What Dwells Within

A Study of Spirit Attachment

John Hunt Publishing Ltd.

Contents

A Bespoke Service – 'Haunted Dolls'

It would still be many years before the introduction of the Haunted Dolls website. Jayne continued to visit the spiritualist churches in her area and attended several shows by highly respected mediums such as Colin Fry and Tony Stockwell. As Jayne's collection of paranormal literature began to expand so did her knowledge and it was not long before a concerned home owner contacted Jayne to ask for her help and expertise.

"After being asked in 2002 by someone to go and see what I thought about things they were experiencing at their home, word soon spread that I knew a bit about this kind of thing and I had several people ask me to 'investigate' their home. I've never charged anyone, as they were kind of doing me a favour in helping me study and learn more."

Jayne's interest in all things paranormal continued to go from strength to strength, and over the course of the next few years she began to amass a large collection of dolls and curios that reputedly held connections to the spirit world.

"I actually got to the stage where I couldn't have friends over to my house as they were a bit uncomfortable with the amount of objects, dolls, equipment and things I had in the house. You couldn't see the dining table for files and paperwork!"

In order to continue her investigation into spiritual attachment she came to the conclusion that she would have to move some of her collection on in order to make way for fresh items in which she could devote her time. The foundations for Haunted Dolls were set.

"I set up my website in 2012 and at that time it was just a personal blog type site where I would document my own photographs and experiences. Then I got to the point where I had used up both of my spare rooms housing dolls and other curiosities ...

"... So I offered a couple of my own dolls up on the website. I knew what I had paid for them, and I worked out how many hours roughly I had spent researching them in order to gain detailed information. This was how I decided on a price and that model stays the same today. The more documented hours of study time, the more travel and preparation we have to do, and the more we have to pay for a study piece initially, dictates its cost to a collector later on. This allows us to continue to travel, purchase further items to research and so goes the cycle. We're not out to make huge profits. As long as we can keep doing what we love."

In the early days of Jayne's investigations she would often be accompanied by her husband and a couple of friends who shared her enthusiasm for all things paranormal. This was the case until recently when the couple moved away from the area. Jayne's husband still helps with the investigative side of the business from time to time, but the bulk of the work largely rests upon Jayne's shoulders.

Having established herself as one of the leading lights in the field of spiritual attachment (she is officially endorsed by the British Paranormal Association), it may not surprise you to hear that her client list is both large and varied.

"Our clients can be anyone. We have had doctors, teachers, students, artists, an ex-FBI agent, a puppeteer you name it! Spirits are not choosy about who they get to know! The one thing all collectors obviously have in common is an interest in the paranormal."

Whilst word of mouth and endorsements are key to building a successful business and a solid reputation, it is the advent of social media that has really enabled Jayne to engage with her clients and helped her to push her ethos further than she had dare to imagine.

As mentioned earlier, Haunted Dolls recently received an official endorsement from the British Paranormal Association (http://www.britishparanormal.org.uk), an honour that Jayne is rightly proud of. Paranormal investigations have become huge business over the last few years and an endorsement from the BPA guarantees potential customers that they will be dealing with both a professional and knowledgeable individual.

"The BPA (British Paranormal Association) was set up by various leaders in their field of the paranormal. It's a non-profit organisation that basically works to share best practise and so forth. Their website includes a section for 'rogue companies' amongst other things so they basically work to promote 'legit' organisations."

Her work has also caught the attention of Paranormal Magazine. (www.paranormalunderground.net) who wrote a feature article on a doll named Matilda that Jayne had offered as a competition prize. (The website often runs similar competitions, which enable visitors in the site to enter a raffle where the prize is one of the dolls from Jayne's personal collection.)

"There was a five page article in Paranormal Underground magazine giving a case study of one of our dolls, Matilda. A guy from the magazine won one of our competitions but didn't tell us who he was! We sent him the doll and he studied her and reported his findings."

Haunted Dolls was also referenced by Living Dead Magazine in an article titled 'Haunted Objects – Fact or Fiction?' (www.livingdeadmagazine.com)

You can find out more about Jayne's business on Facebook by searching for Haunted Dolls or by visiting www.haunted-dolls.com.

New customers are always welcome and are exceptionally well catered for. All dolls and curios come complete with an extensive history and Jayne offers advice and support that is personally tailored to the needs of each object and its prospective owner.

What is Spirit Attachment?

