Julia really wanted to title this episode 2 Gnomes 2 Furious, but SEO! We dig into the Scandinavian Nisse and Tomte, the socialist leanings of these house spirits, and just why everyone got so into garden gnomes all of a sudden! Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of poverty, death, theft, animal death, Nazis, nationalism, guns, sexual content, and climate change. Housekeeping - Books: Check out our previous book recommendations, guests’ books, and more at spir...
May 21, 2025•50 min•Ep. 440
Those little red-hatted fellas that hang out in your garden? There’s enough for a whole Spirits episode on that? The answer might surprise you as we dig into the mythological (and alchemical, shoutout Paracelsus!) origins of just where they came from, and why they’re hanging out with your hydrangeas! Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of grief, racism, drug use, drowning, immolation, abuse, sex, eugenics, animal attacks, and animal death. Housekeeping - Books:...
May 14, 2025•43 min•Ep. 439
We’ve got a variety of haunted places this month for you - a haunted house (classic), a haunted college (love it), a haunted adult store (?????). Also, we explore the birthplace of Dark Academia. And yes, it’s as haunted as you’d think! Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of sex, porn, death, homophobia, true crime-related disappearances and deaths, child endangerment, child death, child disappearance, and abduction. Housekeeping - Books: Check out our previous...
May 07, 2025•48 min•Ep. 438
NYC has a long history, filled with (unsurprisingly) MANY ghosts. So we called in an expert to tell us about them: Greg from The Bowery Boys discusses his favorite ghost stories and urban legends from over 18 (!!!) years of podcasting about the history of NYC! Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of death, murder, organized crime, child endangerment, kidnapping, ableism, and animal death. Guest Greg Young is the co-host and producer of The Bowery Boys , a podcas...
Apr 30, 2025•59 min•Ep. 437
Spring has sprung, and you’re probably wondering: What should I be planting? How do I make sure my garden is a success? Well, we’ve got all the gardening superstitions and folk magic to make your garden sparkle this year. Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of pregnancy, misogyny, menstruation, theft, insects, death, drowning, and poisoning. Housekeeping - Books: Check out our previous book recommendations, guests’ books, and more at spiritspodcast....
Apr 23, 2025•56 min•Ep. 436
Riddles have captivated fiction and mythology alike for thousands of years! From sphinxes and gods to kings and princesses, we’ve been posing riddles to each other for longer than we can remember. But why? That’s the real riddle we’re looking to solve this episode! Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of genitalia, religious persecution, death, animal attacks, suicide, decapitation, insects, hanging, and torture. Housekeeping - Books: Check out our previou...
Apr 16, 2025•47 min•Ep. 435
Ooops! That’s a lot of haunted schools! Haunted school trips, haunted school theatres, haunted turrets that no child should be crawling up into! Be unruly, be ungovernable, give children nightmares! Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of child endangerment, warfare, death, murder, suicide, hanging, and execution. Housekeeping - Books: Check out our previous book recommendations, guests’ books, and more at spiritspodcast.com/books - Call to Action: Send us...
Apr 09, 2025•50 min•Ep. 434
This week, we give you an episode from our friends at Queens Podcast about the life of Amina of Zaria, a legendary figure in African history. Enjoy this episode capturing the incredible story of a woman who defied the norms of her time! Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of warfare, misogyny, slavery, sexual innuendo, and genitalia. Housekeeping - Books: Check out our previous book recommendations, guests’ books, and more at spiritspodcast.com/books - Call to ...
Apr 01, 2025•45 min
Women of a certain age can do anything - whether it’s being assassins, spinning the threads of fate, or doing witchy things in the woods! From the Fates of Greek mythology to Victorian scientists like Margaret Fountaine, author Deanna Raybourn shows us that older women are capable of doing anything and everything. Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of fascism, misogyny, unrealistic beauty standards, ageism, sexual content, racism, and xenophobia. G...
Mar 26, 2025•55 min•Ep. 433
Every story has to start somewhere. Whether it’s with “once upon a time” or “when tigers used to smoke tobacco”, storytellers have been setting the scene for their audiences in beautiful and interesting ways. Join us as we dig into the origins of story beginnings AND endings! Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of totalitarian rule, state kidnapping, drowning, enslavement, and imperialism. Housekeeping - See us LIVE! Buy a ticket to our March 23 live show...
