Ouija Boards: Messing With Occultism


Imagine you’re at a party with a few friends. One of them whips out a Ouija board that was made by Hasbro (ages 5 and up, of course). You take your seat and form a circle, unknowingly about to perform a séance. The planchette glides slowly across the board as your friends ask questions, and then…

You’re summoning a spirit from their resting place. Congratulations, you and your friends are messing with the dead. Surely there are no consequences to that, right?

The Strange and Dark History

Credits to cultofweird.com

“Ouija, the Wonderful Talking Board.” This is one of the few advertisements that made the newspaper back in February 1891 in Pittsburgh. It was listed at the low price of $1.50 and was catered towards children. The Ouija board was promised to give “never-failing amusement.” It could be used to answer your questions, predict the future, and most importantly communicate with the dead. People had a different relationship with death back in the 19th century. It was more of a curiosity than a reality, therefore the Ouija board became popular.

Robert Murch, the world’s foremost collector and historian on Ouija boards, even agreed with how odd the history is. He said, “For such an iconic thing that strikes both fear and wonder in American culture, how can no one know where it came from?”

The Rules of the Board

There are five concrete rules you MUST abide by while using a spirit board.

  1. Never use the Ouija board alone. Even if you’re curious one night and want to take a shot at talking to a spirit, don’t chance it. Using one alone can leave you vulnerable to evil spirits coming from the Other Side.

  2. Never use the Ouija board in a graveyard. The last thing you want to do is bring about spirits you weren’t aware of. Being in a graveyard is bone-chilling enough, there’s no need to start summoning all of the dead from their resting places.

  3. Never ask if God is real. Curiosity killed the cat, and satisfaction won’t bring it back. Asking the dead about higher powers could anger them and cause their negative energy to filter right into you. Some questions are best left unanswered, especially when it comes to risking your own life.

  4. Never use the Ouija board if you are a non-believer. While it’s important that this blog caters to believers as well as non-believers, it’s advised that you think about the potential consequences of using a spirit board.

  5. Never leave the planchette on the board without saying goodbye. It’s only polite! In all seriousness, not saying goodbye after a session with the dead can leave you filled with dread and waking up with night sweats. Say goodbye and thank you, then wait for the planchette to move towards goodbye on the board. If the spirit doesn’t say goodbye back, repeat it, then pass the planchette through the flame of a candle. It helps to cleanse the area (but please, be careful if you do this).

There are other rules that also apply while using an Ouija board. Learn more here: https://thoughtcatalog.com/erin-cossetta/2018/03/21-ouija-board-rules-everyone-needs-to-know-before-they-start-playing/.

“I Can See You Through the Window”

Let’s take a look at a real experience someone had with a Ouija board.

Many people use Ouija boards and have real experiences with them. Having those experiences has become a bonding point for people on social media. User no-springs from Reddit shared an experience ten years ago that they had with the paranormal. “Just kind of scaring ourselves for fun, not taking it very seriously.” According to their story, they were only 12 or 13. “…we got the message ‘I can see you through the window’ and then ‘I can see you through his eyes.’” Incredibly freaky, but it somehow gets worse. This Reddit user then goes on to say that they asked a few questions, to which the board replied with ‘I’m under the car.’ Being curious children they - of course - went outside with some flashlights and checked beneath the vehicle. No spirit was there, but there was a black cat that seemed quite agitated. It hissed at the kids and they ran back inside….

Then the power went out.

A few blood-curdling screams later, the power flickered back on. No-springs says they haven’t touched a Ouija board since.

The Validity of It All

cresits to @aminoapps.com

It’s ultimately up to you if you want to get involved with Ouija boards, but I can say for me personally that I’m good not knowing what lies beyond.

Just don’t forget to say goodbye.


PICREW RIGHTS BELONG TO @COZMICCHU, DESIGN BY WRAITH

Wraith

Wraith is a ghostly soul that enjoys investigating the truth behind paranormal affairs. There are secrets and discoveries to be made within the pages of history, and Wraith intends to find out the chilling truth. From ancient to current practices of communing with the dead, Wraith will use his quick wit and keen determination to investigate the sincerity of paranormal records.

