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Sam20
Menegroth
May 23 2013, 9:22pm
Post #1 of 48
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Do you believe in Ghosts?
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Here's an unusual poll, do you believe in Ghosts?
You can can just vote but you can elaborate your thoughts as well and that would be interesting.
If possible try to explain why and if you had any paranormal experience feel free to share them.
If not, you can can gives your reasons.
(This post was edited by sam90 on May 23 2013, 9:22pm)
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Elizabeth
Gondolin
May 23 2013, 10:13pm
Post #2 of 48
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Depends on how you define ghosts.
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I do not believe that ghosts with ectoplasm forms and personalities hang around old houses and castles. But there have many credible reports of people sensing something from a loved one who is dying or in peril, in circumstances in which they could not have known, and I believe some communication is possible.
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Darkstone
Elvenhome
May 24 2013, 1:10am
Post #3 of 48
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Used to sense and occasionally see my dear departed first wife around the house. Haven't seen her since I remarried.
And our long dead cat Thor still plays around the house. He's always popping up in my peripheral vision, moving and playing with his quite distinct mannerisms.
And on a darker note, I've occasionally served on search teams. Some colleagues swear they were somehow called to a particular spot during a search. For example, one guy swore he was led to a hidden location by the sound of a woman's voice. And he did indeed find a missing mother and her baby. The baby was hungry and cold, but alive. The mother had obviously been dead for a while.
Then there's more than few stories told after midnight around a fire over hot coffee on a cold night at a emergency command site, where a guy tells of being saved by the voice of a long-departed loved one telling him or her to move, and they somehow avoid a wreck, a fall, or a bullet by the slimmest of margins.
Thor just sauntered into my study closet.....
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dernwyn
Forum Admin
/ Moderator
May 24 2013, 3:40am
Post #4 of 48
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A friend of mine would find paw-prints going across the cover of her bed, after her beloved cat passed on.
My eldest had interesting incidents with ghosts in various flats when she was studying in Edinburgh. Her favorite was once when she walked into her room in time to see a ghost-kitten scamper out of one wall and across into the opposite. Another time a hound latched on to her, would go with her at times when she went out, and moved to another flat with her. She was amused by friends who would sleep over on the couch, and in the morning ask about the dog they'd seen during the night. The animals she came in contact with were nice; it was the people-ghosts who would be crabby and mischievous, and the reason she ended up moving until she got a recently-built flat with no ghosts.
That was nice of your wife to keep an eye on you until she knew you were in good hands again! One of my friends felt her first husband smiling over her shoulder when she met the guy who she would next marry. They just want to make sure we're okay. 
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Magpie
Elvenhome
May 24 2013, 4:46am
Post #5 of 48
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The best answer for me would be: I believe in something
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I'm not quite sure they're ghosts. My father and my dog (to whom I was greatly attached and who died suddenly in great pain) came to me in dreams and helped me let them go. I've never thought of them as ghosts or spirits. But then, my beliefs around what is beyond our mortal life is not guided by organized religions. So I think I just have my own take on it that doesn't really include ghosts and spirits.
My grandmother and my aunt had stories about seeing people after they had passed.
A lot of things happen to me that don't seem coincidental or completely serendipitous but not around spirits.
But something happened when my mother passed. She had been ill for awhile and in and out of the hospital and then into a nursing home, which she hated. And then she just kind of gave up and she got very, very ill and was in a lot of pain and she entered a hospice where she was heavily medicated.
When my sister called to tell me my mother passed away, this is how she told it. She was staying in the hospice room with her, sleeping on a little couch/bed. Her husband had gone back to my mom's house to sleep. The staff came in around 5 in the morning and turned mom... maybe changed some dressings. My sister woke for that and then fell back asleep. Then around 6 she heard someone call "Carol" in a quiet, non-urgent voice - the sort of quiet voice one uses to wake someone up - and she woke up. She checked Mom and she had passed. There was no one else in the room.
That's just how she told it. She never stopped once to wonder about the voice that called to her. I shared this story with a co-worker who had recently lost her grandmother and her reaction was it was my mother who had called my sister.
But I said my first reaction, in fact, it's my calm and certain belief, is that someone else from beyond called her. I had a strong sense of someone, maybe more than one person, waiting for Mom and they had called out to my sister to let her know that Mom was had left us and was now with them. And it was okay.
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DanielLB
Elvenhome
May 24 2013, 8:32am
Post #6 of 48
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Even though I have seen something paranormal, I don't believe in the traditional appearance of a ghost - i.e a white transparent being that can go through walls, pick up objects etc. I think it ultimately comes down to my viewpoint of reality - I don't believe in a God because of my scientific leanings. Likewise, I don't believe in ghosts because I don't think they can physically exist (what happens when it's windy? Why don't they blow away?). Plus, there has been no proof of their existence (there are terrible shows on TV that are clearly set-up).
