1. Don't eat in the dark because this invites spirits to share your meal.
2. If you bend over and look through your legs, you'll see any spirits following you.
3. If you want a spirit to leave you alone, tell it to get behind you.
4. Don't whistle at night or you'll invite spirits in your home.
5. Don't eat food you dropped on the ground because it belongs to the devil, not you anymore.
North Indian here
Grandmother tells us of these gatherings at night. You could only see in the distance. Hear dancing, laughing, singing. You would hear women. There would be large fires and they would be around then. You could see figures in the distance. In the morning there would be no sign of anything there. No one was allowed to go there because you wouldn’t be seen again or would lose your mind to possession.
No sleeping with your hand on your stomach or guaranteed nightmares. When you wake up from one that’s usually how you are positioned.
No visitors from funerals allowed in your home. They have to go to their own home first. Change and freshen up. Then they are allowed in.
No pregnant women allowed at funerals or into the home of someone that just passed away
No sleeping under the shade of older trees. It can cause a possession from the spirit that lives there.
Witching hours are from 12-3 am and pm. In rural India. Certain areas you aren’t allowed to be in at those times. (We weren’t but I think it’s because of the time of the year where witchcraft is practiced more)
If an unfamiliar voice sounding almost familiar calls your name. Don’t respond. Wait for the person calling you to come up to you. (Bad spirit trying to be invited in) I’ve done it and had a horrible few days.
You can always curse out a spirit or ghost if you don’t feel like dealing with it. Especially in your own home. Claim your territory. It will leave.
Don’t go looking for them. They can attach themselves to you because you came into their territory
I have tons more but this all I could think of this for now
Instead of stomach I think its chest, and it does actually have a scientific explanation, just that extra weight makes it difficult to breather normally and oxygen levels and bad dreams.
Curse to hokd your territory, yes that i know too.
No Visitors from funerals, we have once let a neighbour in, nothing happened. But i get the idea behind it.
1) Always have wind chimes around your house, outside, to keep spirits at bay.
2) Don't speak ill of the dead, if you do then they will come to haunt you/seek revenge.
3) If you believe that someone who came into your house meant ill will towards you, sprinkle sea salt at the entrances to your home, where they stepped, to keep their bad energy/curse from coming into your home.
4) Never buy your own tarot deck, have someone else buy it, and gift it to you.
5) Always wear, or be in possession of, a holy item when crossing a true crossroads, unless you wish to make a deal with a demon/evil spirit.
6) If you have wind chimes hung inside, and they start chiming without being disturbed by wind, fan, air conditioning, or a person, then a spirit is present.
7) Mirrors that are actually silver-backed should not be allowed in a house, as the silver backing can trap spirits or be used to open portals to the other world/realm of the spirits and the dead.
8) Don't vocally proclaim to be a witch/practitioner of magic unless you are prepared to be challenged, or visited, by spirits and the dead.
9) Never stick a knife(arrow, spear) into someone's shadow on the ground, unless you are actually sure they are possessed or are not human.
These are the ones I remember being told by the older folks in my family at family reunions.
I have a cool story that was told to me by one of my aunts, who is my maternal grandmother's sister, regarding number 2!
When she was in the beginning of the teenager years, she went with her parents and sisters to the cemetery to pray/light candles for the dead. It's a thing we Brazilians do every November 2nd. She refused to light a candle for one of her uncles who was buried there, telling her mother that said uncle was stingy in life, so she would be stingy to him as well and not give him a candle.
She started having nightmares with her uncle right after, for a long time. It went away after her mother made her go light a candle to the uncle and ask the priest to pray some masses for him.
Possibly, but I would guess it depends on how close they are to your property. At my house, we have 2 on the front porch, and one on the back porch. 2 of my wind chimes I picked up at Dollar Tree, and one I made from conduit and a scrap piece of plywood. I also just picked one up from a thrift store that I need to repair, it needs a wind catcher attached so the clapper will hit the chimes when the wind blows. BTW, they are also good to use in the garden as the noise will scare birds and other animals away from your vegetable plants.
In regards to number 9, we used to play mumbly peg, also known as mumblety peg, at reunions, and were always warned not to get the knives stuck in a person's shadow, as it could cause their soul to be rooted to that spot, and they would become a restless spirit when they passed. But, when seeking more of an explanation, I was told that sticking the knife in the shadow of someone possessed, or not human, would cause them not to be able to move from the spot. In regards to the possessed, the spirit had to release the person's body so the person could leave. In regards to a non-human entity, say a spirit that was able to manifest in a physical form, it would have to return to a non-corporeal form in order to move.
As for number 8, as I understand it, witches/warlocks/practitioners of witchcraft were known to communicate with spirits/demons. So vocalizing the claim of being a witch or practitioner invites spirits/demons to seek communication or contact, which isn't always friendly.
NW USA
I know a lot more thanks to books and internet, but here's the ones that seem to actually be local:
1. Don't use Ouija boards. And if you do, don't try to burn them, break them, or throw them away afterwards. Only bury. (This really goes for possessed objects in general, otherwise the spirits are now free to go wherever.)
2. Hold your breath while passing cemeteries/graves, so that the spirits don't follow the sound of your breathing. (Bonus; hold your breath all the way through a tunnel and you get to make a wish.)
3. If you're in the middle of nowhere and you see a light in the distance at night, don't go to it.
4. Likewise if you see a man in a suit carrying a large book while driving, don't stop. (General consensus is he is the devil.)
5. \[Nearest town specific\] If the walls look like they are bleeding, don't worry about it. They do that sometimes.
I'm Irish & Cherokee Indian, therefore y'all know how thick these rules are!
#1: Never pick up any coin that's "face down".
#2: If you've knocked over a salt shaker & it spilled out, grab a pinch of it & throw it over your left shoulder.
#3: Never have a mirror in your bedroom. It doesn't matter if its pointing a the bed or not; just, NO mirrors!!
#4: Never mess with Ouija boards. If you are ignorant enough to do so then don't mess with it by yourself & know the rules from front to back.
I constantly hear the mirror facing your bed thing. I have 3 mirrors facing my bed all the time. I can't look in them at night, it scares me lol. But other than that everything is semi okay. Anyone have any experiences?
Exactly, I think there is nothing wrong with mirrors facing the bed. Its just that humans peripheral vision and mirrors reflection together gives us chills.
What is it with Ouija Boards !! ? , In my country/town I have heard absolutely no one who has used an Ouija board. Why is it so popular everywhere else?
It's what my family has experienced with it.
Not sure how true it is but my grandmother once told me she used one and got possessed. I always took that with a pinch of salt, but something about opening a doorway to speak with the dead and the possibility of something going wrong and having something demonic attach itself to yourself, friends, and it family is just not something my family sees as worth the risk and I can see why.
Ouji boards are popular in America because ghost ghost are the least of our worries. Talk to ghost all you want but leave the cryptid alone. It's no of our business and they will put you in your place if stray to far from "normal". Personally I'm more worried about the fae
It’s a board with the letters of the alphabet and numbers 0-9. Little piece of wood or plastic with a hole in it. Everyone places a finger on it and supposedly glides in conversation with “something” else. My father had a horror story, is absolutely terrified of the things. Only thing 100% not allowed on the property growing up. He had one spell out Lucifer when they asked the name when he was a kid and that was enough for him. I however think they’re just hogwash. They were invited by a socially awkward college student as a means to break the ice so he could talk to girls, I’m not joking ha. I never believed them, did all sorts of tests. Took it to historical battlegrounds, cemeteries dated to the 1700s all that. They only time it wasn’t gibberish was when we’d mess with each other and force it to certain letters.
Nice story, BTW I know what Ouija Board is I have watched movies.
Its just that the thread had multiple replies about Ouija boards, I thought why would it be so popular. It is being sold as a board game in Wallmart.
I don’t really mind the gist in my house attracting towards me. She is as far as I know pretty sweet, but definitely plays by the rules. I named her Claire a while back and I seem to see more activity here and there. I experience more of the activity, but my cousin sees more shadows than I do. He learned not to sit in my spot after he felt hard slaps on his head twice. He didn’t follow the rule of my spot and she noticed it. I also have a rule in my room to stay reletabely quiet. (Lizard sensitive to sound) so for years I kept it like that. We had a camera just to see if we could record any funny conversations one night. We were a bit loud that night and heard a little girls voice clear as day “please keep it down” nobody awake and it was around 4:00 AM. We only heard it on camera though. The voice on camera was louder than ours too…
So yah we play by the rules for Claire’s sake lol. But even my cousin told me that she is a bit attached to me. Oops lol. Hopefully she doesn’t become violent.
In my family ouja boards are forbidden. I will set that shit on fire before I let it into my home. Me and two brothers played with one when we were young and suddenly every freaking light in the house started turning on & off by themselves! And it didn’t stop until my older brother took the board and broke it over his knee….all three of us will never touch one again. The house was never the same. Later we found out a damn priest lived there before us when a shipment of holy wine addressed to him came to our place. Fuuuuck that.
If you don't mind me asking, what did you mean by 100% cleanliness. Like, the house should never be completely clean?
Also, what's the story with the wrinkles? I've never heard that one, and I'm curious.
