Sweden, Trolls & Tomtar...

"Life for the trolls in the Great Forest was becoming unpleasant, for men were intruding on them more and more. When Father Troll was young, there had not been a single cottage within thirty miles, but now timber had been cut for one cottage after another, and settler after settler had cleared the forest and the earth..."

(From "When Mother Troll took in the King's Washing" by Elsa Beskow)

***

Swedish folklore is dominated by tales of two different varieties of supernatural being: the troll and the tomte. These two beings possess contradictory personalities; while the troll is an ugly, grumpy, and malevolent being prone to kidnapping young children and replacing them with their own, the tomte is a friendly and bearded chap happy to help with cleaning and other household chores.

Belief in such creatures likely dates way back into pre-christian times. It has been suggested that tales of these supernatural beings are rooted in ancient forms of ancestor worship, surviving through the years in the guise of folk stories and superstitions.

But where are the trolls and tomtar now?

A selection of souvenir tomtar in Stockholm

The mass production of trolls

Today the troll and tomte have become cultural icons in Sweden (very much like the Leprechaun in Ireland and Nessie in Scotland), and perhaps the best place to spot them in the modern world is in the tourist gift shops, far from their traditional woodland and mountain homes. Indeed an industry has grown up around these supernatural beings; manifested through mass-production and lined up on shop shelves. In this respect it might be true to say that the trolls and tomtar are more abundant today, in this secularised and consumer driven society, than ever before, only that they are diminished in their power. Their supernatural agency has been removed, leaving only a plastic shadow of what they once were*.

A shop full of tomtar in Stockholm

The troll as cultural icon and national symbol

In the process of humanisation in which the wild home of the trolls was domesticated (as expressed in the extract from the folk tale "When Mother Troll took in the King's Washing"), these supernatural entities have been pushed to the very brink: right onto the shop-shelf. As when the troll turns to stone in the daylight, now these ancient nature spirits have turned to plastic in the face of consumerism and modern tourism. Their habitat has been greatly reduced, and with it their power.

Their presence is, nevertheless, still very much in evidence.

***

"William never spoke for he stood turned to stone as he stooped; and Bert and Tom were stuck like rocks as they looked at him. And there they stand to this day, all alone, unless the birds perch on them; for trolls, as you probably know, must be underground before dawn, or they go back to the stuff of the mountains they are made of, and never move again. This is what had happened to Bert and Tom and William."

(J.R.R Tolkien, The Hobbit)

* Interestingly the tomtar statuettes often come with slips of paper explaining how "every home should have one" because they bring luck and help with the chores while the the household is asleep. The agency of the tomtar has, to some extent, been sustained. Transformed into a sort of fetish or effigy.

Mushrooms, Hunting, Ritual Performance and Rock art...

While visiting rock art sites in Sweden (Glösa and Gärdesån) I was interested to find fly-agaric mushrooms (Amanita muscaria) growing in their vicinity. Fly-agaric mushrooms have a long tradition of use for their psychoactive properties.

Fig. 1 Fly-agaric mushroom (Amanita muscaria) from Glösa, Jamtland, Sweden

Numerous writers have suggested a link between rock art and the consumption of psychoactive substances. While much of the iconography at Glösa and Gärdesån deal with naturalistic images of elk and deer, staples for hunter-gatherers in the region (Fig. 3, from Gärdesån, appears to be concerned with tracking), there are also a number of geometric images that appear to defy easy classification.

Fig. 2 Naturalistic imagery at Glösa.

Fig. 3 Tracking at Gärdesån

Fig. 4 Geometric pattern from Glösa, Jamtland, Sweden.

Such images might be considered to fit the description of “endogenous phenomena”, i.e. what Lewis-Williams and Dowson (1993) refer to as “entoptics” - subjective visual phenomena frequently occurring when under the influence of psychoactive substances. Dronfield (1996) distinguishes between two different forms of subjective visual phenomena:

• Hallucinations – consisting of “subjective images constructed from details stored in the visual memory”, for example dreams and the type of hallucination experienced through the use of psychedelic drugs.
• Endogenous phenomena - consisting of “non-iconic visual experiences which are generated by structures in the visual nervous system and whose shapes are determined by properties of those neural structures” (1996, 374)

The majority of entoptic images consist of geomet rical forms, such as “grids/lattices, parallel lines, dots, zig zags, curves, and filigrees/meanders ” (Dronfield, 1996, 374). The most abstract of the pictographs at Glösa would fit perfectly into this descriptive category.

