I once read that hearing someone calling your name might not always be a good thing, especially if when turning to look - noone is actually behind.
It is believed, to be the voices of evil spirits knocking at your door. And if you turn back, you actually accept their visit, which is a bad omen.
Do you have any ideas if this is true, and have you ever had such situations. Or maybe it is not true and might be a deity calling ???
Give me advice, because lately, I think, Iāve heard my name being called multiples times.
Hmmm, I havenāt had any encounters with spirits, but from what Iāve heard, it helps to be strict with them and not let them cross your boundaries. I donāt know if anyoneās tried withdrawing consent with them, as in āyouāre no longer welcome in this houseā for example, I donāt see why that wouldnāt work.
There might be many reasons why one might want your attentionā¦ Iād have to say that getting the attention of a witch with any bad intentions might not be the smartest move from a spirit. Some spirits might be smarter and more conscious, and others barely more than lingering emotional energy. Iād love to hear more experiences.
I have heard this, or some variation of this, in many different places in the United States. I think the most prevalent stories come from the Appalachian Mountain region - the area of the US thatās literally older than the continent the US is part of. I went on a search to try to gather folklore and stories, so hereās what I found!
It seems to be a common superstition not to answer a voice that calls your name, especially a voice thatās not supposed to be there. The belief depends on where you live, and there are many similar superstitions, as well.
This thread on Reddit has a lot of people from different cultures talking about their superstitions and beliefs! (all below quoted from this Reddit thread)
Have you ever heard of a calling spirit? Iām sure they exist outside of Hawaii, but the gist is, if youāre somewhere like the woods, or youāre alone somewhere, if you hear someone call your name, you do not answer. Bad things happen when you answer.
Where Iām from, they say the same thing. Never answer any voice that comes out of nowhere calling your name. They say itās demons trying to make you acknowledge their existence so they can harm you, others say itās the Devil himself after your soul.
I went jungle trekking in Malaysia, and before we left for the track, we were told to give each other code names like āJinggaā or āKuningā. We were told not to talk in the jungle and keep our noise to a minimum so as not to attract āthemā. We were also told that if something calls our name instead of the code name, we must not answer at any cost. When asked if ātheyā were animals, the answer was āNot animals, jungle spirits. Do not talk about them, do not ask about them and be respectful the entire time you are in there. The less you know, the better it is for youā.
I am from Russia originally, and itās the same thing there. You should never be loud in a forest or when you are outside at night timeā¦ Because youāll make them angry.
Iām from Puerto Rico, itās a kind superstition thatās been around since I can remember. The kind of thing you say you donāt take seriously but deep down you know not to test out.
Wow i myself really amazed how diverse this phenomena is. I live here ā Himalayan Region I am a photographer & a hikker and i often go to places where no one been before.I always listen to my elders what they say & follow them, their experience have saved my life many times. I was very ignorant before until i experienced few things myself, now voice thing happen almost everytime i go hiking but i never answer to them.I have seen many things now like - from footprints in the snow who leads to nowhere, to meeting people that never existed.
I remember hearing somewhere that if a disembodied voice calls your name do not turn around, otherwise you confirm your identity and they can steal your body. I have the resolve not to acknowledge someone calling me if they arent already in my line of sight or if im not alone.
From China originally, and pretty much this story is told everywhere in China. Also its not just limited ro forests. Urban legend also says when walking alone at night, if someone calls out your name you do not answer that shit.
I mean, I could quote so many more in this thread
Personally, I wouldnāt answer or turn around to someone calling my name in a place I knew that shouldnāt happen. I donāt think deities communicate this way, at least not for me, and there are too many stories from the Native Americans and people close to the Appalachian Mountains that have similar themes ā no, thank you!
Oh! I also found this from the digital folklore collection at USC!
In the countryside of China the bathroom is not part of the house. It is small hut or room separate from the house. Sometimes people have to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night through a dark area surrounded by trees. Andā¦Sometimes you will hear noises from wind and trees. My grandparents told me that if you hear a voice calling you, or calling your name, you should ignore it. You are not supposed to look or respond to the voice even though the voice might sound like your parents or somebody you know. If you answer, the ghost that created the voice will take you away and you will disappear.
The informant said this story was told to her by her grandparents every time she visits them in the countryside. When somebody said they need to use the bathroom, her grandparents will say āif you hear a voice, donāt answer.āThis is a warning for people of all ages to be careful of strange and familiar voices at night time because these voices can be ghosts and spirits calling your name. To respond to those voices is the same as responding and acknowledging the spirits. Acknowledging the spirit makes you a target.
Thankyou for this lesson. Youāve made me wiser, I knew nothing about this. The main story here that most people I knew grew up with was Bloody Mary. You never say her name in a mirror, never. Donāt even mess with it.
