NIGHTMARE


Source : J. A. Cheyne 
                      Department of Psychology 
                      University of Waterloo

Nightmares and nocturnal attacks have been closely connected to myths and monsters across time and cultures. It has even been even suggested that the night-mare is the origin of all mythology (see Kirby, 1901). Although few modern scholars would be quite so bold or sweeping in their claims the pervasiveness of the nocturnal attack in mythology, religion, and legend is quite striking. Ardat lili or Lilitu, an evil Sumerian spirit, is one of the earliest Hag-demons. She was capable of flying, which she preferred to do at night, at which time she frequently attacked men in their sleep. She is thought to constitute the prototype for the Hebrew Lilith and the Roman Lamia (Russell, 1995). All these female spirits or demons have in common an association with nocturnal attacks. Moreover there are a number of related spirits described in Middle Eastern and European lore with connotations of leaping upon, oppressing, or crushing, supine individuals as they attempt to sleep at night. Some of the better-known spirits of this sort are; Greek ephialtes (one who leaps upon) and mora (the night "mare" or monster, ogre, spirit, etc.), Roman incubus (one who presses or crushes), German mar/mare, nachtmahr, Hexendrücken (witch pressing), and Alpdruck (elf pressure); Czech muera, Polish zmora, Russian Kikimora, French cauchmar (trampling ogre), Old English maere (mab, mair, mare-hag), hagge, (evil spirit or the night-mare--also hegge, haegtesse, haehtisse, haegte); Old Norse mara, Old Irish mar/more, Newfoundland Ag Rog (Old Hag), and the Spanish pesadilla ( Keissling, 1977; Hufford, 1982; OED, Roscher, 1900/1979; Sebald, 1978; Thompson, 1957; Ward, 1981). In addition, the Greeks also had the pnigalion (the choker) and the barychnas (the heavy breather)troubling would-be sleepers (Keissling, 1977). In addition to attacking helpless humans at night these creatures were shape-shifters, able to take on various forms during these attacks (Keissling, 1977).

Among the writers of European antiquity, Herodotus provides an early account of an ephialtes who appeared to the wife of King Ariston of Sparta in the form of the King himself, although it was itself the spirit of the deceased hero Astrobacus. Horace makes a reference to a threat whereby a boy claims that if he is killed he "will attend you as a nocturnal fury; and, a ghost, I will attack your faces with my hooked talons (for such is the power of those divines, the Manes), and brooding upon your restless breasts, I will deprive you of repose by terror." In Greece and Rome, the ephialtes and the incubus were identified with gods and demons of the forest and woodland, such as, the god Pan (Roman = Faunus), as well as Satyrs, Sirens, and Silvani (Kiessling, 1977), and even with the goddess Diana (Russell, 1995). Many of these creatures were depicted as resembling humans in the upper portions of their bodies and beasts, usually goats or fauns, in the lower extremities. This association was evidently still quite strong by the time of Augustine who explicitly associated Pan with the incubus. Pan was particularly associated with shepherds and goatherds and one may well imagine that the isolated and rigorous life of such individuals predisposed them to many nocturnal visitations. Similarly, the succubus Lilith was to be typically to be found in the remote regions of the desert (Isaiah, 34:12). Pan's attacks were of course associated with panic. Pan was also more generally seen as the instigator of "dreams and visions, especially those that produced sudden, violent terror" (Kiessling, 1977, p. 5).

There is also certain classes of angels, "watchers" and "fallen angels," referred to in the Judeo-Christian traditions, associated with the incubus. Some were sent to watch over humans, and sometimes became enamoured of human women. The progeny of such encounters were, however, monsters and demons who further molested and assaulted helpless sleepers (Kiessling, 1977). Augustine doubted that angels were the source of incubi, though he had no doubt that the latter existed. "There is, too, a very general rumor, which many have verified by their own experience, or which trustworthy persons who have heard the experience of others corroborate, that sylvans and fauns, who are commonly called "incubi," had often made wicked assaults upon women, and satisfied their lust upon them; and that certain devils, called Duses by the Gauls, are constantly attempting and effecting this impurity is so generally affirmed, that it were impudent to deny it" (ch. 23). Martin Luther was unequivocal in asserting that, "sunt incubi et succubi daemonis . . ."

