Why Do Ghost Investigators Work at Nighttime?

 

It's easy to get caught up in the delicious spookiness of working at night, poking around an empty building in search of ghostly encounters, but there are some very real-world reasons we study at nighttime - 

Why It's Nearly Impossible For Equipment to Get Hard Evidence of Ghosts

 I often advocate ghost hunting without equipment. The reason I do this is you are almost surely not going to get any definitive proof of encounters if you are utilizing equipment. Why is this? 

Daring to Study Ghosts Without Equipment

 First, I'd like to thank my readers for once again taking Ghost Hunting Theories to the #1 blog in the world for the subject of ghost hunting and #10 for paranormal content!

I'm going to propose the very best way to encounter spirit activity - naked. No, not without clothing - - without equipment!

Using Your Intuition on Ghost Investigations

We often get "feelings" but don't know where they come. In the field of psychology, feelings are the result of thoughts. So, if we think it's totally unfair that our boss expects the report by tomorrow, then we feel anger. If we think someone broke into our home because we hear a noise at night, we get scared.

GhostStop: One Stop Ghosting Shopping

Ghost investigators, hobbyists, and even homeowner check out equipment utilized on modern-day ghost investigations. At some point, you're going to want to see what's out there and what might fit your needs. There is one site that holds a great number of possibilities and it's called GhostStop.

The Funhouse Effect in Some Haunted Homes

"Anyway, all the angles are slightly off. There isn't a square corner in the place. 

No wonder it's impossible to find your way around. 

Add up all these wrong angles... and you get one big distortion in the house as a whole."

"The Haunting" 

Some houses just feel "wrong" when you move about in them and at times even "off kilter." How much does the "haunted house effect" influence those living in a home or those investigators studying the home? 

Ghosts of Portal 31

The Cryptofiles has another DVD out - 

Deep in the mountains of Harlan county, Kentucky is a tourist attraction unlike any other. Portal 31 located in Lynch, is an underground tour that is more than a trip back into a coal mine, it is a step back in time itself. TCF is here to learn more about portal 31, and to investigate claims of paranormal activity. Are the spirits of the miners still lurking around? Join us as we try to find out!

Ghosts of Portal 31 (LINK)

Enjoy!

Recent Investigation at the Birdcage Theater, Tombstone, Arizona

The Birdcage Theater, Tombstone, Arizona
With 120 bullet holes in the surfaces of this old-time western gambling and whoring house, it saw quite a history.

Our team, Arizona Paranormal Research (www.arizonaparanormalresearch.com), was pleased to investigate this site again. It provides phenomenon every time!

APR Cases: Feng Shui in Action in Haunted Locations

I am lucky to work with the most curious and amazing minds in the field of paranormal research, both my paranormal investigation team and the Bigfoot research team. We have an ongoing case with APR (Arizona Paranormal Research) that has me thinking about feng shui and the potential to work with this concept at an ongoing study at a mining town.

Investigation: Arizona Ghost Town

I am sharing an investigation done a week ago by myself and two of my team members in a ghost town in Arizona. I don't usually share my reports because of private home owners, but this was a public location that we had the opportunity to enjoy all night long. 

The Pineal Gland Ghost Experiment

There is a lesser known experiment in the field of science that had a most unusual outcome - the paranormal.

Not many people speak of it and yet it has highly intriguing implications.

Dr. Walter Rawls, an expert on monopolar magnetic effects on matter, decided to try an experiment by placing a monopolar north pole magnet to the center of the forehead in front of the pineal gland.

For many decades people have spoken of the pineal gland as being the psychic third eye. He wanted to see what might have perpetuated this belief. 

The pineal gland is a walnut-shaped gland about the size of a piece of rice, floating in cerebrospinal fluid and with a bit of magnetite in it which is believed to help us find our direction, much like birds have for knowing where to fly, as well as a close connection to vision, allowing it to know when light is low and it is time to release the sleep hormone, melatonin.

The experiment: 

A mask was made which held the North pole end of a long cylindrical magnet over the pineal gland. The purpose was to stimulate the gland and see if there was anything to this ‘third eye‘ business. Exposure was in the range of 10-30 minutes per day over a period of about 4 weeks.

Within the first week, he was sitting at his desk reading documents when he noticed something move out of the corner of his eye. As he looked up, the ghostly figure of a man had walked through one wall, moved across the room and disappeared through another wall. The figure was totally unaware of Walter. Further exposures to this North pole field took place over a second and third week.

The second week, the same ghostly figure moved through the room and glanced toward Walter as he passed through. This time, the figure appeared to have slightly more detail, not quite so ghostly.