Fig. 5 Abstract motifs from Glösa

Fig. 6 Geometric lattice from Glösa.

Fig. 7 Stylised human form from Gärdesån

Hunter-gatherer's would likely have been well aware of the psychoactive properties of the fly-agaric mushroom; being reliant upon the flora and fauna of their habitat, hunter-gatherers must necessarilly possess a significant knowledge of their properties in order to decide what is edible and what is not. It is not unlikely that these people consumed such plants for their spiritual efficacy in allowing access to the other world, perhaps as part of a form of ritual hunting magic; many of the images of animals have red spots on their bodies, possibly symbolic of hunting wounds, and the human foot tracks at Gärdesån (Fig. 3) might have been used as a form of ritualised dance used in hunting magic. The use of psychoactive substances when performing such magic may have brought the figures depicted to life thus making the magic more effective.

Just speculation, but maybe.

P.S. The information boards at Glösa mentioned that some of the animals depicted on the rocks are not easily identifiable as distinct species. Perhaps they represent mythical creatures, or animals experienced during psychedelic journeys in the other world - like the red eared dogs of Tir-Na-Nog. It is a possibility.

References

Dronfield, J. 1996. The Vision Thing: Diagnosis of Endogenous Derivation in Abstract Arts. Current Anthropology, Vol. 37, No. 2, pp. 373-391.

Lewis-Williams, J.D. & Dowson, T.A. 1993. On Vision and Power in the Neolithic: Evidence From the Decorated Monuments. Current Anthropology, Vol. 34, No. 1, pp. 55-65.

Anthropology & The Paranormal...

On March 4th 2010 I will be giving a presentation for the Society of Psychical Research on the topic of Anthropology and the Paranormal.

Over the course of the presentation I will discuss the way in which anthropologists, both historical and contemporary, have dealt with the issue of paranormal beliefs and experiences in the field through an examination of specific case studies and ethnographic examples. I will also explore the practical and theoretical benefits of an anthropological approach to the investigation of the supernatural with the aim of demonstrating the importance of immersion in, and engagement with, the paranormal if it is to be understood.

More about the legend of Storsjöodjuret...

In the middle of the great lake Storsjö is the island of Frösö, home to the northern-most rune stone in Sweden. The stone (see below) portrays an enormous serpent biting its tail and bound at the neck by a clasp. The length of the serpent's body is inscribed with runes telling how Jamtland became Christianized by Austmaðr son of Guðfastr. The stone commemorates the construction of a bridge connecting the island of Frösö to the mainland.

The stone has, over the years, become entwined within the legends and folklore of the region. One legend tells of Kentil Runske binding the serpent with a powerful spell in order to free the people of the region from its tyranny. The legend states that the spell was carved onto the Frösö rune stone, although no mention of the hero Kentil Runske is to be found on it. The stone does, however, clearly depict a mighty serpent bound at the neck (see below). Perhaps the binding of the serpent is a symbolic representation of the Christening of Jamtland - the binding of the old gods and their supplanting by the new God (as represented by the cross above the serpent's head).

Another legend recorded in 1685 refers to a huge serpent's head buried beneath the stone with its body stretching out across the lake to the opposite shore. The stone was said to have been torn down in desperation when the lake became exceedingly difficult to cross. This act of destruction, however, resulted in yet more problems with ferrymen reporting many strange occurrences when crossing the lake. The decision was therefore made to re-erect the stone in order to make the voyage from the mainland to Frösö safe once more.

As mentioned in the last post there have been over 200 recorded sightings of the serpent. In 1895 a group of distinguished gentlemen formed a company with the purpose of capturing the monster, even going so far as to make a huge trap in which to trap it (see above). The venture to capture the monster was unsuccessful, but its legend continues to fascinate the people of the region, drawing in tourists and monster hunters alike. In recent years several individuals have claimed to have filmed the monster, and there are even designated monster spotting sites all around the circumference of the great lake.

