Paranormal Glossary
PARANORMAL GLOSSARY
Agent
The apparition or ghost seen by a human being. Also can be a spirit guide for a medium.
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Amulet
Any object that is believed to be endowed with
supernatural powers allowing it to fend off evil spirits, or to
bring good luck.
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Anomaly
An anomaly (literally, no law or rule)
is an irregular or unusual event which does not fit a standard rule or law.
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Apparition
A spirit apparition is the classic form of a ghost and the
rarest paranormal phenomena. It is the
partial or full (sometimes incomplete) form representing a person or animal
who was once living and is presently passed on. Sometimes the apparition is transparent and
sometimes it can look as if it were solid, but eventually disappears.
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Apports
An object created by mediums and poltergeists, which
materializes out of thin air and takes solid form. These objects can be coins, jewelry, or
anything that would have significance to the members of the séance. Also known as Materialization.
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Astral Projection
Is also called Out of Body Experience (OBE), and is a
phenomenon where a spirit double (or astral body) leaves the body (of a
living being) and travels to another location.
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Atmospheric Apparition
Also referred to as Atmospheric Imprinting, or Residual
Haunts. When an event is so traumatic
that it actually imprints itself onto the atmosphere and then replays over
and over again. This is most commonly
seen at battlefield sites. In the
case where a ghost is seen only on the anniversary of the event, the phenomenon
is referred to as a Recurring Apparition.
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Aura
The field of energy that surrounds all living creatures,
including human beings, animals and plants.
Some people have the ability to see colored auras and can determine
the health and emotions of an individual by the color of their aura. Aura Photography is used to capture the
aura on film, usually using Polaroid cameras and film.
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Automatic Writing
Unconscious muscular movements
that are guided by spirits, in this case, writing. Automatic painting has also been
documented—where a former artist spirit guides the brush of a living artist.
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Awakening
The exact moment when paranormal activity suddenly and
unexpectedly emerges from a location where no paranormal activity has been
reported before, (or that has not been recorded for a long time).
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Banshee
An ancient Irish and Scottish tradition of a female spirit
foretelling a tragedy or death. They
are said to emit a sound similar to a mournful crying.
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Channeling
A form of spirit communication where a spirit takes
possession of a medium to impart spiritual guidance, wisdom, or to
communicate with those present at a séance.
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Clairvoyance
The extrasensory perception manifesting in the form of
either an internal or external vision of present or future events, objects,
places and people. Clairvoyance
usually occurs through dreams or flashes of events while the clairvoyant is
awake.
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Cold Reading
A fraudulent technique used by charlatans to obtain
information about a person. It is
usually accomplished by a series of statements and questions by a fraudulent
medium, responding to verbal and non-verbal answers of the person being
“read.”
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Control
A spirit of the dead who acts as a medium’s guide or
intermediary to the “Other World.”
Also known as a Spirit Guide.
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Collective Apparition
A case where more than one person sees the same spirit
phenomenon.
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Crisis Apparition
A specific type of apparition where the agent projects his
or her astral body at a time of crisis or death, usually to a loved one.
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Direct Writing
Writing that materializes on a previously unmarked surface
without the aid of a medium’s hand.
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Direct Voice Phenomenon (DVP)
Is heard most often at a séance when a spirit speaks
directly to the sitters, not though the medium. The voice usually is heard near the medium,
but not out of her/his mouth.
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Dowsing
A method of locating people, animals, objects and water by
the use of a forked rod, or a bent pair of wires (usually copper). Copper dowsing rods are also used to communicate with spirits. The investigator holds the rods out in front of him/her, one in each hand, and asks the spirits yes or no questions. If the rods cross, that would indicate a "yes" answer. They will also point to spirit activity.
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Drop In Communicator
A spirit who shows up at a séance uninvited. They often don’t stay, but can bring with
them apports, noises and/or strange lights.
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Druids
A spiritual Celtic practice (religion) based upon the love
of nature and the Earth. It fosters:
Love of Land, the Earth, the Wild and reverence for Nature. They were the priests, magicians, mystics
and priestesses of the Celtic people.
The oak and the mistletoe that grows within its branches were scared
to the Druids. Mythologies describe
Druids capable of control of the weather, healing, levitation and shape
changing themselves into the forms of animals.