The third week, while busy working on documents, Walter noticed a change in the room. When he looked up, the wall had dissolved away and he was looking at a small hill where a man and woman sat beneath a tree. It was the same ghostly male figure who he had seen on the other occasions. He sat quit still, watching this pastoral scene for several minutes.

The man looked over toward Walter and appeared startled. It was as if he clearly SAW Walter this time and possibly recognized Walter as the ghost that he had seen the previous week! The image faded away and the wall restored to its normal condition. From that moment on, Walter never used the pineal stimulator again.

Five years ago, I tested this concept, placing the magnet inside of a sweatband worn around the forehead. I had my team wear them all evening as we did a ghost investigation. Nothing was reported, but then we were not putting ourselves through exposure regularly as the experiment above. 

Here's another interesting concept to work with in conjunction with the effects of monopolar magnetism on matter - what about sound frequency effects on the pineal gland? Let's look at a couple videos that might get you excited about this subject. 

First, (below) here's a video about magnetism and the body.

And, here's a video (below) about infrasound frequency effects on water. 

More about the researchers in this realm:
Walter Rawls
David Wilcock The Science of Oneness (book)
Albert Roy Davis and Walter Rawls, The Magnetic Blueprint of Life (book)

Debunking Ghost Photographs: How To Photograph Properly

Genuine unexplained (above) *more later on this - 

We want to capture the paranormal on cameras, but honestly it is so unbelievably rare that it can be disheartening. Before you get too excited about some of your oddities on your photographs, let's talk a wee bit about the explainable and how to discern it.

Before the advent of the digital camera, orbs were not a photographic issue, or if they were, it was only with certain cameras. Now, they are very common. In fact, on a dusty hayride at night in an autumn country fair, I took a shot of the orchard and when the flash went off, it lit all the particles in the air and it looked like sparkling confetti. The people on the ride cooed at how pretty. This was the process of orbs being made - dust, pollen, and moisture in front of the lens is lit by the flash and shows up.  

Translucent looking orbs are actually very close to the lens and so you are able to see through them and ones that are back a bit from the lens reflect the light from the flash and look quite bright. They may seem to have depth of field in the shot, but they are actually near the lens and the culprit is digital camera design that puts the flash right near the lens. 

I always suggest people use their own camera to take some shots like the ones below to see how their particular camera picks up these things so you have examples to compare field pics with. 

Camera strap (above)

Cold breath (above)

wind storm (above)

Dust blown off a surface (above)

finger wagging in front of camera lens (above)

hair (above) 

stopping after walking outdoors and moth (above)

moving camera slightly photographing lights (above)

spider (above)

Camera lens reflected in window (above)

What to consider when photographing

WALKING:  When you walk, stop and allow several minutes for the air to settle before you photograph. Too many people focus on - I walk here, take pictures - and they don't stop to realize that they just stirred up the environment with a sort of vortex of air around them. 


Reflective surfaces: This is the greatest danger, especially in nighttime photo taking. It can be a nightmare in museums, tourist buildings, historic sites, where there are lots of mirrors and glass framed photos and maps, chandeliers, tables, and more.

Straps and hair: It goes without saying that camera straps can be real culprits and they often show up on the right hand side of the pic because of where they are attached on cameras. They show up often with a spiral or corrugated look. I remove the strap from cameras as soon as they are bought or if the strap comes separately, I never attach it. This is one less explanation on photos. I also tie my hair back. One time, I ran my hands through my hair and one caught on my ring. It dangled in front of the pic. I realized it was a hair because it looked reddish and had the hair look to it - looks like a hose with circles inside of it.

Weather: Storms, winds, cold, rain, fog, snow, sprinklers, heavy moisture can all be interpreted by the camera as all manner of specters. Just be sure you take note of your weather conditions. 


Lens:  You put your camera in and out of your pocket 


Consecutive shots: Taking consecutive shots helps to clarify if something was in the environment or not. Viewers might ask, "was there anyone else in the room?" 

Don't be offended that people dispute photographic findings. The truth is, finding something truly unexplained is hard to do, and you want to eliminate all the explainables ahead of time by taking caution when photographing. 

* While taking photos of my son with a 35 mm camera (no strap) at the cemetery, looking for his grandmother's grave, we were asked to leave as it was getting dark. In my mind, I said to my mother-in-law (deceased) to please show where she was, her grandson was there. I took the picture. While it was getting developed, my father-in-law (at the time) said that she was buried about 300 feet back from the praying hands statue. My son had just asked to be photographed at that statue, after passing tons of awesome ones. It showed up on the negative, as well. With no camera strap, I am at a loss, but we went back and sure enough, her grave was 300 feet back from my son's left shoulder. 

