Why ghosts wear clothes or white sheets instead of appearing in the nude

[Still Waters]

Quote

When you think of a ghost, what comes to mind? A ghastly, mouldy winding-sheet? A malevolent pile of supernatural armour? Or a sinister gentleman in a stiff Victorian suit?

In 1863 George Cruikshank, the caricaturist and illustrator of Dickens’s novels, announced a “discovery” concerning the varied appearance of ghosts. It does not seem, he wrote:

That any one has ever thought of the gross absurdity and impossibility of there being such things as ghosts of wearing apparel … Ghosts cannot, must not, dare not, for decency’s sake, appear without clothes; and as there can be no such thing as ghosts or spirits of clothes, why then, it appears that ghosts never did appear and never can appear.

Why aren’t ghosts naked? This was a key philosophical question for Cruikshank and many others in Victorian Britain. Indeed, stories of naked or clothesless ghosts, especially outside folklore, are exceedingly rare.

https://theconversation.com/why-ghosts-wear-clothes-or-white-sheets-instead-of-appearing-in-the-nude-241948

[Buzz_Light_Year]

I've been to a nudist beach let the ghost keep their sheets on.  

[papageorge1]

I think their image is created by their thought of themselves as they were. Just like we could walk around naked but don't chose to.

Here is what my Hindu/Theosophy school of thought has to say:

In Theosophy, ghosts or apparitions wearing clothes is often explained as part of the concept of the astral body and the mental projection involved in post-mortem experiences. Here’s an overview of how Theosophy frames this phenomenon:

1. Astral and Mental Bodies:
   Theosophy teaches that humans are made up of several bodies: the physical, astral, mental, and higher spiritual bodies. After death, the astral body survives temporarily in the astral plane, and during this time, it retains many impressions from the person's earthly life, including habits, thoughts, and self-perceptions.

2. Thought-Forms and Memory Imprints:
   Clothes in ghostly appearances are often seen as projections of the mental image the individual had of themselves during life. The astral or mental body reflects whatever form or image the consciousness identifies with, and since most people view themselves clothed, the ghost projects this version of themselves. These clothes are not physical objects but mental constructs derived from the individual's self-perception or expectations.

3. Symbolism in the Afterlife Planes:
   In theosophical thought, the appearance of ghosts—such as the specific type of clothes—can reflect their emotional state or attachment to certain roles and times in life. For example, someone attached to a profession may appear in related attire, symbolizing unresolved ties to that identity.

4. Lower Astral Plane Phenomena:
   Many ghostly apparitions are said to be remnants or “shells” left behind on the lower astral plane. These “shells” are like lingering images of the person’s astral body and may appear as they did in life, including their typical clothing, because that is how they were remembered or imagined by the deceased and those encountering them.

In short, ghosts wear clothes in theosophy because the astral and mental bodies project the person’s habitual self-image, which naturally includes clothing, reflecting personal identity and thought forms persisting after death.

[Stiff]

[sanchez710]

My dear departed mother claimed to have seen ghosts on several occasions. She told me that in the house in which I grew up had an old lady that would pop her head round the door and go 'yoo hoo!'. Fully clothed thankfully. Another occurrence was in the house we moved to when I was older. A fully formed apparition appeared in the hallway and just stood there. My mum said hello but they didn't answer and just faded away. Fully clothed once more.

[Cho Jinn]

Because they are thoughtful?

[+Razman]

I think if i'm ever a roaming ghost , i will ghost around naked , just for the sake of it.

[XenoFish]

Meh, I still want to see a t-rex ghost.

[+Razman]

1 hour ago, Razman said:

I think if i'm ever a roaming ghost , i will ghost around naked , just for the sake of it.

Don't know though , with all the wokeness going around , they might come after me and try to sue me.

Edited October 25 by Razman

[openozy]

Because I believe what people call ghosts are just a stone tape replay of the past, not a human spirit, of course they appear clothed unless they walked around naked when they were living. 

[Tatetopa]

I think the association is with grave clothes, winding sheets and shrouds.  People were buried that way at least since Roman times.  The ghost is the image of a body wrapped as it was prepared for death.

