Over the Last Two years, I was living in a private rented flat in Kemp Town Brighton. Kemp Town like many areas of Brighton has a lot of hauntings and Ghosts. I lived near the Sea Front, and I rented a small flat on the Second Floor. When I moved in I never really thought too much about Ghosts.
However after about two weeks of living there, I would go to sleep and would be doing fine until 2-00 or Three am. I would then be woken by heavy Footsteps that would start at the Top of the Stairs, and rapidly descend. I was very clear, that someone was running down the stairs, and they had a very heavy footfall. One night I got up to look and went out into the Dark Hall way, because the Stairs, were dark, there was a safety light that most people would use to see to descend the Stair case. When I went out after hearing the footsteps the Light remained Switched off. It was strange I remember thinking at the time, because in order to see to descend or ascend you would need to swtich the lights on. I believed that it was my landlord, who lived in the Top flat above, however it was a strange time for him to be going out as it was 2 or three am in the morning.
I once asked him about it, and he said, 'It was not him, and he looked baffled, and he told me that he had moved out and gone to live in a separate property. He lived elsewhere at the weekend, and the flat reamined empty. I had a visit from the guy who lived below., and he approached me about the same thing. Was I the one who had descended the Stairs the previous night, at two am, as he too had heard the footfalls. said no it wasn't me, and that I was asleep at the the time. So if it was none of us who was the visitor. Another thing was that I never heard the front door slam. The footsteps ended on the Ground floor hallway.
Friday, 6 November 2009
The Ghost Lady 2009 (Republished About Paranormal)
The Ghost Lady, 2009
I live in in West Sussex in the U.K., and have an ability to see ghosts as well as hear them. I have never tried to communicate with them, although they frequently try to communicate with me. This was because I came into contact with a Road Ghost in 2002. Since the incident, I have started to see ghosts with greater frequency, and I believe that it has awakened an underlying ability, similar to the Sixth Sense.
We moved into the house in 1992, and for me it has always been a place that is full of happy memories. However, in the last two months, I have become aware of a presence. In April, 2009, I was watching television, and my father was due to travel away on holiday and was packing his suitcase before travelling to Tenerife. I was relaxing in the lounge after a hard day's work. I was watching the 10 o'clock news when I got distracted. I looked a way for a few seconds, up the lounge to the dining area. The dining room was separated by two large, frosted, glass doors. Suddenly, I saw a figure of a young woman glide through the wall, then through the table and then disappear into the hitchen. I knew the shadow was a young woman because she was wearing a skirt.
Over the next month, objects in the kitchen would fly off the walls and shelves. Books on the top shelf would fall down, and a pot of paprika herbs flew off the herb shelf. One lunchtime, I was talking some family issues over lunch with my farther. We were both seated in the dining room, and our conversation became very heated, and we unfortunately argued. Suddenly, from the kitchen there was a loud bang. Someone or something had opened the cupboard door beneath the sink, and with tremendous force slammed the cupboard door shut. A few minutes later my Burmese cat came in through the cat flap, and so I know it could not have been him, and there was no one else in the house at the time, apart from us.
My farther and I both stopped arguing. We decided to avoid speaking about the incident. I now know that the Ghost Lady was not too happy. She is, of course, welcome to continue to watch over both of us.
I live in in West Sussex in the U.K., and have an ability to see ghosts as well as hear them. I have never tried to communicate with them, although they frequently try to communicate with me. This was because I came into contact with a Road Ghost in 2002. Since the incident, I have started to see ghosts with greater frequency, and I believe that it has awakened an underlying ability, similar to the Sixth Sense.
We moved into the house in 1992, and for me it has always been a place that is full of happy memories. However, in the last two months, I have become aware of a presence. In April, 2009, I was watching television, and my father was due to travel away on holiday and was packing his suitcase before travelling to Tenerife. I was relaxing in the lounge after a hard day's work. I was watching the 10 o'clock news when I got distracted. I looked a way for a few seconds, up the lounge to the dining area. The dining room was separated by two large, frosted, glass doors. Suddenly, I saw a figure of a young woman glide through the wall, then through the table and then disappear into the hitchen. I knew the shadow was a young woman because she was wearing a skirt.
Over the next month, objects in the kitchen would fly off the walls and shelves. Books on the top shelf would fall down, and a pot of paprika herbs flew off the herb shelf. One lunchtime, I was talking some family issues over lunch with my farther. We were both seated in the dining room, and our conversation became very heated, and we unfortunately argued. Suddenly, from the kitchen there was a loud bang. Someone or something had opened the cupboard door beneath the sink, and with tremendous force slammed the cupboard door shut. A few minutes later my Burmese cat came in through the cat flap, and so I know it could not have been him, and there was no one else in the house at the time, apart from us.
My farther and I both stopped arguing. We decided to avoid speaking about the incident. I now know that the Ghost Lady was not too happy. She is, of course, welcome to continue to watch over both of us.
Office Poltergeist 2008 (Republished from About Paranormal)
December 2008
Office Poltergeist
I am going to outline a serious of strange events that cover a period of time from 2004-2008. I have now left the company and that particular office, and I am glad that I do not have to go back to it.
I worked in a large, very old building in London, which has many offices. In the fall of 2004, my line manager and I found what we believed to be a quiet room to conduct a review of my performance. We both sat down next a large fireplace. It was a Friday night and practically everyone else had gone home. My bosses were the only ones still working as they were senior and had a lot to do. From out of the air itself, the ghost started to wolf whistle, ''Phew-we'', as a workman or builder would. It struck up an unrecognizable tune. It kept repeatedly doing this, louder and louder, to gain our attention. Both of us could not believe what was happening, so we continued with the appraisal.
My Head of Department walked in, drawn by the noise. She said, "What was that noise? Someone was whistling in here a few seconds ago." Obediently, the ghost stopped, and my Head then disappeared back to her office. It then resumed the whistling from where it had left off. This time, though, I could hear many voices in the background. It sounded like a busy marketplace with many stalls. Embarrassed, I did not know what to say or do, so we both continued the appraisal. When we finished, I got up and left silently. My boss lingered in the room and tried to work out where the sounds had come from. Of course, there was no one there, and there was no building work going on at the time.
