"It is the secret of the world that all things subsist, and do not die, but only retire a little from sight, and afterwards return again. "

"Nothing is dead: men feign themselves dead, and endure mock funerals and mournful obituaries, and there they stand looking out of the window, sound and well, in some new and strange disguise."

Ralph Waldo Emerson

OK, so what are ghosts anyway?

According to parapsychologists, ghosts are the apparitions of deceased people. More specifically, it is the energy, spirit, soul or personality of a person who has died and is either stuck; unable to move on from this plane of existence to the next, or have willingly decided to stay behind because they feel bound to their previous life, have unfinished business, are attached to a person or object or other unknown reasons. Ghosts usually appear in their human form and in places that they frequently visited or lived before their death. This can be their home, place of business, a relatives home or sometimes an object or certain person. Ghosts appear in forms of ectoplasm, ecto-mist or full-bodied apparitions.

In all reality, there is no death. What I mean is that, sure, the body dies or stops working, but the soul or spirit lives on. We're made up of energy, which some consider to be our soul. The soul lives forever, just not in the same human form. There are many religious people who argue with this theory, and many who don't believe in ghosts. But I always found it hard to understand that these people believe in Heaven and Hell, God, Jesus and the Bible... but don't believe in ghosts and that our souls live on. One of my favorite statements to these non-believers is: "How can you believe in Heaven, God and the Bible, but not believe in ghosts, which are spirits?" The Bible even gives reference to ghosts, souls, spirits and demons.

Many ghost hunters, researchers and psychics believe that ghosts, or spirits, do not realize they've left their human body. Personally, I feel that some ghosts know they've left their human body, and some don't; each situation is unique. If the person died in a traumatic manner, such as a murder or accident, then it's very possible they don't realize they've passed.

Legendary veteran ghost hunter Hans Holzer once said, "A ghost is a human being who has passed out of the physical body, usually in a traumatic state and is usually not aware  of his true condition. We are all spirits encased in a physical body. At the time of passing, our spirit body continues into the next dimension. A ghost, on the other hand, due to trauma, is stuck in our physical world and needs to be released to go on."

Hanz mentioned "another dimension", which is another interesting theory. Einstein once theorized that time and space are one and the same, and that time itself has no objective reality; It's a function of our consciousness. This means that time itself means nothing. The world would operate the exact same if we had no clocks and no concept of time. Time is just a measurement. What does this all mean? Well, it sort-of leads to the theory of other, or "parallel", dimensions. Parallel dimensions are believed to be other frames of existence. We believe that spirits exist in a dimension that is the nearest to ours. Accounts of spirits or ghosts walking through walls instead of the doorway is perhaps because in their dimension, the wall is a hallway or doorway, or doesn't exist. Spirits tend to create the reality they live in, which often overlaps into our dimension.

A scientific article entitled "The Universe's Unseen Dimensions," released in August, 2000, postulates that we may actually have scientific proof of other dimensions within the next 10 years... 11 other dimensions, to be exact. It is also suggested that doorways, or "portals", exist in certain areas in which spirits and other entities can travel into our world.

The idea of portals is why many paranormal investigators believe in the 3am theory: The alleged exact time when the vails of dimensions are the thinnest, allowing easy travel from one dimension to another. Do I believe in the 3am theory? No. In all honesty, evidence shows that most activity occurs between 11pm and 4am, rather than one particular time. Are the vails the thinnest at 3am? Personally, I don't think so. The only theory I've heard to back this up is that Jesus died at 3pm, so 3am would be the polar opposite. Well, so what? Why would 3am be more active? Sorry, but I just don't see it.

In short, there are many theories and no scientific proof surrounding ghosts, and I don't believe that proof will exist any time soon. So we're left with our own research, evidence, personal experiences and theories, which has gotten us up to this point.

So, do ghosts really exist?

Well, that sort-of depends on who you ask. To skeptics, the answer is, of course, no. To those who have never had a paranormal experience, the answer may be up in the air. If you ask Christians, then, well... who knows what the answer will be. We've run into amny who think that "ghosts" are just an imaginary kids tale... despite the Bible referencing spirits from start to end.

To us, there's no doubt that ghosts exist. When we hear that question, it's like someone asking if cars really exist... there's no question. We feel they are the spirits of humans that have left their physical body. If we didn't believe, then we wouldn't continue our research into them. Until you have a paranroaml experience yourself, you'll probably always wonder. In the end, it's up to you to decide what you believe in.

Can ghosts hurt us?
No, we don't believe so. But remember, what we consider to be a "ghost" is the spirit or soul of a person that has died, a human. Some entity forms do pose a threat to us, such as inhuman entities; but what we consider to be "ghosts" pose no threat, in our opinion. They can be frightening though.  And you could hurt yourself trying to get away from something you saw: falling down the stairs trying to get away, slipping and falling, running into a door or other objects, etc. Basically, the only type of entity that can hurt us are evil one's. Remember, the biggest fear is the fear of the unknown. Let's don't just assume that anything on the supernatural level is bad.

What do ghosts want and why are they here?

This varies from case to case, and the best we can do is draw educated conclusions from our research. Each case is different. Sometimes they aren't sure what's going on. They may not know they've passed away or they may not be able to "see the light" or know how to find it. They may be trying to deliver a message to a loved one or friend. They may be protecting someone. They may want someone to see the cause of their death or, if murdered, the person responsible. They may be attached to an object thet meant a lot to them. They may be attached to a home that once was their own. They may be afraid of judgment. They may simply not know they've passed away.

I remember the movie "The Others". This gives us a chilling glimpse into what a ghost might actually feel. If you haven't seen it, I recommend watching it.
There are many, many reasons why ghosts are here. The truth is, we may never really know.

Is there any way we can help ghosts?

That's debatable. Some investigators and mediums believe it is possible.  We do too. ghosts can be helped to "find the light" and go into it. They can be convinced that they will be greeted byloved one's and friends that have passed before them. We may be able to uncover the truth behind their death. We may also be able to locate their body. And we can give them a proper burial ceremony.
There are many ways to help ghosts (spirits), but first we must understand exactly what they need. In most cases, this is usually reserved for an experienced paranormal investigator, psychic or medium.

Remember, this isn't an exact science, so ghosts and the paranromal in general will always be open for debate. These are our belief's based on history and research. In the end, it's all up to you to decide.

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