Types of Spirits

By: Matt Ferrell
North Florida Paranormal Research, Inc.
Ghost Tracker Investigations

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It is believed that when the body dies, that is all that dies. The body is just an outer shell for the energy inside. In the first law of thermodynamics (also known as the law of conservation) it is defined that energy can neither be created or destroyed; it can only be transformed from one form to another. All living things contain energy. So, what happens when an organism dies? The body can die.. sure. But what about the energy? It is believed that the energy is released into the environment. There are also reports and studies of, when people die, a mist (ecto?) leaving the body.. usually through the forehead. It is also believed that this energy still retains the organisms traits and personality. So nothing really changes, except that the organism no longer is contained in the body. It is free. The human eye may not be able to see this energy, but film (photo, video), audio recordings, and other types of media can usually pick up this energy.

The common misconception is that ghosts always appear as full manifestations, this is also fueled by Hollywood. Rarely have total manifestations been photographed by Paranormal Researchers. Spirit energy is generally categorized as orbs, ecto/mist, vortices and apparitions. Below is info on what you may find in the field of paranormal research.


Types of Spirit:

Residual - Residual Hauntings are "recordings" of an event in time that are left at a location, that are played back at a later time. Many hauntings are thought to be residual in nature (foot steps in hallways, battles on battlefields, seeing someone walking down a certain staircase, etc.). They are endless loops of the same scene being played over and over, and they are usually always experienced in the same location.

A couple ways these impressions are left on a location is: A traumatic event happening at the location, or by someone doing an action over and over at a location, causing it to be imprinted there. A traumatic moment in time leaves an indelible impression on a building or area, one example being Battle Fields. There are numerous accounts of people seeing soldiers fighting battles on old battle fields, only to learn later that day that there were no reenactments going on that day.

By someone doing an action over and over in an area, they can leave an impression on the location also, example being: when people hear footsteps walking down hallways yet no one is there, or when people see apparitions walking up/down staircases. Another example of this is: In St. Augustine, Florida there's been a apparition of a woman who, every time seen, is always in the same location, and always doing the same thing.. Her laundry. As if she is stuck in time.

Anniversary - Anniversary ghosts do, as the title suggests, only appear on an anniversary of some significance like deaths, birthdays and other times that held some meaning for the deceased or are of historical significance to them. Since this type of ghost only appears on the anniversary of a special event, it seems likely this type of haunting could be a residual haunting, reenacting a certain event in time on that one day or night.

Intelligent - Unlike residual hauntings, these type of ghosts are not in a 'stuck in time' type of deal. They actually seem to have intelligence. These spirits are interactive, sometimes verging into the territory of the poltergeist. They may try and attract your attention by creating odors, moving things, making noises such as footsteps, slamming doors, or moving and hiding objects.

Poltergeist - The Poltergeist – German for "noisy spirit" – seems to be between the categories of ghost and psi (the term applied to unusual abilities of human origin such as ESP and psychokinesis and investigating "exceptional human experiences" such as out of body and apparitional experiences). There's usually two camps of thought on this subject. Some believe it all to be caused by intelligent ghosts, and some believe it all to be caused by the living person at the location (ESP/Psychokinesis).

As the German name suggests, the activity is usually noisy, often throwing objects around, pinching and prodding residents and generally disrupting the residence. They may not be "mean" or "evil", Just active, wanting to let people know they're there.

Interestingly, most cases often center on a teenage or female presence in the home. This would seem to indicate that the activities are in some way attributable to the teenager or focus person. Hauntings are usually associated with places of strong emotion. Adolescence is one of the most stressful and emotional times of a person's life. Perhaps the effect of this stress may attract the ghost/hauntings? Another theory that is becoming more and more used to explain poltergeist activity is that the focus person in the household may be a natural medium or suffering from repressed emotions that are somehow outwardly manifested, meaning the person them self may be actually causing these things to happen without even knowing it.. Thinking of how much energy and emotions a teenager is going though, this is a possible theory.



Types of spirit energy:


Orbs:

Photo by Jeff Reynolds (left)
Taken at the Tolomato Cemetery in St. Augustine, Florida.

Photo by Matt Ferrell (right)
Taken at a Ghost Tracker investigation of a private home.


These are the most commonly photographed anomalies captured on film. They usually are seen as 'balls of light' hovering over the ground. If you look inside them you can usually see a swirling pattern, possibly energy moving around. Be sure to follow "Standards and Protocols" to try and avoid capturing false evidence like dust, rain, etc. that could show up as orbs on film. For more on "Fake Orbs" see our False Evidence page. Also be sure to check out this article on Orb Photos.


Ecto / Mist:


Photo by Holly outside the Cassadaga Hotel in Cassadaga, Florida (left)

Photo by member Marlene in an office building that was being remodeled (right)


This is a form of spirit energy that appears either as long white swirls or as a vapor or cloud like apparition. It's important for you or other people to not be smoking during a ghost hunt/investigation. If you must smoke, make a place away from the investigation for everyone to smoke at. If someone is smoking around the investigation, then it's hard to tell if it was the smoke from the cigarette or something paranormal on film. But if no one is smoking, you are not breathing in front of the camera (on cold days), there's no fog, and you see no mist with the naked eye, etc.. then you may have something.


Vortex/Vortices:


Photo by Kris
Taken at the Limelight Theater in St. Augustine, Florida


This is a swirling column of white (usually vertical) light that is often mistaken for a camera strap. Always remember to either remove your camera strap or make sure it is not in the way of the camera lens to avoid confusion. The column may be of any color, but the most common is white. Often a blue-white color may be visible associated with portions of the column being transparent.


Apparitions:


Some psychics and mediums see them on a regular basis but as for the rest of us it's a very rare occurrence. Catching an apparition on film is what every ghost hunter aspires to but seldom, if ever sees. Sometimes it's just a matter of being at the right place at the right time. They show up in a transparent human form and usually wear the clothing of their period. You might also note that they normally appear faint and disfigured as in being incomplete.