In January, 2008, I came back to work in the same office after some years away. I knew the room was haunted, but bravely I told myself not to worry. I did not want to let the ghost win, so I stubbornly told myself that it was a long time ago and it was no longer there. Of course, I was totally wrong; the ghostly presence was still there.
I first became aware of it when I phoned in to say I would be sick and off work. I got through to my new line manager's phone. I got through to the answering machine, and in the background I could here something whistling -- exactly as I had first heard it in October, 2004. It was a loud 'phew-with', done repeatedly to gain my attention.
I would come in on a Monday morning and find papers that I had left on my desk disturbed. In chatting to my work colleagues, I casually mentioned that the section was haunted. They, of course, all laughed. Inexplicably, the ghost had been watching us because it developed the habit of rushing through the office. We all knew it was a presence because we could feel a very strong breeze or gust of wind and a sudden drop in temperature. The office was linked by a dark connecting passageway, which went through to the next door. I never liked the passageway as it was always dark and unlit.
The ghost, with greater frequency, started to focus on an unlocked, large wooden door. My boss, work colleagues, and myself were working. We all heard four or five sharp raps on the door, and we noticed that something was pushing it open and then putting the door back in its place. My colleague went to investigate. Of course all he found was an empty corridor. My phone would sometimes ring unexpectedly and I would find myself connected to various out-of-office recorded messages and the speaking clock. No one was there and it was definitely not my friends playing tricks on me.
One Friday morning after a meeting, everyone was present in the room. The door was wedged open. There was a sudden strong breeze blowing through the section and something swept through. The force of the wind was so strong it blew the door off the wedge before being jammed open.
A week or two before Christmas, everyone had decided to go out for a long, team-building lunch. I was late and did not want to go because I was working on an urgent task which I needed to complete. I had nipped out to go to the toilet and had locked the door. I put the key in the lock, and entered and that was when I saw it. I was not shocked because I have seen ghosts before. It was over really in a fraction of a second and I did not get much of a chance to look at it. I was aware of a shadow or blurred outline. It was standing next to my colleague's desk and the door to the passageway. My boss, who would get cold, would often shut the door. I was aware, as was the presence, that I could see it. It took one look and then shot off at great speed and opened the shut door, went through, and shut the door behind it to the passage. I decided to keep quiet about what I saw as I did not want my colleagues to become fearful of working in the office.
By now I had enough, so I arranged a meeting with the Head of Department. I went in and explained the whole thing about seeing ghosts and how I had seen many. I also explained that I wanted to leave the section as I did not believe it was now safe for me. I feared that the ghost would form an attachment to me and I did not want it to follow me home. My Head of Section, who finally believed me, said callously, "Ok, so the section is haunted. What do you expect me do about this?" I did nothing and went back to my desk.
Christmas came and went and it was now January. My Head of Section decided to rearrange the office, including the desks and furniture. This brought on for me a new kind of fear. I had read that the paranormal activity increases when building work or disruption takes place to a room. I discussed this with my Head of Department and he reassuringly suggested that I take a few days off, until the layout had been changed. I returned to the office and all the desks had been moved. It was, of course, an improvement. A few days afterward, my colleagues on the other side of the room started to be curiously affected by the coldness. They would complain all the time that it is very cold in here, and they started to wear jumpers. They called the heating engineer out to fix the radiators. But the room remained very cold. They brought in a thermometer for a couple of days to measure the Department. The Head of Department walking through the section knew what was going on but he never let on to them.
Some months later, I was required to stay late one Friday to get some urgent work done. This was the only time I could get it done as I had been off work, ill. Everyone had gone home and I continued to work. I forgot about the ghost, and the sense of urgency of the work distracted me from thinking about it. By now it was dark outside, and everyone had gone away for the weekend. I got on with my work and was well into it. Suddenly, I was startled by the light above me, which suddenly failed. All the other lights in the room over everyone's desk remained on except for mine. I got up from my desk and walked over to the light switch. I flipped the light back up into the up position and the light above switched on. There was, of course, absolutely nothing wrong with it. So whatever was in the room had flipped the light switch.
I returned to my desk and resumed my work. As I sat there, I heard in my ears loud footsteps and banging in the long dark passageway that led to the next door office. I got up and went to look and, of course, there was no one there. Completely freaking, caution got the better of me and I hurriedly left the office. No amount of work or money could get me back. After that I never stayed late again.
Some weeks later, I was working in the office and my Head of Section and I heard loud banging on what sounded like pipework. The noise was coming from behind me. I presumed at the time that it was workmen. My Head of Section said, "Do you hear what I hear? The loud banging?" I said, "Do not worry. It's only workmen." My boss replied, "It cannot be. There are no workmen here. The wall behind you is totally thick. There is nothing there, other than a thick solid wall." Both of us fell silent and we resumed our work, as we wouldn't speak again of this.
I eventually left the office and found work with another company. At home, two weeks after leaving, I came down the stairs and replayed the answering machine messages back. There was one that left me stunned and cold to the bone. There was hissing and a lot of interference... and then a man's voice, which spoke in a harsh tone. The language was "gobbly gook" and it was unintelligible. Startled, I said to my father, "It is the ghost." He played it back once and then immediately hit the delete key.We never spoke of this again, and fortunately for me I have not since that day ever received another. I feel for my work colleagues who are left to work in that section. The one with the office poltergeist
Office Poltergeist
I am going to outline a serious of strange events that cover a period of time from 2004-2008. I have now left the company and that particular office, and I am glad that I do not have to go back to it.
I worked in a large, very old building in London, which has many offices. In the fall of 2004, my line manager and I found what we believed to be a quiet room to conduct a review of my performance. We both sat down next a large fireplace. It was a Friday night and practically everyone else had gone home. My bosses were the only ones still working as they were senior and had a lot to do. From out of the air itself, the ghost started to wolf whistle, ''Phew-we'', as a workman or builder would. It struck up an unrecognizable tune. It kept repeatedly doing this, louder and louder, to gain our attention. Both of us could not believe what was happening, so we continued with the appraisal.
