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GLOSSARY OF PARANORMAL TERMS

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Active - A term used to describe when solar x-ray flux is active.

Agent - The ghost seen by a human observer.

Afterlife - The next stage of progression, existence, and growth for a disembodied soul after death.

Ambient Temperature -  The natural surrounding air temperature.

Animal Spirit - The visible, audible, olfactory, or tactile electrostatic energies of once living animals.

Anniversary Imprint - A spirit or haunting that seems most active during a specific calendar period (day, week, month, etc.). This date may coincide with known dates of a death or other eventful emotional discharges associated with dead entities during their human lifetimes.

Anomaly - Any paranormal experience or event documented through photography that once captured on film cannot be explained by normal means or standards.

APA - American Parapsychology Association

Apparition - Any visible, manifested spirit seen after death. This may take many forms, the rarest being a full body apparition.

Apport - A material (solid) object that inexplicably disappears.

Asport - A material (solid) object that inexplicably reappears.

Astral Body - The ethereal duplicate of the physical body.

Astral Plane - The Earth's body double which vibrates faster than the physical planet and penetrates to its core.

Astral Projection - The ability of the astral body to separate from the physical body and to act independently of it.

Astral Travel - The same as astral projection.

Auditory - Of or relating to the sense organs or the experience of hearing. 

Aura - The invisible and colorful energy field surrounding the outer bodies of all living things.

Aura Cleansing - A metaphysical ritual that clears an aura of all negative energies which may attract negative spirits.

Automatic Writing - Unconscious writing produced by a person channeling spirit energies and allowing them to possess their body for a brief period of time in order to communicate.

BAEP - Brain stem auditory evoked potentials testing used to look for anomalies in the human upper brainstem. Auditory clicking sounds are fed into the ears to analyze how the auditory nerve responds. The test has been used for PK research to determine if people exhibiting electrical abnormalities in the pons area of the brain stem are utilizing electrical impulses to move stationary objects.

Banshee - Known from Scotland and Ireland (bean sidhe) as a wailing woman whose voice at the windowsill of a house foretells of danger or death.

Barghest - A large black dog apparition considered a harbinger of doom.

Bilocation - The ability of a person or spirit to appear to be in two places at the same time. Especially during  incidents of astral projection.

Body Double - What parapsychologists call the soul.

Bugaboo - A trickster or prankster ghost.

Bugbear - A terrifying bear apparition that eats children.

"C" Class Flare - A term used to describe when  solar x-rays of the common variety  are active.

Canwll Corfe - Welsh term for mysterious flame-like lights bobbing over the ground or above houses. A harbinger of death.

Chakra - In Yoga, this is a term for one of seven spiritual energy centers in the human body.

Channeler - A person who "channels" spirit energy through themselves in an attempt to communicate with the dead. A medium.

Chi - Asian term for "Life Force".

Clairaudient - The psychic ability to hear spirit communications or noises beyond the normal range of human perception.

Clairsentient - The psychic ability to feel tactile sensations of spirit presence beyond the normal range of human perception.

Clairvoyant - A person with the unexplained ability of knowing about people, things, places or events before they appear or happen. Future sight or knowledge.

Clanogrian - An English  spirit in the form of a  glowing light which indicates the coming of a death. 

Cold Spot - An unexplainable, cold area in an environment with an otherwise warm, stable, and natural temperature gradient and associated with other paranormal phenomena. 

Collective Apparition - An apparition seen by more than one person.

Compass - A device  having a magnetic needle aligned with the magnetic field of the earth and   used  to determine geographic location. Sometimes used  as an EMF device.

Corposant - A Corpse Light.

Corpse Candles - Welsh glowing balls of light.

Corpse Light - A white, red, or blue  phosphorescent ball of    light which is a harbinger    of death seen over bogs and marshes. Blue indicates the death of   an infant.   Large lights mean the death of an  adult.

CSICOP - Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims for the Paranormal. An investigative group who debunks claims of psychic phenomena.

Demon - An evil, nonhuman entity or spirit often determined to torment human beings.

Detecto Card - An EMF sensitive badge worn  during paranormal investigations to warn of exposure to unusually   high energy levels.

Digital Audio Recorder - A tape recorder that   doesn't use micro cassette tapes. Used for capturing EVPs and downloadable into a computer.

Digital Camera - A  camera without film. Instead an electronic memory card   and a photo-sensitive pixel   screen records natural and infrared light images. These photos    can be  down- loaded into a computer.

Digital Thermometer - A device that sends out an infrared beam, bounces it back off a reflected surface, then digitally displays the temperature of the reflecting object.

