Is There Libido After Death?

Artist’s interpretation of a succubus. (illustration by “Mikesilent” iStockphoto)
Artist’s interpretation of a succubus. (illustration by “Mikesilent” iStockphoto)

By Mysterious Destinations Magazine Staff

Sex has been a common language for humans since the dawn of our existence. Indeed, it has been the collective reason behind our continued existence. Moreover, it can be one of the most intense expressions of emotion and physical energy that an individual can experience in his or her life…  So, is it possible that this kind of intensity could continue after death?

The staff at Mysterious Destinations Magazine decided to look further into this subject following a dousing rod session at the Johnny Cash house in Jamaica where the dousing rods seemed more drawn to the female operator’s breasts than the questions posed. The entity in question identified itself as the owner of the plantation in the 1700s. These repeated actions drew the sometimes humorous attention of other team members, including the woman’s husband. (Video link follows this article.)

Some years earlier, during a paranormal explore in Maine, the Mysterious Destinations Team had encountered an entity that had identified itself as male and would only respond to questions posed by young women during dousing rod sessions.

In checking into the possibility of libido after death, we found a variety of stories… Some strange, and some stranger… But really nothing that could be considered proof beyond a reasonable doubt. However, whether legendary like the succubus and incubus, or anecdotal like the apparitional couple making love in a kitchen, we found the stories interesting and well, just plain amusing. We hope you do too…

In the Beginning, There Were Incubi and Succubi

Lost somewhere in the sands of time are the legendary origins of two demons who either seduce or force themselves sexually on their victims.

The female demon, a succubus, has origins that some sources report go back to the Biblical story of Lilith, who some believe was Adam’s first wife. She left the Garden of Eden after rejecting the notion that women should be subservient to men, had an affair with an archangel, and joined a crew of three other succubi: Agrat Bat Mahlat, Naamah, and Eisheth Zenunim.

Historically succubi may take a variety of forms, sometimes as an ugly creature, sometimes as a beautiful woman, and sometimes as a beautiful woman with unusual features such as bird-like claws or serpentine tails. In modern times they have also taken an ethereal or apparitional form.

Whatever the form, a succubus exists for the sole purpose of forcing herself on men, usually when they are sleeping and sometimes in dreams. The experience for these male victims is usually described as strange or unpleasant.

Human belief in succubus-like entities appears to be fairly universal, with over 30 varieties located in cultures all over the world.

The male counterpart of a succubus is the incubus, also a demon with the earliest legends dating back to pre-Biblical times. Incubi are generally described in ethereal or apparitional form, even in early history. They are said to force themselves upon both women and men, sometimes violently, with the victim actually feeling penetration. Some legends attribute incubi with the ability to reproduce, with the resulting half-human half-demon child referred to as a cambion. The most famous figure thought to be a cambion is the wizard Merlin, in the legends of King Arthur.

Recent Reports of Incubi

Incubi have figured into some recent paranormal incidents.

In 1974 Doris Bither of Culver City, California reported that a group of three paranormal entities were raping her repeatedly, with two smaller entities holding her down while a taller entity sexually assaulted her. She claimed that the malevolent trio followed her and continued to rape her after she moved from Culver City to several other Southern California cities and even into Texas.

A team of researchers led by Dr. Barry Taff were able to discern paranormal activity at the Culver City residence, but were unable to confirm the activities linked to the gang of incubi. The book and movie “The Entity” were based on Bither’s story.

More recently a rock star named Ke$ha (that’s how she spells her name) reported that she had experienced sexual relations with a paranormal entity, and had fun doing it!

“I had a couple of experiences with the supernatural. I don’t know his name!” she told Ryan Seacrest on KIIS FM radio. “He was a ghost! I’m very open to it.” She has even written a song, called “Supernatural”, about having sex with a ghost.

Ke$ha described her experience with paranormal sex to celebuzz.com: “I lived in this flop house and there was this weird energy that lived there, and it used to keep me up at night and wake me up. And it progressed into this dark, sexual spirit. It did scare me but that’s part of the fun of it.”

Apparitional Sex in the Kitchen?

One of the more unusual recent reports of libido after death comes from the town of Euclid, Ohio where Dianne Carlisle reported her granddaughter took a photo of two amorous apparitions caught in the act on her kitchen counter.

However, the circumstances regarding the photo and a video associated with the incident are a wee bit questionable.

The photo was taken incidentally as the granddaughter played with a phone that has a camera. When the grandmother reviewed the photos later she found an image that she interpreted as apparitional lovemaking, even describing details like high heels on the woman’s feet.

But the veracity of both the photo and the video have apparently come into question.

A video related to this incident seems to have been taken down from several websites. Likewise, Fox 8 in Cleveland has taken down its original report on this story, which aired in 2011.

Mysterious Destinations Magazine attempted to contact Dianne Carlisle via two telephone numbers listed for her in Euclid. Both were disconnected.

Panty Stealing Ghosts?

This report comes from the Italian island of Sicily, where it has been common custom to mummify the dead in caves where they continue to be visited by living relatives.

According to Paul Koudounaris, author of “The Empire of Death: A Cultural History of Ossuaries and Charnel Houses” the ghost of one of these mummies was suspected in the serial theft of a woman’s panties.

Suspicion began on the part of the mummy’s relatives, who located a stash of women’s undergarments stuffed behind the mummy “like trophies”.

Word got out about the panty-packing mummy, and the police received a call from a young woman. She said she’d been having visions of a ghost entering her home. He would proposition her and when she turned him down, he would steal her panties.

The monastery where the mummies are interred accused the woman of planting the underwear there herself, but then they set up a “test” that was not described. Despite the “test”, the woman continued to lose underwear that was later found stashed behind the mummy.

To bring an end to the rash of purloined panties someone went to the mummy and told him they would bury him in the ground unless he stopped stealing the woman’s underpants. The thefts discontinued after that, according to Koudounaris.

Impossible to Prove, But Fun to Wonder

As with many such mysteries, libido after death may be impossible to prove. According to Eric Olsen, who co-hosts America’s Most Haunted, an online radio show, “Unless you can observe the ghost, you can’t differentiate between what was just a vivid dream or an actual encounter. There is a question as to what kind of visitation you can have while asleep.”

Other experts point out the possibility of a little known phenomenon called “sleep paralysis” that could cause victims to believe they are experiencing paranormal rape. “Sleep paralysis” has also been put forward an explanation for tales of alien abduction.

While Mysterious Destinations Magazine plans to publish a closer examination of “sleep paralysis” in the near future, it may still never explain the events some individuals claim to have had with lovers from the afterlife. Until the capability becomes available to prove or disprove these reports, it’s still fun to wonder.

To view a video of the dousing rod session at the Johnny Cash house in Jamaica, where an entity appeared to be getting “fresh” with our investigator, click here.

To see a follow up report on the alleged ghostly sex incident from Fox 8 in Cleveland, please click here.