Adumbratio – An “anticipatory shadow” that appears before death.
Afterlife – Life after our physical bodies die. Common other names for the afterlife are the great beyond, heaven, and hell. Every culture in the world has their own beliefs and ideas of the what the afterlife consists of.
Amorphous – Having no definite form or shape, spirits and ghosts often appears in mist-like forms or shapes.
Amulet – Any item that is believed to bring good luck, protection and/or the ability to ward off evil spirits. These can be almost anything, some of the common items that people use are religious objects, jewels, items with personal meaning, weapons (knives,etc.), and a number of other things.
Ancestral Spirit – An ancient spirit that follows families or certain groups of families to where ever they move. These spirits are said to watch and protect over the families, and often can give forewarnings of tragedies and deaths. Throughout history historic and royal families have claimed to have such connections.
Angel – A supernatural being that is believed to exist on a realm between God and mortal man. An angel serves many proposes and meanings, one of the many duties is to be guardians over man kind.
Anomalies – Something found on a picture, photograph, video or voice recording that has no conventionally explainable source.
Apparitions – A visual appearance of a spirit or ghost. May also include inanimate objects such as cars or horse carriages.
Asport – The disappearance of objects that reappear elsewhere or not at all. (Dematerialization)
Astral Projection – When the spirit travels outside the body to either the astral plane or another location on this plane. This is also referred to as an Out Of Body experience or remote viewing.
Atmospheric Apparition – Not actually a ghost or spirit, but instead a “visual imprint” of people and events that was left behind in the environment and continues to replay.
Aura – The emanation of energy that surrounds all living things. It is believed that our physical health and our emotional state is reflected in our auras. For example, if someone is ill, happy, or sad it will be reflected in their aura. Those with psychic abilities are able to see and interpret this energy. Two Russian scientists by the names of Semyon and Valentina developed the Kirlian Photography, through the use of this photography one’s aura can be photographed. Some believe that the color of orbs is similar to that of one’s aura.
Automatic Writing – Phenomena by which people write without conscious thought. Believed by many that spirits take control of the living person and are able to communicate through them by writing.
Banshee – A death omen in Irish folklore that manifests to herald an upcoming death. Often heard singing and wailing mournfully.
Battlefield Ghosts – These are places with great violence, trauma and intense emotion are typically subject to hauntings. There are no places more violent than battlefields, and it is rare to hear of a battlefield that isn’t haunted. Most battlefield hauntings are residual hauntings where fragments of the battle are replayed over and over again. Other hauntings are from spirits who have not crossed over, most likely because they feel they can’t due to the nature of their death. Some believe retrocognition is also an element in battlefield hauntings.
Benign Spirit – A spirit that is not harmful or evil to man. Spirit guides and angles fall into this category, also the spirits of loved ones that have come back to communicate something to us. Elementals are considered benign spirits.
Bilocation – When a person or an object is seen in two locations at the same time.
Calling Ghosts – These are ghosts that call out the name of the living in order to get their attention and lure them to their death.
Chalcedony – A type of translucent quartz, usually a smoky blue in color, that was used by the ancient Egyptians to drive away ghosts, night visions and sadness.
Channeling – A popular tool of mediums and psychics for communication with the dead. The medium will summon ghosts or spirits and allow the entity to poses that person’s body to communicate through. The entity can either poses the medium or communicate directly through them.
Circumambulation – Ceremonially surrounding a person or an object for the purpose of protection.
Clairaudient – The psychic ability to hears voices and sounds that are inaudible to the normal human ear.
Clairsentient – The psychic ability to feel things that are not normally felt by most people.
Cold Spot – It is believed that spirits can pull energy from their surroundings in order to manifest, and heat is a common form of energy. When this is done what is left is an area that is noticeably colder than the surrounding environment.
Crossroads – The meeting and parting of ways has always been considered magical. In addition, crossroads are said to be haunted by various entities who lead confused travelers astray. It is also said that on All Hollow’s Eve (Halloween), spirits of the dead appear at a crossroad.
Deathbed Apparition – The appearance of a spirit in the room before someone has died, called a deathbed visitation
Deja`Vu – “Already seen”; also called paramnesia, is the experience of feeling sure that one has witnessed or experienced a new situation previously (an individual feels as though an event has already happened or has repeated itself). The experience of déjà vu is usually accompanied by a compelling sense of familiarity, and also a sense of “eeriness”, “strangeness”, or “weirdness”. The “previous” experience is most frequently attributed to a dream, although in some cases there is a firm sense that the experience “genuinely happened” in the past.
Deep Trace Medium – A psychic who allows a spirit to enter her/his body so that the spirit can communicate through them.
Deliverance – To deliver a human from the oppression or posession of a demonic spirit
Dematerialization – To cause to become or appear immaterial, to lose or appear to lose materiality. The paranormal fading or disappearance of a physical object.
Demon – Evil spirits, the minions of Satan.
Demonologist – Person who studies demons, negative spirits and devils.
Direct Voice Phenomenon (DVP) – A spirit voice, spoken directly to sitters at a séance. The sound usually seems to come from a point near the medium, through a spirit horn or trumpet, but not from the mouth of the medium.
Direct Writing – A spectral phenomenon, most often seen in a séance, in which spirit handwriting appears directly on a previously unmarked surface.
Discarnate – A spirit that exists without a physical body.
Discernment – The ability to feel or perceive something with the use the mind and the senses.
Disembodied – A spirit that is functioning without a body.
