Ghost Center

Company Ghost

The company I worked for had closed down, but I was still working there to direct telephone calls and schedule customer service repairs. I had just hung up the phone when I heard what sounded like someone throwing boxes up against the wall that went into the factory. Believing that someone had broken into the factory I ran over to the office door to lock it. When I reached for the door it started shaking, the door handle started turning and there was a very loud pounding on the door. I grabbed the door knob and locked it. I ran to the phone and called the police. When the police got there I unlocked the door and we both went out into the factory. There was not a thing out of place. Every door in the factory that went outside were still locked with a chain around the handles. There were no windows broken out anywhere in the factory either. I don't think the police officer believed me. This happened one more time while I worked there, but the next time that it happened I had two witness's there with me. I have written about this and other things I have experencied if you would like to check them out go to my web site at www.countryghoststories.net

GHOSTS subjected to research

The term ‘ghost' generically refers to various types of subtle (invisible) bodies such as demons, devils, witches, etc. who have the intention of harming others. The Spiritual Science Research Foundation has undertaken extensive research on ghosts in order to demystify this widespread phenomenon and help people in recognising and treating the adverse effects caused by ghosts through proven methodology according to the Spiritual science.

Ghosts (demons, devils, spirits) though neither visible to the gross eye, nor perceived by the other sense organs, mind and intellect are factors that affect all mankind. The manifestations of distress due to ghosts can be from a person displaying uncharacteristic behaviour to erratic display of violence, addictions, various physical and psychological illnesses, family problems, business problems, etc.

1. Ghost characteristics

Ghosts (demons, devils, spirits) are subtle (invisible) bodies
Ghosts belong to the nether region or one of the seven regions of hell but are found on Earth region too
Ghosts (demons, devils, spirits) do not exist in the positive planes of the universe i.e. heaven
Ghosts (demons, devils, spirits) have unfulfilled desires such as cravings for sex, alcohol (things that they can only experience through a physical body), revenge, etc.
Ghosts (demons, devils, spirits) derive pleasure out of exerting control over and tormenting humans
The general aim of ghosts is spreading unrighteousness and consequent turbulent havoc in society.

2. Who can become a ghost?

People who have died with unfulfilled desires, personality defects, negative impressions in the mind, high ego, who have harmed others and/or have the basic nature of harming others. Most importantly people who have not done spiritual practice according to the basic principles of Spirituality while alive are likely to become ghosts in their afterlife.

3. What is the meaning of being affected by ghosts'?

Being affected by ghosts (demons, devils, spirits, etc.) is when the physical, mental, intellectual or spiritual functioning of a person or any combination thereof is affected or altered by the ghosts entirely through the use of ghosts’ black energy without direct intervention by the ghosts. Since there is no direct intervention by the ghosts, there is no controlling of the mind and intellect of the affected person.

However the ghost affects that aspect of the person, which is most conducive to achieving its objective; either of troubling that person, fulfilling its own desire, or preventing spiritual practice, etc.

4. What is demonic possession?

Demonic possession is when ghosts (demons, devils, spirits, etc.) control the mind (emotions, thoughts) and intellect (decision making ability) of a person. As a result, they also control the person’s actions.

In a possession, the ghost (demon, devil, spirit) is actively involved in controlling the mind and intellect as a means to harm the person. In almost all cases, the person possessed does not know that he/she is possessed, until it manifests in a dramatic way as shown in the Hollywood movie ‘The Exorcism of Emily Rose’.

5. Spiritual strength wins

In the subtle realms of our existence, spiritual strength is the most important currency. Out of the person targeted for attack and the attacking ghost, whoever is spiritually stronger wins. If the ghost has more spiritual strength than the person to be attacked, then the ghost can affect or possess the person at will. If a person has a higher spiritual level, his defence against a ghost attack is stronger as a result of his own spiritual strength accrued with spiritual practice, and consequently the protection that he/she receives from God is also higher.

6. Solution

Initiate one’s spiritual practice and maintain its regularity so as to build protection from ghost attacks.

