Apparition Types: "Crisis"

[PPI Tracy]

(reposted from "Public Parapsychology")
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The term apparition, from the Latin word apparere (meaning ?to show oneself?), may be formally defined as:

An experience, usually visual but sometimes in other sense-modalities, in which there appears to be present a person or animal (deceased or living) ... who/which is in fact out of the sensory range of the [witness]? (Thalbourne, 2003).

In other words, it is the experience of the presence of a person or animal ? living or dead ? that is not actually there, which seems to occur primarily through sight, but at times can seem to occur through the other senses (sound, smell, taste, and touch). This term is a bit broader than the more popular term ghost (from the German word geist for ?mind? or ?spirit?), which refers to the apparition of a deceased person, usually in connection with a haunting. 

There are actually several known types of apparitions that have been documented by psychical researchers and parapsychologists since the late 19th century.
They include: crisis apparitions, post-mortem apparitions, deathbed visions, haunting apparitions, and apparitions of the bystander-type. 

Crisis:
As implied by its name, a crisis apparition appears to a witness at a time when the person whose apparition is seen is experiencing a state of crisis, whether it is an accident, an illness, or even the threat of death. A good example of a crisis apparition case is given by Dr. Sally Rhine Feather and author Michael Schmicker (2005) in their book The Gift:

A woman and her fifteen-year-old daughter had recently moved to California from their previous home in Washington D.C., where they had left the woman?s father very ill. One day not long after moving, they entered the dining room, and to the woman?s great surprise, there stood her father. ?Why Dad, when did you get here?? she exclaimed.

At that point, her daughter turned around to look, and she, too, saw the figure of her grandfather, his hand upraised in a gesture of greeting or perhaps blessing, but he slowly faded away, and they both suddenly realized that he was not really in California in their house. Shortly afterward, they received the news that he had died (p. 254).

In addition to representing a crisis apparition, this case has three other interesting aspects to it. First, it is case where the apparition was collectively perceived, meaning that it was witnessed by more than one person. Second, the apparition was apparently so real looking to the woman that she actually mistook it for her real father at first. This goes against the folklore-based view that apparitions are often only misty, translucent outlines. Third, the apparition of the man seemed to acknowledge the presence of his daughter and granddaughter, suggesting that it had some degree of intelligent awareness.
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Let's discuss.  Your thoughts? 

[PPI Tracy]

I guess I'll start.

In 1990, my mother had a very interesting experience and to this day it still has an impact upon her.  She went to bed around 11:00pm one night and woke around 1:00am..  She opened her eyes, and there at the end of her bed was my Uncle Henry.  She said he stood there and just smiled at her.  My Uncle Henry looked like Obi Wan Kenobi.  Wonderful human being with a heart of gold.  At first she thought she was dreaming.  She sat up and he was still there.  She tried to wake my step father and as soon as she did, Henry faded away.  The next morning, around 8am, the phone rang and it was my Aunt.  Uncle Henry had passed away in his sleep, sometime after midnight.  My mother and my Uncle had a special relationship.  Henry was actually my step-father's Uncle, but we all just referred to him as Uncle Henry. My mother was the daughter he never had and he cherished her. The feeling was mutual.  He was 94 years old but had the wit and sense of humor of a 20 year old.  He was an amazing man.  My mother recalls that she didn't feel afraid but more like a sense of calming and peace came over her.  It is a memory that still gives her comfort to this day.

[PPI Brian]

That's awesome, Tracy. Thanks for sharing this with us.    Crisis apparitions are one of the more intiguing reports of paranormal activity. They seem to occur at times of great stress, or just after the passing of a loved one. I find such reports comforting, don't you?

[ljiljanac]

I love hearing about these.      

[PPI Jason]

Yeah, Tracy.

I love to hear about these types of incidents. My father had a similar type of incident after my grandmother passed away.

He was shaving and looked in the mirror and saw my grandmother standing there looking at him. He found it very comforting. But he already knew she had passed away and it was several days after. I wonder if this still qualifies as a "crisis" apparition. I guess it would since he was still in mourning and such an apparition was a result of a crisis.

[PPI Tracy]

Absolutely, Jason.  It think it does qualify as a crisis apparition. I really do.   

[ljiljanac]

I seriously love the fact that people find comfort in seeing crisis apparitions and not fear or depression.  Especially when they suspect a death after seeing such apparitions.   