My Head of Department walked in, drawn by the noise. She said, "What was that noise? Someone was whistling in here a few seconds ago." Obediently, the ghost stopped, and my Head then disappeared back to her office. It then resumed the whistling from where it had left off. This time, though, I could hear many voices in the background. It sounded like a busy marketplace with many stalls. Embarrassed, I did not know what to say or do, so we both continued the appraisal. When we finished, I got up and left silently. My boss lingered in the room and tried to work out where the sounds had come from. Of course, there was no one there, and there was no building work going on at the time.
In January, 2008, I came back to work in the same office after some years away. I knew the room was haunted, but bravely I told myself not to worry. I did not want to let the ghost win, so I stubbornly told myself that it was a long time ago and it was no longer there. Of course, I was totally wrong; the ghostly presence was still there.
I first became aware of it when I phoned in to say I would be sick and off work. I got through to my new line manager's phone. I got through to the answering machine, and in the background I could here something whistling -- exactly as I had first heard it in October, 2004. It was a loud 'phew-with', done repeatedly to gain my attention.
I would come in on a Monday morning and find papers that I had left on my desk disturbed. In chatting to my work colleagues, I casually mentioned that the section was haunted. They, of course, all laughed. Inexplicably, the ghost had been watching us because it developed the habit of rushing through the office. We all knew it was a presence because we could feel a very strong breeze or gust of wind and a sudden drop in temperature. The office was linked by a dark connecting passageway, which went through to the next door. I never liked the passageway as it was always dark and unlit.
The ghost, with greater frequency, started to focus on an unlocked, large wooden door. My boss, work colleagues, and myself were working. We all heard four or five sharp raps on the door, and we noticed that something was pushing it open and then putting the door back in its place. My colleague went to investigate. Of course all he found was an empty corridor. My phone would sometimes ring unexpectedly and I would find myself connected to various out-of-office recorded messages and the speaking clock. No one was there and it was definitely not my friends playing tricks on me.
One Friday morning after a meeting, everyone was present in the room. The door was wedged open. There was a sudden strong breeze blowing through the section and something swept through. The force of the wind was so strong it blew the door off the wedge before being jammed open.
A week or two before Christmas, everyone had decided to go out for a long, team-building lunch. I was late and did not want to go because I was working on an urgent task which I needed to complete. I had nipped out to go to the toilet and had locked the door. I put the key in the lock, and entered and that was when I saw it. I was not shocked because I have seen ghosts before. It was over really in a fraction of a second and I did not get much of a chance to look at it. I was aware of a shadow or blurred outline. It was standing next to my colleague's desk and the door to the passageway. My boss, who would get cold, would often shut the door. I was aware, as was the presence, that I could see it. It took one look and then shot off at great speed and opened the shut door, went through, and shut the door behind it to the passage. I decided to keep quiet about what I saw as I did not want my colleagues to become fearful of working in the office.
By now I had enough, so I arranged a meeting with the Head of Department. I went in and explained the whole thing about seeing ghosts and how I had seen many. I also explained that I wanted to leave the section as I did not believe it was now safe for me. I feared that the ghost would form an attachment to me and I did not want it to follow me home. My Head of Section, who finally believed me, said callously, "Ok, so the section is haunted. What do you expect me do about this?" I did nothing and went back to my desk.
Christmas came and went and it was now January. My Head of Section decided to rearrange the office, including the desks and furniture. This brought on for me a new kind of fear. I had read that the paranormal activity increases when building work or disruption takes place to a room. I discussed this with my Head of Department and he reassuringly suggested that I take a few days off, until the layout had been changed. I returned to the office and all the desks had been moved. It was, of course, an improvement. A few days afterward, my colleagues on the other side of the room started to be curiously affected by the coldness. They would complain all the time that it is very cold in here, and they started to wear jumpers. They called the heating engineer out to fix the radiators. But the room remained very cold. They brought in a thermometer for a couple of days to measure the Department. The Head of Department walking through the section knew what was going on but he never let on to them.
Some months later, I was required to stay late one Friday to get some urgent work done. This was the only time I could get it done as I had been off work, ill. Everyone had gone home and I continued to work. I forgot about the ghost, and the sense of urgency of the work distracted me from thinking about it. By now it was dark outside, and everyone had gone away for the weekend. I got on with my work and was well into it. Suddenly, I was startled by the light above me, which suddenly failed. All the other lights in the room over everyone's desk remained on except for mine. I got up from my desk and walked over to the light switch. I flipped the light back up into the up position and the light above switched on. There was, of course, absolutely nothing wrong with it. So whatever was in the room had flipped the light switch.
I returned to my desk and resumed my work. As I sat there, I heard in my ears loud footsteps and banging in the long dark passageway that led to the next door office. I got up and went to look and, of course, there was no one there. Completely freaking, caution got the better of me and I hurriedly left the office. No amount of work or money could get me back. After that I never stayed late again.
Some weeks later, I was working in the office and my Head of Section and I heard loud banging on what sounded like pipework. The noise was coming from behind me. I presumed at the time that it was workmen. My Head of Section said, "Do you hear what I hear? The loud banging?" I said, "Do not worry. It's only workmen." My boss replied, "It cannot be. There are no workmen here. The wall behind you is totally thick. There is nothing there, other than a thick solid wall." Both of us fell silent and we resumed our work, as we wouldn't speak again of this.
I eventually left the office and found work with another company. At home, two weeks after leaving, I came down the stairs and replayed the answering machine messages back. There was one that left me stunned and cold to the bone. There was hissing and a lot of interference... and then a man's voice, which spoke in a harsh tone. The language was "gobbly gook" and it was unintelligible. Startled, I said to my father, "It is the ghost." He played it back once and then immediately hit the delete key.We never spoke of this again, and fortunately for me I have not since that day ever received another. I feel for my work colleagues who are left to work in that section. The one with the office poltergeist
Haunted Paris Metro Station- Chatelet Les Halles 2007
The Ghost of Le Chatelet Les Halles Metro Station (Unpublished)
I was touring Paris and stayed a week. It was while I was traveling the RER- Rapide Express Rassemblement that I had my Ghostly encounter. I have always had the ability to sense and see Ghosts, and have had several Ghostly encounters. I was tired so I sat down on one of the seats at Le Chatelet Les Halles, Metro Station. After a few moments I started to hear in my head, whistling to attract someone’s attention and ghostly laughter very loud in my right ear.
