Ghost tales from a spirit questor
MANILA, Philippine--Brave enough for ghost-hunting? Then have a
strong faith and bring with you some experts. Sounds exciting, right?
"Just don't do it for fun. It is not some kind of a game," warned Carlo Tolentino, 25, a spirit questor whose third eye has been open since birth and a member of a breakaway group from a student organization dealing with paranormal activity at the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City.
His first encounter with spirits of dead people dates back to his early years in grade school but he started doing quests only in year 2006 when he decided to join a group of student spirit questors.
By then, he said, he could no longer bear seeing souls and bloodied faces of dead people around. "I would see white ladies in my dreams, I would hear souls calling my name. Some were even asking for help."
He recounted hearing cries of babies at night, seeing souls of acquaintances depart from their bodies on their deathbeds. "At times they would stare at me, old and young alike; females and males."
Really scary
And he even remembered finding them sitting beside him when he was awake. "I see them everywhere, in school, at home and even when I am inside the malls. It was really scary."
Retelling the case of a ghost story that has been successfully closed three years ago, Tolentino revealed handling 15 cases himself but was able to solve only six of them.
On a mission on a Thursday night in February 2007, with him were two other members gifted with a third eye or the ability to see spirits around, he recalled. But all three were not in for a thrill but they were there to help a soul finally find its resting place.
"Our team leader was invited by a group of students in an all-girls school in Makati City," he said. "They were doing a documentary on paranormal activity and I was one of the two asked to tag along."
With seven psychology majors in tow, he said, they started the quest at 7:30 p.m. The initial rounds inside the campus revealed nothing until an hour later, they felt the presence of another being.
"And there he was standing by the white board in a drafting room in one of the buildings near the university gymnasium," he said. "It was a male spirit probably in mid-20s to early 30s of age."
Quite unusual
He described the figure being translucent, but its features were recognizable. And though all lights were out, the figure of a man was highly visible, he said. "It was quite unusual though since it was an all-girls school, so we decided to communicate with the soul."
And though the temperature inside the classroom was a little cold, he noted the absence of stench and breeze that usually come with every encounter.
Tolentino said that questors usually include a spirit locator, a healer, a clairvoyant and sometimes a writer, terms only a few might understand.
"Clairvoyant ones have the ability to see spirits, feel their presence, smell their odor and hear voices or noises they create," he explained. He was declared to be clairvoyant by his group upon assessment, he recalled.
Rommel Martinez, 45, a healer and a new member of a team he is forming, can see auras of people, on the other hand. "I perform healing through laying of hands over the head while saying a prayer to St. Michael," Martinez said. "But other prayers such as the Lord's prayer will do."
Locators, however, tell the spot where the spirit is and writers either write down on a paper whatever they receive through the energy surrounding the site.
"But my group usually uses incense and salt in performing the cleansing," Tolentino said. But during that particular case, he said they were wearing St. Benedict medallions, believed to be some sort of protection from evil and other nature spirits in different forms.
Case-to-case basis
"We started performing the ritual at 8:30 in the evening and finished by 9:30 p.m.," he recalled. But it is a case-to-case basis, depending on the nature of the spirit.
He said the longest may take days and the shortest can be a couple of hours.
"We start rituals by planning what to do and how we can help," he said. "Then we start locating the soul and communicating with it mentally."
"If the soul allows us to help, we proceed with the ritual proper," he added. Otherwise, they just leave it and the case remains unsolved.
In handling that particular case, their team leader sprinkled salt all over the room and around the soul, Tolentino said. He said salt, believed to be sacred, drives away evil spirits.
Convincing the male spirit who, according to Tolentino, was stuck there for eight years since the day of his death in 1999, was a bit easier.
"We told him that he must leave the place since his sister, who he believed was still in third year college, was no longer studying in that school."
Sense of time
Tolentino said that though spirits may know they were dead, some don't have a sense of time. Others know they were dead, but some don't. And that explains their continuous presence in a particular place.
After performing certain rituals, which Tolentino asked to be withheld, the three of them surrounded the soul and hand-in-hand they said a certain prayer for the passing of the spirit to the light, he said. And that was one case considered solved.
Tolentino further discussed that a soul has crossed over to the other side when its presence can no longer be felt, even in places where the person died.
Tolentino admitted it was definitely difficult being a spirit questor. It comes with great courage in facing the fear of the unknown, strong faith in God and willingness to help wandering souls who want to finally rest in peace.
Add to that the responsibility of respecting every place where they perform quests and protecting fellow questors during the ritual proper.
But since he joined the group of student-questors in the state university, he has mastered his fear of the spirits and has gotten used to it, he said.
