What is a Doppelganger?
Scanning the movie lineup on Showtime, I caught a movie starring Drew Barrymore in the titled flick, “Dobbelganger.” Apparently, one of the main characters had a “double” of herself that was “evil.” I wanted to know more and my findings are presented in this article.
A doppelganger (also known as fetch) is the ghostly double of someone who is alive and well, but the “double” takes on a menacing form of the doubled person. In the world of paranormal events, a doppelganger is connected to bilocation (sometimes referred to as astral projection or multilocation), which links to the ability of an object or individual to appear in two different places at the same moment.
What is Bilocation?
The act of bilocation is believed a physical occurrence, rather than spiritual or some other kind of phenomenon. A person who experiences this event is said to possess the capacity to undergo sensations and other natural powers to manipulate their surroundings. In many cases of bilocation, the action is involuntary.
The kinds of people throughout history who have experienced this event have been a handful of Christian saints and monks, including a case dating back to 1774 when St. Alphonsus Liguori was noted as going into a trance as he prepared for Mass. When he came out of the trance, he declared that he has paid a visit to the bedside of Pope Clement XIV, who was dying at the time. The interesting part of this story is that his presence was reported where the Pope resided, which would have taken Ligouri four days of travel to reach. His body was also noted to have never left its original spot.
Additional Christian notables who have experienced bilocation include St. Anthony of Padua, as well as Pope Cyril VI of Alexandria (Egypt).
The Meaning Behind Doppelganger
In many different languages, the translation for doppelganger is similar, yet different. Overall, the term refers to any “double” or “look-alike” of an individual , but most importantly, it centers on the belief of an “evil twin.” In Germany, the word translates into “double walker,” meaning someone else is walking in the same manner belonging to you. Sometimes the word is used to describe an encounter of catching the sight of another with your peripheral vision (devoid of reflections). There are no good associations made with a doppelganger and are often seen as a sign of bad luck.
In some tradition, a doppelganger that appears to friends and family is meant as a sign that impending illness will strike, or danger is near. When one sees a doppelganger of themselves, many believe it is a sign of death. Within Norse mythology, the concept (known as vardogr) existed where a ghostly double performs actions of a living individual before they have a chance to act them out.
In the article titled, ” Famous Accounts on Doppelganger Encounters,” you will encounter some of the famous documentations of doppelganger encounters, including from the likes of poet, Percy Shelley, who was interestingly an atheist.