#context: one in front made a deal with a hag so she could leave her old life behind as a princess

[liliumaa]

Identity Crisis

[mybg3notebook]

Gale Extensive analysis

Disclaimer Game Version: All these analyses were written up to the game version v4.1.104.3536  (Early access). . As long as new content is added, and as long as I have free time for that, I will try to keep updating this information. Written in May 2021.

The majority of sources used for this article are in the game itself (this includes my Gale-solo playthroughs as well as a combination of the videos by munmomuu and selphie1999), and the dev’s notes provided by pjenn. Gale as origin is not taken into account since it’s not finished and has little Gale-related content. There will be little datamining content as well since pjenn said the game contained almost no gale-related notes (only in theWeave and in the Revelation scene).

The itemised list will show some instances of approval or disapproval as they are seen in the game. To make the reading of this article easier and shorter, you can skip them since they are basically the proof I use to sustain the introductory concept of each block. 

We can infer a lot of Gale by analysing what he approves and disapproves of. Sometimes, we can even lightly infer some information from his neutral reactions, but let’s be honest: this way of analysing a char is pretty poor since it leaves everything to speculation. Neutral reactions can only be analysed by contrasting the same situation in other contexts, and seeing what other options Gale approves or disapproves of. With these considerations in mind, we can proceed to describe this character.

Disclaimer: this is a meta with my personal interpretation of the character, sticking as much as possible to the facts and leaving little to “desires” or “projections” of what I want him to be. If I do so, I will state it explicitly in the text for the sake of analysis honesty. I want to be clear about what is canon (facts shown in bg3 EA), from what’s personal interpretation with little proof.

Also, this list is extensive, gathering as much as I could in my many playthroughs, but I’m sure it’s not absolutely complete. Some details may have escaped me, but honestly, I believe that any new approval will be easily fit in these blocks once the pattern has been seen.

Understanding Gale by enumerating his reactions and approvals

What we can do is combine what we know and make our deductions.

---Gale

[[1]] The most notorious aspect we see about his approval is that Gale supports all actions that prevent, via persuasion, intimidation, or deception, the unnecessary violence and bloodshed. His attitude can be summarized as “the means (as long as they don’t kill gratuitously) hardly matter if the end is worthy”. He will always prefer diplomatic and persuasive approaches, but he can be flexible when his main objective is to avoid unnecessary bloodshed. 

He approves of using intimidation, deception, or persuasion against Gimblebock, in the ruins of the Jergal Temple. 

He approves of intimidation or deception against the tieflings that have Lae’zel in a cage.

Gale approves of diffusing the tension between Zevlor and Aradin, using intimidation or persuasion. He keeps neutral if Tav uses violence to knock out one of the two. Once more, this shows he prefers any verbal approach before heading into physical violence.

He approves of dealing with Nettie without bloodshed after she poisoned Tav. Gale even has an extra comment on the matter praising such an approach since he says he would have not been able to do it himself. This is also the first time we see a glimpse of his support for the philosophy of “giving people their own medicine”. However, it's a comment made in the heat of the moment. He ends up praising a peaceful resolution of the situation.

He approves of saving Lae’Zel’s life when she attacks Tav in the camp. This can be done via deception, persuasion or knowledge [medicine] as long as it spares Lae’Zel’s life when she is feeling the first symptoms of the transformation.

He approves of any means that allow a peaceful entrance to the Blighted Village.

Gale approves of using persuasion/intimidation/deception against the goblins to avoid combat with all of them and to save the deep gnome tied to the windmill.

Gale approves of paying for Oskar’s freedom or using persuasion/intimidation, and then setting him free.

He approves of intimidating Spike (the goblin who is torturing Liam) to cooperate with you.

Gale approves of persuasion/intimidation options to pretend to be a True Soul in front of Dror Ragzlin, avoiding combat with him and all his goblin lackeys.

Gale approves of the persuasive approach with the githyanki patrol, promising to help them to find this weapon they are looking for. It’s clear that any other approach will end up in a fight and therefore, bloodshed. 

He also approves if you tell Lae’Zel to deal with her brethren while “playing along”. Again, the goal is to avoid fighting/bloodshed. 

He approves of intimidating Karlach, saying that “I heard you are dangerous, so I am”. Since Karlach is aiming at the group, he approves of diffusing the imminent violence.

In similar fashion, Gale approves of intimidating Rugan, once he presents himself as Zhentarim, to give you the chest. This can be interpreted as a way to prevent further violence from a Zhentarim. Since there is no approval when you use persuasion to have the chest, one is more inclined to think this approval is about danger-control than curiosity. Or it’s just a bug.

[[2]] As it was said before, we can assume that diplomatic approaches are the best ones in his opinion. They not only have a positive effect in the short term but also are means that may guarantee useful resources for the future: 

Gale approves of ensuring an encounter with Lorroakan in Baldur’s Gate via Rolan, establishing diplomatic relationships with what could potentially be a powerful useful ally.

Gale approves of promising to rescue the Duke Ravengard in the Moonrise, one of the most important figures in Baldur’s Gate.

Gale approves of managing a peaceful entrance to the Myconid colony. He highlights in a comment afterwards how useful it could be to have the Myconid as allies.

[[3]] Gale certainly is a great protector of life. Gale is against killing people just for fun, whether they are innocent or not. He will defend and respect the life of innocents without question, but he even will defend the life of dubious characters. 

Gale approves of helping the tieflings to get rid of Lae’Zel because “she is dangerous to innocent people ''. We can see here that like any human, he has his own (reasonable) biases about Githyanki, considering them dangerous. Only after meeting Lae’Zel he recognises a good ally with the possibility of access to a cure to their tadpole problem.

He approves of convincing Rolan to stay in the Grove and defend it. This can be interpreted as gathering resources to reduce the bloodshed and therefore, the loss of life when facing the goblin attack. After all, Gale believes that “a wizard is a mighty weapon to have in your arsenal”

He approves of stepping in front of Arka whose crossbow is aimed at the caged goblin Sazza. Due to the anecdote he shares after, we know explicitly that his approval is due to the prevention of murder. 

In his anecdote on the Yawning Portal, we know he prevented murder of three humanoids: a dragonborn, a drow, and a cleric of Cyric. The last two are highly morally dubious due to lore reasons, reinforcing this concept that Gale protects life whether they are innocent or not. 

He approves of inviting Wyll to their camp and team. He is a fighter and a good resource to add in order to protect the team’s life. 

He also approves of helping Zevlor when he comments about the Blade of Frontier’s plan of killing the goblin leaders.

He approves of helping the tiefling called Guex to improve his technique with the sword. More chances for him not to lose his own life. 

Approves of helping Auntie Ethel when she's confronted by Mayrina’s brothers when Tav’s perception check fails. This is because neither Tav nor Gale perceived her as a Hag until the brothers called her such.

Gale approves saving Mayrina from the hag’s clutches. If Tav deals with the Hag, accepting her power and saving Mayrina, Gale will remain neutral (he is displeased with sparing the hag, but it’s nullified with the fact that Tav ended up rescuing Mayrina.) He will disapprove of giving Mayrina to the hag and accepting her powers instead. He is always approving of saving Mayrina’s life and killing the Hag, saving more potential innocents in the future. He explicitly says that hags should be extinct due to their malice.