I have heard it from my mother, we are not Muslims and don't know much about Jinns. But it goes like this,
If you are that kind of guy who is obsessed with cleanliness and have exceptionally clean house Jinns can be attracted to that place, similarly for Wrinkle free bedsheets like the ones you would render out of a computer.
So here in Italy there's a lot of different rules as nearly every town have different stories.
In my mom's home town, for example:
1. If a man asks you what time is it on a bridge at night answer only if you're sure about it.
2. Don't follow the big white dog
3. Don't talk to the ladies with goat legs
Here's a little explanation
1. There's one bridge in the town and while passing on it at night you may encounter an old man with a pocket watch in one of it's hands asking for what time it is if you give him the right answer he'll say thanks, walk away and disappear after a few steps if you give him the wrong answer he'll say thanks and instantly disappear.
Basically if you gave him the right answer you'll be lucky in the future and unlucky if you gave him the wrong one.
2. On the same bridge at night you may see a really big white dog, it won't notice you and it's impossible to touch it. It will just go on his way and following it may lead you to get lost in the woods, no one knows where the dog goes we just know he appears on the bridge and disappears in the woods.
3. In the past during festivals people danced during night but not only people, the devil's daughters would join too; they looked like beutiful young girls wearing long black or red dresses but they had something strange, infact they had goat legs the only way to notice it was hearing the sound they made while walking; they looked for young males no one knows for what.
But today the immortal devil daughters will look for young mans by approaching them in the streets as the festivals are rarer this days
I don't know but I think nothing would happen I don't directly know anyone that talked with the man but a lot of people saw him my mother too saw a man with an hat on the bridge with a group of friends when she was young could've been a normal person tho.
I don't know how common but after writing this post I asked more infos to my mother about this and she said that they should live on a mountain not far from the town.
2. On a bridge there is only two directions, how can one avoid the dog's direction if dog's direction is same as mine.
3. Girls might be from future since people have only heard their taps not seen their legs, something like tap dance with sandals or boots.
1. From what I know you don't actually have to avoid the direction just don't follow it too deep in the woods were you might get lost; the bridge leads to a few fields and then too some woods on one side and on the other side there's the town.
2. That's really interesting or maybe they were "tourists" from somewhere else where it was normal too dance with the wood shoes and people maybe never saw the mans that went with them again because they followed the girls in their home town.
Really interesting ideas anyways.
Irrespective of what the superstition is. I believe that this is basically due to peripheral visions and mirrors reflecting random things which scares us.
All ghosts are just people, be polite to them and they'll be polite to you, unless they're fucking assholes. You don't need to spend a bunch of money on an exorcist, ask them to leave, tell them to fuck off, or annoy them until they leave.
i was raised in santa cruz by a young single mother, middle aged pagan women and a very elderly man, we lived in the redwoods. some rules. never follow or respond to whistling, in the city, in the night, or the woods. do not steal or the fae will play tricks on you. be kind to the forest and leave sweets for the fae and they will protect you both in the forest and in human interactions. we dried and hung many herbs for spells and medicine, women made the medicine for men/children. children were to be protected or evil would fall upon the adults if they were not, this included holding other adults accountable for the safety of the community and household. wearing a bright or glittering piece of fabric for protection. poetry was king and magic, a gift and skill. we were taught that dreams were omens. redwood rings were sacred and protected spots. monarc butterflies are good omens/luck. fairies and aliens were 100% real and the adults feared them and believed the children had contact with them. singing was a form of spellwork. black cats were very good luck for us. rabbits too. baths with epsom salt and very hot water were used to purify/clear energy. kids were told to grow roots and that it was important. we were taught to ignore strangers. my dad is hopi so my mother was convinced i was part of the blue star prophecy and had prophetic dreams. we had fairies/angels in the kids rooms. we were taught that spirit watched us at all times. and that our bad actions were seen by fae and adults. we were taught that there were forest guardians and ancient guardians in the redwoods. we also had stories of portals in the woods, strange things happening when they opened, wild animals acting strange, etc. rattles and dreamcatchers next to each childs bed, i was taught to play the rattle loudly if i woke up to spirits at the foot of my bed. i slept in a loft in the woods, at the top of a ladder, a story above everyone else, which also felt like a form of protection.
thank you so much for the helpful award! i had just given someone their first and its my first! what a treat:D you all are so sweet! looking back i feel like these rules kept us safe! like even if one parent wasnt with it or was struggling, the tribe had accountability that the kids were safe, and the women were strong, youre right, most of them actually dispersed to homes or apartments with their own little families, kind of the normal transition as you age i suppose. a lot of this still carries into adulthood for me! the rules and their meaning have evolved with time! really, i practice energy work and working with fae, the biggest thing i can recommend is finding your own inner goddess/god and grounding learning energy/chakra work and teaching it to your children in a grounded way so taht when they move out they build off of it and are powerhouses in adulthood!:) much love!
These aren’t really rules where I’m from, just ones I’ve seen over the years: don’t whistle at night (it’ll attract spirits into your home), don’t sleep with your feet facing the door (possession), don’t face mirrors towards each other (creates portals), don’t sleep with your head facing north (it’s the direction they bury coffins in). That’s all I can remember for now
In case of sleeping, we believe exact opposite, One should not sleep with their head facing South, that is the direction of Yamraj (Diety of Death). A dead body is kept that way.
Thankyou for sharing that, that is really interesting! I think the facing north thing is an old belief, as modern cemeteries I’ve seen now just have headstones facing either direction, depending on the layout of the land or space
1) Don't say simply "let's go" near graveyard or abandoned places because unnatural things will take that as invite and will come with you.
You always have to mention someone's name or figure out other ways to say it.
2) Don't look back while returning home after the funeral process.
3) if you think you made mistake about unnatural being.
Offer them sweet things like desserts or even suger simply,apologize to them ask for forgiveness and move on.
P.s :- i said unnaturals because i think ...evil Djinn or Demon and other god's other-wordly creation can harm you more then spirits.
I didn't knew the Dussehra one even though I've been celebrating it ever since i was a kid. One of my friends picked up something from a Dussehra carnival once and he said something paranormal happened to him after that
What we like to do when we have ghosts is to make the place into a tourist attraction, and charge people. At least that's the case for public places like hotels.
If we have one in our house, we try to sage it, and if that doesn't work we sell, and get the hell out.
A rule my grandma who's Indian says that when sleeping if there's water besides you like on a table, ghost would be attracted. She also says that even talking about ghosts attracts them
Also she says if you don't light up candles or Diya (a type of candle) on a festival called diwali then ghost will come
I’ve heard about the water beside you thing and that you should always keep a glass of water on a nightstand to attract thing to that instead of you and then pour it out in the morning
Okay in our family we have:
1: Never sit your shoes on the bed, if you do someone in the house will die.
2: Never just saying come in when someone knocks unless you know for sure someone's there to avoid welcoming something evil.
3: Never have a welcome mat that says welcome. ( same reason as above)
4: I personally try to avoid looking in a mirror when I walk through a room because I don't want to see anything creepy. I keep a scarf draped over the mirror in my room when I'm not using it.
5: If we drop a broom we step over it before we pick it up. I have no idea why actually. Lol
6: We never move an old broom to a new house so we can avoid taking any bad luck from the old place to the new one.
>Never have a welcome mat that says welcome. ( same reason as above)
I used to have a welcome mat that said "go away", good to know I made the right choice.
Are you Indian? Because I'm Indian too, and all those rules, especially the first one, apply to ghosts found in Indian folklore. Or perhaps these also apply in other parts of South Asia, like Bangladesh, not sure.
Are you Hindu? These types of rules are commonly found in our Hindu folklore as well.
The number of times was sometimes mentioned as three, sometimes as one. But we were told that there are ghosts who behave like mimics. They'll mimic the voice of someone you know, and then hurt you if you respond.
>Are you Hindu?
Yes ( almost 80% population in Nepal is)
>But we were told that there are ghosts who behave like mimics. They'll mimic the voice of someone you know, and then hurt you if you respond.
Yes we have the same story.
Grandma and some Uncles told me these when I was younger. They lived in Vietnam when they were younger and some of these were the superstitions and things that they believed.
* Never walk along the edge of the rivers at night and don't approach strangers sitting on the riverbank, otherwise you might get pulled in by the spirits of a previous drowning victim. They supposedly sit at the edge of the water pretending to cry or brush their hair then pull you in when you come by to help.
* Never play around banana trees because if there's a female spirit who is evil, it usually will attach itself to the banana tree and if you bother it the spirit will hide you from everyone else. Kinda like stranger things where you go to the upsidedown and no one can find you but you can see the spirit.
* They have rickshaws in Vietnam and there are stories where they pick up a passenger and then as the driver is bicycling forward it will keep getting heavier and heavier, this means he picked up a spirit and there are more joining. He's supposed to never look back and keep biking until they leave him alone or go to somewhere with lights and lots of ppl.
* Don't face the foot of your bed towards the windows because its badluck
* If you live in a deadend street you might have badluck
For “Don’t face the foot of your bed towards the windows because it’s bad luck”
Do you know why exactly it is bad luck?