Mar 19, 2025•51 min•Ep. 432
We’ve reached the end of the river. What an amazing journey. We discuss our final 3 gods of the Nile River: Khnum, Hapy, and Sobek. Fish? They’re agents of chaos. Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of warfare, animal death, transphobia, infidelity, animal sacrifice, and animal attacks. Housekeeping - See us LIVE! Buy a ticket to our March 23 live show in Portland at spiritspodcast.com/live . - Books: Check out our previous book recommendation...
Mar 12, 2025•46 min•Ep. 431
What if you got to dream of an urban legends episode that never actually existed? Well, it happened! Also featuring several food superstition follow-ups, two grannies blessing marriages, and an off-the-grid ghost! Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of bodily functions, hanging, death, war, PTSD, fire, child death, car accidents, and misogyny. Housekeeping - See us LIVE! Buy a ticket to our March 23 live show in Portland at spiritspodcast.com/live ....
Mar 05, 2025•53 min•Ep. 430
What happens when the very real fear of wildfires meet folklore and urban legends? You get something like The Char Man of Ojai. We’re joined by Jess from WTF Is That Podcast to talk about this prescient urban legend, why cryptids love bridges, and why shouting for help in the woods is a bad idea! Places you can donate : Mutual Aid LA Network , Fire Aid , California Federation of Labor Unions Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of fire, the California wil...
Feb 26, 2025•47 min•Ep. 429
Perky little ears and a terrifying visage, we’re talking this week about the god of mummification, Anubis! Featuring a zoology corner where we learn about jackals that aren’t actually jackals, watch a guy REALLY go through it, and more as we discuss our little rotty prince. Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of death, decay, murder, infidelity, animal attacks, cannibalism, body desecration, castration, incest, sexual acts, pregnancy and birth. Housekeeping - S...
Feb 19, 2025•58 min•Ep. 428
Valentine’s Day has changed over the past millennia or so. From a martyred saint, to a feast day, to courtly love and gifting roses and chocolates, where did our current Valentine’s Day traditions come from? Hint: British postal reforms are more important than you’d think! Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of death, religious persecution, torture, beheading, violence, execution, feces, and sex. Housekeeping - See us LIVE! Buy a ticket to our March 23 li...
Feb 12, 2025•59 min•Ep. 427
It’s confirmed: You can use Spirits as a tool for surviving in the wilderness. Also featuring another appearance of the Hat Man, cryptids from the Ozarks, and a horrifying parade of cats. Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of mental illness, gun violence, misogyny, and drug use. Housekeeping - See us LIVE! Buy a ticket to our March 23 live show in Portland at spiritspodcast.com/live . And if you live in or around NYC, RSVP to our free cocktail popu...
Feb 05, 2025•54 min•Ep. 426
Join us in Portland on March 23 for a double-header live show! Get your tickets now at spiritspodcast.com/live And if you live in or around NYC, RSVP to our free cocktail popup on February 20 at jointhepartypod.com/popup See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Jan 31, 2025•1 min
Sorry to tell you, but you just lost The Game. In our first ever crossover episode with American Hysteria, we do a deep dive into the mind game with origins in Cambridge, early internet culture, and other memes of the age like the Cool S. Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of 4chan, sexual content, and drug use. Housekeeping - See us LIVE! Buy a ticket to our March 23 live show in Portland at spiritspodcast.com/live . And if you live in or around NYC, RS...
Jan 29, 2025•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 425
Animal attacks on the French peasantry, a mysterious beast, and a years long hunt. We’re joined by author Gigi Griffis as we discuss The Beast of Gévaudan, her book We Are The Beasts , and re-writing monsters as saviors. Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of death, child death, animal attacks, animal death, misogyny, war, natural disasters, and blood. Guest Gigi Griffis is the author of We Are The Beasts , The Wicked Unseen , And The Trees St...
Jan 22, 2025•51 min•Ep. 424
Have you ever spilled some salt and tossed it over your shoulder? Broken a wishbone with friends and family? Have you ever wondered WHY we blow out candles on birthday cakes? We dig into some of our favorite and curious food superstitions from around the world! Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of enslavement, racism, pregnancy and birth, animal death, colonization, poisoning, sex, and death. Housekeeping - Recommendation: This week, Amanda recommends t...