He approves of avoiding a fight by convincing the man to let the party pass into the Zhentarim hideout.

He approves of saving Rugan’s life in the hideout. This reinforces again the concept that Gale values life including the morally dubious ones’.

Gale approves of saving Benryn’s life, the man screaming during the fire in the inn at Waukeen’s Rest.

Gale approves of accepting to rescue the Duke Ravengard, and probably saving his life.

Gale approves of saving the deep gnome in the windmill without asking compensation, just for the sake of saving his life. 

Gale approves of attacking the goblins that are throwing stones to the caged bear. (He does it whether he knows that bear is Halsin or not)

Gale approves when Tav shields their memory and denies the access of the location of the grove to Minthara.

Gale approves of killing Minthara, the greatest danger for the tieflings and all lives in the Grove.

Gale approves of killing the Duergar slavers Gekh Coal and his company. 

He approves of killing the dying hyena which is giving birth to a gnoll. This is a way to protect innocent lives in the long term.

He approves of using the tadpole against Flind, commanding her to devour the other gnolls. Gale approves again if Tav orders her to kill herself. 

He approves of helping Baelen from escaping the trap of poisonous inflammable flowers he is surrounded in the Underdark.

[[4]] He dislikes greed and likes offering help without asking for a reward, just for the sake of helping.

Gale approves of helping Zevlor with the refugee situation.

Gale approves of incorporating Wyll in the group and of helping to get rid of the problems of the grove. 

Gale approves helping Alfira in composing her song.

Gale approves of saving the tiefling kid Mirkon from the harpies.

Gale encourages Tav and approves of meddling into Mayrina's troubles when they see her being mistreated by the Hag. 

He disapproves of asking for compensation after saving the deep gnome at the windmill. Gale approves of saving him and telling him “you owe me nothing”. 

[[5 ]] He has a consistent approval of treating kids in a compassionate and forgiving way. There is a line he says after Arabella’s scene that sums up his position with kids (and adults too): “She was not innocent, but that doesn’t mean she is guilty.”

Gale disapproves of not interfering in Meli’s situation, the tiefling child who stole Barth’s medallion. Using intimidation against Barth at this moment doesn’t give approval penalties. Not doing anything does. 

When Tav’s perception prevents them from being pickpocketed by one of Mattis' associates, the child immediately starts crying. Gale Approves of telling this child “Relax. I won’t get angry. You didn’t manage to steal anything from me”.

He approves of telling Arabella's parents that the druids overreacted. This approval is explicitly explained later by gale: one should be more kind and forgiving with the transgressions of youth. Here there is a bit of self-projection of Gale on the situation.

He approves of saving Arabella with active persuasion/intimidation. He disapproves of not doing anything during the tense situation with Teela. 

He approves of choosing the option “Only a monster would threaten/kill a child” when speaking with Kagha the first time.

Gale approves of helping Mirkon. He disapproves of scaring him.

Gale approves of telling “I’m sorry for your loss” to a goblin kid whose parents were killed by the adventurer they are kicking. 

[[6]] He is an animal lover in general, so treating animals in a good way will always earn his approval. 

We know he has a cat. When he was a child, he used to have a Tressym (winged cat).

He approves of convincing Scratch of joining the camp via speak with animals.

Gale approves of petting Scratch.

Gale approves of leaving the cave of the Owlbear mother and her cub without combat. Or he approves if Tav can speak with animals and convinces her not to kill them. 

After killing the owlbear mother, Gale approves of sparing the owlbear cub’s life.

Gale approves of convincing the goblin Krolla to hand over the Owlbear cub. Paying for it will not earn his approval. 

Gale approves of feeding the owlbear cub at the camp. However, Gale will state that it's a dangerous pet. Gale approves of feeding the owl afterwards, offering a funny phrase that may be more meaningful for his character: “The hand that feeds is the hand that’s loved, now he wont leave your side”. I personally found it funny since he is the char that Tav is feeding with artefacts.

Gale approves of petting the owlbear.

Gale approves of attempting to heal the Owlbear cub in camp.

He disapproves of shooing the Owlbear cub.

Gale approves of freeing the spiders in the goblin camp. This can be interpreted as well as a tactical advantage for the battle.

Gale disapproves of suggesting to the goblins to use sharp stones at the caged bear so they can inflict more damage. He also disapproves again if Tav joins them in throwing stones.

He approves of helping the bear to attack the goblins. (This happens whether Gale knows that the bear is Halsin or not)

Gale approves of leaving flowers at the grave of the dog Myrna in the Underdark.

[[7]] Therefore it is only natural to see that he disaproves of animal cruelty

He disapproves of kicking and killing the squirrel Timber when entering the Grove.

He disapproves of prodding to death the bird that Nettie was healing

He disapproves of killing the owlbear cub once the mother was killed.

Gale disapproves of suggesting the goblin kids to use sharp stones to hurt the caged bear.

He disapproves of Tav throwing stones at the bear.

Gale disapproves of attacking the owlbear cub once it went to the camp.

[[8]] Since life is valuable for him in general, he will always disapprove of gratuitous killing, murder, and bloodshed. In short, he disapproves of unnecessary death.

Gale disapproves of asking the fishermen to hand over their values. This situation ends up in bloodshed.

He disapproves of joining Lae'Zel against the Tieflings that had her caged.

Gale disapproves of not helping Zevlor, knowing the tieflings will be massacred by the goblins.

He disapproves of telling Rolan to leave the grove before the arrival of the goblins. Without this wizard the tieflings have more chances of failing at the resistance. 

He disapproves of helping the goblin Sazza to escape. This will guarantee that Minthara knows the location of the Grove.

He disapproves of telling Zevlor that Tav won’t help the Blade of Frontiers against the imminent massacre of the tieflings.

He disapproves of not doing anything to help Arabella 

He disapproves of Tav ignoring his need for artefacts because “there is more at stake than his own meager life alone”. He disapproves of this decision that puts many innocents in danger, but he keeps appealing to Tav’s good side, encouraging them to do the “right thing”. 

He also disapproves of killing Crusher when he is begging for his life after the “pungent poetic justice” of kissing Tav’s feet.

Gale disapproves of killing Rugan in the Zhentarim hideout when Zarys orders to.

Gale disapproves of killing Ellyka, the tiefling who was watching the githyanki patrol from a distance. 

He disapproves of opening the gate for the goblin raiders.

Gale disapproves of joining the goblins in massacring the tieflings. During the party he will attempt to leave the group. Only a high persuasion or insight roll will keep him in the group. It requires a DC 15.

Gale disapproves of helping Glut to destroy Spaw, the peaceful leader of the current Myconid colony. Doing this will end up in the massacre of the Myconid.

He disapproves of abandoning Baelan surrounded by poisonous inflammable flowers in the Underdark.

[[9]] He doesn’t like gratuitous humiliation or torture of any kind, whether psychological or physical. Once more, it’s shown that he disapproves gestures of cruelty and unprovoked violence. 

Gale disapproves of telling Elegis (tiefling on the gates of the grove) that she is pathetic for fearing the goblins.

He disapproves of pocketing the ring when Mattis (tiefling kid) asks you to choose heads or tails.

He disapproves of using intimidation against Pardima, threatening her to break her neck (she is the tiefling who is paralysed inside the small building). 

