Spirits

[Gleb]

I didn't want to post this under one specific branch of faith since I wanted to hear different perspectives. This being said, what are your beliefs about spirits? What role do they play in your world?
Please write as much as you possible, I'm really interested!

[Thrudr]

Re: Spirits

I've had some experiences with what I think are/were spirits, but sometimes I'm not sure if what I'm dealing with is a spirit or my mind playing tricks on me.
Apparently, there is a male spirit with me. I'm not psychic or anything, but a girl from college once described a man standing beside me. It didn't really mean anything to me then, so I didn't think about it anymore. Years later someone else described the same spirit to me. That sort of creeped me out at first, but the guy assured me it wasn't a 'stalker' spirit XD Maybe he just keeps an eye out for me to protect me or something like that. I've never felt the need to contact the spirit though. It's just not my thing.

I do invite spirits around during my Samhain celebration. I remember my lost loved ones and bring them offers on my altar. I'm not really sure what to think of spirits when it comes to magic/ rituals, etc. I do like the idea of spirits being around us for protection or company. But other than inviting them on Samhain I don't really work with them. So I'm also curious what other people on the forum think of spirits and if/how they work with them

[Herbert]

Re: Spirits

In my view, spirits are coherent masses of mana/essence, which have grown sufficiently large and/or concentrated that they have begun self-producing magic, and have a developed (albeit mechanical) consciousness. They are mostly indistinguishable from Souls, aside from their lack of host. Gods are essentially really concentrated spirits.

[TxanGoddess]

Re: Spirits

You know, I've never thought about what my beliefs are on spirits.

I have had a few experiences with spirits though. I guess that's why pinning down what exactly I believe about them has never been important.

When I was about fifteen, something started sitting down on the end of my bed at night. Sometimes bouncing around on it too, it tended to try to scare me more if I "blocked" its space with my feet by moving closer up the bed. If I spent the night at my parents house right now, it would probably do it even still, although it probably wouldn't stick around as long because I don't care about it anymore. This scared the pure-dee hell out of me at the time too. My mother, who does believe in spirits, was very dismissive of my fears, though since then she hasn't wanted me to tell anyone she might have as a guess in case it would scare them, so go figure. I made about every mistake you could probably make, trying to guess at who it was, to get it to communicate with me, stuff like that, but all it did was give me nonsense and mess with my head. It feels embarrassing to talk about even now (I am 38 today) but it wasn't long after it started that I realized that it certainly didn't have any sort of benevolent intentions towards me, though I would have a hard time saying how deep it's malice was, it definitely seemed to enjoy my terror. If I started saying the rosary to comfort myself, or singing a hymn, I could almost swear it a sort of crude mental telepathy to distress me by inserting ideas or opposite words into my prayers and thoughts. Silly stuff, like "Satan" instead of "Jesus" or laughing at me ... but since I had so much doubt about what was even happening to me, I truly thought I was going crazy. As I said, my mom wasn't much help either, she basically told me to just get over it. My dad would be sympathetic, but he didn't believe me. I mean he believed that I believed, but he just isn't the sort of person to acknowledge spirits as an external truth.

I still feel a vague sense of embarrassment saying all of this, but all of it is true, and you know what else I found out since then? He does this or similar pranks to many of the teenage girls in that neighborhood! I was just too isolated from any in my age group to know (I went to private school).
The ghost has been nicknamed Smiley, and he (all of us agree it is male) to the older homes. We haven't pinned a date down, but its clear he can't go to some places that are too new for his time, which explains a lot since I was two years old and had two teenage sisters when my parents moved into that home, but since their bedrooms were added onto the split level, he never affected them.

All of us who were haunted by Smiley also agree that he would have been worse if he could have somehow gained a corporeal form, and that we got a sexual vibe from his harassment.

A friend of my family's eventually interviewed me about this too with the intent of writing an article for an online magazine. May have been Fate. But he's also written a book since then, called The Book of Curiosities, which is about paranormal experiences. I haven't read it to know whether he talks about me or not, but if this sounds familiar then it may be because you've read a published form of my accounts.

