Hauntings

[IMA_FARANG]

I know that Thailand's movie industry spits out a lot of movies about ghosts and ghouls and all, but I wanted to know if anyone had really heard anything true?

Have you had any experiences in Thailand yourself?

Have you heard/know of a place that is haunted?

If you have a story and it's not in Thailand, that's okay too.

Thanks All!

Here's an old "true" story for you. Back in 1976-1977, first time I was in BKK, there was a Patpong bargirl who got a lot of publicity with her "true" ghost story. Never was exactly able to establish where she worked but on Parpong then "everyone" knew her.

Her story is that she went to a hotel with a "client" for the night. Now when the U.S. troops were in Thailand during the Vietnam war, Bangkok was an R&R center for troops coming from Vietnam. There was a hotel in Bangkok, don't remember the name. that had a fire killing a couple guests. One of these was a black African-American man, supposedly on R&R in BKK. Anyhow, this bargirl with her client, woke up and heard water running in the bathroom. She opened the door and saw a black man inside shaving. She screamed and slammed the door closed. She then woke up her client and told him there was someone in the bathroom. They both went to look, but of course, no one was there. However, in some versions of the story, a razor and a wet towel were also sitting on the sink, as though someone had just left them there while shaving.

I've never been able to establish any truth to this story, but in 1977 all the bargirls on Patpong swore it was true. The price of getting a girl to go to that hotel was nearly double the normal rate. (Back in my old bar-running days.)

Anyhow, it makes a great Urban Myth for Bangkok.

Edited May 2, 2006 by IMA_FARANG

[Tippaporn]

Energy is not the same thing as a soul.

From what I've learnt the soul is energy - awarized energy. All energy is conscious, so in essence, since everything is composed of energy, everything is alive. There would be nothing that exists that is inert.

[autonomous_unit]

I'm trying hard not to be my usual wet-blanket self here

The word verzenden might be looking for is "entropy" and not energy, if he wants to stick with scientific terms or look it up on the web to learn more about what others think... The energy in the human is the temperature, chemical bonds, etc. The entropy is the patterns of structure and gradients in the low-level cellular metabolism, bloodflow, neural signals, etc. For example, a bunch of water with a certain amount of energy will be steam. A pattern in the steam would be entropy. I think his idea of the soul is the idea of the living pattern within the body, and he is visualizing it disappearing at death.

I am not one to answer his question about souls, but as a thought experiment maybe he can consider his computer with its software and programs running... if he pulls the plug or presses the reset button, it "dies" in a sense. The pattern of information in the memory is lost all at once, even though the machinery is still there and the parts that were hot will remain hot for a while. How much energy is really lost at the moment the memory is erased? Maybe not much. It feels like a lot because we as observers put more stake in the meaning of the program state than in the temperature of the processor, the rotational moment of the disk drive, or the voltage potentials in the power supply.

As for people who see ghosts or auras, my experience leads me to apply Occam's Razor here. If you spend some time as a caregiver for the mentally ill or even drug users, you might start to appreciate the myriad ways that the mind can "malfunction" as a purely rational or objective system. It is fascinating, if a bit troubling, to have a complex and lucid conversation with someone who is seeing things or harboring some strange delusion while otherwise being aware of the environment and the conversation you are having.

In fact, it is probably fairer to say that it always functions this way, and the malfunction is our belief that we are ever truly rational or objectve. There is a subtle distinction we draw between normal people and abnormal or sick people. I think that many supposedly normal people have equally unusual/irrational/subjective experiences but they manage to keep their behaviors in check enough to be part of the normal population. You actually have to develop a fair amount of trust, or be a very good listener, to get people to open up and tell you what they really experience.

[cobra]

... As for people who see ghosts or auras, my experience leads me to apply Occam's Razor here...

Quite agree,

All things being equal, the simpler solution is usually correct, (Occam's Razor),

[jackr]

Energy is not the same thing as a soul.

There would be nothing that exists that is inert.

We are made up of atoms absolutely and all atoms are absolutely dead.

