Ghosts

[Krilons Resa]

Just because you believe in an afterlife, doesn't mean that you have to believe in a god, or God. Take certain factions of Shamanism for instance. They are ridiculusly spiritual but do not believe in any concept of "god." As for Heaven and Hell, that is even more outside the notion. There is no correlation between afterlife and/or spirits and some lofty place in the sky where morally good, pertaining to christian morals, go, and a fiery pit, where all the sinful people go.

Everything is a matter of perspective to be honest.

 

[Tide In Mind Out]

i've had sleep paralysis a few times, though i don't believe it to be anything ghostly.

the first time was after derick went to work one morning. i was up when when he left, then laid back down after he left. before i was back asleep, i felt this rush come over me. weird cuz it was like i knew it was coming, and i knew i could either shake myself out of it or just let it in. so i let come over me just to see what it was all about. what i saw was a sorceress, with a ball of energy in her hands, with black and white "shards" swirling around her. there was a loud buzzing in my head, couldn't move or hardly breathe. but when i'd seen enough i shook myself out of it and went to sleep.

the second and third times it happened was recently, a couple months ago maybe. i'd just laid down for bed and before i knew it there it was. this time it wasn't as fun. there was the loud buzzing like the time before, couldn't move or breathe, and i kept hearing bits and pieces of a dude screaming at me. i almost saw what i thought looked like the silhouette of a man's head. but i wasn't having any fun so i strained til i shook myself out of it. but then it came right back! it was more difficult to get out of it the second time it came. but i did, and it didn't come back after that.

 

[JayKeeley]

Have you ever seen The Entity, ct_thrash? That is supposedly based on a true story.

 

[Tide In Mind Out]

yeah i've seen it. that woman had fun ...supposedly, of course.

 

[IOfTheStorm]

Just because you believe in an afterlife, doesn't mean that you have to believe in a god, or God. Take certain factions of Shamanism for instance. They are ridiculusly spiritual but do not believe in any concept of "god." As for Heaven and Hell, that is even more outside the notion. There is no correlation between afterlife and/or spirits and some lofty place in the sky where morally good, pertaining to christian morals, go, and a fiery pit, where all the sinful people go.

Everything is a matter of perspective to be honest.

You accept the existance of a higher form of power, a spirit, something DIVINE, something that you cant comprehend perhaps. And if you cant comprehend it then you cant explain it. And since you cant explain it, you dont know it, and you dont know all the aspects of it. Calling it "God".. its just using a word for "it". May the force be with you !@#!@!@!@!@@!

 

[J.]

In response to spaffe's post, JayK and IotS pretty much summed it up. I can't really add anything to it.

Like JayK has been saying, you either believe in ghosts/God/afterlife, etc, or you don't. There really is no middle ground. I'm not saying that ghosts and a God are the same, but both are extra-ordinary "beings", and to believe that one exists and to totally ignore the other is not a firm stance. Both have offered zero tangible evidence of their existence.

Personally spaffe, I'd like you to explain how ghosts can exist (which means people have souls/spirits, which means an afterlife), but you find the dea of God and Heaven/Hell to be foolish.

People believe what they want to believe, and that's fine. But how can you, personally, go around stating that the idea of a creator/God is ludicrous, yet belive that some spirits/souls remain on earth to move candlesticks and look at people from roofs of houses?

 

[Erik]

People believe what they want to believe, and that's fine. But how can you, personally, go around stating that the idea of a creator/God is ludicrous, yet belive that some spirits/souls remain on earth to move candlesticks and look at people from roofs of houses?

'Cause few people have ever had Mr. Yahweh throw candlesticks and tupperware at them?

 

[J.]

'Cause few people have ever had Mr. Yahweh throw candlesticks and tupperware at them?

Where is the evidence that proves that Mr. Yahweh wasn't the one that threw those objects?

 

[Erik]

Yeah well, I was only trying to be funny anyway

 

[E-bortion]

i've had sleep paralysis a few times, though i don't believe it to be anything ghostly.

the first time was after derick went to work one morning. i was up when when he left, then laid back down after he left. before i was back asleep, i felt this rush come over me. weird cuz it was like i knew it was coming, and i knew i could either shake myself out of it or just let it in. so i let come over me just to see what it was all about. what i saw was a sorceress, with a ball of energy in her hands, with black and white "shards" swirling around her. there was a loud buzzing in my head, couldn't move or hardly breathe. but when i'd seen enough i shook myself out of it and went to sleep.

the second and third times it happened was recently, a couple months ago maybe. i'd just laid down for bed and before i knew it there it was. this time it wasn't as fun. there was the loud buzzing like the time before, couldn't move or breathe, and i kept hearing bits and pieces of a dude screaming at me. i almost saw what i thought looked like the silhouette of a man's head. but i wasn't having any fun so i strained til i shook myself out of it. but then it came right back! it was more difficult to get out of it the second time it came. but i did, and it didn't come back after that.