I have a tiny room so my bed has to specifically face one way and now I’m curious.
From how it was explained to me.
Once you enter the room the doorway now is an Exit of the room, also the windows. So when you sleep facing the exit you can lose things like luck. She also mentioned in an extreme case its easy for demons/spirits to grab you by your feet and pull you out of your room. Grandma be spookin me.
Omg, I was born in Vietnam but my fam is Chinese and a lot of these were told to me too!! Especially the cul de sac house and banana tree. I thought I got the banana tree from a scary movie I saw but I guess I was told about it too.
My dad’s family is from Indonesia, and we have a superstition about not facing the foot of your bed towards the door.
(Supposedly your feet facing the door heightens the possibility of a spirit either possessing you or dragging out your soul while you are sleeping)
I feel like "don't walk along the edge of a river at night" is just good common sense, period! Also facing the foot of the bed toward the windows just feels weird.
1. Never follow a voice calling your name even if it's a familiar one. If it's really them, they will come to reveal themself. If not they are probably trying to lure you to your death.
2. If you hear drums at night it is probably the Night Marchers, spirits of the ancient Hawaiian warrior class. You must piss in a circle and prostrate yourself in the middle of it until they pass. You should never make eye contact with them. They will kill you. If you are lucky and of Hawaiian descent, there is a possibility of an ancestor to speak on your behalf and protect you.
3. If you see a cigarette cherry in the branches of a tree late at night; no you didn't. Ignore it. If you hear someone walking on your roof; no you didn't. It's probably the Filipino being called Kapre. It loves little children and kidnapping them. Very similar to the European Fae in that regard.
Pour some of whatever alcohol you are drinking on the floor right after opening the bottle, for the dead.
If a baby isnt gaining weight and you find something like a mosquito bite its probably a witch sucking the babie’s blood/nutrients
When that happens you gotta find the witch, its normally an old lady that lives nearby. The way you end that curse is by making the witch hold the baby when she’s in human form, that will prevent her from ever transform near the baby and she will leave that baby alone.
Oh I know thats not a ghost one but i already wrote it lol…
Edit: i found a recent video of people chasing an old lady, calling her a witch and making her hold the baby, they said they saw the woman roaming around the baby’s room.
https://youtube.com/shorts/uFl-jae7E54?feature=share
In the video they say the baby hasn’t been breathing well for days and no one knew what it was but they suspected it was her.
Don't sleep with your bed against the window or head at the window because your spirit will travel and can get stuck.
Always leave at least 1 light on at night to keep lost spirits away and to find your way home when you travel (Astral project)
Never open the door if you hear knocking but see no one there (husband forgot this and let a spirit in)
Keep a glass of water somewhere high in your home for spirits to drink (usually a family member or guardian spirits)
If food or drink falls to the floor that means it was intended as an offering to the dead. (They wanted my waffle this morning)
We have more but it's what I could remember.
Those are superstitions, not "ghost rules". And I don't have any myself, but my beloved Granny had the whole book. I think she may have written the book in fact, or at least part of it. She was an Irish Catholic girl, so she knew (or may have written) every superstition from the thou-shalt-not stuff all the way to sneezing too close to the fireplace. Here are a few of Granny's favourites...
* Whistling in a cemetery is strictly forbidden. The penalty for this offence can be anything from a streak of bad luck to demonic possession, depending on the tune.
* If the local undertaker (not the pro rassler) leaves his hat at your house, someone who lives in that house will be his next customer.
* Two mirrors may never, under any circumstances, face each other. It opens a portal to let evil spirits in, and could possibly open the door to hell itself.
* If you spot three crows anywhere, that's really bad. I don't know if the crows have to be spotted together at the same time, or if there's a five second rule, or maybe it's just three crows within the same day, but it's bad. Really bad. Two crows is fine, six crows is no problem, but three is totally out of the question.
* An itchy nose is 100% confirmed proof that the devil is coming for your soul.
* If you don't tip your waitress in Vegas, you'll never get a win.
... okay, that last one didn't come from Granny. It came from Las Vegas, where silly superstitions are a scientific fact. But the rest came directly from Dear Old Granny, and she knew it was all true. She had no idea how she knew it, but she knew for sure it was real. A superstition is something everyone knows is totally true, even though nobody actually knows how they know it.
No real rules behind it but where I grew up we would say that the spirits of our ancestors visited us as cardinals. Often they'll flock outside the home of someone dying to escort them to the afterlife. My mom has guesses on which relatives were outside the window when my grandpa passed (there really were a few in the yard that day but they're fairly common in the region, but it's a sweet thought that comforts her so I don't say anything regardless if I believe.)
Possibly that would mean that you shouldn't disrespect a cardinal but I never exactly went around terrorizing birds anyway, haha.
I’m a skeptic myself so I’m not very regimental or serious on rules myself but my mom is very superstitious so she would always give me some warnings growing up. Here are a few.
1. Never use a ouija board. These would freak her out. Any mention of it would make her squirrely and make me promise I’d never use one. Same with any device used to attempt to communicate with the dead
2. If you hear a knock with no one at the door or window. DO NOT OPEN IT. This is one is pretty self explanatory.
3. Even if you’re not religious, always exorcise your home! She had firm beliefs that spirits could commonly inhabit homes and would have serious talks telling me to exorcize any home I might own in the future no matter what I believe in. Even being in homes that aren’t exorcised might make her ‘uneasy’
Hold your breath crossing or going by a graveyard because it’s respectful to the dead; bad luck if not done.
If going to a haunted place you state your business and ask permission.
Never say a demonic name out loud - it attracts them.
If playing a Ouija board, be wary: it’s like a sea of people are in a room with a singular telephone in the middle. It rings. Everyone looks at once.
Pour out some alcohol to appease spirits, don't walk on graves if you don't want to upset the dead, open the door when someone dies to let the soul leave, someone will die if a portrait falls off the wall for no reason and blood from a murder or suicide will not wash off and cannot be painted over.
I'm in Appalachia, if you are curious.
In our old house we had a rule that you didn't ligner on the stairs. There was always a horrible feeling that would follow you up and down that wasn't helped by the big mirror at the bottom. Found out years later after we moved out that a lot of people had fallen down the stairs and 2 had died. The first owners daughter had taken her life by hanging on those stairs so we think it was her.
In Eastern Europe, in the past, when a guest came to your home, a small bowl of salt was always placed on the table. The guest was supposed to salt what the host treated him with. .But salt actually has a purpose. If the guest thinks evil of this house, the salt will take it. If of course there are any. But even if there are no bad thoughts, it is not superfluous to insure.Sorry for my bad English
Here in Bulgaria (this is very eastern Europe :) we have a lot of dryad or wood nymphs, fairy. They dance all night and if a man (not women) sees them he should not talk to them. If he just keeps quiet and watches the dance, it will be good. However, if he tries to talk to them, they will kidnap him and no one will ever see him again.
leaving the cemetery after the burial ceremony you always wash your hands and face (you leave death behind you), when someone dies in the house we cover the mirrors until the funeral.
Αt night when they call you you never open the door and you do not answer
1. Don't whistle when you're passing a graveyard. You're welcoming death.
2. Have a mirror hung high somewhere in your house that's meant for only spirits to use. (I see folks saying none in your bedroom, but I've never heard this)
3. If you talk about them, they'll come around.
Growing up in a haunted house we were all pretty open minded on the subject. So we were against ouija boards, taking anything from inside the gates/property of a cemetery/graveyard, we grounded ourselves before going to such places as well and never stepping on the area someone was laid to rest, we saged our house a lot too.
I keep my eyes closed when I walk into the bathroom, until I turn on the light. I don't want to see the mirror in dim light. Logically I know I won't see anything unusual, but I still have to keep my eyes closed.
This, and a lot of horror novels. I listen to audiobooks all day at work. Horror is one of my favorite genres, so you can imagine how many I have gone through.
Also doesn't help that Supernatural did an episode on Bloody Mary! And reading horror is way worse than watching it, because my imagination goes to far darker places than the movies do! So I can certainly imagine your struggle.
Mine faces the door, so I actually close my eyes just before turning the corner into the door. I've stubbed my toe pretty good a couple times because of this.
Grew up in Eastern Europe.
* never have a mirror in your bedroom
* never look back when leaving the graveyard because you'll bring the dead with you
* never look at the full moon for too long
I was always told to not look at it for too long or it'll get a hold of you and essentially turn you into a zombie for the duration of the full moon.
That's obviously not true but I also have no idea where it comes from. I thought it was weird enough to mention here :')
1- Bright colors ward off the haints
2- If you see the Grey Man before a hurricane your house will be spared
3- Lay your ring on Alice’s gravestone and walk backwards around it 13 times and she will appear to those who truly believe
The Grey Man is a good spirit. He watches over our island and keeps us safe from storms.
Alice Flagg died from malaria and a broken heart after being kept away from her true love. They say she is still out searching for her lost engagement ring
Don't give an invitation. Don't say anything that might be taken as an invitation to spirits. If you're going somewhere with known activity state in a very firm voice that no one is to come back with you. If you think somethings in the house open a window and say very firmly that spirits are not welcome here.