Courtesy: Spiritual Science Research Foundation

http://spiritualresearchfoundation.org/spiritualresearch/difficulties/Ghosts_Demons/

Hells Gate Cemetery

Hells Gate Cemetery
I just recently returned from Eliszabethtown, KY where I had heard about a haunted cemetery called Hells Gate. My brother and I went out to Hells Gate on July 2, 2007 at 11:30Pm. and indeed it was very exciting you could just feel the energy all around you. My brother had heard about a dog that some people and reported seeing out there. We took dozens of pictures both still and video from many angles of the cemetery and in no picture did a dog showed up. But just before we got into the car to leave a dog appeared in front of us it never barked or moved it just stood there staring at us until we got into the car to leave then the dog turned around and disappeared. There was also a large mist that appeared in front of us it was about seven feet hign and about two feet wide. If any one would like the location of Hells Gate Cemetery just e-mail me and I will send you the directions. My e-mail address is countryghoststories@earthlink.net

Top Ten Haunted Bridges, Beaches and Lakes You've Never Heard of...

Top Ten Haunted Bridges, Beaches and Lakes that You’ve Never Heard of…
          Maybe it’s the eerie sight of fog rising off the water, or the mystery of the dark depths, but we’ve always been fascinated by tales on the water, and the ghostly secrets lurking below the surface. Read on for some of the little-known watery ghost legends that hide across the country.

10. Balboa Island, Newport Beach, California
            Balboa Island, on the Pacific Coast, was the destination two teens were intent upon reaching in the summer of 1993. They miscalculated the tides, and drowned.
            Now, off the coast strange calls are heard in the night, and by boat odd, flashing lights can be seen underwater, near the spot of the last sighting of the two teens.
9. Lake Weatherford, Weatherford, Texas.
            It could be a Comanche legend, or it could be tall tales, but stories abound concerning the ghost bull of Lake Weatherford.
            Rumor has it that a family camping near the lake witnessed a large black bull rising from the water, his glowing red eyes searching the shore for signs of life. The Comanche called this Fortean mystery the demon water-cow, and gave the lake a wide berth when passing this way.
8. The Addy-Sea Inn, Bethany Beach, Delaware.
            The Addy-Sea is picturesque and adorned with Victorian charm, but mystery rides in on the sea breezes from the Atlantic Ocean. The Addy-Sea was built on the coast in 1902, and has been functioning as a B&B for the past twenty-five years.
            Guests have reported waking unexpectedly on moonlight nights, only to look out the window and see phantom footsteps appearing on the beach. When the tide is low, it’s said that a woman can be heard wailing in the night, calling for someone whose name is always lost on the wind.
            Perhaps it’s truly the beach below that’s home to the ghostly activity, but it can be seen from the windows of the Addy-Sea Inn.
7. The U.S.S. Sullivan’s, Naval Serviceman’s Park, Buffalo, New York.
            The U.S.S. Sullivan’s was named in memorial of the five Sullivan brothers who died in WWII. On board, there is a photograph of the brothers that will not show up clearly when photographed itself, and the ghost of one of the brothers has been seen walking near the galley, identified by the photograph.
6. Pounder Beach, Hauula, Hawaii.
            The only remains of the home on the beach cliffs is a bare foundation, but it seems it’s still not empty after all. Late at night, above the sound of the surf, the calls of a small boy searching for his mother can be heard, and it’s said that if she finds a child resembling her lost boy, she’ll take his soul.
            Both the mother and son drowned decades ago, and the sightings began weeks after their deaths.
5. Darr Bridge, Darr, Nebraska.
            There’s a bridge over the reservoir in Darr, said to be home to the ghost of a pioneer woman. Whether she was killed on a trail, in the water or on a makeshift bridge back when the area was the true frontier isn’t known.
            When she appears, sometimes it’s beside a misty covered wagon, and sometimes alone, wringing her hands on her apron.
4. Dover Mills, Dover, New Hampshire.
            In 1907, a fire destroyed a mill on the Cocheco River in Dover. It was the third large fire the town had experienced in the past thirty years, and the largest. Many were trapped and died in the blaze.
            Today, it’s said that their ghosts still haunt the upper floors of the mill, where they likely died. After the mill closes for the night, for it is still in operation, unexplained glowing lights dart by the upper windows, and the phantom grind of machinery can be heard when no hand is there to power it.