He disapproves of smashing Alfira’s lute

He disapproves of telling Kagha that Arabella’s death was “quite a show”. This is related to Astarion’s concept of “fun” that Gale will bring into conversation subtly in an option during Mayrina’s quest.

Gale disapproves of psychologically torturing Lorin (wood elf trapped in Ethel’s house).

When Tav kills Connor, Gale will lament about the tragedy of the couple. He is sad for the story of lovers being over due to the whim of a hag.

Gale disapproves if after reviving Connor, Tav decides to keep him as a combat pet.

In the post before the Goblin camp, Gale disapproves of Tav smearing dung on their face. Gale has a sense of confidence and pride that he prefers to see in Tav as well. He is neutral if Tav throws dung against the goblin guards. On one side he probably approves of Tav’s pride transpired in that rebel action, but on the other hand, he doesn’t approve of provoking the goblins, since in the beginning of the scene he warned Tav that they come by the dozen, implying that they likely will be outnumbered.

He disapproves of obeying Crusher and kissing his foot, or licking it as a prank. 

Gale disproves of volunteering to torture Liam inside the defiled temple of Selune.

Gale disapproves of siding with the Goblins in general. Once done, in the party, he disapproves of telling him to stop whining after the massacre when he is sharing his regret of having participated in it. He answers "You really are heartless".

(Datamining) In the Duergar encampment, Gale disapproves of killing the slave gnomes under the command of the True Soul Nere.

[[10]] Despite showing some signs that he may support some bias commonly spread in Faerun, he keeps open minded and quite self-critical about his own slips on different races.

During the meeting he uses the Rashemi group as a synonym for lack of intelligence. I personally see this as a foreshadowing detail of future frictions with Minsc.

He approves killing Lae’Zel in the cage if Tav supports the fact that she is dangerous to innocent people. This situation may suggest that Gale considers most Githyanki as dangerous (acceptable conception lore wise)

When talking with Aaron (the halfling merchant of the grove), Gale disapproves of saying that the tieflings can deal with their problems because they have devil powers. 

Despite goblinoid races being despised by most people in Faerun, Gale recognises their powers, culture, magic, and ability to bond and love.

He is a human of Waterdeep, his human-centric vision slips in his line (with a non-human Tav): “Now more than ever, it's important to recall what makes us human. Well- you know what I mean.” He immediately noticed it and acknowledged it. 

[[11]]He is against slavery:

Gale disapproves if Tav pays Oskar’s freedom to get him as a slave. He approves of leaving him free by any means: paying for him, intimidation, or persuasion.

Gale disapproves of helping Gekh Coal (Duergar) to find the slave gnome who stole the boots in the Underdark.

Gale disapproves of handing over Astarion to Gandrel. This action can be interpreted as a way to not support slavery (because the story of Cazador), even though a better interpretation is related to Gale’s abandonment issues (see bellow).

(Datamining) In the Duergar encampment, Gale approves of helping Beldron in using the explosives to get free of the Duergar slavers.

[[12]] There are several elements related to acceptance, forgiveness, compassion, kindness and acknowledging of mistakes deeply entangled in his character. Gale wants these values for himself as well as for others. Examples of this can be seen in the following approvals:

[[12a]] Acceptance: of his persona, which means respecting his privacy, boundaries, and needs 

[Privacy/Boundaries] He disapproves of every use of the tadpole on him. He has been more than clear from the first moment about his privacy and secrets, promising that he will eventually share, given the circumstances (he clearly leaves open the possibility of trusting in Tav and never denies having secrets). This behaviour of him is also understood later not as a whim but as part of his abandonment issues: he explicitly says several times that “some truths are more difficult to share than others”. We need to remember that his secret is directly entangled with Mystra, her abandonment, and the mistake of the orb. See the post about "Gale Hypotheses- Part 1", section: "Abandonment Issues" for further interpretation.

[Privacy/Boundaries] During the scene of the stew, he disapproves of using the tadpole again. He attempts to leave the group for the breach of trust. A persuasive or insightful comment will keep him in the group, excusing the natural mistrust in Tav (Gale will always respond better to reasoning and negotiations than anything else). Once more, Gale forgives Tav’s intrusion.

[Privacy/Boundaries] During the death protocol, he approves of telling him that he can keep his secrets until he is ready to share them, despite the many questions that the whole event arose. 

[Privacy/Boundaries] During the scene of Loss, he approves of letting the topic of the loss rest. However, at this point, even if Tav keeps pushing, Gale will approve and will share a bit more about his folly with Mystra. 

[Needs] He approves of Tav with each artefact he receives. This can be understood as an action of caring for Gale and his life as well as for preventing the death of innocents.

[Acceptance] Accepting to share the experience of the Weave with him is key in his relationships with Tav. Magic equals Weave, and Magic is his life, so he is sharing in that moment a strongly meaningful part of him with Tav. Acceptance of the event is a direct acceptance of Gale as a person for a future deep friendship or romance.

[Acceptance] If Tav is a Wizard or a Cleric of Mystra, Gale approves the praise options: "I quite agree. There is no greater deity than Mystra" and “Praise be that Mystryl was reborn as Mystra.” Despite the abandonment, Gale still remains a great devotee of her, and accepting her is an indirect way to accept a big part of his own life.

[Acceptance] He approves even more if this acceptance has romantic connotations (this means, options of kiss/holding hands in the Weave or “more than friends” during Loss).

[Acceptance] When Tav resurrects Gale, he doesn’t approve the resurrection per se, but the “welcome back” comment, implying that he values the action a bit more when Tav is glad for his own persona to be back.

[Forgiveness] He will approve acceptance of his own persona and forgiveness of his secrecy after the party.

[[12b]] Forgiveness for others: He approves of forgiving kids [5] or all those adults who show honest regret by their past mistakes. This can be understood as a projection.

When Tav first meets Gale, he states he is a reserved person. He disapproves of the use of the tadpole even though he understands the drive of curiosity. He forgives Tav who acknowledged their mistake. 

Gale approves of telling Arabella’s parents that the Druids overreacted, that Arabella “is just a child”. Once Arabella is saved, Gale will explicitly emphasise later about forgiving the transgressions of youth.

After finding evidence that Kagha is working with Shadow Druids, Gale approves of exposing her while making her see her own mistakes. A path to redemption is granted with this action, and this resounds deeply in Gale. 

Gale himself wishes Mystra’s forgiveness for the mistake done in his youth. Despite wishing for it, he is quite resigned to never receiving it. 

If Tav uses the parasite powers a third time despite having agreed with the rest of the group not to, Gale will approve a sincere apology, as long as Tav acknowledges the mistake. He will answer that he knows about weaknesses and will recommend to stay stronger from that moment on. He forgives and passes no judgement, understanding Tav’s mistakes due to his own experience (to be fair: all companions with the exception of Astarion forgive this slip into the powers of the tadpole).

Taking Silvanus' idol may potentially end up in killing the druids. If this is the case, Gale will be affected by this tragedy since it was a lot of unnecessary death he doesn't like [1,3,8], and shares the burden that those deaths caused him since he suggested taking the idol as last resort, expecting to save more lives due to his bomb-condition. We see that he wants to survive and protect others from the orb, but not “at whatever cost”. He reflects with a heavy heart “at what cost” a greater evil was prevented. He speaks about “what’s wrong is wrong”, implying with all this scene that forgiveness, in this case, may be not possible. 