Haunted Hallways

Which hallway is more haunted?

Chi - a Chinese term used for "energy." There is good chi and bad chi according to the practice of Feng Shui. Yin energy is associated with spirits and negativity. If there is "yin" energy within a building, it will follow simple paths. This is why clearing out a haunted location and getting rid of clutter and darkness are critical to keeping yin energy moving out of the way and not being trapped.

Take hallways for example. If doorways open to each other, the energy can go from one room to the other creating a current of energy just in that spot, but if the doorways are staggered, energy can come from the room, hit the wall, bounce and ricochet, all the way down a corridor, mixing with the energies from all the other rooms coming out and hitting the wall and bouncing back and forth. You create a sort of energy current down the hallway. Consider it a spirit labyrinth, if you will. 

Interestingly, windchimes are supposed to attract spirits in the practice of Feng Shui, especially in the Southwest corner of the building.  I wear a windchime necklace to the site and I often hang it up, ensuring that the air is not turned on and windows are closed.  They are so delicate and light and being attractive to spirits (by feng shui rules), it should give me a tinkle. Upon occasion, it does. 

Mirrors create a bounce of energy too. In fact, rather than filming into a haunted stairwell, try putting a mirror at the bottom of the stairs and see if you capture more activity than usual. You might get something caught in a path of back and forth capture. 

Setting up a strobe light in a hallway with offset doors is yet another interesting way of studying potentially fast moving energy. If you study a moving ceiling fan with a strobe light, you can see that it visually slows things down enough to see what is too fast to discern with the naked eye. The blades are individual looking instead of a blur when a strobe light is on it. A warning, though, some people get migraines and even seizures with strobe lights, so work with one ahead of time to know if it makes you feel bad.

Those places in a home that seem to be very actively haunted are usually the cul-du-sac areas, dark areas, cluttered areas. These create that kind of trap for energy. The simple act of brightening and clearing out a home can make it freed up. 

This is an interesting technique that I have found to be extremely helpful in assisting people with issues in their homes. Whether there is something to Feng Shui or movement of energy or not, I give it some real praise when it comes to haunted locations. 

You can use the concepts to clear energy, but you can also use them to attract it - so start thinking in reverse if you want to capture something and prepare an environment that could amplify and hold energies. 

Learn more - Consider the book "Confessions of a Feng Shui Ghost-Buster" to help you learn more about Yin energy and the guidelines of this ancient study in relation to haunted effects.

When To Call In a Paranormal Investigation Team and How To Pick One

Thinking of calling in a ghost team? You need to consider a few things before you do so.

Begin with keeping a journal of what's happening, when, and who is encountering it and where for at least a couple weeks ideally. This log will help the team to get some insight into what and where and why certain areas might be active and also what explainable triggers might be present.

Then, I suggest you sit down with yourself and ask why you want a team in. 

Do not bring in a team if:

1.  You want to see a team in action (that is no good reason to take people's time, expense and effort). 

2.  You are hoping your home might end up on a TV show. Believe me, your home is no more a celebrity than you are. Give up the notion that somehow somewhere someone is going to want to showcase your home. 

3.  You are hoping to join a team and thought this was a good way to show them your knowledge and get a conversation going. Once again, do not waste people's time, expense and effort.

4.  You have a suspicion that someone in the home might have reason to want the place haunted, such as someone with mental or psychiatric issues, pathological lying, need for attention, anxiety and the like. Seek appropriate mental health care instead. The team is not there to do therapy.

5.  You have only had one or two incidents. This does not show a pattern. A couple times is unusual, but more than that is perhaps a pattern. Do not call until a pattern is formed. 

Here is when you should call in a team - 

1.  You have a child that is repeatedly being affected with stories that don't sound like usual childhood anxiety of the dark or what's under the bed, especially if the child's moods and behavior are different during waking hours.

2.  Repeated patterns of phenomenon have been occurring and several people have encountered them.  

3.  Someone has been physically harmed or emotionally unsettled to the point of hysteria.

4.  You are finding it difficult to be alone in a part of the house. 

5.  You don't feel safe in your own home and want to know what is going on.

Finding a Team 

First, do a little Google search about the team. See what others have said, see what kind of commentary they make - do they tear down other teams, seem to have in-fighting? Don't be shy to friend team members on Facebook and check out how they handle themselves publicly. Google individual team members' names.

Do not call them to your home! Protect yourself. These are a group of strangers with no licensing. Meet them in a public place first. Trust your instincts.

Keep a diary of what is going on so you can give them a time line, events, and such. Please be sure to include any recent deaths, emotional upsets, family fighting, mental issues with members of the family, people moving in and out - anything disruptive.