So to swing it back around to beliefs, I definitely think a spirit like that is a deceased person, and not anything that has been eternally limited to a spiritual form. And I think it must be trapped somehow, bored, and its bored turned toward meanspiritedness because that's just unfortunately common among people to become sadistic when they have too much time on their hands.

I have one other very traditional ghost story of a dearly beloved friend, but I'll come back to that one later. Stuff to do!

[anunitu]

Re: Spirits

I always figure if anyone was gonna see spirits or ghosts it would be me living here in the senior housing..I mean we have like 10 deaths a year at a minimum here. Some here are in their 70's,maybe 75 for a few,and a few 80. Still never seen a ghost here,so go figure.

[iris]

Re: Spirits

When I was a kid I was scared of spirits. Now I'm pretty relaxed, I stay out of their way, thy stay out of mine - ish. Really, I think spirit is a broad term for all sorts of things. Energies, entities, who knows if there's a dead person here or there. Truth be told I don't care very much what they are/aren't. I have had plenty of experiences with 'spirits' of some sort in my life. But they're pretty harmless.
I had a friend growing up who was terrified of them. She didn't believe in them, but they still scared her to death. I took her to an outdoor museum of old houses and she kept seeing shadows. Didn't help that a goat decided to chase us.
Anyway. What role do they play in my world? They're there. Just like people on the street are there. I choose to leave them alone and in return expect the same. I don't think about it at all in my every day life, really. I have no reason to. But it's an interesting question

[Tiger Phoenix]

Re: Spirits

This being said, what are your beliefs about spirits? What role do they play in your world?
Please write as much as you possible, I'm really interested!

Without spirit magick loses all credibility. When I call upon the White Goddess I mean business. It makes me go in a deep trance. If a certain guru or master or inspirational source makes you go there, you must follow. Spirit is the source, an inspiration, the Awen...
/|\

[Rae'ya]

Re: Spirits

Please write as much as you possible, I'm really interested!

This is a very dangerous thing to say when I'm in the building, Gleb.

I didn't want to post this under one specific branch of faith since I wanted to hear different perspectives. This being said, what are your beliefs about spirits? What role do they play in your world?

It depends largely on what you mean by 'spirits'. As always, my beliefs about spirits are... complex lol. Generally speaking, I use the term 'spirit' to describe any self aware and individually existing entity that doesn't have a physical corporeal body in this plane of existence. I think there are different types of spirits...

Deities. I think that deities are spirits; and I think that they are all individual distinct spirits which exist in the Otherworlds. I think that what makes a spirit a 'deity' is their standing and power within their own realms and their ability to interface with our physical world.

Otherworld spirits. The different spirits that live in the Otherworlds, of which there are many. There are different 'races' or 'species' of spirits in the various Otherworlds, some of which are specific to certain areas (the Alfar, the Dvergr, the Sidhe etc) while others are a bit more international so to speak. You can interact with these spirits in the Otherworlds, but most aren't able to interact with you here without the aid of doorways (either created or natural).

Thisworld spirits. These are the various non corporeal spirits that live in this world. Some I class in their own category (like landwights) but others I kind of lump together here... huldrufolk, kobolds, bogarts, pixies, nissies, tomte etc etc. There are lots of different types, but these are the ones that you read about in local folklore. Some of them can be considered part of the housewight group, but some just inhabit a place. Some look after gardens and plants, some look after livestock, some will act as go between for you and the landwight or forest spirits. Some are helpful, some aren't, some are just mischievous. Maybe these were originally Otherworld spirits who decided to make the move to Thisworld, or maybe they were always here.

Land spirits. I class landvaettir (Old Norse for land wights) as the spirits of places. These are the spirits of the actual land under our feet, the mountain ranges, the forests, the lakes, the rivers, the oceans, the cities etc. They aren't the spirits that inhabit these things... they ARE these things. For example, a forest may have a number of spirits living in it, which may be called 'forest spirits', but the landspirit of the forest is the actual forest itself. I think that you need to be present with the landspirit in order to work with it. For example, I can work with the spirit of the Southern Mt Lofty Ranges, but I can't work with the spirit of say... Mount Everest unless I actually went there (physically or via astral travel).