Jan 15, 2025•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 423
We can’t buy a minor league baseball team, but we could rebrand one into something spooky with your help! Also featuring your stories of recurring childhood nightmares, another haunted field trip, and the worst thing a kid could say at a sleepover. Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of drowning, death, murder, suicide, divorce, extreme injuries, blood, spiders, gun violence, and animal death. Housekeeping - Recommendation: This week, Amanda recommends a ...
Jan 08, 2025•52 min•Ep. 422
We’re starting the new year off right: With a goddess who is leading with both her cat face and her titties - Bastet! That’s how we all should enter the new year in my opinion. Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of sexual content, nudity, death, child death, animal death, poisoning, pregnancy, birth, and misogyny. Housekeeping - Recommendation: This week, Julia recommends not making New Year's Resolutions. - Books: Check out our previous book recommendat...
Jan 01, 2025•48 min•Ep. 421
We return with Myth Movie Night to explore a wild, very silly Netflix Christmas movie: Hot Frosty. We discuss dick scarf physics, bad business practices, Mean Girls references, and the horniest ice sculptor in the world. Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of drug use, global warming, illness (cancer), death, sexual content, and imprisonment. Housekeeping - Recommendation: This week, Julia recommends Animal Well . - Books: Check out our previous book reco...
Dec 25, 2024•55 min•Ep. 420
‘Tis the season for celebration, gathering, and of course, parading horse-skulled figures from door to door. We dig into the tradition of wassailing from Wales, the Mari Lywd! Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of body horror, religious persecution, war, and animal death. Housekeeping - Recommendation: This week, Amanda recommends wearing unseasonal colors. - Books: Check out our previous book recommendations, guests’ books, and more at spiritspodcast.com/book...
Dec 18, 2024•44 min•Ep. 419
Sometimes you move into a new place and there’s a cat waiting for you. Sometimes that cat is a ghost. Who are you to question why that is? We’re also haunted in this episode by nurses, pranksters, and a creepy boy in a “tiny attic”. Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of car accidents, earthquakes, sexual innuendo, gaslighting, and fire. Housekeeping - Recommendation: This week, Julia recommends What the River Knows by Isabel Ibañez. - Books: Check out ou...
Dec 11, 2024•56 min•Ep. 418
Hair? Perfect. Bloodlust? Raging. Titty? Adorned. You know what that means: it’s time to dive deep into the story of everyone’s favorite lioness! Sekhmet is a goddess of destruction but also protection, as you’re about to learn in this latest installment of “Denial Isn't Just a River In Egypt, It's What We've Been Doing by Keeping an Egyptian Mythology Series from You on Spirits Podcast, by Spirits Podcast.” Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of nudity, ...
Dec 04, 2024•47 min•Ep. 417
Trees of life, magical trees, immortal trees! We’re joined by horticulture expert and podcast extraordinaire, Dr. Vikram Baliga, as he walks us through the fascinating world of plants and their importance in mythology and folklore! Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of death, car accidents, colonialism, and misogyny. Guest Dr. Vikram Baliga is a Horticulture Lecturer at Texas Tech University. He hosts the Planthropology podcast, where he interviews...
Nov 27, 2024•53 min•Ep. 416
I’m looking for an apparition. 5’5”. Brown hair. Spooky vibes. Also, a visit from Ma Winchester AND Mother Goose? We are blessed AND scared, the best of both worlds. Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of sexual content, abusive relationships, death, urination, enslavement, illness, and dementia. Housekeeping - Recommendation: This week, Julia recommends A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid. - Books: Check out our previous book recommendations, guests’ b...
Nov 20, 2024•54 min•Ep. 415
Since it’s nearing Thanksgiving, Julia presents a hyper local cult that’s been fascinating her - The Royal Fraternity of Master Metaphysicians and their attempt to raise an Immortal Baby. That’s all we’re giving you. Buckle up. Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of colonization, eugenics, cults, racism, fire, death, unequal sexual power dynamics, child endangerment, incarceration, and suicide. Housekeeping - Recommendation: This week, Amanda recomm...
Nov 13, 2024•52 min•Ep. 414
Mythology and folklore aren’t just history. They’re essential roadmaps to what’s next. Free Multitude Discord: https://discord.gg/RMuRENyhA5 Free Multitude newsletter: https://multitude.productions/community Spirits Patreon, where you can follow us for free: https://patreon.com/spiritspodcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Nov 06, 2024•2 min
