It’s the stuff that horror movies are made of: you’re all by yourself in a dark room. Suddenly, you catch a fleeting glimpse out of the corner of your eye of a figure lurking in the shadows. You quickly turn your head and focus to get a better look, but it’s gone.
Where did it go? Was it really there? And perhaps most important of all, what was it?
The thought that this could actually happen seems so spooky that it’s easy and even somewhat comforting to assume this only happens in horror movies. But unfortunately, it’s something that people actually do experience. There may even be a reason why, and it sounds pretty creepy.
It’s natural to want to believe that the mysterious dark figure at the edge of your field of vision was just your imagination, or that the light was playing a trick on you. That may be possible in some situations, but it’s not always the case. They’re known as “shadow beings,” a term that probably creeps you out immediately.
Sometimes called “shade spirits” or “dark angels,” shadow beings are supernatural creatures that appear as black forms in people’s peripheral vision. These figures disintegrate, disappear, or fade into the walls when they’re noticed. Some people say it’s similar to a ghost sighting, and feel a sense of dread or feel pursued when they notice shadow beings.
People all over the world have reported seeing them. Some accounts include far too many details to be faked.
Shadow beings have been around since time began. They’re a dark influence on humanity. People who see them usually don’t notice any details or features. Instead, they just see a vaguely human-like form—dark shapes with human silhouettes and profiles that flit around the very edges of their peripheral vision. Some people think they could even be aliens.
When you perceive a shadow being, your consciousness briefly moves among the planes that make up our reality. That may sound terrifying, but some people believe that shadow beings aren’t necessarily all bad. While they’re all mysterious and many of them are evil, others have a benign aura and can even be described as guardians. But shadow beings who have green or red glowing eyes always have negative intentions, which can’t exactly be described as comforting!
Sleep Issues
If all of this sounds too fanciful to you, you may find some other possibilities to sound more scientific. Shadow being sightings could simply be caused by sleep deprivation, or by a heightened state of emotions. Some believe the sightings are due to sleep paralysis, during which you can’t move your body for a moment, even though you’re fully alert.
People often report that they saw shadow beings during sleep paralysis episodes due to feeling trapped inside of their own bodies. This feeling immediately makes them hyper-vigilant regarding what’s around them.
Our brains make us extra sensitive to what they perceive as threats of danger, which is generally a positive thing. But this becomes problematic when our brains attempt to make sense of their surroundings while they experience threats that aren’t based in the outside world, but are rooted in their own reactions to internal issues such as sleep paralysis.
Mountains Out of Molehills
Then there’s the theory that your peripheral vision inherently plays tricks on you. It detects movement and motion, not details, so we may be making mountains out of molehills—or more aptly, shadow beings out of shadows—especially if we’re in the proper state of mind.
That’s quite a few possible explanations. Will we ever really know the right one? That’s doubtful. But one thing is certain: you’re definitely in a spookier mood than you were when you started reading this!