[Ell]

Whether ghosts are dressed in sheets or in clothes, if so could those be eaten by moth ghosts?

[openozy]

On 10/26/2024 at 1:57 PM, Ell said:

Whether ghosts are dressed in sheets or in clothes, if so could those be eaten by moth ghosts?

Do your clothes get eaten by moths when you're wearing them? Also dead things don't need to eat. The main reason is that ghosts are just pictures not entities.

[openozy]

On 10/26/2024 at 10:00 AM, XenoFish said:

Meh, I still want to see a t-rex ghost.

Same here but the question is have you seen a ghost of anything?

[XenoFish]

7 minutes ago, openozy said:

Same here but the question is have you seen a ghost of anything?

Yes. Do I believe it was an actual ghost? No. 

[Ell]

11 minutes ago, openozy said:

Do your clothes get eaten by moths when you're wearing them?

Moths! I have been killing them nearly every day for years. Once a moth larva dropped out off one of my nostrils.

I do not know whether they eat my clothes when I am wearing them. Maybe. I know that they eat them when I am not wearing them:
especially my socks.

Edited October 27 by Ell

[openozy]

10 minutes ago, XenoFish said:

Yes. Do I believe it was an actual ghost? No. 

Good answer for a trick question, lol.

[AZDZ]

My guesses, and sorry to inject a religious slant into it but that cannot be avoided. . . 

After A&E fell they felt shame for the first time and hid from God. When the LORD asks Adam why he was hiding he replies that he knew he was naked and felt ashamed.

Prior to their expulsion from Paradise, The LORD sewed garments for them from animal skins. GEN 3, 21. 

Now it seems to me that 'shame' may be part of understanding clothing on ghosts as a sign of remembrance to us of that failing. Just because they are dead doesn't mean the shame has been lifted. 

Same as prior above, perhaps the LORD provides coverings to us as we get booted out of this phase of existence (death) into the next by ordaining that what we die wearing, including bedclothes, carries over to the spirit world until the Judgment. Yes, Faith is required as usual.

 What about "Shadow Spirits or People" They are generally considered to be demons, but perhaps people that die naked are naked in the afterlife and their shame causes them to appear as shadow people.

Fun question!

[BadChadB33]

It's how the Matrix designed ghosts.

[C L Palmer]

Who says that the spirit isn't simply another form of matter? If it exists, it must be made of something, and "spirit clothing," be it robes or whatever, would be made of the same class of matter. I don't see much of a problem here if we are not assuming that no such thing as a spirit can exist from the get-go. In a universe in which we are constantly finding new and fascinating forms and states of matter, it would not surprise me one bit to find that the continuity of a human consciousness could exist in some state of matter resembling an idealized form of the body it once inhabited. I'm of the Carl Sagan mentality--if you can imagine it, the universe is vast enough to likely contain it.

[Essan]

But why would ghosts/sprits/whatever feel the cold or rain and need clothing?     They can't all be 21st century prudes who think nudity - our normal state - is an aborrance!     Even if the have to abide by the law of the land, nudity in itself isn't illegal.   And, okay, that raises an interesting, er, thought .... raises ..... er, I better stop there  
 

[XenoFish]

What if it's the ghost of a nudist? 

[C L Palmer]

20 hours ago, Essan said:

But why would ghosts/sprits/whatever feel the cold or rain and need clothing?     They can't all be 21st century prudes who think nudity - our normal state - is an aborrance!     Even if the have to abide by the law of the land, nudity in itself isn't illegal.   And, okay, that raises an interesting, er, thought .... raises ..... er, I better stop there  
 

Perhaps they are simply accustomed themselves to wearing it, so they fashion it for themselves. It resembles the type of thing they'd be used to wearing, which is why it would be era-appropriate to the ghost in question. Just a guess.

[CHEROKEE RAVEN WOLF]

OF COURSE THEY HAVE CLOTHES ON, YOU DIE IN WHAT YOU ARE WEARING AT THE TIME.NONE OF THESE ARE NAKED ARE THEY? THE SPOOKS/DEMONS I HAD AT PREVIOUS ADDRESS.

[TashaMarie]

On 10/25/2024 at 6:27 PM, Stiff said:

Just send me to hell!