Ripley Entertainment Inc.'s Blog, page 255
August 22, 2019
August 21, 2019
August 20, 2019
The Thief-Hunting Skeletons Of Citipati
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Twice a year, Tibetan monks don menacing skeleton masks and dance. The chief performers reenact the story of the Citipati—a pair of graveyard-bound skeletons, hell-bent on punishing criminals.
The Citipati is a pair of skeletal deities in the Buddhist tradition. A male and female pair often depicted in a state of dancing furor, they have a tragic origin despite their outward exuberance.
According to legend, a pair of ascetic monks were meditating near a graveyard. They were so intent on their pursuit of enlightenment, that they didn’t notice a thief creeping closer and closer to their still bodies. The thief killed and beheaded the monks, leaving their bodies in the dirt. Attaining a form of high enlightenment, the monks’ spirits swore vengeance against the thief and all criminals. Bound to graveyards, they became the Lords of Cemeteries and protectors of the dead.
Their story is remembered not just as a warning against thievery, but also as a lesson of the impermanence of life. The Citipati are played by the most skilled dancers in Tibetan festivals, where they dance and blow horns. Their acts of joy and celebration are also offered as a sort of penance for their esoteric attachments to meditation in life.
Tibetan celebrants put on skeleton masks made of paper mache to honor the Citipati. The performers representing the fateful pair normally have more elaborate masks featuring crowns of multiple skulls. The simpler mask in the Ripley collection was likely used by more junior performers.
The Truth About Suicidal Lemmings – Ripley’s Believe It or Notcast Episode 011
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Lemmings have a reputation for being suicide-obsessed cliff-diving rodents, but what explains this curious behavior?
While Brent and Ryan work on season two of the Notcast, we explore the “Or Not” side of Ripley’s Believe It or Not!. This week, we look into the mystery of lemming behavior, and how our understanding of these rodents became so warped.
Watch the lemming footage for yourself:
For more weird news and strange stories, visit our homepage, and be sure to rate and share this episode of the Notcast!.
Source: The Truth About Suicidal Lemmings – Ripley’s Believe It or Notcast Episode 011
August 19, 2019
The Fact And Fiction Behind Exorcisms
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Father Vince Lampert is giving a tour of his latest church as the midday sun shines through its stained glass windows.
“No,” he says in response to a question, waving it away. “Not a chance.”
He’s visibly entertained by what I’ve asked and, because of his profession, I think he’s very qualified to answer. We sit in a pew. The church is quiet and peaceful.
“It just wouldn’t work,” he says. See, our discussion centers on the controversial ending of the movie, The Exorcist. I think Father Lampert would be able to comment on this because he’s a real exorcist.
We’re sitting in St. Michael Church in Brookville, Indiana For 28 years Lampert has served as a priest in the Indianapolis Archdiocese, and in July, he was transferred to St. Michael. It’s a beautiful church from the 19th century that’s undergoing a total exterior renovation.
For the past 14 years, he’s also served as the exorcist for the Diocese. Trained in Rome, he’s performed six official exorcisms over that time and counseled hundreds of others. He says he gets 1,800 requests for help every year.
I want to know everything about exorcisms—about what we think we know from the movies and books we’ve read. And more importantly, I want to know what’s incorrect.
But before all of that, I had to ask about The Exorcist movie. I’ve always been a bit torn about what went down at the end of the film. (SPOILER ALERT IF YOU HAVEN’T SEEN THIS 46-YEAR-OLD MOVIE)
Who won? Was it God, because the young priest stole the demon from the girl and threw himself out the window to die, and—I assume—kill the hellacious demon with him? Or was it the Devil, who wound up causing the young priest to do all of this in the first place?
According to Lampert, none of that really matters. While movies tend to get some things right—yes, he’s seen people froth out the mouth, show crazy amounts of strength, and even levitate in this last scene they got it all wrong. With that, here are 10 things we think we know about exorcisms—but we really don’t.
1. The Considerations
Those seeking exorcisms must first be vetted through a procedure where they undergo physical and psychiatric testing. “Can this person’s problem be explained by the medical health field or by the person’s medical doctor?” Lampert asks. “All explanation has to be explored.”
2. The Demons
Those who are possessed are actually normally done so by more than one demon. Sometimes, it could be as many as 10, and each must be dealt with separately, as some are more powerful than others. “It’s always a cluster,” Lampert says. “The weakest (demons) are always the first to go.”