Ask if they charge for any services. This can be a red flag.

Ask if they use psychics, sensitives, mediums and the like. 

Ask if they will be reviewing any evidence with you. A thorough investigation should offer both options and not just one or the other.

Ask if they do cleansings or blessings. Ask about the credentials of the person who does that and their name. Look that person up. See what kind of business they do - are they a psychic for a living? You might be charged for a blessing should they find something wrong. Are they willing to accommodate your faith?

Ask the size of the team and that they arrive without a marked car and team t-shirts, you don't want the neighbors knowing. Let them know you and another will be present during investigation, although you are fine with being cloistered in a room so they can have free run and so that you don't corrupt the investigation.

Let them know your objectives - do you want to be rid of your issue or simply find out what kind of issue it is?

It sounds paranoid, but please take any RX medications, booze, money, jewelry and the like and lock it into a drawer they cannot get into. No matter how nice they are, they are still strangers in your home.

If you wish privacy, ask if they can sign a privacy paper so that you are assured they won't go online bragging about what is happening in your home or writing about you in their next book.

If they allow you to speak to another client, that is a good thing. Take advantage of it and contact that person.

Ultimately, know what you want out of the experience. Do you want them to educate you about ghostly workings so you can just learn to live with it, should there be a haunting? Do you want them to find something so you are justified in being uncomfortable in your own home? Is there anything going on in family dynamics that makes calling in a team an upsetting thing?  What would you do if they find no evidence of haunting?

It is a great unknown for the team when they enter a new client's home, but it is just as much an unknown for you just how you will feel when people work to elicit ghostly antics and document them. A good team should help you along the way.

Should you have a positive experience, do not hesitate sharing a quote they may use on their site anonymously if you wish. If they were lackluster, feel free to share that knowledge with the public. The only way that we weed out teams with a healthy agenda and attitude is by showcasing them up against the losers.

How To Do Seances

I have performed many seances over the years and what I can tell you is this; there is no perfect saying or ritual, but there are some basics that should be adhered to -

That being said, the elements of seances are similar, no matter how you word them or pace them.

MEDIUM:  You do not need a trained medium, but you should have someone who is psychically sensitive. I would prefer to not use a empathic psychic, but someone who is more in control of the emotions that might bombard him/her, so I'd choose a psychic who has either precognition abilities, physical abilities like PK or psychometry, or someone who is very good at reading people by any means, whether it's tarot or palm reading, tea leaves, or whatever. 

GROUP: You will want a group. I have found a group should consist of 4 people but no more than 8. That seems to be ideal. Too few bodies and there is not enough energy. Too many bodies and it's intrusive and too much energy.

Whether they are male or female does not seem to show a difference, but I have found over decades of doing this that having men on one side, women on the other is helpful. My guess is that one side of the table will attract a spirit energy because of its very sex and having them united on one side of the table makes that energy and safe harbor more apparent.

Whether or not the group members are believers seems to do nothing to the results of the seance. Some folks like to blame a dud seance on the nonbelievers, but honestly dud seances are as common as dud ghost hunts. It's a rare thing to have a good hit on a seance, believers or not.

BEGIN:  In an ideal situation, I prefer to use rose scented candles or gardenia or lilac, some sort of heirloom flower scent. Some mediums do not use this because they want to be able to tell if a spirit arrives by its scent, but that is rare and I'd rather have the group in the right mindset. The olfactory sense is the most immediate one. Any time you ever were hit with the smell of Coppertone lotion and immediately felt nostalgic, you know how powerful it is. When it comes to being in the right place in one's head to attract spirit interaction, having the group collectively feeling open is more important than worrying about masking scents.  As well, if you have photos or items of the dead, place them on the table.  If you wish to record, put the recording devices on the table and around the room.

Now that you have placed women on one side of the table, men on the other, I suggest that all participants put their hands on the table, palms up. There is no need to touch each other. Each person will be their own beacon. I often during ghost hunts turn my palms upward to let my own energy (aura) outward like a beacon. If you put your hands down on the table, you are stifling the most powerful outlet of energy in your body, your hands. I know that traditionally, mediums have liked to use hand holding as a way to link the energies into a protective circle, but that is not necessarily productive. Like a chain, you are only as strong as your weakest link. Someone in the group invariably is thinking about tomorrow's supper plans or simply believing there is no way anything can happen. If each individual allows their own energy to emanate from their hands upwards, it is like a dozen fire lights flickering in a forest.  As well, the individuals' intent and emotional content, spirituality and latent psychic abilities will produce their own unique signature of outward energy that can attract.

