The Strength of a Ghost

[Gary]

So, I was racking my brain over the last week trying to think of something good to talk about at the Halloween Podcast, which I sadly didn't even stay for.   (

So, I will bring it up here.  I think I partially know the answer to my question, but basically, do ghosts have strengths?  Do all ghosts or spirits have the same basic capability, and just a matter a learning it, or are they like "super hero's" per say.  Each has it's own "power".  Some can appear as an apparition or shadow person, some can move objects.   As examples I've seen on TV, and heard from friends, Investigators have been able to get a ghost to turn on a flashlight.  Not a 100% technique, because it probably won't work every single time on every single case.  But when it does work, could you consider that "teaching" a ghost a new trick?  You hear on Paratainment shows that a ghost is trying to manifest itself.  When they say "trying", does that mean it's not strong enough? 

[IN OTHER WORDS]
I'm thinking of it like a stray cat that lingers around your home.  Well, for maybe months, the cat is only going to get so close, even though it knows you have the fud!  <<--Jim Davis reference... teehee!  Anyway, after maybe 3-4 months of constant feeding and perhaps talking and interacting with the cat, it will warm up, and some time later, you can pet it and pick it up, then you maybe take it in as a pet, bringing it in the house.  Now it's learning of all these great things, clawing the couch and carpet, shoelaces just laying there in the closet, and a kitchen where great food is made and a big warm safe bed!

So, can you spend time with a ghost or spirit, and treat it like a stray animal?   Eventually being able to make a friend of the ghost.  I know, silly questions I have!   

[PPI Jason]

Gary,

I love that you brought this topic up. As I've read more of your posts I've gotten some brief glimpses of a very profound mind. I've never considered a ghost to be like a stray animal, but the way you describe this option makes me think, "Why not?"

Unfortunately, I'm not nearly as profound as you are. I pretty much approach paranormal matters the same way I do religious matters. I basically cop out with a sort of, "I don't know." But at least that is better then the Mark and Debbie Constantino's of the world who tell everyone they "know." It makes me think of an old Persian proverb.

He who knows not, and knows that he knows not, is a child...........teach him
He who knows, and knows not that he knows, is asleep................wake him
He who knows not, and knows not that he knows not, is a fool......shun him
and He know knows, and knows that he knows, is wise................follow him

To make a long response even longer.

I don't know that anyone knows the answer to your question. But my goal in this group has been to use the scientific method to create hypotheses, test them, and in the process maybe answer some of these questions.

Maybe you, or we as a group, can come up with a set of experiments with hypotheses we could test. The idea you brought up here seems to me to lend itself to the evaluation of one location with known paranormal activity over a period of time (during several different investigations). The theory would then be that if you investigate the location over time, each subsequent investigation would yield increasing paranormal activity. Of course, one of the central problems is that if you don't get increased paranormal activity over time that doesn't necessarily mean the theory is false. There are just too many variables.

See? I don't know what I'm talking about. Just shun me 

[PPI Tim]

It is a interesting topic Gary and Jason has given a fine reply to your question. Treat a ghost like a stray animal? I don't know. I guess you would stay around someone if they gave you attention if you were a ghost or something?
Ok, shun me too
I got nothing

[Gary]

Jason, I couldn't agree more.  The variables are endless.  I would love the opportunity to experiment with such ideas.

[PPI Brian]

Hi Gary,

Your post brings up several very interesting points -- the strengths or weaknesses of certain intelligent haunts and the skill sets exhibited by certain intelligent haunts. Thought I would try my best to articulate my own thoughts on the subject as they have evolved over the last thirty some-odd years of dabbling in the field.

Paranormal investigators have documented specific types of activity over the last 100 years, and certain patterns emerged that have allowed us to classify these types of activity as Residual, Intelligent and Poltergeist. [Note: I did not mention Demonic activity for several reasons; not only is it extremely rare, but I'm not entirely convinced that it deserves a separate classification. Such reports may be nothing more than a combination of the three currently accepted classifications. Or perhaps they are intelligent haunts that have "learned" certain behavior over a period of time and this is the manner in which they express themselves.]

It has become widely accepted that Residual activity occurs without any apparent consciousness behind the activity. Such activity is repetitive and may involve footsteps, or sounds of doors opening and closing, pots and pans banging; it might even involve apparitions of people checking windows and doors at night, or going down hallways, but these "ghosts" do not interact with anyone and won't respond to direct questions. They are like pictures in a book or recordings on videotape. Many theories have been proposed to explain such activity, most of which involve soil composition (high concentrations of quartz, limestone or granite) or the ambient static electrical and/or electro-magnetic environment.

Intelligent haunts, on the other hand, appear to be aware of their environment to varying degrees. Some appear to exist in a dream state, drifting about aimlessly, in a state of confusion. They appear to interact with people, but only sporadically, kind of a "hit or miss" situation that does not lend itself to repetition. Others appear to be acutely aware of their surroundings, and often do things designed to get people's attention, such as knocking on doors or walls, ringing door bells, or manipulating electronic devices. Some appear to be better at communicating via EVP or AVP; others appear to be better at moving objects or manifesting themselves visually. Some researchers believe that intelligent entities can actually learn certain types of behavior over time, especially those behaviors that facilitate communication with others. Some of these intelligent entities can be benign while others can be downright nasty. Sometimes they begin quite pleasant but become increasingly unpleasant over time. The latter seems to get a kick out of scaring the crap out of people. Some researchers have postulated that these entities may even "feed" off the fear they illicit.