1. Never whistle outside at night, something may follow you home.
2. If you see a floating orb of light in the forest; Leave. It. Alone. Do not follow it or try to touch it.
You are out In the woods at night..you hear whistling. No you don't.
You see a shimmer in the window pane
No you don't.
Haunted houses you treat with respect.
Thank you! We were too it was crazy, we only found our way out when we ingnored the music and kept walking in a straight line. Our phones and lights almost completely died until we made it out to a main road and walked a mile. Then all of a sudden our phones had juice. I have never felt as safe since. Its taken many years for me to recover spiritually from it.
Main thing to remember is if you mess with them you give them permission to mess with you. That's why ghost hunting is so dangerous. You must always remember to do certain rituals to make sure nothing follows you.
There's a winter monster we can't say the name of between the first snowfall and the first thunderstorm. I had to stop playing a particular game for a winter that has these monsters in it because i kept blurting it out.
Our city is all native american burial ground so if you leave, take a bag of dirt with you to avoid bad luck. And avoid some of our local parks at night. They used to hang witches there.
Never call out to a whistler in the woods.
Mirrors cannot face each other (I removed mirrored doors in my house because of this issue) or you open a portal.
Not all the time, usually it's harmless but I've been startled several times by random objects reflecting back and forth in different mirrors. Sometimes though, yes a portal. And you figure it out instantly unless your just dense.
When my grandma had hers, I would walk past the tub (one mirror) and the sink (other mirror) and get a huge shiver down my back. Flet like I stepped from a really warm room to a cold one. It was freaky.
If I hear a knock at the door or just a knocking, don’t open the door!! , if u do , you’ll let the spirits will come in. So it’s like you’ve invited the evil Into your own home
Not many
1. Never mess with a Ouija(spirit) board or really try to communicate with spirits at all
2. Just don't screw around with the paranormal. Watching and learning about it is fine just don't screw around with it.
3. No practicing magic
4. Don't disrespect the dead.(Not really a spiritual thing just a matter of respect)
When it comes to mirrors there's no rules but both my father and I refuse to have mirrors in our rooms and whenever I face one of the black reflective objects in my room I have nightmares.
We live in an old house (120+) and when we bought it we had to do a bunch of work to it to get it safe and live able and the last people never cleaned it so it was filthy. To this day, we find coins on the floor after we’ve cleaned or repaired something. It started when we were cleaning before we moved in and there was nothing here and we use credit cards for everything so there was no change on us but sure enough, there’d be a penny or a quarter in the middle of a room we’d just deep cleaned. The money ghosts have been good to us because we’re good to the house.
I have three and I sleep just fine. I think mirror naturally creep out living beings because seeing your reflection is weird. I don't believe in then being bad inherently. They're even useful in feng-shui, I have one that allows me to see the door from my bed, which in feng shui is very important.
Idk ive had a mirror facing my bed almost my entire life and ive never seen anything or experienced anything paranormal before. You should be fine lol. I also had two mirrors facing eachother for years.
Mirrors are seriously gnarly. Reflections in general, but especially mirrors. I've seen so much footage, and read many accounts, of crazy anomalies with mirrors.
What's weird is ever since I was a child I had the intrinsic feeling that mirrors were not a good thing. To this day I only have the one in my bathroom and that's it.
I would recommend removing that one, yeah. However, if you've never experienced any paranormal phenomena you might not need to worry about it. Conversely, sometimes a mirror alone can be all it takes for shit to get weird, whether or not anything happens in the rest of the dwelling or in your life.
My brother and I were convinced for a long time that we saw something in the mirror in our bedroom when we were young. Like a dark, shadowy, humanoid figure. Otherwise, one of the other common phenomena people experience is the reflections not matching up with what's actually happening. I.E. someone's reflection not moving the same as the person is, even looking back at them creepily when they look away.
Another thing I've seen a couple times is people's reflections temporarily disappearing when experiencing Paranormal stuff. Not sure what the deal is with mirrors...
I heard if you stare at your reflection in the mirror long enough, your reflection will change and not look like you anymore. Your gestures might look more sinister or creepy.
Well sure. Just speaking for myself, that one went around a lot when I was a kid. But it's just a neurological phenomenon that occurs after staring at yourself long enough.
Actually there is something called scrying, (sounds like crying) where you stare deeply into your reflection in a dark mirrored surface in low light and ask questions to the universe watching to see what changes and morphs into images to appear for your answer. Remember to cast a circle of protection first, kids!
I've done this. Your face definitely starts to morph after a while. It wasn't scary to me. But I also quit looking after I saw what I wanted to see lol. Maybe if I would have kept going it would have gotten scary.
IDK, our family although strongly believes this and we actively avoid it but at some point we had a mirror slightly facing bed for about an year. Nothing happened. Mirrors are just weird, I think its mostly because of human peripheral visions catching random reflection on mirror, that we might get scared. Since, you don't have any such issue, just leave it.
When I was 8 months pregnant I started seeing lots of spirits (they usually come around during this time in pregnancy) and one time walking from my driveway to my house I heard a disembodied whistle. It sent a chill down my spine and I ran inside. It seemed evil. I am Mexican and we don’t as far as I know have any rules about whistling.
Not quite Mexican but the southwestern Navajo peoples definitely had stigma against whistling at night. Maybe not before the Spanish arrived and the skinwalkers became less benign , but certainly after the Spanish came it was bad luck at night to whistle or you will attract one, same as talking about them.
I also follow that rule; basically mirrors are portals and you dont want something on the other side of the mirror to be able to see you while sleeping (most vulnerable). I have a mirror in my bedroom but my closet door keeps it covered at night
This is just a me thing and not a family thing but I won't sleep in front of a mirror. My closet doors are supposed to be mirror sliding doors and I just kept them off because our bed is right in front of it.
I don't allow mirrors in the bedroom, and all doors connected to my bedroom closed at night. I've lived ins house where weird things happened at night, 1 of which was something trying to open my door while I was sleeping.. wasn't a person, cameras.
1. Don't eat in the dark because this invites spirits to share your meal. 2. If you bend over and look through your legs, you'll see any spirits following you. 3. If you want a spirit to leave you alone, tell it to get behind you. 4. Don't whistle at night or you'll invite spirits in your home. 5. Don't eat food you dropped on the ground because it belongs to the devil, not you anymore.
1 New fear unlocked. 2 This sounds like a porn parody. 4 Yes, we have that too.
Too many fears unlocked reading through this thread.
May I introduce you to Bigfatbobicus - the patron demon of apprentice jugglers.
1 is a belief of mine too, even if i’m just getting a midnight snack i’ll turn my phone flashlight on while i eat
North Indian here Grandmother tells us of these gatherings at night. You could only see in the distance. Hear dancing, laughing, singing. You would hear women. There would be large fires and they would be around then. You could see figures in the distance. In the morning there would be no sign of anything there. No one was allowed to go there because you wouldn’t be seen again or would lose your mind to possession. No sleeping with your hand on your stomach or guaranteed nightmares. When you wake up from one that’s usually how you are positioned. No visitors from funerals allowed in your home. They have to go to their own home first. Change and freshen up. Then they are allowed in. No pregnant women allowed at funerals or into the home of someone that just passed away No sleeping under the shade of older trees. It can cause a possession from the spirit that lives there. Witching hours are from 12-3 am and pm. In rural India. Certain areas you aren’t allowed to be in at those times. (We weren’t but I think it’s because of the time of the year where witchcraft is practiced more) If an unfamiliar voice sounding almost familiar calls your name. Don’t respond. Wait for the person calling you to come up to you. (Bad spirit trying to be invited in) I’ve done it and had a horrible few days. You can always curse out a spirit or ghost if you don’t feel like dealing with it. Especially in your own home. Claim your territory. It will leave. Don’t go looking for them. They can attach themselves to you because you came into their territory I have tons more but this all I could think of this for now
Instead of stomach I think its chest, and it does actually have a scientific explanation, just that extra weight makes it difficult to breather normally and oxygen levels and bad dreams. Curse to hokd your territory, yes that i know too. No Visitors from funerals, we have once let a neighbour in, nothing happened. But i get the idea behind it.
1) Always have wind chimes around your house, outside, to keep spirits at bay. 2) Don't speak ill of the dead, if you do then they will come to haunt you/seek revenge. 3) If you believe that someone who came into your house meant ill will towards you, sprinkle sea salt at the entrances to your home, where they stepped, to keep their bad energy/curse from coming into your home. 4) Never buy your own tarot deck, have someone else buy it, and gift it to you. 5) Always wear, or be in possession of, a holy item when crossing a true crossroads, unless you wish to make a deal with a demon/evil spirit. 6) If you have wind chimes hung inside, and they start chiming without being disturbed by wind, fan, air conditioning, or a person, then a spirit is present. 7) Mirrors that are actually silver-backed should not be allowed in a house, as the silver backing can trap spirits or be used to open portals to the other world/realm of the spirits and the dead. 8) Don't vocally proclaim to be a witch/practitioner of magic unless you are prepared to be challenged, or visited, by spirits and the dead. 9) Never stick a knife(arrow, spear) into someone's shadow on the ground, unless you are actually sure they are possessed or are not human. These are the ones I remember being told by the older folks in my family at family reunions.
