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We hope that this glossary can help you further understanding many of the terms associated with the paranormal; on this website or anywhere else you may come across them. It can be used as a form of reference for our readers or someone who has had an experience. We will continually add to it as time goes by.
Karma
In Indian philosophy, the influence of an
individual's past actions on his future lives or reincarnations. It is based on
the conviction that the present life is only one in a chain of lives. The
accumulated moral energy of a person's life, good or bad, determines his or her
character, class status, and disposition in the next life. The process is
automatic, and no interference by the gods is possible.
Kindred Spirit
An individual with the same beliefs, attitudes or feelings as oneself.
Kinetic Energy
Is the energy expended to put a dormant object in motion. Once an object is in motion it possesses kinetic energy.
Kirilian Photography
High-voltage, high frequency photography used to
photograph the aura or ‘bioenergetic emissions’ of parts of the body or even
plants, as in the much-published photograph demonstrating that a leaf continues
to emit a pattern of leaf-shaped light even though part of the leaf has been cut
away. In 1979 the technique was popularized in the West as a diagnostic tool by
parapsychologist and author Thelma Moss (The Body Electric). However, the
interpretation of the ‘corona-discharge image’ has been the subject of a good
deal of controversy, which does not stop it attracting long lines at psychic
events.
Laying on of Hands
A form of healing practice that involves the healer
placing his or her hands near the body of a sick person.
Levitation
The phenomenon or ability of a person or thing to
rise into the air and float in apparent defiance of gravity by apparently
supernatural means.
Ley Lines
Ley lines, or Leys, are alignments of
ancient sites stretching across the landscape. Ancient sites or holy places may
be situated in a straight line ranging from two to several miles in length. A
ley may be identified simply by an aligned placing of marker sites, or it might
be visible on the ground for all or part of its length by the remnants of an old
straight track. Were 're-discovered' by a man called Alfred Watkins (1855-1935),
on the 30th of June 1921.
Light Anomaly / Orbs
A spherical ball of light, often white, yellow,
green or blue, caught on video or camera. Orbs are often associated with spirit
activity. However, they are a source of great controversy amongst paranormal
researchers, as they are often caused naturally by light reflecting off of dust,
lint, moisture, pollen, or other reflective material.
Lily Dale
One of the oldest camp organizations of American
Spiritualism. It was established in 1880 as the Cassadaga Free Lake Association
situated in beautiful countryside in the Chautauqua hills, scarcely two hours
drive from the city of Buffalo. In 1906 the site was renamed Lily Dale. For many
years it became a focal point for world famous lecturers and mediums, including
its share of fraudulent mediums, demonstrating every variety of phenomena.
Loch Ness Monster
Reports of a mysterious creature in Loch Ness, Scotland go back to around the 6th century, but the legend of the Loch Ness Monster, nicknamed "Nessie," got a boost in the early 1930s with several reported sightings and alleged photographic evidence. In 1934 an English surgeon named R. Kenneth Wilson took what is perhaps the most famous photo (sometimes called the "Surgeon's Photo"), supposedly showing a head and neck above the water and indicating a very large creature. Since then there have been thousands of reported sightings and countless attempts to find and photograph the "monster," despite repeated assurances by scientists that no such creature exists.
Lost Time
Occurs when a person
becomes aware that it is later than his or her memory of events indicates "it
should be". For example, a person taking a drive that normally takes one hour,
and seemingly did, arrives at the destination three hours after starting. It is
often reported in alien abduction cases and is presented as evidence of such
with one being returned to earth after a period of time has elapsed.
Lucid Dreams
Preferred modern term for "dreaming true," indicating the experience of dreaming with the awareness that one is dreaming. The condition is often associated with out-of-the-body travel, as it often happens that some incongruity in a dream stimulates the dreamer to conclude "Why, I must be dreaming!" and this awareness sometimes precedes an out-of-the-body event.
Lycanthropy
In folklore, the change of a human into the appearance and characteristics of an animal. Ancient belief in lycanthropy were widespread, and still exist in parts of the world. Certain African tribes have their “leopardmen” and the like, and literatures all over the world have tales of men changing to animals. One of the most widely held of these superstitions is the belief in the werewolf (a person who either willingly or unwillingly changes into a wolf, eats human flesh or drinks human blood, then returns to his natural form).
Magic
Use of means (such as charms or spells) believed to have supernatural power over natural forces. It constitutes the core of many religious systems and plays a central social role in many non-literate cultures. Magic is often distinguished from religion as being more impersonal and mechanical and emphasizing technique.
Magic Circle
An important part of ceremonial magic was the drawing of a magic circle around the magician to protect him from the malice of evil spirits that he might invoke to perform his will. The circle was symbolic of a sphere that was believed to surround the magician. It both isolated him from the chaos outside and held in the magical power that he raised.
Magnetometer
A device used to measure the intensity and direction of a magnetic field. Magnetometers may be classified as either scalar or vector instruments. A scalar magnetometer measures the strength of the total magnetic field, whereas a vector magnetometer measures one or more vector components of the magnetic field.