Thank you for your amazing research. I am more scared now, but I am glad to know I was right in some way.
I probably need a protection ritual done ASAP.
@EvaCVM I have a great book (itās cheap in kindle but there is a paper copy) The Wicked Grimoire by Thalia Thorne.
Thereās a whole section on the dead. One thing she says is not to show fear (even though this is tough) as this empowers them.
She has a good cleansing if youāve experienced anything.
Have a spiritual bath.
Add a handful of salt, 5 drops of lavender oil,
15 drops of lemon oil, 10 drops of bergamot oil, and 2 drops of cinnamon oil, along with a splash of vodka. Clean your body top to bottom in order to push all of the negativity away from you. As soon as you are clean, get out of the water. This is not a bath for soaking in.
She also mentions that as long as we follow guidelines when dealing or experiencing spirits/dead, we have nothing to fear. Things only go wrong when we Donāt follow guidelines.
So donāt be afraid, @MeganB articles are fabulous, Iāve added them to my grimoire, and I personally never challenged Bloody Mary, so have never had a visit.
Take care lovely.
Iāve heard this tooā¦ but then I think itās interesting that in the Bible, Samuel hears a voice calling his name as heās falling asleep and answers āhere I amā each time. He thinks itās the priest Eli. Finally Eli tells him itās God and that if he hears the voice again he should say āHere I am Lord, your servant is listening.āā¦ which he does and then gets instructions from God.
Thatās a big difference from a demon after you! What is perplexing to me is why, in Christianity, where demons and Satan most definitely have a bad wrap, would answering be encouraged?
I am usually pretty good at finding where Christianity takes Pagan traditions and morphs them to serve its own purpose, but I donāt see it here! Fascinating.
I tend to believe the more prevalent thought of donāt answer, but thought I would share! I definitely have no plans to respond to any disembodied voices. No plan to just mosey on out of the way!
I live in a small town, so people call my name when Iām walking across a parking lot. If someone says āLindaā I know I went to school with them. If someone sayās āMiss Lindaā I know that I know them from jail. I worked for the jail for 9 years so I know a lot of people. Lol! I donāt think I have ever heard my name called from a spirit, so I guess thatās a good thing?
I have also heard this & have really like reading this thread about it. I canāt say that I have heard any calling of my name when no one is around minus 1 time in my home. But it wasnāt necessarily my name, as it was Ma or Mom butā¦ I was the only one home. I knew that & literally just stayed put because I was sort of likeā¦ Umā¦ well that shouldnāt be happening right now & my pibble canāt literally speak words.
I have been out & about & heard technically my nickname, honestly at this point if I hear my actual given nameā¦ I donāt turn around because I donāt recognize being called by that & in the past that means Iām in trouble. I have been called by my nicknames for as long as I can remember. Actually, my first āEaster giftā that was actually something made by 1 of my grandmothersā¦ has my nickname on itā¦ & I was less than 6 months old when I got thatā¦ so even in schoolā¦ during the first few daysā¦ I had to get used to the teachers calling me my actual name. So for a long time it was only teachers, doctors, employers & the like that would call me by that name. Over time teachers & employers would call my by my nickname & within the last handful of years, even my medical, mental health & other providers, estate lawyer, & school employees for my children call me by my nickname.
Thereās only 1 person that has used a shortened version of my nickname that I have ever answered to because he has always called me that & itās actually weird when he calls me by my ānormalā nickname. So sometimes I question if there is something wrong when he does use my traditional nickname
So when I hear my actual name OR WORSE my actual first & middle nameā¦ I associate it with being in some kind of trouble & my brain automatically starts replaying the last 48 hours to try & figure out what I have done that I may have been wrong in some way or I am now in trouble forā¦ I absolutely would not turn around if I heard it somewhere that I shouldnāt, I try not to when I hear it in a setting where itās plausible.
Iām curious now though & canāt wait to hear from my brother to ask him this question for varying reasons. I have never called him by his first name. Itās actually always been part of his middle name. Always. Even now, when the estate lawyer or another company says this has to be sent to Brotherās first name, middle name-middle name, last nameā¦ it legitimately takes me a good few seconds to register who they are talking aboutā¦ where I am almost ready to say I donāt know who that isā¦ but I go waitā¦ they said his nameā¦ which is actually part of his middle nameā¦ oh thatās rightā¦ his actual first name is this He has said that he never got used to answering to it until he had entered the military & when he first got his name badge & it had his last name with the first letter of first nameā¦ he was confused & almost went to correct them before he remembered that his actual first name started with that letter. Luckily for the most part they use his last name & now his soldiers & his officers know that he normally uses his middle nameā¦ but it still gets him when its something more formal or new soldier or officer that he is working with.
