(WYTV)- Can a Ouija board bring the spirits to us?
What’s really going on as we touch the pointer that mysteriously answers our questions?
Psychology Today tells us of the two basic principles that get the Ouija board to work.
First, how much is each person willing to suspend his or her disbelief in the supernatural, in other words, to embrace it. The more someone leaves himself open to believing the extraordinary, the more he wills it to happen. Then you have what’s called the ideomotor effect: your body moves according to your unconscious will. For example, if you’re stressed or angry, you might make a fist without realizing it.
So the will to believe in the Ouija board and the wish for something to happen will make your fingers push the pointer across the cardboard without you realizing you’re doing it.
As researchers at a university in Denmark discovered, once you fall under the Ouija spell you become unaware of how much of an effect you’re having on the game.
Contrary to popular belief, “Ouija” is not a combination of the French for “yes,” oui, and the German ja. The board named itself.
Psychic Helen Peters asked the board what users should call it, the name “Ouija” came through and, when asked what that meant, the board replied, “Good luck.”
