Negative Energy Week: The Smudging Ceremony to Remove Bad Energy with Sage Smoke

 It's Negative energy week, and in today's blog you'll learn about the art of smudging to clear that energy. 

The following was provided to me by Kathy Schueler - about how to smudge and rid your home of bad energy: 

THE SMUDGING CEREMONY: REMOVE BAD ENERGY WITH SAGE SMOKE

Some of you want to know how to perform a cleansing ceremony with the use of burning sage, also known as "smudging".

A smudge stick is a dried and bundled plant. One can also use loose leaves in smudging, but before we get to the particulars of such a ceremony it will help to have an understanding of the origins of this sacred practice and how it will cleanse, heal, and consecrate an energy field, or thing, or space.

The Origins and History of Smudging:

People commonly credit smudging as being a Native American practice, but the use of rising smoke in spiritual rituals has been practiced across many cultures for thousands of years. The ancient Hindu texts reveal this was practiced 6,000 years ago with the burning of incense. Smoke purification was performed in Egypt, with the burning of aromatic resins for religious ceremonies. It was practiced in Babylonia, Greece, Rome, Japan, Tibet, China, among the ancient Hebrews, and among indigenous tribal cultures around the world, with the native tribes of North America being only a portion. Catholic and Orthodox Christianity, which are an amalgam of pagan beliefs and practices, use incense in religious ceremonies, adapted from the pagan rituals popular when the Christian theocracy was legalized by the pagan-turned-Christian, Roman Emperor Constantine, in 325 AD.

So the use of smoke to purify in a spiritual way is not exclusive to the Native American tradition, although we have them to thank for the wonderful and deeply spiritual practice of burning sage and other sacred plants as a purification practice. This tradition is a very beautiful gift and the most effective method commonly used in spiritual cleansing ceremonies today.

How it Works to Cleanse and Purify:

Smudging is an intrinsic part of shamanism, the world’s oldest medicine. Shamans recognize that every form of life on this planet has a spiritual purpose and a sacred consciousness. They know that plants have invaluable healing properties. Human animals, as it turns out, are not the top rung of creation’s ladder even though we think we are because we have big brains and walk on two feet. All beings, whether plant, animal, or mineral are divine and have sacred right to life; all have something to offer to the manifest “other.”

To approach a smudging ritual and to be effective in cleansing away negative energy, one must be reverent of the plant being used and even the energies being cleansed. All energy is divine at its core, whether Light or Dark. Respect for all life is essential to any smudging that you undertake. If you cannot feel reverent about this sacred practice, don’t do it. Find someone who is spiritually qualified and energetically prepared to do it for you.

Although many different plants can be used for smudging, indigenous American tribes consider four plants to be especially sacred: sage, sweetgrass, tobacco, and cedar. Each plant is considered to have a special function and this can vary by tribe and tradition. While sage is used for purification, sweetgrass is used to bring in positive energies, and its smoke is considered to carry prayers to the Creator.

When to Use Smudge:

-If you are feeling down, negative, stuck, or in a spiritual low place, smudging is an excellent way to change things for the better.
-When your house, your property, or any place or space has been exposed to heavy and negative energies, or painful experiences and even illness, they should be cleansed with smudge.
-When you move into a new location, it should be smudged to cleanse the psychic imprints of previous occupants.
-If you feel the presence of bad energy in your living quarters, or if a solitary room makes you feel bad or uneasy by being in there, it’s time to smudge.
-If you want to create a protective barrier against outside negative influences, such as neighborhood issues, it’s time to smudge.
-If you want to make your prayers stronger and if you want to feel more connected to Spirit, it’s time to smudge.
-If your vehicle has been in a fender-bender or you’ve had a close call in your car, smudge it, inside and out, to remove negative energetic imprints that can attract more negative experiences.
-Cleanse second-hand items with smudge to remove psychic imprints of previous owners.
-You can consecrate and energetically charge your garden by smudging.
-You should smudge to clean yourself and your space before engaging in any psychic contact or spiritual ceremony.
-You can smudge anytime just to connect to a state of spiritual clarity and harmony! Remember, you “clear the air” in your life with the help of sacred smoke!

Sacred sage and other wonderful herbs are Earth Mother’s gift, and once you understand how important a tool they are in your own spiritual welfare you will never be without a supply on hand. They are a fundamental part of your spiritual first-aid kit, given by Creation to heal wounds upon the Soul.