Doppelganger – A German word that mean double walker. It is the shadow every human has; however, there is some intelligence given to it. It may only be seen by its owner, although it is reported that pets can often see one’s doppelganger. The doppelganger is there for one’s support and sympathy but will sometimes give advice, thoughts and ideas by whispering them in their owner’s ear. While rare, doppelgangers will occasionally decide to make themselves seen by others and they do so by manifesting as a double of their owner. They then go about playing tricks that can sometimes be quite mean, causing great distress for the owner’s family and friends. If the owner sees their doppelganger in this complete form, it is a sign of bad luck and great misfortune, and some believe it means the owner will soon die. Other beliefs are that the doppelganger is one’s astral body, one’s soul or an apparition of a living person.
Earth Lights – Luminous phenomena typically shaped in ball form or irregular patches of light appearing randomly and defying explanation. Balls of light that appear to issue directly from the earth, and often appear repeatedly in specific locations. The term was coined by Paul Devereux in 1982; but prior to that they were known as spooklights.
Earthbound – A term referring to a ghost or spirit that was unable to, or has chosen not to, cross over to the other side at the time of death and is therefore stuck on earth. Some of these spirits are not stuck on earth, they just chose to remain on earth. Some spirits do not realize they are deceased nor how to cross over, it is said that this can happen in unexpected traumatic deaths or a person
Ectoplasm – An immaterial or ethereal substance believed to surround or come from a spirit or other supernatural being. No sample of ectoplasm has ever been collected.
Ectoplasmic Mist – A term used to describe the appearance ectoplasm gives when photographed. Ectoplasmic mist is rarely captured and may be easily confused in photos with cigarette smoke, fog and vapor.
Electromagnetic Field (EMF) – A field progated by a combination of electric and magnetic energy that radiates from radio and light waves to gamma and cosmic rays. It is believed that a spirit can manipulate these fields or create their own.
Electronic Voice Phenomenon (EVP) – The use of audio equipment to capture voices and sounds of the dead where there are no physical presences in the area where the recordings are being taken.
Elemental – Many societies believe in the existence of elemental spirits, those spirits that have never inhabited human form but consist of the base human emotions, such as love, anger, fear, etc. Elemental spirits are usually entrusted with the care and guarding of sacred areas and lands.
Elements – Elements are benign, almost angelic spirits who watch over the four elements, air is sylphs, earth is gnomes, fire is salamanders, and water is nymphs. These spirits are referred to as the spirits of the earth and are often malicious or angry. The lesser spirits of nature are referred to as undines.
EMF Detector – A device that measures and detects changes in the electromagnetic field. A common device used by ghost hunters. A reading between 3-7 milligauss is a good sign of paranormal activity, but higher readings have been recorded by spirits have been present. A complete scan of the area should be done first to detect natural sources. The EMF detector is also known as a Gauss Meter or a magnetometer.
EMF Meter – A meter for measuring electromagnetic fields. It is believed spirits can interrupt or even create their own electromagnetic fields. Compasses can also be used to detect changes in EMF’s. A spike in EMF levels could represent spirit or ghost activity.
Energy – Quantum Physics tells us that everything is made of energy. Ghosts and spirits may be energy that no longer occupies a body. If so, that energy may be felt and it may be measurable. Energy may also be used by an intelligent entity for manifestations.
Entity – Something that has separate and distinct existence and objective or conceptual reality. Examples may be any being with life force of some type, including spirits, demons and people.
Evocation-The summoning of demons or spirits by usage of ritual, gesture or verse of incantation.
Experimental Apparition – Defined as type of apparition as a double a person has intentionally projected to appear before someone else. It is considered a double and not an astral form because the person is oblivious to the actions of his or her double.
Extra – A face, shape, or object that appears in a photograph supernaturally and can not be explained by a natural source, faulty film, developing errors or fraud.
Extra Sensory Perception (ESP) – The ability to receive information about past, present or future events that can not be obtained through the normal senses. These include telepathy, clairvoyance and precognition. It is believed that everyone has some level of ESP ability, but some individuals possess a heightened ability.
False Awakening – An event in which someone dreams they have awoken from sleep. This illusion of having awakened is very convincing to the person. After a false awakening, people will often dream of performing daily morning rituals, believing they have truly awakened. A dream in which a false awakening takes place is sometimes colloquially referred to as a “double dream”, or a “dream within a dream. A false awakening may occur either following an ordinary dream or following a lucid dream (one in which the dreamer has been aware of dreaming). Particularly if the false awakening follows a lucid dream, the false awakening may turn into a ‘pre-lucid dream’, that is, one in which the dreamer may start to wonder if they’re really awake and may or may not come to the correct conclusion. A false awakening has significance to the simulation hypothesis which states that what we perceive as “true” reality is in truth an illusion as evidenced by our minds’ inability to distinguish between reality and dreams. Therefore, advocates of the simulation hypothesis argue that the probability of our “true” reality being a simulated reality is affected by the prevalence of false awakenings. Certain aspects of life may be dramatized, or out of place in false awakenings. Things may seem wrong: details, like the painting on a wall, not being able to talk or difficulty reading (purportedly reading in lucid dreams is often difficult or impossible). In some experiences, the human senses are heightened, or changed. For instance, one may be able to see things in greater detail, or lesser detail, or one may feel an intense burst of fear and anxiety, or possibly pleasure. Because the dreamer is still dreaming after a false awakening, it is possible for there to be more than one false awakening in a single dream. Often, dreamers will seem to have awakened, begin eating breakfast, brushing teeth, and so on and then find themselves back in bed, begin daily morning rituals, believe that they have awakened, and so forth.