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Ectoplasm:
From the Greek words, “ektos” and “plasma,” which means
“exteriorized substance.” It is electro magnetic energy from a spirit. It is almost always white, (not green!) and
changes form quickly, even when there’s no wind. At times it is expelled from a medium’s
body while in a trance-like state.
Ectoplasm is warm to the touch, and has a wax-like consistence. It can also be rubbery and disappears when
exposed to bright light. Vaporous
ectoplasm is light, and resembles clouds of smoke.
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Electro-Magnetic Field Meter (EMF Meter)
An electronic devise that detects the changes in the
Electro-magnetic field. Since this
field is around everything, care should be taken around electric
equipment. A reading of between 2.0
and 8 usually indicates paranormal activity.
Above that is man made.
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Extrasensory Perception (ESP)
The acquisition of information by means beyond the five
human senses. Sometimes referred to as
the “Sixth Sense.”
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Electronic Voice Phenomena (EVP)
A “spirit” voice on recorded on tape, usually audio. Most often not heard at the time of recording,
but is present when the recording is replayed.
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Exorcism
A religious rite performed by a holy man for the purpose of
expelling an evil spirit or demon. An
exorcism performed by the Roman Catholic Church is known as Rituale Romanum.
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Fortean Phenomena
Paranormal phenomena that science cannot explain. The term originated from Charles Fort
(1874-1932), an American who catalogued thousands of strange phenomena that
could not be explained in rational terms.
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Ghost
A "recording" on the atmosphere of a previously living, entity (person and sometimes an animal). Since a ghost is merely a impression on the atmosphere, one cannot communicate with it because it isn't really still where it is seen. The clue that what is being experienced is a ghost and not a spirit manisfestation is if the image is always seen doing the same thing, like descending a flight of stairs, or in the case of Gettysburg, fighting the same battle over and over again.
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Ghost/Spirit Hunt
An informal attempt to contact and record ghostly
activity. Not as scientifically conducted
as a Paranormal Investigation.
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Ghost/Spirit Investigation
A carefully controlled scientific research project to
verify the presence of a ghost or spirit and to document paranormal activity.
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Ghost Lights
Lights that resemble orbs, but are much larger and are
usually seen from a distance. They can
also be associated with a spirit who would have normally carried a light
while living, (i.e. and railroad worker or monks carrying candles.) Also called “ignis fatuus” meaning “foolish
fire.”
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Gray Ladies
A ghost or spirit of a woman who has died at the hands of her
lover or while waiting for him to return.
They are so-named because of their mournful expressions. Most are found in England. Gray Ladies have been credited with
providing preemptive warnings of disasters that have saved many lives.
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Grief
The five stages of grief: Denial, Bargaining, Anger,
Depression, and Finally. These also
apply to spirits who have not moved on and stay at the place they haunt. They must move on in their own time, and
nothing the living can do can speed up their grieving process.
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Haunting
An event where a spirit/ghost makes itself known to the
people living in its former home, office building, or property. Usually a spirit is attached to a place
rather than people; and they don’t often leave the place that is being
haunted when the people leave. However, if the spirit is a relative, the might follow the person and are not necessiarily attached to a specific place.
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Heart of a Haunting, The
The precise location where paranormal activity occurs with
the most frequency. The nucleus of the
paranormal phenomena. Often this "Eye" of the activity is a cold spot.
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Ley Lines
The invisible alignments between sacred or mystical
locations, which are usually built on sites with energy vortexes. Because the energy from vortexes are
electromagnetic, the energies push and pull against each other just as the
attractions of a magnet. When sacred sites
or energy vortexes are plotted on an area map, the straight lines connecting
these locations are the Ley Lines.
These pathways often have much more paranormal activity than other
surrounding areas.
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Lucid Dreaming
A person having a lucid dream is usually not aware that
they are dreaming. The dream seems
real and it appears impossible to determine whether the person is still
asleep or has actually woken up. There
might be telepathy, precognition, or clairvoyance involved when two people
have the same dream. Past life
experiences are also commonly projected through lucid dreams.
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Magnetometer
A devise used to measure the presence of a magnetic field,
as well as its strength, direction, and fluctuations. Some paranormal investigators believe that
spirits have a detectable magnetic or energy aura.