I was so startled, that I looked around, to see where it was coming from. I thought that it must be coming from a man on the opposite side of the platform. I looked around, and puzzled I could not work out who was doing it. I got onto the Metro train, after pulling on the handle of the door and took a seat amongst fellow commuters. I looked at them, puzzled. I thought someone would get up and ask whoever was making the loud noise to stop .
I realized then, that only I could hear this, and it was directly aimed at me. Everyone continued as if nothing had happened, even though the whistling was so loud and the Ghostly laughter continued, and everyone else on the Metro was oblivious. A man continued to read his paper, and another, minded his own business. I thought I was going mad as I could clearly hear the whistling. As the Metro train pulled out of the station they abruptly stopped. I looked back, and saw the words Sortie-Exit and a sign that said, ‘Rue De Lingerie’ et La Ferronerie, access to these streets was from the Station.
When I got home I did the following research on the Internet and found that the Station has an interesting History. Construction was completed in 1977 on Châtelet-Les-Halles, Paris's new urban railway hub. The site was to become the point of convergence of the RER, a network of new express underground lines which was completed in the 1960s. Three lines leading out of the city to the south, east and west were to be extended and connected in a new underground station.
For several years, the site of the markets was an enormous open pit, nicknamed "le trou des Halles" (trou = hole), regarded as an eyesore at the foot of the historic of Saint-Eustache. It is situated in the Ier arrondissement of Paris, built between 1532 and 1632 at the entrance to Paris’ ancient markets (Les Halles) and the beginning of the famous rue Montorgueuil, the Eglise de Saint-Eustache is another Parisian gothic gem.
Les Halles was the traditional central market of Paris. In 1183, King Philippe II Auguste enlarged the marketplace in Paris and built a shelter for the merchants, who came from all over to sell their wares. In the 1850s, the massive glass and iron buildings that Les Halles became known for were constructed. Les Halles was known as the "stomach of Paris".Émile Zola's 1873 novel Le Ventre de Paris (The Belly of Paris) revolves around Les Halles.
It is thought that the Parisian immigration to the Right bank had begun as early as the 9th century with the stables of butchers carrying their often unhygienic trade outside the city walls. In any case it is certain that they were well established there by the early 12th century, with their stables and slaughter pens lining the river to the east of the Grand-Pont (pont au Change) and a wall of the Grand-Châtelet; the Seine was Paris’ only sewer then, and the above location made evacuating the bloody wastes of the butchery trade an easier task.
The Place de la Grève’s creation from 1141 of course only added to the above activity, and after this in turn was joined by Louis VI (“le Gros” – 1108-1137) with the île de la Cité market (le marché Palus) in barren land to the north of the Chatelet, “Les Champeaux” (little fields – also “petits-Champs”), the rive Droite became Paris’ principal centre of commercial activity. Philippe-Auguste further added to the importance of the new marketplace when he joined to it, in 1181, the “foire Saincte-Ladre” (Saint-Lazare) from the monetary hospital further north along the road that it today’s rue Saint-Denis.
Two years later the same king decided to enclose the whole in two enclosed squares, or “Hallas”, to at once protect the merchant’s wares (in an upper floor) and to separate them from the just-adjacent Les Innocents cemetery. The rue de la Ferronerie and rue de la Lingerie still bear memory to the halls of then and later years, and “les Halles” is still the quarter’s name today. (http://www.paris-promenades.com/en/site_text/I-ii.htm)
At the time, the Les Halles district in the middle of the city was suffering from disease, due to contamination caused by improper burials and mass graves in churchyard graveyards, especially the large Saints Innocents Cemetery. It was decided to remove the bones discreetly and place them in the abandoned quarries.
So therefore the Ghost either that of a market trader, or of someone buried in the Saints Innocents Cementry and removed to Paris Catercoombs. Either way the spirit clearly does not rest
The Russian Ghost- Witnessed 2004, Russia
The Russian Ghost- Possible Wraith
I saw a ghost while I was away on holiday in Russia. I was traveling by coach in a party of eight to 12 others. We had been traveling most of the day to get to the town of Kostrumo, in the Golden ring outside of Moscow. The countryside consists of vast expanses of Siberian Silver Birch and forests. As we neared the village I noticed out of the window on my left a graveyard. Standing next to a grave was what I assumed to be a woman in a black cloak, who was a widow, mourning the loss of her husband. It was strange, but not unusual to see this.
I noticed that in the graveyard was an orchard of cherry trees. I did not think too much about this and looked away. I then took a glance again over my shoulder. As I looked back through the coach window, the figure had moved and was now standing next to a low wall and the wrought iron gates, the main entrance. The figure was ominously tall, looking much more than normal, and took on a threatening presence or shape. I noticed that there was no face in the hood of the cloaked figure. Far more disturbing, though, was that it seemed to be watching me and its hands were rested upon the top wall. I got a glimpse of its hands - it was not human! The hands and fingers on them were very long - over a meter in length and were skeletal, long and bony.
As I continued to look back at it, a skull appeared in the hood and two orange eyes looked back and it grinned at me. I looked away instantly and did not look back, as I figured that it represented death. I thought I must be imagining things, so I tried to put the whole thing out of my mind and get on with the rest of the holiday.
One thing that did strike me as odd was that the graveyard was completely run down and overgrown with long grass; no one had been there in months or, in fact, years. So what was this figure doing there? I did not think too much about the incident and had forgotten about it. Two days later, I arrived at a new hotel and had sat down to eat dinner in the main restaurant along with other Japanese guests. As I ate, I looked up into the corner of the restaurant, and it was decorated with pots and other antiques. But what drew my attention was a large wood carving by a Russian artist of a figure from Russian folklore. My Blood chilled to the bone. For there was a carving of a hooded figure - a man who looked like a monk. His arms were completely outstretched and its fingers were long and bony, at least over a metre long. This was exactly what I had seen in the graveyard.
