What is a ghost?

What are messengers?

What is a haunting?

What is a poltergeist?

What are projections?

What is the difference between a ghost, a poltergeist and a haunting?

What is Old Hag Syndrome?

What is DOP (disappearing object phenomenon)?

What are Shadow People?

What is EVP (electronic voice phenomena)?

Contacting the Dead in the Electronic Age

Sure signs that your house is haunted

Should you be afraid of ghosts?

How to hear a ghost

How to see a ghost

Can animals be ghosts?

Are animals more sensitive to ghosts?




What is a ghost?
A ghost - or spirit or apparition - is the energy, soul or personality of a person who has died and has somehow gotten stuck between this plane of existence and the next. Most researchers believe that these spirits do not know they are dead. Very often they have died under traumatic, unusual or highly emotional circumstances. Ghosts can be perceived by the living in a number of ways: through sight (apparitions), sound (voices), smell (fragrances and odors), touch - and sometimes they can just be sensed.

But what exactly are ghosts? No one knows for certain.

There are, however, many theories to explain the thousands upon thousands of documented experiences that people around the world have had since the beginning of recorded history. Ghosts and hauntings seem to be a relatively common part of the human experience. As there appear to be several types of ghosts or hauntings, more than one theory may be needed to explain them all:

Dead people
The traditional view of ghosts is that they are the spirits of dead people that for some reason are "stuck" between this plane of existence and the next, often as a result of some tragedy or trauma. Many ghost hunters and psychics believe that such earth-bound spirits don't know they are dead. Veteran ghost hunter Hans Holzer says, "A ghost is a human being who has passed out of the physical body, usually in a traumatic state and is not aware usually of his true condition. We are all spirits encased in a physical body. At the time of passing, our spirit body continues into the next dimension. A ghost, on the other hand, due to trauma, is stuck in our physical world and needs to be released to go on."

Ghosts exist in a kind of limbo in which they haunt the scenes of their deaths or locations that were pleasant to them in life. Very often, these types of ghosts are able to interact with the living. They are, on some level, aware of the living and react to being seen on the occasions that they materialize. Some psychics claim to be able to communicate with them. And when they do, they often try to help these spirits to understand that they are dead and to move on to the next stage of their existence.




What are messengers?
These kinds of ghosts may be the most common. These spirits usually appear shortly after their deaths to people close to them. They are aware of their deaths and can interact with the living. They most often bring messages of comfort to their loved ones, to say that they are well and happy, and not to grieve for them. These ghosts appear briefly and usually only once. It is as if they intentionally return with their messages for the express purpose of helping the living cope with their loss.

This category commonly involves one-time visits to someone with whom the apparition has close emotional ties, sometimes known as "crisis apparitions." Though the encounter usually seems to be a type of farewell, sometimes important and useful information is relayed to the 'viewer.' Though dying is the most common crisis, other life-threatening situations can also trigger apparitional visits.




What is a haunting?
A haunting is a kind of "recording" of a past event on an environment, such as a house, building or a battlefield. These recordings play back, over and over in a kind of loop - always the same, like a film or video. It is thought that the presence of certain people can trigger these recordings to play back. Increased paranormal activity is usually seen after or during house renovations, especially where structural changes are made, almost as if it “stirs things us.” However, they are not ghosts capable of interacting with the living. It is not known how these recordings are made, but they are often associated with a traumatic or strongly emotional event.

These “residual hauntings” appear to be mere recordings on the environment in which they once existed. A civil war soldier is seen on repeated occasions staring out a window at a house where he once stood guard. A dead child's laughter is heard echoing in a hallway where she often played. There are even cases of ghost cars and trains that can still be heard and sometimes seen, even though they are long gone. These types of ghosts do not interact with or seem to be aware of the living. Their appearance and actions are always the same. They are like spirit-level recordings - residual energies - that replay over and over again.

A traumatic moment in time leaves an indelible impression on the building or area, replaying itself for eternity. This could be anything from a 'glimpse of the past' - a recreation of some traumatic or emotion-laden event - to footsteps up and down a hallway.

What causes these recordings to be made and how and why they are played back is a mystery. How and why past events are recorded and replayed repetitiously is not understood. Whatever the actual mechanism, it apparently possesses longevity as the encore performances of a haunting can continue for decades or even longer. Generally, the haunting is a fragment or portion of an actual event.




What is a poltergeist?
"Poltergeist" is a German word meaning "noisy spirit." Current research indicates, however, that poltergeist activity may have nothing to do with ghosts or spirits. Since the activity seems to center around an individual, it is believed that it is caused by the subconscious mind of that individual. It is, in effect, psychokinetic activity. The individual is often under emotional, psychological or physical stress (even going through puberty). Effects can include rappings on walls and floors, the physical movement of objects, effects on lights and other electric appliances - even the manifestation of physical phenomena.