The Legitimacy of Fortune-Telling


The History

For those who are curious, fortune-telling is a semi-paranormal, cultural way to predict the events of the future. It’s difficult to pinpoint exactly when this became so popular, but Britannica indicates that the practice started in ancient China, Chaldea, Egypt, and Babylonia as early as 4000 BCE. In addition to being able to predict the future, this practice was also used in ancient religions and medicine.

Fortune-telling comes in various shapes and sizes. This includes numerology, phrenology, palmistry, and astrology. The most common type of fortune-telling would be what’s usually seen at fairs: palmistry, otherwise known as palm reading. This method focuses on interpreting the lines of a person’s palm to reveal their future relationships, career, and mental state. Big words aside, being an oracle, otherwise known as a fortune-teller, is not as welcoming as you may think, despite how many religions and countries interpret fortune-telling.

Paranormal Skepticism

There are more than just a few people who think reading into the future can bring about unwanted attention. Paranormal investigators argue that messing with time can cause anomalies and influence the future to be something else entirely. This article by Professor Margaret Signorella from Pennsylvania State University, argues that “psychic reading[s] provide the same type of vague, general descriptions found in horoscopes.” This is mostly true - though the argument can be made that astrology is, in fact, fortune-telling. According to seers, otherwise known as clairvoyants, the concept of fortune-telling is supposed to be vague in order to give the person receiving the fortune different interpretations.

Okay, enough with the back and forth. Let’s look at some facts.

In 2016, a study on paranormal beliefs was conducted in the United States. 42% of people interviewed believed in extrasensory perception (otherwise known as the “sixth sense”),  31% believed in telepathy, and 28% believed in clairvoyance (psychic powers). As of October 2021, this has changed rather drastically. 46% of Americans believe that “ghosts or spirits of dead people can come back in certain places or situations.”

Is It Accurate?

Well, that’s debatable. As I was doing my research for this blog, I discovered just as many successful palm-readings, as I did disappointing ones. Online psychics often have “for entertainment purposes only” at the forefront of their website, but still want to be taken seriously. Since this is such a varying market, it’s easy to find yourself in the company of a fake seer. The one time I went to a fortune-teller, the woman told me a man in a hat will change my life.

Much like other practices of interacting with the paranormal, fortune-telling can’t be proven or dismissed. It’s been involved in a plethora of cultures for centuries, used in almost every occasion ranging from funerals to future weddings. If you enjoy reading your horoscope or getting your palms read, you likely support fortune-telling. If you’re more of a skeptic who’s uncertain of the paranormal backlash, then you’re likely not a supporter. As author Erin Morgenstern says: “Before you leave, the fortune-teller reminds you that the future is never set in stone.”

credits belong to André Kertész

I believe that visiting a seer is accurate as long as you want it to be. It’s another topic entirely to debate if we can change our futures, but what we can do is either listen or reject insight. You can take your palm reading with a grain of salt, or you can follow it religiously. It’s accurate based on your beliefs.

As for me, I have hope. If you’re a man in a hat, let me know.

If you’re interested in joining the debate, check out this article by Shondaland: https://www.shondaland.com/live/family/a35194467/are-psychics-for-real/.


PICREW RIGHTS BELONG TO @COZMICCHU, DESIGN BY WRAITH

Wraith

Wraith is a ghostly soul that enjoys investigating the truth behind paranormal affairs. There are secrets and discoveries to be made within the pages of history, and Wraith intends to find out the chilling truth. From ancient to current practices of communing with the dead, Wraith will use his quick wit and keen determination to investigate the sincerity of paranormal records.

Paranormal Cinema: The Awakening


image CREATOR: DIANE DIEDERICH | cREDIT: GETTY IMAGES/VETTA

image CREATOR: DIANE DIEDERICH | cREDIT: GETTY IMAGES/VETTA

So it begins … my chaotic tribute to cinematic horror, my bloody valentine to the paranormal on film, my last will and testament to the illest thrills and chills.

Here lies Juice Demon, in the realm where entertainment and horror collide.