Edited May 2, 2006 by jackr

[Tippaporn]

Energy is not the same thing as a soul.

There would be nothing that exists that is inert.

We are made up of atoms absolutely and all atoms are absolutely dead.

As far as you can tell . . .

[AmeriThai]

Energy is not the same thing as a soul.

From what I've learnt the soul is energy - awarized energy. All energy is conscious, so in essence, since everything is composed of energy, everything is alive. There would be nothing that exists that is inert.

? ? ?

I don’t have the slightest idea what “awarized energy” is suppose to mean. The use of energy is certainly required for the production of thought such as self-awareness, but that doesn’t mean energy itself is conscious.

Based on the premise that all energy is conscious and everything is alive, that would also mean a stainless steel bowl is conscious and alive.

[Tippaporn]

Energy is not the same thing as a soul.

From what I've learnt the soul is energy - awarized energy. All energy is conscious, so in essence, since everything is composed of energy, everything is alive. There would be nothing that exists that is inert.

? ? ?

I don’t have the slightest idea what “awarized energy” is suppose to mean. The use of energy is certainly required for the production of thought such as self-awareness, but that doesn’t mean energy itself is conscious.

Based on the premise that all energy is conscious and everything is alive, that would also mean a stainless steel bowl is conscious and alive.

Awarized = conscious. You got it right.

I'll grant that the idea, by it's lonesome, appears half-baked. But it only goes to show that there are theories out there which most have not heard about and are thus not mainstream. To understand the concept that all energy is conscious requires familiarization with a host of other concepts which, taken together, present yet another picture of reality. And IMHO, a more sensical picture than anything I've ever come across. So in a way it's not fair for me to throw that single idea out there since I know that most do not have familiarity with the ideas that go along with it.

But I did throw it out there to raise another point. While I think it's not difficult for most to agree that much is as yet unknown I think it's obvious also that the more mainstream beliefs (beliefs, since so much cannot be proven) have failed to crack the barrier of true understanding between this world and the unknown that lies beyond. And perhaps it is so precisely because the truth might be so divergent from current, popular, accepted belief that to hear a shred of it is enough for most to turn away without ever bothering to look more deeply.

Such is human nature.

[jackr]

[quote name='Tippaporn' date='2006-0

[jackr]

Energy is not the same thing as a soul.

There would be nothing that exists that is inert.

We are made up of atoms absolutely and all atoms are absolutely dead.

As far as you can tell . . .

Yep, well, just a bit of reading and common sense

[Tippaporn]

Energy is not the same thing as a soul.

There would be nothing that exists that is inert.

We are made up of atoms absolutely and all atoms are absolutely dead.

As far as you can tell . . .

Yep, well, just a bit of reading and common sense

Most theories revolve around basic assumptions and best guesses. Putting it in print doesn't guarantee absolute validity. Science is constantly altering it's stances. And besides, there's logic in everything.

[khall64au]

No disrespect intended toward the deceased but, this is a haunting threat prior to departure:

Friday, May 5, 2006

Belgian found hanged

CHALONG: A 66-year-old Belgian man was found dead in his home on Tuesday, apparently having committed suicide.

Police reported that the man, whom they named as Jose Wiame, had hanged himself. Two empty beer bottles and a note accusing his wife of cheating him and deserting him were found next to the body.

The suicide note, addressed to his wife, accused her of tricking him into opening a restaurant for her and then causing him to lose 3 million baht before abandoning him.

He finished the letter by vowing to haunt her through all her future lives and wrote that from now on she would have no happiness.

The body of Mr Wiame was discovered by volunteers from the Phuket Ruamjai Rescue Foundation and officers from Chalong Police Station after the dead man's landlord reported that something seemed to be amiss.

Mr Wiame was found in a semi-kneeling position with a mobile phone still in his left hand. The noose around his neck was attached at the other end to a beam. There were no signs of a struggle.

