Ouija Boards or Planchette

The word is pronounced "Wee-ja" but sadly often mispronounced (incorrectly) as "Wee-ji".

The origins of the Ouija board begin with two sisters; the Fox sisters, who actively claimed to communicate with spirits on a regular basis. They developed a system of knocks for each letter of the alphabet and so communicated with the spirit world using this method. Word travelled fast about the sisters' talent of contacting the dead and soon everyone from America to Europe wanted to do the same.

More games such as this became available but in 1891 two gentlemen, Elijah Bond and Charles Kennard, had an idea to attach the planchette to a board with the alphabet on it and had in fact invented the first Ouija board. The famous "William Fuld", who at the time was an employee of Kennard eventually took over production of the board in 1901 under his own company name and quickly patented the name "Ouija". He then successfully sold his version of the board under that name. Fuld claimed the word "Ouija" was entirely his idea and given to him via a séance using his very own board. He claimed the word was ancient Egyptian for "Good Luck". This is incorrect, but the name has continued on ever since.

William Fuld actively sued copies of the Ouija or any other companies daring to use the name or concept right up until his death in 1927. The Fuld business was eventually sold off to Parker Brothers (now Hasbro) in 1966. Hasbro still holds the trademark to this day, however this trademark is not international and also not genericizised for the Ouija board.

Ouija boards are sold in stores such as Toys 'R' Us (USA), however if you are serious about buying a board, and want it now, try printing out our Castle of Spirits very own Ouija board or if you want a proper wooden Ouija as sold by Hasbro try Amazon.com as they have a large range of Ouija Boards and similar items for sale.

The word séance is French meaning "seat, session", derived from old French term seoir,"to sit". The Ouija board hasn't always enjoyed novelty status however, and as many of you may know, it has a darker, more sinister association. The board was considered to be a fun game for all the family to play, especially for friends to gather and play after dinner parties in Victorian times. This was until the early 1920's, when a shadow was thrown over the use of the Ouija Board and contacting the dead.

Famous magician Harry Houdini who was also noted for debunking séances and querying the paranormal, wrote that five people from Carrito, California were driven insane by using a board. Some doctors began noticing altered states of mind in some constant users of the board, these states were sometimes so severe that commitment to an asylum was required. Dr. Curry, a former medical direct of the Sate Insane Asylum of New Jersey claimed that the Ouija board was a dangerous factor in unbalancing the mind and believed that if their popularity persisted, insane asylums would be filled with people who used them.

The next major and probably the most momentous influence in the downfall of the Ouija was in 1973 after the release of the well known horror film The Exorcist. In The Exorcist Regan, the girl possessed by Pazuzu the Demon, first communicated with the Demon through an Ouija Board. For the first time the public wholeheartedly believed in the movie's idea that playing with a Ouija board could result in nothing but trouble, or, as in Regan's case.....worse. The Ouija board then suffered a great decline in its popularity, people began burning their own boards and shunning the sale of them from game stores. To this day the Ouija board has never shaken off that terrible connection with evil, the dark side and black magic.

How Does it Work?

There are many different theories as to why and how an Ouija board works. Psychologists and sceptics explain it as a simple type of muscle reflex that makes your hand automatically move and your subconscious mind control the words that are spelled out. This action is often called the "ideomotor effect". It is an unconscious motor action that is the result of suggestion or expectation and attributed to not only the action of Ouija boards, but also to table tipping and dowsing. There of course is no strong evidence to back up these claims, but we must still remain open minded to the fact that an Ouija board may not in fact be a way of communicating with sprits.