3. Coquina Beach, Bradenton, Florida.
            On the public strip of Coquina Beach a man in black in said to haunt the shore. When viewed from the picnic area above the beach, he’s seen wandering the Gulf shore, only to vanish into the water. Visitors see him most often at dawn and dusk, and sometimes his shadow can been seen in the glow of the adjacent lighthouse.
2. Heceta Head Lighthouse, Yachats, Oregon.
            The Heceta Head Light, nestled between the rocks and pine forests of the Pacific Coast, dates from 1894 and is a current, working light, complete with Fresnel lens.
            Now also a B&B and Interpretive Center, the light is also home to a ghost. She’s said to be the wife of a long-deceased light keeper, a lonely woman whose body was found washed up on the rocks. Whether her death was an accident or suicide, we’ll never, but it’s clear by her roaming the grounds that she has something to say!
1. Highland Lake Park, Ledyard, Connecticut.
            The Highland Lake is a man-made lake in a small Connecticut community. It’s the site of family picnics and summer swimming lessons, but it hides a secret at the water’s edge.
            The lake has a beach, and is bordered on three sides by wooded areas. Hidden in the shallows, below the lily pads, lies a sunken cemetery, perhaps disturbed when the lake was first dug out. The headstones are all below the water, and in the woods on this side of the lake late at night, there have been reports of small red lights lighting up the night. They rise from the water and dance in the woods, scaring anyone who happens to be in the woods.

Kira Connally
www.mysticghost.com
www.kiraconnally.com/blog/

Ghost Hunting Mistakes to Avoid

By Kira Connally

Loving Twilight

Ghost hunting and paranormal investigating is a tricky field to be participating in, but, like anything else, we can all strive to be better by learning from our mistakes. And believe me, you will make mistakes. It�s hard to handle equipment in the dark, and even harder to distinguish true anomalies caught on film or audio from inadvertent finger fumblings while trying to hold a flashlight, camera, notepad, pen and EMF meter in one hand while trying to dig for new batteries with the other hand. I�ve learned a few lessons over the past couple years of paranormal investigation; hopefully reading about my �whoops� moments will save you some of your own.

Mistake #1: Do not assume that a location is haunted before you get there. This assumption is dangerous because it strips away your objectivity, making you prone to thinking every shadow, breeze or spider web that brushes you has paranormal origins. In this field, sometimes your objectivity is the only thing that keeps your credibility intact. I have a ghost hunter friend who I�m sure thought I was crazy when I claimed all these places I�d been to were haunted. When he heard my logic and explanations about why I thought they were haunted, based on evidential findings and not assumptions, he started to realize that yeah, maybe these places really are haunted. More importantly, he realized that I was not some hare brained loon who heard a ghost story and claimed a haunting.

Mistake #2: Don�t allow yourself to create false positives. A false positive is any piece of evidence that appears to have paranormal origins, but is in fact caused by a natural occurrence. Orbs in photographs can be caused by dust, humidity, rain, snow, pollen or bugs. Take some pictures in these bad conditions to learn how they appear on your film or digital pictures. Kick up dust, take pictures of raindrops. Knowing how not to take fake orb pictures will keep you from unknowingly claiming false evidence. Vortexes and rods can be created in pictures when a stray hair or camera strap crosses the path of the lens. Wear a ponytail or a hat, stay out of the wind, and wear your camera around your neck or remove the strap. Ghost mist or �ecto� can be created by cigarette smoke, breath, or high humidity. Don�t smoke, hold your breath when taking pictures on cold nights, and reschedule the investigation when it�s overly humid.

Mistake #3: Don�t assume that the preview screen on your digital camera gives a fair representation of the picture you just took. Boy, can this one make you feel stupid. Right in line with this mistake is passing your camera around in the dark to show off your newly captured anomaly. Do not let other people actually handle the camera. I learned this lesson when I was showing off the best ghost mist picture I ever took. It had the beautiful form of a woman in a long dress. As the camera was passed around, some finger unfamiliar with the buttons on my camera deleted the picture for me. A friend of mine deleted a great EVP this way as well. Share your findings after they have been downloaded and saved. Make copies of your film prints for sharing, keeping the originals and the negatives separate. The best meaning ghost hunter in the world can accidentally ruin the best evidence there ever was, and there�s no going back to get that same anomaly when it comes to ghosts!