Majestic 12
A secret US government group allegedly formed following The Roswell Incident to consider issues involving UFOs and ETs.
Malevolent Spirits
Spirit entities capable of performing evil or malicious acts against humans.
Mass Hysteria
Uncontrollable fear or other psychological agitation experienced simultaneously by a group of people. Mass hysteria is often used to explain paranormal phenomena experienced simultaneously my multiple people.
Matrixing
The tendency of the human mind to take complex sensory inputs (most often sight but also smell, touch, taste and sound) and interpret them into something more familiar. For instance, recognizing shapes in clouds is an example of matrixing.
Meditation
Meditation is a practice of concentrated focus upon a sound, object, visualization, the breath, movement, or attention itself in order to increase awareness of the present moment, reduce stress, promote relaxation, and enhance personal and spiritual growth.
Medium
An individual qualified in some special manner to form a link between the living and the dead. The essential qualification of a medium is a unique sensitiveness that enables the medium to be readily "controlled" by spirits. Mediums thus stand in contrast to sensitives or psychics, terms applicable to psychically gifted individuals who are not controlled by spirits of the dead.
Men in Black (MIB)
The mysterious and sinister visitors who are
supposed to have silenced flying saucer investigator Albert K. Bender, as
described in the book They Knew Too Much about Flying Saucers
by Gray Barker (1956). They have since become part of flying saucer mythology,
with claimed visitations to other UFO investigators and contactees. Some
investigators preferred to believe that they were government officials, possibly
from the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), determined to suppress information
on the reality of UFOs. For most, the Men in Black myth became but a form in
which paranoid fears could be expressed within the UFO community.
Misperception
An experience where an object is misinterpreted by your senses. It is thought to be one of the commonest natural explanations for apparent paranormal phenomena
Mist
A wispy, fog or smoke-like substance (literally a
mist!) that appears in some photographs, that is often associated with
paranormal activity, including the manifestation of entities. Like orbs, mists
are often caused by natural phenomena and photographic errors, and are often
refuted as evidence.
Mothman
Winged humanoid creature reported in West Virginia from November 1966 to December 1967, along with strange lights, apparitions of men in black, and other occult phenomena supposedly connected with UFOs. These phenomena culminated on December 15, 1967, with the collapse of the Silver Bridge across the Ohio River at Point Pleasant. The name "Mothman" was the inspiration of a newspaper editor, who derived it from the Batman comic book hero, then the subject of a popular television series.
MUFON (Mutual UFO Network)
One of the largest and most influential UFO investigation organizations. MUFON was founded as the Midwest UFO Network in 1969 at Quincy, Illinois, by Walter H. Andrus, Jr., formerly a member of the Aerial Phenomena Research Organization. In 1975 Andrus moved the headquarters to Texas, where it is currently headquartered.
Mysticism
The practice of putting oneself into, and remaining in, direct relation with God, the Absolute, or any unifying principle of life. Mysticism is inseparably linked with religion.
Nasca Lines
Are lines which were constructed in southwestern
Peru by the Nasca culture around 1,500 - 2000 years ago. The lines depict
a number of mammals and birds including: a monkey, hummingbird, and a man.
There are also many other geometric figures called 'geoglyphs' which include,
spirals and zigzags. The lines were made by etching the surface of the
dessert by the removal of surface pebbles to reveal the much lighter sand
beneath. Some experts have suggested that the figures served a ceremonial or
religious function, others suggested the lines may be some form of astronomical
calendar. However, recently, a team from UMass (The University of
Massachusetts), after performing some scientific tests, have begun to theorize
that some of the lines at least mark the location of underground water.
Near Death Experience
This phenomenon is usually experienced when someone is really close to death. Often persons who have experienced a near death experience report a feeling of having left their physical body, moving through a darkness or tunnel, encountering the presences of deceased loved ones, and sometimes other entities which have been likened to both God and the Devil. Often an all embracing and describable light or menacing darkness is reported. On the whole most persons report that a near death experience is quite joyful, although there have been some reports to the contrary. Some experience the feeling of looking at their body as they hover over it. In certain cases people can report in detail what was going on around them while they were classed as dead.
Necromancy
The practice of supposedly communicating with the
spirits of the dead in order to predict the future. However, since the
Renaissance, necromancy has come to be associated more broadly with black magic
and demon-summoning in general, sometimes losing its earlier, more specialized
meaning.
New Age
A term popularized in the 1980s to describe a wide-ranging set of beliefs and practices that are an outgrowth of the counterculture of the 1960s and 70s in the United States. Adherents of the New Age movement believe that a spiritual era is dawning in which individuals and society will be transformed. The movement encompasses a wide range of ideas, including personal spiritual growth and self-realization, holistic medicine (including the use of crystals for healing), reincarnation, astrology, and the mystical energies said to be induced by pyramids.
