Apparitions are uncommon and usually seen but once. An Apparition is a supernormal appearance of a dead person (or animal) too distant to be within the range of the normal perception of the spectator. (An apparition can also be a supernormal appearance of a living person/animal as well, and the majority of recorded cases usually are of the living rather than the dead).
Apparitions of the dead, which are seen repeatedly over a period of time and usually haunt the same place, are also known as ghosts. Very few apparitions are visual. Most just involve the sensing of a presence, maybe accompanied by touch, hearing strange noises, moaning, or even smelling unexplained odors.
Some Apparitions can seam real, with definable form and features while other apparitions are fuzzy, transparent, or wispy. Some can even be just a streak, or a patch of light. An Apparition can appear and disappear suddenly, and sometimes they can just fade away. They can move through walls and objects and walk around them, then can cast shadows and have reflections in the mirrors. Apparitions can communicate verbally, and some are accompanied by sounds and sensations of cold and even movement of real objects.
Sometimes a person may attempt to touch the apparition, but most find that their hands go through them, a few cases, however, contact has been made with a substance that feels like a flimsy garment. A majority of apparitions (82%) seem to display themselves for a purpose. To warn someone of their own crisis (usually great danger or death) to comfort a person in mourning after someone's death, to give useful information. The haunting apparitions seem to have an emotional tie to a site, possibly from violence or sudden death. (Called Crisis apparitions)
Apparitions are believed to be spirits of the dead who are trapped on earth by unfinished business. Some apparitions do hold an intelligence that make communication possible, although not all chose to communicate with the living.