Mistake #4: It�s more important that I can express to be familiar with your tools before you head out for a ghost hunt. Knowing how your equipment works, what causes it to malfunction, and where all those itty bitty buttons are before it gets dark will save you a headache and much embarrassment. A good example of a bad thing that can happen would be the first night I used my night-shot equipped video camera with a brand new wide angle lens. I didn�t test the new lens at night. When I reviewed my video, it was so dark I couldn�t tell what all those shadows moving around were. As it turned out, my new lens was actually blocking the infra-red beam that allowed the camera to �see� in the dark. Maybe I got a bunch of ghosts wandering around a cemetery. I�ll never know, because I didn�t test my equipment.

Mistake #5: Store your fully charged batteries separate from your dead ones. When I was first starting to give tours at the Baker Hotel (a haunted, abandoned 14 story hotel with no electricity), I invested in a lot of rechargeable batteries. This was a very smart thing to do; it will save you a lot of money very quickly. Very haunted places tend to drain batteries quickly; so do digital cameras. I had the bright idea to keep my charged batteries in one jeans pocket, the dead ones in another. I cannot tell you how many times I got the pockets confused and wasted five minutes in the dark fumbling with the camera inserting and removing the batteries. It�s hard enough to change batteries in the dark, trying to read the positive and negative markings on the camera. Store your fresh batteries on your person, keep the dead ones in your bag, your shoe, basically anywhere you won�t mistakenly grab them in the dark.

Paranormal investigating is a fascinating pursuit. Save yourself a few headaches and learn how to do (or not to do) it to the best of your ability before you head out to those reportedly haunted locations.

Originally appeared at "www.americanparanormalpages.com

Think you have a haunted house?

By Kira Connally

Loving Twilight

Think you have a haunted house? Living in a place you believe to be haunted can be a scary experience. Should you tell anyone? Will they think you're crazy? Yes, you should tell someone, and no, they probably won't think you need a straight-jacket. There are some steps you can take to investigate possible causes on your own. Above all, keep a calm head, an open mind, and use your common sense.

The very first thing you should do is start a journal to list all the possible paranormal occurrences. In it, document the strange noises, cool breezes and phantom footsteps. Write everything down, even if it seems trivial or insignificant. Note down the time and date of every entry, and when or if the event recurs. If someone else experienced an event with you, write down who it was and what they said they experienced. If something only happens on a certain day of the week, note it. If a pet reacts to something you think might be related, jot down what the pet did, when, where and any possible mundane causes. The presence or absence of certain people in the area can also be an important clue. Often, keeping a journal can put a supposed haunting into perspective, and give you some insight into possible causes.

If you've analyzed a few journal entries and still think you have a real live haunting, you should rule out natural causes. Investigate the location thoroughly yourself, and compare your findings to what you've collected in your journal. If the rumblings in the wall only happen at 7 A.M., it might be the plumbing rattling as someone showers. If the lights flicker every night as you're making dinner, the cause could be overloaded wiring as you're using more power to run the dishwasher, cook in the microwave, whiz up margaritas in the blender.you get the idea. Rule out any outside environmental causes. Are you near a train or a power station? Is the guy next door broadcasting over a short wave radio? Do you have critters nesting in the attic? Dig deep. A little legwork can save some time, and possibly some embarrassment later.

As you check out all the above possibilities, try to gather evidence. If you have a camera, (even the disposable kind will do fine), snap a few pictures when you think something strange is happening. Take a picture when you feel that cold chill crawl up your spine. Experiment with a tape recorder, too. Using a fresh tape, set one up to record when you think paranormal activity might be occurring. Let it run while you're not home and while you're asleep. Play back the recordings in a quiet room, or using headphones. If you do hear voices on the tape, be sure it's not the television, the neighbor or someone's cordless phone before you decide it's the voice of a ghost. Be skeptical-it's better you find out your cat was hissing into the microphone than the ghost hunter who drove a hundred miles! On the other hand, if you hear your long dead great aunt telling you where the lost family heirloom is, you might just have valid evidence of a ghost!