He approves of being forgiven/supported in his friendship/romance despite the mistake of holding the information of the orb and Mystra. At this point it is strange that Tav has not realised all of this alone, unless the player had a bug that prevented them from seeing Gale’s scenes. (Gale’s scenes suffer the lowest priority in the triggering list).

When Gale explicitly apologies in the morning after, he approves of telling him “It's fine. In the end I'm glad you told me.” The other options have no approval penalties. Once more it’s seen that a compassionate, forgiving attitude increases his approval. This can be seen as a direct result of his traumatic and constant present fear for abandonment (Check the post of "Gale Hypotheses- Part 1", section: "Abandonment Issues").

[[12c]] Compassion and kindness: He approves of most actions based on compassion and kindness (on him or others) and disapproves quick judgement on others when the whole story related to them is not completely known.

Gale disapproves of telling Arabella's parents that the situation is their fault. This can be interpreted as a quick judgement when they still did not listen to the other side.

After saving Arabella, Gale has a special comment related to the “transgressions of the youth”, about mistakes, and about innocence and guilt.

In Waukeen’s rest, Gale is neutral about keeping the dowry as a payment, but he approves of giving it to Benryn (the man rescued from the fire who found his wife dead). This could be considered a gesture of compassion.

He approves of most compassionate options when he is speaking of Mystra during the scene of Loss. It doesn’t matter if Tav doesn’t understand the whole situation; he always appreciates receiving support. 

Instead, he disapproves if Tav considers arrogance as the cause for his pain and loss (later we will know his folly was not because of arrogance but because of young love/devotion). He doesn’t approve judgement in this instance (since the whole story has not been said yet) but he will not disapprove Tav’s judgements later during the scene of the Revelation, where he receives the most aggressive words without approval penalties. 

Curiously, during the goblin party, he explicitly says that these two aspects of his persona (compassion and kindness) are affected by the shadow within (the orb) and the shadow without (the revealed Evil-Tav).

[[13]] Gale is a man of the City who indulges in the fine pleasures that urban life and some degree of privilege can offer. This is quite reasonable in terms of lore, since he is from Waterdeep, where humans hold the political and social power, plus his wizard profession. Wizards tend to come (even though it’s not exclusive) from high income families or from nobility since wizardry studies are quite expensive: 

He comments about the hardness of the wilderness.

He missed the civilisation: soft beds, home cooked meals, minstrels, and scented baths.

Gale approves of giving Oskar (the slave painter in the Zhentarim hideout) 200 gold to fight the “discomforts of the road”. He is the only companion who approves this action.

Gale disapproves of participating in the pain ritual with Abdirak. I personally prefer to interpret it in relation to his dislike for evil entities, but it can be also interpreted as a statement: pain “is not his cup of tea”.

In the same way, during the Weave, he disapproves of the image of being kicked in the gut.I know this should be common sense: if someone kicks you, you disapprove. The detail I see here is that, judging by his reaction, it seems to hurt him more than the image of the severed head. Maybe he has an extra sensibility to pain as the result of living with the orb stuck in his chest. The orb seems to be an ever present fear/pain (one can assume pain due to the extreme facial gesticulation in Gale when the process of absorption happens)

[[14]] He may disapprove of worshipping dubious or evil gods. This seems coherent since Mystra is a neutral good entity.

Gale disapproves of participating in the pain ritual with Abdirak. He explicitly says that pain is not “his cup of tea”, but it’s possible to interpret this scene as a disapproval to worshiping evil gods. Loviatar is one whose followers offer pain to celebrate her. In all options of this dialogue Abdirak explicitly says this is a ritual to offer pain to Loviatar, so it can be understood as a form of worshipping her in the moment. 

Gale disapproves if Tav accepts to be a Chosen of Booal.

He approves of Tav claiming that they don’t need of Booal’s powers, “I'll just kill you and claim it for myself”

When Shadowheart confesses being a worshipper of Shar, Gale will share a comment that displays his discomfort.

Gale approves of purging the evil in the dying hyena when a good-aligned Cleric blesses them.

[[15]] Gale is a scholar, and therefore, quite an open-minded char, who advocates for unconventional ways to solve problems:

He approves of considering the Creche solution for their tadpole’s problem, incorporating a githyanki to their group.

Gale approves of considering Gut the Priestess as another option. 

Despite his years studying The Arts, he is not judgemental or dismissive to Warlock/Cleric/Paladin Tavs who acquired the ability to cast magic thanks to the gift granted by superior entities.

Gale approves of saying “Then fix it, or die at my hand” to Raphael, quite an aggressive option for his usual style.

Gale suggests outsmarting Raphael; his logic is reasonable: these tadpoles are powerful and unusual, and Raphael probably wants them instead of their souls. If he is right, a good deal can be established. He knows that cambion’s deals tend to be unfair but he wants to exploit the fallible (human) side of Raphael for their benefit.

He is neutral when accepting the solution offered by the Hag. He probably doesn’t disapprove completely because, like a good scholar, he is waiting for the empirical result. He knows beforehand that Hags are twisted and evil entities that hardly could give them a good deal. In this case, he is not even proposing to outsmart her. 

Gale approves of giving the wand of control of Connor to Mayrina so she can find a solution in Baldur’s Gate. Despite this is an unconventional way to fix this situation, I personally feel there is a bug around, since his following comment is more consistent with a disapproval.

[[16]] He doesn’t like rushed decisions without thinking about all the possibilities. He encourages logical and reasonable discussions, free of biases or misconceptions as a scholar does. This aspect can be also understood as a reflection of his own past mistakes. Taking the orb after Mystra’s abandonment was a rushed decision of his youth which made him pay a big price.

During Raphael’s scene, he disapproves of the option “I’ll do anything to get rid of the tadpole”. That fast answer would only cause troubles.

He approves during Raphael’s scene the option that allows reflection: “I need to think this over.”

He encourages Tav to not discard the option of looking for the priestess Gut so quickly. He knows how magic is called among the goblinoid races and how much they value healing for being a culture of war.

Although he disapproves of the intrusion into his mind with the tadpole during the scene of the stew, reasonable arguments using persuasion/insight can be enough to prevent him from leaving the party. He reinforces the idea that he “may have spoken in haste” and he has reconsidered to stay despite Tav’s transgressions.

[[17]] He usually disapproves of using unknown magic in an irresponsible or careless way. This can be interpreted as a way to prevent mistakes similar to the one he did with the orb.

Gale disapproves of Tav reading the book of necromancy or giving it to Astarion. The reader will have access to the “forbidden knowledge” tag. Gale thinks himself more adequate for it since he is wiser than before, his experience with the orb book has taught him a great deal. He approves of giving the book to him.

Gale disapproves of accepting the brand of the Absolute. In the moment Tav accepts it, they learn that it has a unique magical effect that only True Souls can notice. Gale suspects this magic may cause mind control on goblins. "Charged with magic? Perhaps that explains the ease with which these goblins submit to True souls."

He approves of being cautious with the powers of the tadpole once they start seeing that its usage has physical and psychological (dreams) effects. 

He disapproves of using the tadpoles after seeing a dangerous pattern with the dreams.

[[18]] He approves of poetic justice, and he seems to follow the philosophy of “give others their own medicine” when he is attacked or harassed.

