Skeletal remains rotting behind cellar walls, temple priests removing brains with iron hooks, phantom locomotives roaring across midnight plains—Brian Righi isn't making this stuff up. The ghost stories he finds in history are far more chilling than any Hollywood horror scene. Join the seasoned paranormal investigator on a tour through mankind's millennium-old obsession with death and the afterlife. Ghosts, Apparitions and Poltergeists surveys 4,000 years of hauntings and ghost huntings—from the embalming rituals of ancient Egypt to the Ouija boards and séances of nineteenth century Spiritualism—highlighting a few outlandish tales and colorful characters along the way. Once you've learned the history, launch a paranormal investigation of your own with Righi's guide to modern ghost hunting, full of detailed advice culled from his seven years of experience in the field.

Explores stories and legends of ghosts, poltergeists, and hauntings, including discussion of saeances and ghost hunting.

Few people can claim the distinction of experiencing first-hand such occurrences as hauntings and the presence of poltergeists, but countless numbers of people are fascinated by these unexplainable events. Written by the world's most knowledgeable authorities in this field, the essays in this work promote a better understanding of the manifestations of and various reasons for hauntings and poltergeist phenomena. The experts come from such backgrounds as anthropology, history, philosophy, psychiatry, and sociology, and provide sober yet highly readable in-depth discussions of numerous ideas and rationalizations for hauntings and poltergeists, from a critical and scientific perspective. Divided into three major sections--sociocultural, physical and physiological, and psychological perspectives--this work provides an overview of each perspective and also addresses the general psychology of belief in the paranormal and how that belief relates to experiences with ghosts and poltergeists.

Poltergeists was first published in 1979 and rapidly established itself as a leading work on the topic. It has been frequently referred to as groundbreaking and a classic of the genre. Illustrative cases from all over the world are presented, dating from the sixteenth century to the late twentieth. Included are destructive cases, fantastical cases, poltergeist assaults, phenomena that are allegedly brought about by a witch or a demon, and others which appear to be the handiwork of a deceased human being. Most cases are sourced from contemporary notes or diaries, often little known or unknown but nevertheless fascinating, with many translated from non-English language sources. The book includes a computer analysis of the leading characteristics of hundreds of cases of poltergeists and hauntings, and offers tentative conclusions as to the natural 'clusters' into which the cases fall. Poltergeists is essential reading for anyone who is interested in parapsychology and the paranormal.

Explains the theories behind ghostly phenomena from the perspective of parapsychology. Covers whether or not anyone can prove the existence of ghosts. What these hauntings and poltergeists are are and what they tell us about human experience.How knowledge of parapsychological lab research enhances understanding of apparitions, hauntings and poltergeists, both from the perspective of an investigator and the people who encounters them. How investigators can recognize and enhance their psychic abilities. Written by a world-renowned ghostbuster, Loyd Auerbach

Doors fly open by themselves, dishes fall from shelves, stones fall from the sky: these are obvious signs that a poltergeist may be near. For centuries, these mischievous and often malevolent spirits have terrorized people, who often find no protection from their evil. This book provides a history of poltergeist hauntings, highlights some well-known cases and examines what may truly be behind this dark and eerie paranormal phenomenon.