To learn more about recording ghost voices, or EVP (electronic voice phenomena) check out the American Association for Electronic Voice Phenomena at www.aaevp.com. They offer useful advice on recording and interpreting what you've taped. Pictures are a highly debated topic in the paranormal community. Best to read up on the subject before you decide you've got the image of a ghost. There are thousands of websites and many books on the subject. Research widely, and use your best judgment.

The next thing to evaluate is your motivation for wanting a paranormal investigation. If you genuinely think your location is haunted, and you are seeking answers, that's great. If you just think it would be a neat experience, contact a group and tag along with them before you drag them out to your maybe-haunted home. If you want to make it into the newspaper, don't call a ghost hunter. Call a reporter. Paranormal teams love to help people and document true hauntings. Most teams want to help dispel the fear surrounding hauntings, and help people understand the cause if they do indeed prove a haunting. What paranormal teams don't love are people who waste their time and money to be amused or entertained. They don't want to show up at your house to find an army of neighbors waiting to hold a s�ance. Groups of people hinder the process, and many teams will take offense to the idea that they are psychic s�ance holders.

There are times when calling a ghost hunter isn't the best idea. If you are under the care of a psychiatrist, please consult this doctor before calling a paranormal team. Paranormal teams usually do not have doctors among their members and are not qualified to help you in that area. Sometimes hearing voices can be attributed to clairaudience, which is the ability to psychically hear the voices of the dead. Sometimes they have other causes. A medical professional is usually the best avenue to discern the cause of voices unaccompanied by paranormal evidence. If you're being treated by a doctor, and they say it's ok to give a team a call, then by all means, call! I say this not to offend anyone, but to assure the safety of everyone involved.

Another time when it's not appropriate to call a ghost hunter is when you haven't cleaned your house since 1962. If a team can't move about the area freely, the team can't investigate. If the location is a condemned building, it also isn't safe for anyone to investigate. If you do not own the property where the supposed haunting is occurring, secure permission from the owner before calling in a team. If you have small children likely to be disturbed by an investigation, find a sitter for the night. If you have large scary dogs, find some other place for them to wait. If your spouse or roommate is uncomfortable with the idea of a paranormal team tromping around the house, it's best not to call until they are willing to be involved. Using common sense makes the investigation a better experience for all those involved.

So when should you call a paranormal team? You should call if you really think you have a ghost and you're scared. If you're not scared and just want proof, start the journal mentioned above and get in touch with a team. If a full blown apparition shows up in your living room, walks through walls and chats over tea, yeah, that would be a good time to call.

What about the clergy? If you belong to a church or religious organization, talking to a clergy member can be helpful. Some will bless a home, and some will hold prayer circles. That's great, and if it helps, even better. Most members of the clergy don't perform exorcisms, and going church door to door asking for one isn't the best idea. While most clergy members won't look for scientific proof, they have been known to tend to the spiritual side of things and can certainly help the situation.

Now that we've covered when and why to call a team, how do you decide who to call? Most people start on the internet, which is fine. The internet can be a great resource, but don't rely on it alone. Go to the bookstore and check out the paranormal section. Many authors will have contact information in their books. Go to the library and check out the newspaper archives, too.

When you find a team to contact, it's best to ask for references. After all, you are inviting strangers to your home. You wouldn't invite just anyone off the street, and you shouldn't invite just any team. When you make contact, the team will want to interview you, usually over the phone. That's great. While you're on the phone, interview them. Ask how long they've been doing this kind of work and the names of the members. Ask if anyone has a criminal record. Do a google search on the names you receive-this simple search can reveal useful information. If the team has a website, surf over and read carefully. If anything you read concerns you, ask the team about it. Talk to them; ask how they investigate, and why they investigate. Be wary if a team will not disclose how the investigation will be conducted, and what equipment will be used. You have a right to know what will be happening in your home. If their answers don't agree with you, find another team. In the rare case that a team will not reveal information about its members, walk away. Different teams have different approaches, and one will likely stand out as the one best suited to you.