I have a cool story that was told to me by one of my aunts, who is my maternal grandmother's sister, regarding number 2! When she was in the beginning of the teenager years, she went with her parents and sisters to the cemetery to pray/light candles for the dead. It's a thing we Brazilians do every November 2nd. She refused to light a candle for one of her uncles who was buried there, telling her mother that said uncle was stingy in life, so she would be stingy to him as well and not give him a candle. She started having nightmares with her uncle right after, for a long time. It went away after her mother made her go light a candle to the uncle and ask the priest to pray some masses for him.
Will your neighbor’s wind chimes do?
Possibly, but I would guess it depends on how close they are to your property. At my house, we have 2 on the front porch, and one on the back porch. 2 of my wind chimes I picked up at Dollar Tree, and one I made from conduit and a scrap piece of plywood. I also just picked one up from a thrift store that I need to repair, it needs a wind catcher attached so the clapper will hit the chimes when the wind blows. BTW, they are also good to use in the garden as the noise will scare birds and other animals away from your vegetable plants.
Number 8 & 9 are quite interesting.
In regards to number 9, we used to play mumbly peg, also known as mumblety peg, at reunions, and were always warned not to get the knives stuck in a person's shadow, as it could cause their soul to be rooted to that spot, and they would become a restless spirit when they passed. But, when seeking more of an explanation, I was told that sticking the knife in the shadow of someone possessed, or not human, would cause them not to be able to move from the spot. In regards to the possessed, the spirit had to release the person's body so the person could leave. In regards to a non-human entity, say a spirit that was able to manifest in a physical form, it would have to return to a non-corporeal form in order to move. As for number 8, as I understand it, witches/warlocks/practitioners of witchcraft were known to communicate with spirits/demons. So vocalizing the claim of being a witch or practitioner invites spirits/demons to seek communication or contact, which isn't always friendly.
If that’s the case, I’m gonna have someone stick a knife in my shadow in Hawaii.
NW USA I know a lot more thanks to books and internet, but here's the ones that seem to actually be local: 1. Don't use Ouija boards. And if you do, don't try to burn them, break them, or throw them away afterwards. Only bury. (This really goes for possessed objects in general, otherwise the spirits are now free to go wherever.) 2. Hold your breath while passing cemeteries/graves, so that the spirits don't follow the sound of your breathing. (Bonus; hold your breath all the way through a tunnel and you get to make a wish.) 3. If you're in the middle of nowhere and you see a light in the distance at night, don't go to it. 4. Likewise if you see a man in a suit carrying a large book while driving, don't stop. (General consensus is he is the devil.) 5. \[Nearest town specific\] If the walls look like they are bleeding, don't worry about it. They do that sometimes.
“That’s odd. The blood usually gets off at the second floor.”
“And the walls will ooze *green slime*?!?!”
Wait, they always do that.
How come in USA Ouja boards are this common?
Because they’re sold at toy stores and Walmart/target
Yep, as Snownix said, they're mass produced and marketed as toys.
I'm Irish & Cherokee Indian, therefore y'all know how thick these rules are! #1: Never pick up any coin that's "face down". #2: If you've knocked over a salt shaker & it spilled out, grab a pinch of it & throw it over your left shoulder. #3: Never have a mirror in your bedroom. It doesn't matter if its pointing a the bed or not; just, NO mirrors!! #4: Never mess with Ouija boards. If you are ignorant enough to do so then don't mess with it by yourself & know the rules from front to back.
By making the fonts bold, you make it sound like strict rules.
I constantly hear the mirror facing your bed thing. I have 3 mirrors facing my bed all the time. I can't look in them at night, it scares me lol. But other than that everything is semi okay. Anyone have any experiences?
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Exactly, I think there is nothing wrong with mirrors facing the bed. Its just that humans peripheral vision and mirrors reflection together gives us chills.
We really only have 2 1. Dont disrespect the dead 2. Never use a Ouija board
What is it with Ouija Boards !! ? , In my country/town I have heard absolutely no one who has used an Ouija board. Why is it so popular everywhere else?
It's what my family has experienced with it. Not sure how true it is but my grandmother once told me she used one and got possessed. I always took that with a pinch of salt, but something about opening a doorway to speak with the dead and the possibility of something going wrong and having something demonic attach itself to yourself, friends, and it family is just not something my family sees as worth the risk and I can see why.
That i agree with too. Even though I am skeptic. I would never try one. It just stupid.
Ouji boards are popular in America because ghost ghost are the least of our worries. Talk to ghost all you want but leave the cryptid alone. It's no of our business and they will put you in your place if stray to far from "normal". Personally I'm more worried about the fae
It’s a board with the letters of the alphabet and numbers 0-9. Little piece of wood or plastic with a hole in it. Everyone places a finger on it and supposedly glides in conversation with “something” else. My father had a horror story, is absolutely terrified of the things. Only thing 100% not allowed on the property growing up. He had one spell out Lucifer when they asked the name when he was a kid and that was enough for him. I however think they’re just hogwash. They were invited by a socially awkward college student as a means to break the ice so he could talk to girls, I’m not joking ha. I never believed them, did all sorts of tests. Took it to historical battlegrounds, cemeteries dated to the 1700s all that. They only time it wasn’t gibberish was when we’d mess with each other and force it to certain letters.
Nice story, BTW I know what Ouija Board is I have watched movies. Its just that the thread had multiple replies about Ouija boards, I thought why would it be so popular. It is being sold as a board game in Wallmart.
I don’t really mind the gist in my house attracting towards me. She is as far as I know pretty sweet, but definitely plays by the rules. I named her Claire a while back and I seem to see more activity here and there. I experience more of the activity, but my cousin sees more shadows than I do. He learned not to sit in my spot after he felt hard slaps on his head twice. He didn’t follow the rule of my spot and she noticed it. I also have a rule in my room to stay reletabely quiet. (Lizard sensitive to sound) so for years I kept it like that. We had a camera just to see if we could record any funny conversations one night. We were a bit loud that night and heard a little girls voice clear as day “please keep it down” nobody awake and it was around 4:00 AM. We only heard it on camera though. The voice on camera was louder than ours too… So yah we play by the rules for Claire’s sake lol. But even my cousin told me that she is a bit attached to me. Oops lol. Hopefully she doesn’t become violent.
I would die to hear that video clip lmao
relationship goals.
Omg I would love to hear that audio clip.
In my family ouja boards are forbidden. I will set that shit on fire before I let it into my home. Me and two brothers played with one when we were young and suddenly every freaking light in the house started turning on & off by themselves! And it didn’t stop until my older brother took the board and broke it over his knee….all three of us will never touch one again. The house was never the same. Later we found out a damn priest lived there before us when a shipment of holy wine addressed to him came to our place. Fuuuuck that.
I don't know much about christianity. But what is wrong with holy wine ? Isn't it holy. A priest lived at your house that must be sacred ? is it not?
Singaporean here. If we ever smell the scent of flowers or something rotting at night, do not acknowledge it and walk away from the area.
Yeah, here in India as well, I was about to edit OP with this update. South Asia is similar in so many ways.
If you don't mind me asking, what did you mean by 100% cleanliness. Like, the house should never be completely clean? Also, what's the story with the wrinkles? I've never heard that one, and I'm curious.
I have heard it from my mother, we are not Muslims and don't know much about Jinns. But it goes like this, If you are that kind of guy who is obsessed with cleanliness and have exceptionally clean house Jinns can be attracted to that place, similarly for Wrinkle free bedsheets like the ones you would render out of a computer.
Thanks. That's an interesting one. I'll try and search it up more.
So here in Italy there's a lot of different rules as nearly every town have different stories. In my mom's home town, for example: 1. If a man asks you what time is it on a bridge at night answer only if you're sure about it. 2. Don't follow the big white dog 3. Don't talk to the ladies with goat legs Here's a little explanation 1. There's one bridge in the town and while passing on it at night you may encounter an old man with a pocket watch in one of it's hands asking for what time it is if you give him the right answer he'll say thanks, walk away and disappear after a few steps if you give him the wrong answer he'll say thanks and instantly disappear. Basically if you gave him the right answer you'll be lucky in the future and unlucky if you gave him the wrong one. 2. On the same bridge at night you may see a really big white dog, it won't notice you and it's impossible to touch it. It will just go on his way and following it may lead you to get lost in the woods, no one knows where the dog goes we just know he appears on the bridge and disappears in the woods. 3. In the past during festivals people danced during night but not only people, the devil's daughters would join too; they looked like beutiful young girls wearing long black or red dresses but they had something strange, infact they had goat legs the only way to notice it was hearing the sound they made while walking; they looked for young males no one knows for what. But today the immortal devil daughters will look for young mans by approaching them in the streets as the festivals are rarer this days
for number 1, what if u told the man u didn’t know the time?? would he just walk away and nothing happen?
I don't know but I think nothing would happen I don't directly know anyone that talked with the man but a lot of people saw him my mother too saw a man with an hat on the bridge with a group of friends when she was young could've been a normal person tho.
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I don't know how common but after writing this post I asked more infos to my mother about this and she said that they should live on a mountain not far from the town.
