Ectoplasm (paranormal)
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| Terminology | |
|---|---|
 An image purporting to be of a man with his late wife, partially materialised |
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| Coined by | Charles Richet (1923) |
| Definition | An identified substance said to be excreted by mediums during trances/A slime like substance associated with hauntings |
| Signature | White/Gray/transparent, viscous. Resembles mucus. Said to ooze from solid objects or from medium's bodies involving mucous membranes (nose, eyes, mouth). Usually takes form as a misty substance. |
| See also | Mediumship, Spiritualism, Ghost hunting, Parapsychology |
Ectoplasm (from the Greek ektos, "outside", + plasma, "something formed or molded") is a term coined by Charles Richet to denote a substance or spiritual energy "exteriorized" by physical mediums.[1] Ectoplasm is said to be associated with the formation of ghosts, and asserted to be an enabling factor in psychokinesis.
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[edit] Phenomenon
Ectoplasm is said to be produced by physical mediums when in a trance state. This material is excreted as a gauze-like substance from orifices on the medium's body and spiritual entities are said to drape this substance over their nonphysical body, enabling them to interact in our physical universe.
Ectoplasm is a term for a material coming out of a physical mediums's nose, ears & mouth. Any ectoplasm extruded forth from a bodily orifice by a physical-medium during s séance is typically re-absorbed into the same bodily orifice by that physical-medium during the same séance, either equally slowly as it was extruded or else more swiftly. A very swift re-absorption may be induced by sudden illumination of the scene (turning on the light or photo-flash), if the extrusion occurred in a totally darkened chamber. Not in all instances, however, is the extrusion induced in a totally darkened chamber (in which case the ectoplasm is often visible by means of its faint luminescence); in some instances (typically out-of-doors in a remote wilderness-site) it may occur in twilight, at dusk. Broad daylight, or even steady illumination (for photographic purposes) by infra-red or by ultra-violet illumination, does not appear to be known as conducive to observable (viz., to multiple ordinary observers) ectoplasmic extrusions. Indeed, even twilight manifestations of ectoplasm seem to occur only in the presence of a party of experienced psychic sensitives, and not in the presence of mere casual non-committed extraneous observers.
Although the term is widespread in popular culture, the physical existence of ectoplasm is not accepted by science. Some tested samples purported to be ectoplasm have been found to be various nonparanormal substances, including chiffon and flakes of human skin.[2][3] Other researchers have duplicated, with non-supernatural materials, the photographic effects sometimes said to prove the existence of ectoplasm.[4]
[edit] Ethnology
Ectoplasm is a frequently-reported phenomenon in the literature of shamanism, such as the Ndembu "spirit tooth" and the Australian Aboriginal "magic cord" extruded from the mouth.[5] Sometimes the ectoplasm is described as having being transported out of a dream into the physical world, as in the following : "If the dream comes, ... the novice is confronted by a guardian spirit. ... In the classic accounts, the spirit made the potential doctor swallow some sort of – often repulsive – object ... . The object was a telogeɬ or “pain.”" Afterwards, when awake, "She had to learn to regurgitate the telogeɬ, deposit it in a dipper basket, keyom, and reingest it from across the room, sucking it in through her mouth or through a pipe, repeating this feat at will until she gained control of this first and most powerful “pain.”"[6]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Ectoplasm—Glossary of Key Words Frequently Used in Parapsychology, Parapsychological Association (2006-01-24).
- ^ Keene, M. Lamar (1997). The Psychic Mafia. New York; Amherst, N.Y.: St. Martin’s Press; Prometheus Books. ISBN 1573921610 (reprint).
- ^ Baker, Robert A.; Joe Nickell (1992). Missing Pieces: How to Investigate Ghosts, UFOs, Psychics and Other Mysteries. Buffalo, N.Y.: Prometheus Books. ISBN 0879757299.
- ^ Dawn M. Peterson, "Mysterious Beings or Mere Accidents?", Skeptical Briefs newsletter, June 2004.
- ^ Macro-PK : Ectoplasm
- ^ Thomas Buckley : Standing Ground : Yurok Indian Spirituality. University of California Press, Berkeley, 2002. p. 151
[edit] External links
- Online References on Ectoplasm
- "General Conclusions on the Sixth Sense", excerpted from Our Sixth Sense (Rider & Co.) by Charles Richet, SurvivalAfterDeath.org.uk.
- Ectoplasm used during spirit materialization, Example of physical medium Ethel Post Parrish producing ectoplasm to materialize the entity Silver Belle during a seance under test conditions in the United States, 1953.
- The Committee for Skeptical Inquiry
