Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Presence of evil

793 replies

beachcitygirl · 17/01/2022 14:03

Aibu to ask if you've ever felt yourself in the presence of evil. Following on from
The intuitiion thread.

I once met a friend of my ex in a coffee shop. The man was nothing but civil & friendly. Soft spoken & was an ex police officer. My then husband was there also.
I went to the loo & spent ages as something about him made me feel afraid. I stress it was just a feeling. Zero untoward behaviour.
Many years later he was arrested & found guilty of violent rape.

Has anyone else ever sensed evil? (For want of a better word)

OP posts:
disconnected101 · 18/01/2022 11:49

[quote GnomeDePlume]@disconnected101 that would certainly go a long way to explain why various posters have described vaults, basements etc as being oppressive or frightening. It would also explain why many people feel the same thing. Add in weird lighting - shadows, too bright, too dim and you are a long way towards explaining ghosts/houses of evil.[/quote]
I actually love these threads. They come up every now & again.
Scientist background here, and I am VERY logical & pretty sceptical, but more in a 'that's pretty curious, I wonder why that might be' way, rather than 'that is total nonsense / totally impossible - there is a logical explanation' way. I don't think it's constructive to be sneering and dismissive about other people's beliefs.

I wouldn't go analysing and picking apart people's stories here because no matter how tactful I was, I just think it would be a bit dickish. Besides, the stories are mostly really interesting.
I just think that sometimes there IS a really logical explanation and it may provide an interesting counterpoint. I remember when I first heard about mold causing neurological/psychological symptoms & I thought it was so interesting! Same with infrasound causing feeling of dread or unease, & how that taps into our primal brains & triggers our most basic instincts for survival.
I agree with a lot of PP re reading body language, micro expressions etc. & I do believe in gut instinct.

longwayoff · 18/01/2022 11:55

Sometimes you can feel it flowing off someone. Sometimes you can't. Always trust your instincts though, we aren't fully aware of how much we observe about people. Like sell by dates, if it smells off, avoid.

QueeniesCroft · 18/01/2022 11:56

I sometimes think that the reason I don't have much success with judging character/safety when I meet people is that I find it very difficult to read facial expressions. I'm NT as far as I know, but I find both facial recognition and reading expressions very hard. So maybe other people are picking up on something which I'm not? Slight changes in epxressions, eye movement, or whatever it is that I can't see.

disconnected101 · 18/01/2022 11:58

@GnomeDePlume 'It would also explain why many people feel the same thing.'
Same for infrasound. Why people feel the same sense of unease in a certain area, be it a room or outdoors somewhere

thegreylady · 18/01/2022 12:15

Glen Coe terrified me even driving through on aSummers day. There was such a sense of violence and sadness there.
There is a bridge over the canal in Skipton which has a dreadful chill under it unrelated to the weather. The next bridge along is called Gallows Bridge which may be relevant.

SocialConnection · 18/01/2022 12:52

Infrasound's a fascinating concept. Apparently Hitler used infrasound to make audiences feel uneasy and on. It can cause anxiety, depression etc.

Black mould can have hallucinatory effects

The play of shadow and light can make us see things - or strain to see

When I was a child I was staying at my grandparents' house. We watched an edition of Nationwide, which featured a story about (I think) an antique bowl which was said to be haunted. A terrifying figure could be seen at night in the room where it was kept. Well. I did not sleep that night. Never forgotten the fear my imagination kindly presented me with.

ElftonWednesday · 18/01/2022 12:59

I think people that do evil things (I don't think there are evil people, we are all capable of good, evil and a lot in between) are often extremely mundane in attitude and appearance. There seem to be a lot of banal evil types. They wouldn't necessarily give off any particular vibes.

LadyFlumpalot · 18/01/2022 13:36

@ParkheadParadise

Yes, I have. The Evil bastard who murdered my dd. I hated him from the moment I met him. The next girlfriend after dd he killed her dog and left it on her doorstep. Every Cloud, he died 4 years after he Murdered my beautiful girl. Unfortunately, no one murdered him he died of a drug overdose. I hope every day he rots in hell.
ThanksThanks
SuitcaseOfWhine · 18/01/2022 13:40

A friend's dad. His daughters were lovely and he appeared to dote on them. He was an older dad and used to use a lot of innuendo in a camp way and I used to find him creepy, but our friends thought he was hilarious.

I used to work with him and he was similar with me, expect he once stood behind me at work and pushed his crotch into my backside. I was about 17. I felt very uncomfortable at the time and avoided him.

Years later I found out my friend was at a party at his house when we were at school and passed out through drinking, but it was clear someone had sexually assaulted her. This man had friends at the party too. I always wonder if something happened to other girls there too. I know that he is no longer alive now, but wish I at least told HR about my incident to at least get the bastard sacked, as everyone thought he was amazing.

Staffy1 · 18/01/2022 13:46

@oakleaffy, yes. I thought it was ridiculous. He’s hardly likely to have rented a flat out to various people for years and suddenly just got the urge to kill one. Also, the press were making out that he said odd things when they basically got in his face while he was coming home, but none of it seemed odd to me, or suggested he was trying to hide anything. It’s not good that so many people can be persuaded about someone on twisted “evidence”. I would hate to be at the mercy of a jury after seeing how easily a lot of people are willing to believe the worst of someone based on nothing.