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For more information, check out my books on Amazon.com - all best-sellers and all under $10. Particularly "Lessons Learned from Talking to the Dead" which is a question and answer-type book to all things paranormal that I've encountered.

Negative Energy Week: How to Dispel Negative Energy or a Ghostly Attachment

If you feel drained a lot, feel depressed, angry, or feel negative energy around you, there are steps you can take to dispel it. Whether it be a ghost in your house, a ghost who has attached him or herself to you, or negative energy that you absorbed. Here's how to get rid of it:
    It would be beneficial to start doing things to invite light, positive energy and optimism into your life to dispel it. The attachment seems drawn to the negativity like a magnet.
   BRIGHTEN UP! - I would suggest that you brighten your living environment, remove negative people from your life, play quieter, calming music, sage your house and bring in more light.
  LOOK AT LITTLE THINGS TO FIND GOOD - Focus on small things that make you happy- even a good cup of coffee or an easy traffic day.
  The positive change will repel the negative energy. Negative energy depresses people can be changed by focusing on good things, even small, good things.
  MEDITATE -   You should meditate, have all the lights on around, candles to invite more light, soft music (instrumental), and tell the energy to leave your body.
AN EXERCISE TO RID THE ENERGY FROM YOUR HOME -
    Picture the energy wrapping up into a tornado-like vortex, and then imagine it spinning out of the house through a window. Then imagine the window and all the windows of your house being sealed with light as a barrier. He can also protect yourself  further by picturing that white light around him as a "suit of armor."

Negative Energy Week: Understanding, Coping and Cleansing

 As a paranormal investigator and medium, I've encountered a lot of negative energy. In the paranormal field paranormal energy can be residual or an intelligent haunt. In this week's SERIES of blogs, I'll cover different aspects of Negative Energy encountered in the paranormal field.

Residual energy is created by emotions of living people or animals. If the living being expressed angry, disappointment, anxiety, irritation, depression or fear in a building, those emotions will be impressed upon the walls of the room or throughout the entire structure. 

When a living person enters that structure or room, the walls emanate that negative emotional energy and if the living person is sensitive, they feel it. The negative energy can make them angry, disappointed, anxious, irritated, depressed or even fearful.  

Intelligent negative energy is basically a ghost with a bad attitude. Spirits who cross over, usually heal on the other side in the light, but earthbound ghosts maintain the very bad parts of their personality. For example, those would be people who were violent, killers, rapists, thieves, and mentally unstable. As such, if there is a ghost with a bad attitude in your home or wherever you go, they will emanate that negative energy and you'll be physically or mentally affected. That's why if you have a ghost in your home, you need to help cross them over. 

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For more information, check out my books on Amazon.com - all best-sellers and all under $10. Particularly "Lessons Learned from Talking to the Dead" which is a question and answer-type book to all things paranormal that I've encountered.

Meet the Alleyway Ghost and More in a new book "Case Files of Inspired Ghost Tracking"

A book called "Case Files of Inspired Ghost Tracking," by best-selling paranormal author Rob Gutro takes readers on paranormal investigations into private and historic homes where ghosts were traumatizing families. 
  You'll read about the Alleyway Ghost in the pages of Case Files. You'll learn why he's there and why he died there, just as we did when the paranormal investigators met him in the alleyway behind a house in the Baltimore area. Rob even sketched him out and got confirmation from the homeowner that that was indeed the ghost they saw walking around in their house! 
  Rob, a medium in the Inspired Ghost Tracking paranormal group, announced the release of his seventh paranormal book that brings readers along on investigations and reveals some bizarre and shocking things the group found and how they helped the ghosts and families.     
TO BUY ON AMAZON: https://tinyurl.com/yba6ofbj

"When earthbound ghosts have traumatized families in their own homes, Inspired Ghost Tracking (IGT) of Maryland has gone in to cross them over," Gutro said. "Every case is different, too. Some have had earthbound ghosts that were friendly, others were not. IGT experienced a lot of bad energies that caused people to become physically sick or mentally traumatized. IGT investigators had to figure who, what, when and why things were happening, to finally bring peace to the living and the dead."  

