I dont believe

[Celesia]

I believe that's the Gaia theory. I've seen and felt too much not to believe in the afterlife, spirits, and demons. I guess for those who have not personally felt such experiences there's no 'facts' that there is an afterlife.

WinterLily...

May I ask what made you believe in spirits, demons and the afterlife?

[Celesia]

I guess I put myself on the spot for that comment. Growing up in a house where we constantly had footsteps being heard in rooms no one was in, doors opening without help when they were previously latched shut, seeing glimpses of figures walking around the house, voices of people in rooms that were empty, that made me believe in spirits.

When my father was in his 20's he told use that one night he woke to a black figure with red eyes looking down at him. He couldn't move, so he kept repeating in his head "In Jesus' Name", which made the figure angry and leave. I see no reason why he would lie to my brother and I, so I believe it to be real. It may have just been a dark entity, or demon. I believe it was the latter.

As for the afterlife, just last month my uncle passed away. While I was sitting at home I suddenly kept getting wet, like something was dripping on me. I looked at my ceiling, which there were no wet spots, so I ignored it. It happened again, then I felt a presence, and sadness and realized it was tears. This may sound strange, but I knew it was a relative, and could only think it was my recently deceased uncle. I heard "Tell him I'm sorry" then everything was gone. I called my dad to tell him about it, figuring it was either my dad or my other uncle he was talking about. That's when my dad told me they had an argument. I believe in the afterlife, but that just reaffirms it for me.

I am not saying Ray is wrong, just that with different experiences we believe in different things.

Your father didn't lie...but it sounds like he experienced a SP hallucination. Note that you said "a black figure with red eyes looking down at him. He couldn't move,"

I too had so-called "poltergeist activity" at home when I was little. My bedroom even caught fire mysteriously. Soon, I was to be "possessed". My own mother who is African and believes in voodoo and holds Spiritualist views had to exorcise me.

But I think more mundane explanations for that are also feasible. I remember coming across an article in a scientific mag as a teenager. It theorised that, when there is conflict and turmoil in a household, a negative charge of energy may accumulate in the air and the vulnerable may be affected i.e. children.

It said that "poltergeists" may not be the work of spirits or proof of an afterlife at all, but rather, unusual manifestations in our physical universe produced by our minds. In other words, mind over matter in a way. I remember at the time that my mother kept complaining that the atmosphere in the house was heavy.

By the way, my father was violent to my mother everyday and they used to argue constantly. When this weird business started happening, they were forced to stop. Today, my parents are divorced.

I once screamed at my father to just leave because I hated him so much. This was before the "possession". Rather than being possessed by a demon, couldn't it be a psychological defence mechanism in order to deal with the stress? A sort of temporary personality disorder? After all, multiple personality disorders exist.

I'm not trying to disprove what you believe in, but, I am pointing out other avenues to you.

In reference to this:

"Tell him I'm sorry" then everything was gone. I called my dad to tell him about it, figuring it was either my dad or my other uncle he was talking about. That's when my dad told me they had an argument. I believe in the afterlife, but that just reaffirms it for me."

Associations are easily made about what people experience subjectively which isn't necessarily the truth.

Our own beliefs are beholden to our own selves..that's what makes us who we are and no one can change that. What I've found though is that my beliefs are constantly changing throughout the course of my life. I was brought up Catholic and even as a child I didn't think it was right...and now I've progressed into believing in reason and truth and not necessarily having "faith" in anything except my own prowess and the the love of others.

One thing I like to believe is that if there is a God-like entity, we as humans cannot perceive "Him" or "Her" or "It" as anything other than a thought, and if it does exist it certainly doesn't exist as anything depicted in the Bible. That's just where I'm at right now in my life. And most definitely 20 years from now my beliefs will have changed further. So in that, personal beliefs are not only reliant on the self but on the time and place and overall environment of the self.

do you suppose you are like a battery that has only some energy and when it became discharge is finished ? so who is the creator of your perplexing camera under your brow ?