This type of haunting is the most feared by people because it has the greatest ability to affect our physical world. Poltergeists are blamed for unexplained noises, such as wall-banging, rapping, footsteps and even music. They take our possessions and hide them, only to return them later. They turn on faucets, slam doors, turn lights on and off, and flush toilets. They throw things across rooms. They have been known to pull on people's clothing or hair. The malevolent ones even slap and scratch the living. It is because of these sometimes "mean-spirited" manifestations that poltergeists are considered by some investigators to be demonic in nature.

Other investigators, however, believe that poltergeist activity is not caused by ghosts at all, but by certain living people under stress. During a poltergeist experience, the agent, in attempt to relieve emotional stress, unknowingly causes the physical disturbances using mental forces. The mental mechanism that allows the poltergeist agent to unconsciously cause these physical disturbances is called psychokinesis.




What are Projections?
The skeptics' point of view - if they are willing to admit there is anything to haunting experiences at all - is that they are all in our minds, or are products of our own minds. Ghosts, they say, are psychological phenomena: we see them because we expect to or want to see them. A grieving widow sees her dead husband because she needs to; she needs the comfort of knowing that he is alright and happy in the next world. Her mind produces the experience to help itself cope with the stress of the loss. Since we know so little about the power and capacity of our own minds, it's possible that they can even produce physical manifestations, such as apparitions and noises - projections that even others may be able to see and hear. But they are not "real" in any sense, say the skeptics, just the conjurings of powerful imaginations. Are there such things as ghosts? The phenomena of ghosts and hauntings are very real experiences. It is their true cause and nature that is the ongoing mystery.




What is the difference between a ghost, a poltergeist and a haunting?
Despite popular belief, there are distinct differences among ghosts, hauntings and poltergeists:

- Ghosts are spirits of people that have been caught between this plane of existence and the next. They are intelligent beings, often capable of interacting with the living.

- Hauntings are recordings of an event on an event on an environment. They do not interact with the living.

- Poltergeists are neither ghosts nor hauntings, but are caused by the unconscious mind of a living person, usually under some kind of stress.

It is worth noting that a combination of these phenomena can occur in one place. One can effect or even trigger another, which is why a variety of such phenomena can be found in a "haunting."




What is Old Hag Syndrome?
Victims of "Old Hag Syndrome" awake to find that they cannot move, even though they can see, hear, feel and smell. There is sometimes the feeling of a great weight on the chest and the sense that there is a sinister or evil presence in the room. They are often quite frightened about what is happening to them. The name of this phenomenon comes from the superstitious belief that a witch - or an old hag - sits or "rides" the chest of the victims, rendering them immobile. Although that explanation isn't taken very seriously nowadays, the perplexing and often very frightening nature of the phenomenon leads many people to believe that there are supernatural forces at work - ghosts or demons. The experience is so frightening because the victims, although paralyzed, seem to have full use of their senses. In fact, it is often accompanied by strange smells, the sound of approaching footsteps, apparitions of weird shadows or glowing eyes, and the oppressive weight on the chest, making breathing difficult if not impossible. All of the body's senses are telling the victims that something real and unusual is happening to them. Rather than ghosts or demons, however, it is generally accepted there is probably a scientific explanation, such as a form of "sleep paralysis".




What is DOP (disappearing object phenomenon)?
DOP - disappearing object phenomenon - is a relatively common phenomenon in which an object disappears from view and later inexplicably returns. For example, a person puts their car keys on a kitchen counter, where they are always kept. When the person goes to get them, they are gone. A thorough search turns up nothing. Later, the keys are found on the counter where they were originally put (or some other obvious place). It's difficult to document a genuine DOP occurrence because people can be careless, simply misplace things or be forgetful. But there are many compelling stories from people who are certain they looked for the object in the place that it later appears. In some cases, people audibly call out for the object to be returned - and it is. In some rare cases, the missing object has actually been seen materializing out of thin air. It is also known as the "borrower" phenomenon. It may be related to poltergeist phenomena.




What are Shadow People?
Did you see that dark, fleeting shape out of the corner of your eye? Perhaps you caught a glimpse of a strange entity that is being seen with greater regularity around the world. Youre sitting comfortably on your sofa reading the paper in the dim light when movement across the room caught your attention. It seemed dark and shadowy, but there was nothing there. You returned to your reading - and a moment later there it was again. You looked up quickly this time and saw the fleeting but distinctly human shape of the shadow pass quickly over the far wall... and disappear.

