Glossary A-G
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There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio,
Than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
- William Shakespeare, "Hamlet", Act 1 scene 5

A - G
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N - S
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T - Z
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Terms and Definitions

Angel	A supernatural being who mediates between God and mortals. Sometimes they manifest as apparitions in brilliant white robes, as balls or mists of brilliant white light. Some people consider the appearance of a Spirit, such as a family member to be an Angel if the version serves to warn, comfort or protect them.
Apparition	Refers to a visual sighting of an entity. Reports of apparitions describe them ranging from somewhat solid to solid and not touching the ground. They may present as whole or partial person, the later is more common. Sometimes they will appear young then old, with different types of clothing. A living person does not need to be considered psychic in order to see an apparition. Types of apparitions: Apparition (general sense) Also called ghosts, spirits, spooks or specters. Common examples include the infamous Lady in White, the hitchhiker near the cemetery that vanishes, or soldiers on a battle field marching to action or partaking in the battle. Crisis Apparition Appear to the loved one, family member or good friend to communicate to that person that they are dying or have died. Crisis Apparitions can appear both when a person is awake or in their dreams while asleep. Deathbed Apparitions The opposite of a Crises Apparition has an angelic beings, religious figures or a loved one who has already died appearing to those shortly before death.
Automatic Writing	Is a type of Channeling where the Medium allows a ghost or other being to use their hand in order to write the messages or answers to specific questions on paper.
Banishing	A less formal procedure to remove an entity or presence or influence from a location. See also: Cleansing, Exorcism.
Corporeal	Having a physical body. Also: Corporal. Antonym: Incorporeal.
Channel or Channeling	A form of communication in which a person allows himself to be taken partially or fully over by an being or to receive messages from nonphysical entity while in a trance, such as Angels, nature spirits, totems, guides of higher intelligence, as well as the dead. This is a voluntary process on the part of the Channel and not to be confused with an involuntary possession. It should be noted that all Mediums are Channels but not all Channels are Mediums.
Clair...	Clair is French for "clear." It is used before other words to imply "clear reception of information" from incorporeal sources or events from other periods of time. The second part of the word is believed to be from the 17^th century French, one for each of the physical senses. This is a fancy way of describing the way psychic information is received. Below is a list of clairs in order of most commonly expressed: Clairvoyance (clairvoyant) the gift of seeing. A person receives psychic information in the form of pictures, visions, or moving images. Humans are largely visual creatures so this is the most common way of perceiving or expressing information received. Clairaudience (clairaudient) the gift of hearing. A person receives psychic information in the form of sound or thoughts. This does not imply Telepathy. Simply that the information is revealed between the ears or is heard as an actual external sound not heard by others present. Clairsentience (clairsentient) the gift of feeling. A person receives psychic information in the form of bodily sensations or physical feeling. This is the second of the more misused terms. Below are some samples of what clairsentient person may feel and what it may imply: pain in the chest to indicate information about a person's health or method of passing when communicating with ghosts could indicate: heart attack, respiratory aliment, gun shot or stabbing depending on the type of sensation and any other information received. Tugging, pulling or pushing to indicate a direction to move. Pressure or tingling to indicate the presence of entity (ghost, spirit, angel); a living person's energy or vibration; the energy or "chi" / "qi" flowing about the room in relation to Feng Shui. Clairalience (clairalient) the gift of smell. A person receives information in the form of orders (some pleasant, some not). For example the smell of cigarette smoke, flowers, or rotting flesh. Clairgustance (clairgustant) the gift of taste. A person receives information in the form of tastes. They may taste warm, fresh baked bread in an old farmhouse kitchen that hasn't been used in years or chocolate chip cookies in the presence of someone's deceased mother during a reading. Claircognizance (claircognizant) the gift of knowing. Technically this should be the term used to generalize reception of information instead of clairvoyant or clairsentient. It doesn't refer specifically to any of the senses but when asked how someone received a piece of information, they will simply state "I just know." In reality this is not fully accurate statement and indicates a psychic novice no matter how long they've been receiving information. These are people who operate simply and do not or have not yet attempted to understand their ability further. These terms are also falling from use, except for clairvoyant and clairsentience. However it should be noted that the vast majority of the time they are misused or used by those attempting to sound more important and on occasion additional clairs have been invented. An example of misuse was the following phrase that occurred on a mass-market web site listing psychics: "I'm not psychic I'm claireverything."
Cleansing	The removal of old or unwanted energies surrounding and object, person or place. Usually done by smudging. See also: Banishing, Exorcism.
Crypt NEW ^[2]	An chamber underground (usually beneath a church) used for burials. Originally from the Greek krypte the feminine of kryptos meaning “hidden” which comes from kryptein “to hide.”^[1]
Dark Force Entity (DFE)	A generic term that includes all the dark and malicious entities that can exist or be encountered without regard to religious impact such as: devils, demons, malicious ghosts (i.e. the ghosts of murderers, cruel individuals, or individuals who were mentally troubled while alive).
Demon / Devil	An evil being with religious overtones bent on causing more major trouble, harm or influencing someone to do such acts.
