What are Spirits?

The concept of an afterlife has captivated mankind throughout all of history. Beginning with ancient times, the idea of spirits and ghosts have been a very common theme. However, because there has been no hard scientific evidence or physical proof, there are a lot of theories and misconceptions that float around. Technically there is no true way to define these supernatural entities with any one set of rules, although man has tried, and mixed with the internet and ghost reality shows, the study of this pseudoscience is becoming muddled. This piece will explore the concept of ghosts and spirits and help break through some of that fluff.

Spirits vs. Ghosts: Is There a Difference?

Yes and no. All ghosts are spirits, but not all spirits are ghosts.

Most experts and spiritualists agree that a spirit is any being that does not have a natural physical form on the human plane of existence. This would include, for example, ghosts, souls, angels, faeries, jinn (genies), and demons. They may possess or take on a temporary form, but their natural form (if they have one) can't be seen by the human eye. One should note however that angels, demons, faeries, and jinn DO have "physical" forms within their own plane of existence. For this reason humans will rarely see them, and even then not in their true form. The same could be said about souls, they exist in their realm, but on the human level they dwell within the body of a person.

That being said, not all souls are ghosts, and vice versa. Most ghosts are souls of the living, but not always. And when referring to the living, this includes humans, animals, and plants. Some ghosts though can be the manifested energy of an event, or an emotion. Anything that enough energy is given to can create a ghost or spirit, but more on that later...

What About Poltergeists and Phantoms?

There are a lot of terms that get tossed around on television by the "professionals," but in actuality, they all mean the same thing. One of the most common is poltergeist, which in simple translation is German for "noisy ghost." A popular theory is that poltergeists are able to affect the physical world, and are evil. The truth however, is that all ghosts and spirits can interact with the physical world, it just depends on how strong they are, or how concentrated their energy is. A poltergeist is really just a ghost by all definition, the reason these types of ghosts tend to be more powerful, and sometimes angrier, is because they are usually created from a large amount of emotional energy. This would typically be fear or anger, such as the ghosts of murder victims, but they can also be manifested out of love or happiness, like the spirit of someone's great-grandfather peacefully rocking away in his chair in front of the window. In the latter situation, Grandpa isn't angry or hurting anyone, but its perhaps his love and fondness of growing up in his ancestral home, or memories of a pleasant childhood there, that keeps him attached to the house. But he still could be considered a poltergeist. Again though, there is no true definition, poltergeists are still ghosts, the term is more or less used in personal preference to help categorize.

Phantom is, again, just another word for ghost. Apparition, spook, specter - these all mean the same thing. Different regions, cultures, and languages help lead to there being so many terms, and that is one of the reasons why trying to study the topic can be confusing. While the purpose of this piece is not to speak negatively of the ghost hunting reality series, they do often use a lot of these different terms to create more of a gallery of "characters" for their show. There are even writers who have used the idea by writing books and blogs trying to define all of these entities as if they are different. And again, this is not mean to speak ill of them, but it is suggested that if one does decide to study further into these topics, seek more than one source, and do not take anything for 100% fact. There are a lot of theories and traditions over hundreds of generations that have created all of these different angles, and understanding all, or at least some, of them is essential to further study. Above all, with any spiritual topic always assume that everything exists.

How do Souls Work?

By most religious and spiritual tradition, every living being is born with a soul. Most also believe that the soul exists before and after the length of the human life. Some believe that the soul is reborn again as a human multiple times.

In the simplest of terms, the soul is the true being, merely "driving" the physical body like a robot or an avatar. When the living being dies, the soul goes into the afterlife, and/or is reborn. Sometimes humans, and possibly animals, will have dreams or memories of their soul's previous lives, known as Past-Life Experiences. Some believe that certain occasions of deja-vu are linked to this.

Depending on the religion, the depiction of before- and after-life can vary. Christians do not believe in life before birth, according to the Bible Adam's soul was made from the same dust his body was made from. The Buddhists, on the other hand, believe in Samsara, which is the cycle of birth, life and suffering, death, rebirth, and on. When they reach their Enlightenment, the cycle will end and their soul can ascend into a state of nirvana. Catholics and Jews believe in a realm of the dead, which exists below the realm of the living, where all souls go. Some texts misinterpret this as Hell, but Hell does not actually exist, it was a metaphorical concept used in the New Testament. The Bible does mention several times the Valley of Hinnom, which is a wicked place all souls go until Judgement, otherwise known as Purgatory. After which they will enter either Sheol, the abode of the dead; or Heaven.

