Ghosts, anyone?

[Twitch]

I thought we had ghost for a while from the bumping under the floor at night till I found the crawl space cover off and knew that cats got in there......

 

[K.D. Lightner]

Nick -- I, too, have an astral projection story. In the mid-70's, I lived in NYC and, for awhile, studied and read a lot of paranormal stuff. I had just finished a small book on astral projection and so decided one night to try it.

I picked a "safe" place to go: I had friends living nearby in the Bronx, just a short bus-ride. My friend Rickey, her friend Annette, and Annette's 2 1/2-year-old daughter, Paula. I was quite familiar with the route to their apartment and also the apartment itself.

It was about midnight when I began my journey -- I relaxed, and let myself visualize floating out of my body, through the ceiling, out onto the street; I floated over the bus route, could see the cars and a bus or two on the streets, then went into their apartment and passed through the front door. It was dark, of course; the first room I passed was the baby's room. I paused at the doorway, looking in on Paula's crib, then floated on down the hall and into the living room. I had intended to visit Rickey sleeping in her bedroom, but got a funny feeling (I suddenly felt like an intruder), and so left the premises and floated on home and back into my body. The thing had felt so real, it spooked me.

Two days later, I got a call from Rickey. "Karol, are you all right?" she asked, and I said yes. She said she had been worried about me and I asked why. She said two nights earlier, little Paula had awakened yelling for her mother. When Annette and Rickey woke up, Paula was pointing to the hallway and said "Karol's here!" No, no they assured her, it was midnight, the place was dark and Karol was not here. The child insisted I was present, but they finally calmed her down, told her it was a dream, and went back to bed. Rickey started thinking about it later and thought maybe something had happened to me and that Paula had seen my ghost or something.

"Oh, dear," I said, and told her what I had done. She was a bit spooked, but believed that little Paula had seen or discerned my presence.

I have never tried astral traveling since.

And, yes, Nick, I think it probably was your grandmother warning you away from the practice!

karol

 

[Rigby Reardon]

Bummer, Joe.

 

[Section10]

The mind of living humans will always try to make sense of perceived phenomena. Hence the chaotic is often said to resemble something with which one is familiar (forms in clouds, the infamous "face" in the billowing smoke of the World Trade Center, the Virgin Mary in the seeping water below a highway overpass). Remember, there is no part of what you would identify as you - your personality, your memory - that cannot be modified or obliterated while you are still alive by chemical or other physical mucking about with your body. Why would one believe that the ultimate physical mucking about with your body, death, would leave anything that anyone could identify as you - your personality or memories - intact?

I guess it depends on whether or not one sees the essence of whatever their identity is as a strict function of their body. There is no conclusive proof that it is. Personality, mentality and memory are changeable, but they are not necessarily transcendent of the physical. I believe in a sense of 'otherness'. An identity that does not depend on the physical for its existence, yet defines and is defined by whatever each one of us are.
I know that anecdotal evidence does not fit the requirements for scienctific inquiry, but neither is it of no repute. Science in 2006 is not the ultimate determiner of what is and what is not. Simply because science cannot detect it has no bearing whatsoever on the truth of its reality. It is liberating to be able to look beyond science and skepticism for that is where truth is found.

 

[Maj.Nick Danger]

Pretty spooky Karol,.....

Nick -- I, too, have an astral projection story. In the mid-70's, I lived in NYC and, for awhile, studied and read a lot of paranormal stuff. I had just finished a small book on astral projection and so decided one night to try it.

I picked a "safe" place to go: I had friends living nearby in the Bronx, just a short bus-ride. My friend Rickey, her friend Annette, and Annette's 2 1/2-year-old daughter, Paula. I was quite familiar with the route to their apartment and also the apartment itself.

It was about midnight when I began my journey -- I relaxed, and let myself visualize floating out of my body, through the ceiling, out onto the street; I floated over the bus route, could see the cars and a bus or two on the streets, then went into their apartment and passed through the front door. It was dark, of course; the first room I passed was the baby's room. I paused at the doorway, looking in on Paula's crib, then floated on down the hall and into the living room. I had intended to visit Rickey sleeping in her bedroom, but got a funny feeling (I suddenly felt like an intruder), and so left the premises and floated on home and back into my body. The thing had felt so real, it spooked me.

Two days later, I got a call from Rickey. "Karol, are you all right?" she asked, and I said yes. She said she had been worried about me and I asked why. She said two nights earlier, little Paula had awakened yelling for her mother. When Annette and Rickey woke up, Paula was pointing to the hallway and said "Karol's here!" No, no they assured her, it was midnight, the place was dark and Karol was not here. The child insisted I was present, but they finally calmed her down, told her it was a dream, and went back to bed. Rickey started thinking about it later and thought maybe something had happened to me and that Paula had seen my ghost or something.

"Oh, dear," I said, and told her what I had done. She was a bit spooked, but believed that little Paula had seen or discerned my presence.

I have never tried astral traveling since.