Animal and plant spirits. I think that every living thing has a spirit, but that's not what I'm talking about here. I think that every species of thing has an overarching spirit identity, a 'grandparent spirit'. This is what we talk about when we talk about the Grey Wolf or Horse as a spirit guide (or 'totem', which is a term I dislike and don't personally use). It's not the spirit of an individual wolf or horse, but the grandparent spirit of the species. There's one for living thing... every species of plant, animal, fungus, bacteria etc has one that we can work with.

Disembodied spirits. These are the spirits that once inhabited a corporeal form, which has died and left them without a body. You could call them 'ghosts', but I'll talk about ghosts in a minute. I don't think that these are just human spirits... I've seen non human ghosts more frequently than I've seen human ones. I have a few disembodied spirits in my personal household, along with some that never had physical bodies.

Spirits of 'things'. These are the spirits that inhabit inanimate objects. I believe that inanimate objects that we use a lot can become imbued with a spirit. You can also call a spirit to inhabit an object... not a servitor, I class those as 'non-spirit entities'... but spirits who are willing to act as helpers or protectors. I believe that my car and my computer each have a spirit. I also have a few other objects in my house and toolkit which house spirits who act as my helpers in shamanic workings. I think a lot of cars, computers and smartphones have spirits in them. Weapons also commonly have spirits, though perhaps less commonly now than they once did.

Ancestors and spirit guides. I think there are certain spirits who act as guides and guardians to people. Some were human spirits who have taken on the role of Ancestor or guardian of the genetic line (disir, etc). Some are non human spirits who are attached to a particular person or family for whatever reason. I think that 'guardian angels' are actually this type of spirit rather than an actual angel (which is a specific 'species' of Otherworldly spirit).

Ghosts. Ghosts are tricky, because a lot of what people think are ghosts are actually not spirits at all, but are imprints or energetic loops. I do think that some ghosts are actual disembodied spirits who stick around for a while before moving on. They can choose to stay, or they can get stuck. A lot of 'hauntings' though are the energetic imprint of an emotionally charged event rather than an actual spirit. They form in places where large amounts of emotional energy (usually traumatic) were expended... which is why you'll see lots of 'ghosts' at places like old haunted mental institutions and jails, but not so much in old hospitals. Sometimes they are actual spirits who are hanging around the place where they died, but often it's an energy construct rather than an actual spirit. And easy way to tell the difference is if the ghost is interactive or not. Energy imprints are often reactive, but they are not interactive, and they are often stuck in a loop that replays over and over again. Disembodied spirits are usually interactive in one way or another (depending on how sensitive you are to them).

Astral nasties. Astral nasties are those leeches and opportunistic spirits that hang around waiting to latch onto you or slip through your ouija board doorway if you haven't put up proper protections. Most are fairly 'harmless' in the same way that tapeworms are 'harmless' to an otherwise healthy adult... they'll make you feel tired and worn out but wont actually cause you major lasting damage. Some can exacerbate mental illness and cause a type of possession though. These guys are why you should never do the whole 'I open myself up to any spirit who wants to talk' type thing... because they're generally the ones who will answer first, and some of them are aware enough to feed off your thoughts and lie convincingly (which is why certain 'demons' possess so many people... it's often not the Demon at all, but an astral nasty who has plucked that name out of your fearful thoughts). I don't know where they come from or what they originally were. Maybe they were always there. Maybe they are disembodied spirits who have lost their identity. Maybe they want to be an astral nasty. Maybe they are servitors that have been discarded and forgotten and so are now unaware leeches latching on to whatever energy source they can. I think all of these things are plausible.

[Gleb]

Re: Spirits

This is a very dangerous thing to say when I'm in the building, Gleb.

Lol bring it! You're always welcome.