Poltergeist activity seems to reside at the other end of the spectrum. It has become widely accepted that classic Poltergeist activity always has a Focal -- usually a pre-teen girl, but sometimes a pre-teen boy -- and the activity never seems to occur unless the Focal is present. Classic Poltergeist activity is associated with a wide range of physical phenomena, including heavy objects being moved, small objects being thrown; knocking, thumping and banging on walls and doors. The activity begins suddenly and ends suddenly, often lasting for only a matter of weeks, and often never reoccurring.

The last part about "training" an intelligent haunt is also very intriguing, and I don't believe there is any undisputed documentation regarding "training" an intelligent haunt. With the exception of the Phillip Experiment, only certain religious sects have attempted to create a Tulpa or Thought Form. These entities are allegedly brought into existence by the concentrated will of a living being. They are literally ghosts created by the mind of a practitioner. At first these beings follow the direction of their creators, but after a period of time, they begin to exhibit a certain amount of free will. Many become malevolent. Eventually, these entities attempt to separate from their creators and are either destroyed or become completely independent. Many documented cases of classic Poltergeist activity seem to indicate the creation of a Thought Form by the Focal in the final phase of the episode -- the case of the Bell Witch immediately comes to mind. These cases may begin as classic outburst episodes of psychokinetic energy and evolve into Thought Forms that become fully self-aware entities.

As for taking in a paranormal entity like a stray cat, there appears to be many reports of Transient entities that "pass through" like travelers on their way to some mysterious destination. They may be attracted to a certain location because of the environmental conditions, or they may be attracted to certain people in a household. Paranormal investigators often attribute activity to such Transient entities when they can find no documentation to substantiate a client's claims of paranormal activity in a residence or business. These Transient entities often lose interest over a period of time and "move on". People who practice occult rituals believe they can "summon" these Transient entities through "prayer" and "invocation" ceremonies.

Just my two cents on the subject. Sorry for the rambling response. I will try to expand on this subject when I get back from the hospital -- a good friend suffered an aneurism on Friday and his prognosis is grave. I'm afraid he's not expected to last the night.

Regards,

Brian

[PPI Tracy]

Brian,
This was an amazing post.  Great topic for another podcast! 

Also, please let us know how your friend is doing. 

[Gary]

Brian, I'm sorry to hear about your friend.  My throughts go out to him and his famiily.

As to your response, that was awesome!  Lot's of good information, and helped put my question into some perspective.  Thank you!!

Is a residual haunt able to cause any disturbance to it's environment?  Say a residual haunt is pacing in a hall or bedroom, causing audible footsteps.  Could you place say a bunch of balloons on the floor laying in it's supposed path, and it would maybe brush the balloons, or cause them to move in any way?  I say balloons because they are soo light weight and doesn't take much effort to get one moving.

I've been thinking about this balloon idea for awhile.  I have more questions about it.  That will come later.

[PPI Brian]

Thank you Tracy and Gary for your well wishes. The visit was very emotional, as I feared it would be. We were able to participate in the Last Rites, which again was very emotional. Frank is in a coma, he's on a feeding tube and he's breathing with the assistance of a ventillator. The doctors do not expect him to recover, and his condition is deteriorating. 

Gary, your idea regarding the balloons is very intriguing and certainly worth a try. It's been my experience with residual haunts that the sounds do not appear to be produced by physical movement in the environment. The sound of a doorbell ringing in an old house where no door bell exists comes immediately to mind. There have been documented cases (Borely Rectory and a few others) regarding the sound of footsteps in empty rooms where investigators have placed rice paper and talcum powder on the floor in an attempt to capture evidence of physical manipulation. Most of the time these attempts failed, but the sounds were captured on audio.

Having said that, it would be interesting to place balloons in a room where a client has reported hearing the sound of someone "pacing", and also place an audio recorder and a surveillance camera in the room. If we managed to capture the sound of footsteps in the room but document absolutely no movement of the balloons, we might be able to prove one of the long standing theories regarding residual activity.

[PPI Jason]

Brian,

I'm very sorry to hear about your friend. The fact that you are always able to put such complex thoughts into such articulate responses, even in the face of all the tragedy you have had to deal with, constantly impresses me.

You are one of the most resilient people I know. Please make sure you take a break for you every once in a while 

[PPI Brian]

Thank you, Jason. I will heed your advice, head home at a decent hour and spend the evening not thinking about anything.

[PPI Tim]

Hey Gary,
I too think the idea with the balloons is worth a try. Would those be floating balloons or ones resting on the ground?

[Gary]

I've considered both.  I think we could potentially get some astonishing results with both floating and resting balloons.  We would need to attempt this several times I'm sure, but it's virtually costless.  I will definitely be picking up a bag of balloons before the weekend!    

[PPI Brian]

Just an FYI: I meant to leave this update last night but I was simply unable to do so.

Frank Rivera had a series of CT scans performed on his brain yesterday. Although they doctors succeeded in stopping the bleeding, and the blood had been removed from his brain, test results indicated there was no major brain activity, and his core brain stem functions that controlled his heartbeat and respiration were deteriorating dramatically. The doctors took him off the ventillator and he passed away last night around 5:00 pm.

[PPI Tracy]

My thoughts and prayers are with you, Brian.  I am so very sorry.

[Shellshock]

  Truly sorry to hear the sad news. Sending Prayers and Love....

[PPI Karl]

Brian, I, too, am sorry to hear of your friend's passing, and the difficult circumstances at the end of his life.  I look forward to hearing you tell me more about him when we next meet.  In the meantime, my thoughts and well wishes, always.

[PPI Jason]

My thoughts and condolances are with you and Frank's family. I'm so sorry.