Gale approves of dealing with the situation with Nettie without bloodshed. However, Gale states that having been him, he would have handled it in a different way, recognising that he may have forced Nettie to pay with the same coin. “A taste of her own medicine is what she deserves.”

Gale encourages and approves of reinforcing a “pungent poetic justice”, making Crusher kiss Tav’s foot. 

Gale approves of helping the Myconid in killing the Duergars. “Wicked killers deserve wicked ends”

[[19]] He supports or at least doesn’t easily judge acts of self-preservation, but not at any cost. This follows his line “one respects life by fighting for it, and one respects death by fearing it”

Gale disapproves of keeping Astarion in the party after the bite scene. This happens if you use two options: “you can leave option” or “he won't hurt us”. Keeping Astarion is a danger in his eyes.

Gale approves of convincing/deceiving Lae’Zel not to kill the party during the night of apparent transformation into mind flayers. If those rolls fail and Tav kills Lae’Zel, Gale will remain neutral in the forced action that they had to take due to self-preservation. He describes the situation as “brutal” and shows pity and sadness for the tragedy. Then he asks Tav how they are doing with the experience: he is sympathising with Tav, not judging them.

Gale approves of dealing with Nettie without bloodshed but he states that he would have fought in order to preserve his own life.

When Tav speaks to Kagha after Arabella’s death, Gale keeps neutral to the comment “You protected your own without hesitation - my compliments.” However, Gale would only approve expressions related to calling out Kagha. Gale can understand the self-preservation sentiments, but his line is drawn when life is taken gratuitously.

Gale approves of pretending to be a True Soul in front of Dror Ragzlin and avoiding a fight when they are outnumbered.

He approves of being cautious with the powers of the tadpole once they start showing that they can endanger their own lives.

He suggests stealing the idol of Silvanus as a way to keep his condition in check (which is more than just self-preservation due to the massive destruction it may cause). If Tav killed the druids to obtain it, Gale shows regret. He embodies the sense of survival, but not at any cost. He suffers with the consequences, but he also endures them since they are the lesser evil. He prefers to cause the least harm possible if there is no choice in avoiding to hurt a side. 

This can be better seen during the goblin party. The only arguments that Tav can use to convince Gale to stay in the team are those related to self-preservation: “We make each other survive” and “You don't stand a chance alone”, both statements that Gale can accept only after a high DC 15, but always regretting his need and the excess of blood.

[[20]] Gale’s secrecy about Mystra and the orb have a clear source: he has serious abandonment issues that can be easily seen in his most apparent “strange” approvals/disapprovals:

Gale disapproves of handing over Astarion to Gangrel, even though he dislikes and mistrusts keeping Astarion as part of the group during the bite scene. This is quite surprising since Astarion is seen by Gale as a danger.

Gale approves twice defending Astarion against Gangrel. If Astarion is not in the group, the first approval happens when Tav recognises that Astarion is part of their companions/friends (therefore, they care about them). The second approval is when Tav reinforces their loyalty to Astarion insisting that they won’t give his location. Although Gale will explicitly question if this decision was right, he secretly approved it (meta-knowledge that only the player sees). We can interpret this as Gale seeing in Tav a person who will never abandon someone they care for, even if that person endangers them. 

During the scene of Revelation, Gale approves of not being abandoned/pushed away by Tav despite his “secrecy”.

This post was written in May 2021. → For more Gale: Analysis Series Index

[remitothestars]

🍋Lemon Boi🍋

Hi I wrote a fanfiction for the first time in years because I love Bakugo ♥ 

Warning: Smoking (smoking is bad please don’t do it ♥)

This one is fluffy but there’s possible NSFW later *shrugs* 

🍋 Lemon Boi 🍋 : Chapter 1

Now anyone could see that Katsuki Bakugou wasn’t the most well liked guy at UA; but after all he came here to become a hero, not make friends. Katsuki would keep up his behavior and if people didn’t want to be around him? Fuck ‘em. He’d been around people long enough to know that no one sticks around forever. The friends he supposedly had from primary school pretty much bailed as soon as he’d made it into UA. Now Bakugou often found himself in the company of a few of his fellow students from the Hero course. A squad had somehow been formed with he himself as it’s head and it annoyed him to no end.

Denki Kaminari had a useful enough quirk; but no mind power when it came to using it. Supposedly after a large enough shock it would short circuit his brain for a while and he’d end up walking around like a mumbling moron; but in Katsuki’s opinion he always had a few loose wires. The way he disrespected him and then cried when Bakugou put him in his place was pathetic, and the way he treated women was.. Creepy.. Not as bad as Minetta, but bad enough that it irked Bakugou the wrong way. You wouldn’t catch Katsuki white knighting for them though; they were all here because their powers were the best of the best and they all had to fight their way to the top.

Every now and then their group would be joined by Hanta Sero and Kyoka Jiro. There wasn’t anything inherently wrong with these two. Sero was almost as stupid as Kaminari was smart on a good day. He came up with passable ideas for the group to do; Bakugou had even participated in a few and had a not so shit time. Jiro mainly just provided palatable music and snarky remarks. He’d even found himself talking with her from time to time about various bands and picked up a few new albums due to her. She was fine. 

Mina Ashido was too much feminine energy mixed with shitposter for Bakugou. She was exhausting and annoying to keep up with as she dashed around constantly, on top of that she’d talk him into a headache if he didn’t have an outburst and stop her, then she’d cry and everyone in the squad would get upset with him. The nerve of these people sometimes; was he just supposed to sit there and take it? No.. Not him.. Bakugou didn’t have to deal with anything he didn’t want to. She wasn’t all bad he supposed; even with her wild behavior he did catch himself almost laughing at some of her lame jokes. 

Then there was Kirishima; Eijiro Kirishima. A man who’d decided pretty much right away that he’d be Katsuki’s front runner. A sturdy enough number two he supposed, at first he’d tried to repeatedly blow the boy to smithereens for annoying him, but no matter how many punches he pulled the boy made of stone had attached himself to Bakugou… and He wasn’t sure how to feel around that. He supposed out of their other classmates he was fairly tolerable. His determination was admirable, and the way he refused to go down in a fight was manly enough, but some of his actions made Bakugou uncomfortable.

The way he was just so offhandedly calm with Bakugou’s reactions were astounding. He would scream and Kirishima would tell him to chill out, Katsuki would blow up on someone and Kiri would white knight for them, He’d complain and the redhead would be right there to call him on his shit. He hated it, it infuriated him to no end, but... In the end… he felt like he needed it. Kirishima helped level him out; not that Bakugou would ever tell him that. Hell no!

The two of them always seemed to be by the other’s side. They were on the same team in the chariot race because Kirishima said he’d be a strong front horse and Bakugou had believed him, and he’d been right. They often spared together because Kirishima could take quite a few blows from Bakugou before going down; he’d even managed to get a few good hits in as well. Kirishima had been by Bakugou’s side throughout the entirety of their training, at camp, and during the provisional licensing exam. 

Most importantly; it had been Kirishima’s hand he’d grabbed in the air when he’d escaped from the League of Villains during the Kamino Ward incident. He’d been there with the other’s. He’d been the one who’d called out. Katsuki had thought he was an idiot at the time; and even though he’d never told him thank you verbally, he’d tried to show his appreciation. He hadn’t been as harsh on him after that. He’d tried not to lash out on the squad as much and that should count for something. 

