building

There are 60 posts tagged building (this is page 3 of 10).

How to Catch Ghosts at Home

ghost houseHow do you explore your own home when you think you might have paranormal, ghostly activity? What really works to find ghosts and protect yourself from them, before or after they have been found?

Do you have a ghost in your home, or are they just routine settling sort of noises?

So much of the paranormal ghost behaviour can be explained as something else. I don’t know how paranormal investigators who ghost hunt ever hope to find something that will be final and definitive proof of ghosts. It’s an uphill battle. Sceptics will bring out a list of very practical sounding explanations for any noise, shadow or movement in a building. Finding a possible unparanormal explanation is much simpler than proving there actually is something unexplained, something paranormal.

Don’t spend a lot of money on people who claim to know ghosts, spirits or all about hauntings. It’s too easy for someone to be conning home owners with something like this. There is far too much unknown for anyone to guarantee or promise any kind of service when it comes to the paranormal. People may offer to help you, but be extra cynical if the start talking about money.

There are real ghost hunters, there are real psychics but (in my opinion) there are no experts. We are all amateurs when it comes to dealing with the paranormal and the unexplained.

You can do it yourself when it comes to ghost hunting in your home.

One traditional Pagan element you can buy fairly cheap and have a large quantity of is salt. Pagans use salt to purify their tools Salt heals wounds by drying them out and pulling the edges together. Salt is still used to preserve food by drying it out and preventing it from rotting.

If you are concerned about paranormal activity in your home begin by sprinkling salt around the perimeter. A circle of salt around the edges of your property or the outside of your apartment door, depending on where and what you live in. (Salt is not going to be a good thing for your lawn and garden – try to stick to pavement as much as you can).

Use dried sage and clear your home or room of negative energies. Burn the sage in a dish, something which will allow it to burn and smoke but prevent the fire from catching in your home. The smell may bother you, so crack a few windows.

Talk to your ghost(s). Speak politely, calmly and yet be firm. Ask the ghost to leave your home. Remind the ghost that they are no longer alive in the current world. You could carry on a monologue explaining your reasons for asking them to leave, apologizing for not letting them stay, and so on. Be respectful and don’t get upset or excited.

Try to Photograph a Ghost

Write down the time, date and local weather conditions. Take time to observe the area for anything routine which could cause shadows or flickers of light.

Explain your plan to any ghost you hope will co-operate for a photo. Ask them to be available.

Keep a running journal as you take your photos. Make a note of which room you were in, where you were standing, the time and the temperature of the room or anything unusual like sounds or light/ shadows. Make a note about any feelings you had as you took the photo.

Check your photos carefully when you load them onto your computer. Something small could be in the background, reflected in a mirror or window or camouflaged by the surroundings.

Helpful Links

How to Find a Real Haunted House

There are haunted house attractions around Halloween. There are old houses which people claim to be haunted and run tours in them. But, how do you find a real haunted house?

Start by just searching online for local ghost hunters, paranormal researchers, paranormal societies, and anyone offering tours of your city or town. You might find a local ghost walk or haunted tour, if your town or city is big enough to have some tourist businesses.

The local museum and library will also know about houses in your area which have a history of ghosts and hauntings.

Look for online networks with people who photograph old houses, haunted houses or historical places. You can find a haunted house by networking with other people who are exploring, looking for the same things you are. (Urban exploration is a good way to find abandoned and/ or real haunted houses).

How to Stay in a Haunted House

First, decide if you really do want to do this. If you tend to easily freak yourself out, this probably isn’t a good idea for you. It’s too easy to convince yourself there is a ghost, either because you want there to be ghost or you just enjoy scaring yourself in some way.

Don’t go alone. For one thing, you will appreciate having a witness if you do find ghosts or something haunted. It’s also great to have a second opinion about everything you see. Not everything is a ghost just because you don’t know how to explain it.

Bring all the gear you need to navigate around. If you go at night, traditional but less sensible, bring a flash light.

Don’t forget to enjoy yourself.

You may get a spooky feeling, but isn’t that what you were looking for? Don’t forget the objective. If you’re frightened, calm down. Become more analytical than emotional. Think of yourself as a scientist.

Keep notes about what you see, feel and hear. Take along a digital camera.

Make plans for doing something afterwards. Get a coffee along the way home. Give yourself a time and place to wind down.

How do Places Become Haunted?

There are places you would expect to draw ghosts, or keep them. Places like hotels, hospitals and prisons, where tragedies, dramas and big, life changing events and crowds of people hustling and bustling through – those are the places you would think to find a few ghosts haunting the building and the grounds.

Yet, some common, every day and random places can be haunted, or have people who have seen something, felt something or reacted to something.

People leave an impact on a place, even long after they are gone and no one quite remembers what happened or who it happened to any more. That energy sticks to a place. Like walking into a room when people have been arguing, you can feel the charged atmosphere and the sudden drop when things go silent.

I think this is what haunts a place, the charge of energy and the sudden drop. It’s as if all that energies charged up, was never grounded or allowed to ease off and dissipate Instead it was frozen in place, as it waiting for something else to happen to let it release the charge.

Each place has it’s own story and it’s own mood. Just as no two people are the same, no two haunted places will be quite the same either. If you find a place you think is haunted find out what you can of the history of the place and it’s people. Don’t let what you discover bias you as you explore, however. You might only find just what you expect to find that way and completely miss something really unexpected and unusual.

Links to Get Started With

 

old house

Missing Buildings

I often get a haunted feeling when I notice these ghosts left on the side of a building from one which was there but demolished now. I was happy to see someone else thinking about them and even getting a collection of photos. These come from London, UK. How many have you seen in your own area? Did you ever stop and get a photo? Or, see what you can find out about the building no longer there?
Source: London’s ‘Missing Buildings’ by Thom And Beth Atkinson | Amusing Planet

Urban Exploration Ethics and Standards

I haven’t written a well thought out list for myself. Mainly I already know what crosses the line for me and the rest I decide at the time as things change. I seldom enter a building. That feels a bit too law breaking for me. Not very safe either.

I stick closely to “leave only footprints – take only photographs”. I’ve never vandalized a site, including leaving litter or moving anything to pose it for my photograph. In that way I think photographing derelict places should be like a game of golf – play it where it lies.

urbexstandards

Source: Urban Adventure Org