Digital Video - A film less video camera that records images which can be down-loaded directly into a computer.

Dimensional Discontinuity - A parallel universe out-of-phase with the one we live in. When this universe aligns with ours, gateways may form which could be portals for spirits.

Doppelganger - A body double spirit who is identical to a still living person.

Dowsing - Using a dowsing rod (divining rod) to locate water, minerals, or spirit energies.

Dowsing Rods - A pair of metal rods used to locate spirit energies through psychic abilities. Often considered more reliable than EMF devices.

Dream Communication - A method by which recently passed spirits may communicate with their surviving loved ones. Through such dreams, spirits relay their goodbyes, important messages, or other concerns.

Dybbuk - A Jewish ghost that takes possession of people.

Earthbound Souls - Human spirits that chose to remain on an earthly plain rather than move forward into the Light or other dimensions.

Ecto - Short name for ectoplasm.

Ectoplasm - Spirit energy appearing in the form of a wispy white vapor, fog or mist containing swirls, contrails, or streaks. This may manifest as cloud-like masses, contrails left behind from fast-moving orbs, vortices, and as apparitions. Appears to the naked eye or later on developed film. 

Electromagnetic Field - The field of force   associated with electric charge in motion. Both electric and magnetic components are contained within this field. Spirit energies generate electrostatic fields contained in the electromagnetic spectrum of energies.

Electromagnetic Field Detector - A calibrated device which registers changes in electromagnetic energy fields associated  with spirit energies.

Electromagnetism - Magnetism arising from electric charge in motion.

Electronic Voice Phenomena - This occurs when an originally inaudible spirit voice communicating with humans is recorded and becomes audible when played back on an audio recorder.

Electrostatic Energy - Of or relating to stationary electric charges. A component of spirit  energies.

Elf Lights - Corpse  Lights.

EMF- electromagnetic field

Entity - A human, animal, or nonhuman spirit.

Epicenter - A focal point or origin of activity. Used in relation to poltergeist phenomena where a single person, unconsciously projecting strong negative energies, may be creating the poltergeist activity through psychokinesis.

ESP- extrasensory perception

Etheric Body - The elastic and mass less electromagnetic body double energy of a living thing.

EVP- electronic voice phenomena 

Exorcism - A religious ceremony used to expel evil spirits or demons.

Exorcist - A person who expels an evil spirit or demon.

Extrasensory Perception -  Perceptions coming from other than the normal senses and originating by supernatural means.

False Anomalies - Any unexplained phenomena captured by instrumentation or film that appears to be a true paranormal manifestation but which, in fact, can be readily explained by natural, environmental conditions.

Fetch-Candles - Glowing flames or balls of light over houses or marsh lands and foretelling of a death. 

Fetch Lights - Corpse Lights.

First Quarter - One-half of the moon appears illuminated by direct sunlight and is increasing.

Fool's Fire - Ball-shaped lights seen over bogs and water meadows.

Fox Fire - Corpse Light.

Frames - Individual photos on a film negative strip.

Full Moon - The moon's illuminated side faces earth and appears as a fully-lighted disk. May be a time for higher occurrences of paranormal activity.

Gauss  - A scientific measurement denoting magnetic energy strength.

Gauss Meter - An EMF measuring device.

Geometric Field Status Monitor - The scientific monitoring of the geomagnetic fields around the earth.

Ghost - Originally derived form the Flemish "gheest". This is a human, animal, or nonhuman essence, soul, or spirit which survives after death.

Ghostbuster - Slang for ghost hunter or a person who removes spirit energies from a specific locale.

Ghost Hunter - A person who actively searches for ghosts, spirits, apparitions or other paranormal phenomena in order to study or identify them.

Ghost Hunting Kit - The tools, instruments, and paraphernalia associated with a paranormal investigation.

Ghost Lights - Floating spectral lights resembling flames or balls. 

Ghost Ship - Any ocean-going vessel that suddenly appears than inexplicably disappears. 

Ghost Vehicle - A land vehicles that suddenly appears than suddenly disappears in the blink of an eye. Ghost cars and ghost trains are often seen and heard speeding past before evaporating into thin air.

Gibbous - The lunar phase when the moon is more than half dark, but  less than fully illuminated.

Globes - Orbs.

Globules - Another word for orbs.

Goblin - A malevolent trickster spirit.

Ghoul  - An Arabic demon that haunts burial grounds.

Gray Lady - A female ghost who awaits the appearance or return of her long lost lover.

Guardian - Spirits who return to warn family members of imminent danger. These may be deceased relatives who offer messages or aid during moments of distress to their loved ones.

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