The monster's presence is still very much felt in the region, even if it remains as elusive as ever.

Trolls, Magic and Lake Monsters...

I am currently staying in Sweden for a few weeks in a city called Ostersund. The city is built along the side of lake Storsjön, the 5th largest lake in Sweden. The lake is purportedly the home of a huge monster by the name of Storsjöodjuret (litterally the Great Lake Monster).

On researching the folklore of the region I found that the monster was, infact, created by two Trolls called Jata and Kata in the distant mythological past. The story of these two Trolls, and the monster they created, was first written down in 1635 by Mogens Pedersen, a vicar from the region. The legend is, then, very old: at least 400 years.

Jata and Kata, two trolls, were brewing a potion in their cauldron on the shore of the lake. They didn't know what the potion would do and so were surprised, after years of brewing it, when they heard a wailing, a groaning and a crying followed by a big bang emanating from within their pot. A black serpent leapt from the cauldron into the lake where it grew to an enormous size; entirely surrounding the island of Frösön.

By now there have been over 200 reported sightings of the creature, and a group has been established to investigate reports from witnesses and to collate information on the monster (official website).

What interests me, however, is the monster's creation myth: the story of the two Trolls Jata and Kata.

What are these mysterious beings? A quick perusal of the dictionary reveals a fascinating linguistic connection between the word "troll" and notions of magic, sorcery and conjuring. How far does our modern idea of trolls, e.g. as portrayed in fairytales, literature, and art, accord with traditional nordic conceptions? Do trolls still play a part in contemporary life?

Over the course of the next few weeks I hope to try to find out a little more about these enigmatic creatures.

Alien Abduction and Contactees...

I am doing a bit of research into the alien abduction and contactee phenomenon with the aim of writing a short article about my findings.

I am interested in the phenomenology of the experience: what it looks, sounds, smells and feels like to the experiencer, and how the experience has affected the world-view and life-style of the contactees.

I am also interested in the sociology of the movement itself: who has these experiences, how old are they, where do the experiences happen, what are their beliefs, what is the sex composition of the experiencer movement, are experiencers in contact with others who have had similar encounters, and so on...

So far I have received several accounts, each one of them a fascinating story.

The research is based around a short questionnaire, which can be downloaded HERE.

If you have had an abduction experience, or have had contact with extraterrestrials in any other way, and would like to assist me in this research, then simply download this QUESTIONNAIRE, fill it in and return it to discarnates@googlemail.com

I am particularly interested in experiencers from the UK.

Your help would be greatly appreciated.

Some Initial Findings From Ghost Hunter Questionnaires...

Although the project is not fully complete, in that I am expecting to receive at least a few more completed questionnaires, it is possible to note a few patterns in the data already collected.

So far 14 questionnaires have been returned (which represents a very small sample size), by various individuals currently involved in Ghost Hunting teams and Paranormal Investigation groups.

The following is a preliminary breakdown of some of the findings so far.

Age & Sex composition

Of this sample 50% is male and 50% female, with an average age of 40 years (with a range og 28-52 years).

Years of Investigation

The average number of years spent actively investigating the paranormal for the respondents is 6 (with a range of 0.5-15 years).

Scientific

57% of respondents consider the work they undertake to be scientific (i.e. utilise specialist equipment in the search for quantifiable data), while 48% do not consider their work to be scientific.

In this sample, so far, 57% of respondents are regularly assisted by mediums on their investigations, while the remaining 48% are not.

Formal Training

71% of respondents have not undertaken any formal parapsychological training, with only 29% having done so.

Belief in Ghosts and Direct Experience

Of the respondents so far 65% claimed belief in ghosts or spirits (although there were considerable differences in interpretation and definition of what such entities actually are), 21% reported that they were uncertain as to whether they believed in the existence of ghosts, and 14% did not believe in the existence of ghosts at all.