3. The Unwilling
Some people actually turn down help. There is a rigorous process before someone is approved for an exorcism, and only then can Fr. Lampert advise whether an exorcism should be performed. But, some turn down the advice. “You can’t perform an exorcism on somebody against their will,” he says. “(They think), ‘If I do this, will this get worse?’ It’s like surgery, you hope the pain you go through is short-term.”
4. The Invitation
People can become possessed through any number of, what Lampert calls, “entry points.” These could be as simple as inviting a demon into you or experimenting with an alternative religion. “How did evil enter into this person’s life?” he asks. “The average person, if you’re going to church and you’re praying … the Devil’s already on the run.”
5. The Location
One thing every movie always gets wrong is location. An exorcism must take place at a sacred space, a chapel, or a church. It would never take place in a house or someone’s bedroom. “The Devil doesn’t get to decide where he’s going to be defeated,” Lampert says.
6. The Audience
No one besides religious personnel would ever be welcome in the room with the possessed. “The Priest determines who will be present,” Lampert says. “Obviously myself, the one who is afflicted, a family member or two of the person. There’s no such thing as Exorcism Tourism—no one is just there out of curiosity.” However, Lampert also says he will never meet alone with the afflicted. For example, he will always bring another priest with him.
7. The Possessed
Most of those who come seeking guidance for exorcisms are women. “I think women are more inclined to ask for help,” he says. “I also think women are more inherently spiritual, if you will. When men become exposed to evil, they’re less likely to ask for help.”
8. The Duration
These things take time. Lampert says he’s seen exorcisms take as long as five years, where the possessed make regular appointments to come see the exorcist, as they would a psychologist. The hope being that the demon weakens over time.
9. The Ritual
Exorcists must follow a strict ritual of prayer. There would never be any ad-libbing. “Stick to the ritual of the church,” Lampert says. “Don’t ad-lib. Don’t ask unnecessary questions. Then you’re allowing the evil spirit to control the session, if you will. The exorcist needs to be the one in charge.”
10. The Likelihood
Lampert says very few requests actually result in exorcisms. Some have psychological or physical problems. Only one in 5,000 require exorcisms.
Back to the ending of The Exorcist—it makes no sense, he says.
“If you think about it, if this were the way it worked, every exorcist would only perform one exorcism,” Lampert says, laughing.
What he means is, they would always die at the end. So, you can’t just take the demon from a person and transfer it into you?
“I don’t have any special powers or abilities. If we’re relying on me, we’d all be in trouble,” he says. “If we’re relying on the power of God, that’s where we need to be. Exorcism is always a matter of faith. (We) help a person connect or re-connect with God.”
Listen to the full interview with Father Vincent Lampert in Episode 4 of Ripley’s Believe It or Notcast.
By Ryan Clark, Contributor for Ripleys.com
August 18, 2019
August 17, 2019
August 16, 2019
The Great Tarantula Migration Begins In Colorado
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
This Week
[August 11-17th, 2019] Tarantula migration, water bears on the Moon, a salmon cannon, and the rest of the week’s weird news from Ripley’s Believe It or Not!
Tarantula Migration Begins
Each year in the prairies of southeastern Colorado, thousands of tarantulas begin a mighty migration to find a mate. The brown tarantulas take 10 years to reach sexual maturity before crossing miles of desert searching for love. As they tap on the burrows of females, they fulfill their duty before dying in the Fall. Though the critters migrate en masse, they travel alone and, often, at night.
Salmon Cannon
The Whooshh Fish Transport System, also known as the Salmon Cannon, is an apparatus used to transport salmon over dams. Using a series of pressurized flexible tubing, migratory fish can be transported quickly and safely to spawn area. The device can move about 50,000 fish in 24 hours at an average speed of 22 miles per hour.
Surfing All 50 States
Three years ago, Ben Gravy, a surfer from New Jersey decided to surf all 50 states. Resorting to the wake behind tanker ships and even kayaks for states without coasts, he completed his journey in Anchorage, Alaska. The tidal bore he rode in Alaska pushed him and many friends over the finish line.
TV Santa Strikes Again
In the dead of night, 50 homes in Henrico County, Virginia, were approached by strange figures. They had human bodies, but television sets where their head should be. The next morning, residents found old TVs on their porches. Security footage shows the strange figures leaving the TV’s but nobody seems upset. Local police say the TV Santas aren’t a threat, but just unique individuals.
Water Bears On The Moon
Tardigrades, also known as water bears, are microscopic invertebrates known for surviving the harshest environments on Earth. Now, scientists can add the Moon to the places water bears can be found. The creatures were deposited on the lunar surface when Israel’s lunar probe exploded. Sent in a dehydrated and frozen state, they won’t be doing anything up there, though future astronauts could resuscitate them.
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