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News 36
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Dibbuk box raises suspicion
Adam Rollins
Let it be known to timid and adventurous souls alike: there is paranormal activity right here in humdrum little Kirksville. Jason Haxton, a faculty member at A.T. Still University, owns a box which he claims houses a demon of Hebrew lore known as a Dybbuk (or Dibbuk).
The new movie “The Possession” is loosely based on a book written by Haxton and published by our own Truman State University Press, entitled “The Dibbuk Box,” which recounts Haxton’s experience and reportedly unexplained afflictions after acquiring the box.
My curiosity was piqued upon learning such strange occurrences might be happening locally. Before committing myself to belief or skepticism, I decided the matter warranted further investigation. Like any normal college student, I went online to see if anyone had already done the investigation for me, and they had. The earliest known information about the box, which is really a little wine cabinet, is that it was purchased in Spain by a Polish woman, who was on her way to America fleeing the Holocaust, according to Dibbukbox.com, operated by the box’s owner.
Decades later it was bought by an antiques collector, reportedly to the great relief of the woman’s family. Since, it has been auctioned on eBay several times, accompanied by a series of stories about unfortunate occurrences that plague each owner, according to a 2004 L.A. Times article.
If this box’s mysterious origins and frequency of changing hands between frightened owners reminds anyone of the old “Goosebumps” horror series, you are not alone. To me, this box sounds like one of those chain letters that will make you die in a fiery car crash if you fail to pass it on to ten other people.
Well, no owner of the box has died so far, but they all claim to have been distressed by terrible, otherwise unexplainable phenomena, including horrifying nightmares involving an old hag, suffering a stroke, smelling cat urine, losing hair and the most terrible of all — burning out lights, according to Kevin Mannis’s eBay post selling the box. Okay, that last one is pretty silly, but someone really did attribute an overabundance of burnt-out bulbs to ownership of the box.
Haxton claims to have suffered from medically unexplained conditions, including full-body welts and constant choking. These illnesses, Haxton claims, continued until he performed a cleansing ritual and put the Dibbuk box into a bigger, custom-built anti-Dibbuk box, at which point he coughed up two handfuls of a “slime-like substance.”
Now, in my opinion, this is all really gross, but cool stuff. I think there could be an angry Hebrew-spirit-demon-thing locked inside this box. The skeptic in me, however, compels me to ask a few key questions. How many of the people who had old hag nightmares were told scary stories about an old hag beforehand? How old was the woman who had a stroke on the very same day as receiving the box? How many of the people who smelled cat pee actually own cats? What was the recommended versus actual wattage on all those light bulbs that burnt out? And how many doctors at A.T. Still or other medical centers can confirm that Haxton’s condition was “medically unexplainable?”
Without answering these questions, I cannot be certain this box is the real deal. I suppose the only way to know for sure is to buy the box from Haxton and see for myself whether or not it really inflicts terrible suffering upon the owner and others around it.
Of course, I would never do that, because it would expose hundreds of other dorm residents to needless risk. Yeah, that’s why I won’t buy the box. I’m not scared. No, really, I’m not scared at all. Maybe I should go read that book and find out how to do those cleansing rituals, just in case.
Hello Adam,
Nice article – please…no need to contact me to buy the “Dibbuk Box” – I would be happy to loan it to you and pick up at the end of the week from the morgue or insane asylum that you end up at – which ever.
As to cleansing rituals – you will need sea salt, fresh basil and some dry sage for smudging (kind of like burning incense)- most of this can be picked up at the Farmer’s Market on the square each Saturday.
Best regards,
Jason Haxton – Dibbuk Box caretaker (you really can’t own it!)
Since you are scientific, and you say you have a method to contain it, you shouldn’t be afraid to let somebody like James Randi have a look at it.
You were in the documentary Paranormal Witness, talking about being scientific. Well, if what you say is true, then i’m sure science would be very interested in it.
You should pass it to willing skeptical investigators that could actually do proper tests, with placebos etc
Hey i just saw the movie and im really curiouse about the boxe and the whole evil spirit thing i alway been curious about spirits and ghost but i havent find nothing that haves any evil spirit so i was wondering if i could borrow the box for a week to experiment with it and ship it back to you after the week is over
Jason,
Ha ha ha ha ha!!!
I hope you make a ton of money off that thing. The kind of people who would spend money to see/read about it don’t deserve to hang on to their cash. “A fool and their money…” and all that kind of thing.
Robert
Wow. Skepticism has obviously taken on a very different meaning for you. You think there ‘could’ be a vengeful jewish demon in a wooden box based on uncorroborated, third-hand accounts. I’ve been looking on the net about this stupid thing, and I’ve yet to see a shred of actual evidence of anything supernatural. Just personal anecdotes and silly stories. Like a previous poster said, take it to Randi, and if it proves to be supernatural, collect your million dollars. Hell, send it to me, I guarantee no ill effects.
I too would love to borrow it to see any effects since i dont believe it