Ghosts and Hauntings

by: Michelle Jackson

What are ghosts? Are they real or imaginary? Are they the lost departed souls of what was once our loved one's?

Many people have firm beliefs when it comes to the subject of ghosts, hauntings and the like.There are so many people now involved with "ghost hunting" it is no wonder that the word ghost will surely spring up your thoughts on the matter.

Many people have witnessed such entities first hand. I myself, are one of them. I do believe there are many "levels" of the afterlife, and they can interact.. (some of the time) with the living.

Types of Hauntings

It is my basic understanding that there are several types of hauntings. The excessive amount of activity is what basically represents a haunting. Some of these things can occur from time to time with no explanation, but when they occur over and over again, especially at a certain time, or hour, it is most likely considered some type of haunting.The following three being the most widely known.

Intelligent Haunting or a "Traditional Haunting"

An intelligent haunting is when an entity has some knowledge of their existence, and can actually communicate. This is believed to be one of the most highly known styles of a haunting, and what most relate to when they think of the term "ghosts". Reasons for this type of haunting can be explained by various means, such as:

1. An entity that passed quickly and doesn't realize that it's dead
2. One that died of a very traumatic death, such as an accident, murder
3. An entity that is still very connected to a place, or loved one
4. Fear of what awaits them on the other side... fear of being judged.

Some people claim that the presence of these entities can communicate through EVP (electronic voice phenomenon) and can sometimes be photographed. It is also reported that these entity's will try to communicate to let us know they still exist by moving things, opening and unlocking doors or windows, or by sounds such as voices, bangs or footsteps.

Residual Haunting

This type of haunting is believed by many to not be an actual haunting at all, but instead is like a movie being played back over and over again, almost like an echo...

When an extremely traumatic event, (or sometimes even a celebration) occurs, it is thought to leave an energy imprint on the environment and then it is projected back like it is actually happening over and over again. It is also thought that these types of hauntings can manifest sounds, and visual phenomena just like that of a traditional/intelligent haunting. In most cases, the reports of these sightings fade over time - which must show that the energy of the imprint does in fact lose it's strength, and fades like anything else would... like a photograph.

Therefore, the ghosts in these type of haunting are not actually present, only their energy of the event remains.

Poltergeist (German for noisy ghost)

A poltergeist was once widely believed to be the work of a ghost that was objecting its activity towards a single person. But, modern science now believes that instead, it may be caused by a "human agent", such as an adolescent girl. It is believed to be the form of some kind of psychokinetic energy, brought on by puberty. Since energy is an unconscious factor in humans, they do not usually realize that they are the cause to the destruction.

According to researchers at the Rhine Center, the "poltergeist effect" is the outward manifestation of psychological trauma.Still, there are many beliefs in this type of haunting. Some believe poltergeists to be elementals, or inhuman spirits. It is best to do a lot of research where this type of haunting is believed to occur.

Sources: http://home.earthlink.net/~ghosthunters.il/id36.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poltergeist