Family Apparitions -Ghosts that haunt one particular family
Ghost Sickness – An illness or death that is believed to be caused by a ghost or spirit.
Ghoul – A monster from ancient Arabian folklore that dwells in burial grounds and other uninhabited places. The English word comes from the Arabic name for the creature, which literally means “demon”. The ghul is a devilish type of jinn believed to be sired by Iblis. The female form is given as “ghouleh” in Muhawi and Kanaana. The plural is “ghilan”. The ghoul is a desert-dwelling, shapeshifting demon that can assume the guise of an animal, especially a hyena. It lures unwary travellers into the desert wastes to slay and devour them. The creature also preys on young children, robs graves, and eats the dead. Because of the latter habit, the word ghoul is sometimes used to refer to an ordinary human such as a grave robber, or to anyone who delights in the macabre
Guardian Angel / Spirit – Often thought of as an angel, a spirit who protects and guides a particular person. The concept of tutelary angels and their hierarchy was extensively developed in Christianity in the 5th century. The theology of angels, and tutelary spirits, has undergone many refinements since the 400′s, and contemporary orthodox belief in both the eastern and western churches is that guardian angels protect the body and present prayers to God, protecting whichever person God assigns them to
Grey Ladies – The ghosts of women who died a violently for the sake of love or pined away from loss of love. The name grey lady comes from the frequent appearance of these ladies who are dressed in grey.
Guardian Spirit – A individual’s protective spirit, often thought as an angel.
Halloween – Also known as “All Hallows Eve”, is the night of October 31st. Originated under the name of “Samhain” as a Pagan festival among the Celts of Ireland and Great Britain, after which Irish and Scottish immigrants carried versions of the tradition to North America in the nineteenth century. Many European cultural traditions hold that Halloween is one of the times of the year when spirits can make contact with the physical world, and when magic is most potent
Haunting – A phenomena where the spirit or the ghost of a deceased person or animal that attaches itself to a certain location, object, or person and continues to remain or revisit them causing paranormal activities such as apparitions, strange sounds, inducing smells, electrical disturbances, etc. A haunting is often repeated and experience by those who enter the area or come in contact with the person or object that is the object of the haunting for days or years.
Haunting Apparition – Defined as type of apparition figure that reappears in the same place repeatedly. A reoccurring apparition. State of existence under which a spirit, human or inhuman, has attached itself to a person, place or area.
Hellhound / Black Shuck – A spectral death omen in the form of a ghostly dog. Black Shuck or Old Shuck is the name given to a ghostly black dog which is said to roam the Norfolk, Essex and Suffolk coastline. For centuries, inhabitants of East Anglia have told tales of a large black hellhound with malevolent flaming eyes (or in some variants of the legend a single eye) that are red or alternatively green. They are described as being ‘like saucers’. According to reports, the beast varies in size and stature from that of simply a large dog to being the size of a horse. The legends of Black Shuck roaming the Anglian countryside date back to the time of the Vikings. His name may derive from the Anglo-Saxon word scucca meaning “demon”, or possibly from the local dialect word shucky meaning “shaggy” or “hairy”. Sometimes Black Shuck is referred to as the Doom Dog. It is said that his appearance bodes ill to the beholder, although not always. More often than not, stories tell of Black Shuck terrifying his victims, but leaving them alone to continue living normal lives. Many other black dogs exhibit a similar trait. Sometimes Black Shuck has appeared headless, and at other times he appears to float on a carpet of mist. According to folklore, the spectre often haunts graveyards, sideroads, crossroads and dark forests. Black Shuck is also said to haunt Beeston Bump, a hill close to Beeston Regis and Sheringham
Holy Water – Water that is comprised of blessed salt and blessed water and is again blessed once combined by a member of the clergy. Holy water is said to have the ability negate negative forces.
Hot Reading – A devious or fraudulent reading in which the reader has been given prior knowledge of the sitter. The use of foreknowledge when giving a psychic reading. The reader can gain information about the sitter (person getting the reading) through a variety of means, such as research or overhearing a conversation. Hot reading is commonly used in conjunction with cold reading (where no foreknowledge is available) and can explain how a psychic reader can get a specific claimed “hit” of accurate information. This technique is suspected by many in the skeptic community as being used by some television psychics in conjunction with cold reading. The psychics may have clients schedule their appearance ahead of time, and then send collaborators to people’s homes to collect information while posing as religious missionaries, magazine sales people, or the like. Such visitors can gain a wide understanding of a person from examining their home. The “psychic” may then be briefed on the information and where the person will sit in the audience.
Human Spirit – The spirit of a person who has lived in the physical plane. These spirits can be earthbound for a number of reasons (see inhuman spirit)
Hunt – Going to a place where there has been no previously reported ghost activity in the hopes of finding paranormal activity.
Incubus – A demonic entity capable of sexually arousing and sometimes assaulting women. In Western medieval legend, an incubus (plural incubi) is a demon in male form supposed to lie upon sleepers, especially women, in order to have physical relations with them. It was believed to do this in order to spawn other incubi. The incubus drains energy from the woman on whom it assualts.
Infestation – Repeated and persistent paranormal phenomena.
Infrared / Night Vision – A part of the electromagnetic spectrum that is below visible range. IR cameras allow one to see in the dark and pick up on activity that the physical eye cannot.
Inhuman Spirit – The spirit of a creature that has never lived on the physical plane. Good spirits are Angels; evil ones are demons and devils (see human spirit).