So, palms up, seated comfortably. Candles lit, and I suggest participants look above and beyond the person across from them. This way, all parts of the room are being watched by someone who has over time gotten to know the usual look of that part of the room and can discern changes as well as have a glimpse at anything that might come to that person across the table from them.

CEREMONY:  Ceremonies begin and end always with a protection blessing. This can be done any manner of way, so long as the participants are comfortable with it. Some teams use Christian prayer, but a member who is not Christian may be uncomfortable with this. My advice to that person is that they participate in so much as forming silence and allowing the members to be comfortable with their own protection blessing and if that person wishes to, they can word a protection silently for himself.  The basic wording should include these aspects; we are gathered here in hopes of reaching those in the spirit world, as we seek answers to questions. The members here are of of the living plane. When this ceremony is occurring and when it is over, these physical beings are to be allowed protection from any harm or associations. Our intentions are pure and we expect the intentions of the spirit world to be, as well.

The medium can ask a question and I find that ideally, it's best if after she has asked the question, you wait about 20 seconds before the person to her/his right asks a question with the same wait time, and then the next person, around the table until the medium's turn. Now, that the medium is in charge again, it is time for her to request more information. She is free to reveal any names, images, or other things that come to her as she is "channeling." If there are great pauses and silence in her giving information, it is fine to have the person to her right begin a question again and do this around the table until the medium's turn again. If she has no more information to add, it is time to close the circle.

CLOSING:  Closing should begin with a thank you to the spirits and a dismissal, to the effect of, "we appreciate your visit and your communication. Thank you for your cooperation. We wish to release you back to your spiritual realm and these members to their physical realms, free to continue our experiences as before."

As I talked about in my book "Was That a Ghost?" about the "Trinity of Relevance," The same 3 elements are at play in how people react to seances. Context-if one knows he is entering a seance, there is expectation of the theatrical responses seen on TV. Just because he is in a seance, he might believe everything that happens is spirit-related. Belief-if he has a belief system that includes demons, possession, and an evil spirit world, his explanations of what's happening will be colored by this. Explanatory style-how that participant explains the situation to himself can create either peace or unrest.

WARNINGS:  Followup with the participants is important. Latent psychics can show very strong reactions, even signs of possession, if they don't realize how highly suggestible they are and how open they are to be a conduit. So, if signs of a "possession" do occur and a member suddenly starts being out of touch with what's happening, it is best to break the circle, have the medium come over to the person, place her hands upon the person's back and give a very gentle shove and say "disperse." This is usually enough to bring the person back to baseline. It is hard to tell whether such a thing as possession is possible, but we do know that in the fervor and belief of religious ceremony, people can speak in tongues and dance with snakes, so it is entirely possible that a suggestible person can get caught up in a feeling or an image and run with it until it's out of control. It's very comparable to a person acting as if they are going to die if they get into a airplane. The mind psyches up the body to react with threat.

For those who have strong religious beliefs that make seances an unacceptable form of communication with the dead, that is fine. I will also remind people that any time you do an EVP session and ask the spirits to knock on the wall or answer your questions, or any time you visit a family member's grave and talk to them, you are having a form of seance.

Ghost Hunting Shows: Pros and Cons

This week, I'm kicking off a death, grief, afterlife theme. We're hitting everything every day. Today, we begin with the ghost hunting shows and what they have helped and how they have hurt.

"Ghost Hunters" show came onto the scene around 2003/2004 with the promise of showing the population what it is to go and investigate the paranormal. For most viewers, the concept of poking around a dark building calling on ghosts was a chilling one and they eagerly watched to live vicariously. The reality of it as portrayed by keen editing and production guidelines, seemed rather glamorous:

The team sweeps in with their equipped van, assures the owners of the property they are in safe hands, and then spends a dark evening talking to the other side, reviewing some video and audio and voila! Proof of contact.

The beneficial outcome of having ghost hunting shows is that people like myself are no longer embarrassed to admit we seek answers. A "fringe" group is suddenly hip. Conversely, that is also the bad point about these shows - new teams popping up everywhere without rhyme or reason, flooding historic sites, making very bad decisions with desperate clients, and hoping to pose themselves to get their own shows. Many sites either now charge ridiculous amounts to allow investigations or do not allow anyone because of wild, loud, aggressive investigating teams.

Some very bad habits have been picked up by the examples on ghost shows including the concepts of taunting and walking around doing EVPs while holding a recorder, unscrewing a cap from a flashlight, and using nonsensical tools such as ghost boxes that basically are recreating the Ouija phenomena.