What was it? Some natural shadow? Your heightened imagination? A ghost? Or was it something that seems to be a spreading phenomenon - apparitions that are coming to be known as "shadow people" or "shadow beings." Perhaps this is an old phenomenon with a new name that is now being discussed more openly, in part thanks to the Internet. Or maybe it's a phenomenon that, for some reason, is manifesting with greater frequency and intensity now.

Those who are experiencing and studying the shadow people phenomenon say that these entities almost always used to be seen out of the corner of the eye and very briefly. But more and more, people are beginning to see them straight on and for longer periods of time. Some experiencers testify that they have even seen eyes, usually red, on these shadow beings.

The mysterious sightings have become a hot topic of conversion in paranormal chat rooms, message boards and websites, and it was given widespread attention on The Art Bell talk radio show. What are shadow people and where do they come from? Several theories have been offered.

The Imagination
The explanation we get from skeptics and mainstream science - and who are usually people who have never experienced the shadow people phenomenon - is that it is nothing more than the active human imagination. It's our minds playing tricks on us... our eyes seeing things in a fraction of a second that aren't really there - illusions... real shadows caused by passing auto headlights, or some similar explanation. And without a doubt, these explanations probably can account for some if not many experiences. The human eye and mind are easily fooled. But can they account for all cases?

Ghosts
To call these entities ghosts demands first a definition of what we mean by ghosts. By almost any definition, shadow people are somewhat different than ghost phenomena. Whereas ghost apparitions are almost always a misty white, vaporish or have a decidedly human form and appearance (very often with discernable "clothing"), shadow beings are much darker and more shadow-like. In general, although the shadow people often do have a human outline or shape, because they are dark, the details of their appearance is lacking. This is in contrast to many ghost sightings in which the witness can describe the ghost's facial features, style of clothing and other details. The one detail most often noted in some shadow being sightings are their glowing red eyes.

Demons or Other Spirit Entities
The dark countenance and malevolent feelings that are often reported in association with these creatures has led some researchers to speculate that they may be demonic in nature. If they are demons, we have to wonder what their purpose or intent is in letting themselves be seen in this manner. Is it merely to frighten?

Astral Bodies
One interesting idea suggests that shadow people are the shadows or essences of people who are having out-of-body experiences. According to Jerry Gross, an author and lecturer on astral travel, we all travel out of the body when we are asleep. Perhaps, this theory says, we are seeing the ephemeral astral bodies of these twilight travelers.

Time Travelers
People from our own future, another idea states, could have found the means to travel to the past - our time. However they are able to accomplish this incredible feat, perhaps in that state they appear to us merely as passing shadows as they observe the events of our timeline.

Interdimensional Beings
Even mainstream science is fairly convinced that there are dimensions other than the three we inhabit. And if these other dimensions exist, who or what (if anything) inhabits them? Some theorists say that these dimensions exist parallel and very close to our own, although invisible to us. And if there are inhabitants in these other dimensions, it is possible that they have found a way to intrude on our dimension and become, at least partially, visible? If so, they could very well appear as shadows.

Aliens
The alien and abduction phenomena are so bizarre that it's no surprise that extraterrestrials are suspects as the shadow people. Abductees have reported in many cases that the alien grays seem to be able to pass through walls and closed windows, and to appear and disappear abruptly, among other otherworldly talents. Perhaps, too, they can go about their alien agenda disguised in the shadows.

There's a good deal of overlapping among the above ideas, of course. Aliens and ghosts could be interdimensional beings, or aliens could be time travelers - and some believe demons are responsible for all of these disturbing phenomena.

There is no way to prove or disprove any theories about a phenomenon that is so mysterious, that happens so quickly and without warning. Science finds it virtually impossible to catalog or study such phenomena in any methodical way. All we can do, at present, is to document personal experiences and try to piece together what the shadow people phenomenon might be. Perhaps it's an old mystery becoming more recognizable... perhaps it represents a doorway to and from different planes of existence... or perhaps they’re just shadows.




What is EVP (electronic voice phenomena)?
EVP - or electronic voice phenomena - is a mysterious event in which human-sounding voices from an unknown source are heard on recording tape, in radio station noise and other electronic media. Most often, EVPs have been captured on audiotape. The mysterious voices are not heard at the time of recording; it is only when the tape is played back that the voices are heard. Sometimes amplification and noise filtering is required to hear the voices. Some EVP is more easily heard and understood than others. And they vary in gender (men and women), age (women and children), tone and emotion. They usually speak in single-words, phrases and short sentences. Sometimes they are just grunts, groans, growling and other vocal noises. EVP has been recorded speaking in various languages.




