Ghosts and spirits?

lone ranger · #1 28th October 2014, 22:22

So, seems like the right time of year...does anyone believe in ghosts etc or had any creepy experiences as such?

Clayman · #2 28th October 2014, 22:28

I believe they are real. I used to communicate with them when I was a teenager.

What about you lone ranger?

Rummy · #3 28th October 2014, 22:57

No, but am thinking of dressing up as the village ghost and scaring everyone.

In the 1600's the black death came to the village and those that caught it agreed to live in an isolated community at the top of the hill. Vicar entrusted to supply food but chickened out and left them to die. Not that it did him much good because he succumed later.

Anyway... At a certain time of year the vicar supposedly roams the hills searching for the inflicted.

My Grandfather as a young man thought he'd go in search. So went up on the hills and waited... and waited... Sat on a gate and waited... and waited. He was just about to give up when he heard in the distance a strange, muffled sound.

A sort of methodical clicking sound. Gradually getting closer... and closer... and closer.

Until he could just make out the outline of a man...

...On a bike,

the pedal hitting the guard after each revolution. By this time my grandfather was fed up with waiting so sprung off the gate and walked towards the rider...

At which point the rider stopped, turned around and pedalled as fast as he could in the direction from which he came!

Z. · #4 28th October 2014, 23:10

No, they don't exist. As someone who subscribes to scientific reasoning, I have have to say they don't. Strong evidence has to be put forward proving their existence. A burden of proof has to be met, and it hasn't been met.

Focused · #5 28th October 2014, 23:12

^ agree totally!

Z. · #6 28th October 2014, 23:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by stoopkid

i agree with the both of you, but if you have never seen anything to contradict this at all...can you really be sure?

Seeing a "ghost" still wouldn't prove it. There are many natural explanations for the "ghost". Even if we couldn't explain it, it still wouldn't prove ghosts exist. It would just mean that, as of now, we have no explanation for the thing we see.

Of course you can't be certain, but there's no reason to believe that they do exist.

lone ranger · #7 28th October 2014, 23:19

Lol, I reserve judgement tbh. I like to act with typical male bravado and say they aren't real.
As for the scientific proof, it depends what you class as proof. Many people claim to have had experiences so perhaps are eye witnesses. Obv hoaxes debunk some of this however, many scientists have professed a belief in the supernatural.
Basically, I've never had any experiences and hope to keep it that way and I don't want to tempt fate....or the dead haha (laughing uneasily whilst watching white noise on tv)

Z. · #8 28th October 2014, 23:22

^ It's not "male bravado" lone ranger. It's a commitment to scientific principles and logic.

A lot of scientists do believe in the supernatural, which makes that belief unscientific. They're fallible too like the rest of us. Most, however, do not believe in the supernatural.

Rummy · #9 28th October 2014, 23:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by stoopkid

i agree with the both of you, but if you have never seen anything to contradict this at all...can you really be sure?

I don't get this "can you really be sure" stuff.
Life is all about probabilities. If there is no evidence of something existing you can not be absolutely 100% certain of it not existing. However, when the likelihood is infinitesimally small (no evidence) - there might be a 0.0000000000000000000000000000000000000000001% chance... then there's no point in saying anything but "No, it does not exist".

Princess39 · #10 28th October 2014, 23:30

I believe in them.Simply because when I was about 6/7,I had 4 of them standing beside my bed.And its a vivid memory today as it was then.What always baffled me was the attire they had on but one of them I can't remember what he(all males) looked like or was wearing.One was in a "cowboy" outfit.One was dressed as an "arab".The other a "butler".I like to think of them as guardian angels and not ghosts though as although I was scared at the time,I havealways felt they was there for a reason.
Also,about 5-6 years ago,me and my Son was chilling in my bedroom chatting when I looked up and saw what I can only describe was a black floaty cloud against the wall...and it was moving from the top corner of the wall,down and across.I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me so I nudged my Son and said to him "look up at the wall and tell me what you see".He looks up and says "a black shadow".I said "point to it",and he did,to exactly where it was.We watched it for probably only a minute then it disappeared.Funny thing is,neither felt scared or uneasy,just kind of amazed we both saw something like that at the same time!

lone ranger · #11 28th October 2014, 23:31

Haha, I'm not saying that male bravado is the case with you, I think it is amongst many though in general
I think there has been evidence presented of the existence of the supernatural, but like you say, no scientific evidence.
But there are so many variables at play including ones interpretation that no one can say they definitely don't exist

Rummy · #12 28th October 2014, 23:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by lone ranger

Haha, I'm not saying that male bravado is the case with you, I think it is amongst many though in general
I think there has been evidence presented of the existence of the supernatural, but like you say, no scientific evidence.
But there are so many variables at play including ones interpretation that no one can say they definitely don't exist

It is no coincidence that most ghost stories started when there was no electricity. Candles can make things appear differently and when religion was stronger than it is today. The church want people to believe in evil spirits etc.

lone ranger · #13 28th October 2014, 23:36

And Princess, that is the weirdest supernatural experience I've ever heard lol

lone ranger · #14 28th October 2014, 23:38

@ rummy, haha, but there have been many experiences since the discovery of electricity

Rummy · #15 28th October 2014, 23:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by stoopkid

think thats overreacting rummy considering ive just said i dont believe in ghosts and don't know what i saw, if anything but a figment of my own creepy imagination.

just dont pretend science has all the answers...because it really doesnt.

feck, people get hormonal in the holidays.

