Descriptionary

pareidolia seeing something meaningful in random or coincidental images, such as the face of Christ in a slice of toast or a ghost in a passing wisp of fog, a common form of illusion that is strengthened by the power of suggestion.

past life a life or multiple lives lived in another time, recalled with faint memories brought forth through hypnosis.

past life regression through hypnosis or other trancelike states, mental traveling to the past to visit one's former life.

pendulum a weight at the end of a cord, swung back and forth as a divination technique.

pentacle a symbol of the element of Earth, a penta­gon within a circle, often worn as a pendant.

pentagram a five-pointed star and symbol of paganism.

phantasm a ghost; a phantom.

philosopher's stone a stone or substance believed in the Middle Ages to have the ability to turn base met­als into gold.

philter a love potion.

poltergeist a noisy ghost who moves things around.

possession occupation by an evil spirit or demon of one's soul, mind, or body.

precognition "seeing" or "knowing" what will occur in the future.

prescience knowledge of what will occur in the future.

prophecy prediction of what will occur in the future.

prophesy to make a prediction of what will occur in the future.

prophet one who has the ability to see into the future and make predictions, as if acting as a channel for God.

psephomancy divining the future through the use of pebbles.

pseudoscience any false science based on fanciful theories or wishful thinking. Pseudoscience is distin­guished from real science by its lack of peer review and controlled, unbiased testing.

psi

psychic powers or extra sensory perception.

psychic having the ability to read minds or predict the future. A person with this ability.

psychic detective one who solves crimes through the use of extrasensory perception.

psychic surgery the simulation of surgery on a patient by a psychic healer, who sometimes may hold up a chicken liver or chicken heart to falsely represent a removed tumor. Psychic surgery is a thriving busi­ness in many third-world countries.

psychokinesis the ability to move objects by the power of one's mind alone. Also known as tele­kinesis.

psychometry a divination method through which an object is touched by a medium, thereby forming a connection to the object's owner, which may be used to solve disappearances and murders.

Ouija board a board game in which participants place their fingertips on a pointer which supposedly acts as a medium for the spiritual world and answers questions by pointing to letters that spell out words and messages.

revenant one who returns from the dead.

rhabdomancy divining the future by a divining rod.

runes magical letters or characters.

Satanic cult a group that worships Satan and car­ries out evil deeds or rites.

Satanism worship of Satan.

scarab an Egyptian talisman in the shape of a bee­tle.

scatomancy divining the future by examining ani­mal droppings.

scry to divine the future by reading the images in reflective surfaces, such as mirrors, bowls of water, or crystal balls.

seance an assembly at which a medium calls to spir­its to communicate with those in attendance.

second sight the ability to foresee the future.

seer a prophet or clairvoyant.

selective thinking ignoring or devaluing evidence that is contrary to one's beliefs in order to maintain one's dogma or illusions.

shadow ghost

in a photograph, any mysterious shadow.

shamanism a Native American and Asian practice or belief through which a skilled medium communi­cates with the spiritual world and employs magic to heal or to divine the future.

shoehorning skeptic's term for the claiming of an accurate prediction of an event by a psychic after the event has passed. Vague or broad statements made before the event are simply made to fit the event.

shotgunning skeptic's term for a psychic's method of presenting a broad scattering of interpretations and impressions, knowing that some will inevitably be accepted as meaningful by the listener.

shrewstone old term for a crystal ball.

sigil a magical symbol, often a geometric figure or configuration, originally used to represent various demons and angels.

sixth sense another term for extrasensory perception.

skyclad in Wicca, nudity, in which some rituals may be performed.

smudge to burn incense or sage and wave it over a space or object to cleanse or rid it of negative energy.

smudgestick a bundle of incense or sage used in smudging.

solitary a witch who practices witchcraft indepen­dently and not part of a coven.

soothsaying predicting the future.