Contacting the Dead in the Electronic Age
No one can deny that computers and electronics have totally transformed life on this planet. There are electronic controls and computer chips in everything from the small appliances that toast our bread to the cars we drive. Now many serious and casual researchers are claiming that some of this gadgetry can be useful in a quite unexpected way: to contact the dead... or at least allow the dead to contact us.

Obviously, these claims are highly controversial. They make many assumptions: that there is life after death, that the dead are interested in contacting us, and that they have the means by which to do so. Assuming all that, many people experimenting with electronic voice phenomena (EVP) and instrumental transcommunication (ITC) say they have received messages from "the other side" through tape recorders, VCRs, televisions, telephones and even computers. It seems we may no longer exclusively need Ouija boards, psychics and mediums to contact dear deceased Uncle Harold... just turn on the TV instead. Yes, even spiritualism has entered the electronic age.

These phenomena have manifested themselves since the appearance of the instruments themselves. EVP (electronic voice phenomena), for example, has been reported for well over 30 years: unexplained voices heard faintly on magnetic recording tape. It's said that even Thomas Edison experimented with devices for spirit communication. Investigators around the world are trying to get to the bottom of EVP and ITC, endeavoring to explain, in one way or another, how these voices are encoded on audio tape, how unexplained images appear on video tape and TV screens, where phantom phone calls come from and how computers can relay messages from "the beyond."




Sure Signs That Your House is Haunted
What to watch for – and what to do about it:
You hear heavy footsteps in the upstairs hallway when you know no one is up there. Doors slam unaccountably. Commonly used items disappear and reappear without cause. The kitchen light turns on by itself. There's the unmistakable scent of a strange perfume in the air.

These may be indications that your house is haunted. True hauntings are rare occurrences, and it may be difficult to determine whether or not any strange phenomena you are experiencing in your home might be due to a haunting. For one thing, no one really knows what a "real" haunting is - what causes it or why it starts. There are many theories, of course, but if you think your house may really be haunted, what can you do about it?

The Signs of a Haunting
The first step is to determine, as best you can, whether or not you truly have a legitimate case of a haunting.

Not all hauntings are alike, and they may exhibit a variety of phenomena. Some hauntings feature a single phenomenon - such as a particular door slamming shut that occurs repeatedly - while others consist of many different phenomena, ranging from odd noises to full-blown apparitions.

Here's a partial list of phenomena that might indicate that your house is haunted:

- Unexplained noises - footsteps; knocks, banging, rapping; scratching sounds; sounds of something being dropped. Sometimes these noises can be subtle and other times they can be quite loud.

- Doors, cabinets and cupboards opening and closing - most often, these phenomena are not seen directly. The experiencer either hears the distinct sounds of the doors opening and closing (homeowners get to know quite well the distinctive sounds their houses make) or the experiencer will return to a room to find a door open or closed when they are certain that it was left in the opposite position. Sometimes furniture, like kitchen chairs, are perceived to have been moved. Very rarely will the experiencer actually witness the phenomenon taking place.

- Lights turning off and on - likewise, these events are seldom seen actually occurring, but the lights are switched on or off when the experiencer knows they were not left that way. This can also happen with TVs, radios and other electrically powered items.

- Items disappearing and reappearing - this phenomenon, also known as the “Disappearing Object Phenomenon, or "the borrowers" phenomenon, is the familiar experience of not being able to find a regularly used item - say, your set of car keys - which you believe you placed in a spot you routinely place them. But they're gone and you look high and low for them with no success. Some time later, the keys are found - in exactly the place you normally put them. It's as if the object was borrowed by someone or something for a short time, then returned. Sometimes they are not returned for days or even weeks, but when they are, it's in an obvious place that could not have been missed by even a casual search.

- Unexplained shadows- the sighting of fleeting shapes and shadows, usually seen out of the corner of the eye. Many times, the shadows have vaguely human forms, while other times they are less distinguishable or smaller.

- Strange animal behavior - a dog, cat or other pet behaves strangely. Dogs may bark at something unseen, cower without apparent reason or refuse to enter a room they normally do. Cats may seem to be "watching" something cross a room. Animals have sharper senses than humans, and many researchers think their psychic abilities might be more finely tuned also.

- Feelings of being watched - this is not an uncommon feeling and can be attributed to many things, but it could have a paranormal source if the feeling consistently occurs in a particular part of the house at a particular time.

Those are some of the most common experiences of those who think their houses are haunted. Yet even stranger things can happen...