The paranormal community is a small one, and word can travel fast. If one team won't recommend another, find out why not. It's also a good idea to contact several teams if there are many in your area. If you can't locate a team in your area, contact the closest one. Often, they will be able to point you in the right direction. Good luck, and if you have questions I haven't covered here, drop me an email. I'll be glad to help if I can.

A Lesson in Screening Haunted Home Requests

By Kira Connally

Loving Twilight

The ghost hunting team I'm a member of had a profoundly horrid experience two weeks ago. We were asked by another local ghost team to join them on a private home investigation as they were short a few members and we'd worked together in the past. It all sounded great in the beginning. The house had two occupants and a bevy of odd occurrences. We were enticed by stories of cupboard doors opening at the same time every morning, only to close again in front of the occupants' eyes when they entered the kitchen, perfume-y smells with no natural explanation, and missing objects appearing weeks later in obvious places. Our team, Mystic Ghost, discussed it, made arrangements with the other team, and planned to go on a Saturday night.

Our first mistake? We trusted the other team to check out the location, interview the occupants before the investigation and generally make sure everyone involved appeared sane, harmless, and didn't expect us to exorcise their parakeet.

Our second mistake? We ignored our gut feelings on the day of the investigation. No one wanted to go. From the Thursday prior to the investigation, I wanted to back out. I didn't have a good reason, so I kept my mouth shut. One team member, Michelle, developed a bad stomachache on the way to my house, and another member, Ben, was sure it was going to be a disaster. We gave each other pep talks, and still ended up leaving my house late.

The four of us met the two members of the other ghost team near the haunted home, where we learned that one of them had such an upset stomach she was chugging Pepto-Bismol. We should have headed home. Instead, we got in our cars and headed to the site, which should have been about five minutes away. It ended up taking us about twenty minutes, because the woman in the lead car, who had been by the site an hour before, got lost. She lives in the same small town where the haunted home was; it was just plain bizarre. While we were driving around lost, one of our members, Wendy, pointed at a house we were driving by and said "Dear God, please don't let it be that house."

You guessed it. Ten minutes later we were parking at that house.

The house was located in a run down ramshackle part of town. The paint was peeling to such a degree we couldn't even guess what color it once had been. The yard was overgrown and full of trash. The driveway led to a door-less garage full of broken appliances, laundry baskets of junk, cardboard boxes and trash everywhere. The garage was so jam-packed the car was parked in the driveway in front of it.

It was dusk, and before Michelle and I got out of the car, we were questioning the safety of our expensive equipment. We waited for big strong Ben to get out of his car, then we locked our purses in my trunk. As all six of us ghost hunters gathered at the end of the driveway, the homeowners approached us. They appeared to be women, bare-foot and stringy haired. They introduced themselves, and shook the hand of a member of the other group, who stiffened at her touch. This was the team member who was supposed to check the situation out beforehand. It was now apparent that this had not been done.

As we approached the garage, the smell hit us. As we entered the house, the smell became a noxious rotten funk that permeated everything. We quickly split up into pairs, leaving the two members of the other group to investigate the house, two of us to interview the owners outside, and the other two to investigate the outside of the house. Wendy and I took the outside of the house. We walked around to the side yard, and it smelled like urine and decay. We had been there about five minutes when the two who were in the house came out and walked to the street. Since they were outside, Wendy and I went inside.

I opened the door with my shirt around my hand to avoid touching the doorknob itself. The kitchen table was the first thing we saw, and it was piled with three layers of dirty dishes. The floor, walls, blinds, counters and cabinets in the kitchen were all covered in brown grease that had been there so long it was sticky and had bits of gunk in it. The living room was piled with clothes, towels, boxes, moldy dishes and two very new computers. The carpet in the living room was of indistinct color, and it squished as we walked. We took a few photos, which later revealed drugs and drug paraphernalia.

I really can't tell you about the rest of the house, because as we walked toward the hall, the smell got so bad Wendy and I were both biting back vomit and headed for the door. I don't mean we just gagged, I mean there was hot vomit burning our throats as we got out of there.