English Folklore: Wraiths (English Folklore)
This can be a synonym for ghost, but generally means the spectral double of someone still alive. Usually, it appears at or near the time of the person's death, as a sign for close friends or relatives; sometimes it is a more long-term warning; occasionally it means the person is in danger or distress. To see one's own wraith (also called a ‘fetch’) is a sure sign of death. The apparition of a destined husband summoned by some love divinations is also a wraith. The belief is old, and still strongly held; a Manchester woman in 1981 said:
Some years ago, it was at the end of the First World War. My husband was quite young, and he was away with his older sister,—on holiday or something. And the young man his sister was engaged to appeared before them in the bedroom, as plainly as anything, in his uniform. He said it was just as if he was almost there! And he'd been killed just at that time in the War! (Bennett, 1987: 55)
There was a widespread idea that once a year, usually on St Mark's Eve but sometimes at All Souls or Midsummer Night, anyone who watched in the church porch from midnight till one o'clock would see those fated to die that year entering the church, usually in the order of their deaths. An account of 1634, from Burton in Lincolnshire, describes a procession of figures in winding-sheets led by the curate, and sounds of a burial service.
However, keeping this watch was disapproved of, and could bring its own punishment. It was said of a certain Jonny Joneson, sexton of Middleton (near Manchester) around 1800, that he kept watch on All Souls' Eve, counting the wraiths and gloating to think how many burial fees he would earn, until one appeared which he recognized as himself. He fell ill, and was dead within a year (Samuel Bamford, Autobiography (1848-9), i. 160-2). Similarly at Dorstone (Herefordshire) on All Souls' Eve a man saw wraiths gathering in the church, where the Devil, dressed as a monk, called out the names of those fated to die; he heard his own name, and died shortly after (Leather, 1912: 107). For further examples, see St Mark's Eve.
Bibliography
The full bibliography list is available here.
· Opie and Tatem, 1989: 80-1
· Bennett, 1987: 55-64
· S. P. Menefee, in The Seer, ed. Hilda Ellis Davidson (1989), 80-99.
· Some Victorian accounts of wraiths are in Briggs, 1970-1: B. ii. 489-93, 505-6 518-19, 525-6, 549, 576, 595
Reprinted from Occultism & Parapsychology Encyclopedia: Wraith (Section on Religion & Spirtuality)(Occultism and Parapyschology)
The apparition or double of a living person, generally supposed to be an omen of death. The wraith closely resembles its prototype in the flesh, even to details of dress. There are accounts of people seeing their own wraith, and among those who were warned of approaching death in this way are said to be Queen Elizabeth I, the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, and Catherine of Russia. The latter, seeing her double seated upon the throne, ordered her guards to fire upon it.
Case History
But wraiths of others may appear to one or more persons. Lord Balcarres of Scotland saw the wraith of his friend "Bonnie Dundee" at the moment when the latter fell at the Battle of Killiecrankie, and the poet Ben Jonson saw his eldest son's double when the original was dying of the plague.
The belief in the wraith flourishes in Europe, and in different parts of Britain it goes under different names, such as "waff," "swarth," "task," and "fye." Variants are the Irish " fetch, " and the Welsh "lledrith."
In Scotland it was believed that the wraith of one about to die might be seen wrapped in ashroud. The higher the shroud reached, the nearer was the approach of death.
Something analogous to wraith-seeing comes within the scope of modern psychical science, and the apparition is explained in various ways, as an astral projection or an emanation from the person of its living prototype.
Cases
A well-known case is that of the Birkbeck Ghost, when three children witnessed the apparition of their mother shortly before her death. This instance, reported in Proceedings of the Society for Psychical Research (vol. 1, 1882, pp. 121-122), is noteworthy because Mrs. Birkbeck was conscious before she died of having spent the time with her children.
Wraith is a Scottish dialectal word for "ghost, spectre, apparition". It came to be used in Scottish Romanticist literature, and acquired the more general or figurative sense of "portent, omen". In modern fantasy literature, it usually designates dangerous and evil beings following use of the word in J.R.R. Tolkien's Ringwraiths. Often, a wraith will be a more evil apparition, and tends to be more frontal or aggressive.
I saw a ghost while I was away on holiday in Russia. I was traveling by coach in a party of eight to 12 others. We had been traveling most of the day to get to the town of Kostrumo, in the Golden ring outside of Moscow. The countryside consists of vast expanses of Siberian Silver Birch and forests. As we neared the village I noticed out of the window on my left a graveyard. Standing next to a grave was what I assumed to be a woman in a black cloak, who was a widow, mourning the loss of her husband. It was strange, but not unusual to see this.
I noticed that in the graveyard was an orchard of cherry trees. I did not think too much about this and looked away. I then took a glance again over my shoulder. As I looked back through the coach window, the figure had moved and was now standing next to a low wall and the wrought iron gates, the main entrance. The figure was ominously tall, looking much more than normal, and took on a threatening presence or shape. I noticed that there was no face in the hood of the cloaked figure. Far more disturbing, though, was that it seemed to be watching me and its hands were rested upon the top wall. I got a glimpse of its hands - it was not human! The hands and fingers on them were very long - over a meter in length and were skeletal, long and bony.
As I continued to look back at it, a skull appeared in the hood and two orange eyes looked back and it grinned at me. I looked away instantly and did not look back, as I figured that it represented death. I thought I must be imagining things, so I tried to put the whole thing out of my mind and get on with the rest of the holiday.
One thing that did strike me as odd was that the graveyard was completely run down and overgrown with long grass; no one had been there in months or, in fact, years. So what was this figure doing there? I did not think too much about the incident and had forgotten about it. Two days later, I arrived at a new hotel and had sat down to eat dinner in the main restaurant along with other Japanese guests. As I ate, I looked up into the corner of the restaurant, and it was decorated with pots and other antiques. But what drew my attention was a large wood carving by a Russian artist of a figure from Russian folklore. My Blood chilled to the bone. For there was a carving of a hooded figure - a man who looked like a monk. His arms were completely outstretched and its fingers were long and bony, at least over a metre long. This was exactly what I had seen in the graveyard.
