Spiritual Abduction

Spiritual Abduction describes a person's subjectively real experiences, memories, or dreams of being spiritually kidnapped or possessed by non-human entities. These non-human entities include spirits, ghosts, goblins, monsters, extraterrestrial, and demonic forces.

Spiritual abduction happens when an entity is able to either physically or spiritually kidnap you. This happens through spiritual penetration and control over a person's actions and consciousness. This causes many things. For many, it is a one-off experience. For shamans and spiritually inclined people, we can open our horizon to channel this kind of take-over. For some, they may even mysteriously disappear, sudden death, sudden sickness, or can experience a slow sickness without ever knowing their soul has been kidnapped or possessed. In some situations, a spiritual abduction can cause a sudden sickness like stroke, heart attack, or loss of consciousness. This explains why people may suddenly exhibit a change in their behavior overnight, showing schizophrenic symptoms abruptly.

Hmong folklore tells us stories of goblins or poj ntxoog kidnapping a person by replacing it with an enchanted log appearing in a replica form of that person. The individual would appear dead or unconscious while their soul or spirit has been kidnapped by these goblins. In Hmong we refer this phenomenon as "poj ntxoog los hloov."

There are real accounts of young children mysteriously disappearing and reappearing days or even weeks later, miles from the home. For those that do come back, while some can't recall what's happened, others say "young children" came and "carried" them away. What seemed like only a few hours to them is a few days or weeks to us. They lose their sense of time during a kidnap or possession. Taking a look at the Missing 411 cases, local tribes and many ethnic groups understand that these things happen in our culture and it isn't anything new. There are specific groups that may be more prone to these spiritual kidnaps. Elders are very susceptible to being spiritual abducted as there have been stories where elders wander off and go missing for days or weeks. I remember a case where an elder wandered off for two weeks and no one could find them. Search units brought out dogs and every time they'd all lead back to a tree in the middle of nowhere, miles away from the home. Logically, there was no way a 90 year old sick elderly could walk that far. When they finally found them, they were no longer the same. Their cognitive ability was delayed. They weren't able to comprehend conversations or function normally like they did prior. When asked where they went, this elder simply said, "They took me. They took me..." Children, especially children with special and unique needs, are also very prone to spiritual experiences and abductions.

A common pattern in spiritual abduction is this loss of time or the inability to account for missing time. Many of these abduction cases simply can't recall either missing or missing for a period of time. Spiritual abduction often can make a person insane or cause mental and psychotic breakdowns. These include symptoms similar to schizophrenia in which a person exhibits hallucinations, hearing voices, paranoia, delusions, disorganized speech, catatonic behavior, etc.

Spiritual abduction can also occur when a person's consciousness is taken over and controlled by a spirit or non-human entity. Their consciousness is abducted. People become possessed by a spirit. Some shamans and spiritually inclined people who can perform these kind of actions are often called channelers. This is different than just communicating with spirits. This is a form of allowing an entity to take over just momentarily to use the shaman's body and consciousness. For some, they may or may not have control over this type of channeling. In many cultures, spiritual channelers also practice this by allowing certain Gods or Goddesses to enter their body just for a moment. In some shamanic practices and voodoo practices, allowing a spirit or soul to temporarily possess their body is a part of this practice and is seen as normal.

In my years of practice, I have personally experienced this type of abduction and channeling before, not by choice. As a shaman, I do not volunteer my own body or consciousness for a spiritual possession, but it happens sometimes against my own volition. I don't know when it will happen, but I do know when it is happening. When I get the feeling that something is trying to abduct, I have to take control of my breathing, close my eyes, and focus on every inhale and exhale. My fist and feet will clench and dig into the surfaces. I try my best to fight it from coming through or possessing my body because I hate not being in control. I also dislike when spirits or other entities take over anyone's body without their consent or permission. Spirits do not care, so it's crucial we have control over ourselves. I find it that if we allow an entity to channel and possess us, they will continue to do so because we become an entry point. The last thing we want are for spirits, entities, or demonic forces to come and go and channel as they wish. As a shaman and spiritual worker, it's important for me to be self disciplined and have control over my own body. If we allow entities to possess us on their terms, than we may be entering a dangerous ordeal with them. This form of abduction has happened to me more times than I'd like to share or talk about. It's important to have a partner or a person be there for us when it does occur, for our own safety and people around us too. There is a lot of misunderstanding and stigma around this when it happens. For me, personally, I feel very embarrassed that people just witnessed a take-over. I say things or do things that I will never do... But, having a good partner to help you and not judge you during an experience like this is so helpful. They need to know how to handle the situation, what to say, and what actions to take. They cannot be afraid, even though at times the person experiencing the possession may be saying scary things or making scary noises or faces. And after an episode, comfort the person because they may feel embarrassed or also scared that they weren't in control of their own self. If the entity that is trying to possess has an angry energy, than the possession will be violent. If the entity has a sad and depressed energy, than the possession will most likely be filled with tears and non-stop crying. The experience of the possession relies on the energy of that spirit or entity. The person will talk from that spirit's perspective.

Spiritual abductions are very scary situations. People go missing and some are never found. Some people become an entry point and their body and consciousness is used by spirits and entities, either by their own choice or other times by spiritual force. This is a very complex topic to examine because of its unique and historical roots. I am happy to share and talk more about this topic if anyone is interested in learning more.

TFL Hmong Shaman