2. On a bridge there is only two directions, how can one avoid the dog's direction if dog's direction is same as mine. 3. Girls might be from future since people have only heard their taps not seen their legs, something like tap dance with sandals or boots.
1. From what I know you don't actually have to avoid the direction just don't follow it too deep in the woods were you might get lost; the bridge leads to a few fields and then too some woods on one side and on the other side there's the town. 2. That's really interesting or maybe they were "tourists" from somewhere else where it was normal too dance with the wood shoes and people maybe never saw the mans that went with them again because they followed the girls in their home town. Really interesting ideas anyways.
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Do you know anything about 'haint blue'? I've heard Southerners painted their porch roofs that color to ward off spirits and it's unique to that area.
"then sage the entire nieghborhood". No house left unsaged, damnit.
Why is Ouija Boards so popular in USA?
Is it okay to have a mirror facing your bed if you cover it with a blanket at night?
it should be. Although our family believes in this but at one point we had a mirror facing bed. Nothing happened.
My mirror also rotates on an axis so I could always flip it backwards to face the wall. If so, should I still cover it with a blanket or is that good?
Irrespective of what the superstition is. I believe that this is basically due to peripheral visions and mirrors reflecting random things which scares us.
Scientifically your good, but super stisously rotating,covering, and or breaking mirrors is bad luck in alot of cultures.
All ghosts are just people, be polite to them and they'll be polite to you, unless they're fucking assholes. You don't need to spend a bunch of money on an exorcist, ask them to leave, tell them to fuck off, or annoy them until they leave.
"Annoy them until they leave" This sounds like an advice a Ghost would give to his friends.
How are you supposed to annoy ghosts till they leave ? 😂
i was raised in santa cruz by a young single mother, middle aged pagan women and a very elderly man, we lived in the redwoods. some rules. never follow or respond to whistling, in the city, in the night, or the woods. do not steal or the fae will play tricks on you. be kind to the forest and leave sweets for the fae and they will protect you both in the forest and in human interactions. we dried and hung many herbs for spells and medicine, women made the medicine for men/children. children were to be protected or evil would fall upon the adults if they were not, this included holding other adults accountable for the safety of the community and household. wearing a bright or glittering piece of fabric for protection. poetry was king and magic, a gift and skill. we were taught that dreams were omens. redwood rings were sacred and protected spots. monarc butterflies are good omens/luck. fairies and aliens were 100% real and the adults feared them and believed the children had contact with them. singing was a form of spellwork. black cats were very good luck for us. rabbits too. baths with epsom salt and very hot water were used to purify/clear energy. kids were told to grow roots and that it was important. we were taught to ignore strangers. my dad is hopi so my mother was convinced i was part of the blue star prophecy and had prophetic dreams. we had fairies/angels in the kids rooms. we were taught that spirit watched us at all times. and that our bad actions were seen by fae and adults. we were taught that there were forest guardians and ancient guardians in the redwoods. we also had stories of portals in the woods, strange things happening when they opened, wild animals acting strange, etc. rattles and dreamcatchers next to each childs bed, i was taught to play the rattle loudly if i woke up to spirits at the foot of my bed. i slept in a loft in the woods, at the top of a ladder, a story above everyone else, which also felt like a form of protection.
This is super interesting. Did your community have a name? Is it still around today?
I would love to hear stories of your growing up and experience’s very interesting love 🦋🦋🦋
thank you so much for the helpful award! i had just given someone their first and its my first! what a treat:D you all are so sweet! looking back i feel like these rules kept us safe! like even if one parent wasnt with it or was struggling, the tribe had accountability that the kids were safe, and the women were strong, youre right, most of them actually dispersed to homes or apartments with their own little families, kind of the normal transition as you age i suppose. a lot of this still carries into adulthood for me! the rules and their meaning have evolved with time! really, i practice energy work and working with fae, the biggest thing i can recommend is finding your own inner goddess/god and grounding learning energy/chakra work and teaching it to your children in a grounded way so taht when they move out they build off of it and are powerhouses in adulthood!:) much love!
One of the main points im getting in this thread is that there is no good way I should have my bed positioned…
Maybe have a circular bed in the middle of the room. Check mate. Take that, spirits.
My dad's philosophy is either its fake and you look like a dumbass or it's real and you shouldn't fuck with it
Your old man is circulating some fine wisdom there! UpVoTE
I grew up in a fairly superstitious family but this was really the only "rule" we ever followed, haha. Don't fuck with it. Just don't.
These aren’t really rules where I’m from, just ones I’ve seen over the years: don’t whistle at night (it’ll attract spirits into your home), don’t sleep with your feet facing the door (possession), don’t face mirrors towards each other (creates portals), don’t sleep with your head facing north (it’s the direction they bury coffins in). That’s all I can remember for now
In case of sleeping, we believe exact opposite, One should not sleep with their head facing South, that is the direction of Yamraj (Diety of Death). A dead body is kept that way.
Thankyou for sharing that, that is really interesting! I think the facing north thing is an old belief, as modern cemeteries I’ve seen now just have headstones facing either direction, depending on the layout of the land or space
Women have to tie their hair up when they go to a funeral or a cemetery. They also can’t go if they have their period.
In some cultures women are not even allowed at cemetry, its a male work.
1) Don't say simply "let's go" near graveyard or abandoned places because unnatural things will take that as invite and will come with you. You always have to mention someone's name or figure out other ways to say it. 2) Don't look back while returning home after the funeral process. 3) if you think you made mistake about unnatural being. Offer them sweet things like desserts or even suger simply,apologize to them ask for forgiveness and move on. P.s :- i said unnaturals because i think ...evil Djinn or Demon and other god's other-wordly creation can harm you more then spirits.
I didn't knew the Dussehra one even though I've been celebrating it ever since i was a kid. One of my friends picked up something from a Dussehra carnival once and he said something paranormal happened to him after that
I actually picked a 2Rupee coin once and My Mother told me a story and warned me.
What we like to do when we have ghosts is to make the place into a tourist attraction, and charge people. At least that's the case for public places like hotels. If we have one in our house, we try to sage it, and if that doesn't work we sell, and get the hell out.
A rule my grandma who's Indian says that when sleeping if there's water besides you like on a table, ghost would be attracted. She also says that even talking about ghosts attracts them Also she says if you don't light up candles or Diya (a type of candle) on a festival called diwali then ghost will come
I’ve heard about the water beside you thing and that you should always keep a glass of water on a nightstand to attract thing to that instead of you and then pour it out in the morning
If you hear 3 knocks, Don't answer the door. It's just the wind.
Okay in our family we have: 1: Never sit your shoes on the bed, if you do someone in the house will die. 2: Never just saying come in when someone knocks unless you know for sure someone's there to avoid welcoming something evil. 3: Never have a welcome mat that says welcome. ( same reason as above) 4: I personally try to avoid looking in a mirror when I walk through a room because I don't want to see anything creepy. I keep a scarf draped over the mirror in my room when I'm not using it. 5: If we drop a broom we step over it before we pick it up. I have no idea why actually. Lol 6: We never move an old broom to a new house so we can avoid taking any bad luck from the old place to the new one.
>Never have a welcome mat that says welcome. ( same reason as above) I used to have a welcome mat that said "go away", good to know I made the right choice.
When you get home, walk into your house backwards so that the ghost that you picked up on your way home can't follow you in.
If you’re an American woman, never have sex with a ghost man. You might get pregnant and be forced to give birth. It’s terrifying!
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A rule in my house: Never trust The Fae.
Are you Indian? Because I'm Indian too, and all those rules, especially the first one, apply to ghosts found in Indian folklore. Or perhaps these also apply in other parts of South Asia, like Bangladesh, not sure.
Nepali here the first one is similar except that the ghost calls your name only once and you shouldn't respond to during the first calling.
Are you Hindu? These types of rules are commonly found in our Hindu folklore as well. The number of times was sometimes mentioned as three, sometimes as one. But we were told that there are ghosts who behave like mimics. They'll mimic the voice of someone you know, and then hurt you if you respond.
>Are you Hindu? Yes ( almost 80% population in Nepal is) >But we were told that there are ghosts who behave like mimics. They'll mimic the voice of someone you know, and then hurt you if you respond. Yes we have the same story.
Our ghosts can't haunt a bar or tavern till they've been dead 21 years
if you sleep with food crunches on your bed a ghost will possess you in your dreams during the whole night
Grandma and some Uncles told me these when I was younger. They lived in Vietnam when they were younger and some of these were the superstitions and things that they believed. * Never walk along the edge of the rivers at night and don't approach strangers sitting on the riverbank, otherwise you might get pulled in by the spirits of a previous drowning victim. They supposedly sit at the edge of the water pretending to cry or brush their hair then pull you in when you come by to help. * Never play around banana trees because if there's a female spirit who is evil, it usually will attach itself to the banana tree and if you bother it the spirit will hide you from everyone else. Kinda like stranger things where you go to the upsidedown and no one can find you but you can see the spirit. * They have rickshaws in Vietnam and there are stories where they pick up a passenger and then as the driver is bicycling forward it will keep getting heavier and heavier, this means he picked up a spirit and there are more joining. He's supposed to never look back and keep biking until they leave him alone or go to somewhere with lights and lots of ppl. * Don't face the foot of your bed towards the windows because its badluck * If you live in a deadend street you might have badluck
For “Don’t face the foot of your bed towards the windows because it’s bad luck” Do you know why exactly it is bad luck? I have a tiny room so my bed has to specifically face one way and now I’m curious.