English Folklore: Wraiths (English Folklore)
This can be a synonym for ghost, but generally means the spectral double of someone still alive. Usually, it appears at or near the time of the person's death, as a sign for close friends or relatives; sometimes it is a more long-term warning; occasionally it means the person is in danger or distress. To see one's own wraith (also called a ‘fetch’) is a sure sign of death. The apparition of a destined husband summoned by some love divinations is also a wraith. The belief is old, and still strongly held; a Manchester woman in 1981 said:
Some years ago, it was at the end of the First World War. My husband was quite young, and he was away with his older sister,—on holiday or something. And the young man his sister was engaged to appeared before them in the bedroom, as plainly as anything, in his uniform. He said it was just as if he was almost there! And he'd been killed just at that time in the War! (Bennett, 1987: 55)
There was a widespread idea that once a year, usually on St Mark's Eve but sometimes at All Souls or Midsummer Night, anyone who watched in the church porch from midnight till one o'clock would see those fated to die that year entering the church, usually in the order of their deaths. An account of 1634, from Burton in Lincolnshire, describes a procession of figures in winding-sheets led by the curate, and sounds of a burial service.
However, keeping this watch was disapproved of, and could bring its own punishment. It was said of a certain Jonny Joneson, sexton of Middleton (near Manchester) around 1800, that he kept watch on All Souls' Eve, counting the wraiths and gloating to think how many burial fees he would earn, until one appeared which he recognized as himself. He fell ill, and was dead within a year (Samuel Bamford, Autobiography (1848-9), i. 160-2). Similarly at Dorstone (Herefordshire) on All Souls' Eve a man saw wraiths gathering in the church, where the Devil, dressed as a monk, called out the names of those fated to die; he heard his own name, and died shortly after (Leather, 1912: 107). For further examples, see St Mark's Eve.
Bibliography
The full bibliography list is available here.
· Opie and Tatem, 1989: 80-1
· Bennett, 1987: 55-64
· S. P. Menefee, in The Seer, ed. Hilda Ellis Davidson (1989), 80-99.
· Some Victorian accounts of wraiths are in Briggs, 1970-1: B. ii. 489-93, 505-6 518-19, 525-6, 549, 576, 595
Reprinted from Occultism & Parapsychology Encyclopedia: Wraith (Section on Religion & Spirtuality)(Occultism and Parapyschology)
The apparition or double of a living person, generally supposed to be an omen of death. The wraith closely resembles its prototype in the flesh, even to details of dress. There are accounts of people seeing their own wraith, and among those who were warned of approaching death in this way are said to be Queen Elizabeth I, the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, and Catherine of Russia. The latter, seeing her double seated upon the throne, ordered her guards to fire upon it.
Case History
But wraiths of others may appear to one or more persons. Lord Balcarres of Scotland saw the wraith of his friend "Bonnie Dundee" at the moment when the latter fell at the Battle of Killiecrankie, and the poet Ben Jonson saw his eldest son's double when the original was dying of the plague.
The belief in the wraith flourishes in Europe, and in different parts of Britain it goes under different names, such as "waff," "swarth," "task," and "fye." Variants are the Irish " fetch, " and the Welsh "lledrith."
In Scotland it was believed that the wraith of one about to die might be seen wrapped in ashroud. The higher the shroud reached, the nearer was the approach of death.
Something analogous to wraith-seeing comes within the scope of modern psychical science, and the apparition is explained in various ways, as an astral projection or an emanation from the person of its living prototype.
Cases
A well-known case is that of the Birkbeck Ghost, when three children witnessed the apparition of their mother shortly before her death. This instance, reported in Proceedings of the Society for Psychical Research (vol. 1, 1882, pp. 121-122), is noteworthy because Mrs. Birkbeck was conscious before she died of having spent the time with her children.
Wraith is a Scottish dialectal word for "ghost, spectre, apparition". It came to be used in Scottish Romanticist literature, and acquired the more general or figurative sense of "portent, omen". In modern fantasy literature, it usually designates dangerous and evil beings following use of the word in J.R.R. Tolkien's Ringwraiths. Often, a wraith will be a more evil apparition, and tends to be more frontal or aggressive.
Balcombe Road Ghost Encounter
The Balcombe Road Ghost.
I encountered this Ghost in 2003, and that would have been that. Other than it left me with the ability to see Ghosts. Since then I have had eight other experiences between 2003 and the present day. I see them when I least expect them to be there, and when I am not really looking for them. I am not really a medium as far as I know. As I do not really want to encourage them that much. I am very sensitive to seeing them and being aware of them, through footprints and sound. I am basically passive in that I did not initiate the contact.
Sources: Reprinted Published on About Paranormal, Paranormal Gateway,The Grinning Ghost in the Road (CopyRight published on www. Mystery Magazine.com. The Author : reported Jan 2003
Here is my true ghost story, which really did happen to me, and I am still suffering the affects of it to this day, playing the same event over in my mind. Before seeing the ghost I would have to say that I was a big skeptic, on seeing it I have changed my mind. I made the sighting on 20th October 1999 at 10-30 pm on the B2036, a road that runs from Haywards Heath to Crawley, eventually joining the A23 to Crawley. My personal view is that you do not find ghosts, they find you if they want to.
My best friend and I were driving back from his house. I had not been drinking, nor had I taken any substances, that could have caused it. I do not take Drugs or substances anyway. The moon was coming out from behind a cloud and there was heavy rain on the road surfaces. We had been driving for something like thirty to forty minutes and had joined the B2036, which goes through ancient woodland, and becomes nothing more than a country lane at that point. The Woodland itself is called Worth forest.
I looked at my watch and the time said 10:30pm and I can remember that I was relaxed and not thinking of anything. The car in front had disappeared and its headlights had faded into the darkness, so we were effectively the only vehicle on that unlit stretch of the road. It was then that I noticed in the car headlight beams, some distance ahead an owl flying across the road, that had come from the hedgerow, as if startled by something. On closer examination as we approached, I saw a misty patch, like fog emanating slowly from the grass verge on the right. I did not think anything about it too much, except that the next events took me by surprise.
In no less that 4 seconds this misty patch, took on a life of its own, I would have to say a supernatural presence. This misty patch expanded in size so rapidly that it became a dense, threatening thick wall of fog, that spread right across the right hand side of the road. This I now know was no ordinary fog, but was 'ectoplasm'.