When they’d moved into the dorms it was originally Sero who had been assigned the corner dorm on their floor next to Kirishima’s room; but that hadn’t boded well with Katsuki. Sero had gone to carry his things into the room and Bakugou grabbed the collar of his shirt and threw him back across the floor. When Sero had protested him Bakugou had simply challenged him to a fight for the dorm and that had been the end. He’d set his things up and he and Kirishima had been in neighboring rooms since. 

When their first year had ended they were told that they could once more live in their own homes but they couldn’t leave the city. Understandable enough given the year that they’d had but still irritating none the less. Although being in his own bed would be nice; Katsuki had to admit that being away from the Hag at home was even better. He’d be staying in the dorms during the week while he did his work study at the Endeavor agency and that he’d continue to return home on the weekends as a retreat. When Kirishima had chosen to do the same he’d thought nothing of it. The others dropped in from time to time to hang out or pick up things they’d forgotten in their dorms but for the most part it was just the two of them.

“Can I call you Katsuki?” The redhead asked while Bakugou made dinner. 

“Hell No.” He’d fired back without a second thought. 

“Aww, why not man? I thought we were friends!” He cried out and elbowed him.

“You shouldn’t test someone with a knife in their hand Kirishima; It’s disrespectful.” 

“Okay Bakugou, so sorry.” He replied with a hint of exaggeration as he took down some plates from the cupboard. “I’ll set the table.”

“Fine.” Bakugo said as he returned to his chopping. He was preparing curry, he didn’t know if Kirishima actually liked it as Bakugou tended to go heavy with his spices, but if he couldn’t hang he could starve. Moving from the cutting board to the stove he slid the ingredients into the pan and began cultivating everything together. When a pair of hands slid up over the back of his shoulders he felt a shock tingle up his spine. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing!?” He yelled in annoyance,his face turning to a snarl.

“Oh Bakugou you look like such a little housewife when you cook!” Kirishima cooed and then ruffled the blondes hair as he pushed back off him while cackling.

“Shut up shitty hair! Don’t touch me I’ll burn the damn food!” He screamed. 

“Calm down man, no harm done, food smells great!” He came down from his laugh to speak in his normal tone. “Gotta have some fun since we live at school.” 

“No one asked you to stay.” Bakugo retorted. 

“Aww, don’t be like that! You’d be lonely here without me!” He returned to the cupboard for some glasses to set the table.

“Check your brain, I don’t get lonely Shitty Hair.” Katsuki corrected. 

“Eijiro.” He leaned on the counter and looked over to the blonde. 

Bakugou raised a brow and looked at the other boy. God it’s like he was expecting something from him but he didn’t know what. “Bless you?” he excused him.

“I DIDN’T SNEEZE BAKUGOU THAT’S MY NAME!” The redhead burst into his space.

“HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW THAT IF YOU JUST SAY IT WITH NO FUCKING CONTEXT!” He burst right back.

“WE’VE BEEN FRIENDS FOR ALMOST A YEAR NOW BAKUGOU!” Kirishima lectured.

“WE’RE NOT FRIENDS!” Katsuki yelled ignoring the other’s point.

“OH REEEAALLLY? THEN WHAT ARE WE?!”

“Classmates.” Bakugo shook his head with a squint; was the redhead really asking such a stupid question.

Kirishima was spiraling. “God Damn you're a dense man.” Is all he said before returning to the table to finish setting it and taking his seat. 

“Oi! What? Am I wrong?” Katsuki turned to face him one hand still on the handle of the pan. “Answer me!” He demanded. 

“No Bakugou, never.” Kirishima looked at him and rolled his eyes. The two of them stared at each other for a moment. “It’s burning Bakugou.” Kirishima finally pointed out.

Katsuki’s nose twitched and he whipped back around to what he was cooking. “Damn it!” He yelled and shook the pan to loosen the overcooked parts as he grabbed his spatula. After a moment he successfully salvaged the pan and set his spatula down to grab the spice jar. 

“C..could we not use that one tonight?” He heard Eijiro ask quietly from the table behind him. He turned to him but only part way this time. “What Why? I always cook with this?” 

“That’s exactly why Bakugou, I’d like to taste my food.” He grinned. “Let’s just use cumin.” 

Inhaling deeply through his nostrils he relinquished the spice jar back onto the shelf and moved his hand over to grab the cumin. “Weak.” 

“Don’t be like that man, I eat your dragon food all the time!” Kirishima protested. 

“If you don’t like it starve!” Katsuki replied. 

The two sat down for their meal. Kirishima was more than happy as he ate the curry without his mouth bleeding and even Bakugou had to admit it was a nice change. The dinner went on as normal Kirishima droning on and Katsuki only half paying attention. “Why make it so spicy?” Bakugou’s ears twitched at the question.

 “The fuck you mean?” the blonde replied.

“The food, why make it so spicy? It’s really good, but sometimes it’s so hot I can’t taste it.” The redhead said as he continued eating.

“It’s good for your immune system.” Katsuki said with irritation. “It also makes me sweat, which helps my quirk.” He added as he took a bite.

“Yea but if you’re eating it at night then wouldn’t you stop sweating by morning?” Kiri inquired.

“That’s why everything I eat is spicy dumbass, I’m ready for anything.” He deadpanned. 

“Right.” Kirishima chuckled. “So the cumin is bad?”

“The cumin is fine.”

“Good.”

The boys finished their meal and Bakugou gathered the dishes into the sink.

“I can wash those!” Kirishima came over and leaned into the boys space.

“Do I look like I need your charity?!” Bakugou reprimanded him. 

“Hey man calm down, it’s not charity, you made dinner so I’ll wash the dishes. It’s an even trade amongst men!” He put his hands on his hips with a chivalrous smile.

“Whatever.” Bakugou dropped the dish he was holding and rung his hands out on the dishrag. He walked out of the kitchenette and into the common area, ignoring when the ginger called out asking where he was going. Dinner was over idiot; what was he supposed to do? Stand there, watch you look pretty? Pathetic. Yet he heard footsteps following after him and turned when the other boys hand fell on his shoulder. “What do you want?!” He asked in exasperation.

“Where are you going buddy? We should hang out and play some games tonight.” Kirishima said with a toothy grin. 

“I’m going to bed. It’s late.” 

“It’s eight thirty Bakugou…”

“Shut up!” He replied and continued his course.

“Man do you even wanna be my friend?” 

Katsuki paused, that voice was sad, he turned back to the redhead. Kirishima stood there, hair down with a headband to keep it out of his face. He was just staring at Bakugou and it unsettled him. 

“I’m just trying to be nice man, I just don’t get you sometimes.” He continued. 

Still Bakugou didn’t respond; he didn’t know how. What could he say? ‘Of course i wanna be friends Eijiro; call me Katsuki, let’s go watch movies and talk about our feelings.’ No. No way. Bakugou turned away and finished his departure to his room. A little to his surprise Kirishima hadn’t said anything else after that. 

Katsuki stood on the other side of the wood door for a moment thinking about the situation. Was Eijiro hurt by his actions? He squinted, no of course not, he was stronger than that. He hadn’t even noticed his fist was clenched so tightly until it burst open from a frustrated little pop. How annoying. He went over the chair in front of his desk and pulled it over to his weights. He’d do some reps and then rest. 