How to Make Your Own Ouija Board from Scratch

1 large table (a dining table is a good idea) with a polished surface. Paper, a black texta, scissors and a glass. Simply write out the alphabet and numbers one to nine along with the words "yes" "no" and "good bye" on the paper and either cut or rip into squares around each letter, each number and the words. Place letters of the alphabet in a large circle (big enough for the glass to move around in) with the words "Yes" "no" and "good bye" in the middle of the circle of alphabet. Place your glass in the middle of the table and follow the instructions below

INSTRUCTIONS

Two or more people are recommended for using the Ouija board - more than three can be a bit too crowded - the general feeling is that there is just about the right amount for a séance. First of all make sure everyone who is present would like to participate in the séance. Do not involve anyone who is under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol. If anyone is overly sceptical it’s always a good idea to remove them from the room. If anyone is frightened or worried, don't try to convince them to stay, tell them to leave or put them in another room away from the séance.

1. Form a circle around the board with all participating members.
2. Link hands left on top of right. Say a prayer of protection
3. Each person is to place 2 fingers of one hand on the pointer (planchette). Ask questions that you would like answered and soon the planchette should start moving around the board in answer.
4. Make sure only one person asks questions at a time which avoids confusion.
5. Try to avoid any negativity or asking for anything bad. If the board does not work try swapping participants around and taking some participants hands off the planchette
6. The planchette may start off by spinning circles - some say that this is the spirit trying to gain energy to communicate - some say it is the spirit finding it's way around the board.
7. If you do not understand what the spirit is trying to communicate to you ask it to either repeat the answer or ask questions that will clearly define what you would like to know.
8. If a spirit appears to be having trouble communicating ask what you can do to improve the communication. If a spirit points to "good bye" let it go and say good bye.
9. If the planchette moves or falls off the board, simply place it back in the middle and go from there.
10. If you want to finish the séance place the planchette on "Good Bye" and say that you are now leaving. Everyone should then remove their hands from the board and the table. The board will be closed.

If the Ouija board is in fact contacting spirits of the dead and long gone, then you may need to show some amount of caution as to who you communicate with and try to remember the following:

A few words of advice from a close friend of mine who is a medium:

"Spirits have different personalities just like you and I - a lot of the time they get impatient and cannot spell, they sometimes use letters like U for You and R for are, 2 for to and so on. Quite often they simply use the initial of the person they are talking about (or to) instead of spelling out their name. Be aware that it requires a lot of energy on both sides to have a séance going. If the spirit gets tired they find it difficult to communicate with us and things will not run as well or as smoothly as you would wish. Since so much energy is used and needed, something like a possession would almost be unthinkable and unrealistic (and impossible) to do, and besides, there's no real evidence of any such thing ever happening. Be open minded, be careful and be aware!

Should a spirit show up that is overly rude, annoying or appears to have a violent personality, communication should be broken immediately - do not attempt to talk to this spirit in any way shape or form - if you keep the board open it will only return and annoy you - it's best that you stop the séance, put the board away, and give it a rest for a while, hopefully the next séance will not bring back this pesky spirit.

Sometimes spirits will show up as liars and deceivers, just as they were in human form, there aren't so many out there like this but they are out there. Don't believe everything you are told without questioning it". On the sceptical note: There is no real, hard evidence to show that anything lingers on afterwards, who's to say that events that happen afterwards are from a séance? You need to be sure that you are not talking yourself into things and not associating a séance with anything that happens afterwards just because you can, and just because a séance is a great excuse to blame things on!. Ask yourself "Would this have happened if I had a séance"? The answer is usually YES, it could happen at any time, anywhere, it doesn't mean that anything from a Ouija board is causing things to happen.

It’s a sad fact that most stories surrounding events at a séance with an Ouija board are greatly over exaggerated or simply made up. Some of the stories that are told are just that, a story, and nothing more. It is good to remind yourself that an Ouija board is a board of wood with painted or written letters on it, such as street signs and billboards that are certainly not tools to contact the dead with; there is nothing really to be afraid of.

There is no evidence to show that Ouija boards are in any way dangerous or anything particularly more than a simple piece of wood with writing on it. I hope if you decide to have a séance that you will remain open minded and use your common sense and intelligence to investigate the events, keep your eyes open, look around, and decide for yourself what is really happening.