As the fog cleared and dissipated I could see something moving ahead in front of the car headlights. I could clearly see it was a cowled figure like a monk that appeared to be intent on crossing the road from right hand side to the centre reservation. It had not seen us approaching at this stage, and had it arms outstretched. To my horror after examining the situation I saw that the figure was not walking like a normal human but 'gliding' just above the road surface. I was also having trouble clearly delineating it, because as it got to the centre line it disappeared and reappeared again in exactly the same spot and repeated the same action, time and time again. The ghost I would have to say took on a clearly ethereal appearance.
As we drew closer in the car I started to worry as to whether my friend had seen it, so I had decided to observe it and say nothing, because I feared he would crash the car. Watching again, I saw that it had observed us and was now aware of us, because our headlights were illuminating it, as we drew closer to it. Now the ghost faded completely when it got to the centre reservation line and it stopped and turned to face us head on.
I could see that it was now transparent to semi invisible. The headlight beams of our vehicle shone through it and I could see the rain falling on the other side, and the road disappearing off into the distance.
As we drew closer still, to it, the Ghost decided to move, and now glided across to the left hand side of the road i.e.- passenger side where I was seated. Some distance ahead the ghost now 'decided' to reveal itself. To my horror a full ghost dematerialised in front of the vehicle in the middle of the road, on my side. All I can say is that I have never experienced pure terror like that, my heart was thudding and I wanted to say something to my friend who was driving, but found that I could not get any words out. So I kept quite, as all the time we drew nearer to it.
The Ghost was of a portly middle-aged man, I would say in his forties to fifties. I got the impression that he did not belong to this century, as his clothes were dated. Around his waist there was a belt with a buckle, and he had on large boots. I got the impression that he may have been a highway robber because the man was bald, and he had an earring in his right ear. And to my horror he was standing there just grinning widely, I could see in his lower jar there were gold fillings. He wore a stripy 'jumper' like the 'Bretons' wear in Brittany France, and a necktie. The figure though was 'evil' because I sensed that it was enjoying the fact that it was scaring us.
I sat there dumbfounded and I could not believe what I was seeing. I thought I must be hallucinating. So when I shut my eyes and reopen them it will have gone. I shut my eyes took some deep breaths reopened them, and to my horror the figure was still there grinning in the middle of the road. By now I was beginning to panic a though crossed my mind what if we hit it. Then another thought came which was the ghost is dead so it cannot hurt me.
With that I suddenly plucked up courage and started to return the ghost's stare and gaze. I sensed that the ghost was aware somehow that I was no longer scared by it. It seemed to me that it had become dejected and crestfallen that the scare was no longer working.
The Ghost's facial features changed it was no longer grinning. It was at this point that I realised what I was seeing was not an image, but a real life 'sentient' human from beyond the grave with feelings and thoughts like you or me. The paradox was that it was alive but dead.
As we approached rapidly I started to fear that we were going to collide with it. I heard stories that ghosts sometimes go right through vehicles. I therefore started to will in my mind for it to disappear, but it would not go. I realised that if it did not go we would hit it. As we reached the point of no return a few hundred metres from it, the ghost just vanished, dematerializing as suddenly as it had come.
We were now level with the spot where the ghost had been standing. I checked the side windows of the car, as we passed to see if someone had been playing a trick. I also looked back out of the window in the back. All I could see was an eerie empty lonely road, with the autumn leaves falling slowly down into the road. We were now completely alone.
End
I said nothing to my best friend, about it, but spent the weekend worrying about it, was what I had seen alive or dead. A few weeks later after meeting up for a drink in a pub, I asked him whether he had seen anything, and explained I had seen a ghost. He just turned to me and laughed. He said I saw nothing. It therefore means that only I could see it, unless of course he is lying about what he truly saw.
I encountered this Ghost in 2003, and that would have been that. Other than it left me with the ability to see Ghosts. Since then I have had eight other experiences between 2003 and the present day. I see them when I least expect them to be there, and when I am not really looking for them. I am not really a medium as far as I know. As I do not really want to encourage them that much. I am very sensitive to seeing them and being aware of them, through footprints and sound. I am basically passive in that I did not initiate the contact.
Sources: Reprinted Published on About Paranormal, Paranormal Gateway,The Grinning Ghost in the Road (CopyRight published on www. Mystery Magazine.com. The Author : reported Jan 2003
Here is my true ghost story, which really did happen to me, and I am still suffering the affects of it to this day, playing the same event over in my mind. Before seeing the ghost I would have to say that I was a big skeptic, on seeing it I have changed my mind. I made the sighting on 20th October 1999 at 10-30 pm on the B2036, a road that runs from Haywards Heath to Crawley, eventually joining the A23 to Crawley. My personal view is that you do not find ghosts, they find you if they want to.
My best friend and I were driving back from his house. I had not been drinking, nor had I taken any substances, that could have caused it. I do not take Drugs or substances anyway. The moon was coming out from behind a cloud and there was heavy rain on the road surfaces. We had been driving for something like thirty to forty minutes and had joined the B2036, which goes through ancient woodland, and becomes nothing more than a country lane at that point. The Woodland itself is called Worth forest.
I looked at my watch and the time said 10:30pm and I can remember that I was relaxed and not thinking of anything. The car in front had disappeared and its headlights had faded into the darkness, so we were effectively the only vehicle on that unlit stretch of the road. It was then that I noticed in the car headlight beams, some distance ahead an owl flying across the road, that had come from the hedgerow, as if startled by something. On closer examination as we approached, I saw a misty patch, like fog emanating slowly from the grass verge on the right. I did not think anything about it too much, except that the next events took me by surprise.
In no less that 4 seconds this misty patch, took on a life of its own, I would have to say a supernatural presence. This misty patch expanded in size so rapidly that it became a dense, threatening thick wall of fog, that spread right across the right hand side of the road. This I now know was no ordinary fog, but was 'ectoplasm'.
As the fog cleared and dissipated I could see something moving ahead in front of the car headlights. I could clearly see it was a cowled figure like a monk that appeared to be intent on crossing the road from right hand side to the centre reservation. It had not seen us approaching at this stage, and had it arms outstretched. To my horror after examining the situation I saw that the figure was not walking like a normal human but 'gliding' just above the road surface. I was also having trouble clearly delineating it, because as it got to the centre line it disappeared and reappeared again in exactly the same spot and repeated the same action, time and time again. The ghost I would have to say took on a clearly ethereal appearance.