Thanks everyone for the input! It really clarifies a lot to me. When it comes to ancestors - sometimes I have dreams with my ancestors with them. Mostly it's my grandparents. They meet me in different places according to whom they were in this world. They talk with me about different things. Of course these "meetings" don't last long.

Sometimes I hear my name being called. I turn around and see nobody. And I knew I heard my name clearly. I'm the only Gleb in the neighborhood. Perhaps it was something telepathical, maybe some kind of spirit, I dunno.
When it comes to animal and plant spirits, I heard of a superstition that this kind of spirits often haunt those who harmed them. For example obsessive hunting.

[Hickory67]

Re: Spirits

I'm not qualified to speak to the different types, but Rae'ya's post seems pretty comprehensive and makes a lot of sense.

That said, I work with my spirit guide daily. He's assisted me in all manner of things - when I've had mental or emotional episodes, he's been the voice of reason; as I'm doing divination, he confirms I'm on the right track or nudges me in the right direction as needed; and he answers questions I have on spiritual topics or, conversely, tells me if I'm asking too many questions and need to figure it out myself. If I want to gain knowledge or skills, he let's me know if the source I'm using is legit or a waste of my time.

[Thorbjorn]

Re: Spirits

What Rae'ya said.

[DavidMcCann]

Re: Spirits

In a general sense, I'd say a spirit is the same as a mind, or sentient and rational soul. There are:

1. Deities.

2. Daimones, as we Hellenics call them. Some are beings who have never been embodied: a bit like gods, only a lot more limited. Others are attached to the environment, like river gods and mountain nymphs.

3. Heroes. Deceased humans who have achieved a spiritual status which makes them function as gods or daimones. An example would be Asklepios, who became the god of health.

4. Ancestral spirits, who are only of importance to their families.

5. Various entities which seem to be border-line material and certainly sentient, like fairies.

6. Embodied spirits - like me!

[B. de Corbin]

Re: Spirits

In Alchemy, the "spirit" is the part that thinks, or that inspires the thoughts of others. All things that think have a spirit, all things that are thought about have a spirit.

To keep things clear in my mind, some of the other thingies people have refereed to as spirits I just call "thingies," because I really don't know what they are. If I think about them, they have a spirit - but that doesn't mean they are spirits, anymore than I am a spirit...

[Louisvillian]

Re: Spirits

I didn't want to post this under one specific branch of faith since I wanted to hear different perspectives. This being said, what are your beliefs about spirits? What role do they play in your world?

I've much more clear beliefs about spirits than I do about the gods. I interact with both, but I've "seen" and "felt" spirits in a more concrete manner. I've hard more direct experience of them. And I believe that there are a huge variety of spirits with which we can, and do, interact with. Some are bound to a location, some to an idea, some to a person. Sometimes it's a type of location, like a river or a forest or a building. Sometimes it's a human-generated idea, sometimes it's merely a human interpretation of some objective natural phenomenon. Sometimes they're bound to a person, or a group of persons like a family or association or even a unit in the armed forces. Some of them are dead people's souls. Some generate spontaneously from the natural world. Some are generated by an accretion of human thoughts about the subject to which they are relevant. Some spirits are immortal, some can dissipate and fade away.

Herbert's phrasing, on post #3, is a rather succinct statement: they are a coherent mass of spiritual energy, magic, essence, et al. Coherent enough to usually have an intelligence or a will, and some form of personal characteristics. In some ways, the distinction between a spirit and a god is merely one of degrees. But in another sense, to me at least, I feel that the gods are categorically deathless, whereas spirits aren't necessarily.

[MourningStar1719]

Re: Spirits

Spitits are, in my opinion, the remants f the deceased. They are people too. Just like the living, they could have either good or bad intentions. You have to be careful and very catious as to which ones you trust and which ones you don't. There are many I trust, but a fair number of those I don't. Spirits, like some people, can also be vengeful. I have a man i killed in a previous life time trying to kill me now, but I have many spiritual friends on my side, helping me carry on. My guardian won't have his crap and the vengeful one doesn't like that. Many spirits can make good friends, though. The older they are the nicer they are... so it seems :3