NICAP
The National Investigations Committee On Aerial
Phenomena (or NICAP) was a civilian unidentified flying object research group
active in the United States from the 1950s to the 1980s. Though NICAP was a
non-profit organization, the group faced collapse many times in its existence,
due in no small part to financial ineptitude among the group’s directors. Only
for a few years in the 1960’s when the organization's membership spiked
dramatically was NICAP on firm financial ground.
Night Shot
The setting on hand-held video cameras that activates a built in infra-red illuminator to allow visibility in low-light or no-light environments. Typically used by paranormal investigators for night viewing.
Night Terrors
These are surmised to be caused by incomplete arousal from slow-wave sleep. Images that flit through the brain can be interpreted as terrifying events and objects, which may have given rise to the phenomenon of bedroom visitors such as incubi and succubi, or the ‘Old Hag’ figure, and also the feeling that someone is sitting on the end of the bed. This can be linked to the condition of sleep paralysis, in which the incompletely awake experiencer is aware of their surroundings, while other sensations from the dream world still impinge on them, and they are unable to move their body until the condition wears off and full consciousness returns.
Non-Human Spirit
A spirit that did not exist in human form in any time spent on Earth. These spirits can come in the form of angels or demons. Malevolent non-human (or inhuman) spirits are considered potentially harmful and dangerous.
Nostradamus
Nostradamus was a French physician and astrologer
who dabbled in prophecy. His volume Centuries, a big set of vague and often
cataclysmic predictions set in quatrains, made quite a sensation in his day.
(Charles IX even made him court physician.) A few people continue to believe
that Nostradamus really could predict events of the future, from the rise of
Adolf Hitler to the assassination of John F. Kennedy and the attacks on the
Pentagon and the World Trade Center in September of 2001. In truth, there is no
real proof that Nostradamus could accurately predict the future, and many of the
circulating "predictions" attributed to Nostradamus were not even written by him
at all.
Numerology
Use of numbers to interpret a person's character or
divine the future. It is based on the assertion by Pythagoras that all things
can be expressed in numerical terms because they are ultimately reducible to
numbers. Using a method analogous to that of the Greek and Hebrew alphabets (in
which each letter also represented a number), modern numerology attaches a
series of digits to an inquirer's name and uses these, along with the date of
birth, to reveal the person's true nature and prospects.
Occam's Razor
A
principal of always preferring the simplest explanation of events to any other.
The principal of Occam's razor is attributed to William of Occam, although there
were philosophers before him that had previously employed its use. The principal
states: "a person should not increase, beyond what is necessary, the number of
entities required to explain anything, or that the person should not make more
assumptions than the minimum needed. This principle is often called the
principle of parsimony."
Occult
This is something that either deals with or relates to supernatural influences or phenomena. It is can be something that is only available to those persons that have been initiated and it is usually something that is hidden away or concealed. Often it is something that lies beyond the realm of human comprehension and is inscrutable and mysterious. When thinking of the occult it tends to conjure up images of priests hidden away practicing some form of black art or black magic. The occult is definitely synonymous with the supernatural, mysterious and mystical.
OOBE (Out of Body Experience)
Probably one of the most reported and documented forms of astral projection. It is thought to be when a person's consciousness leaves the physical body. Out of body experiences are often associated with accidents or anesthesia. An example of this is the case where a patient on an operating table will report being able to see and hear the entire operation including the surgeons, from a vantage point above the table. Here the consciousness is said to have left the physical body, but will remain close.
Orb
A photographed anomaly that theoretically represents the “spirit” of a deceased person. It will appear as a ball of light on film though is some cases; they are not seen at the time of the photo. Since there are many reasonable circumstances (dust, snow, rain, insects, reflection, lens flare, etc.) orbs still remain a highly controversial subject.
Ouija Board
Refers to a flat surface with letters, numbers or
phrases used to communicate with paranormal entities. An object such as a glass
or wooden pointer ( planchette ) is placed on the board during a Ouija session.
It took its name from the French and German words for ‘yes’. Two or more people
then typically place one finger on top of the planchette, and as questions to
any "paranormal" entities that may wish to communicate with them. The planchette
allegedly moves via paranormal intervention in response to the questions asked
by the living participants. Many paranormal researchers and spiritualists advise
against the use of Ouija boards, claiming that it invites unwanted (even
dangerous) entities into the realm of the living. However, skeptics argue that
the movement of the planchette is simply the result of subconscious movements by
the participants.
Old Hag Syndrome
The Old Hag often crops up as one of the expressions of Night Terrors, that feeling that something heavy is sitting on you while you’re lying in bed, paralyzing you. The Old Hag as an archetype represents the Crone, the third stage in the life of a woman after Maiden and Mother, the third aspect of the Triple Goddess of ancient belief. As she is the closest to death, she has become more feared than the others, although she is also closest to the renewal that follows death. Although age makes her wise, she has been turned into the wicked witch of fairytale in patriarchal societies and could do with an image makeover to restore the positive side of her symbolism.