Twilight Path Studies
Research
The Truth about Haunted Houses
If you think a haunted house is the only place you’re likely to encounter a ghost or spirit, think again. Ghosts and spirits are everywhere. But if they are everywhere, why don’t we see them all the time? Quite simply, the subtle reality, or “Otherside” as it can be called, weaves within and throughout our more familiar physical realm. However, the two aspects of reality do not intermingle evenly. In some places, there is almost a complete cross-over, but in others, there is a disjointedness, and this creates a sizeable “distance” between the world spirit and that of the flesh.
Where the two realms are close, it is much easier for beings on either side to perceive one another. When they are disjointed or distant, even if a spirit were occupying the exact spot you were standing in, it is unlikely that you or the spirit would be aware of it. On one level, you would be occupying the same space, like a double-exposure on film, but on another level, you would be on separate and distinct layers of reality, and you would have no interaction at all.
Reality’s Soft Spots
Places where spirit and matter easily interconnect are often believed to be haunted. In some cases, these places are haunted in the traditional sense: some ghost or spirit has become tied through circumstances or choice to that place, and the presence of that spirit creates a number of supernatural phenomenon.
However, many “haunted” places are actually just places where reality is soft, and the cross-over between spirit and matter is significant. In such places, there may not be a specific spirit tied to the location. Spirits may come and go, but in general, spirits are attracted to the location because it is easier there to interact with the physical realm there.
Spirits are attracted to places where they can more easily interact with the physical realm for a number of reasons. Often, this comes down to a matter of energy.
Attention-Seekers
Spirits subsist upon energy, and many of them prefer the energy generated by people. In a place where spirit and matter strongly interact, it tends to be easier to gather the energy given off by the living. One of the easiest ways for a spirit to get energy from the living is to get people to pay attention to them.
By directing attention a spirit’s way, a connection is made that the spirit can draw upon. A heightened emotional state on the part of the target tends to increase the quality of energy drawn through this connection. This is why some spirits seek out or even create situations where people are highly emotional. For a hungry ghost, a bunch of teeny-boppers giggling around a ouija board is pretty much an all-you-can-eat buffet.
From a spirit’s point of view, the benefit in a “soft spot” between realities is that it facilitates interaction between realms. Where the two sides of reality easily interact, a spirit may be able to visibly manifest. It might even have enough influence to move physical objects – such as causing doors to open, or knocking small objects off shelves.
Why would a spirit want to knock things around? For attention, of course! By producing certain perceptible effects, spirits can inspire strong emotions – such as fear – in those witnessing the effects. This increases the quality of energy generated by those witnesses, providing the spirits with entertainment and a free lunch.
Not all haunting phenomenon seem to be intentional, however. Electro-magnetic disturbances and cold spots, for example, seem to be generated by the very presence of a spirit. Orbs, translucent balls of energy that can be captured on film, also seem to be an unintentional sign of spiritual activity.
Beyond Haunted Houses
Soft-spots in reality are not limited to houses, of course. Apartments, churches, places of business – any of these can be host to a crossing-over point. Open-air locations are just as likely as solid structures to become crossing-over places, and so certain woods, fields, mountains, or even streets can be home to a soft spot between realities.
In addition to places that encourage a cross-over between spirit and matter, some people naturally seem to bring the two sides of reality closer wherever they go. Something about such people creates an area of affect that makes it easier for spirits to manifest. Spirits are naturally attracted to such people – they stand out like beacons on the Otherside, because they cross-over there as much as their presence assists spirits to cross-over here. These people may seem to be haunted, and sometimes they are, having attracted a particular spirit that continuously hangs around them. But more often than not, there is an endless array of spirits attracted to them, coming and going according to their own agendas.
When a person like this lives in a house for an extended period of time, that house will begin to seem haunted. However, if the person moves, the haunting effects will move with them. Sometimes, a person like this has such a strong effect on the two sides of reality that their area of affect lingers even after they have gone. The effect such people have may even become permanent over time, essentially “waking up” an area and leaving soft spots in reality wherever they go.
Magick and Spirits
Some rituals and magickal effects also create soft spots in reality. The sacred space that one sets up for ritual is an intentional crossing-over point, and depending on how successful you or your group are in creating this, the effect may linger for days or even weeks. When you create sacred space like this, one of the goals is to allow for a more complete interaction between spirit and matter. Essentially, you’re constructing a soft spot.
Even when the goal of the ritual is not the summoning of spirits, spirits are nevertheless attracted to this space. This is why circles and other barriers are often erected prior to creating sacred space, and why Wiccans and Pagans call upon the Watchtowers to guard their space from invading entities.
As you can see, hauntings, and haunted houses are much more complicated than the stories make them seem. While some ghosts do get tied to one location, this actually is quite rare, and instead what is encountered is a series of spirits that come and go through an area that just happens to make it easier for them to be perceived.
Bibliography:
O’Sullivan, Natalia and Terry. Soul Rescuers. Thorson, London: 1999
Peach, Emily. Things that Go Bump in the Night. Aquarian Press, London: 1991
Price, Harry. Poltergeist: Tales of the Supernatural. Senate, London: 1995
Spencer, John and Anne. The Encyclopedia of Ghosts and Spirits. Headline, London: 1991
Telesco, Patricia. Ghosts, Spirits, and Hauntings. The Crossings Press, CA: 1999
Thurman, Robert. The Tibetan Book of the Dead. HarperSanFrancisco, CA: 1998
Wilson, Ian: In Search of Ghosts. Headline Book Publishing, London: 1995