79% of respondents claimed to have had direct experience of ghosts/apparitions, 14% claimed no direct experience, while 7% were uncertain as to whether they had had direct experience or not.

Religiosity and Spirituality

Only 29% of respondents reported that they were religious/spiritual, while the remaining 71% reported that they were not religious.

Life after Death

64% of respondents reported that they believe in life after death (although interpretations and definitions differed between individuals), the remaining 36% do not.

Psychic Abilities

36% of respondents consider themselves to have some form of psychic ability, the remaining 64% did not.

Other Paranormal Experiences

57% reported that they have had other paranormal experiences (e.g. OBE, NDE, UFO sighting, Pre-Cognition, Sleep Paralysis, etc.), while 43% had no other paranormal experiences.

57% of the respondents actively investigate other paranormal phenomena (e.g. UFOs, cryptozoology, etc), while 43% are only engaged in the investigation of ghost type phenomena.

***

Although this is only preliminary data, insights into the sociology of ghost hunting groups are already being revealed.

A more detailed analysis of the data will be available shortly, hopefully with a larger sample size, that will discuss emergent patterns in the data: for example the relationship between seance attendance and belief in ghosts, religious beliefs and direct experience of the paranormal and so on. Specific case studies of respondents will also be discussed.

I will consider the relationship between conclusions drawn from this data set and those derived from other studies in order to explore the wider context, for example with regard to sex composition, personality types, boundaries and so on.

If you consider yourself a Ghost Hunter, or Paranormal Investigator, and would like to assist me in this research, then simply download this QUESTIONNAIRE, fill it in and return it to discarnates@googlemail.com

Your help would be greatly appreciated.

The Portrayal of Spiritualism in the popular media...

Spiritualism, and indeed most paranormal beliefs, have long borne the brunt of ridicule and humiliation; a trend that appears to be continuing. This is likely a concomitant aspect of the general movement towards rationalisation and secularisation that has been taking place over the last 200 years or so, particularly in Europe and North America.

A recent documentary on Channel 4, "Revelations: Talking With the Dead", although providing a fascinating insight into the lives of an East London Spiritualist Church congregation, continued to report based upon the assumption that the beliefs they held were false.

There has been a similar problem in the attempts of anthropologists and sociologists studying Spiritualist groups. Vieda Skultans' (1974) classic study of Spiritualism in a Welsh town focused primarily on the social function of the Spiritualist meetings: on the fact that such gatherings allow for an escape from the mundaneity of day-to-day living and the therapeutic effects this necessarily entails. While this is undoubtedly a significant factor, it inherently ignores the claims of those participating in the groups to communication with spirit entities and other psi phenomena.

The assumption that paranormal beliefs are unfounded and inherently false inevitably leads to a distorted representation of the individuals world-view: it makes them appear ridiculous. A substantial amount of "backstory" is ignored. This is most clearly visible in the documentary sequence between Keith Hudson and the Publican. The Publican is unaware of the philosophical underpinnings of what Keith is saying, so that when Keith speaks of the notion that a spirit chooses his/her parents before incarnating on the Earth-plane, or of the intensity of colours in the spirit world, to the Publican he is doing no more than ranting like a madman. This is very difficult to avoid. It brought to mind classic scenarios of visionary mystics being ridiculed as madmen.

The documentary did provide a fascinating social insight into the lives of the spiritualist congregation, but to some extent I feel that it missed the point; as do many commentators on spiritualism and paranormal belief. Without the necessary appreciation of underlying philosophical and experiential understanding, paranormal beliefs can appear fully irrational and entirely at odds with the "real world". This is unfair.

The anthropologist E.E. Evans Pritchard was one of the first anthropologists to question the assumption that so-called "primitive" beliefs were irrational. Through living amongst the Azande of North Africa, Evans Pritchard came to appreciate the inherent logic in their supernatural belief system. Living within a belief system provides the anthropologist with a necessary "insider" perspective, through which a more substantial understanding can be gleaned.