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Marian Apparition
The appearance of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The most famous Marian apparition began in
1981 in the village of Medjugorje,
Bosnia. Six children began seeing visions of the
Blessed Virgin and documented over two thousand sightings. Almost everyone who has made a pilgrimage
to the village has experienced something that they could not explain. Healings have occurred. These apparitions are not ghosts, but
considered spiritual events.
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Medium
A person who has the psychic ability to communicate with
the dead. Sometimes mediums use spirit
guides to find the spirits of particular deceased loved ones. The word suggests that a medium acts as a
midway point between the dead and the living.
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Near-Death Experience (NDE)
An experience where a living person actually dies, or
comes close to actual death, and is revived.
Many people recount their experiences of rushing though a tunnel
toward a bright light, seeing deceased relatives, and other visions of the
afterlife. The phrase was coined by
Dr. Raymond Moody in his book recounting patient’s NDEs.
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Objective Apparitions
Actual entities that appear independent of our mind,
thoughts and feelings.
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Orb:
Usually appears as a sphere or ball that looks as if it has a nucleolus emitting its own light. It seems to
“glow” as it hovers or moves. They are
usually white or blue and have a rainbowed out edge of energy. Orbs most often
appear on photographs and/or video, but they are rarely seen by the human
eye. They might appear on photographs
if no flash was used when taking the picture.
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Out of Body Experience (OBE)
Is also called, Astral Projection, and is a phenomenon
where a spirit double (or astral body) leaves the body (of a living being)
and travels to another location. This
usually occurs when the living person is asleep or in a trance-like
state. The Astral body, (spirit, soul)
returns to the living person and is reunited.
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Paranormal
Beyond the simple human experience and scientific
explanation.
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Pareidolia
The misperception of an obscure stimulus being perceived
as something more specific and distinct.
An innate human characteristic to see something in something else—like
depicting a face in the swirling of a stucco wall or ceiling, or from a
pattern in wood paneling. Or, the most
often occurrence in the paranormal investigation business, seeing a face in
photograph that is probably a reflection and believing it to be a ghost. To quote the great Sherlock Holmes, “Eliminated all which is impossible, then
whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.”
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Percipient
A person who sees or perceives the presence of a ghost or
spirit or unexplaned phenomina.
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Phantom Hounds
The sighting of phantom hounds seems to be at random, some
times manifesting to guard something of importance. They are frightening large dog spirit
creatures with glowing eyes, (sometimes headless) that chase the living, but
rarely ever catch them. As long as the
person seeing one of these apparitions is not frightened to death, or runs
off a cliff to avoid them, they cannot cause any real damage.
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Phantom Phone Calls
Calls via a telephone made by someone who has passed
on. This usually occurs when the
caller has a close emotional relationship to the person answering the
call. Hundreds of reports of this type
of phenomena have been recorded, but it is still considered a rare
anomaly. There have also been reports
of communication via other electronic appliances, such as radios, CB’s,
television sets and even computers.
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Phantom Ships
The appearance of phantom ships is thought to be a death
omen by sailors. The most famous
Phantom Ship is the Flying Dutchman, which has many documented sightings from
the 1800’s. The Griffon is another phantom ship that can still be
seen on the Great Lakes.
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Phantom Travelers
Ghosts or spirits that haunt modes of transportation, (trains, buses,
and airplanes) that seem to be cursed to never-ending travel. Also known as
Phantom Hitchhikers. Some apparitions
occur only on the anniversary of the spirit’s death.
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Phasmophobia
Fear of ghosts/spirits.
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PSI
The factors responsible for a variety of paranormal
phenomena, free from the cultural and personal assumptions of the
paranormal.
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Psychic Attacks
Paranormal assaults on humans or animals that can cause
physical or mental distress, illness, bodily injury, or death. Voodoo is an example of a psychic attack.
In European cultures, the “Evil Eye” or curses are also examples.
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Poltergeist
Not a ghost or a spirit and believed to be caused by
an adolescent with latent psychic PK abilities. Poltergeist is a German word translated,
“Noisy Spirit.” Most studies have
concluded that the agents of poltergeist activity originate from females
under the age of twenty. Poltergeist
activity is accumulative as the activity progresses.
