New Zealand Ghosts & Other Haunts

What is a ghost?

A ghost - or apparition - is the energy, soul or personality of a person who has died and has somehow gotten stuck between this plane of existence and the next. Most researchers believe that these ghosts do not know they are dead. Very often they have died under traumatic, unusual or highly emotional circumstances. Ghosts can be perceived by the living in a number of ways: through sight (apparitions), sound (voices), smell (fragrances and odors), touch - and sometimes they can just be sensed.

What is a haunting?
A haunting is a kind of "recording" of a past event on an environment, such as a house, building or a battlefield. These recordings play back, over and over in a kind of loop - always the same, like a film or video. It is thought that the presence of certain people can trigger these recordings to play back. They are not ghosts capable of interacting with the living. It is not known how these recordings are made, but they are often associated with a traumatic or strongly emotional event.


The differences?
Despite popular belief, there are distinct differences among ghosts, haunting and poltergeists:

• Ghosts are the residual energy of people that have been caught between this plane of existence and the next. It is this ghost that can cause the most despair, often they are held on this plane because they do not know they have passed or because of some unfinished business. They are intelligent beings, often capable of interacting with the living. Our intervention will often help them resolve any unfinished issues so that they might move peacefully on.

• Haunting are recordings of an event or an event on an environment. They do not interact with the living. eg. the reenactment of an event, the site of a tragedy, murder, a battlefield etc, etc.

• Poltergeists are neither ghosts nor haunting, but are caused by the unconscious mind of a living person, usually under some kind of stress.
It is worth noting that a combination of these phenomena can occur in one place. One can effect or even trigger another, which is why a variety of such phenomena can be found in a "haunting


The answer seems to be yes. Animals, it seems, can be both ghosts and involved in haunting. There are countless stories from people who have heard, felt and even seen pets well after they have died. The animal usually behaves in ways that it did in life, carrying out its routines and habits - jumping on a bed, for example, to cuddle with its owner. The phenomenon brings up the question: do animals share the same life after death that humans do?

There are other types of haunting, much more rare, most of these are associated with native peoples and their beliefs these beings are referred to as elementals and are much more difficult to deal with, often requiring the help of a Shaman or in New Zealand a Tohanga.