Does the lunar cycle influence paranormal activity?

We often claim that paranormal activity is at it's highest around the full moon. What does the moon do and does it influence paranormal activity?

One of the first things we notice once delving into the world of the paranormal, is that things seem to get a bit spookier around a full moon. It doesn't just apply to paranormal investigating. Speak to nurses and paramedics. For some reason there seems to be more incidences of bizarre cases presenting themselves. Police officers will tell you that it is around the full moon that 'the crazies' seem to come out. Emotionally we all can be impacted by the moon cycle. Sometimes we feel a bit strange and all of a sudden when we notice a full moon we automatically attribute all of our out of character behavior to the fact that it is a full moon. What is the connection and why does the moon affect so many things and does it really influence paranormal activity?

What does the moon do anyway?

Like a lot of mysteries of the universe, no one knows where the moon came from or why we have only one when other planets have more. It is thought that the moon was created when an object the size of Mars collided with Earth and the moon was basically the left overs. This is one of many theories (and there are a few) and really is not important to what we are looking at here so we can save this debate for another time. I am not a scientist and I don't have an avid thirst for astrology so this is enough of an explanation for me. What I do know is that it is important for us to have a moon. Low tide and high tide would really just be the same sort of tide. There wouldn't be much difference between the two and our climate would be significantly different. We know that the moon orbits around Earth and that the Earth slowly rotates. The side of Earth that is facing the moon feels a larger gravitational pull. This affects water and the tides are pulled in that direction so we have what is called high tide twice a day and low tide around 6 hours later depending at what stage the Earth is at in it's daily rotation. You know when you goto the beach and you are sitting on a sand bank and suddenly a few hours later it is completely immersed with water? This is the effect of high and low tide. Without the moon, there would not be such a large difference between the two. The moon also helps to stabilise the Earth's rotation too. It is thought that we could actually survive without the moon but luckily in our lifetime it doesn't look like this is anything we need to worry about.

Why does the moon have cycles?

The moon goes through a monthly lunar cycle. We all know that the Earth rotates and the Moon orbits Earth. It takes 27.3 days for the Moon to fully orbit Earth. At the beginning of the cycle, the moon is so close to the sun, that the side of the moon facing Earth is not illuminated because the Moon is basically sitting in between the Sun and the Earth. By the time you reach the end of the cycle, the moon is sitting behind the Earth and you get a full moon. As the sun sets, the moon rises with that side full exposed to the sunlight and this is why you have a full moon. The actual lunar cycle takes 29.5 to complete which is 2.2 days longer than it takes for the Moon to orbit Earth.

What is the connection between the lunar cycle and paranormal activity

There isn't officially one. It is however a common thought of investigators that paranormal activity is at it's peak 3 days after a full moon. Not on a full moon, 3 days after as this is when the energy is at it's greatest. Why? I honestly don't know, it is just what everyone keeps telling me. It is almost like a game of Chinese whispers. No one really knows where it originated from, but we all just say it. Certain events such as a harvest moon, blue moon, blood red moon and lunar eclipse etc are also said to have an effect on paranormal activity as well. The gravitational pull of the moon has an effect on the water on Earth we know this. As humans, approximately 60% of our make up is water. Does this gravitational pull have an effect on our bodies as well? Realistically there has not been any sort of comprehensive study that has proved this theory and those that have tried have inconclusive data from what I can find. It seems as though this belief is not so much fact, but more a folklore in the paranormal world. I will admit, I have experienced some crazy things during a full moon phase and most of us probably have or why else would we get excited invetsigating under a full moon? Does the power of suggestion influence this? We see a full moon and comment about the bright ring around it because it is so full and bright. Does this make us think at the back of our heads that we are going to have a big night? Maybe the night is no more active than any other night but we interpret anything that happens a little differently because we know it is a full moon and there is an element of expectation there. Are we just jumping to this conclusion, based on folklore?

Folklore behind the moon

Here are some of the more well known myth's and legends surrounding the moon which date back to the middle ages:

  • The Roman goddess of the moon was called Luna who would ride her chariot in the darkness of night which is where words such as lunatic and lunacy are thought to have come from. Medical professionals for thousands of years believed that there was a strong connection between manic behavior and the moon. In the 18th century in England, when on trial people could plea for a lighter sentence sighting their behavior was due to a full moon. During certain lunar cycles, patients in mental hospitals were shackled and restrained as a precaution as it was thought that the energy from the moon fueled their mania. Many different cultures have different deities they believe are connected with the moon. Luna is just one of these
  • A lot of earlier civilizations believed that because the lunar cycle was a similar length to the menstrual cycle, that the moon also affected fertility and women were able to use this to track fertility and fall pregnant. There has been no evidence to back this up.
  • The moon is extremely relevant to Pagans and they often plan magical workings around different times of the lunar cycle and is thought to be connected to wisdom and intuition

Obviously there are a lot more and also a lot of conspiracy theories as well, and we could be here all day, but you get the picture.

In a nutshell, there is actually no concrete evidence that the lunar cycle does effect paranormal activity. We all have our own personal experiences so this is really what we are working on. We could log all of the data of everything that happened and studied at what point of the lunar cycle this was occurring, but I don't think it will really tell us much. We all feel a strong pull be it gravitational or something else, we know that there is something with the moon. We stand underneath a full moon and feel the energy or that pull. Does it influence the paranormal and increase activity? I honestly can't answer that with any sort of data. I have had very few personal experiences I could not debunk during my time as an investigator. 2 of these occured very unexpectedly during a full moon. Is this a co incidence? I don't know. Do people act crazy during a full moon? They do for some reason it does send us all batshit crazy. What I can tell you for sure however is that it does make it a fun spooky experience investigating under a full moon.

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By Sarah Chumacero / Paranormal Investigator

Sarah is the creator and blogger for Living Life In Full Spectrum a popular paranormal blog aimed at paranormal enthusiasts and investigators. As an active paranormal investigator out in the field for several years now, Sarah dedicates her time to researching and investigating the paranormal – more specifically the spirit world and presenting her thoughts and findings through Living Life In Full Spectrum. It covers everything from paranormal investigation technique, equipment, experiments, theories, famous paranormal cases, historical information on locations, a general social commentary on the paranormal field and all things encountered in between.

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(Source: livinglifeinfullspectrum.com.au; October 11, 2017; http://tinyurl.com/y7bxgn5h)
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