Sorry for the derailment of though thereā¦ but now Iām looking forward to asking him this question. Iād say that when I hear my name or nickname being called whether home alone or in a place that it shouldnāt be me they are referring toā¦ No I do not turn around. As for the time in my home that it happenedā¦ I did immediately get like a tingly feeling all over & the thoughtā¦ that isnāt right nor should that be happening & just stayed put.
@AileyGrey As a past Christian (though parts of the bible I still love ), I would say if it was God calling you, he would make it known. With Samuel, though he thought it was Eli at first, I never noticed any fear in Samuel when he heard the voice. (Samuel answered, āHere I amā, and he ran to Eli but Eli said āI did not call you ā¦,ā 1Sam3:4,5) Itās interesting that in this account Samuel comes across as eager and happy to answer, there is no fear. With these others types of voices, thereās that cold shiver down your spine, I think youāre intuition is telling you itās something threatening. Like @Susurrus says
The account of God calling Samuel, is different I feel. Itās like when Loki calls me, I donāt think anything sinister is going on. Just my view on it.
Luckily, Iāve never had any encounters like this (and I hope I never do!), but if someone said my name, naturally, Iād probably turn my head to see who was calling me.
haha youāre welcome! I grew up with Bloody Mary, too, though I never tempted fate on that, either! Iād much rather not
Youāre very welcome! Research is one of my favorite things to do! Iām glad I was able to help A lot of these stories come from specific areas and cultures. I would encourage you to look into folklore from your area, too! And I would always suggest protection spells it can never hurt!
This is an interesting question, for sureā¦ I wonder if it has to do more with trusting what you hear and what your intuition tells you. This is how I would approach hearing anything out anywhere. If my intuition says itās a no-good-very-bad-thing, then I would trust that. If my intuition is telling me that itās okay and safe, I would trust that, too.
My father grew up in the countryside, and they also had an outhouse, so I had to ask him if he ever heard anyone calling his name when he had to go there in the middle of the night. He said that he never did, and added, if he would have, heād just have declared āIām going to do my business now, and then Iām coming back to kick your assā
I know thereās a Finnish tradition of asking someone to accompany you on such a visit. You ask them to ācome be the godmother/godfather for my s#!tā. I swear Iām not making this up Having to get out of the house in the middle of the night can be terrifying, whether or not there are actual spirits to watch out for. I guess humor is one way to deal with it.
The same still happens in the countryside in the Balkans. One of my friendās uncles has such a place. He noted that when growing up, someone would always accompany him at night because there was a risk of a wolf attack.
Even here, in inner Sydney, Australia, my great-grandparents house kept their outhouse. But you still had to walk out the bolted back door at night to use the toilet. The walls were made of brick and painted over, with a wooden door which had a small gap at the bottom at the top. A little latch let you keep the door closed, and the toilet seat was ceramic, so youād freeze in winter using it.
One time, I almost stepped on a Sydney funnel-web spider on the way there. Donāt ever, ever mess with those! My great-grandmother almost had a heart attack seeing that.
When they got old, they started using chamber pots at night instead. And I mean, this is as late as 2005! Some places really are frozen in time.
This post reminds me of the one time I heard my name called out as a child.
I was in my room at my great-grandparentās house. It was early in the morning, and the whole place was quiet. Then I heard someone in the distance, still from within the house, call out my name. The sound was both far away and as though it could have been uttered from just outside my bedroom door.
I went to find my great-grandmother and asked what she needed. She said she never called my name and had been in the backyard the whole time. My great grandfather wasnāt even home.
Needless to say, I was terrified.
Did a spirit knock on my door? Did it cling to me? No idea.
But as a child, I had night terrors all the time. I dreamt about a shadowy person coming to get me all the time. So this, this really didnāt help.
for as long as I can remember. Actually, my first āEaster giftā that was actually something made by 1 of my grandmothersā¦ has my nickname on itā¦ & I was less than 6 months old when I got thatā¦ so even in schoolā¦ during the first few daysā¦ I had to get used to the teachers calling me my actual name. So for a long time it was only teachers, doctors, employers & the like that would call me by that name. Over time teachers & employers would call my by my nickname & within the last handful of years, even my medical, mental health & other providers, estate lawyer, & school employees for my children call me by my nickname.
I absolutely would not turn around if I heard it somewhere that I shouldnāt, I try not to when I hear it in a setting where itās plausible. 
Research is one of my favorite things to do! Iām glad I was able to help 
A lot of these stories come from specific areas and cultures. I would encourage you to look into folklore from your area, too! And I would always suggest protection spells 