[PPI Brian]

The following passage articulates my thoughts on Crisis Apparitions so succintly:
(from the ASSAP website)
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Crisis Apparitions: No type of ghost shows up the danger of classifying them all as one phenomenon as much as crisis apparitions. Instead of being stuck to a single place, crisis apparitions occur to particular people. Both the witness and time is crucial while the place is immaterial.

A crisis apparition is usually someone known to the witness (unlike other hauntings). They appear at a time of crisis in the life of the person appearing, eg, a life threatening incident or at the time of death itself.

Given the striking difference between crisis apparitions and more general hauntings, is there any reason to think the two have the same explanation? The only real link is that both are ghosts. However, the concept of a ghost is an artificial one. Just because we humans call all apparitions ghosts, it does not follow that they are the same. It is only the idea that all ghosts are 'spirits' (which is a cultural, rather than scientific or philosophical, idea) that makes us link crisis apparitions to other types of haunting. Once you put that idea aside, if only for the sake of argument, it is clear that there may be a completely different mechanism behind crisis apparitions (maybe coincidence, perhaps even telepathy).

Strangely, in its quarter of a century of investigating, ASSAP has come across few, if any, cases of crisis apparitions. And yet there are many in the literature from earlier times. Are crisis apparitions really dying out? Or has their prevalence just been exaggerated in the literature?

[PPI Debra]

Would the Celtic/Irish banshee be classified as a crisis apparition? She appears to members of a clan or family just prior, or at the time of death of another clan/family member. She is also "inherited" through the generations.

[PPI Brian]

Would the Celtic/Irish banshee be classified as a crisis apparition? She appears to members of a clan or family just prior, or at the time of death of another clan/family member. She is also "inherited" through the generations.

Hi Debra,

You bring up a very interesting point. All of the reports of crisis apparitions that I've read about over the years appeared as the deceased family member themselves, either before or shortly after their death. I have never thought about it, but I suppose Banshees could be classified as Crisis Apparitions or Heralds. 

[Damian]

So is it a misunderstanding that banshee's are evil spirits?  I had always heard they were more like a cross between a witch and a succubus.

[PPI Debra]

So is it a misunderstanding that banshee's are evil spirits?  I had always heard they were more like a cross between a witch and a succubus.

They are originally, as far as records go, from Ireland & Scotland, part of the Celtic ands Pictish Tradition, and probably handed down from the Scytho-Siberian tradition.
Though they were somewhat feared , being death messengers, they were connected with the Sidhe. The Sidhe are the "fairy folk", which were nothing to mess with back in the day. (Nothing like the Disney version.) The Sidhe were also considered the ancestors of the Irish/Scottish people as well. The word banshee comes from bean sidhe, which means fairy woman. The word pixie comes from Pict + Sidhe.
There is an anthropological study on their history: The Banshee: The Irish Death Messenger, by Patricia Lysaght.
There is another study, The Book of the Cailleach: Stories of the Wise-Woman Healer, Gearoid O Crualaoich. This text shows the interaction of local land spirits to shamanesses & wise woman. They became "witches" in a negative way during the Roman conquest.

There a similar tradition in Ancient India and up through Tibet. The Dakinis & Yoginis are similar beings. From the times of the Indus Valley Civilization there is an under ground tradition of Magicians, yogis, shamans, etc, being taught by these beings. The initiation was sometimes sexual (See The Kiss of the Yogini, by David Gorden White.) In India, the advent of the Brahmans and the caste system reviled these women, declaring them evil: witches, succubi, hags, etc.

Personally, I've inherited the banshee from my grandmother's family: The Tribe of Mar or Clan Mar. I have heard her wailing prior to the death of family members all my life. It took many years for me to find out what this phenomena was.

Also, I have received 6 years of training, empowerments and practices from the Tibetan Vajrayana school of Ati-yoga (Dzogchen).

I have had personal experiences with both traditions.

In summery, any concept of these beings being purely evil is fairly modern.

[Damian]

Do you think it's fear of the "occult" or fear of the unknown that led to the characterization of these spirits as evil?...like the witches of Salem maybe?

[PPI Debra]

Do you think it's fear of the "occult" or fear of the unknown that led to the characterization of these spirits as evil?...like the witches of Salem maybe?

Damian,

It appears that , historically, when one regime replaces another, the prior regime's deities or religious constructs are vilified. It's a form of mind control of the masses.
For example:The Jesuits specialized in this type of control-- conquering the earth-based "savages", labeling their beliefs demonic  and converting them to Christianity.

In Salem there was a conflict between the sanitized Christian beliefs and the beliefs of the African slaves. There was also a rigid social control of women. Add in a little ergotamine, a hallucinogen that was in the wheat. Then came a form of hysteria that was contagious. Suddenly, there were witches everywhere. There may have been real witches, but that wasn't really the root of the problem in Salem.