However when he got to bed there wasn’t much sleep to be had. “I just don’t get you sometimes.” Katsuki sighed and rubbed his mug. What does that mean? Kirishima always seemed to get him. Had his actions really been so different from before? Or had he actually done something that abrupt… or had his actions always gotten under Red’s skin… and if they had why not just tell him?! He called him out any other time he was rough with people. His brain was so tired from trying to figure it out that now he was actually ready to sleep. He pulled his tank top off and threw it aside then fell into a restless sleep. 

In it he dreamt of Kirishima. The boys sat playing video games in his dorm. He wasn’t able to hear what they were saying but Eijiro was pretty happy about whatever it was. The dream was nice; watching the two of them just relax together, but then there was a shift. The dream lost its color and when he looked back at Kirishima the boy had lost his smile. His mouth hung slightly open as he looked at him and.. was he crying?

Bakugou’s eyes opened with a pounding in his chest. Where was he? He laid perfectly still as he gathered the information he needed. Above him he saw a wall and a ceiling, not the ones belonging in his childhood bedroom at home, but the ones of his dorm room at school. This is fine. He washed away the panic he’d felt; knowing he was somewhere safe. 

He pushed himself up to sit on the side of his bed and rubbed his face with both hands, pushing them up through his static hair. Looking over at the alarm clock on his desk he read the time, it was almost three in the morning. He groaned knowing he had his work study tomorrow. He’d just have to be tired for it. He stood; sliding on a pair of red men’s slippers and made his way to his desk. Tonight had been too stressful for his taste and even though he didn’t like it, he had a temporary solution. 

Pulling the small brown box from the drawer he retrieved the pack of cigarettes he’d stolen from his hag of a mother and a lighter he’d found while walking across campus, red with a black x taped on it. He made his way to his balcony and quietly slid past the sliding door. He leaned on the railing and lit up, stifling a cough from the first drag, and looked out over the campus. It was a short lived moment though as the sound of a sliding door pulled him out of his daze. 

“Bakugou? Are you.. smoking?” Kirishima stepped out onto his balcony with a yawn. 

He couldn’t deny it, he was fucking standing there with a cig in one hand and the lighter in the other. 

“I didn’t know you smoked.” Is all he said as he mimicked Bakugou’s lean on his own balcony.

“I try not to.” Katsuki replied and brought the cigarette back to his mouth. 

“Something stressing you out?” Kirishima asked.

Everything is stressing me out. Bakugo thought but only grunted “Mm” in response. 

“Don’t tell me it was me being over dramatic earlier.” Red said as he leaned over and snagged the cigarette, bringing it over to his own lips and taking a drag. 

Bakugo looked at him with a little confusion as his face heated up. “N..no! It’s not that!” But it was, he’d dreamt of upsetting Kirishima and it had bothered him enough to smoke on his high school balcony at three in the morning. 

“Mm, okay.” Eijiro bought the denial. If anything Bakugou wasn’t sneaky, but he also didn’t wanna start a screaming match in the middle of the night. He inhaled the smoke and coughed a little when he let it out. “Damn Katsuki, shits harsh, where’d you get these.” He croaked out with another cough and offered it back. 

“Oh please, like you know what’s harsh.” The blonde said taking it back from the other boy. When Kirishima just gave him an expectant look he gave in. “I nabbed em off the hag a couple weeks ago.” He finally said, “And I told you not to call me that, shits disrespectful.”

“And stealing from your mother isn’t?” Kirishima laughed and rocked back on his heels, hands balancing him on the bar of the balcony. 

“Shut it.” Bakugou replied but couldn’t help the grin from such a clever remark. He brought the stick back to his mouth for another pull.

“Eww now it’s like we’re kissing.” He cackled but was cut off by the thwap of the cigarette carton hitting his chest as he scrambled to catch it.

“Then get your own!” Bakugou yelled as quietly as possible. Irritated and embarrassed by the other boys jest. He looked back over the city as the smoke rolled away from him. 

Kirishima laughed and fiddled with the lid of the package before deciding to hand it back over. “I’m good Bakugou thank you.”

He peered over at the other out of the corner of his slitted eyes. Holding out his left hand he retrieved the pack and shoved it back into his sweatpants pocket. 

“You can talk to me ya know.” Eijiro stood up on the edge of the balcony and leaned over towards the blonde. “I know you’re not one much for words but if you need to get something off your che-” 

“I know!” He cut him off harshly and blew out some smoke. “I know.. Eijiro.” He said a little quieter as he extinguished the cigarette on the outside on the railing. He turned to look at the other boy and rolled his eyes at Kirishima’s expression. The boy's eyes were big and he was making a proud pouty face. 

“Katsuki Bro!” Kirishima called out only to receive a hand to his face as he was pushed back onto his own balcony.

“I’m going to bed!” Katsuki yelled as he walked back into his room and closed the sliding door.

“Yea! Me too!” Kirishima said with a big grin that caught the light and waved at Bakugou through the glass window before the blonde pulled his drape shut. “Goodnight Katsuki!” He yelled so that he would be sure to hear him through the glass. 

[aumolc]

Source : google photos

The topic of ghosts fascinates me but I am sure I am not the only one. Millions of people all over the world share with me this fascination and some will even tell you that they have seen ghosts and have photographed or video filmed them. I will post a few such photos to suggest that they are real and exist.

We all know that the life that resides in a body leaves the body after the death of a person making the body lifeless. There are rare cases where it has been recorded that a person dies , his life leaves the body and then after sometime returns to the body so the person wakes up and tells the doctors and nurses that he had a near death experience. Most don’t believe him and attribute this phenomenon to an impossibility and explain that the electric shocks given to the patient revived his heart that started beating again.

Whatever the reasonings may be, I cannot believe that it has nothing to do with a persons’s religious beliefs and cultural upbringings. After all the doctors and nurses are human beings and are subject to their own beliefs that may tell them that there are no such things as ghosts. The Christians are taught that there is no reincarnation  of the soul so it usually boils down to beliefs.

I admit that I have never seen a ghost and it is quite likely that I never will but that does not mean that they do not exist because I have heard many real stories told by real people who say that they have seen ghosts.

There was a very old house in my home town that originally belonged to a Moslem but they left for Pakistan after the independence and sold their house to a Hindu as many others did at that time. Usually a grave is found inside such a house that Hindus respect and put some flowers and burn joss sticks to please the souls. Hindus strongly believe in ghosts and after life so these are serious matters for the Hindus including the topic of reincarnation.

Now this old house that was poorly maintained by the residents was literally falling apart but the grave that I saw inside of this house was well maintained and cared for. They always burned some joss sticks and put some flowers there everyday to appease the soul of whoever died there because they believed that the soul will get angry if they do not show respect.

But  like many things in life, this practice was not maintained and people stopped caring for the grave. The next generation did not care for the souls and ghosts. One night during the full moon , a tall bearded fellow was seen on the roof that scared the devil out of the residents but it did not stop there.

One fellow who used to sleep on the second floor always locked his door before he went to bed but one night woke up because he felt that someone was sitting on his chest so he could not breathe. When he suddenly woke up, he saw no one and the door was still locked from inside. This incident scared him to no end and from then on they started caring for the grave and put joss sticks there. No one saw the old man with flowing beard any more so they sighed with relief.