But then again, I have seen something. Years and years ago, when my sister and I were kids, we were playing hide and seek in the house. It was her turn to hide, and my turn to seek. Our living room had two sofas/couches - one against a wall, the other in the middle of the room facing the TV (so as you walked in to the room, you saw the back of this sofa). I walked into the living room, and thought I saw my sister (her head was poking above the sofa) on the sofa in the middle of the room. I said that I could see her once or twice, but she didn't move. Then, the head (which had no face, just scalp and hair) got up (to the same height as my sister was), walked straight past me and out of the room. Was it a ghost or was it my brain playing tricks (a hallucination, or was I just tired?) I'll never forget that.
And that's not the only ghostly appearance in that house. Glasses use to smash by themselves and my Mum woke up one night to someone peering over her.
Was the house haunted, or just a different series of random events? I really don't know.
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dik-dik
Menegroth
May 24 2013, 8:42am
Post #7 of 48
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Voted 'Yes'. And also in other paranormal stuff. I am grateful I've never seen one though, I'm a rather fearful person so that would give me nightmares for weeks. 
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imin
Doriath
May 24 2013, 9:49am
Post #8 of 48
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Don't believe they exist at all.
Never had any paranormal activity happen around me and from what i have heard of other people's stories or seen on TV shows i just don't buy it. If they were real i feel like we would have some more solid proof than - i could see, feel, hear it.
I do like ghost stories and movies though, i think they are entertaining - obviously would be more scary if i actually believed they existed which would be good as i like getting scared from a horror movie, lol.
Don't mind if people do believe or not, or are unsure for me i just don't believe in them any more than i do faeries or flying spaghetti monster. 
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Otaku-sempai
Elvenhome
May 24 2013, 1:15pm
Post #9 of 48
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Several members of my family had a frightening experience with a séance, while my wife says she grew up in a haunted house.
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Radagast-Aiwendil
Mithlond
May 24 2013, 3:12pm
Post #10 of 48
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"Ye best start believin' in ghost threads...you're on one!"
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Sorry I love Pirates of the Caribbean so much that I couldn't resist.
I myself have never seen a "ghost" as of yet, although there are a few people among my friends and in my family who say they have seen a loved one in a ghost-like form in front of their eyes.
While I'm not entirely convinced about ghosts, I'm not of the opinion that they don't exist at all. As I said, I've yet to meet one.
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dernwyn
Forum Admin
/ Moderator
May 24 2013, 8:57pm
Post #11 of 48
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...you do realize, that the first quote in your footer was not said by Tolkien, but was taken from the Ralph Bakshi LotR movie poster? 
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Radagast-Aiwendil
Mithlond
May 24 2013, 9:10pm
Post #12 of 48
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I took it from somewhere that attributed it to Tolkien and thought my research had been adequate. Thanks for letting me know 
(This post was edited by Radagast-Aiwendil on May 24 2013, 9:10pm)
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Donry
Dor-Lomin
May 24 2013, 11:02pm
Post #13 of 48
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Yep.
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dernwyn
Forum Admin
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May 25 2013, 2:51am
Post #14 of 48
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which can be found in several places, attributed to him!
This one, we know where it actually came from. There's another one which is not his, but it's a mystery what its actual source is: "Little by little, one travels far".
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CuriousG
Gondolin
May 25 2013, 5:03am
Post #15 of 48
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I personally have encountered a few ghost-like things that can't be explained, and I know other rational, skeptical people who have the same ambivalence about their experiences: something "weird" definitely happened (a glass smashed in front of you is an observable phenomenon), but they're not sure what's behind it.
My analogy is about ancient people and lightning. Lightning was big, scary, observable, and inexplicable. People tried to explain it, and since it came from the sky, and gods live in the sky, it must be from Zeus or God or whoever you believe in. Fast forward to the present, and we know it's more about ionization than divine anger. But the change in explanation doesn't change the observation. Lightning exists and is real. People couldn't explain it very well in the past, and now they can. So in the future, I am sure someone will be able to explain ghosts. They'll use words we don't have yet (ionization is a modern word), so we can't predict what they'll say, but they'll figure it out, and they'll see the same things we see but with better understanding.
Great poll question, Sam!
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
May 25 2013, 5:04am
Post #16 of 48
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I've had more than a few experiences.
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My Dad passed in 1977 at the age of 59... and all of us in the family have known of him being around. Things lost suddenly appearing; very vivid dreams; etc.
There have been not-very-nice encounters that support the paranormal. I've even seen ufo's twice (along with someone else who saw them, too). So yeah... as Frodo says, "We are not alone."
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Veridandir
Ossiriand
May 25 2013, 1:14pm
Post #17 of 48
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No, as there is no evidence supporting its existence.
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But if one day a ghost appeared right in front of me, I would believe!