In this collection of IGT cases, you’ll read about the "Burned Ghost," ghosts of two different time periods in one home, dark things that Ouija boards brought into homes, a very haunted Maryland mansion, many ghosts of Baltimore’s Federal Hill, a ghostly attachment, a Steelworker’s ghost, poltergeist activity, the famous IGT “Double Murder Ghost Investigation” and many more.

You'll find answers to questions like why ghosts choose to stay in a place, the differences and similarities between ghosts and spirits, why energy is the key to the paranormal and much more.

Although Rob has become known as a "Pet Medium" through the success of his best-selling books "Pets and the Afterlife" and "Pets and the Afterlife 2," he also connects with human earthbound ghosts and spirits.

Gutro is the first in the paranormal field to make the distinction between earthbound ghosts and spirits who have crossed over. Rob has three books about his experience with human ghosts and spirits, called "Ghosts and Spirits," "Lessons Learned from Talking to the Dead," and "Ghosts of England on a Medium's Vacation," and most recently, "Kindred Spirits: How a Medium Befriended a Spirit."   

Rob Gutro has been featured in the Washington Post and nationally syndicated radio programs like "Coast to Coast AM." Rob is a volunteer with Dachshund and Weimaraner rescues and gives fundraising lectures for animal rescues around the U.S., teaching grieving pet parents how pets communicate from the afterlife.   

Website: www.robgutro.com, www.petspirits.com

Facebook pages: www.facebook.com/ghostsandspirits.insightsfromamedium

www.facebook.com/RobGutroAuthorMedium

Twitter: https://twitter.com/RobGutroAuthor

Amazon Author Page: amazon.com/author/robgutro

YouTube:   https://tinyurl.com/wcvhqbt

Paranormal Q and A: What type of scientist are you? How do your peers feel about your medium work?

Each week, I'll answer a question about the paranormal, whether a general question, or one about human or animal ghosts (Earthbound) or spirits (crossed over). Here's this week's question:

 QUESTION: What type of scientist are you? How do your peers feel about your medium work? 

 ANSWER: I'm a meteorologist. I don't talk about my gift with fellow scientists, but the ones that do know "get it" that it's all about energy! I think that once science catches up with the paranormal, it will just be considered normal!

 For Rob Gutro's 6 books on the paranormal, visit: www.amazon.com. All of Rob's books were written to help explain the paranormal, and teach readers how to find signs from spirit.

A Haunting Word and History: Taphephobia, Witch Trials, Malleus Maleficarum

In today's blog, you'll learn a haunted word, get a short lesson on the Witch Trials and find out what Malleus Maleficarum means. 

he central figure in this 1876 illustration of the courtroom is usually identified as Mary Walcott.

 Being a paranormal author, I came across a word that describes a serious fear about a gruesome death, that many people suffered throughout history, especially those accused wrongly of being "witches." 

HAUNTING WORD OF THE DAY:   taphephobia

[taf-uh-foh-bee-uh] 

noun, Psychiatry.

1.  an abnormal fear of being buried alive.

Sadly, throughout history and in Europe and America, people were burned at the stake for witchcraft. The witches were accused by religious people who claimed the witches made deals with the devil.

 

Suspected Witches Burned Alive in Kenya (UK Daily Mail)

Apparently it still happens in countries like Kenya. According to an article in the U.K. Daily Mail on Nov. 4, 2012, in 2009 there was an uproar after a video emerged on the internet showing five people burned in the village of Nyamataro, Kisii, in the east of Kenya, over witchcraft allegations. Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2227693/Elderly-Kenyans-burned-alive-witches-refusing-desirable-coastline-land.html#ixzz3pgL9qFr5

 

A Look at History of Burning Witches at a Stake:  In the U.S. the town of Salem, Massachusetts became infamous for its witch trials, but the accusations went back hundreds of years before that in Europe.

SALEM WITCH TRIALS:  The Salem witch trials were a series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts between February 1692 and May 1693. The trials resulted in the executions of 20 people, most of them women, and with some of their families murdered after their persecution. 

  Historians agree that the episode is one of the nation's most notorious cases of mass hysteria, and has been used in political rhetoric and popular literature as a vivid cautionary tale about the dangers of isolationism, religious extremism, false accusations and lapses in due process.  LEARN MORE at the Salem Witch Museum: https://www.salemwitchmuseum.com/ 

  (I've been there- and it's a fascinating and twisted history)

 

A LOOK AT EUROPEAN HISTORY: 

Malleus Maleficarum, Swiss Inquisition, Pope`s Guard, Templars & Burning "Witches"

WHAT WAS the Malleus Maleficarum?