The realities of ghost hunting are not portrayed for hopeful investigators. I always tell people to look at these shows as pure entertainment. Each case has to be adapted to the situation. There is a great deal of interviewing and journalling necessary to understand if a case is even worth pursuing, and then there are horrendous logistics of setting up equipment, accounting for all members, report writing, enormous meticulous evidence review, following up with the client.... It is a serious time suck and can be quite exhausting when you investigate after a full day of work and try to listen to audio or look at video in your spare time for weeks afterwards.

The real benefit of ghost hunting shows, the ultimate reward, has been that it's no longer shameful to explore the paranormal and public sites and private homeowners are more likely to ask for assistance rather than feeling shame and hiding issues.

The detriments have been mass and include bad practices, flooding of the field of research, historic sites pimping out, bad science, imitation rather than innovation, and people desperately wanting their own shows. I have heard of teams using the clients' children as bait, manning monitors with pre-adolescents, charging to "get rid of the ghosts," and blessing/praying/performing seances and other spiritual practices in spite of the clients' beliefs.

I see that the ghost aspect of reality shows is finally winding down and I am thankful. I never thought the concept was a good one because ghost hunting is basically the most boring activity in all the world, hardly entertainment, other than people are in the dark trying to speak to the other side. There are plenty of other fields of paranormal research I suspect will be the next best thing such as ancient mysteries, cryptids and psychics. The market will flood with these shows and once again have the same weak points.

Ultimately, the exposure made the search for answers not a shameful activity, but like anything else that goes "viral," it becomes misunderstood and watered down, a caricature of itself.

The Future of Ghost Hunting

I like to occasionally write about concepts in the evolution of paranormal research. I keep using the word “ghost” because no other word quite captures the phenomena associated with “haunted” locations. But, what if we could prove the afterlife once and for all?

All the photography, EVPs, and video in the world will not prove ghosts. What will prove them? Some exciting outside the box thinking, technology and custom experiments.

Did you know that in one ER they mounted a scrolling screen atop a cabinet facing the ceiling where no one can see it and it scrolls random messages. Why? So if someone has an out of body experience and can report what they saw on the screen while hovering over their own body, they might answer the question of whether we actually do have a consciousness that rises out of the body during the moment of near-death.

Here's another exciting advancement:

(Wiki) A brain–computer interface (BCI), sometimes called a direct neural interface or a brain–machine interface (BMI), is a direct communication pathway between the brain and an external device.

BCI's are being worked on to assist people with limited mobility to be able to interact with a computer, say, while being quadriplegic or having debilitating diseases such as Lou Gehrig Disease.

Already, there are computers and robotic arms hooked up to subjects like chimps who can think where they want the robotic arm to move to feed them or to choose items on a computer screen by the movement of their eyes.

So, what does this mean for the world of ghost hunting? Imagine that we have the telepathic ability for the mind to recall a past event, show it on a screen or to think words and have them scroll across the screen. What does this mean when a person dies? Would we finally be able to see their final images of an afterlife? Communicate even? We have just recently been able to image the brain and know what person you are thinking about? Scary, huh?

Exciting things on the horizon and not just for the amazing advances on helping those who are immobile, but perhaps having a wide-scope of cascading effects in other areas of research!

What would you invent in terms of research of the paranormal in the future? Computer interactions? Dying memory chip implants? How about a death room filled with potential ways the dead could communicate as they pass on?

Paranormal Energy

Energies. We talk about this a lot in ghost hunting. What are we talking about when we talk about energy? 

This is how I put it:

"In terms of the intuitive, using our 6 senses, energy is that physical constellation of symptoms that alerts our warning system to a change in atmosphere, perceived threat, or incoming information from an unseen source. This energy is something that we can send out or receive."

We also speak of energy like Chi - the energy force in nature often disrupted by bad feng shui - (placement of objects in an environment).  I often discuss with clients some minor changes, clearing pathways, decluttering, adding light, and being careful of where mirrors are placed (not across from a door or window where it creates a continuous loop of traveling energy).  There is something to say about not having cul-du-sacs for energy in your home.

We also speak of batteries and other energy sources being sucked of their available energy by spirit forms hoping to materialize. Whether that kind of energy conversion is possible, we don't know. It doesn't happen often enough to make a correlation, but like haunting features, there might be a momentary set of circumstances that makes a burst of energy to show phenomena or a burst of draining from energy sources.

I often tell people in the field to please start noting in a haunted location, where you felt an energy and how you would describe it physically and emotionally. Was it positive or negative feeling? Heavy, thick, dense, light, pitter pattering? Start to note these nuances and you will find patterns. Each person's body and mind interprets these differently. To me, a male energy is very dense, heavy and low lying. A female energy is broken, light and floating. To another investigator, it might feel different. They might actually envision a male or female, blue or pink, strong or delicate, or some other interpretive representation.