Fear of the unknown is a real problem for humanity. That's why there have always been mediators of one form or another: wise women, shamans,  and in our society, priests (whose values system differs greatly from the prior mentioned mediators!).  When  "Abe's kids" (Islam, Judaism, Christianity) took over the globe, the paranormal was completely suppressed. Talking to nature spirits, or ancestors was a basis to be beheaded or burned at the stake. This repression of a natural process has lead to a psychological backlash: evil demons everywhere. (remember, satanism is a Christian religion!)
I know what I am saying is an over simplification....
Some else may have an alternative perspective.

[Damian]

It's really frightening how powerful this kind of human manipulation can be!  The sad part is that most people are content to believe what they're told to believe, and do so without question.  There is so much more to our world and our lives than what man-made religion tells us is truth.  Religion is created by man and is therefore fundamentally flawed and forever susceptable to corruption, manipulation, and ulterior motives.

[PPI Karl]

So is it a misunderstanding that banshee's are evil spirits?  I had always heard they were more like a cross between a witch and a succubus.

Though they were somewhat feared , being death messengers, they were connected with the Sidhe. The Sidhe are the "fairy folk", which were nothing to mess with back in the day. . . . I have had personal experiences with both traditions.

I had another one of my "other side" dreams last night, this one ending with a name.  When Max woke me up to take my meds at 2:00 a.m., the first thing I said to him was, "Eavonee wishes to say something."   At the time, neither one of us knew what the hell that meant, but upon waking this morning, I've been trying to put it into perspective.  So, here's the story:

I enter a smallish apartment in the middle of the afternoon.  It feels like a Sunday because there's something ceremonious about the gathering, and I start to piece together the clues.  People are dressed in black, their clothing is not casual, there are somber platters of food:  it's a wake.  In the kitchen area in front of me, to my left, are three women huddled together with their backs to me; they're different heights and ages.  Each of them has long, black hair, somewhat wavy but wild, and I cognize them as family members, possibly sisters.  I walk into the kitchen and try to introduce myself to the youngest of them, to be polite.  She turns to me, and her hair looks pretty much in front as it looks in back:  it falls down over her face so that I can't see her features clearly.  She tells me her name, but I don't hear it at first because her sisters are talking and her hair is getting in the way, so I brush it off her face with my hands, and she says, "My name is Eavonee.  I have a message."  The dream ends.

Okay.  Some of it's pretty obvious in a classically allegorical way.  We've got our three Fates, our Stygian Witches (ala Macbeth) and our Weird Sisters all rolled into one.  (If they started singing, they'd have been a Lawrence Welk act.)  However, the Macbeth qualities stand out, and without a doubt they seemed Black Irish. 

When I put the pieces together--mysterious, wild Black Irish woman; funeral; message for me--it all adds up to a harbinger banshee.  I confess, although I used to have dreams of these three women when I was a child (seriously, I did), they haven't stepped out of my subconscious for many decades.  The stereotype of the Screaming Banshee doesn't really apply, either.  In my youth, the three women used to sneer and laugh loudly, but never scream.  In all respects, this was a much more quiet portrayal of the banshee, and much more contemporary in its context (an apartment, modern black dresses hemmed conservatively to knee-length, and so on).   

My mother used to have dreams about the banshee that she used to share with me, and me alone; for some reason, she didn't feel comfortable talking about them with anyone else.  Here's the major point of interest, though:  yesterday was the anniversary of my mother's passing (October 1, 1989).  Clearly, this is the likeliest reason that I would have had this dream last night.  However, what in the hell does "Eavonee" have to do with it?  I've looked up the name and I can't find anything that I could have interpreted to inspired it in my dream, which seemed such deliberate and important detail, too:  out of all the names I could have made that woman say, why did I make her say "Eavonee"?

About a month ago, I watched a Frontline documentary, The Edge of Dreaming, about a woman in Scotland who had a dream in which her late husband revealed to her that she would die before her next birthday; the film chronicled her next year and the anxiety of her own impending death that expressed itself in dreams.  I don't think the Frontline documentary influenced this dream, but I do think the dream is an example of the phenomenon that the filmmaker was addressed in her documentary.  Overall, I'm still searching for the connection between the archetype of the banshee and the name "Eavonee".  (Obviously, I'm guessing at the spelling, since the name was not spelled out in the dream.  I could even have been "Evan E." for all I know.)  Anyone have any ideas?  I'd be grateful to hear 'em.