The Malleus Maleficarum (1486) is the best known of the witch-hunt manuals. It was first submitted to the University of Cologne on May 9th, 1487.  While general consensus is that The Catholic Church banned the book in 1490 by placing it on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum (“List of Prohibited Books”), the first Index was, in fact, produced in 1559 under the direction of Pope Paul IV. MORE: http://www.malleusmaleficarum.org/ 

 

Questions about the Paranormal? For answers about many questions you may have about ghosts, spirits or the afterlife, check out my book "Lessons Learned from Talking to the Dead" by Rob Gutro. I wrote the book to answer all questions on the paranormal, and used personal experiences or shared stories to convey answers to questions and provide proof. 

  Available on Amazon.com in paperback and E-book

Haunted U.K.: The Isle of Man's Castle Rushen

 This is one of several blogs of haunted places in the United Kingdom's Isle of Man, that was written by Paul Dale Roberts, Halo Paranormal Investigations’ Esoteric Detective (www.cryptic916.com/) . I also had the pleasure of visiting England and you can read about my encounters with the ghosts there in my book "Ghosts of England on a Medium's Vacation," available on Amazon.  Here's this week's UK Haunted Place on the Isle of Man:  

This photo of Isle of Man is courtesy of Tripadvisor

CASTLE RUSHEN

It was a short visit, so the only place we saw at the Isle of Man was the medieval Castle Rushen.  Castle Rushen is located at the historic capital Castletown.  The castle is used as a museum and education center.  This castle was built in 1200.  It was built for the last Norse King of Man who died in 1266. Robert the Bruce destroyed part of the castle in 1313 during his siege.  Sir William de Montacute in 1344 rebuilt the castle and brought the castle back to it’s former glory.  One of the reasons why I wanted to visit this castle, because I heard about the mysterious Gray Lady.  According to legend, the townsfolk believe she killed her son.  She was arrested for murder.  She was tried and found guilty.  The people of the town hung her.  After she was executed, the townsfolk learned that her son had actually died of natural causes.  Now the ghost of the Gray Lady is seen walking with her ghostly son on the drawbridge.  I heard about the legend of the Gray Lady and was fascinated by the story.  Special Note: Castle Rushen served as a prison and executions took place at this castle.  Other ghosts seen at this castle have the following names: White Lady, Rose, and the Woman in Black. There is also a mysterious underground room in the castle where a male ghost has been seen lingering.  Tourists have named this male spirit Sune, because a United Kingdom ghost hunter claims that he asked the spirit its name and captured a deep male voice saying “Sune”.  So it appears that this male ghost has been identified. 

Haunted U.K.: The Isle of Man's Milntown

This is one of several blogs of haunted places in the United Kingdom's Isle of Man, that was written by Paul Dale Roberts, Halo Paranormal Investigations’ Esoteric Detective (www.cryptic916.com/) . I also had the pleasure of visiting England and you can read about my encounters with the ghosts there in my book "Ghosts of England on a Medium's Vacation," available on Amazon.  Here's this week's UK Haunted Place on the Isle of Man:  

(Photo: MIlntown. Credit: https://www.visitisleofman.com/experience/milntown-house-tours-p1292351) 

MILNTOWN

Milntown is a historic house on Lezayre Road, just outside of Ramsey. It has extensive gardens and a restaurant. The main part of the house is said to be where the ghosts sightings have been and it’s reported to be the most haunted house on the Isle of Man! There are two main ghosts that have been reported here, the former lady of the house (known as the Milntown Lady) and the other is a malevolent, aggressive spirit who likes to frighten visitors (known as the Narky Poltergeist).  

About Milntown from Visit Isle of Man.com

The Christian Family lived at Milntown since at least the early 16th century and parts of the house date from that period. During the seventeenth century extensive alterations and additions were made. After this period the Christians moved to Cumberland and let the house out to tenants, but in 1830 Deemster John Christian returned to live in Milntown after having the mansion house redesigned to substantially the condition in which it appears today and as shown in this photo.