Stronger Evidence

The following phenomena are more rare, but could be stronger evidence of a haunting:

- Mild psychokinetic phenomena - hearing a door open or close is one thing. Actually seeing it happen is quite another. Similarly, actually seeing a light go on or off by itself is greater proof that something unexplained is happening. Do you see the TV or radio turn on? Or perhaps you're present when a child's powered toy begins to operate on its own. Doors and windows are locked or unlocked. Some people report that when they are in bed they can feel and/or hear something sitting on the bed.

- Feelings of being touched - the feeling of being watched is one thing, and actually feeling like you are being touched is quite another. Some people feel something brush past them, something touching their hair or "a hand" on the shoulder. Some feel a gentle poke, push or nudge.

- Cries and whispers - on occasion, muffled voices, whispering and crying can be heard. Sometimes it's music from some unknown source. People hear their names being said. This phenomenon, as is true for the one above, gains more credibility if more than one person hears or sees the same thing at the same time.

- Cold or hot spots - cold spots are classic haunting symptoms, but any instance of a noticeable variance in temperature without a discernable cause could be evidence.

- Unexplained smells - the distinct fragrance of a perfume or cologne that you do not have in your house. This phenomenon comes and goes without any apparent cause and may accompany other phenomena, such as shadows, voices or psychokinetic phenomena. Foul odors can happen in the same way.

Rarer still are more extreme phenomena, some of which have been called poltergeist phenomena, and can be quite strong evidence of a true haunting:

- Moving or levitating objects (severe psychokinetic phenomena) - dinner plates sliding across the table; pictures flying off walls; doors slamming shut with great force; furniture sliding across the floor.

- Physical assault - scratches, slaps and hard shoves. This kind of personal assault is extremely rare, but obviously highly disturbing.

- Other physical evidence - unexplained writing on paper or walls; handprints and footprints.

- Apparitions - physical manifestation of a spirit or entity. These phenomena are also very rare and can take many forms: human-shaped mists or forming mists of some indistinguishable shape; transparent human forms that disappear quickly; and most rarely, human forms that look as real and solid as any living person, but that disappear into a room or even while being viewed.

Rule Out Rational Explanations
A person who has experienced some of these phenomena might have cause to believe that his or her house is haunted. But maybe not. In fact, according to most experts, probably not. The human mind and human senses (as any magician will tell you) are easily fooled. And people can often mistake explainable (if unusual) occurrences in their homes for the paranormal.

Before you decide there's a ghost in your house or move out from fear, do your best to find rational explanations for what you are experiencing. Virtually all of the phenomena listed on the previous page could have perfectly natural causes:

- noises could be house settling, plumbing or even vermin such as mice and squirrels
- opening and closing doors could be faulty hinges or caused by drafts
- “disappearing objects” phenomena could just be carelessness and forgetfulness
- shadows could be just that - shadows caused, perhaps, by a passing car's headlights
as real as some of these things might seem to you, they really could be just products of your imagination

Of course, the more extreme the phenomena, the harder they are to dismiss.

And, as noted above, if multiple witnesses experience the same phenomena, they are likely to be taken more seriously. Get help in finding rational explanations for the phenomena. A plumber might help you find the cause of that banging. A carpenter can fix that door from closing on its own. A friend or neighbor might be able to look at your particular experience in a different way and offer a reasonable explanation for your "haunting" that you might not have though of. In short, make every possible effort to prove that your house is not haunted.

Keep A Journal
If you feel you have ruled out rational explanations for the phenomena that are taking place in your house, and they are still occurring on a more or less regular basis, document them. Keep a journal of the phenomena as they happen. For example:

- June 2, 2002; 10:30 p.m. - Was sitting watch TV when the bathroom light switched on by itself. Went in and turned it off again.
- June 10, 2002; 9:14 p.m. - Was in the kitchen and heard the footsteps crossing the upstairs hallway again. No one was up there. Went up to investigate and could find no cause.

A journal such as this could help with any formal investigation of the phenomena by experts.

If you hear unexplained noises, attempt to record them with a portable tape recorder. If there are physical phenomena of any kind, photograph or videotape them. Keep your journal, recording and camera equipment readily available so you can document the phenomena as it happens.

Call the Experts
When should you call a paranormal investigator? Only when you have ruled out any rational explanations for the phenomena you are experiencing and are thoroughly convinced that your house is truly haunted should you contact the experts. Of course, if the phenomena are extreme and you feel that you and your family are in any kind of physical or psychological danger, you should call for help right away.

