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The Ghost Bride
The Ghost Bride is a story from the Pawnee nation on the danger of interacting with ghosts but also emphasizes the importance of keeping one's word, whether with the living or the dead. The young man in the tale does not know he is dealing...
Article
The Ghost Wife
The Ghost Wife is a Pawnee story dealing with loss, grief, the inability to let go of the past, and the danger of dealing with ghosts. It reflects the Pawnee understanding of the unpredictable nature of life, the certainty of death, and the...
Article
A Teton Ghost Story
A Teton Ghost Story is a tale from the Native American Teton (Tetonwan) of the Oceti Sakowin (People of the Seven Council Fires), better known as the Sioux, on one of the possibilities of the state of the soul after death and how the living...
Definition
Ghosts in the Ancient World
A belief in an afterlife was central to every major civilization of the ancient world and this encouraged the recognition of the reality of ghosts as the spirits of the departed who, for one reason or another, either returned from the realm...
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Ghosts in Ancient China
Ghost stories were the earliest form of literature in ancient China. They were almost certainly part of a very old oral tradition before writing developed during the Shang Dynasty (1600 - 1046 BCE) and they continue to be popular in China...
Article
The Man Who Wrestled with a Ghost
The Man Who Wrestled with a Ghost (also given as The Indian Who Wrestled with a Ghost) is a Teton Sioux tale on how one should interact with the spirits of the dead in circumstances where one cannot avoid them. It is one of the best-known...
Definition
Ghost Dance
The Ghost Dance (Spirit Dance) is an expression of rebirth and renewal using the traditional Native American circle dance, first practiced by the Paiute Nation in 1869 and again in 1889 when it was adopted by other Plains Indians nations...
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History of the Chinese Hungry Ghost Festival
The Hungry Ghost Festival, also known as the Ghost Festival is celebrated either on the night of the 14th or the 15th day (depending on where you live in China), of the seventh month of the lunar year, known in the West as August. In other...
Article
A Ghost Story of Ancient Egypt
The best-known ghost story from ancient Egypt is known, simply, as A Ghost Story but sometimes referenced as Khonsemhab and the Ghost. The story dates from the late New Kingdom of Egypt (c. 1570 - c.1069 BCE) and specifically the Ramesside...
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Ghost Festival, China
The Hungry Ghost festival continues to be celebrated in China on the fifteenth night of the seventh month, when it is thought that the dead can cross over into the land of the living because the veil that separates the two worlds is thinnest...