There was another house in our neighborhood where someone had hung himself for some reason. We were always scared to go to that house because of this and saw that one room where the fellow died was always locked up. But the ghost of that person hanged around and made a racket now and then by pushing and shoving metal pots and plates in the kitchen. They are the poltergeist ghosts scaring people for no reason.

There are many such cases that have been recorded by others but I just mention these two stories that I personally know.

Source : Google photos

We know that the life that resides in a body is a form of energy that has been photographed leaving the body as some of the photos here will show. This energy called soul then perhaps becomes a part of the energy of the universe that Hindus call the state of Nirvana and does not come back in a new form in a new body so it is not reincarnated.These two photos above show the soul leaving the body of the dead . The internet is full of such photos .

They also believe that not all souls achieve this nirvana because they were bad people and did bad things while living so they do not get to the state of Nirvana and are bound to return to start a new life somewhere in some form. A man may be born in his next life as a cow or a pig depending on the gravity of his mischief.

These two photos show  ghosts perhaps in a tormented state  (Source :Google photos)

So Hindus pray and propitiate the departed souls by offering them worship and perform a Vedic ritual near Ganga river in a place called Gaya. Then the soul becomes free and attains Nirvana. Since this is a matter of belief, some people choose not to believe and ignore the propitiation part but most people are afraid that the un propitiated souls may come back to haunt them so they do it as a sort of insurance and not really because they believe in it.

These photos show the ghosts sitting around in one and may be thinking of mischief in the other. ( source : Google photos)

Once President Johnson was visiting Pakistan where he was in the US embassy in Islamabad that many believed was haunted and advised him not to stay there and stay with the ambassador but the president did not believe any of it and found himself locked inside a room very mysteriously. This made him very nervous and shouted for help so the door was smashed to release him . No one could explain how the door suddenly closed and locked the president in. I am sure he never went back to that place again.

People say that there are two types of ghosts. Some are good ghosts and others are bad ghosts. Good ghosts are the souls of good people who for some reasons cannot become free and get nirvana so they hang around to protect the people they love and are like the guardian angels. There is a photo of an old woman ghost who is watching over a sleeping baby who is probably her grandchild. So she is the benevolent ghost like an angel.

The bad ghosts are the souls of people who in real life were really bad people and did many bad things so they can never get freedom and nirvana .They can hang around for centuries and stay in old abandoned houses or such places. These ghosts are up to no good and can harm people in some way. Some possess the living and turn them mad so the Catholic priests are called to exorcise them. The movie Exorcist is worth watching in this context.

Others inhabit a house and bring curses on all who live there by making them unhappy so if you are looking for a house to buy then do some research by asking people who lived there and why they left because surely your agent will tell you nothing if indeed the house had a horrible history. But the locals may know a great deal and warn you not to buy the property. Often there are records of what happened like murder or fire or some such tragedy there so check the old old news papers that some local libraries keep.

Bad ghosts are also mischief makers and push around furniture or break things, slam doors to scare people etc. The movie Poltergeist is worth watching on this subject.

The possessed people are often fake. I knew an old woman who was a first class crook who pretended to be possessed and would tell the farmer where to find his goat and who took it but the farmers are simple folks and gullible so they paid this woman not knowing that she had her own people in the crowd who would chat with the farmer to get all the information and then secretly tell the old hag what they learned. This is how she made money so there are many fake people who claim to talk to the spirits and tell you what lottery number you should get which is a winning ticket.If it was so easy they themselves would be millionaires and would not need to fool people but simple people are easy to deceive.

A story of reincarnation :

I know the story of The reincarnation of Peter Proud  that was made into a movie in Hollywood and it goes something like this:

There was a young fellow in California who kept  dreaming of a particular house somewhere  where  something happened that mattered to him. He did not know where this house was and what happened there and how and why he  dreamed about this house  all the time but it bothered him so much that he decided  to find this house to find out what had happened there and why he was  a part of it. So he started to drive all over the country looking for a house but it was like looking for a needle in a haystack so his girl friend got exasperated and left him.

He then pushed on and found that this particular style of house he was dreaming of was found in the east coast in the Boston area so he went to Boston to look for it. He took a room in a hotel and found a nice tennis court in the backyard where he played some tennis. There he met with a nice young woman who played tennis well so they got acquainted.

Then one day while he was driving around an old old neighborhood, he saw the style of houses there somewhat similar to what he was looking for but not the house he was searching. Then all of sudden he was in front of an old dilapidated abandoned house that was exactly like the one he often dreamed so he saw a young girl who was washing her car nearby  and asked her who lived in that house and why it was in such a bad shape. The girl did not know anything about who had lived there but suggested that she could show him the house if he wanted by getting through a broken window. She did this with a wink suggesting something else but the fellow called Peter was not really interested in her.

Now the young lady he had met while playing tennis was quite attractive so one day she invited him to meet with her mother and present him as her boyfriend and assured him that she was a great old lady of aristocracy.

The old lady offered him tea and at first was quite happy that her daughter had met such a good looking gentleman but noticed that the young man was playing with the spoon and rubbing it around the rim and whistling a tune and was thunderstruck. It was the mannerism of her late husband so she knew that he had come back.

She said that he should not have come back and have sex with her daughter who was really his daughter as well in his previous life.

Now let us find out what really happened to her husband so many years ago. Her husband was a philanderer   who was very fond of swimming in the lake late in the evening. So one night when he came up for air found his wife with a piece of wood standing at the edge of the lake and hit his head hard so he lost consciousness and drowned. It was reported in the local papers but the police never found out who killed him or why.

You can now imagine the rest of the story. This young man called Peter Proud’s body was found floating in the lake where he had gone to swim the night before.

In India such a story would be believed 100percent because reincarnation is a strong belief among the Hindus but the Christians take a different view. Still it is quite interesting that such a movie was made in Hollywood and not  Bollywood.

So the souls do come back to live another life somewhere. My late aunt believed that I was the reincarnation of my grandfather who died of snake bite in his village although she could not back up her claim with anything more substantive than her belief. I really dislike snakes and stay away as much as possible.

The unhappy souls who cannot get freedom from the cycle of birth and death thus end up as ghosts because of their past deeds so the word karma is used here.  Hindus say that if you have done good deeds in your life and lived like a saint meaning an honest person then your karma is good and you get to heaven or some such place.

But if you have done bad things in your life then your karma will catch up with you even after your death and your ghost will wander forever in abandoned houses or some such places. When you do bad things in life, you incur a debt which has to be paid back with good deeds. Those who become ghosts are perhaps the evil ones who had done evil things so they do not get a second chance and live in a kind of purgatory. It all depends on the gravity of the misdeeds. Hitler or Stalin would not get a second chance to redeem themselves so probably live in Kremlin  or somewhere in Germany bothering people.

But sometime the Good Lord gives you a second chance so you come back and do good deeds in your next life to wipe off the debt. Then and only then your soul will get the freedom that all Hindus yearn for.

I often wonder what bad things I had done in my past life that made me come back  so I have been extra careful this time doing good things so that the Good Lord will relent and give me a free pass. I hope so.

              Ghosts and souls The topic of ghosts fascinates me but I am sure I am not the only one. Millions of people all over the world share with me this fascination and some will even tell you that they have seen ghosts and have photographed or video filmed them.