If one were to research the topic of spirit attachment you would find that the vast majority of recorded cases relate to the attachment of a spirit upon an individual. Indeed, instances wherein energy attaches itself to an object seem far rarer by comparison. In order to answer why this is the case it is first necessary to examine what happens when a spirit attaches itself to a person.

It is only in recent times that the concept of a spirit attachment has caught the interest of the public. Novels such as The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty (and the subsequent movie), have infiltrated mainstream horror and portray the more severe form of spirit attachment (possession), but it is important to note that there are distinctive differences between the two phenomena.

Spirit attachment occurs when the energy or spirit from a deceased person 'latches' onto a living person. (Paranormal Experiences – What is Spirit Attachment, 2012.) The relationship between the living host and the deceased spirit is one of a parasitic nature. It is argued that the spirit 'leeches' from the living in order to sustain itself. This draining effect can cause many unpleasant side effects, but most cases of spirit attachment largely go unnoticed by sufferers of the phenomena due to their apparent similarities with established physical and psychological conditions. (Peter Michael, 2007.)

It may well be that cases of human spirit attachment appear far more prevalent than those that ground themselves to objects as it is easier for a spirit to attach to a 'live' host. It is argued that spirits seek out living souls as a means of comfort. The deceased may find death hard to accept and therefore seek to remain earthbound in order to continue to experience life and its many pleasures. It is also suggested that some return to the earthly plane in order to attach to those with whom the deceased share a particular trait or talent. (Peter Michael, 2007.) Other spirits may wish to make contact with the living in order to pass on a message that they did not have the chance to pass on in life.

The list of explanations and arguments are numerous and varied when it comes to discussing this particular form of attachment, and it is likely that the debates will continue to rage until we receive some form of concrete proof regarding the existence of spirits and the afterlife. However, for the purpose of this book, we shall explore the types of attachment that occur when a spirit forgoes the prospect of attachment with a living host and chooses to anchor itself to an inanimate object. (Paranormal Experiences – What is Spirit Attachment, 2012.)

How Does a Spirit Attach Itself to an Object?

Dave Schumacher is the Director of the Anomalous Research Department of the Pennsylvania and Wisconsin based Paranormal Research Group, and he suggests that there are three key theories that may explain how and why a spirit attaches itself to an object. (Haunted Objects, Robin M. Strom-Mackey 2012.)

Theory One: The Residual Haunt

The residual haunt theory suggests that certain events can be so emotionally charged that they can end up leaving an imprint on the surrounding environment. Any object or building close to the event has the potential to store the energy that is released, holding it until a time where certain environmental conditions occur and a playback of the event is triggered. Playback may include auditory phenomena (such as the sound of someone crying), or visual apparitions. This playback is non-interactive and remains constant (in that repeated playbacks all feature exactly the same activity). This is similar to the stone tape theory mentioned earlier in that if a building or a location is able to store such energy then maybe singular items are also able to do the same.

The ability to read the 'history' of an object is known as psychometry. This ability allows a medium to read the history of an object merely by touch. It is argued that actual contact with a spirit that is grounded to such an item is extremely limited and that the medium is able to see the history of an object through a series of images.

Psychic medium and psychometrist, Pat Patalona (Balzano, Weisberg, 2012) states that she often sees different episodes in the history of an object, though one may be more emotionally charged than another. For instance she may pick up only one person attached to an object despite the fact that the object had numerous owners.

She explains the recording process thus: "Everything in the universe has an energy field that radiates all around it. These emotions, these impressions, they are absorbed with that energy field. It's not necessarily inside the object, but it exists in that energy field. I read that energy." (Balzano, Weisberg, 2012).

It is widely believed amongst mediums that objects made of gold in particular [also known for its electrical conductivity] tends to hold onto the greatest amount of energy. (Haunted Objects, Robin M. Strom-Mackey 2012.)

Theory 2: Retro-cognition

This is the ability to perceive or relive experiences that occurred in the past usually via the form of a vision or a dream. These visions tend to be vivid and include elements of sights, sounds and smells. Those gifted in this sense have described the process similar to stepping into that time for short a period. An object may hold the memory of a past event, and in the hands of someone with the ability to read it, play back those memories or stored energies. It is suggested that all hauntings are retro-cognitive events where the past scene is read telepathically in the present. (Cheung, 2006.)

Theory Three: The Intelligent Haunt

The intelligent haunt theory suggests that part of the human consciousness survives the body after death. The consciousness released from the body may return to a location or an object that it felt a strong connection with during life. Thus if someone were attached to a particular possession in life they might indeed return to it after death. (Haunted Objects, Robin M. Strom-Mackey 2012.)