Another energy talked about is Orgone Energy -

Wilhelm Reich's discovery of orgone began with his research of a physical bio-energy basis for Sigmund Freud's theories of neurosis in humans. Wilhelm Reich believed that traumatic experiences blocked the natural flow of life-energy in the body, leading to physical and mental disease. Wilhelm Reich concluded that the libidinal-energy that Freud discussed was the primordial-energy of life itself, connected to more than just sexuality. Orgone was everywhere and Reich measured this energy-in-motion over the surface of the earth. He even determined that its motion affected weather formation.

In 1940, Wilhelm Reich constructed the first device to accumulate orgone energy: a six-sided box constructed of alternating layers of organic materials (to attract the energy) and metallic materials (to radiate the energy toward the center of the box). Patients would sit inside the accumulator and absorb orgone energy through their skin and lungs. The accumulator had a healthy effect on blood and body tissue by improving the flow of life-energy and by releasing energy-blocks.



I have pondered this energy that we seem to gather all our psychic information. As a psychometrist, I wonder how just touching something transfers information to me and how that object holds memories and emotions from others who handled it. I cannot explain it, except to say there is an energy that unites everything and can pass information, as well.

Subtle energies affect us all the time such as ultrasound, EMF, and geomagnetic storms. Earth energies affect us, as do solar energies. There is no reason not to think that these energies can change and alter, causing small nuances in our skin temperature, our sense of touch - goosebumps, a feeling of being watched, or more.

If these energies are also the means by which the paranormal world travels, well, you have an ideal interaction of people seeing, feeling, smelling, touching things and a means by which things go from a supernatural state to a physical state.

We toss around the word "energy" a lot in the ghost hunting field and what we're really talking about is a form of energy we don't understand but that we know exists. It's the great unifier and facilitator; the needle that pierces the fabric of the worlds.

Paranormal Investigation and Beliefs

 

Joe believes UFOs are from other planets and navigated by aliens with a dark agenda.

Nathan thinks it's all government craft being tested secretly.

One night, the two men are sitting in the back yard around a fire pit, drinking some beer, talking about their camping plans the next month when Joe distractedly stares off into the night sky. Nathan lifts his head and looks up too. 

A series of three white lights moving in a steady course are moving towards them. The lights are getting brighter and brighter. Then, one at a time, the lights go out.

"That was weird." Nathan remarks.

"It was silent." Joe marveled. "There were no blue or red blinking lights. That wasn't a plane or helicopter."

"Well, it turned its lights out." Nathan responded.

"No!" Joe shakes his head. "It took off fast."

Two men, having witnessed the same physical activity, each interpreting it within the context of their beliefs. Since Nathan doesn't believe in alien technology, he saw what happened as an explainable craft. To Joe, however, it had exceptional qualities that prove it was a UFO.

It's nearly impossible to enter paranormal research without some beliefs. If you are looking for Bigfoot, you more than likely believe they exist. If you believe ghosts are the souls of the dead trapped in the earthly plane, then you will view activity in that mental context.

Let's look at some of the traps that belief creates -

Pareidolia.  This is the very human tendency to see faces in shapes. We look at a photo of the forest and within the leaves, we think we see a Bigfoot or perhaps looking at photo of a room in a creepy house, we think we see a face in the woodwork. Once you have equated that shape with a face, it's almost impossible NOT to see the face. 

Do you see Jesus's face above? It's actually a baby on her father's lap. Her bonnet is the "forehead" of Jesus, her sleeve is the "nose" and her shirt is the "cheek." But, once you see that Jesus face, it is almost impossible to see a baby instead.

Orbs:  There are those who entered paranormal investigation and believe that orbs are the spirits of the dead being captured in photos. Once they believe that, it's difficult to shake them of that illogical correlation. No matter how bright an orb is, it is simply an issue of our modern digital cameras. This showed up when digital cameras were marketed and the flash, being near the lens, causes everything in the air, all particles of dust, pollen and moisture, to be lit by the flash and make these dazzling "phenomena" in which hardcore believers see "faces." (see pareidolia above)

 

Dust shaken from a dust broom.  

Sprinkler droplets 

EVPs:  Electronic Voice Phenomena is an amazing thing. In the right circumstances, one seems to pick up a voice that wasn't heard at the time of recording. However, getting a Class A recording (one that, when everyone listens to it, they hear the same words without prompting) is exceedingly rare and because we expect an answer to the question, we often "hear" the words we think answers the question. A simple waft of air like a sigh becomes the answer, "yes," and a garbled word is surely the intestigator's name.  