Since this is a paranormal blog, I must abide by its limitations—meaning there are many films of other horror genres I dare not venture into, so as to avoid endless meta-tangents and philosophizing that could derail our collective theme. But first, the basics.

Here's Horror :D

From the French word “orror”—meaning “to shudder or bristle”— horror in its simplest definition is a condition marked by fear. In an art form, the horror genre should unsettle its audience through the use of narrative, auditory cues and visual elements. Basically, if you’re at a premiere and the theatre doesn’t periodically erupt in pearl-clutching shrieks, then consider the film’s horror card revoked.

Horror films have different origins around the world. These origins range from ancient folklore passed down through various cultures to the local paranormal encounters that gained such notoriety that they were elevated to narrative non-fiction and beyond.

Now of course, there are somewhat-official genres and subgenres of horror … but this is my ship, and I am its captain, so I will be taking some liberties:

Ø  Psychological. Codename: Cerebral killer (Yikes).
Ø  Slasher. Codename: What did you even trip on?! 
Ø  Monster. Codename: Stomp and chomp.
Ø  Found Footage. Codename: Heavy breathing.
Ø  Paranormal. Codename: Ghostly realms. 

Finally, my chosen genre (and what some would argue to be the original in horror). Paranormal films should include some combination of: ghosts, ghouls, demons, spirits, possessions, powers, the afterlife, witchcraft, and other inexplicable happenings of this nature. They’ll likely have a title that begins with “The Haunting Of” or a rickety house on its poster with an eerie light shining from within. Or it will literally have the word “paranormal” in it, like the massively popular Paranormal Activity franchise. (I gave up after the third one).

From The Cabin in the Woods to The Babadook, you’ll find avid enthusiasts on all levels of intensity and style. So what drives these fanbases? What exactly is so fascinating about being horrified? 

I won’t bother trying to come up with a magical, universally-applicable answer. Instead, I’ll dive into some Juice Demon lore. The first paranormal horror movie I can remember seeing was The Grudge. Now this will age me terribly, but I remember watching this on a portable DVD player about half the size of a laptop. When it was over, I was scared to turn off the lights. I can remember vowing never to watch anything like it again.

It was a morbid curiosity that led me to watching the disc’s special features. The reminder of it being fiction renewed my spirits, and from then on I immersed myself in the genre. Over time, my attempt to kill my fear through desensitization turned into a fierce adoration.

So what makes my adoration so persistent? What keeps it alive?

Perhaps the answer is philosophical. The notion that humans exist in a chaotic and purposeless universe is what characterizes absurdism (the belief system I would choose at gunpoint). It is the conflict between searching for inherent meaning in life and accepting that there might not be any to be found. Depressing? Maybe, but I see it as a perpetual state of wonder. To me, the “not knowing” is the fun part of existing. Some even believe that subjectivity—a rejection of a clearly-defined reality—is the basis of the horror genre as a whole.

I love science (abysmal high school grades aside), but what I love even more are the things that manage to remain elusive to its parameters. The paranormal challenges the world we know, and that disruption taps into a curious fascination I’ve always had with absurdity and chaos.

Maybe the obsession comes down to biology, and my brain just loves the adrenaline (dopamine—thanks again, science!)

Or maybe (at the heart of it) there is a dreamy, romantic notion that defines my relationship with paranormal horror. Maybe teetering on the edge of fright and wonder is my favourite reminder that I’m alive and real.

I wouldn’t call myself an executive authority on the genre by any means. I don’t enjoy every niche subgenre, and I’ll admit to a healthy distaste for the over-reliance on jump scares. However, the overarching classification of paranormal horror contains some of my absolute favourite films. Ghost stories are classic, timeless and ever-evolving. And Ghost Writers?

the real ones will get this reference

the real ones will get this reference


PICREW RIGHTS BELONG TO @cozmicchu, design by juice demon

PICREW RIGHTS BELONG TO @cozmicchu, design by juice demon

Juice Demon is a harbinger of chaos from a dark dimension. She daylights as a student in the Professional Writing Program at Algonquin College. She is an enthusiast of carefully curated horror movie marathons, bonfire cracklings, and imagining the alternate universe in which Willem Dafoe is cast as The Joker.