[PPI Debra]

Karl,

I have some ideas.... I've inherited a banshee myself, sometimes 3.
I have to leave the house for a few hours, so I can't respond right now.

I'd love to see other's ideas as well.

[PPI Karl]

I'll look forward to hearing more.

[PPI Debra]

Karl,
You mention that she was the youngest. Was she first second or third in the group of sisters standing together?
What color were her eyes?
Any jewelry?
Could you spell the name out how it was pronounced? You said it could have been Evan E.

Sorry for being a pain in the wazoo, here!

[PPI Karl]

Hi, Debra:

I think she was in the middle, and also the shortest of the three.  I don't remember actually seeing the color of her eyes; rather, they were shadowy, even though the rest of her face was visible, more or less, once I pushed back the long hair.  No jewelry around her neck, but there might have been rings or bracelets that I noticed when the group was standing with their backs to me. 

The named was pronounced like "Kevin E." but without the "K" at the beginning.

Thanks for your input.  You're not being a pain at all!!!

[PPI Brian]

So is it a misunderstanding that banshee's are evil spirits?  I had always heard they were more like a cross between a witch and a succubus.

Though they were somewhat feared , being death messengers, they were connected with the Sidhe. The Sidhe are the "fairy folk", which were nothing to mess with back in the day. . . . I have had personal experiences with both traditions.

My mother used to have dreams about the banshee that she used to share with me, and me alone; for some reason, she didn't feel comfortable talking about them with anyone else.  Here's the major point of interest, though:  yesterday was the anniversary of my mother's passing (October 1, 1989).  Clearly, this is the likeliest reason that I would have had this dream last night.  However, what in the hell does "Eavonee" have to do with it?  I've looked up the name and I can't find anything that I could have interpreted to inspired it in my dream, which seemed such deliberate and important detail, too:  out of all the names I could have made that woman say, why did I make her say "Eavonee"?

About a month ago, I watched a Frontline documentary, The Edge of Dreaming, about a woman in Scotland who had a dream in which her late husband revealed to her that she would die before her next birthday; the film chronicled her next year and the anxiety of her own impending death that expressed itself in dreams.  I don't think the Frontline documentary influenced this dream, but I do think the dream is an example of the phenomenon that the filmmaker was addressed in her documentary.  Overall, I'm still searching for the connection between the archetype of the banshee and the name "Eavonee".  (Obviously, I'm guessing at the spelling, since the name was not spelled out in the dream.  I could even have been "Evan E." for all I know.)  Anyone have any ideas?  I'd be grateful to hear 'em.

The way you described walking into the room, and moving the hair from the woman's face was really creepy, Karl. Very creepy indeed. Have you ever seen the movie "The Serpent and the Rainbow"? There is a scene in the movie that is very similar to the dream you described.

I'm not familiar with the name "Eavonee" in any of its variously spelled forms, but I will see what I can dig up.

[PPI Debra]

I had another one of my "other side" dreams last night, this one ending with a name.  When Max woke me up to take my meds at 2:00 a.m., the first thing I said to him was, "Eavonee wishes to say something."   At the time, neither one of us knew what the hell that meant, but upon waking this morning, I've been trying to put it into perspective.  So, here's the story:

I enter a smallish apartment in the middle of the afternoon.  It feels like a Sunday because there's something ceremonious about the gathering, and I start to piece together the clues.  People are dressed in black, their clothing is not casual, there are somber platters of food:  it's a wake.  In the kitchen area in front of me, to my left, are three women huddled together with their backs to me; they're different heights and ages.  Each of them has long, black hair, somewhat wavy but wild, and I cognize them as family members, possibly sisters.  I walk into the kitchen and try to introduce myself to the youngest of them, to be polite.  She turns to me, and her hair looks pretty much in front as it looks in back:  it falls down over her face so that I can't see her features clearly.  She tells me her name, but I don't hear it at first because her sisters are talking and her hair is getting in the way, so I brush it off her face with my hands, and she says, "My name is Eavonee.  I have a message."  The dream ends.

Okay.  Some of it's pretty obvious in a classically allegorical way.  We've got our three Fates, our Stygian Witches (ala Macbeth) and our Weird Sisters all rolled into one.  (If they started singing, they'd have been a Lawrence Welk act.)  However, the Macbeth qualities stand out, and without a doubt they seemed Black Irish. 