Debunking:  Debunking, or finding explainable reasons for phenomena are critical. Many people hear sounds in the dark and then never go to investigate what might have caused it. They avoid testing the windows, the heater and pipes, looking for electrical wiring issues and other common causes of the odd and unexplained. If an investigator is afraid that explaining something unusual means throwing the baby out with the bathwater, that is far from the truth. Just because some things can be explained, does not mean there is not still plenty of unexplainable phenomena occurring in the world.

Limited Investigations:  Let's say you learned your ghost hunting from TV and your Bigfoot tracking? So, now you think you know what they are and how they work. You do wood knocking and call blasting. You use your EMF meter and laser grid. You believe you know how Bigfoot lives and how he communicates and what ghosts are made of and how to find them. The thing is, we can't learn a thing if we follow beliefs based on what others told us. Perpetuating beliefs without question is an intellectual corruption. 

So, how do we go about entering a field of paranormal study without letting our beliefs color us? By accepting that we have beliefs, but also allowing that because we believe something exists, does not mean that we will readily run into evidence of it. If you are firm in your belief, evidence will not sway it one way or the other. Enter the field saying "I have no idea what this is or how it works" and design the best ways possible to narrow the field of possibilities. When you open your mind, you open the science.

Using Your Intuition On Ghost Hunts

We often get "feelings" but don't know where they come. In the field of psychology, feelings are the result of thoughts. So, if we think it's totally unfair that our boss expects the report by tomorrow, then we feel anger. If we think someone broke into our home because we hear a noise at night, we get scared.

In the field of paranormal investigation, your feelings take on a whole new realm; that of the intuitive.

What is the intuitive? It's receiving information by means we cannot grasp or have a full understanding of its origins.

If we break it down, information comes to us in the physical realm and our bodies interpret these things into intuitive feelings. We don't even realize this process.


Physical:
Chills, heat, electrical sensations, goosebumps, heavy weight feeling on chest or head, headache, nauseousness, breathlessness, dizziness. These are just some of the physical manifestations we get in an environment. Have you ever gone into a building and felt the "funhouse" effect where everything seems a bit off kilter and your very footing feels a bit precarious for no apparent reason? You might very well be effected by poor construction, bad angles, joints that don't meet squarely. 

Intuitive:
Grief, anxiousness, feeling watched, rage, despair, loneliness, excitement, joy.  These are just some of the emotional manifestations we get in an environment. You might walk into down a hallway in a home and feel anxiety. If it is a home you have never been in, that anxiety will seem free floating, without reason, but if it were in your own home, it might make sense because going down the hallway means having to go to bed and you hate to fight insomnia every night.

How the physical helps our intuitive:
We are colored by our senses so that a bad smell gives us a feeling of "badness" and a dirty environment makes us feel it's "ill." Those are the more obvious physical - to - intuitive manifestations. But, there are a million subtle things that come together in the physical to give us a more deeply intuitive response. We walk through a room and sit down in a chair and all of a sudden experience deja vu and a feeling we have done this before, that it is familiar. There is comfort and ease and an overriding "rightness." Many subtle physical cues might have brought on this intuitive insight.

Developing the intuitive:
If you're on an investigative team, consider doing this exercise. Before the hunt, hand everyone a piece of paper and a pen. Don't tell them what the homeowner has told you about the activity. Just let them go in one at a time, walk around, and take notes of any weird feelings or sensations or images that come to mind and where they felt it. Have them fold it up and put it in an envelope. No one speaks. Let the next person go in and take notes. When you have collected all their intuitive insights, seal up the envelope. Now, go about a normal investigation. When the investigation is done, sit down together and open the envelope and see how each other's observations jived with the others, as well as if the "hot spots" they identified were places where action occurred that night or places the owner said they had issues with. Over time, you will find this intuitive exercise a wonderful tool.

I also advise people to try not to let looks color them. As a psychic, I can tell you that if someone gave me a big diamond ring to read, the first thing my intellect tells me is "this person is rich." But, do not let such observations guide your intuitive. If you go into a home that is neat and modern, simple and clean, you might believe there is now way the house has activity. It doesn't "look" haunted. True intuitive comes from places that are inner and urging without any apparent reason to have them.

If you want to work the skills more, I suggest going on daily to gotpsi site. It takes you through psychic testing and compares you with other's scores. You begin to learn over time a feeling in your mind and body that occurs when you choose the "right" answer. That feeling is critical for knowing when your intuitive is the real thing or false based on visual cues or bias.

There is a place for the intuitive in paranormal research. In fact, on an intuitive level, you may be a much more accurate ghost detector than any tool in hand.