In some traditions these monsters are the descendents of Adam and his first wife, none other than Lilith herself (Kiesling, 1977). Certain midrashic stories allege that Cain is an offspring of such a union, in this case between Eve and the ultimate fallen angel, the devil himself. It is not surprising, therefore, that Beowulf's foe, the monster Grendel (referred to at least once n that famous poem by the term maere--Kiessling, 1977) is described in the poem as a descendent of Cain. Grendel, a cannibalistic devourer of men invariably carries out his attacks in the dead of night on sleeping men. Prior to Beowulf's confrontation with Grendel, Hrothgar tells him how previous heroes have been defeated, apparently because they were unable to remain awake. It is also worth noting that Beowulf eschews arming himself for the confrontation with Grendal on the grounds that Grendel does not bear arms. He destroys Grendal as Grendal destroyed men, by ripping a limb from its socket.

These experiences and their ensuing personification and elaboration are by no means limited to western culture. In St. Lucia, West Indies, an attack of kokma comes at a time that the individual is just falling asleep or just waking up. The sensations include pressure on the chest, inability to move, and anxiety. The kokma is the spirit of a dead baby that haunts an area, attacking people in their beds. In a familiar pattern, they jump on the victim’s chest and clutch at the throat. The victim attempts to cry out, or in some other way to get another’s attention, someone that might scare off the kokma. Informants described the babies clutching at their throats. The notion that the attacks are thought to be initiated by dead, unbaptized babies is also found in Ireland. "The kokma cannot be controlled, they grab people just for the hell of it" (Dressler, 1977, cited in Ness, 1978). In Thailand experiences referred to as Phi um (ghost covered) and phi kau (ghost possessed) involve pressure, immobility, and something black covering the body. In Japan kanashibara ("to tie with an iron rope") is a common and widely known experience (Fukuda, 1993). In Korea, people are afflicted by ka wi nulita ("scissors pressed"), an experience felt to be brought on by fear. In the Far North one speaks of agumangia (Inupik) or ukomiarik (Yupik) in which "a soul" tries to take possession of the paralyzed victim. In Laos, (Lemoine & Mounge, 1983) da chor is described as follows: "You want to listen, you can’t hear; you want to speak, you are dumb; you want to call out, you cannot; you feel you are dying, dying; you want to run away. You piss with fear in your sleep" (cited in Firestone, 1985, p. 61). In the Philippines people are afflicted with urum, ngarat (Simons & Hughes, 1985). Among the Hmong of Laos the nightmare spirit is referred to as dab (nightmare) tsog (evil spirit) or tsog tsuam (evil spirit who crushes, smothers, or presses upon) (Adler, 1994).

As Hufford (1976) noted almost a quarter-century ago, of the SP night-mare, " (1) the experience is wide-spread, at least in Western culture; (2) it has been regularly reported for more than two thousand years; (3) it has been attached to a variety of narrative frameworks . . . , but regardless of the framework, the experiential features have remained basically the same; (4) this consistency of detail, apparently rather independent of tradition, is the most surprising and difficult to account for" (p. 78). These experiences appear to be widely known in traditional cultures, in marked contrast to industrialized society. Hufford (1976) found that, among his Newfoundland participants who had been hagged, half did not know the Old Hag tradition. This is the same proportion of the entire sample who had not heard of the tradition. This, of course, quite inconsistent with the cultural source hypothesis that such experiences are induced by knowledge of cultural traditions. Subsequent research has made clear that these experiences are by no means limited to Western cultures. Also striking in this connection is the similarity of the descriptions of the SP experiences across all cultures, including industrialized culture which appears to have no commonly accepted popular myths to offer cognitive support to the experiences. Hufford (1976) makes a fairly convincing connection between sleep paralysis and "bedroom" alien abductions as described by Keel (1970). Many others have made this connection since (Baker, 1994, Blackmore, 1998; Spanos, 1994).

Source : The Encyclopedia of Witchcraft & Demonology

Mare.  The supposed mare (demon) which during the night sites on the chest and causes feelings of suffocation.  Very occasionally mare refers to the nightmare dream itself.  Mare is an Old Teutonic stem (Old English mare, demon, quite distinct from Old English mere, a female horse); it is found also in the French word for nightmare, cauchemar (caucher, to trample).  Very often it is used interchangeably with incubus, as in the early Anglo-Saxon Glosses (about 700) and in Bacon (1626):  "The incubus, which we call the mare." The mare (as well as the incubus) was also known by the scientific name, ephialtes (Greek = to leap upon); and in German by alp or mara.