When I put the pieces together--mysterious, wild Black Irish woman; funeral; message for me--it all adds up to a harbinger banshee.  I confess, although I used to have dreams of these three women when I was a child (seriously, I did), they haven't stepped out of my subconscious for many decades.  The stereotype of the Screaming Banshee doesn't really apply, either.  In my youth, the three women used to sneer and laugh loudly, but never scream.  In all respects, this was a much more quiet portrayal of the banshee, and much more contemporary in its context (an apartment, modern black dresses hemmed conservatively to knee-length, and so on).   

My mother used to have dreams about the banshee that she used to share with me, and me alone; for some reason, she didn't feel comfortable talking about them with anyone else.  Here's the major point of interest, though:  yesterday was the anniversary of my mother's passing (October 1, 1989).  Clearly, this is the likeliest reason that I would have had this dream last night.  However, what in the hell does "Eavonee" have to do with it?  I've looked up the name and I can't find anything that I could have interpreted to inspired it in my dream, which seemed such deliberate and important detail, too:  out of all the names I could have made that woman say, why did I make her say "Eavonee"?

About a month ago, I watched a Frontline documentary, The Edge of Dreaming, about a woman in Scotland who had a dream in which her late husband revealed to her that she would die before her next birthday; the film chronicled her next year and the anxiety of her own impending death that expressed itself in dreams.  I don't think the Frontline documentary influenced this dream, but I do think the dream is an example of the phenomenon that the filmmaker was addressed in her documentary.  Overall, I'm still searching for the connection between the archetype of the banshee and the name "Eavonee".  (Obviously, I'm guessing at the spelling, since the name was not spelled out in the dream.  I could even have been "Evan E." for all I know.)  Anyone have any ideas?  I'd be grateful to hear 'em.

Karl,
I am sorry that this is the anniversary of your mother's passing.

Here are some ideas re: the dream:


It appears that you have inherited 3 Morgans, and not a banshee. (It's possible you have a banshee as well.) The banshee's cry is very unnerving, it's called keening.... but sometimes it just weeps, and there was no sign of that here. Banshee are usually singular figures. Morgan is related to fate. Queen Morgana (my daughter's middle name btw) from Athurian tales comes from Avalon and is Authur's sister. So perhaps your psyche was picking up on the "Avon" through Avalon.

The 3 Morgans are related to cycles: planting, growing & reaping-  cycles of creativity.
Spelled Evanee, it is a real name, coming from the Welsh 'Evan" for "young warrior". It also related to "Evangeline" whose root is "angelos" or messenger.

Eavonee is your otherworldly or inherited muse. She is the warrior /messenger whose sword is words. Your muse is an Amazon, virgin unto herself.  Though the setting is a wake or funeral in the other world,  it is a wedding in your psyche. You lifted her her hair from her face to view her, which is a wedding tradition that is part of an old "unveiling of the goddess" ritual. The hair is very sacred in the most ancient of goddess traditions. To be able to touch it is a blessing. Her eyes are shadowy because you haven't "plumped their depths" yet.

But you are married now, and there will be creative or inspired work to do. The middle of the afternoon and the middle position of Eavonee indicated the middle of the cycle, were some seed already planted will be ripening. The kitchen is where things get cooked. Alchemically speaking, it's were things ripen. The fact that Eavonee is younger indicates the same: something is growing.

Usually these dreams are multi-layered. They are prophetic in some way: personally and/or culturally. There will be some kind of change in the earthly world, but that doesn't take away from what the inner message is.

[PPI Karl]

There's a lot to consider here.  Thanks for looking at this so deeply and thoughtfully, and for taking the time it must have taken, too.  This is all very interesting.  

[PPI Brian]

Wow, that gives me goose bumps. Very eerie, and very appropriate. So just what exactly are you cookin' up, Mr. Sherlock?

On a more serious note, I too am very sorry to hear that was the anniversary of your mother's passing. My most sincere condolences.

[ljiljanac]

Thanks for sharing, Karl.  Debra, your response to this is really interesting. 

[PPI Karl]

Thanks for all your kind words.  Mom's been gone for these twenty-years now, but her voice and her face are things that have stayed with me every day since.  She passed before her time, for sure.

[PPI Tracy]

Lots of love and good energy coming your way, Karl.  Mwwwahh!   

[PPI Karl]

Here's one of my favorites:  a picture of my mother, with her younger brother, Tommy, at their home in Ireland.  They're both gone now--the only siblings out of seven who are.

[PPI Tracy]

What a wonderful photo, Karl.  Do you know what year it was taken?

[PPI Brian]

That is an awesome picture, Karl. It's almost as if they're standing in front of a matte painting.