Many Thai locals including volunteers looking for bodies in the wake of the tsunami disaster are reporting encounters with ghosts. Most are said to be foreigners, some laughing and singing, with others calling for lost relatives.
Mental health officials are saying the widespread experiences are the symptoms of mass trauma. The Thai people believe that the dead must be put to rest by a relative at the place of death, something that has not been done with the foreign victims.
Witnesses are saying that many of the ghosts are unaware that they are dead and are continuing their holidays on the islands and beaches, much to the distress of the superstitious locals. This kind of trauma first began four days after the disaster.
Hundreds of people are still missing and probably never got a proper funeral, in a picture posted at another forum, there were mangled bodies or just body parts hanging out from all sorts of debris, relief workers were so terrified at the overwhelming scene they actaully ran away to be with the living.
If you read the source, the story about the taxi driver and the foreign woman calling out for her child at night, sounds frighteningly accurate, if you compare with sightings of ghosts in other cases or had an experience yourself.
Those pictures really make you realise the horrocity of it all, feel so sorry for those people affected.
It really wouldn't be so surprising if these were ghosts, I don't believe in "mass hysteria" as science describes it, it has no more scientific evidence than that of ghosts, in fact ghosts are probably more credible. I just hope their spirits can move on.
They went through a living hell and the ones that are left must wonder how to carry on with their lives. How lucky my family and I are to live in such a stable part of the world.
How can so many people believe in ghosts? I don't know how this can sound "credible". I assume what with all the tv coverage there are photos and films of these or did no one have one?
If you read the article, all sightings are from Thais and the article later says: "Most Thais are deeply superstitious; many believe ghosts reside in most large trees".
I think its pretty much accepted in the paranormal community that photographic or video footage of "ghosts" is impossible. They can capture many types of light anomalies, I've seen many of these myself on TV, but just because you can't record something with an imaging device, doesn't mean its there. You assume that if something is there, then you can see it with your eyes, right? Wrong, the brain can sense electromagnetic patterns, in a sense, and its very possible that if you are confronted with a ghost, the apparent electromagnetic fields that ghosts emit could explain that you are seeing something that appears to be in your vision, perhaps because your brain doesn't know how to interpret it (the human brain is a VERY understudied field of the human anatomy). In short, just because you can't record "ghosts", doesn't mean they are there.
And as the article said, both Thais AND foreign aid workers are reporting seeing ghosts or having ghostly encounters.
I do not believe this could be mass hysteria. It is one thing to think you are feeling cold or hot, or to feel a "breeze", or to have the feeling that someone is there, or to "hear" things or see something in your periferal vision, those can be explained by mass hysteria, but to have someone step into your taxi, ask for a ride, only to dissapear, is NOT something you can hallucinate, because the taxi driver won't have been in that hightened state of alert we are when we "imagine" ghosts around us (like if you've ever seen the show 'Most Haunted', a good example of mass hysteria).
You say about not being "seen" but there are other ways to "see" things; electromagnetic fields can be detected, hot, cold... there is more than one way to tell if something is there. If the people could see ghosts then a camera could see ghosts or did the ghosts go inside peoples heads and, with a ghostly intimate knowledge of the brain, stimulate that persons visual cortex?
The idea that peoples souls would be wondering about is preposterous.
I realise its a lovely thought, that people that suffered such a horrible and untimely death are now in ghostville enjoying an eternal holiday but it just aint happening. Will the ghosties be getting on a plane to go home then inhabit their houses when the holidays are over? Will they go into work and do their jobs? No.
"dangit, bertha, i ain't letting no su... syu... big wave spoil my vacation! i paid good money for this trip. you tell the kids to get their see-through butts up here and enjoy themselves right now."
ooh, flashbacks to my own family vacations growing up.
As I said, current science knows almost nothing of the human mind, the visual cortex may well be stimulated by electromagnetic fields. And "ghosts" are directly linked to electromagnetic fields, its pretty simple to realise that could be what is happening, and why cameras can't record it.
To say the idea of "wandering souls" is proposterous, would mean you have to have some scientific evidence that there is more to life that proteins and general biological squish, right? Well, do you? Of course not, because science actually shows that there is some brain activity even after death, and no, we don't and probably never will know why. Just like I'll never prove ghosts to you. As long as people see them, they'll exist, which will probably be forever. Its a futile argument unless one of us (or both of us) sees a ghost.
Goes into deep and meaningful reasons etc. Y'know but ghosts are alledgely dead people with unfinished business, hence the people calling out for dead relatives.
I dunno, its all very strange. For some reason I always think ghosts have a grudge against the living...