As we drew closer in the car I started to worry as to whether my friend had seen it, so I had decided to observe it and say nothing, because I feared he would crash the car. Watching again, I saw that it had observed us and was now aware of us, because our headlights were illuminating it, as we drew closer to it. Now the ghost faded completely when it got to the centre reservation line and it stopped and turned to face us head on.
I could see that it was now transparent to semi invisible. The headlight beams of our vehicle shone through it and I could see the rain falling on the other side, and the road disappearing off into the distance.
As we drew closer still, to it, the Ghost decided to move, and now glided across to the left hand side of the road i.e.- passenger side where I was seated. Some distance ahead the ghost now 'decided' to reveal itself. To my horror a full ghost dematerialised in front of the vehicle in the middle of the road, on my side. All I can say is that I have never experienced pure terror like that, my heart was thudding and I wanted to say something to my friend who was driving, but found that I could not get any words out. So I kept quite, as all the time we drew nearer to it.
The Ghost was of a portly middle-aged man, I would say in his forties to fifties. I got the impression that he did not belong to this century, as his clothes were dated. Around his waist there was a belt with a buckle, and he had on large boots. I got the impression that he may have been a highway robber because the man was bald, and he had an earring in his right ear. And to my horror he was standing there just grinning widely, I could see in his lower jar there were gold fillings. He wore a stripy 'jumper' like the 'Bretons' wear in Brittany France, and a necktie. The figure though was 'evil' because I sensed that it was enjoying the fact that it was scaring us.
I sat there dumbfounded and I could not believe what I was seeing. I thought I must be hallucinating. So when I shut my eyes and reopen them it will have gone. I shut my eyes took some deep breaths reopened them, and to my horror the figure was still there grinning in the middle of the road. By now I was beginning to panic a though crossed my mind what if we hit it. Then another thought came which was the ghost is dead so it cannot hurt me.
With that I suddenly plucked up courage and started to return the ghost's stare and gaze. I sensed that the ghost was aware somehow that I was no longer scared by it. It seemed to me that it had become dejected and crestfallen that the scare was no longer working.
The Ghost's facial features changed it was no longer grinning. It was at this point that I realised what I was seeing was not an image, but a real life 'sentient' human from beyond the grave with feelings and thoughts like you or me. The paradox was that it was alive but dead.
As we approached rapidly I started to fear that we were going to collide with it. I heard stories that ghosts sometimes go right through vehicles. I therefore started to will in my mind for it to disappear, but it would not go. I realised that if it did not go we would hit it. As we reached the point of no return a few hundred metres from it, the ghost just vanished, dematerializing as suddenly as it had come.
We were now level with the spot where the ghost had been standing. I checked the side windows of the car, as we passed to see if someone had been playing a trick. I also looked back out of the window in the back. All I could see was an eerie empty lonely road, with the autumn leaves falling slowly down into the road. We were now completely alone.
End
I said nothing to my best friend, about it, but spent the weekend worrying about it, was what I had seen alive or dead. A few weeks later after meeting up for a drink in a pub, I asked him whether he had seen anything, and explained I had seen a ghost. He just turned to me and laughed. He said I saw nothing. It therefore means that only I could see it, unless of course he is lying about what he truly saw.
Intro's: Disclaimer & Information About Me & Blog
This Blog, represents a view of the Paranormal, which may or may not be subscribed to by all Parapyschologists', Ghost Hunters, and Paranormal Groups. Please only view Site under Parental Guidance, and the views contained within the Blog, which are my own. The content may be scary, so if those of nervous disposition, please do not read the content of my blog, with the lights turned down.
I am an Amateur Ghost Hunter, and Para-pyschologist, who lives in West Sussex and fell into Studying the Paranormal. I do not claim to be a Medium, but I have a an interest in studying the Paranormal, as scientifically as I can. I have seen Eight Ghosts in Total, and these Blog pages contain the Notes of my field Investigations. I know to be totally honest, many of you are skeptical as to whether the elusive phenomenon of Ghosts and The Spirit World Exists. I too was a skeptic, until, one day I had my own encounters, which completely changed my world view.
Some of you probably doubt my testimony, and it is completely fine to do so. It is quite understandable, considering that most people have ever really met Ghosts, or seen one. I can tell you that I am not mad, or delusional, and seeing Ghosts, for me has become a day to day reality. I have been on many investigations and I am an experienced investigator. There are skeptics out there, and for me, I too was one of them. Now I am a believer, because of my encounters. This blog is an attempt to report what happened, and is a place for to me, post the results of my investigations, as well as reports from myself and others. I will where possible, try to provide a Glossary of terminology, and explanations of Theories.
If you also have had a Ghost Encounter then Please send them to my Email Address: LucySanderson2010@Live.com. I will do my best to reply, and if I have your permission I will post them here on this Blog, providing it is of course true. This Blog is open to Scrutiny, and all beliefs, so I am non Judgemental.
I am an Amateur Ghost Hunter, and Para-pyschologist, who lives in West Sussex and fell into Studying the Paranormal. I do not claim to be a Medium, but I have a an interest in studying the Paranormal, as scientifically as I can. I have seen Eight Ghosts in Total, and these Blog pages contain the Notes of my field Investigations. I know to be totally honest, many of you are skeptical as to whether the elusive phenomenon of Ghosts and The Spirit World Exists. I too was a skeptic, until, one day I had my own encounters, which completely changed my world view.
Some of you probably doubt my testimony, and it is completely fine to do so. It is quite understandable, considering that most people have ever really met Ghosts, or seen one. I can tell you that I am not mad, or delusional, and seeing Ghosts, for me has become a day to day reality. I have been on many investigations and I am an experienced investigator. There are skeptics out there, and for me, I too was one of them. Now I am a believer, because of my encounters. This blog is an attempt to report what happened, and is a place for to me, post the results of my investigations, as well as reports from myself and others. I will where possible, try to provide a Glossary of terminology, and explanations of Theories.
If you also have had a Ghost Encounter then Please send them to my Email Address: LucySanderson2010@Live.com. I will do my best to reply, and if I have your permission I will post them here on this Blog, providing it is of course true. This Blog is open to Scrutiny, and all beliefs, so I am non Judgemental.
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