The picture of the mare remains very constant in all accounts; the early nineteenth-century work, The Philosophy of Sleep, by Robert Macnish (1830) gives the common picture:

A monstrous hag squatting upon his breast - mute, motionless and malignant; an incarnation of the evil spirit - whose intolerable weight crushes the breath out of his body, and whose fixed, deadly, incessant stare petrifies him with horror and makes his very existence insufferable.

While the reality of the mare was accepted by the standard demonologists, King James I in hisDemonology (1597) denied it, answering his own question: Is the "mare, which takes folks sleeping in their beds, a kind of these spirits?" no, it is

but a natural sickness, which the mediciners have given that name of incubusunto, ab incubando, because it is a thick phlegm, falling into our breast upon the heart, while we are sleeping, intercludes so our vital spirits, and takes all power from us, and makes us think that there were some unnatural burden or spirit lying upon us, and holding us down.

The mare also attacked horses, and Sir Thomas Brone (1646) tells how a stone hung up in the stables prevents the disease.

NIGHT SPELL

A charm against harm by night, especially against the nightmare of mare.  In Chaucer's Miller's Tale, the carpenter recites a white paternoster as a charm against the nightverye [monster]:

Jesu Christ and Saint Benedict,

Bless this house from every wicked wight.

Another invocation was mentioned by Fletcher in one of his plays (1619):

St. George, St. George . . .

He walks by day, he walks by night.

In his Compendium Maleficarum (1626), Guazzo gave directions for securing protection during sleep

by reciting holy psalms and prayer, such as Qui habitat in adiutorio altissimi or In te Domine speravi, or some such orison.  Let them make the sign of the cross, reciting the Salve regina mater misericordiae, the paternoster, the Ave Maria, &c., if they would be safe from such snares.  Let them have by them a waxen Agnus Dei blessed by the pope, or some holy relics.  For such devotions are the safest protection and rampart against all the wiles of the prince of darkness.

Vortex

This is a swirling column of white ectoplasm that is often mistaken for a camera strap because it usually is found on the right side of the photograph in a vertical position. This column may cast a shadow and may lie in a horizontal or vertical position on the photo. One or more vortex columns may be present. The vortex may loop or may appear to disappear completely from the photo. The column may be of any color, but the most common is white. Often a blue-white color may be visible associated with portions of the column being transparent. In those photographs taken at funerals, the vortex captured on film are often more blue than white with individual sections of the column as a dense white almost like blobs within the column. The older the spirit, the more solid the vortex appears. This may be a basic configuration for the ghost entity. From this configuration the vortex transforms into a globular shaped ectoplasm.

Orbs or Balls of Light 

Orbs are the most common configuration pattern for the spirits of the dead. The sphere is considered the ideal vehicle for moving about. The spirit orb may represent one or more spirits or souls. Documented evidence suggest that these Orbs may allow multiple spirits to travel together. Most often an Orb in motion will leave a contrail since it is moving faster than the shutter speed of the camera. Orbs are the essence of who we were in life, our intelligence, our emotions, our personalities and our attitudes are all retained within this essence or soul. Often these orbs can be observed with the human eye as they past through the wall or zip across the room.


Ectoplasm or Ecto Vapor

This is a form of spirit energy that appears either as long white swirls or as a vapor or cloud like spirit energy. This configuration appears to be unorganized and resembles swirls of smoke. When an Orb comes to rest, it can dissolve into an ectoplasmic mist. In some ectoplasmic mist, swirls caused by orbs in motion can be observed.

Ecto Swirls

This form of ectoplasm resembles swirls of smoke or vapor and is caused by orbs in motion that are leaving a contrail behind it. The vapor trails are generally white.

Dust Particles

Dust particles suspended in the air are often thought to be spirit orbs simply because they are also orb shaped. If the IGHS Standards & Protocols are not followed, the chances of photographing dust particles instead of spirit orbs are very high. Most digital cameras will capture suspended dust particles, both indoors and outdoors. Most people are amazed that their homes contain suspended dust particles, but they do. Heaters, vents, fans and other devices move the tiny dust particles on currents of air not seen by our eyes. The orb shaped anomalies maybe out-of-round, broken or chucked, may appear as shield shape, diamond shape or octogonal depending on which camera is used. Any straight line found on an anomaly means it is produced by light being reflected back into the camera causing the anomaly. Spirit orbs never have straight lines of any kind. Most dust particles appear in clusters and resemble bubbles.