And, yes, Nick, I think it probably was your grandmother warning you away from the practice!

karol

........thanks for telling your tale. I have always thought from the time of my own experience, that many sightings of ghosts are really people that are astral travelers. And sometimes I think it happens to us in our dreams, we go to another dimension and interact with others that are experiencing the same thing.
A short while after I made my attempt at this form of travel, I had an experience while wide awake, so this one thoroughly convinced me of the reality of other dimensions, other realities. I went with my family to see Walt Disney's Fantasia in a theater that was in a somewhat bad area. My sister drove her car, a 65 Chevy Impala with a convertable top, a hot car in it's day.
When the movie got to the part where there is just this experimental animation on screen, just changing abstract images set to classical music,my mind as I recall was just blank for a moment as if I was just thinking along with the animation.
I quite suddenly found myself standing out in the parking lot about 15 feet or so from my sister's car! Or rather,my mind and my perceptions, my conciousness was out in that parking lot. I posessed all of my 5 senses,I could feel the air around me,hear the sounds of traffic, etc. What I saw then was a man with a coat hanger attempting to break into my sister's car. Instantly I had the thought, "Hey! He's trying to steal her car!" Then, just as abruptly as I had been transported outside, I was back in my seat in the theater. I was sitting next to my sister,.....I seriously thought about warning her about what I had just seen. Then I thought better of it as I did not really believe it myself. I thought it was my mind playing tricks on me, just a daydream or my imagination.
When the movie ended and we went outside, her car was gone, stolen. I was astounded! It was real after all! Several months later the police caught the man I had seen that night and recovered my sister's car.
I told my sister that night when we were at my uncle's home, who was a policeman in the city. She said, "Why didn't you tell me?" Nothing like this has ever happened to me since, but if it ever should, this time I will heed the warning.

 

[Lauren]

Ok, here I am, Mr Rigby Reardon.

Yup, QM. I was walking with Daniel Riser arm in arm, from the inside to the outside, when I felt the floor drop out from under me, like in a carnival fun house. I giggled, and Dan asked me "what?" to which I replied "Didn't you feel that?". Nope, only me.

Also on the Queen Mary with Dan, we snuck into one of the ballrooms, and were dancing at night. I had this strange feeling something was watching from the corner of the cieling. I tried to ignore it, but it was piercing. I picked up my things, and exited, but I certainly felt followed for about 20 yards.

The wind rushed along my legs while walking down corridors.

In France I had other things happen...
When I was in a castle I had the overwhelming feeling of suffocation in a room in a castle. It ends up the lady confined herself in that room for years and only was aided by nuns until her death since she was so distraught of the death of her husband.

In a hostel across the street from a church, I was awakened by a screech/scream from above my bed. I laid there in the dark and kept hearing footsteps up and down the corrider outside, feet on hardwood floors, even though the floor was carpeted. When I looked outside, there was nothing there. I laid awake for several hours, and never once heard the church bells ring, though they rung hourly.

In San Diego, at the Whaley house, I felt suffocated halfway up the staircase. I always have a strange feeling someone's looking at me from the windows whenever I am hanging around outside the building, and I have an eeire feeling of a lady always promenading around the gardens. someday I'll make a black victorian dress and freak people out in that spot.. heehee

I used to always feel like there was someone walking down my hallway, then looking at me while I was sleeping. When I switched bedrooms, the same thing kept happening. Finally with a lot of prayer, it went away and hasn't come back.

I don't know what it is, but since I am a Christian, I believe in something beyond what we have here. Perhaps it is ghosts, perhaps demonic influences, I'm not sure. But something is out there.

 

[herringbonekid]

'man tends to fill the inexplicable with the contents of his unconscious'

Carl Jung

 

[Section10]

I have never met anything that is transcendent of the physical, nor anything that exists and is not physical. Every feeling, every emotion that one ever experiences has its roots firmly in the physical, and indeed every feeling, every emotion, every thought, every action, can be manipulated chemically or electrically, or in some other physical way in your brain. And, of course, the contrary argument is no argument at all, since there is no possible proof in the physical world of what is held to be in no way physical, so how can one even engage in any kind of discussion of it?

You have never met anything apart from the physical, but many people here believe they have. Why judge other people's experiences by your criteria? The brain is a physical object. lt can be manipulated and it will die, but that's not what I'm talking about. In many accounts, the most vivid of life's experiences take place when brain activity is suspended.

There is much proof in the physical world of the non-physical, but it requires a pre-existing acknowledgment of the non-physical realm before it can be interpreted as such. All things can be explained away if you want to bad enough. Ghosts, spirits, God, the resurrection -- even the holocaust is being seriously denied and that was a highly documented physical event that occurred only 60 years ago.

it's not about evidence at all, but how you choose to interpret the evidence. These are all choices that we all can make. We must first choose to open our eyes before we can see what's out there. Don't limit yourself.

 

[Section10]

Evidence and stories are not the same thing, nor are what others believe about their experiences evidence that those beliefs are not fantasy. By what means does something that is held to be not physical manifest itself in the physical world? No, I do not accept explanations like "spooky interaction at a distance." That would need some equations to become acceptable.

