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Post details: Ouija Boards Dangerous Or Not?

02/09/10

09:12:15 am, by

, 376 words

Categories: Ghosts & Hauntings, Spooky Products

Ouija Boards Dangerous Or Not?

The question of whether or not Ouija boards are "dangerous" has caused some recent debate on our paranormal forums that was based around a US group that are trying to have them banned for sale as a children's toy.

My thoughts on the matter are this....I have never personally received a "feel good" report where one of these boards were used. In other words I never hear from people saying I had a heart warming chat with my deceased Mom etc. Maybe those people just don't contact us????

The fact remains though, every time someone contacts us to date in regards to Ouija boards its because they perceive a negative experience has occurred to them because of the board, even if in the beginning it is only seen as just harmless fun.

In my opinion even if it is only psychological and/or a RSPK effect that is causing the experience obtained through using these boards, if the person believes it is demonic or evil or bad then they will most likely experience it that way.

We also know through medical studies that other occult rituals such as exorcism do have a demonstrated negative effect on people suffering mental disorders. So the leap to say that Ouija usage may have the same effect on others with fragile or impressionable minds is not a big one.

I do not like saying Ouija boards are "dangerous" simply because millions are sold around the globe every year, and even more homemade ones are out there, and if they proved a serious health & safety risk here in North America, and certainly Europe, public health & safety, plus consumer groups would have been on this long ago. I think that lobbying for their outright ban is a bit too much.

With that said, I will still caution people who ask my opinion on using or purchasing one that Ouija board use can produce a perceived negative experience, emotional distress, and anxiety in some people. And of course as a child's toy it is up to the parent to make decisions on what they believe is an appropriate item for their child's use, and to monitor what they are doing no matter what the toy is.

What do you think?

Permalink 14 comments

Comments, Pingbacks:

Comment from: Tink [Visitor]

· http://tinkerbell-nl.blogspot.com

I agree with you, couldn't have said it better. :)

Permalink 02/09/10 @ 19:00

Comment from: Sue [Member]

· http://seminars.torontoghosts.org/

Tink -> Thank you for stopping by, and your kind words :)

Permalink 02/09/10 @ 19:35

Comment from: Eileen Dalla [Visitor]

· http://eileendallas.blogspot.com/

I don't think Ouija boards are necessarily dangerous, but they are a tool of divination and like all tools used to cross the veil between worlds, should be used with caution by someone who understands their purpose. There is much in our world we don't understand and can therefore be potentially harmful to someone who doesn't take this seriously.
Before parents buy their children a Ouija board they should take into consideration the maturity and mind set of the child because in my opinion, these are not toys and since they can create a negative experience, they should to be used cautiously and with their real intent in mind.

Permalink 02/10/10 @ 10:08

Comment from: Sue [Member]

· http://seminars.torontoghosts.org/

Eileen -> Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this. :)

Permalink 02/10/10 @ 10:13

Comment from: SparkleMe Liz [Visitor]

· http://http:www.SparkleMe.Etsy.com

I rec'd one as a gift when I was an early teenager and used it a few times w/o any fear. I asked questions and some answers were correct in prediction and others were wrong. I stopped using it in my mid-teens from general fear of what my friends would comment about these 'games'. My personal experiences were not bad ones.

Permalink 02/10/10 @ 11:26

Comment from: Sue [Member]

· http://seminars.torontoghosts.org/

SparkleMe Liz -> I'm happy to hear your experiences were not bad ones. I think that unless they are bad we normally do not hear from people who have had indifferent or ok ones.

Permalink 02/10/10 @ 11:34

Comment from: Jessica Penot [Visitor]

· http://ghoststoriesandhauntedplaces.blogspot.com

I've also never heard a good story from the Ouija board. I've had some harmless experiences with them. When we were young we used to use them a lot at slumber parties and nothing negative ever came from it. I think there is some attribution bias to Ouija board stories. Thousands of people play with them and nothing bad happens, but those stories are lost and the ones in which something scary happens are remembered. I have a hundred uneventful stories but the only one I remember is the bad one.

Permalink 02/10/10 @ 15:52

Comment from: Sue [Member]

· http://seminars.torontoghosts.org/

Jessica -> Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this :)

Permalink 02/11/10 @ 08:11

Comment from: Matojo [Visitor]

· http://www.trollbouquet.ca

I agree with you here - a lot of it is about perception. 'Course, one thing a lot of the bad stories seem to have in common is people doing silly things, too, akin to poking a bear with a stick.

Storytime: When I was somewhere between 10-13 years old, I asked for, and received, a Ouija board for Christmas. At this time I was so fascinated by Sir John Franklin's final expedition (and one of the sailors that died, who's forever preserved in the permafrost of the Canadian Arctic) that I decided I would try to get in touch with someone related to the event.

I wound up communicating with an entity named Aaron Klein who was in his 20s at the time of his death (apparently) and passed in the 1840s. Convenient. "He" proceeded to "say" some notsonice things about one of the deceased sailors and I promptly told him off and put the board away. Nothing's come through it since.

... I think I scared it.

Permalink 02/11/10 @ 11:17

Comment from: Sue [Member]

· http://seminars.torontoghosts.org/

Matojo -> This could be a reverse case scenario...you scared off the ghost with the Ouija board Ha! Thanks for sharing this experience :)

Permalink 02/11/10 @ 12:14

Comment from: Dan B [Visitor]

To the fellow who mentioned "Aaron Klein" from the 1840's, I have attached a link to a site that talks about a ghost story around a gold mine in which a Aaron Klein is a key figure and stems from the 1840's. I believe the story in from North Carolina. Interesting coincidence perhaps?

I also have an interesting Ouija story from when I was around 20. Scared me big time. Perhaps I'll send it later.
Dan

http://www.salisburypostables.com/_Chasing-the-Gold-Hill-ghosts-Town-legend-attracts-attention-of-documentary-makers/blog/119594/36701.html

Permalink 02/14/10 @ 16:50

Comment from: Sue [Member]

· http://seminars.torontoghosts.org/

Dan B -> Thanks for sharing the link. That is a coincidence eh! Please do share your Ouija story if you have time.

Permalink 02/15/10 @ 09:16

Comment from: shelly k [Visitor]

first of all you don't play a Ouija you work one and I do think It can be dangeruse in the wrong hands I have had mine 4 about 30 years and my last time working with it it was not to good so I have but it away for a couple of years now I want to bring it out but my grandson live here with me and he has night terrors so I keep it away for now

Permalink 02/21/10 @ 20:41

Comment from: Sue [Member]

· http://seminars.torontoghosts.org/

shelly k -> Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences with us.

Permalink 02/22/10 @ 07:55

Sue St.Clair and Matthew Didier's Paranormal Blog

The entries found on this blog are based on the thoughts and discussion of Matthew Didier and Sue St.Clair... two paranormal investigators/researchers based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada who just also happen to be a couple. Through Paranormal Studies and Investigations Canada, ParaResearchers, The Ghosts and Hauntings Research Societies, and several other groups, Matthew and Sue have a combined experience of well over twenty-five years in the field of the paranormal. Feel free to contact the blog author via admin at psican.org for further information.