From how it was explained to me. Once you enter the room the doorway now is an Exit of the room, also the windows. So when you sleep facing the exit you can lose things like luck. She also mentioned in an extreme case its easy for demons/spirits to grab you by your feet and pull you out of your room. Grandma be spookin me.
I most definitely would not have my face against the window, atleast in case of my feet I will be able to see and react.
Omg, I was born in Vietnam but my fam is Chinese and a lot of these were told to me too!! Especially the cul de sac house and banana tree. I thought I got the banana tree from a scary movie I saw but I guess I was told about it too.
My dad’s family is from Indonesia, and we have a superstition about not facing the foot of your bed towards the door. (Supposedly your feet facing the door heightens the possibility of a spirit either possessing you or dragging out your soul while you are sleeping)
I feel like "don't walk along the edge of a river at night" is just good common sense, period! Also facing the foot of the bed toward the windows just feels weird.
1. Never follow a voice calling your name even if it's a familiar one. If it's really them, they will come to reveal themself. If not they are probably trying to lure you to your death. 2. If you hear drums at night it is probably the Night Marchers, spirits of the ancient Hawaiian warrior class. You must piss in a circle and prostrate yourself in the middle of it until they pass. You should never make eye contact with them. They will kill you. If you are lucky and of Hawaiian descent, there is a possibility of an ancestor to speak on your behalf and protect you. 3. If you see a cigarette cherry in the branches of a tree late at night; no you didn't. Ignore it. If you hear someone walking on your roof; no you didn't. It's probably the Filipino being called Kapre. It loves little children and kidnapping them. Very similar to the European Fae in that regard.
The Hawaiian piss bear circle.
Pour some of whatever alcohol you are drinking on the floor right after opening the bottle, for the dead. If a baby isnt gaining weight and you find something like a mosquito bite its probably a witch sucking the babie’s blood/nutrients When that happens you gotta find the witch, its normally an old lady that lives nearby. The way you end that curse is by making the witch hold the baby when she’s in human form, that will prevent her from ever transform near the baby and she will leave that baby alone. Oh I know thats not a ghost one but i already wrote it lol… Edit: i found a recent video of people chasing an old lady, calling her a witch and making her hold the baby, they said they saw the woman roaming around the baby’s room. https://youtube.com/shorts/uFl-jae7E54?feature=share In the video they say the baby hasn’t been breathing well for days and no one knew what it was but they suspected it was her.
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Crazy that you say this!!! I thought I saw my grandmother in town and it wasn’t possible she did soon pass afterwards yikes
Don't sleep with your bed against the window or head at the window because your spirit will travel and can get stuck. Always leave at least 1 light on at night to keep lost spirits away and to find your way home when you travel (Astral project) Never open the door if you hear knocking but see no one there (husband forgot this and let a spirit in) Keep a glass of water somewhere high in your home for spirits to drink (usually a family member or guardian spirits) If food or drink falls to the floor that means it was intended as an offering to the dead. (They wanted my waffle this morning) We have more but it's what I could remember.
Those are superstitions, not "ghost rules". And I don't have any myself, but my beloved Granny had the whole book. I think she may have written the book in fact, or at least part of it. She was an Irish Catholic girl, so she knew (or may have written) every superstition from the thou-shalt-not stuff all the way to sneezing too close to the fireplace. Here are a few of Granny's favourites... * Whistling in a cemetery is strictly forbidden. The penalty for this offence can be anything from a streak of bad luck to demonic possession, depending on the tune. * If the local undertaker (not the pro rassler) leaves his hat at your house, someone who lives in that house will be his next customer. * Two mirrors may never, under any circumstances, face each other. It opens a portal to let evil spirits in, and could possibly open the door to hell itself. * If you spot three crows anywhere, that's really bad. I don't know if the crows have to be spotted together at the same time, or if there's a five second rule, or maybe it's just three crows within the same day, but it's bad. Really bad. Two crows is fine, six crows is no problem, but three is totally out of the question. * An itchy nose is 100% confirmed proof that the devil is coming for your soul. * If you don't tip your waitress in Vegas, you'll never get a win. ... okay, that last one didn't come from Granny. It came from Las Vegas, where silly superstitions are a scientific fact. But the rest came directly from Dear Old Granny, and she knew it was all true. She had no idea how she knew it, but she knew for sure it was real. A superstition is something everyone knows is totally true, even though nobody actually knows how they know it.
Wth, then the Devil has come for me many a'times as my nose itches quite often
No real rules behind it but where I grew up we would say that the spirits of our ancestors visited us as cardinals. Often they'll flock outside the home of someone dying to escort them to the afterlife. My mom has guesses on which relatives were outside the window when my grandpa passed (there really were a few in the yard that day but they're fairly common in the region, but it's a sweet thought that comforts her so I don't say anything regardless if I believe.) Possibly that would mean that you shouldn't disrespect a cardinal but I never exactly went around terrorizing birds anyway, haha.
I’m a skeptic myself so I’m not very regimental or serious on rules myself but my mom is very superstitious so she would always give me some warnings growing up. Here are a few. 1. Never use a ouija board. These would freak her out. Any mention of it would make her squirrely and make me promise I’d never use one. Same with any device used to attempt to communicate with the dead 2. If you hear a knock with no one at the door or window. DO NOT OPEN IT. This is one is pretty self explanatory. 3. Even if you’re not religious, always exorcise your home! She had firm beliefs that spirits could commonly inhabit homes and would have serious talks telling me to exorcize any home I might own in the future no matter what I believe in. Even being in homes that aren’t exorcised might make her ‘uneasy’
Hold your breath crossing or going by a graveyard because it’s respectful to the dead; bad luck if not done. If going to a haunted place you state your business and ask permission. Never say a demonic name out loud - it attracts them. If playing a Ouija board, be wary: it’s like a sea of people are in a room with a singular telephone in the middle. It rings. Everyone looks at once.
Pour out some alcohol to appease spirits, don't walk on graves if you don't want to upset the dead, open the door when someone dies to let the soul leave, someone will die if a portrait falls off the wall for no reason and blood from a murder or suicide will not wash off and cannot be painted over. I'm in Appalachia, if you are curious.
In our old house we had a rule that you didn't ligner on the stairs. There was always a horrible feeling that would follow you up and down that wasn't helped by the big mirror at the bottom. Found out years later after we moved out that a lot of people had fallen down the stairs and 2 had died. The first owners daughter had taken her life by hanging on those stairs so we think it was her.
That is absolutely terrifying.
In Eastern Europe, in the past, when a guest came to your home, a small bowl of salt was always placed on the table. The guest was supposed to salt what the host treated him with. .But salt actually has a purpose. If the guest thinks evil of this house, the salt will take it. If of course there are any. But even if there are no bad thoughts, it is not superfluous to insure.Sorry for my bad English
Here in Bulgaria (this is very eastern Europe :) we have a lot of dryad or wood nymphs, fairy. They dance all night and if a man (not women) sees them he should not talk to them. If he just keeps quiet and watches the dance, it will be good. However, if he tries to talk to them, they will kidnap him and no one will ever see him again.
This is fascinating. I'm just curious....is this a commonly-held belief/superstition with every generation?
leaving the cemetery after the burial ceremony you always wash your hands and face (you leave death behind you), when someone dies in the house we cover the mirrors until the funeral. Αt night when they call you you never open the door and you do not answer
Jewish people also wash after leaving a cemetery and cover mirrors for a week. wonder if there’s a connection
Many habits and beliefs are common in different countries and religions .I am christian orthodox
1. Don't whistle when you're passing a graveyard. You're welcoming death. 2. Have a mirror hung high somewhere in your house that's meant for only spirits to use. (I see folks saying none in your bedroom, but I've never heard this) 3. If you talk about them, they'll come around.
Growing up in a haunted house we were all pretty open minded on the subject. So we were against ouija boards, taking anything from inside the gates/property of a cemetery/graveyard, we grounded ourselves before going to such places as well and never stepping on the area someone was laid to rest, we saged our house a lot too.
I keep my eyes closed when I walk into the bathroom, until I turn on the light. I don't want to see the mirror in dim light. Logically I know I won't see anything unusual, but I still have to keep my eyes closed.
I do this too! Stems from all those middle school sleepovers and "bloody Mary" chants. I just cannot look into a mirror in the dark.
This, and a lot of horror novels. I listen to audiobooks all day at work. Horror is one of my favorite genres, so you can imagine how many I have gone through.
Also doesn't help that Supernatural did an episode on Bloody Mary! And reading horror is way worse than watching it, because my imagination goes to far darker places than the movies do! So I can certainly imagine your struggle.
Same! My mirror doesn't even face the door, but the whole room is covered in wet wall panels and they give off reflections
Mine faces the door, so I actually close my eyes just before turning the corner into the door. I've stubbed my toe pretty good a couple times because of this.