Pol Lt Col Jetsada, the officer in charge of the case, said, “Mr Wiame and his wife ran a restaurant in Karon until it closed down at the end of last year. They were often heard arguing. Three or four days ago, she disappeared.

“Mr Wiame’s body has been officially identified and is being kept at the Phuket Wachira Hospital awaiting instructions from the Belgium embassy,” he added.

IF the intent was strong enough, could it be possible for the soul's energy to remain on an earthly plane?

[thaibebop]

Wonder what the wife is thinking?

[ProfessorFart]

Its a very effective way of revenge from beyond the grave in Thailand I must say!

She will spend the rest of her life looking over her shoulder! Every mishap in her life, be it minor or major, will be put down to this!

I bet she'll probably spend the 3 million Baht on witch doctors and fortune tellers over the next few years!

[Donz]

Mine isnt seeing a ghost experience, but ive fallen asleep twice driving on the freeway and was woken up both times, It was weird, i was just driving felt my head tilt back then felt my head push forward and the saw like a grey sky for about a split second. and then i was fully awake.

Just before that i was tired which i thought was weird.

[dantilley]

Very interesting topic...

[thaibebop]

Energy is not the same thing as a soul.

From what I've learnt the soul is energy - awarized energy. All energy is conscious, so in essence, since everything is composed of energy, everything is alive. There would be nothing that exists that is inert.

? ? ?

I don’t have the slightest idea what “awarized energy” is suppose to mean. The use of energy is certainly required for the production of thought such as self-awareness, but that doesn’t mean energy itself is conscious.

Based on the premise that all energy is conscious and everything is alive, that would also mean a stainless steel bowl is conscious and alive.

Awarized = conscious. You got it right.

I'll grant that the idea, by it's lonesome, appears half-baked. But it only goes to show that there are theories out there which most have not heard about and are thus not mainstream. To understand the concept that all energy is conscious requires familiarization with a host of other concepts which, taken together, present yet another picture of reality. And IMHO, a more sensical picture than anything I've ever come across. So in a way it's not fair for me to throw that single idea out there since I know that most do not have familiarity with the ideas that go along with it.

But I did throw it out there to raise another point. While I think it's not difficult for most to agree that much is as yet unknown I think it's obvious also that the more mainstream beliefs (beliefs, since so much cannot be proven) have failed to crack the barrier of true understanding between this world and the unknown that lies beyond. And perhaps it is so precisely because the truth might be so divergent from current, popular, accepted belief that to hear a shred of it is enough for most to turn away without ever bothering to look more deeply.

Such is human nature.

Awarized? Are you using the Japanese word here? If so, then you I think you are little off here. Aware deals with inspiration through emotions (gasp of insight in beauty, or being moved), it was something developed in the Heian Court Era and was for the most part used to show a persons sense of aethetics. It was slightly adapted by later Zen practitioners but I would say their use of such a concept was different, they even had a different name for the similar idea, satori.

[AmeriThai]

TALES FROM THE THAI SIDE

Thailand can be an enchanting place. But it also has a spooky side that can make your spine shiver and blood run cold. Sometimes there’s more out there than meets the eye. I could tell you loads of strange, chilling tales that have actually happened but here are three memorable events that I’ve experienced that I’ll share with you. All of them are true!

Tale 1

Haunting in the ‘Hood

Years ago my wife and I stayed at her sister’s house for a visit one time. She lives out in the boonies in the province of Saraburi. Our room was attached to the house from the outside. During the evening, all the women gathered around to spend time talking about tales of ghosts, eerie goings on, and slashers in the local area.

Around 2:00 A.M., I woke up because I thought I heard something, a quiet noise outside. I listened, but it was nothing but silence. I decided to have a look and peeked out through the window slats. It was pitch black out there. There was no moon out, no streetlights in the area and all the other houses in the family compound were completely dark.

After a while, my eyes started slowly adjusting to the darkness, and I could see what appeared to be like a strange figure standing out there in the dark under the covered porch area near the front door. It didn’t move, so I thought maybe I was just imagining it and that there was nothing at all. Maybe it was just a plant or something. Still, it did kind of resemble a person except it was motionless. Sometimes it seemed like there might have been a little movement but it was just too dark to be certain. After all, the eyes can play tricks on you like that.