He said at present, he is in the process of recruiting members so he can put his own team of another five spirit questors.
"Just don't do it for fun. It is not some kind of a game," warned Carlo Tolentino, 25, a spirit questor whose third eye has been open since birth and a member of a breakaway group from a student organization dealing with paranormal activity at the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City.
His first encounter with spirits of dead people dates back to his early years in grade school but he started doing quests only in year 2006 when he decided to join a group of student spirit questors.
By then, he said, he could no longer bear seeing souls and bloodied faces of dead people around. "I would see white ladies in my dreams, I would hear souls calling my name. Some were even asking for help."
He recounted hearing cries of babies at night, seeing souls of acquaintances depart from their bodies on their deathbeds. "At times they would stare at me, old and young alike; females and males."
Really scary
And he even remembered finding them sitting beside him when he was awake. "I see them everywhere, in school, at home and even when I am inside the malls. It was really scary."
Retelling the case of a ghost story that has been successfully closed three years ago, Tolentino revealed handling 15 cases himself but was able to solve only six of them.
On a mission on a Thursday night in February 2007, with him were two other members gifted with a third eye or the ability to see spirits around, he recalled. But all three were not in for a thrill but they were there to help a soul finally find its resting place.
"Our team leader was invited by a group of students in an all-girls school in Makati City," he said. "They were doing a documentary on paranormal activity and I was one of the two asked to tag along."
With seven psychology majors in tow, he said, they started the quest at 7:30 p.m. The initial rounds inside the campus revealed nothing until an hour later, they felt the presence of another being.
"And there he was standing by the white board in a drafting room in one of the buildings near the university gymnasium," he said. "It was a male spirit probably in mid-20s to early 30s of age."
Quite unusual
He described the figure being translucent, but its features were recognizable. And though all lights were out, the figure of a man was highly visible, he said. "It was quite unusual though since it was an all-girls school, so we decided to communicate with the soul."
And though the temperature inside the classroom was a little cold, he noted the absence of stench and breeze that usually come with every encounter.
Tolentino said that questors usually include a spirit locator, a healer, a clairvoyant and sometimes a writer, terms only a few might understand.
"Clairvoyant ones have the ability to see spirits, feel their presence, smell their odor and hear voices or noises they create," he explained. He was declared to be clairvoyant by his group upon assessment, he recalled.
Rommel Martinez, 45, a healer and a new member of a team he is forming, can see auras of people, on the other hand. "I perform healing through laying of hands over the head while saying a prayer to St. Michael," Martinez said. "But other prayers such as the Lord's prayer will do."
Locators, however, tell the spot where the spirit is and writers either write down on a paper whatever they receive through the energy surrounding the site.
"But my group usually uses incense and salt in performing the cleansing," Tolentino said. But during that particular case, he said they were wearing St. Benedict medallions, believed to be some sort of protection from evil and other nature spirits in different forms.
Case-to-case basis
"We started performing the ritual at 8:30 in the evening and finished by 9:30 p.m.," he recalled. But it is a case-to-case basis, depending on the nature of the spirit.
He said the longest may take days and the shortest can be a couple of hours.
"We start rituals by planning what to do and how we can help," he said. "Then we start locating the soul and communicating with it mentally."
"If the soul allows us to help, we proceed with the ritual proper," he added. Otherwise, they just leave it and the case remains unsolved.
In handling that particular case, their team leader sprinkled salt all over the room and around the soul, Tolentino said. He said salt, believed to be sacred, drives away evil spirits.
Convincing the male spirit who, according to Tolentino, was stuck there for eight years since the day of his death in 1999, was a bit easier.
"We told him that he must leave the place since his sister, who he believed was still in third year college, was no longer studying in that school."
Sense of time
Tolentino said that though spirits may know they were dead, some don't have a sense of time. Others know they were dead, but some don't. And that explains their continuous presence in a particular place.
After performing certain rituals, which Tolentino asked to be withheld, the three of them surrounded the soul and hand-in-hand they said a certain prayer for the passing of the spirit to the light, he said. And that was one case considered solved.
Tolentino further discussed that a soul has crossed over to the other side when its presence can no longer be felt, even in places where the person died.
Tolentino admitted it was definitely difficult being a spirit questor. It comes with great courage in facing the fear of the unknown, strong faith in God and willingness to help wandering souls who want to finally rest in peace.
Add to that the responsibility of respecting every place where they perform quests and protecting fellow questors during the ritual proper.
But since he joined the group of student-questors in the state university, he has mastered his fear of the spirits and has gotten used to it, he said.
He said at present, he is in the process of recruiting members so he can put his own team of another five spirit questors.
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