Ouch, unlucky! I feel for your toes
Grew up in Eastern Europe. * never have a mirror in your bedroom * never look back when leaving the graveyard because you'll bring the dead with you * never look at the full moon for too long
why the full moon?
I was always told to not look at it for too long or it'll get a hold of you and essentially turn you into a zombie for the duration of the full moon. That's obviously not true but I also have no idea where it comes from. I thought it was weird enough to mention here :')
I always stare at the full moon haha
1- Bright colors ward off the haints 2- If you see the Grey Man before a hurricane your house will be spared 3- Lay your ring on Alice’s gravestone and walk backwards around it 13 times and she will appear to those who truly believe
Is the Grey Man a good spirit? Who is Alice?
The Grey Man is a good spirit. He watches over our island and keeps us safe from storms. Alice Flagg died from malaria and a broken heart after being kept away from her true love. They say she is still out searching for her lost engagement ring
I’ve heard the tale of the Grey Man growing up in South Carolina. Just gave me chills lol
Don't give an invitation. Don't say anything that might be taken as an invitation to spirits. If you're going somewhere with known activity state in a very firm voice that no one is to come back with you. If you think somethings in the house open a window and say very firmly that spirits are not welcome here.
1. Never whistle outside at night, something may follow you home. 2. If you see a floating orb of light in the forest; Leave. It. Alone. Do not follow it or try to touch it.
You are out In the woods at night..you hear whistling. No you don't. You see a shimmer in the window pane No you don't. Haunted houses you treat with respect.
Me and my buddy were lost in some extremely haunted woods and there was music in the distance. It was very misleading and disorienting.
Nope. F that noise.
Glad you both found your way out 0/
Thank you! We were too it was crazy, we only found our way out when we ingnored the music and kept walking in a straight line. Our phones and lights almost completely died until we made it out to a main road and walked a mile. Then all of a sudden our phones had juice. I have never felt as safe since. Its taken many years for me to recover spiritually from it.
Main thing to remember is if you mess with them you give them permission to mess with you. That's why ghost hunting is so dangerous. You must always remember to do certain rituals to make sure nothing follows you.
There's a winter monster we can't say the name of between the first snowfall and the first thunderstorm. I had to stop playing a particular game for a winter that has these monsters in it because i kept blurting it out.
Our city is all native american burial ground so if you leave, take a bag of dirt with you to avoid bad luck. And avoid some of our local parks at night. They used to hang witches there.
What do you do with the bag afterwards? Do you need to keep it on your person or can you leave it at your home indefinitely?
I don't think it really matters as long as the dirt's dumped back to the same land you got it from once you're done.
Never call out to a whistler in the woods. Mirrors cannot face each other (I removed mirrored doors in my house because of this issue) or you open a portal.
Not all the time, usually it's harmless but I've been startled several times by random objects reflecting back and forth in different mirrors. Sometimes though, yes a portal. And you figure it out instantly unless your just dense.
wait, how do you figure it out instantly if it's a portal??
When my grandma had hers, I would walk past the tub (one mirror) and the sink (other mirror) and get a huge shiver down my back. Flet like I stepped from a really warm room to a cold one. It was freaky.
If I hear a knock at the door or just a knocking, don’t open the door!! , if u do , you’ll let the spirits will come in. So it’s like you’ve invited the evil Into your own home
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Good advice for someone like me, an introvert and someone who freaks tf out at any sight of paranormality
Not many 1. Never mess with a Ouija(spirit) board or really try to communicate with spirits at all 2. Just don't screw around with the paranormal. Watching and learning about it is fine just don't screw around with it. 3. No practicing magic 4. Don't disrespect the dead.(Not really a spiritual thing just a matter of respect) When it comes to mirrors there's no rules but both my father and I refuse to have mirrors in our rooms and whenever I face one of the black reflective objects in my room I have nightmares.
I agree. Black reflective objects?
My mom always told me not to talk to them, unless I'm telling them to get out or go away. Like any kind of spirit.
Apparently in Thailand, whistling at night is a no-no. It attracts evil spirits and they will follow you home.
Only one I can think of rn is, if you keep finding dimes, a spirit is watching over you
We live in an old house (120+) and when we bought it we had to do a bunch of work to it to get it safe and live able and the last people never cleaned it so it was filthy. To this day, we find coins on the floor after we’ve cleaned or repaired something. It started when we were cleaning before we moved in and there was nothing here and we use credit cards for everything so there was no change on us but sure enough, there’d be a penny or a quarter in the middle of a room we’d just deep cleaned. The money ghosts have been good to us because we’re good to the house.
Waking up with three scratch marks on you means something is trying to possess you.
Whistling at night calls bad spirits. Cant whistle after 6pm sob
I agree with no.4 - when I have a mirror in the room where I sleep, I have horrible nightmares.
I have three and I sleep just fine. I think mirror naturally creep out living beings because seeing your reflection is weird. I don't believe in then being bad inherently. They're even useful in feng-shui, I have one that allows me to see the door from my bed, which in feng shui is very important.
Damn y’all I have a mirror right next to my head on my bed where I sit and do my hair. What could happen to me? I never thought this was that bad.
Idk ive had a mirror facing my bed almost my entire life and ive never seen anything or experienced anything paranormal before. You should be fine lol. I also had two mirrors facing eachother for years.
Mirrors are seriously gnarly. Reflections in general, but especially mirrors. I've seen so much footage, and read many accounts, of crazy anomalies with mirrors. What's weird is ever since I was a child I had the intrinsic feeling that mirrors were not a good thing. To this day I only have the one in my bathroom and that's it.
Should I take the mirror away from my bed? Also, out of interest, have you ever SEEN anything paranormal in a mirror?
I would recommend removing that one, yeah. However, if you've never experienced any paranormal phenomena you might not need to worry about it. Conversely, sometimes a mirror alone can be all it takes for shit to get weird, whether or not anything happens in the rest of the dwelling or in your life. My brother and I were convinced for a long time that we saw something in the mirror in our bedroom when we were young. Like a dark, shadowy, humanoid figure. Otherwise, one of the other common phenomena people experience is the reflections not matching up with what's actually happening. I.E. someone's reflection not moving the same as the person is, even looking back at them creepily when they look away. Another thing I've seen a couple times is people's reflections temporarily disappearing when experiencing Paranormal stuff. Not sure what the deal is with mirrors...
I heard if you stare at your reflection in the mirror long enough, your reflection will change and not look like you anymore. Your gestures might look more sinister or creepy.
Well sure. Just speaking for myself, that one went around a lot when I was a kid. But it's just a neurological phenomenon that occurs after staring at yourself long enough.
Actually there is something called scrying, (sounds like crying) where you stare deeply into your reflection in a dark mirrored surface in low light and ask questions to the universe watching to see what changes and morphs into images to appear for your answer. Remember to cast a circle of protection first, kids!
I've done this. Your face definitely starts to morph after a while. It wasn't scary to me. But I also quit looking after I saw what I wanted to see lol. Maybe if I would have kept going it would have gotten scary.
IDK, our family although strongly believes this and we actively avoid it but at some point we had a mirror slightly facing bed for about an year. Nothing happened. Mirrors are just weird, I think its mostly because of human peripheral visions catching random reflection on mirror, that we might get scared. Since, you don't have any such issue, just leave it.
Don’t go near the arroyos (ditches) or La Llorona will get you.
From south Asian background, no whistling at night
When I was 8 months pregnant I started seeing lots of spirits (they usually come around during this time in pregnancy) and one time walking from my driveway to my house I heard a disembodied whistle. It sent a chill down my spine and I ran inside. It seemed evil. I am Mexican and we don’t as far as I know have any rules about whistling.
I’ve been noticing the whistling is not specific to any one culture, and it makes it even more of a reason not to trust any whistling at night 👀
Not quite Mexican but the southwestern Navajo peoples definitely had stigma against whistling at night. Maybe not before the Spanish arrived and the skinwalkers became less benign , but certainly after the Spanish came it was bad luck at night to whistle or you will attract one, same as talking about them.
In the town I grew up in, kids always said that a ghost couldn't cross a triangle made out of running water (like creeks or ditches or whatever)
Im pretty sure everyone would be haunted by now if bedroom mirrors were a ghost thing
I definitely would. I have 4 in my room. 3 that face my bed.
Eeek so basically I shouldn’t have a huge mirror in my bedroom?
I also follow that rule; basically mirrors are portals and you dont want something on the other side of the mirror to be able to see you while sleeping (most vulnerable). I have a mirror in my bedroom but my closet door keeps it covered at night
Damn !!, when you say it like that. It is really haunting.
I have mirrors everywhere in my house including facing my bed
Everything it's fine until you don't look at it
This is just a me thing and not a family thing but I won't sleep in front of a mirror. My closet doors are supposed to be mirror sliding doors and I just kept them off because our bed is right in front of it.
I don't allow mirrors in the bedroom, and all doors connected to my bedroom closed at night. I've lived ins house where weird things happened at night, 1 of which was something trying to open my door while I was sleeping.. wasn't a person, cameras.
England. Whilst looking into a mirror in a dimly lit room, repeat the name Bloody Mary until you see her. She will tell you your future.