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elaen32
Mithlond
May 25 2013, 7:10pm
Post #18 of 48
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but like Elizabeth, it depends on the definition of the word "ghost". Ghosts as white figures drifting around and through walls, occasionally wailing- no I don't believe that. But I have seen and heard too many things that I don't feel can be explained by rational scientific thinking (and I am a scientist by education)- well not as yet anyway. So yes- I do believe that there are phenomena which are "paranormal" ie they are outside of our current understanding and knowledge. Whether we will one day have an explanation for these things, I don't know. Science and human knowledge has made great strides, but I think it is arrogant to assume that we can explain everything.
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zarabia
Dor-Lomin
May 26 2013, 8:08am
Post #19 of 48
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In many cases I'm sceptical, but I'm open to the possibility of something we don't yet understand
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So, yes, I believe in something. I do believe that many so called paranormal experiences have rational, mundane explanations, which, combined with hallucinations, over-active imaginations, seemingly ubiquitous swamp gas, and people just makin’ stuff up, likely make up the majority of ghost stories. But there are too many reasonable, reliable people who have experienced “something” to dismiss the paranormal altogether. Like others have said, I believe that there are phenomena that we just aren’t equipped to explain yet. Some theoretical physicists say that we live in a multi-verse, and that the other universes may not be out there somewhere, but right in front of us. We can’t see them because they are in a different dimension. So, what if what we experience as a ghost is a being from another universe bleeding through a weak area in the fabric of the universe? I’m just spit-balling here, I’m not saying this is what I actually believe, just an idea. 
Anyway, I have a ghost story. More than likely it’s one of those with a mundane explanation, but it has confounded me for years: My sister and I were walking along the medieval wall around the city of York. Normally the wall is pretty crowded with tourists, but this particular section was empty except for the two of us. We were strolling along taking in the surrounding beauty when I heard fast approaching footsteps. I didn’t want to feel rushed so when we came to a turret where the walkway widens, I pulled my sister aside to let this person pass…there was no one there. Hmmm, okay, I guessed I had just been hearing our footsteps echoing off the distant buildings. Off we went again. We seemed to have the wall to ourselves again, then distant footsteps getting closer and closer. Somebody was quickly overtaking us. Again I stepped aside at the next turret, fully expecting to see someone in a hurry…again there was no one there. We set off again with me listening carefully for footfalls. I heard the echo of our steps bouncing off the buildings, but nothing else. Then, after about a minute, distant footsteps. This time I was sure it was another tourist, I had accounted for the echoes, so this had to be a person. I could even feel the impatience of this person as he/she quickly gained on us. I pulled my sister aside to let this rude person pass. No one! And there’s no place to hide along those walls. Was it some trick of sound? Probably, but I don’t know how it could sound like it was in the distance and then get closer and louder in addition to the natural echoes we heard.
(This post was edited by zarabia on May 26 2013, 8:15am)
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elaen32
Mithlond
May 26 2013, 10:44am
Post #22 of 48
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Well, York has a reputation for being very haunted
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But that may just relate to the fact that it's an ancient city with a lot of history. But that does sound a bit weird Zarabia! On a fun note, did you go on any of the York Ghost Walks? Total hocum, but good fun! I love York, I go to an annual conference there and always find something new to look at
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Otaku-sempai
Elvenhome
May 26 2013, 2:47pm
Post #23 of 48
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While I haven't, personally, seen a ghost...
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I did witness what some would call a UFO phenomenon; or it might have been ball lightning (if ball lightning can last for 20 minutes to a half-hour). What I say was a bright, blue-white light hanging motionless in the sky several miles away for many minutes and then suddenly zooming away at (very) high speed.
Anyone experienced anything similar?
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Semper Fi
Nargothrond
May 26 2013, 3:43pm
Post #24 of 48
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Cats do, not sure about other animals
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But cat thing is 100% true. When my two cats died, not at the same time but years apart, each time right before their passing I dreamed of them glowing in white light.
Also, they tend to get reborn. You`ll recognie your reborn cat if you eevr run into him/her in an instant.
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dernwyn
Forum Admin
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May 26 2013, 5:31pm
Post #25 of 48
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That must have freaked you out a bit
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the second time you had that dream - knowing what was going to happen!
My first cat was with me for nearly 17 years before he had a stroke, and I had to have him put to sleep. I can't remember exactly how many days or weeks after that it was, that I was driving by the vets' and got a "nudge" to go inside, where I found that someone had recently brought to them a litter of kittens they'd found near a dumpster. I went home and got my 3 kids, and we all went back to select a new cat from among them. We were playing with them when the loudest purr I'd ever heard filled the room. My eldest was cradling that one on his back in her arms, rubbing his tummy - and he was the one who looked most like my first cat. We brought him home, of course. I don't know if it was my first cat reborn, but we all believed he'd been "sent" to us.
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