CaveWoman1 · 18/01/2022 13:51

What about Boris Johnson's hair? It has a mind of it's own, and appears very suddenly, in unexplainable places. It chills me to the bones. Even the world's best scientific minds can't explain how it operates. Or why, or how to control it

wondering7777 · 18/01/2022 14:14

I read the first six pages of this thread whilst struggling to sleep in the early hours of the morning. I felt so unnerved by some of the posts that I had to sleep with the lamp on! Blush

Ohshitiveturnedintomymother · 18/01/2022 14:29

@CaveWoman1

What about Boris Johnson's hair? It has a mind of it's own, and appears very suddenly, in unexplainable places. It chills me to the bones. Even the world's best scientific minds can't explain how it operates. Or why, or how to control it
Series 3 of Yonderland on Sky was an evil toupee…
Onlyhuman123 · 18/01/2022 14:50

@InAState22

Not evil but I have an ex MIL who I believe is the only truly wicked person I have ever met.

She has absolutely no moral compass, and her psychological control of her Dcs - including my abusive exh - was absolute. It was seeing a cult first hand. She is the only person I have ever met who lacks any basic decency or humanity and who is utterly cold.

I got out 2 years ago and am still recovering from psychological trauma at the hands of EXh, who was raised in her ‘cult’.

My SiL is the same. Truly evil, cult-like, manipulative and cold. Makes me shiver just thinking about her.
ButtockUp · 18/01/2022 14:55

Yes @52andblue , Chillingham Castle. A very unpleasant feeling there.

SpeedRunParent · 18/01/2022 15:12

@MaryAndGerryLivingInDerry

Well evil doesn’t exist, so no, but you can certainly form accurate gut instincts about people based on unconscious signs they give off.
This. Evil is a religious construct. There are so many factors that can cause you to feel uneasy, from autonomic physical cues to unusual fluctuation of magnetic fields. Neuroscience is utterly fascinating but it does blow holes in 'paranormal experience' beliefs.
52andblue · 18/01/2022 15:12

partly because of the owner @ButtockUp
Mr Cummings' FIL
Mad as a hatter whenver I've met him !

oakleaffy · 18/01/2022 15:17

[quote Staffy1]@oakleaffy, yes. I thought it was ridiculous. He’s hardly likely to have rented a flat out to various people for years and suddenly just got the urge to kill one. Also, the press were making out that he said odd things when they basically got in his face while he was coming home, but none of it seemed odd to me, or suggested he was trying to hide anything. It’s not good that so many people can be persuaded about someone on twisted “evidence”. I would hate to be at the mercy of a jury after seeing how easily a lot of people are willing to believe the worst of someone based on nothing.[/quote]
There was an American bloke also accused of killing his girlfriend- people accusing him, calling him weird and “ I have a gut feeling about him”
Turned out he was completely innocent, and his poor girlfriend had been murdered by a woman who wanted her young baby.

A scary case.

People love to proclaim they have “ A bad feeling “ just on someone’s looks.

Same with dogs!

CarrieMoonbeams · 18/01/2022 15:35

I've always had an ability to pick up when people seem a bit 'off', whether it's because I feel they're unwell, unhappy or whether they're someone I need to be on alert around.

I wonder if those of us who would say that they're the same, had a similar childhood to mine.

Basically we had to be experts at reading the room, because the mood could change in a second and then we were in danger.

Rhannion · 18/01/2022 15:39

@Autumnrain7299

I think it can be very damaging to make assumptions on someone just because of something you feel. I will bring up the man who was connected with the Joanna Yeates enquiry like others have. It also makes me sad because my ds has been picked on at school because they say he looks like a 'druggy' and looks stoned etc..and a bit wierd! They hounded his Instagram page where he only puts up pictures of his fossil collection or cacti plants. He's never tried drugs in his life and suffers from severe ocd which he's on medication for. If the other children made an effort to actually know him then he's actually a very interesting person with a great sense of humour.
I’m sorry that your son is being bullied. Some people are just appalling and nasty.
Hellosunshiner · 18/01/2022 15:42

@CarrieMoonbeams

I've always had an ability to pick up when people seem a bit 'off', whether it's because I feel they're unwell, unhappy or whether they're someone I need to be on alert around.

I wonder if those of us who would say that they're the same, had a similar childhood to mine.

Basically we had to be experts at reading the room, because the mood could change in a second and then we were in danger.

I think you're right Carrie re childhood. Interesting, I'd never thought of that before. I did learn to read the room as a child. I have always thought that I have a good inkling for unpredictable/volatile/"off" people or situations. It does make sense why.
dementedma · 18/01/2022 15:50

The standing stones at Callanish on the Isle of Lewis have a very dark, watchful feel about them. A sense of foreboding and unpleasantness.

nobodysdaughter · 18/01/2022 15:50

I used to be a sex worker. It was common for me to feel how you felt in that coffee shop, and have to manage the booking appropriately to avoid harm.

QueeniesCroft · 18/01/2022 15:52

@ButtockUp

Yes *@52andblue* , Chillingham Castle. A very unpleasant feeling there.
I have a daydream where I make a TV show about haunted places. It's really just me wandering about and saying "No, seems fine to me, but perhaps call a plumber to fix the banging pipes?" Obviously it would be a disaster, but the thought of it amuses me!
greenmarlin · 18/01/2022 15:56

I met a work contact over email who was quite pleasant but I couldn't get a clear picture of what he was like. I asked around and he came back with good reviews, everyone in my industry seemed to know him and I didn't hear anything bad. I then arranged to meet him in person for lunch - he met me at a train station and as I walked up to him I got the most nauseous feeling, which over the next few months turned out to be very accurate as he was one of the most difficult, nasty people I've ever met. Thankfully i was able to extricate myself but god he was a nightmare.