Who are the experts? There are hundreds of paranormal investigation organizations across the U.S. and Canada. Most certainly, they vary in expertise and in the degree of their practical experience, so you should be careful in your choice. Despite whatever strangeness you are experiencing, your house probably is not haunted. But if it is, perhaps it is a benign spirit or phenomenon that you can live with. Usually, it is something you need not fear.




Should You Be Afraid of Ghosts?
The “ghost” phenomenon has become so closely associated with the instinct of fear that it's almost a given that, if asked, most people would admit that of course they would be frightened if they encountered an apparition. Even many seasoned ghost investigators have been known to run like scared rabbits when they see or even hear something unexpected.

Why? Have ghosts really earned the reputation of being harmful to humans?

If you were walking unarmed in a dense tropical jungle that you know is inhabited by tigers and large snakes, you'd undoubtedly be petrified. The threat to your life and well-being is quite real and your fears justified. Tigers and snakes can and do kill. Now place yourself alone at night in a house that has the reputation for being haunted. Most people would probably experience the same fear.

Yet, according to most authorities on the subject, the fear is not justified. Ghosts, by and large, are harmless. The true behavior of ghosts, as evidenced by many thousands of investigations and case studies conducted by paranormal experts, overwhelmingly contradicts the common idea that they are to be feared.

Maligned ghosts
Veteran ghost investigator Hans Holzer, in his book Ghosts: True Encounters with the World Beyond says “...We need to forget a popular notion: that they are always dangerous, fearful, and hurt people. Nothing could be further from the truth.... Ghosts have never harmed anyone except through fear found within the witness, of his own doing and because of his own ignorance as to what ghosts represent.”

Lloyd Auerbach, another respected ghost hunter of many years, agrees: “In many cultures and religions around the world, ghosts are thought to harbor ill will towards the living. This is unfortunate, since the evidence from thousands of cases...suggests that people don't change their personalities or motivation after death... nor do they turn evil.”

So why do we fear them? There are probably two main reasons.

Fear of ghosts – also known as spectrophobia – most obviously stems from our fear of the unknown. This is a deep-seated fear that is hard-wired into our genetic makeup. The primitive parts of our brain that respond to instinct – a holdover from our cave-dwelling ancestors – flushes our bodies with adrenaline when we encounter a threat, preparing us to fight or flee. And when that threat is something unknown that might leap out of the darkness, we'd just as soon flee.

There's another component to this fear when that something in the dark is perceived as a ghost. After all, a ghost is the manifestation of a person who is dead. So now we are confronted not only with what we think is a threat to our lives, but a representative of death itself. Not only is it an entity that we don't understand, it is also a resident of the place many of us fear the most – the mysterious land of the dead.

The second main reason we fear ghosts is that we have been further conditioned to do so by popular culture. Almost without exception, books, movies and television shows portray ghosts as evil, capable of mischief, injury, even death. If the media are to be believed, ghosts actually enjoy scaring us out of our wits. Creepy, rotting, vengeful ghosts may make exciting movies, but they have very little basis in actual experience.

Scratching, slapping and biting
As much as ghosts and spirits may unnerve and mystify us, there is really nothing to fear. Haunting phenomena seem to be recordings of past events on a particular environment. This is why haunted houses can “play back” the recordings of footsteps on a stairway, for example, or even the voices of an argument that took place many years previous. Apparitions can sometimes be seen performing the same task over and over again.

True ghosts or spirit apparitions may be earthly manifestations of those who have passed on. They are sometimes able to interact with the living and relay messages. In neither case does the phenomena pose any real threat. Voices captured through electronic voice phenomena (EVP) techniques can at times be rude or even downright abusive, but again there is no real threat of harm.

So then how do we explain those rare cases in which a person is apparently scratched, slapped or even bitten by some unseen entity? These cases, and others in which people are “attacked” and objects are thrown around, are considered by most researchers today as poltergeist activity. Although poltergeist means “noisy spirit,” current parapsychology theory suggests that they are not spirits or ghosts at all. Poltergeist activity is psychokinetic activity caused by a living person. Usually that person is a teenager undergoing hormonal changes or someone under extreme emotional or psychological stress.

So what we generally consider the scariest aspects of ghosts – objects moving by themselves, TVs turning on, pounding on walls and very rarely a person being injured – are most likely caused by the unconscious working of a living human mind. We can't blame ghosts.