I have mentioned Edith Turner's 1992 article "The Reality of Spirits" a number of times, and feel I must do so again here. Turner calls for a new approach to the sudy of religious beliefs, one that does not ignore the understanding of those under study. Such an approach might also benefit documentary makers. I am certain that the filmmakers did not intend to make their interviewees appear irrational or foolish, but through presenting their story without providing a deeper context to the Spiritualist movement and its related phenomena the documentary, to my mind, alienated the interviewees. As isolated examples, devoid of wider context the interviewees were made to appear particularly insular, and hence abnormal. The truth of the matter is, however, that there is a much wider context than the documentary even hinted at (i.e. historical background of spiritualism and mediumship, survival research, altered states of consciousness, countless narrative accounts of the phenomenology of mediumship, etc.).

All in all, though, this documentary was very interesting. It was good to see the topics discussed made available to a wider audience in a relatively un-biased fashion.

As an interesting side-note: several commentators on the Channel 4 page for the documentary have noted the presence of Orbs around one of the interviewees.

Trance & Possession-like behaviours...

I have recently become interested in behaviours that superficially resemble trance communication and possession behaviours, and am particularly interested in the possibility of neurophysiological similarities, or differences, between them.

Some of the physical symptoms of possession cases include:

• Erratic movement
• Manipulation of vocal tonality
• Presentation of at least one other personality distinct from the host

Trance communication behaviours include:

• Manipulation of vocal tonality
• Personality shifts
• Eyes closed (often but not always)

The following clips contain what I would consider to be trance-like or possession-like behaviours.

Acting/Impersonation/Ventriloquism:

This is, of course, a fairly exaggerated example of the way in which acting can superficially resemble the trance and possession states. An actor changes his/her voice, mannerisms, characteristics and even appearance when performing a role. Impersonators take on specific real life personalities, while ventriloquists are able to project their voices often while performing as several different characters simultaneously.

Studies have been conducted with the aim of determining whether the neurophysiology of individuals suffering from psychopathological disorders differs from that of method actors feigning the disorder. EEG results revealed significant differences in brain activity between actors faking emotions and patients with emotional disorders (Tucker & Dawson, 1984). Similar research has also been conducted on individuals suffering from psychophysiological movement disorders (e.g. being unable to move one's arm) and individuals pretending to have the same disorder. PET scans showed significant differences in the neurological activity of the patient and the feigner (Spence, et al., 2000).

In certain situtations, then, acting can clearly be distinguished from specific neurophysiological disorders.

Unfortunately I am unaware of any studies that have specifically compared the EEG recordings of actors and trance mediums/possessed individuals.

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID):

EEG studies with DID patients have revealed differences in neurophysiological activity between the host and his/her alter personalities, while alter personalities performed by professional actors failed to replicate these differences “indicating that EEG coherence, at least in the present study is not able to be simulated or faked from information relating to age and sex” (Hopper et al., 2002, 84). Alter personalities are seemingly correlated with “greater alpha band spectral power” (2002, 76).

In trance mediums it is not uncommon for individual controls to come through unexpectedly, even when another communicator is making itself known. Occasionally this is put down to the strength of the individual control: the stronger (i.e. more developed) spirit would be better able to make itself apparent through the medium, while less developed spirits may be supplanted, or even replaced. Crabtree (1988) recalls a several cases of Dissociative Identity Disorder in which an alter, apparently more socially successful (i.e. more confident, outgoing, etc.), has attempted, and in some cases succeeded, to take complete control of the host: entirely supplanting their personality.

Severe distress:

This boy had his World of Warcraft account cancelled, which apparently set him off on a tantrum. It is interesting to note the similarities between some of his erratic behaviours and certain behaviours observed in cases of possession and possession-trance:

• Bodily convulsions
• Manipulation of vocal tonality
• Self-destructive behaviours

Might it be possible to suggest that times of great emotional distress can precipitate into possession behaviours? Much parapsychological attention has been paid to the relationship between adolescent emotional states and manifestations of the paranormal: the Enfield poltergeist case of 1977 is perhaps one of the most well-known examples. On this occasion “poltergeist activity” was seemingly occurring in a locus around 11-year old Janet Hodgson:

The Hydesville incident of 1848 (the official birth of the Spiritualist movement) was centred on the Fox sisters, Kate and Margaret.