In spirituality, there are different theories on Purgatory, but supposing that it does exist and a soul chooses not to enter (or if it just doesn't exist at all), that soul would become a ghost. Popular culture usually associates "unfinished business" with a soul staying behind, but this is not always the case. Referring back to the example above, maybe the grandfather's spirit just wants to rock in his chair for eternity rather than move on. It is important to remember though that not all ghosts are souls.

Where do These Different Spirits Come From?

This is the main root of the entire concept of ghosts and spirits, and what differentiates them from one another. While in the broad sense a ghost is a ghost, and all the different terms for ghost essentially come back to the same thing, ghosts are better characterized by how they were created. The same can be said of all spiritual entities.

Ghosts are the most widely common form of spirits, and can manifest for different reasons. As discussed in the section before, some ghosts are souls. Other ghosts are not souls per se, but rather manifestations of energy. This energy can come from emotion, or an event. These types of ghosts are usually more like "recordings," the energy that created them made an imprint on the area or object they are connected to. These types of ghosts are generally unaware of human presence and cannot leave their attached area or item, they just keep going through their routine in a loop. Some examples of these ghosts have been witnessed on old battlefields, or at sites where a horrible crime was committed. At the same time, those events could also have created ghosts from the souls of the dead, as well as poltergeists as defined above, and all of these types of entities can exist simultaneously.

A spirit can also be manifested from these same energies. While ghosts come directly from a physical being and their individual thoughts and actions, the overall general emotion or energy of the event itself can create a spirit. In most cases, a spirit like this is conscious, but not always aware. While they could exist in a spiritual form, many interactions with these types of spirits will be invisible, oftentimes a certain feeling, or something happening. Anything that enough energy has been poured into can manifest, which is why again it is always safe to assume that everything exists, be it spirits or even gods.

Is God a Spirit?

By all definition, yes. Even if God, or any god, is an all-powerful supreme being, they are still, relative to humans, a spirit. They are beings without physical form. The debate would be, where did these gods come from before humans existed to pour this energy into them? That is a question left to one's own personal beliefs. Whether or not a god existed before humans, they exist now. Going to back to ancient times, people would pray and worship and make sacrifices to different entities. All of that energy being concentrated into one thing, that can cause the being to manifest.

Christianity actually takes it a step further by introducing the Holy Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three parts are all God, and make up God. There are many mentions in the Bible of the Holy Spirit, which is the non-physical form of God on the human plane. God did not physically exist on Earth until he was born through Jesus Christ, although he has taken on various forms, usually a bird (often a dove).

What About Other Types of Spirits?

Besides ghosts and souls, the other main group of spirits would be angels and demons. These spirits have a natural form that exists on a different level than humans, although on a few rare occasions their true form has been seen. Usually though they take on another form, or no form at all. Angels are Heavenly beings, so they are already also the extension of God's spirit. Demons exist with similar rules to angels, although it is important to note that not all demons are fallen angels, which has become a popular misconception. Not all demons are fallen angels, and not all fallen angels become demons. According to Abrahamic tradition, demons were created at the same time as Adam through their mother Lilith, who was rejected by Adam and God, so she partnered with Samael and had many demon children. The Islamic Jinn, or genies, would fall into this category as well, as many jinn are fallen angels. All three of these beings have the ability to possess or take on the form of a person (or animal).

Another popular type of spirits are faeries. Many religions and cultures celebrate faeries in one way or another, and many also equate faeries with angels. Some have suggested that faeries are angels who have been demoted (not fallen). Other pagan and spiritualist beliefs hold that faeries are spirits of nature and some have been worshipped as a god. Faeries exist similarly to angels, in that they have a natural form in their own dimension, but no natural form on the human plane. They often take on a look similar to that of a human. Other beings that would subcategorize under faeries are gnomes, sylphs, and hobgoblins. Most traditions also classify leprechauns and banshees as faeries.

Studying the spirit world can be a daunting task when faced with so many different angles and beliefs. While there has been no credible scientific evidence yet to support the existence of spirits, there are countless tales of encounters that span the course of human history, many of which have not been able to disproven. This piece is meant to be more or less an introduction to the topic, future writings will discuss some of these beings in greater detail. The most important things to remember when exploring topics of spirituality are: always assume that everything exists or is real; and don't ever take one person or source's point of view as the full truth. Spirituality isn't just one written set of rules, but rather a collection of many beliefs, so to truly grasp it one needs to tackle it from alternate angles.