'


Sleep paralysis blows, I get it constantly. I can honestly say it is the most frightening thing that I've ever experienced... It's almost unbearably painful at times as well. That buzz hurts. It's almost like that feeling one gets before the onset of a lucid dream. Speaking of which, I've recently picked up an old hobby of mine. Lucid Dreaming is quickly becoming very rewarding. It's almost a vacation. Although, at times, it too can be painful and frightening. That is if you end up inducing sleep paralysis, which is common when practicing lucid dreaming. To call it paranormal isnt quite accurate. Dare I get into a rant about the idiocy of astral projection (lucid dreaming gone "spiritual".) People are too quick to call an altered state or a change of temporal perception spiritual or paranormal.

Now concerning ghosts and such... I can honestly say, without a doubt, they exist. Considering the many experiances I've had (lived in Oklahoma near Indian Reservations, which I might add are FUCKED UP.) Now I think that the definition of ghost is what a lot of people have wrong. I think, as unfounded as it may be, they are not dead per se, rather living in another dimension. Enter string theory... which I will not get into.

 

[Thanatopsis123]

No, I don't believe in ghosts or any such thing but there is one thing from my childhood I've always thought was wierd. At my grandparent's home once we were all sitting around and somebody told a ghost story of sorts about this old antique mirror thing my grandparents had in a room nobody used. The room was just used to walk through to get to another so I would pass it occasionally and it always freaked me out after I'd heard that story about it. Many years later I was in their home and noticed that they no longer had the mirror. I asked about it, and they said they never had any such mirror. Nobody in my family remembers that story nor the mirror. It's a conspiracy.

 

[Tide In Mind Out]

fairly unrelated but its WEIRD so i share.

my mom was 20 when my oldest brother was born. he was born on august 20th.
she was 23 when my other older brother was born. he was born on december 23rd.
she was 29 when i was born. i was born on june 29th.

 

[Tide In Mind Out]

No, I don't believe in ghosts or any such thing but there is one thing from my childhood I've always thought was wierd. At my grandparent's home once we were all sitting around and somebody told a ghost story of sorts about this old antique mirror thing my grandparents had in a room nobody used. The room was just used to walk through to get to another so I would pass it occasionally and it always freaked me out after I'd heard that story about it. Many years later I was in their home and noticed that they no longer had the mirror. I asked about it, and they said they never had any such mirror. Nobody in my family remembers that story nor the mirror. It's a conspiracy.

run!

 

[Crimson Velvet]

I disagree with JayK on this one.

Either you do or you don't? Why does it have to be like that? Some of us just don't care enough to make a final decision. Nope, for me it's a combination of agnosticism and apathy.

I do, however, agree with Erik. I think it's arrogant to claim that you have the absolute answer to anything that deals in the paranormal and divine. We are all but mere mortals afterall.

 

[Erik]

What is this sleep paralysis thing exactly?

I remember occasionally when I was younger, I would get these rather frightening half dream/half awake type things that were really very vague, but always had a feeling of me being in the middle of something IMMENSE, something so huge that I can't even explain it, I have no idea what it was, just a vague sensation of something so suffocating and overpowering that I would have no chance against it, whatever it was

 

[Thanatopsis123]

I had recurring dreams like that as a kid too Erik.

 

[Krilons Resa]

So have I.

...what if "ghosts" are just super concentrated energy pockets left behind from some tragic happening? Afterall, it is usually associated with tragic occurences?

 

[MFJ]

So have I.

...what if "ghosts" are just super concentrated energy pockets left behind from some tragic happening? Afterall, it is usually associated with tragic occurences?

<shrug> ... some actually theorize that this is what they are!

 

[NAD]

See, if you want to go about proving any supernatural existence, that's the example I always give: energy doesn't die. People die, and the energy goes somewhere. Maybe compost, maybe a soul, or maybe a ghost, who knows.

The human arrogance bit that Erik brought up is why I say yes I have an answer (my belief in ghosts, religion, etc.) but I don't have THE answer (the truth).

 

[JayKeeley]

Either you do or you don't? Why does it have to be like that? Some of us just don't care enough to make a final decision. Nope, for me it's a combination of agnosticism and apathy.

Well, my definition of an agnostic is someone who's split down the middle, 50/50. That's what I'm not a big fan of -- ambivalence, procrastination, or like you say, apathy.

I don't care about final answers either, BUT if I'm 99% convinced about something, then I'm certainly not going to sweat over that 1% possibility of it being anything else.