energy
Revenant
An entity that only comes back a few times after death.
See also: Passing Caller, Crisis Apparition
Scrying
Scrying is to use a mirror, shiny object or reflective surface for the purpose
of communication with spirits as they are said to appear in the reflection.
Séance
Normally conducted by a medium who claims to be able to contact the deceased
relatives or sometimes the spirit guides of the sitters. Sometimes involving
materialisation, disembodied voices or knocking and rapping sounds. The word
séance is French is it's origin and means a sitting.
Spirit
The characteristics of a person that are considered as being separate from
the body, and which many religions believe continue to exist after the body
dies.
A spirit is similar to a ghost, but are said to be interactive – meaning that they can respond to questions or cause things to happen, e.g., touch people or move objects.
Also known as:
Consciousness, Essence, Psyche, Soul,
Stone Tape Recording
This is the replaying of a past event, much like a video recording. It is believed
that the materials in the stone or bricks have recording properties, which
usually replay tragic scenes that occurred in its vicinity. The right conditions
are necessary to play the scene. Read more here.
Table
Tipping
The manipulation of a table during a séance; attributed to spirits.
This phenomenon appears to contradict physical laws and suggests the possibility
of causation by mental processes. As the term suggests, the table can tip or
rise off the floor in answer to questions.
Telekinesis
This is the ability to control one’s physical environment without using
physical manipulation or force.
Telepathy
This is the process in which the mind can communicate directly with another
without using normal, physical interaction.
Transfiguration
When a spirit is said to control a person’s face or posture to resemble
that of his or her own when they were in a physical form.
Visitation
Spirits that are in visitation have come back for a particular reason. This
may be just to check on something, or may have something in particular to
say or do or simply just being nosey. These tend to be the spirits that
mediums communicate with.
See also: Grounded Spirit.
Voodoo or Vodoun
The religion of Vodoun as currently practiced bears little resemblance to its
ancestral practice. Presently there are an estimated 50 million worshippers
worldwide. The central belief of the religion is in spirit possession, through
which the gods speak to the devotees only for a short time during the ceremonies.
However, the faithful believe that the work of the gods is present in all
aspects of daily life, and that pleasing the gods will gain them health,
wealth, and spiritual commitment.
Wake
An ancient custom thought to originate in Ireland, of sitting and watching
over the dead whilst consuming large amounts of alcohol. This tradition is
thought to help the spirit of the deceased in their journey into the spirit
world. The practise of watching the body is done to prevent the dead body
being entered by an evil spirit. The noise of music, singing and dancing
at wakes also helps to scare evil spirits away.
Wraith
According to ancient tradition, a wraith is the ghost of a person on the verge
of death and often appears as an exact likeness of their human counterpart.
They are regarded as a death omen and should people see a wraith of themselves
then their days are surely numbered.
Zombie
A zombie is a dead person that is brought back to life through means of Vodoun
or necromancy, destroying the mental processes of this person through the
process