The third pair of ghost hunters, Michelle and Ben, were in the driveway interviewing the homeowners. We heard one tell us that the other one had wasps nesting inside her chest, and every once in awhile a wasp would work its way out of her body through her skin. They didn't see the need for a doctor to look at this. They talked about how they got sick in the bathtub (Duh! As nasty as the rest of the house was, can you imagine the bathroom?), had blackouts, used to sell drugs and the black haired ghost living in the house. Then the two occupants, who both appeared female, told us that they were legally married. One of us asked them how that was possible in the state of Texas, which does not legally recognize same sex marriage. They responded by saying that no doctor could determine the gender of either one, so the court had to approve the marriage. And then they offered us dinner.

That was the very limit. We thanked them for their time, gathered our bags, and headed for the cars.

When I got home, I scrubbed my body with soap so hard my skin was red, and then I did a Google search on the name of one of the occupants. The first hit returned contained a website that, had anyone looked at it, would have told us all we needed to know and kept us far, far, away from that house. At least one of those two women was a man, and that website had enough skin showing to prove it. The text of the website was about drugs and lurid love affairs complete with names and locations of the participants.

Lesson learned? Do your homework, and never trust anyone to do it for you, unless you want to investigate the nasty home of drugged-up internet porn stars, haunted or not.

We were lucky that night; nothing bad in a permanent sense happened. No one was injured or robbed. No cars were stolen. No drugs dealers with guns came to collect. No police showed up to arrest the occupants. Our very presence there could have landed all of us in jail, and no ghost is worth jail time. This is serious stuff. Take it from me-screen your requests, meet those involved in a neutral location, and be wary of anything that sounds awry.

The Importance of Spiritual Protection

By Kira Connally

Loving Twilight

In paranormal research, ghost hunting, or any spiritual pursuit, protection is a must. We bring pepper spray and cell phones, go in groups to those dark, isolated cemeteries, and let other people know our location. In the physical realm, that should be enough. But keep in mind any pursuit involving the non-physical world warrants special protection.

During ghost investigations, we go out looking to do*****ent that the dead still exist in some form in our realm. What that form is, or where it comes from are questions we cannot yet answer. We also can't say with certainty what else may be lurking out there in the unseen world just waiting for us to show up with cameras and voice recorders. No matter what your personal spiritual beliefs are, you must acknowledge that the spiritual world is still largely unknown to us, and we need to tread lightly.

In the years that I've been participating in ghost investigations, I've heard stories of ghosts following people home, possession, and contact with negative entities. A negative entity can basically be anything you want to avoid, from a demon, an alien, or the ghost of a criminal. While I personally don't believe in entities like demons or the possibility of possession, I can't say for sure what's out there, and there are some things I'd rather avoid altogether.

Spiritual protection can take many forms. Some people prefer traditional prayers or psalms while others opt for the spiritual approach of surrounding themselves with white light. Some people smudge with sage before and after an investigation. All are good ideas, and certainly none are harmful.

A simple white light prayer might go something like this:

I surround myself with the Divine white light of protection.

I am protected by the Divine Spirit of Love and Grace.

No harm may come to me, and no negative energy may approach.

Amen.

Some other good ideas are mostly common sense. Ask permission from the spirits to do*****ent their presence with cameras and other equipment. Explain how things work and what you're doing. This may seem unnecessary, but if a ghost understands what you're trying to accomplish, they may be more likely to participate if they know how it works. I may know well how EVP works, but the ghost of my great grandpa Joe may have no idea what a digital voice recorder is or does. Asking permission can also put a territorial ghost at ease. If you aren't seen as a threat, you may be more likely to have successful results.

Above all, remember that ghosts were once people too. Just because someone is no longer walking around in a body, it doesn't mean the personality they had in life went away. First impressions and attitudes still play a large part in human contact whether the human in question is dead or alive. A grouch in life will most likely still be a grouch in death, and a young child won't understand the larger scheme of things just because he's now a ghost. Be patient, protect yourself and use common sense, and you'll be able to investigate with confidence.