Intelligent Haunting – Paranormal activity that takes place around a person or location that is caused by an intelligent or conscious spirit. Best described as the spirit of an individual who has passed away but not crossed over. The spirit interacts with people trying to make its presence known through repeated sights, sounds, smells, and the manipulation of objects.
Investigation – Going to a suspected or reported haunting to get evidence to determine if the haunting is caused by a ghost, spirit, or natural occurrences, in some cases even hoaxes.
Intelligent Haunting – A haunting by spirits with a demonstrated interaction with the living.
Kirlian Photography – A photographic method involving high frequency electric current, discovered by S.D. & V. Kirlian in the Soviet Union. Kirlian photographs often show colored halos or “auras” surrounding objects.
Ley Lines – Hypothetical lines connecting ancient geographical areas or sacred objects that may be centers of powerful earth energy. Ley Lines have been linked with underground streams and magnetic currents.
Life Review – A phenomenon widely reported as occurring during near-death experiences, in which a person rapidly sees much or the totality of their life history in chronological sequence and in extreme detail. It is often referred to by people having experienced this phenomenon as having their life “flash before their eyes.
Light Rod – A light rod appears as a bar or stick like shape. When a light rod sometimes takes a bend, it is then called a swirling light rod.
Lucid Dreaming -
Also known as a conscious dream, is a dream in which the person is aware that he or she is dreaming while the dream is in progress. When the dreamer is lucid, he or she can actively participate in the dream environment without any of the inhibitions or limitations that otherwise would feel natural to persons who incorrectly believe they are in the “real” waking world. Lucid dreams can be extremely real and vivid depending on a person’s level of self-awareness during the lucid dream. A lucid dream can begin in one of two ways. A dream-initiated lucid dream (DILD) starts as a normal dream, and the dreamer eventually concludes that he or she is dreaming, while a wake-initiated lucid dream (WILD) occurs when the dreamer goes from a normal waking state directly into a dream state with no apparent lapse in consciousness. A dream state in which one is conscious enough to recognize that one is in the dream state and is then able to control dream events.
Lucifer (satan) – Name means the “lightbearer.” Lucifer is the leader of the demon spirits, which are angels that were banished from Heaven by God after they revolted against Him, along with satan.
Luminous Phenomena – A frequent occurrence in physical mediumship. On rare occasions such phenomena have been witnessed in apparent independence of mediumistic conditions. The experience of strange lights or glows, often around objects or people. These lights seem to have be the result of an outpouring of the combined psychic forces that religious ecstasy supposedly generates. Religious enthusiasm and ecstasy in general have often been reported to be accompanied by luminous phenomena. The Bible says that Jesus was transfigured before his disciples and that his face shown as the sun and his garments were white as light (Matt. 17:2). As Paul walked to Damascus, he encountered a light from heaven that shone around him (Acts 9:3). The saints and martyrs spoke of an interior illumination. St. Ignatius Loyola was seen surrounded by a brilliant light while he prayed and his body shone with light when he was levi-tated; St. Columba was said to have been continually enveloped in a dazzling, golden light, reminiscent of what is today termed an aura. This light or flame, according to communications obtained by Hester Dowden, appears to be pale, “a clear white fire” that seems to grow more vivid as the medium gets into better touch with the spirit world. It has been suggested that spectral lights may have a psychic origin. The fire of St. Bernardo was studied in 1895 in Quargnento by a Professor Garzino. It was a mass of light that wandered every night from the church to the cemetery and returned after midnight. A similar light was observed at Berbenno di Valtellina. The light passed through trees without burning them. The phenomenon has not been explained by reference to known chemical laws. The main difficulty that such lights present is the absence of a human organism to which their origin could be traced. But such an absence is also noted in uninhabited haunted houses where the human link is strongly emphasized.
Lycanthropy – The ability or power of a human being to undergo transformation into a wolf, or wolf-like characteristics. The term comes from Greek lykánthropos. The word lycanthropy is sometimes used generically for any transformation of a human into animal form, though the precise term for that is technically “therianthropy”. Sometimes, “zoanthropy” is used instead of “therianthropy”. There is also a mental illness called lycanthropy in which a patient believes he or she is, or has transformed into, an animal and behaves accordingly. This is sometimes referred to as clinical lycanthropy to distinguish it from its use in legends.
Macro-PK – Term used to denote the effects of psychokinesis (paranormal movements) that, like table turning, are large enough to be observed by the naked eye. The opposite to this is Micro-PK, where the effects cannot be directly observed but only inferred from the statistical analysis of data.
Magnetometer (see EMF, gaussmeter) – An instrument for measuring the magnitude and direction of a magnetic field typically used by paranormal researchers to detect a ghost’s magnetic energy.
Malevolent – A malevolent spirit is one that wishes to do harm.
Malicious – A spirit that is spiteful and/or evil. These spirits will destroy or damage things of a personal or financial value for the sake of hurting others.
Manifestation – The appearance or taking of form of an entity. This can also mean the outbreak of paranormal activity
Marian Apparitions – An event in which the Virgin Mary is believed to have supernaturally appeared to one or more persons regardless of their religious faith. They are often given names based on the town in which they were reported, or on the sobriquet which was given to Mary on the occasion of the apparition. They have been interpreted in psychological terms as pareidolia, and in religious terms as theophanies. Apparitions sometimes recur at the same site over an extended period of time. In the majority of Marian apparitions only a few people can see Mary. An exception to this is at Zeitoun, where thousands claimed to have seen her over a period of three years.
