Turn down the lights, lock the door, and walk this way....
Let Captain Howdy and BlackRaven guide you
through the Interesting and the Intriguing.
Not to mention the Humorous and
the Hoaxes.
We will begin our Ouija stories with an explanation of how and why Ouija boards work.
There are two schools of thought on the subject.
The Spiritualist Theory
These are the folks who subscribe to the idea that all Ouija information is channelled (or 'divined' for you purists)
from an outside source. That source has been variously defined as ghosts, spirit guides, the astral plane, my dead Aunt Agnes,or if you're a fundamentalist Christian,
your old pal Satan.
The Automatistic Theory
It holds that all information
gained from a Ouija board comes from within.
In other words, the Ouija board allows you to access answers that you already have, but cannot get to
on a conscious level. The planchette spells the answers via subconscious ideomotor movements from the operator. Other examples of automatism include dreams and psychosomatic illness.
Now that you have a little background, feel free to divine the veracity of the following Ouija Stories
Classic Ouija Board Stories
Ouija's Most Famous Story
In 1917 The Sorry Tale was published. This novel, which was about the life of Jesus, was a huge critical and commercial success.
The author was Patience Worth. Well actually, as Patience had been dead for some 400 years, the story was channelled through a Ouija board to
Pearl Curran.
In 1912 Pearl and a friend began using a Ouija board and "met" Patience Worth during
a Ouija session.
Through Patience Worth, Pearl eventually published 5 full-length novels and 2500 poems.
Pearl Curran had received only 8 years of formal schooling, but the writings of Patience Worth were commented on by The New York Times, Chicago Tribune,
and other leading newspapers as being written with "skill, ingenuity, and permeated with spiritual beauty". The New York Tribune called
the her second novel, Hope Trueblood "a work approximating it as absolute genius".
Not too shabby for a discarnate spirit.
Ouija's Second Most Famous Story
In 1965, 14 year old Kathleen and 2 of her girlfriends were playing with a Ouija board.
Kathleen asked "who will I marry?"
The Ouija board answered "Dave".
Kathleen asked again. She didn't know anyone named Dave, and her boyfriend's name was Billy.
The Ouija board again spelled out D-A-V-E
Kathleen asked "Where is Billy", knowing that he was at his job in town.
This time the board spelled D-E-A-T-H
Kathleen and her friends were skeptical and asked again. With the same result.
Later that night Kathleen's mother came into her room, to tell her that Billy had been killed in
a car accident on his way to work that afternoon.
Kathleen is today happily married to Dave Stephens.
Okay: This is the best apocryphal Ouija story going. I have personally received this one and at least 6 others
which used the same basic story line, but the names were changed to protect the gullible. When compared to the First Story it's like judging Grapes of Wrath
against The Hook. Even so, this bit of urban legend has become a standard and continues to make its way though
High Schools and chat rooms all over the world.
After the appearance of The Exorcist in 1972, many people were encouraged to believe that a Ouija board
could "possess" the user. Until that time most people considered the channelling of Ouija information to be benign.
With this change in perception, the Ouija user as 'victim' of the board rather than
'recipient', more gory and inadvertently amusing stories began to emerge.
To the ignorant and gullible there were manifest signs of demon possession and evil. From the board that told the user to
kill her husband for the insurance money (she was taken into police custody before the plan was implemented) to the teenager
who is addicted to the Ouija and writes for help.
The fad of demonic possession has tapered, but there are still some stories around.
Most are laughably contrived. The funniest one that I have ever seen is called The Exorcism: Tract#266 and can be read online. The poor
girl in this story needs immediate psychiatric help. She is obviously not possessed by a demon. However,
the writer of this story was clearly possessed;
by the absurd idea that he was literate.
If a person truly believes that they are talking to the dead,
then they will get answers which support that idea.
If they believe that Satan's minions are at the other end of their Ouija board,
then they will contact other little devils.
As with anything, from Rock and Roll Music to guns to religion there is a possibility of abuse.
Would you give booze or a sharp object to an unbalanced person? Well, you might but I wouldn't.
Alas, Ouija boards are easily available and
exert the lure of the forbidden to those with terminal angst and psychiatric disorders.
On the bright side, Ouija boards are also available to those of sound (ha!) mind and body. So
grab your Ouija, light a candle, and start developing some Ouija stories of your own.
Copyright © 1997-2001. All Rights Reserved. No information or images may be used or reproduced without the
express consent of the author