Camera Strap

Camera straps are most often confused with the vortex or vortices because of their patterns, but camera straps are very easy to detect because the pattern of the strap is visible. It is different from a vortex or from vortices since the strap is very close to the lens, it cannot twist and turn in the short distance. We had to take over twenty-four photos with the film camera before we captured a decent strap, the others did not come close to resembling vortices. It is hard so any critic who claims a vortex is a strap, ask him to demonstrate how easy it is, because we found not it is very hard to do.

The fourth marvelous faculty of your higher consciousness is inner power. Though you may at times feel very weak and incapable of changing oppressive conditions in your world and personal life, you actually do possess an inner power to change things! It's always there within you. You can unleash it as soon as you discover it and work with it. Why ignore it?
When you feel weak, confronted by a multitude of obstacles, when fears amass and offensively charge you, seek your higher consciousness. Often superconscious insight guides you and you will know what to do. Or perhaps you may be given a deeply secure and comforting awareness which helps you to deal with your dread. You may find a sweet peace or a sense of the underlying beauty and joy of life. Also, perhaps early in your experience of higher consciousness, you will discover that mindfully taking your thoughts, feelings, attitudes, and your present understanding of your difficult situation into your higher consciousness enables you to find that subtle power which changes your situation.

When you find higher consciousness you find a marvelous power which moves into the chaos or the menace. This inner power may turn your problem into a benefit or dissolve the problem. This power might even delay your menaces until your situation is completely improved. You will find yourself growing from the sense of being puny and inadequate into a state of faith and certainty that knows good will inevitably expresses, right will be done, truth will prevail. You have this inner power. It is available in your distress and in the good times, too. Never forget you have this wonderful inner power to improve your life, and yourself.

I'm sure many of you have had sleep paralysis and I'm going to tell you what it is.

Sleep Paralysis has been known for a long time. Throughout the history of mankind there have been the reports of people awakening to feel a sense of weight on their chests and an inability to move their limbs to escape this pressure. People who experience this phenomena almost unanimously describe a feeling of panic and fear at their experience which can last long after the paralysis of their bodies has faded and they can move again.

 Legends have arisen in every culture as a means of explaining this sensation, now called sleep paralysis. Hebrew legends equate the night hag with Adam's first wife, Lilith (More about Lilith). More commonly the European view from the Middle Ages was that a witch or other demonic entity was sitting on their bodies and trying to entrap their souls. But whether the night hag is thought to be an old woman, witch, devil, incubi or succubi, there is rarely reported an actual visual presence and the victims are left to fear that such a thing will happen to them again.

 Modern scientific study has discovered a common feature with most of these sleep paralysis events and a physiological cause for the most pronounced symptoms. It has been discovered that during sleep the brain releases a hormone into the blood stream that will paralyze the major muscle groups to prevent locomotion. In this way, the body can rest while the mind is working its way through dreams. This hormone is designed to prevent the body from hurting itself during the unconscious sleep state.

 Those who have had too little of the hormone introduced are subject to limb thrashing and sleepwalking as the person acts out the events of their dreamsThe medical explanation of sleep paralysis is that as a person rouses from the deeper sleep cycle, the hormone will take a few moments to wear off and release the muscles of the arms and legs, thus causing a brief period where the paralysis lingers. Generally it only takes a few seconds for this to fade, but even such a brief time can cause panic in many people. That a sense of fear or dread accompanies this sensation can be understood in that one of the major triggers for sleep paralysis is extreme stress in one's life.

 While the medical profession considers all the sensations of sleep paralysis to be psychosomatic, paranormal researchers have often encountered stories of being held down or choked in places that exhibit poltergeist activity. There have been other reports, some as recent as the early 1990's, of a person's spouse entering the room where their partner is experiencing "sleep paralysis" and seen a dark shadowy form fleeing the bed of the victim.

 There has yet to be discovered a practical way to study any but the most physiological aspects of this phenomena. That it has been a fact throughout the history of man could lend weight to the totally mundane explanation. But there has also been the belief of malicious spirits bent on harming the living for as long as humans can remember. Does the truth lie somewhere in between? Could it not be equally valid that certain dark spirits use this physical effect in an effort to attack the souls of the living when they are in a defenseless position?.

 I hope this has helped people who have had sleep paralysis I am sorry for a long boring presentation.