Materialization – The formation of a visible and/or the physical form of a spirit. These are usually brief in appearance and often is just a face, hand and are not a full formation of a spirit.
Matrixing – Something within or from which something else originates, develops, or takes form. When the mind attempts to manifest images as something they are not.
Metaphysics – The term metaphysics is derived from the Latin word “meta” which means “beyond”, and the word physics which means the study of psychical research. Essentially the word metaphysics literally means the study of that which is beyond the laws of physics.
Miracle – Occurrence caused by divine intervention and for divine purpose.
Mist – A Photographed anomaly that appears as a blanket of light. There is no substantial proof that these are related to paranormal phenomenon.
Modern Apparitions – “New” Ghosts of deceased individuals. They appear in fashion from the current time.
Near-Death Experience (NDE) – A broad range of personal experiences associated with impending death, encompassing multiple possible sensations ranging from detachment from the body, feelings of levitation, extreme fear, total serenity, security, or warmth, the experience of absolute dissolution, and the presence of a light, which some people interpret as a deity or spiritual presence. Many cultures and individuals revere NDEs as a paranormal and spiritual glimpse into the afterlife. Such cases are usually reported after an individual has been pronounced clinically dead, or otherwise very close to death, hence the entitlement near-death experience. Many NDE reports, however, originate from events that are not life threatening.
Necromancer – A person who holds abilities or knowledge to draw power and skills from the dead along with summoning and controlling ghosts, spirits, demons, zombies, etc. It is believed that through this ancient practice, the one who practices necromancy can use the summoned spirit to find hidden treasures, cast spells on others, learn about the future and even hurt other living beings.
Necronomicon – The book of the dead.
Obsession – The second stage of a haunting where the invading entity (demonic entity) begins to exert its power over its victim. Oppression is the first stage where the demonic spirit oppresses its influences upon the person. The demonic entity works on the mind of the person, placing thoughts of negative things. Obsession is second stage, because the person begins obsessing on the interjected thoughts and in that obsessing what was once just a thought then takes root and becomes an action on the part of the opressed person. Continued oppression without divine intervention will lead to possession. (See oppression and possession).
Occultism – Esoteric systems of belief and practice that assume the existence of mysterious forces and entities. The study of the supernatural. A belief in occult powers and the possibility of bringing them under human control.
Old Hag Syndrome – A nocturnal phenomena that involves a feeling of immobilization, suffocation, odd smells and feelings and is sometimes accompanied my immense fear. You wake up unable to move, barely able to breathe, you feel an oppressive weight on your chest and you sense some evil presence in the room. The name of the 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. Deliverance ministers and ministries view this phenomena as a demonic presence oppressing a person in a the relaxed state of sleep or trying to fall asleep.
Oppression – The first stage of a haunting where the invading demonic entity attempts to gain access to the location or person targeted for victimization. The demonic spirit begins working on the persons mind, interjecting thoughts of negative behaviors and actions. When the person allows the interjections of these thoughts without casting them down and out, it leads to obsession and the actual acting out of the negative thoughts and actions the demonic spirit is interjecting. (See possession for detail and differences between oppression and possession)
Ouija Board – A game board that is used to communicate with spirits. The players ask questions and the pointer will answer yes, no or will spell the answers out.
Out-of-body experience (OBE) – A sensation or experience in which ones self or spirit travels to a different location than their physical body (See Astral Projection).
Outward Manifestation – Any type of paranormal activity. These many include, but not limited to disembodied voices, odors, movement of objects, manipulation of temperatures, electrical disturbances, etc.
Parapsychology – Parapsychology is the scientific and scholarly study of certain unusual events associated with human experience, such as ghosts, UFOS, ESP, Bigfoot, etc. It is generally defined as the scientific study of paranormal phenomena. Parapsychology is not a recognized science by many within the scientific community. The word parapsychology is derived from the Latin word “para”, which means “beyond”, parapsychology literally means beyond psychology.
Phantom – An apparition or a specter. Existing only as an energy form.
Phantomania – Paralysis that occurs when someone is under attack from supernatural or preternatural forces, also known as psychic paralysis.
Phantoms en masse – The appearance of a large group of spirits.
Phantom Hitchhiker – An apparition beside of the road that vanishes from a moving vehicle, the most popular of these is Resurrection Mary, or Mary Bregovy from Chicago.
Phantom Traveler – An apparition that is often mistaken for a living person at a public transportation terminal such as a bus station or airport.
Planchette – The triangular instrument used as a pointer to answer questions on a Ouija board.
Plasma – Plasma is defined by bluish-white light caused by the ionization of the surrounding area. The ionization process releases photons from the bond of atoms causing a visible glow. Plasma may be created when an invisible electromagnetic force or high energy field moves invisibly through an air mass. In physics and chemistry, plasma is typically an ionized gas. Plasma is considered to be a distinct state of matter, apart from gases, because of its unique properties. “Ionized” refers to presence of one or more free electrons, which is not bound to an atom or molecule. The free electric charges make the plasma electrically conductive so that it responds strongly to electromagnetic fields. Plasmas are the most common phase of matter. Some estimates suggest that up to 99% of matter in the entire visible universe is plasma.