Divining or Dowsing Rods	A forked branch or stick in a shape of an "Y" or a pair metal rods usually in the shape of an "L" held in the hands that is believed to locate water, ghosts, portals, vortexes or ley lines.
Earth Energy	The less the tangible and oft debated energies that exist in or are generated by the Earth itself, such as Ley Lines or Vortexes, but does not include Portals. It also be the stabilizing energy used during grounding meditations many Psychics use before or after doing their work.
Earth Lights	Lights that appear at ground level or low to the ground, usually in the same geographic area.
Earthbound Spirits	The remains of the human life force or personality that has not properly crossed over to the other side. These are the most commonly seen ghost on earth.
Ectoplasm	A substance, solid or vaporous in nature, that appears milky white in color. When it is caught on film it looks like a white fog with mass.
Elemental	Any of a collection of folklorish beings such as sprites and fairies.
EMF (Electromagnetic Force)	One of the four fundamental forces recognized by scientists, the others are: gravity, strong and weak forces which govern atomic attraction and repulsion (decay). The Electromagnetic Spectrum includes everything from radio waves, to microwaves, light (infrared, visible and ultraviolet), X-Rays and Gamma Rays. The shorter the wave between crests the stronger and more dangerous to living organism. It's effects on the human body are not in dispute, ranging from heating to sunburn to some types of cancer. At sufficient levels other effects includes headaches, nausea, anxiety and hallucinations. The last two are a polite way of describing the paranoia or the sense of being watched usually associated with hauntings. It is this last side effect that adds controversy to EMF and Ghost Hunting. It has been hypothesized that ghosts and other spiritual energies are either able to manipulate this field to interact with the physical plane or require it to exist or move around. Skeptics use the argument of EMF generated paranoia to account for ghostly activity. However that does not account for these same feelings or other paranormal activity in areas where EMF are within norms. It as at this point the skeptic says some people are more susceptible to it's effects then others.
Electromagnetic Frequency	The measurement for EMF usually recorded in hertz (Hz).
EMF Detector	The device used to measure the moving magnetic field created around electrical equipment, usually in milligauss (mG). There is great debate at what point this has an effect on humans potentially becomes dangerous.
Energy	Physically energy includes light, heat and electricity. It is a measurable quantity who's effects can reproduced for the purpose of experimentation. Metaphysically it can refer to the Human Energy Field referred to variously as Aura, Chi / Qi, Life Force and some would argue the Soul (whether the person is alive or dead). It is also a manifestation of emotion (good or bad). Describe the presences of the incorporeal beings or entities. All of these can imprint or impose themselves upon a place or object.
Entity	A disembodied consciousness that is used to refer a ghost, spirit, demon, angel, ect. until it has been identified or to remove religious nomenclature in its description.
ESP (Extrasensory Perception)	This term gained notoriety in the 1960s and 1970s. ESP referred more specifically to the type of ability such as Telepathy, Telekensis and Precognition rather then how the information was received. Since there was never significant evidence of Telepathy, Telekensis the term has fallen for general use in favor of psychic. A person who exhibited ESP was called and ESPer.
Ether / Ethereal	One of the terms used to describe the higher or celestial Planes of Existence, which are believed to be light and airy. It is also a poetical way of referring to Heaven.
EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomena)	Disembodied voices and sounds imprinted on devices capable of audio recording. See ITC
Exorcism	Ceremonial expulsion of invading spiritual/demonic entities from a person or dwelling. Often considered to be the domain of the Catholic Church, however many religions will have their own version. Something to consider is that the process involves expelling what is consider an evil entity with little regard to where it goes. This equates to passing off your problems onto someone else or dumping your trash on your neighbors yard. See also: Banishing, Cleansing.
Frank's Box	Device created by Frank Sumption that records transmissions as it randomly moves through radio frequencies. The idea being that ghosts or other entities will use the device to communicate by directing the radio frequency or rearranging the sounds to create words.
Fox Fire	A bioluminescent fungus found in the woods on decaying trees.
Ghost	An alleged spirit of the dead or a disembodied soul of a person or animal. Yes. While some people do not believe that animals have souls, that does not change the fact the people have reported seeing the ghost of animals. There is little consensus on what a ghost actually is. Use of the term can all inclusive, anything that can't be immediately explained is considered the result of a ghost. Others will say that any apparition in human form, or incorporeal personality not identified as an angel, demon is a ghost. When we are doing an a investigation the term ghost means a soul of a person who has not cross to the other side to differentiate it from a Spirit.
Ghost Investigation	Methods and techniques employed in investigating reports of ghosts or haunted locations to determine if the phenomena are paranormal or have natural explanations.
Ghost Lights	Luminous phenomena in the shape of balls or patches of light. Most ghost light are yellow or white in color. They will appear in different shapes and size. Most of the lights have been explained naturally as Earth Lights that appear near earthquake faults, water sources, swamps, and railroad tracks.
Guide	A benevolent spirit that assists one through all or part of their life. This can be an Angel, Totem (sometimes referred to as a Power Animal) or other Spiritual Being that has never taken physical human form. A Guide can provide general assistance or be there for a specific aspect such as to teach and help them create wondrous artworks or as an intermediary relaying information from other beings, such as ghosts, so the person does not need to communicate directly with the dead. The connection between a person and their Guide can be so strong and positive that they will allow their Guide to speak or act directly through them, thus becoming a Channel for the Guide. Rarely it can also be a deceased loved one, however they usually just pop with a quick message.

^[1] Online Etymology Dictionary
^[2] As of 1-Sept-09