In other news Koultunami fearful of bigfoot and Nessie
I can't wait till easter, apparently a bunny is going to bring me some eggs, I can make a living off the tooth fairy and sod buying prestents for Christmas, apparently some bloke comes down my chimney and does all the work for me! :)
I don't think the idea of spirits is like the 'Easter Bunny' - dismissing the paranormal so quickly is just as ignorant as accepting them everytime you hear a bump in the night. The idea is to keep an open mind - if you believe that the only things that exist are those you can see with your two eyes, then surely you have a lot of faith in the stupid creature that is 'man' who really is not very advanced in both science or religion.
The best way to look at this would be to see the evidence and determine whether it is actually mass hysteria (which sadly is used way to easily to debunk what are sometimes very strong pieces of evidence supporting mass sightings describing the same thing between people that have never met - not in this case, but in others). Is there a good chance it is mass hysteria? Sure - these people probably have strong faith in lfie after death, have faced severe trauma and are now susceptible to these sorts of things. But does that mean that is the only explanation? of course not.
For all those posting here saying 'Yes but ghosts don't exist' my question is - how can you possibly sit there and say that as a 'fact'? A ghost isn't like a vampire in terms of a mythical creature.. the evidence and history behind this 'being' is a lot different as well as the supposed evidence behind them. Either way people can believe that they wish... :)
Nobody can catagorically say 'ghosts do not exist' since it is impossible to prove a negative. The only way is to keep an open mind and keeping it as a matter of opinion and belief as to whether they are fact or figments of peoples imagination. Anyone who dismisses out-of-hand whatever cannot be proven beyond reasonable doubt is leading themselves down a path of foolishness.
While it's very true nobody can catagorically say 'ghosts do not exist' you can make a "best guess" basing it on existing things we know. If I see a ball that I've never seen before I assume it will roll, I assume it will fall if I pick it up and let go. Sometimes I'm wrong, it doesn't behave as expected, but it normally does.
I know that your brain send signals to your muscles to make you move, I know your brain is where language is stored, I know you vocal chords produce sound. I also know when people die these things eventually rot.
It's not a snap decision I made that ghosts don't exist, but I've never seen/heard one my entire life, neither has anyone I respect seen/heard one.
The answer to all your questions are out there, you just don't seem to have the will to educate yourself. Its true, your body rots at death but your individuality remains, how do I know this? You can't denie the fact that mediums have existed across the world since the beginning, yes people who can communicate with the spirit world, you can't deny it, right now as I type this someone is communicating with a deceased loved one threw a medium. Many many books have been written by SPIRITS themselves! yes dead people have written books here on earth threw mediums there is so many of them. You don't have to be religious at all to understand this. I don't belong to a religion, I simply like to study the word of God which once again has been given to us threw mediums,,, Jesus did exist 2000 years ago and was just a normal human being like all of us with a great gift he was able to communicate with the other side.
Here is a link to many great books, http://www.spiritismonline.net/ After all, we are alll gonna find out when we die right? Does who chose not to believe in anything will live with the fear of death their entir lifes. If you educate yourself properly while on earth , you can realise death is simply an awakening.
the answer to "prove it exists" is "prove it doesn't", and vice-versa.
you have a belief based upon your faith in a certain set of definitions, observations and theories. in effect, you're going on faith as much as any crackpot cultist... it's just faith in different angles, different takes. and you're just as rigid in your beliefs as anyone else. which is your right, as much as it is theirs.
even physicists can't agree on the nature of reality. the best they can come up with boils down to "matter has a tendency to exist, we think". you get for me any varied panel of pure scientists to agree on what reality is and i'll grant you your right to think of yourself as more correct than anyone else.
Very good arguments all, (Flashby, Vswift and Ayestiva) but Mr.G?!? You seem quite insane. "Many many books have been written by SPIRITS themselves! " and the proof is? Do these "mediums" use thier divine gift for free or do they charge?
"I'm a medium, give me £20 and I'll let you speak to a dead person"... that isn't proof.
How many times am I gonna have to say it? Mediums aren't fiction, I'm sure there has been many scams of people pretending to be a medium, but that does not change the fact that alot of people around the world are medium. You never heard of Allan Kardec, Francisco C. Xavier, Sylvia Brown I'm only naming a few these people wrote many books. A real gifted medium does not ask for money. vgslag, its too bad you don't know a thing about spirituality.
No one has ever passed James Randi's tests: http://www.randi.org/ The so called mediums are ordinary people with a great talent of reading gullible people.
The pivotal word in this whole account is superstition. I define it as believing anything about God and His Creation which is NOT TRUE. It is apparent that many of these people are over their heads in superstition. The evidence of this is manifold.
For isstance, their fruitless belief in Allah, etc., plus countless Hindu and Buddhist gods, and other pagan beliefs which are powerless to edify their adherents.
After this life make sure to get reincarnated in a muslim, hindu or buddhist country, ignore their faithteachings and still become yet again a christian. See how much of choice your "choice" really is.
They "move on," as some like to believe in, in a different method. I believe they could have seen the dead. They are not so much stuck in our timespace so much as it is that the spirit world is here only "displaced."