Poltergeist – A German words that means “noisy or mischievous ghost.” A destructive spirit that has the ability to move objects by solidifying the ambient air which results in the movement and/or teleportation of objects. This phenomena is also associated with noises, rapping, levitating and throwing of objects, as well as other physical manifestations. These events usually come on suddenly and end just as fast. They can last for days, months or a few years. The longer lasting ones seem to occur for a few days each year. Many of these cases have been attributed to a specific person in the household. In most cases, this specific person, known as an agent, is a young child entering the puberty stage of life. It is believed that the agent causes an involuntary type of involuntary type of psychokinesis, causing the disturbances.
Portal – Literally, a doorway or gate, this term suggests a specific location through which spirits enter and leave our world. When there are multiple phenomena in a confined area, such as an abundance of unexplained orbs, some people call this a “ghost portal.”
Possession-There are several different types of possession. Mediums will allow the a spirit to enter their body for the purpose of communication. During partial possession, the host (person)remains in the body. In full or perfect possession, the spirit of the host is displaced from the physical body. In cases of demonic possession, the entity enters the body without permission and will not leave on it’s own will. An exorcism is necessary to expel the possessing entity.
Postmortem Apparition – Apparition that appears more than 12 hours after a person’s death.
Precognition – Knowledge of pending future events.
Premonition – Feeling or warning about future events. This can be vague or it can be very specific.
Presentiment – Information about future events which is said to be perceived as emotions. A sense that something unpleasant is about to happen, a feeling of evil to come accompanied by feeling of apprehension and forebodingPsychic – The claimed ability to perceive things hidden from the senses through means of extra-sensory perception. A person with the ability to see, hear and feel by the use of senses other than the natural senses.
Provocation – An effort to provoke or command a spirit to reveal itself.
Psi – A letter in the Greek alphabet that denotes psychic phenomena.
Psychic – A person with the ability to see, hear and feel by the use of senses other than the natural senses, also referred to as a “sixth sense.” Also a classification of unusual happenings.
Psychic Attack – The manipulation of supernatural energies and forces. Psychic attacks occur when dark and negative energetic vibrations are sent from one individual to another individual or place creating disturbances in the energetic and physical bodies of the person or place. This negative energy can be called a spirit, an entity, a thought form or a dark negative energy. Each of these energies can create harmful effects within the person receiving them. Psychic attacks involve the manipulation and movement of different types of dark energies, entities and spirits. They involve the transferring of dark and negative energies into someone’s physical and/or energetic bodies. Some of the dark energies and entities that find their way into physical and energetic bodies, and homes are sent without awareness, even though they are sent by humans. Others are sent intentionally to create harm and damage, often to control, manipulate or punish the individual. They can involve ritualistic techniques or ceremonies or use the psychic powers of the mind or a combination of both. It’s difficult for anyone to penetrate an aura that is healthy and strong. Auras are weakened by repressed emotions, negative emotions, through the regular use of drugs and alcohol, through smoking cigarettes and a variety of diseases. The physical presence of fungus, parasites, worms, or metal, chemical or atomic poisons can seriously weaken an aura. It’s important to understand that all illness begins in the aura and then eventually moves into the physical body. Therefore the care and protection of your energetic body is as important as the physical body so you can repel psychic attacks and stay strong and healthy. The dark and negative energies sent intentionally by others are called psychic attacks and can seriously affect humans and animals at a physical, emotional, mental and spiritual levels. Psychic attacks can include spells, voodoo, mantras, invocations, negative energy rays, or other types of black magic. They attack psyches and can produce debilitating effects on the overall health and energy level of the affected person. There are dark spirits and entities that can move into physical bodies and auras affecting what people think, speak, do, desire, and feel. The human who is invaded by these spirits or entities can take on the physical attributes, illnesses and behavior of the spirit or entity occupying the person to such a degree that there appears to be a complete personality change. We can draw dark energies, entities and spirits into ourselves without any influence whatsoever from external sources. Prolonged states of anger, rage, resentments, bitterness, vindictiveness, and many types of fears, will draw and attract these negative energies. It’s normal to get angry or fearful when things happen in our lives. These occurrences do not draw the dark side in to us. It’s the long-term and prolonged states that set up the energetic attraction. Ongoing repressed negative emotions can eventually turn into a certain type of entity.
Psychic Cold – This is a situation where one feels unnaturally cold. There are two types of psychic cold. The first, a spirit that is materializing draws energy from the environment. This results in a lowering of the ambient temperature. The second, the materializing spirit will draw energy from people that are present. The people will feel cold but a thermometer will not register a lowering of the ambient temperature. Sometimes situations of great stress can result in a similar type of cold without a drop in the ambient temperature.
Psychic Echo – When sounds from the past have mysteriously recorded themselves into the natural environment.
Psychic Empath – A psychic ability that picks up on the emotions of ghosts or those reading for. (see Clairsentient).
Psychokinesis (PK) – The power of the mind to affect matter without physical contact, especially in inanimate and remote objects by the exercise of psychic powers. (See Retroactive PsychoKinesis).
Psychometry – The ability or art of divining information about people or events associated with an object solely by touching or being near to it. A form of extra-sensory perception in which a psychic is said to be able to obtain information about an individual through paranormal means by making physical contact with an object that belongs to them. In recent years, the term has been superseded in favor of “token-object reading” so as to avoid potential confusion with the psychological term, “psychometry”.
Pyrokinesis – The ability to unconsciously control and sometimes in rare cases produce fire with their mind only. It literally means “to move fire,” but more commonly denotes the ability to create and manipulate fire using only the mind.
Radio Voice Phenomenon (RVP) – Electronic voice phenomena, EVP, are sections of static noise on the radio or electronic recording media that are interpreted by paranormal investigators as voices speaking words usually attributed to ghosts or spirits. RVP is receiving the voice of a deceased human being through a regular radio, unlike a recording device that was left in a dwelling and has recorded a Evp that was spoken within the room.