Many, particularly European, cases of possession revolve around an adolescent protagonist. Examples would include the case of Annelise Michel in 1975, whose problems began at age 16.

Mediumship, Channelling & Possession...

So how do these similar behaviours relate to mediumship, channelling and spirit possession?

From the outside these behaviours appear to resemble each other, but it might be possible to distinguish between them based upon tangible neurophysiological differences.

EEG research conducted on meditators and channellers has revealed distinctive patterns of brain activation when such practitioners enter into altered states of consciousness (ASCs). In particular there is a trend towards greater hemispheric synchronisation, particularly in the alpha wave frequency range. (Klimo, 1987, 268). Oohashi et al. (2002), in a study of Balinese possession, demonstrated that the EEG readings for an individual undergoing spirit possession (in the Balinese tradition) are significantly different to those of individuals with psychopathological or neurophysiological disorders: “The EEG of the possessed subject did not show any pathological findings including epileptic discharges” (2002, 435). In addition the possessed individual displayed “enhanced power in the theta and alpha frequency bands during the trance” (ibid.).

Altered states of consciousness, then, possess their own distinctive patterns of brain activation which can be compared and contrasted with those of individuals performing similar behaviours. As already mentioned, I am unaware of any research that has specifically compared the EEG readings of mediums, channels and those undergoing spirit possession, with readings from actors/impersonators/ventriloquists, DID/MPD and those experiencing intense emotional states. The data I have been able to find appear to suggest that neurophysiological differences would be detectable, and that acting, feigning and simulating do not inherently induce neurophysiological processes analogous to either pathological disorders or mediumship/channelling/possession, even if the physical manifestation of behaviour is similar. The dominance of alpha frequency neural activity during trance and in the alter personalities of DID patients is also fascinating.

This article is, of course, incomplete, but I hope that it may stimulate a little thought on the issues raised. Feedback and discussion would be most welcome.

References

Crabtree, A. 1988. Multiple Man: Explorations in Possession and Multiple Personality Disorder. Great Britain: Grafton Books.

Hopper, A., Ciorciari, J., Johnson, G., Spensley, J, Sergejew, A., Stough, C.M. 2002. EEG Coherence and Dissociative Identity Disorder. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, Vol. 3, No. 1, pp. 75-88.

Klimo, J. 1987. Channeling: Investigations on Receiving Information from Paranormal Sources. Los Angeles: Jeremy P. Tarcher Inc.

Oohashi, T., Kawai, N., Honda, M., Nakamura, S., Morimoto, M., Nishina, E., Maekawa, T. 2002. Electroencephalographic measurement of possession trance in the field. Clinical Neurophysiology, No. 113, pp. 435-445.

Spence, S.A., Crimlisk, H.L., Cope, H., Ron, M.A., Grasby, P.M. 2000. Discrete neurophysiological correlates in prefrontal cortex during hysterical and feigned disorder of movement. The Lancet, Vol. 355.

Tucker, D.M., & Dawson, S.L. 1984. Asymmetric EEG Changes as Method Actors Generated Emotions. Biological Psychology, Vol. 19, pp. 63-75.

Ghost Hunting Research...

I am currently undertaking a small research project into Ghost Hunters & Paranormal Investigators with the aim of writing a short article about my findings.

I am interested in exploring the beliefs and experiences of those who actively engage in searching for the supernatural, and am particularly interested in the link between "belief in ghosts", the attendance of seance circles and other encounters with different forms of supernatural/paranormal experience.

The research is based primarily around a questionnaire, which can be downloaded HERE, that I have sent to various Ghost Hunting and Paranormal Investigation groups in the UK, US and Canada. The responses I have had back so far have proven to be very interesting. I would like for the sample size for this research to be relatively large, and would therefore welcome anyone who would be willing to help me gather data.

If you consider yourself a Ghost Hunter, or Paranormal Investigator, and would like to assist me in this research, then simply download this QUESTIONNAIRE, fill it in and return it to discarnates@googlemail.com

Your help would be greatly appreciated.