You illustrate my point. No equation would suffice because no equation is permitted. Of course none of these things exist because they are not allowed to exist. The door is closed. That's a choice. Our choices determine our experiences more often than our experiences determine our choices.

 

[jamespowers]

More inexplicable than ghosts and other ethereal things is why people read threads that they have no real interest in, do not believe one way or the other or completely disagree with. Then they have to throw cold water on the premise and divert the thread away from what it was originally set out for and ruin it for everyone else instead of starting another thread with their ideas. There has been a rash of this lately. Hmmmmm....

Regards,

J

 

[Section10]

Hmm, I don't think I said no equation is permitted, so fire away. I can do the math. Let me see the write-ups of the experiments. I've had sufficient science classes to figure it out. One of my choices in college was to be a physics major. I need to know. By what means does something that is held to be not physical manifest itself in the physical world?

Of course, as I said, I like a good story as much as the next person, but I do not confuse stories for evidence.

Amen.

 

[Section10]

Ah, I understand. The easy way out. Bye.

There is no way out. Why continue a discussion that leads nowhere? We are not communicating.

 

[jamespowers]

We learned long ago that one cannot prove or disprove faith. There is no equation or venue. Until someone comes back from the dead (in modern times) and tells us a few things we just do not know and that is truly where it sits. We don't know and we can't be sure who is right wither way. Proving an absolute like God is impossible---Logic 1001.
Now back to Ghost Stories. Next up ghosts that really didn't scare you but made you think. :cheers1: If someone doesn't start telling a stroy then I will have to tell the one about my grandmother. So start telling.

Regards to all,

J

 

[Siirous]

I don't know about ghosts, as I've never seen one or really felt one (Although I do enjoy reading the stories). But I'm a firm believer that I have a guardian angel, I'm convinced that's why I survived my childhood of dangerous yet fun at the time stunts. Now, I'm not a believer in any kind of orthodox faith or church, but when I die I want to come back and help people when they need it.

I made a pact with my roommate that when I die in 70 or so years that he's required to ring a bell at my funeral so I can get wings like Clarence and help people.

 

[jamespowers]

Alright, I threatened so here it goes:

In 1975 my grandmother was living alone and having a hard time adjusting without my grandfather. She stayed alternatively with my great aunt and my family so her house would be unoccupied in the evenings.
She had some service work done on her phone lines and so she stayed home that evening. Sleeping late at night, she had a dream where my grandfather came to her and tried to tell her something in the dream. She was scared and told him he was dead and on and on. She wouldn't listen to what he was trying to say.
The next day she stayed the night with my great aunt. She came back the next day to find her house ransacked and robbed. Perhaps she should have listened for a minute.
As an after story, my grandfather never really left her alone. You always felt his presence--especially in his shop and garage where he was most at home. Several workers doing work back there felt like they were being watched and even saw him time to time. I suppose my grandmother was the type that needed watching.
This September my grandmother passed away at age 93. Since that very day the watched feeling and sightings stopped. I know I live there now and the shop is now my most comfortable place where I hang out. I suppose he was waiting for her all this time. :cool2: That was just the type of man he was---family meant everything to him. The number of times he made do with less for his family are incalculable. I hope they are as happy together as they were in life. :cheers1:

Regards to all,

J

 

[Lancealot]

Very Nice Story

Very nice story James.

I lost my father when I was 13 to cancer, before he passed away he told me if I ever needed anything he would help me all he could. Even now when I'm down or worried over something I can feel his presence.

 

["Doc" Devereux]

My personal favourite

If you know what I do in the outside world it won't come as a shock to learn that I have a few ghost stories to tell, although I tend not to tell them socially very often. But the tale I love best is the shortest of them all. I was staying in an old hotel a few years back, and in bed late at night when I became aware that there was somebody else in the room. Being me I lay doggo, kept my breathing steady and listened hard to work out what was going on. Next thing I know something cold but woman-shaped is starting to get into bed with me. Being sure now that it's not a live person (too cold and too quiet), I open one eye, look in the appropriate direction and emit the notorious charm of dispelling: @*&% off. Just that, two words delivered like I meant them. Immediately the presence was gone.

 

[PrettySquareGal]

[QUOTE="Doc" Devereux]Being sure now that it's not a live person (too cold and too quiet), I open one eye, look in the appropriate direction and emit the notorious charm of dispelling: @*&% off. Just that, two words delivered like I meant them. Immediately the presence was gone.[/QUOTE]

Must have been a lady from the Victorian Era.

 

[scotrace]

[QUOTE="Doc" Devereux]If you know what I do in the outside world it won't come as a shock to learn that I have a few ghost stories to tell.[/QUOTE]

What DO you do?

 

[Irena]

I believe that there are presences in some places, though I've never come across one. I have, however, encountered memories.

Has anyone here felt a memory? I can't really explain it, but there is no presence involved. For example, in houses, you can feel (not always) whether a room has happy or sad memories. Sometimes you can even feel how these memories were made. I can even feel this in not-so-old houses.

Call me crazy, but that's my story.