Then it occurred to me that it might be a prowler looking to break in and steal something. That was a chilling thought. I tried to keep as quiet as possible. If it was a prowler and he heard any noise coming from our outside room, he might decide to kick in the flimsy wood door to our room and slit our throats. I had no weapon to use to defend ourselves if need be, so I remained quiet.

After who knows how much time had passed, the figure indeed started to shuffle around very slowly and moved, almost as if gliding, out toward the dirt road in front of the house! Was it a ghost? One thing for sure... THIS FIGURE WAS NO ILLUSION!

Tale 2

The Hotel of Doom

One time while staying at a small hotel in Chiang Mai in the Northern part of the country, my wife and I were sleeping. From the outside and the office, it looked fairly nice. It even had a swimming pool and a barbecue. Next door to the hotel was a Karaoke Bar. Turned out this hotel was kind of creepy, just a dump. There was water dripping from the light bulb of the bathroom ceiling.

It was getting too late, and we were tired, so we ordered some food then decided to go to sleep. A few hours later, it must’ve been past midnight, I could hear some women laughing. Sounded like they just outside the door. Then the door opened and two or three women walked in. Keep in mind that the room was pitch black. I felt frozen and unable to move. I had no idea who these people were or what they wanted. I was hoping they might just realize they were in the wrong room and turn around quickly and leave. But they kept talking and laughing with each other. I figured they were drunk, but for some reason I sensed something dangerous that was about to happen. I thought if I remain quiet they might not know we are in here, still hoping they’d just leave.

How did they get in? They must’ve gotten the key from the office, or maybe the locks to all the rooms use the same key. I decided to have a peek and could see them standing right in the open doorway of our room. They were sort of transparent so you could actually see right through them. Then oddly, they just sort of floated off, still talking and laughing with their voices trailing off into the distance. My wife and I checked out the next morning and checked into another place just a few buildings away.

Tale 3

Ghosthouse Guesthouse

My wife and I stayed at a place on Soi 8 just off Sukhumvit Road, called Mermaid’s Rest. It was a great little guesthouse with great people who worked there. For any of the oldies, this was the place on the right with the “All-You-Can-Eat Texas-Style BBQ”, now long gone.

On one occasion, we heard a woman screaming in Thai, “ Choi-doi! Choi-doi!” (Help! Help!) We peeked out to see a terrified young woman near our door and told her to come into our room for safety. We asked what happened and she told us there was a ghost in the room she just fled from. She said it tried to bite her, so she ran out screaming trying to get away from it. The woman was shaking like a leaf, in tears and almost hysterical. After a while, she started to calm down, and felt it was time to leave this place. We asked her if she’d be okay. She said yes, but she just wanted to get away from this place as fast as possible. I escorted her to the entrance gate and she left. As my wife and I returned to our room both looked down the dark hall at the room in question and wondered what kind of horror was lurking behind that door.

[Tippaporn]

Awarized? Are you using the Japanese word here? If so, then you I think you are little off here. Aware deals with inspiration through emotions (gasp of insight in beauty, or being moved), it was something developed in the Heian Court Era and was for the most part used to show a persons sense of aethetics. It was slightly adapted by later Zen practitioners but I would say their use of such a concept was different, they even had a different name for the similar idea, satori.

No, I'm not referring to any Japanese ideology. The concept of energy being conscious, or aware, comes from another source. Ironically, the source of the material could be termed as ghosts, although that would be humourous poetic license. It might be best to simply consider the source as entities who are no longer focused in this reality.

Divulging this fact will no doubt have some questioning my sanity. 5555555555! I'm laughing at the anticipated, incredulous and skeptical reaction I know will be issuing forth from people who will probably take it as an insult to their intelligence. Oh, well. So much is unknown and I wouldn't pretend for a minute that our current level of knowledge - scientific, theological, and philosophical - has it all figured out just yet. That notion is truly laughable.