It wasn't really meant as a criticism Stoop, just a statement on the few words I quoted.

Didn't mean to offend, sorry.

Princess39 · #16 28th October 2014, 23:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by lone ranger

And Princess, that is the weirdest supernatural experience I've ever heard lol

Weird.But true.

Z. · #17 28th October 2014, 23:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by Princess39

I believe in them.Simply because when I was about 6/7,I had 4 of them standing beside my bed.And its a vivid memory today as it was then.What always baffled me was the attire they had on but one of them I can't remember what he(all males) looked like or was wearing.One was in a "cowboy" outfit.One was dressed as an "arab".The other a "butler".I like to think of them as guardian angels and not ghosts though as although I was scared at the time,I havealways felt they was there for a reason.

Sounds like either a hypnagogic or hypnopompic hallucination. Given children's imagination as well, the complexity isn't hard to explain.

Princess39 · #18 28th October 2014, 23:45

Question for you "non-believers".Would/have you play the Ouija board?I did at age 16 and to this day I still can't explain how that glass moved so quick!

Rummy · #19 28th October 2014, 23:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by lone ranger

@ rummy, haha, but there have been many experiences since the discovery of electricity

All depends what you call "many" LR. Yes, there are (Worldwide) probably thousands of imagined incidents since electricity came in. But seen as a percentage - as I said - "most" started before electricity.

Rummy · #20 28th October 2014, 23:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by Princess39

Question for you "non-believers".Would/have you play the Ouija board?I did at age 16 and to this day I still can't explain how that glass moved so quick!

How many people were at this Ouija Board Princess?

The only Ouija Board I believe in is the Oaks winner and dam of this year's Derby winner.

Princess39 · #21 28th October 2014, 23:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kley

Sounds like either a hypnagogic or hypnopompic hallucination. Given children's imagination as well, the complexity isn't hard to explain.

Can you explain to me what that is?I was asleep prior to this.Was'nt having a nightmare or anything like that.That was way to advanced to be my inagination.

Clayman · #22 28th October 2014, 23:57

I used to do seances on my own and would like a scientific explanation for it.

I used a homemade ouiji board of a plain piece of paper and a plastic coke bottle cap. If you try to push the cap across the paper the friction is too great and you will end up tipping the cap over on its side. When channeling a spirit The cap was almost floating a cushion of air so it was a lot easier to slide it across the board. I felt my hand was being guided in every instance. After awhile I no longer needed the board and could simply think of a question in my head and the answer would come straight away. I did an experiment of asking a question and then allowing it to spell out the answer on the board and then close my eyes. At that point the cap stopped moving. This suggested that the spirit was inside me and cohabiting my body maybe? One time my cat came and sat in my lap while I was doing it and the spirit started talking about how his/her mother loved animals and that is why the cat felt drawn toward the board. It told me things that I wouldn't otherwise of known or been able to realistically come up with.

Looking back, I have a slight doubt in that what I was actually communicating with was myself and it was only my own delusions but I can't really believe that given the evidence I have and the experience.

Princess39 · #23 29th October 2014, 00:00

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zippie

^ Yes I would. It moved so quickly because you were pushing it without realising.

Nope.You can't make a glass move that quickly in a certain directuon with just the tip of your finger.Try it for yourself.

Z. · #24 29th October 2014, 00:00

^ It's a hallucination that occurs either immediately before sleep, or immediately after you've woken up. I've experienced them before.

Rummy · #25 29th October 2014, 00:01

Imagination plays tricks.

Princess39 · #26 29th October 2014, 00:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kley

^ It's a hallucination that occurs either immediately before sleep, or immediately after you've woken up. I've experienced them before.

Ok.If that was the case,then how come I never experienced something like that before or ever again after?

Clayman · #27 29th October 2014, 00:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by Princess39

Nope.You can't make a glass move that quickly in a certain directuon with just the tip of your finger.Try it for yourself.

I agree. The friction of the surface and the object (a cup, cap or whatever) is too great for it to move effortlessly. Even if you apply some pressure to the object it's hard to move it without loosing control of it.

lone ranger · #28 29th October 2014, 00:07

@princess, nah, don't believe in ouija boards because it's too easy to be hoaxed
Although I wouldn't attempt to communicate with the dead anyway, daren't tempt fate

Rummy · #29 29th October 2014, 00:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by stoopkid

none needed. sir rummy.

i get too defensive.

What I meant was: There might be the very slightest of slightest chances of ghosts existing, but their actual chance of existing is so infinitesimally small (no real evidence) that to all intents and purposes we can say they don't exist.

Princess39 · #30 29th October 2014, 00:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rummy

How many people were at this Ouija Board Princess?

The only Ouija Board I believe in is the Oaks winner and dam of this year's Derby winner.

3 people.Still does'nt explain how the glass moved which such a firce.It was light a very quick heavy drag.And the glass was like a thick tumbler.