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Spirits

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Apparitional experience. In psychology[1] and parapsychology, an apparitional experience is an anomalous, quasi-perceptual experience. It is characterized by the apparent perception of either a living being or an inanimate object without there being any material stimulus for such a perception. The person experiencing the apparition is awake, excluding dream visions from consideration. In scientific or academic discussion, the term apparitional experience is to be preferred to the term ghost in respect of the following points: The term ghost implies that some element of the human being survives death and, at least under certain circumstances, can make itself perceptible to living human beings. History of the concept[edit] Attempts to apply modern scientific or investigative standards to the study of apparitional experiences began with the work of Edmund Gurney, Frederick William Henry Myers and Frank Podmore,[3] who were leading figures in the early years of the Society for Psychical Research.

Direct realism[edit] Bean nighe. The bean nighe (Scottish Gaelic for "washer woman"), is a Scottish fairy, seen as an omen of death and a messenger from the Otherworld. She is a type of bean sìth (in Irish bean sídhe, anglicized as "banshee"). Legends[edit] As the "Washer at the Ford" she wanders near deserted streams where she washes the blood from the grave-clothes of those who are about to die.

It is said that mnathan nighe (the plural of bean nighe) are the spirits of women who died giving birth and are doomed to do this work until the day their lives would have normally ended.[1] A bean nighe is described in some tales as having one nostril, one big protruding tooth, webbed feet and long-hanging breasts, and to be dressed in green. Etymology[edit] A bean nighe ("washerwoman") is a specific type of bean sìth.[3] In Scottish Gaelic, bean sìth can also be spelled bean-shìdh. The bean nighe is sometimes known by the diminutives ban nigheachain (little washerwoman) or nigheag na h-àth (little washer at the ford).

Banshee. The banshee (/ˈbænʃiː/ BAN-shee), from Irish: bean sí [bʲæn ˈʃiː] ("woman of the sídhe" or "woman of the fairy mounds") is a female spirit in Irish mythology, usually seen as an omen of death and a messenger from the underworld. In legend, a banshee is a fairy woman who begins to wail if someone is about to die. In Scottish Gaelic mythology, she is known as the bean sìth or bean-nighe and is seen washing the bloodstained clothes or armour of those who are about to die. Alleged sightings of banshees have been reported as recently as 1948.[1] Similar beings are also found in Welsh,[2] Norse[3][4][5] and American folklore.[6][7] Overview[edit] The story of the banshee began as a fairy woman keening at the death of important personages.[8] In later stories, the appearance of the banshee could foretell death. Banshees are usually seen by a person who is about to die in a violent way such as murder. The banshee can appear in a variety of guises.

History and mythology[edit] American folklore[edit] Spirit. Will-o'-the-wisp. A will-o'-the-wisp /ˌwɪl ə ðə ˈwɪsp/ or ignis fatuus (/ˌɪɡnɨs ˈfætʃuːəs/; Medieval Latin: "foolish fire") are atmospheric ghost lights seen by travellers at night, especially over bogs, swamps or marshes. It resembles a flickering lamp and is said to recede if approached, drawing travellers from the safe paths. The phenomenon is known by a variety of names, including jack-o'-lantern, friars's lantern, hinkypunk, and hobby lantern in English[1] folk belief, well attested in English folklore and in much of European folklore. Terminology[edit] In the United States, they are often called "spook-lights", "ghost-lights", or "orbs"[2] by folklorists and paranormal enthusiasts.[3][4] The names will-o'-the-wisp and jack-o'-lantern are explained in etiological folk-tales, recorded in many variant forms in Ireland, Scotland, England, Wales, Appalachia, and Newfoundland.

One version, from Shropshire, recounted by K. M. Folklore[edit] Continental Europe[edit] Northern Europe[edit] Britain[edit] Asia[edit]