Encounters with Shadow People: Who Are They?

“Yesterday, upon the stair, I met a man who wasn’t there. He wasn’t there again today. I wish, I wish he’d go away.”

This haunting verse by Hughes Mearns echoes a mystery familiar to many—the unsettling presence of shadow people. Paul Wallis, known for his exploration of ancient narratives and alternative views on human origins, has had his own personal encounter with this phenomenon. His research often delves into the unseen and the unexplained, but it was a more intimate experience—his son’s repeated sightings of shadow figures—that drew him closer to the subject.

It all began when Paul’s young son started seeing shadowy figures in their home. These weren’t just fleeting glimpses; his son described them with startling clarity. The figures, completely black and lacking any discernible features, would sit or stand in specific places. One, for instance, often perched on the back of the couch with its feet on the cushions, while another stood in a corner of the room. His son could point out exactly where they were, almost as if these shadowy entities were tangible presences, even though they seemed to have no physical form.

At first, Paul assumed, like many parents would, that his son was simply dreaming or perhaps misinterpreting the shadows in dim lighting. It seemed like one of those childhood experiences where the imagination blurs the lines between reality and illusion. However, what stood out was the consistency of his son’s descriptions—he could recall the exact positions of these figures, and their behavior never changed. The figures just watched, never engaging, and though his son felt uneasy, they didn’t seem to do anything harmful.

One particular drawing his son made captured Paul’s attention. It depicted a human-shaped shadow wearing what looked like a shaman’s headdress. The image was so specific that it made Paul pause—how could his son, at such a young age, conjure such a detailed vision, especially one with cultural significance? This prompted Paul to reconsider his initial skepticism.

Paul’s research into ancient narratives, indigenous stories, and biblical texts had already opened his mind to the possibility that we live in a world with far more unseen company than we typically acknowledge. Cultures around the world have long spoken of entities existing just beyond human perception, and shadow people fit into this larger, more mysterious reality.

For instance, in Aboriginal Australian traditions, shadow figures are often observed during walkabouts, seen from a distance, watching but never interfering. These beings are not viewed with fear, but rather as a natural part of the spiritual landscape. It’s not hard to imagine that shadow people could be similar—beings who exist in parallel dimensions or frequencies that most humans cannot detect with their usual senses.

Interestingly, it’s not only children who encounter these shadow figures. Through his work in counseling and coaching, Paul has heard accounts from adults who have experienced the same phenomenon. What makes these sightings particularly fascinating is that they don’t always occur in the twilight between waking and sleeping; some have seen shadow people in broad daylight.

This opens up the possibility that certain beings might exist on a spectrum of reality we typically don’t perceive. Much like how animals—especially cats and dogs—seem to detect presences invisible to us, it could be that shadow people exist in a frequency or dimension beyond our normal range of perception. Paul speculates that these entities might be visible to those who are sensitive to such phenomena, or to animals with different sensory capabilities.

As Paul considered his son’s encounters and the many stories he’s come across, he began to wonder if shadow people might be observers of a kind—cosmic neighbors studying humans much in the same way we tag and observe animals in the wild. These beings, curious about human behavior, might appear momentarily to watch without interacting, much like we observe wildlife without interfering. Most accounts of shadow people involve little to no direct engagement, just a lingering presence that evokes discomfort.

In one intriguing theory, Paul suggests that these entities might be projections from another dimension, appearing as shadows in our world but existing fully elsewhere. This could explain the frequency of sightings where shadow people seem to fade in and out of perception. Some individuals have even reported that playing shortwave radio disrupts these appearances, hinting at a possible energetic or vibrational explanation.

Not all encounters with shadow people are purely observational. In rare cases, there have been reports of physical interaction. Paul shares the story of a boy who, as a child, experienced a shadow figure physically touching him, crossing his arms over his chest in what seemed like an attempt to comfort him. These moments are rare, but they suggest that the phenomenon might straddle different types of realities—sometimes purely energetic, sometimes more physical.

In the end, the shadow people phenomenon remains an enigma. They could be projections from other dimensions, entities that exist on different wavelengths, or even physical beings cloaked in shadow. For Paul and his son, these experiences opened up new questions about the unseen worlds around us and how little we truly understand about the nature of reality. The encounters are unsettling but, as Paul’s research and reflections suggest, they might just be part of a much larger and older story—one in which humanity is not as alone as it might seem.