The Difference between Attachment and Possession

It is important to point out now that experts in the field of spiritual attachment draw a clear and distinctive line between the phenomena of 'attachment' and 'possession'.

Jayne explains why it is believed that an object cannot be possessed.

"There is a clear distinction between 'spirit possession' and 'spirit attachment'. Most cases found on attachment are relating to people not objects; however, these cases are actually spirit possession. This is when a spirit will quite literally 'possess' the shell, but not the soul of a human being as a means to an end. Many believe that 'end' to be ultimately taking ownership of the person's soul.

"Spirit attachment that involves an object relates more in terms of residual energy with elements of individual intelligence remaining after life has expired. Elements of someone's soul anchor themselves to an inanimate object as a way of remaining on the earthly plane. We believe that as all things are made up of matter and energy, that by anchoring one's own energy (which some believe would otherwise be in 'limbo') to a specific object, spirits create for themselves a doorway or portal. Through this physical object they can return here or remain here.

"In cases of Spirit Possession individuals are largely dealing with a darker force. There are usually unhuman elements at play." (Jayne Harris, 2014)

Parapsychologists believe that Psychology also plays a key part in a vast amount of suspected attachment cases.

"There are also a few psychological possibilities for haunted objects as well. Dave Schumacher suggests magical thinking, sheer human imagination, and the desire to experience a paranormal event, subjective validation and confirmation bias. In other words, if a person is inclined toward believing in the paranormal they're more likely to attribute unexplained phenomenon to being paranormal."

(Haunted Objects, Robin M. Strom-Mackey 2012.)

Spirit Attachment throughout History

Belief in spirit attachment is by no means restricted to those cultures that are built upon the foundations of Christianity. Japanese folklore believes that once an object reaches 100 years of age it receives a soul (Tsukumogami). Known examples have included a possessed mirror (Ugaikyo) and a possessed clock (Zorigami). There is even a ceremony called Jinja that consoles and comforts objects which have been broken or thrown away.

The concept of spirited items is widely accepted in the religion of Voodoo. For example twins are considered sacred by practitioners for they believe that the two individuals carry two halves of the same soul. Should one of them pass away it is quite common for the surviving twin to carry a doll that resembles their deceased sibling. The belief is that the doll harbours the other half of the soul, and that by carrying the doll the soul remains intact.

Voodoo also has a notoriously dark side to the religion and there is a strong belief that witchdoctors are able to bind souls against their will to an item after death through the use of black magic and blood rituals.

In China, travelling puppeteers often transported their puppets with the characters head kept separate from the body. The idea was that by doing this, any bad spirits that may have inhabited the doll would not be able to take full possession of the doll and cause trouble. A separated vessel meant that the spirit would not be able to exert its full hold over the puppet.

Countless more theories and beliefs can be found throughout history of cultures that subscribe to the idea of spirit attachment in one form or another. This book hopes to give the reader a very basic overview of some of the more modern theories behind these beliefs.

Investigative Methods and Tools

When it comes to investigating an item that potentially has a spirit attached to it, Jayne approaches this in two ways. Jayne will either visit the item and the owner at their place of residence or speak to them intensively over the telephone. It is here that she will make copious notes that cover the background history of the object (how and when it came into the owners possession), and will ask questions about any unusual events that have occurred in the house or around the object that may indicate the belief that paranormal activity is taking place. Often the owners of the item will report cold spots or unusual sounds emanating from rooms that are known to be unoccupied (such as tapping or hurried footsteps). The purpose of this conversation is to gather as much background information as possible and to rule out anything in the environment that could be causing the phenomena that the client believes to be paranormal.

Like most of her peers, Jayne uses a selection of equipment and techniques to help her in her initial investigation and she will usually bring these with her when she meets a client. She is sure to always carry her K2 meter, a pendulum (made from onyx), an object or charm that is personal to her (in order that she feels grounded and safe from harm), and a digital camera.

Of course technology is no substitute for intuition as Jayne explains:

"As a general guide, if I feel from what someone has told me over the phone that a visit would benefit further from feedback on an intuitive level, I will ask for the company of our regular psychic medium Hazel (and prior to Hazel a lady named Kathleen) whose presence can prove invaluable. Throughout my research studies, the knowledge and information she can provide through mediumship often guides me in the approach I subsequently take."