Following the death of William Bell Christian in 1886, the house was run first as a private school by his widow, Vio, and their two daughters, Rita and May; and then as a hotel. It reverted to being a family home when Charles Peel Yates (of Yates’ Wine Lodges) bought it in 1947.

The interior of the house is as decorated and furnished by Lady Edwards and her son Sir Clive prior to his death in 1999 but there are still many features dating from Deemster Christian’s 1830 refurbishment and earlier periods. The front of the house includes the coats of arms of The Christian Family and that of Sir Clive Edwards and is in the Gothic Revival style and dates from the early 1830s.

Ghosts and smugglers and the First and Last pub at the end of Britain

I've been to England twice and each time I visited I encountered a lot of ghosts who stayed behind for various reasons. The Travel channel has put together the most haunted hotels in Wales. I also had the pleasure of visiting the UK and you can read about my encounters with the ghosts there in my book "Ghosts of England on a Medium's Vacation," available on Amazon.   Here's this week's haunting:  Recently Cornwallis Live shared a story about a very haunted pub near "Land's End" in England. Here's the story:  

Ghosts and smugglers and the First and Last pub at the end of Britain 

 It's not just the fact that it's the last pub in England that makes Sennen's First and Last Inn so famous. The pub which has seen many stars pop in for a pint over the years is steeped in local history.

Since the 17th century the pub has gained a notorious reputation as a headquarters for smugglers and wreckers - and is even said to be haunted by its own ghost.

According to its website, Joseph and Annie George ran the First and Last in the 1800s and managed to blackmail the landlord, Dionysius Williams, a wealthy farmer, into letting them live rent free, due to their knowledge of his local smuggling business.

The story goes that Williams eventually decided to remove the couple from the First and Last, which infuriated Annie, who then turned King's evidence against him and he was sent to prison.

But Annie didn't stop there and her enemies increased as she turned on others, including Christopher Pollard of Madron, who was found not guilty, the Vingoe family and even Joseph's brother, John George, following an argument over a tobacco deal. He was said to have been convicted and hanged as a result.

The villagers of Sennen soon had enough of Annie for turning against them and took their revenge. To punish her, they staked her out on the beach at low tide, where she drowned as the water rose.

The First and Last Inn in England (Image: J Thomas)

Her body was placed in her bedroom before she was buried in an unmarked grave in the cemetery next to the pub. According to the website, Annie still has her own room at the pub that she doesn't like anyone else to sleep in.

And the First and Last has had an unusually large number of landlords over the years which may or may not be due to the infamous ghost spooking them.

Kate Craven, the current landlady, said one of her predecessors "up and went" after claiming she saw the ghost of Annie.

She added: "She is supposed to haunt the pub and I have heard a lot of stories from people who say they have seen strange things over the years, like glasses coming off the shelves.

"But I haven't seen anything, I guess she must like me."

Ghosts and smugglers and the last pub in England

View gallery

The pub is home to smugglers' tunnels which run down to the cliffs of Sennen. The tunnels were used when Annie ran smuggling and wrecking operations with the local parson.

Visitors to the pub can look down into the tunnels which are now filled with water and see goldfish swimming around.

Haunted U.K. The Isle of Man: Castletown

 This is one of several blogs of haunted places in the United Kingdom's Isle of Man, that was written by Paul Dale Roberts, Halo Paranormal Investigations’ Esoteric Detective (www.cryptic916.com/) . I also had the pleasure of visiting England and you can read about my encounters with the ghosts there in my book "Ghosts of England on a Medium's Vacation," available on Amazon.  Here's this week's UK Haunted Place on the Isle of Man:  

            (Photo: Smelt Monument in Castletown. Credit: SilverTravelAdvisor.com) 

CASTLETOWN

If you’ve been to Castletown, you have seen the Smelt monument in the town square. On one side is a wooden plaque that states the fate of a local woman who was accused, along with her son, of riding broomsticks around fields to encourage crops to grow. Both were held as prisoners at Castle Rushen and on their last day were dressed in white gowns and taken by cart to Peel where they were put on display as a caution to would-be witches. Afterwards they were taken back to Castletown for execution by fire.  Leslie McKinnon says that she has a actually seen 2 figures on fire riding broomsticks under the light of a full moon in Castletown.  These 2 figures are known as the Castletown Fire Witches.