How to Hear a Ghost
For decades, paranormal researchers have been recording enigmatic voices on audiotape. Called electronic voice phenomena - or EVP - these strange-sounding voices have been captured using ordinary tape recorders and cassette tapes. Often these researchers venture out into cemeteries or allegedly haunted houses. Sometimes the voices seem to respond to questions asked by the researchers, but often they are unprompted. In every case, however, the voices are not heard at the time they are recorded. Oddly, it is not until later when the researchers play the tape back - often with amplification or filtering - that the voices can be distinguished. EVP voices don't often sound like normal human voices. They usually have an electronic or otherworldly quality to them, and you have to listen carefully to hear the message.

Are they ghosts? Voices from another dimension? Something else? What they are exactly is a matter of debate, but there's little denying that they are there - and completely unexplained.

Do It Yourself
If you'd like to experiment with EVP, all you need is a portable cassette tape recorder and some new high-quality cassette tapes. Make sure you use new tapes because you want to avoid any possibility of having voices or noises previously recorded on the tape.

- Use an audiocassette recorder with an external microphone and a source of mild white noise, such as a radio tuned between stations. (Or, as other researchers have done, you can also experiment with the quiet of a cemetery or house; just be sure it is far from traffic noises that might interfere with the recording.)
- Place the microphone a few feet from the radio.
- Turn on the tape recorder and introduce the session. For example: "Good morning. It's Tuesday October 31, 11:59 p.m. I welcome all spirits." Then ask three or four questions.
- Replay the taped sequence and listen closely. A set of earphones can help make the short, faint voices more audible.

While some people are lucky enough to get a clear EVP on their first try, others might find that it takes several weeks or even months of experimenting to achieve success. As you conduct voice experiments on a regular basis, in time the voices might get louder and clearer. But such an exercise requires a clear mind, focused intent, positive thoughts, and a balanced temperament to ensure the best possible results.

How To See A Ghost
Do It Yourself
How can you see a ghost in your own home, even if you don't think it's haunted? There may be a way using a home video camera through a technique known as video feedback.

- Place your video camera on a tripod and aim it at your TV set.
- Connect the video camera to the TV so that what the video camera sees in shown live on the TV. In other words, you're taking video of what the camera is seeing on the TV.
- Zoom in so that the TV screen fills the video frame.
- Watch the show.
- You'll want to tape it at the same time so you can replay the video frame by frame.
What will you see? The technique induces video feedback, which can produce a lot of strange images - and in some cases what appear to be human faces.




Can animals be ghosts?
The answer seems to be yes. Animals, it seems, can be both ghosts and involved in hauntings. There are countless stories from people who have heard, felt and even seen pets well after they have died. The animal usually behaves in ways that it did in life, carrying out its routines and habits - jumping on a bed, for example, to cuddle with its owner. The phenomenon brings up the question: do animals share the same life after death that humans do?




Are animals more sensitive to ghosts?
Even people who believe in an afterlife and the possibility of ghosts are often skeptical when it comes to the idea of spirit animals. They don't have souls or spirits, goes the argument, and therefore cannot have a life in the next world. But cats, dogs, birds and other animals are made up of the same energy that humans are, and it may be as possible that this energy can survive death, just as it can for people. Anyone who is close to their pets will testify to the psychic connection they share. Psychic energy and spiritual energy may all be a part of the same phenomenon, and so animals might have as much of a connection to the unseen world as we do.

Or maybe more. Animals not only may appear as ghostly forms, they may also be more sensitive to the proximity of spirits.

Barbara S. tells of a stray black-and-white cat that her family adopted in the Queens section of New York City. They lived in an old attached house that had no history of strange activity, as far as they knew, but their high-strung kitten seemed to be able to see things Barbara's family could not:

“She would look at the stairs, her gaze slowly moving from the bottom to the top, as if she was observing someone walking up the steps. At other times, her green eyes would be transfixed upon a certain spot on the ceiling above me. While I couldn't see anything, the cat was definitely watching something. After my son went away to college, I decided to put the house up for sale. One evening, shortly after my real estate agent had finished looking at the house, I sat in my favorite chair with my little cat nearby excitedly looking at the ceiling above me. I heard people run down the stairs in the house next door. Maybe the noise triggered what happened next, which was truly horrible. What I heard sounded like the heavy, thumping steps of a big man with real heavy boots walking on my living room ceiling upside down. The cat was absolutely frantic. She looked at the ceiling, hissing and spitting. After about ten seconds of deafening noise, there was silence. The cat stopped looking at the ceiling. I checked the upstairs rooms, but, of course, there was no one [else] in the house.”