Has anyone ever "played" with a Oiuja board? I would image most people would associate the activity with communicating with ghosts, spirits, whatever name one would like to use. As long as this topic is about hauntings then I think the Oiuja board fits in well. Anyone who has experience with the board no doubt knows that it ain't them that's moving that little old pointer. So, who is?

[Tippaporn]

Interesting stories, AmeriThai.

[thaibebop]

Awarized? Are you using the Japanese word here? If so, then you I think you are little off here. Aware deals with inspiration through emotions (gasp of insight in beauty, or being moved), it was something developed in the Heian Court Era and was for the most part used to show a persons sense of aethetics. It was slightly adapted by later Zen practitioners but I would say their use of such a concept was different, they even had a different name for the similar idea, satori.

No, I'm not referring to any Japanese ideology. The concept of energy being conscious, or aware, comes from another source. Ironically, the source of the material could be termed as ghosts, although that would be humourous poetic license. It might be best to simply consider the source as entities who are no longer focused in this reality.

Divulging this fact will no doubt have some questioning my sanity. 5555555555! I'm laughing at the anticipated, incredulous and skeptical reaction I know will be issuing forth from people who will probably take it as an insult to their intelligence. Oh, well. So much is unknown and I wouldn't pretend for a minute that our current level of knowledge - scientific, theological, and philosophical - has it all figured out just yet. That notion is truly laughable.

Has anyone ever "played" with a Oiuja board? I would image most people would associate the activity with communicating with ghosts, spirits, whatever name one would like to use. As long as this topic is about hauntings then I think the Oiuja board fits in well. Anyone who has experience with the board no doubt knows that it ain't them that's moving that little old pointer. So, who is?

Never mess with things you don't understand.

[Tippaporn]

Nothing to it, Bops.

[thaibebop]

Nothing to it, Bops.

People scare themselves shtless with that crap, why? It's pointless.

[Tippaporn]

I did the Ouija board for 13 years. Not pointless.

[thaibebop]

I did the Ouija board for 13 years. Not pointless.

Why, found someone to talk you did ya?

[Tippaporn]

Yeah. Fascinating stuff, to tell the truth. Curious if anyone else here has had experiences with it. I've never personally met anyone else who has while also approaching it with as much seriousness.

I will say that there are a lot of buggaboos which most people fancy to claim about it that couldn't be further from the truth. From my perspective it's almost humourous to see because it illustrates how superstition is still well and alive in even the most intelligent of people. Most think firstly of creep stories.

Edited May 11, 2006 by Tippaporn

[ray23]

Sorry I will try to contirbute something later I just want to follow the thread at the moment

[Tippaporn]

Looking forward to it, ray23. And as a poster you always have excellent input.

[thaibebop]

Yeah. Fascinating stuff, to tell the truth. Curious if anyone else here has had experiences with it. I've never personally met anyone else who has while also approaching it with as much seriousness.

I will say that there are a lot of buggaboos which most people fancy to claim about it that couldn't be further from the truth. From my perspective it's almost humourous to see because it illustrates how superstition is still well and alive in even the most intelligent of people. Most think firstly of creep stories.

That's what I meant by messing with something that you don't understand. People hardly know their own minds and how they work, so when they fool around with this stuff they are just messing with their own minds. I have meet some people who really did some damage with this stuff.

[Tippaporn]

I don't doubt that people can do damage to their own minds, Bops. Look around. There are lots of people with queer ideas. But most don't need a Ouija board for that! Superstition would attribute any of that to the board, as far as I'm concerned. As you said, lots of people don't even know their own minds. In which case would you then take their stories at face value?

What is it that you think you'd be "messing" with? Evil spirits? You'll never learn about anything if you don't explore it. Take my word for it, Bops, there isn't anything even remotely "dangerous" about the Ouija board. If there were verifiable stories that showed positive proof of that then they wouldn't be selling it, would they?

Edited May 12, 2006 by Tippaporn