Reciprocal Apparition – An extremely rare type of spirit phenomenon in which both the agent and percipient are able to see and respond to each other. An apparition of a living person that interacts with a person whom is aware of the presence.
Recurring Apparitions – Ghosts or spirits that appear in regular cycles, usually once a year. This may occur on a date that marks a significant event, such as a battle or death.
Reincarnation – The belief that some aspect of a person’s being survives death and can be reborn in a new body at some future date.
Religious Demonologist – Person who is normally a member of the clergy. A lay Religious Demonologist does the same job but is not ordained, but can perform the same duties with special permission by the Bishop- The main difference between a Demonologist and Religious Demonologist is that the Demonologist studies Demonology while the Religious Demonologist helps people to be rid of them.
Remote Viewing – Used by some psychics, this is a procedure in which the percipient or psychic attempts to become physically aware of the experience of an agent who is at a distant, unknown location through ESP.
Residual Haunting – When a ghost is seen or heard doing the same thing over and over without interaction with the living. Many believe this to be an energy imprint on the surroundings similar to a record. In other words, a strong, traumatic event that occurred in the past, repeating itself over and over.
Retroactive PsychoKinesis – Psychokinesis, a form of psi, is a technique of mind over matter through invisible means; the apparent ability of humans to affect objects solely by the power of the mind. Examples of PK are movements of objects, bending of metals, and determining the outcome of events. It can occur spontaneously and deliberately which indicates it is both an unconscious and conscious process. “Retro PK” is capable of producing a “backwards acting in time” effect process in which an effect appears to precede it cause, counter to our usual assumptions that cause leads to effect.
Retrocognition – From the Latin retro meaning “backward, behind” and cognition meaning “knowing”, is the alleged paranormal transfer of information about an event or object in the past. A person said to possess retrocognition can see into the past. Retrocognition is different from clairvoyance in that information is said to be gained from an object or event in the past, not from a contemporary event or object.
Séance – A meeting or gathering of people, usually lead by a medium to receive spiritualistic messages, manifestations or communication with the dead.
Sensitive – Someone who is aware or can detect paranormal events beyond the range of their five human senses.
Shadow Person – Unexplainable dark shadows which are often human shaped. They can be found in photos and video and are most often seen out of the corner of your eye but have also been seen full on.
Shadow People – Light will not pass through different densities or masses the same way. Because spirit energy has density it can create a shadow on the ground or the wall. The shadow is not alive but the matter (although dead) is casting the shadow. Shadows are relatively common and have been cast when orbs and vortex’s are photographed. Shadows can be one of the harder anomalies to photograph because of their speed and color. Shadow people because of their dark forms are often considered to be evil.
Shaman – A member of certain tribal societies who acts as a medium between the visible world and an invisible spirit world and who practices magic or sorcery for purposes of healing, divination, and control over natural events.
Shape Shifting – Paranormal ability to assume the form of another person, an animal or other entity, a change from human form to animal form and vice versa. aA change in appearance from one person to another.
Simulcra – This is a word used to describe the seeing of faces, figures and images in ordinary, everyday object such as rocks, foliage, etc.
Skeptic – A person inclined to discount the reality of the paranormal and to be critical of parapsychological research. Generally seeks rational or scientific explanations for the phenomena studied by parapsychologists.
Soulless Apparition – The image of an inanimate object.
Specter – A ghost or apparition. A visible disembodied spirit, or something that haunts or perturbs the mind.
Spirit – Spirits are believed to exist in an invisible realm that can only be seen under certain circumstances or by people with special abilities. Unlike ghosts, the term “spirit” is used for demons, angels, fairies, elves and even places. Mountains, woods, lakes, trees and sacred sites are all said to possess a spirit…and in many ancient and indian cultures, this is a living spirit
Spirit Photography – A spirit photograph captures the image of a ghost on film. Many of these are supposedly intended as a mere portrait of a living human being, but when the film is developed, an ethereal ghostly face or figure can be seen hovering near the subject. This may also incorporate orbs, vortexes, and mists to some degree.
Spiritualism – The belief system that the dead are able to communicate with the living, through an intermediary or medium.
Stigmata – From the Greek term stigma, which means “mark.” In Christianity, it is believed that some people develop wounds which are just like those received by Jesus when he was crucified: wounds on each hand, one on the side, and one both ankles. It is believed that these marks are signs from God that the person suffering from them is holy. Occasionally wounds on the head, in the shape of a crown (copying the crown of thorns), and marks on either shoulder (representing the carrying of the cross and scourging) are evidence of stigmata too. Stigmata might also be invisible, marked by the pain of wounds in the classic places, or alternately invisible and visible. Stigmata are often accompanied by other bodily phenomena such as pain, blood, sweats, levitations, or even lameness or blindness, and they quite often occur in people who are already ill or are voluntarily abstaining from food for religious reasons.