Dogs can be just as sensitive as cats when it comes to sensing the unseen. Ellen M. tells of ghostly figures in her home that made their presence known so often that her family actually named one of them “Bill”; the other was the ghost of a little girl. Ellen believes that her dogs -- a seeing-eye trained German Shepherd, Haywood, and a blue heeler, Tuscon -- were the first to notice them. Ellen was on the phone one day:

“Haywood was lying at my feet and began to growl. Tuscon went and hid behind the stereo in the corner. As Haywood stood up, I felt a gust of cold air brush past me, and he continued to growl. He moved to the top of the stairs that led into the family room, and the hair on the back of his neck stood up as he growled and snarled into the dark basement. I feared that someone had broken into the house. I turned on the downstairs light as I stood directly behind Haywood, ready to let him run and attack whoever it was in the basement. I saw nothing, yet he continued to growl. I stayed on the phone and went across the room and pulled into the corner, scared to death. At that moment, a little girl's voice came up from the vent in the floor next to me. Haywood walked over and sat beside me as though he was protecting me, growling across the room the whole time until the situation subsided, at which point they began behaving perfectly normal again as if nothing had ever happened.”

Scott P. relates an experience that happened on a winter's day in his family's 100-year-old home, which had previously been a funeral home:

“I, with my cat and dog curled up for warmth, sat near a heater vent wrapped in a blanket. I was in the living room with a perfect view of the entryway. From here I heard some footsteps upstairs. The cat's and dog's ears both perked up at the sound of the footsteps as they seemed to approach the top of the staircase outside in the hallway. Both animals watched some invisible presence slowly walk down those stairs, through the living room then into the dining room. Their heads and eyes seemed to follow someone walking though the house. Both animal’s heads moved in tandem and they acted very much aware of the presence. Yet I could sense nothing myself aside from the sound of steps and the reaction of the animals.”

The ghosts of animals may be as common as the ghosts of humans. There are many reports from people who have sensed, felt, smelled, heard and even seen the spirits of recently departed pets. Nina M.'s daughter, for example, had such an experience with a cat named Andy, which was her companion for 19 years. Like human ghosts, animal ghosts sometimes appear to lend comfort:

“My daughter has suffered with rheumatoid arthritis since age 12, so spends many times in discomfort. For the past couple of years, she began telling me that a ghost visited her on her bed when she was feeling really bad. One morning, she commented that her "friend" had joined her on her bed. "It's strange, he’s always felt just to the right of my feet. Just in that little place. I can feel the mattress depress. "I reminded her that Andy had always joined her in bed whenever she felt bad. She and I both feel that Andy is still around offering comfort to her.”

In some cases these ghost animals are not particular whom they cuddle up to. Paul N. didn't own a cat, yet recalled these visitations:

“Early in the morning, while still dark, I sometimes have a feeling as though a cat is walking around on my bed. It happens usually when in bed, although it has happened while lying down watching TV late at night, too. The sensation is very clear and definite, exactly like the footsteps of a normal-sized house cat walking gently around on top of my bed linen, sometimes on top of me too, as if patting around for somewhere to lie down. Eventually it finds a spot, usually lying up against me, but not always. If I move too much while it is walking around the sensation will disappear. It will not be repeated twice in a night.”

Ghosts sometimes appear to the living to let their loved ones know they are alright in the next world. That's the feeling Dennis G. and his wife got from a cat that he was forced to put down because it was severely ill. Sydney was one of a litter of cats that contracted feline leukemia, but made its presence known even after its death:

“I felt like I had lost a child when we took Sydney home to be buried where she was born. For about a month afterward, I felt depression and grieving for Sydney. Then one night, while lying in bed waiting for sleep to come, I heard and felt the distinct thump of a cat lunging from the floor and landing on the foot of the bed, which was Sydney's custom. I felt with my foot for a cat, but there was nothing there. This went on every night for a week, so I know I was awake and not dreaming. The impact was solid and real, right down to the little grunts cats give when they jump -- but nothing was there! I knew it had to be Sydney's way of telling me everything was all right.”
In many instances, the owners of deceased animals feel that their beloved pets are just returning briefly to say goodbye. In this remarkable case, Robin S.'s black Labrador, Mutt, might not even have been dead when its’ spirit appeared to her. Robin had to give Mutt away because she and her husband had to move overseas and wasn’t able to take their dog with them. But five years after the move, Mutt obviously hadn't forgotten Robin:

“I was in our living room and my husband was going out the door with the trash. A black mass was wiggling around his legs and as it came into the living room, I saw it was Mutt. He was wagging his tail a mile a minute and had what looked like a big grin on his face. He sat down stared at me and I heard, "I haven't forgotten you. I have to go now." Then he faded before my eyes before I had a chance to pet him! I knew he was gone from his body, but he still loved me enough to come and say goodbye.”

All articles courtesy of Stephen Wagner.