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Power Points
Spiraling rhythms of earth energy being drawn together
from different sources to form a concentrated energy mass. Power Points have abnormal amounts of ghost, spirit and UFO sightings and poltergeist activity, making them a focus for many
paranormal investigations.
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Psychokinesis
The movement of objects through the use of one’s mind,
without the aid of physical persuasion.
The force of Mind over Matter.
Sometimes it is done without the conscious knowledge of the person
using it. This is the case with
Poltergeist incidents, and usually is brought about by a young adolescent. Uri Geller was believed to possess this
ability.
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Psychic Burn
The location where a terrible event, typically extremely
violent, occurs causing human emotions, (fear, panic, anger, pain, hate,
confusion, etc.), to explode from the scene scarring the physical
environment. The images seen are ghost images and a are usually a reenactment of a horrible event.
This is also referred to as Atmospheric Apparitions.
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Radio Voice Phenomenon (RVP)
The reception of the voice of a deceased through the
speakers of an ordinary radio.
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Reciprocal Apparition
When the agent (spirit) and percipient (living person
seeing the spirit) see and respond to each other and no one else in the area
is aware of the spirit.
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Recurring Apparitions
A ghostly appearance that occurs once a year or on a
regular cycle, usually on the anniversary of a death or traumatic event.
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Reincarnation
The belief that a soul comes back to earth many times
through many lives for the purpose of attaining knowledge of every experience
and to ultimately achieve perfection.
Once perfection is achieved the soul returns to God and becomes a part
of Him. The Christian religion is the
only major religion of the world that does not accept this philosophy.
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Retrocognition
A sudden shift or displacement in time in which one finds
himself/herself in the past seeing or experiencing events of which they had
no prior knowledge. Also known as Postcognition.
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Scrying
A form of fortune-telling in which the seer perceives
visions of the future while gazing into a mirror, crystal ball, bowl of
water, or other reflective surface.
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Séance
A gathering or “spirit circle” of individuals for the
purpose of communicating with the dead.
Also known as “A Circle.”
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Sensitive
Someone who is aware of or can feel paranormal presences
that cannot be picked up by the normal five senses.Many sometimes be able to communicate with spirits, but not always.
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Soul
The life force or energy of a human being or animal. A person’s conscious identity that cannot
be extinguished after the death of their body.
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Spirit
Thought to be the soul of a human being or animal. The willpower and driving force behind the
soul. The essence of a formerly living person. The energy that remains after the body dies. Because a spirit is the energy of a former living person, they should be no more frightening then the person was while they were alive.
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Spirit Guide
A spirit who assists a medium find and communicate with
the spirit of a deceased friend or relative. Also known as a “Control.
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Spirit Photograph
A photograph where there is evidence of a spirit.
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Spontaneous Human Combustion
The process of a human body starting on fire as a result
of heat generated by an internal chemical action. The phenomenon is very rare and not ever
personally witnessed.
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Subjective Apparitions
Are created by our minds and are actually hallucinations.
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Supernatural
Something that exists or occurs through some means other
than any known force in nature. As
opposed to paranormal, the term often connotes divine or demonic intervention.
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Telepathy
The mind-to-mind communication between individuals without
the use of audible speech or hand signals.
This often occurs normally
between twins, mother and child, or anyone who is closely connected to
another.
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Teleportation
A type of Paranormal transportation where an object or
person is moved from one location to another, sometimes through solid
objects, such as walls, closed doors or closed windows
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Time Slips
Moments where the past and present collide at one point.
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Transmigration
The belief that souls come back to life through many
lives, ascending higher levels of life through insect, animal and then to
human forms to ultimately attain perfection.
Once perfection is achieved the soul returns to God and becomes a part
of Him.
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UFO
Unidentified Flying Objects, considered as being alien
spacecraft.
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Vortex (Energy Vortex)
Believed to be a portal between dimensions though which spirits travel. Compasses and sensitive electrical equipment fails. Vortexes can occur anywhere, inside caves, in riverbeds, within a house, or on the grounds of a cemetery. The Chinese call this energy Yin and Yang. Ancient civilizations built scared temples and holy shrines on locations believed to be vortexes and believed that these areas amplified energy and spiritual enlightenment.