Subliminal Perception – A visual or auditory message that is allegedly perceived psychologically, but not consciously. Perceiving without conscious awareness. Applied to a stimulus below the level of awareness and below the absolute threshold of stimulation, as when an auditory or visual presentation is too weak to have an effect, or at least any effect of which the subject is aware. All that takes place beneath the consciousness threshold—sensations, thoughts, and emotions that seldom emerge but form a consciousness quite as complex and coherent as the supraliminal one, since they demonstrate processes of mentation and exhibit a continuous chain of memory. F.W.H. Myers attributed most supernormal psychical phenomena to the subliminal self, but not as a complete explanation or exclusion of the spirit hypothesis. On the contrary, his inference was that if our incarnate selves may act in telepathy in at least apparent independence of the fleshly body, the presumption is strong that other spirits may exist independently of the body and may affect us in a similar manner. Myers divided the influence of the subliminal on the supraliminal into three main areas: (1) When the subliminal mentation cooperates with and supplements the supraliminal, without changing the apparent phase of personality, we have genius. (2) When subliminal operations change the apparent phase of personality from the state of waking toward the direction of trance, we have hypnotism. (3) When the subliminal mentation forces itself up through the supraliminal, without amalgamation, as in crystal vision, automatic writing, and so forth, we have sensory or motor automatism.
Subjective Apparitions – Hallucinations of apparitions or other phenomena that are created by our own minds. Paranormally speaking, apparitions that have been reported but are not discovered to be anything verifiable by a paranormal investigation. The only person experiencing anything is the person reporting the event.
Succubus – A demonic entity said to inspire lust in men and then assaulting them. In Western medieval legend, a succubus (plural succubi) or succuba (plural succubae) is a demon, who takes the form of a beautiful woman to seduce men, especially monks in dreams to have sexual relations. They draw energy from the men to sustain themselves, often until the point of exhaustion or death of the victim. According to the Malleus Maleficarum, or “Witches’ Hammer”, published against the recommendation of the Catholic Church in 1487 and officially banned in 1490, succubi would collect semen from the men they slept with, which incubi would then use to impregnate women thus explaining how demons could apparently sire children in spite of the traditional belief that demons were incapable of reproduction through generative or gestative means. Children so begotten were supposed to be those that were born deformed, or more susceptible to supernatural influences. The appearance of succubi varies, but in general they are depicted as alluring women with great beauty,[4][7] often with demonic batlike wings, and large breasts; they also have other demonic features, such as horns and cloven feet. Occasionally they appear as an attractive woman in dreams that the victim cannot seem to get off his mind. They lure males and in some cases, the male has seemed to fall “in love” with her. Even out of the dream she will not leave his mind. She will remain there slowly draining energy from him until death by exhaustion. Other sources say the demon will steal the male’s soul through the act of intercourse.
Supernatural – Of or relating to existence outside the natural world. As opposed to paranormal, the term “supernatural” often connotes divine or demonic intervention.
Supernatural – Of or relating to existence outside the natural world. As opposed to paranormal, the term “supernatural” often connotes divine or demonic intervention.
Symbolic Apparition – Many apparitions are symbolic and are trying to communicate a message by whom they appear to, what times, what they are wearing, what they are doing, etc.
Take-away Apparition – The appearance of a deceased person beside a deathbed with the sole purpose of guiding the infirm to the afterlife.
Telergic – The excitation of the motor or sensory centers take place through the communicating intelligence in some direct way, such as a healing using a pendulum.
Telekinesis – (“movement from the mind”), also known as psychokinesis, it is the purported ability of the mind to influence matter, time, space, or energy by means outside the currently known laws of physics. It has been called the most powerful of psychic powers, essentially the power of a god. Examples of psychokinesis could include distorting or moving an object, or influencing the output of a random number generator. The study of phenomena said to be psychokinetic is an aspect of parapsychology. Some paranormal researchers believe that psychokinesis exists and deserves further study, pointing to experimental results such as those done using random number generators.
Telepathy (thought-transference) – The purported transfer of information on thoughts or feelings between individuals by means other than the five classical senses. A person who is able to make use of telepathy is said to be able to read the minds of others. Telepathy, along with psychokinesis forms the main branches of parapsychological research, and many studies seeking to detect and understand telepathy have been done within the field. Within the field of parapsychology, telepathy is considered to be a form of extra-sensory perception (ESP) or anomalous cognition in which information is transferred through Psi. It is often categorized similarly to precognition and clairvoyance. Various experiments have been used to test for telepathic abilities. Among the most well known are the use of Zener cards and the Ganzfeld experiment. Parapsychology describes several different forms of telepathy, including latent telepathy and precognitive telepathy.
Teleportation – The movement of objects from one place to another, more or less instantaneously, without traveling through space. The concept has been widely used in science fiction. It should not be confused with quantum teleportation. Similar is apport, an earlier word used to describe what today might be called teleportation; and bilocation, when something or someone described as being a magician is said to be able to occupy two places simultaneously.
Temporal Lobe Activity – Electrical activity in the temporal lobes of the brain. Often associated with strange sensations, time distortions and hallucinations. Sometimes used as an explanation for seemingly paranormal experiences such as apparitions.
Vortex or vortices – Believed by many to be a Portal to another dimension, which spirits use to appear. Some believe that these Vortexes sometimes show up in photographs as funnel shaped anomalies or translucent clouds. Camera straps and hair are often false positives confused for these. We have seen nothing to indicate their existance.
White Noise – A random signal (or process) with a flat power spectral density. In other words, the signal’s power spectral density has equal power in any band, at any centre frequency, having a given bandwidth. White noise is considered analogous to white light which contains all frequencies. White noise is a sound that contains every frequency within the range of human hearing (generally from 20 hertz to 20 kHz) in equal amounts. Most people perceive this sound as having more high-frequency content than low, but this is not the case. This perception occurs because each successive octave has twice as many frequencies as the one preceding it. A hiss-like sound, formed by combining all audible frequencies.
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