Quite often to the outsider looking in, the Ouija Board is seen as nothing more than a game, however, a game like no other. The naysayers will denounce it whether they see it as a toy or a tool because they have either been taught to stay clear of it or told that it just doesn’t work. The religious fanatics don’t care too much about how it is classified since for the most part, they fear that it does work and that it is a indisputably a portal to demons and a guarantee for possession. When the Ouija Board was first created, it was brought to market at a time when the United States was engrossed by a grassroots movement known as Spiritualism. The Spiritualists were experimenting with all types of contraptions to communicate with the deceased. Along comes the Ouija Board and voilà, here is yet another type of device they could use to communicate with the dead. However, no matter how quickly the Spiritualist community embraced and used this device within their séances, the Ouija Board was patented and trademarked under the category of “toy” and “game.” After all, the introduction of a product into the market is all about timing and the arrival of this novelty item could not have been timed any better. Since it was marketed as a toy and originally sold by a novelty company, it makes sense that today, Hasbro would adhere to its origins and continue marketing it as a toy. It has been extremely, financially successful within this category of sales. Those of us Ouija Board users who do regard this device as a toy or game are actually correct! It is and always has been classified this way. Yet, those of us who see it as a tool have surpassed its surface classification and original intent and have moved into another level of potentialities and possibilities that can be obtained while using this device. So, viewing this device as a tool is also correct! Now, when does the Ouija Board become a “crutch?” It becomes a crutch when you view the Board as the originator of and the reason for the messages received while using it. When you perceive the Board as holding some special power, energy or portal to another realm, then you will blame the Board if you receive negative communications. You may even talk about getting rid of a Board because it is deemed negative, but that is the furthest thing from the truth! You, the user of the Board, do all of the work and create your experiences with it. As a user of the Board, you do yourself an injustice by not recognizing the neutrality of this toy or tool. You are the reason why it works or doesn’t work. You are also the reason why it may work negatively or positively. If you continue to see this toy or tool as the reason for and as the architect of the communications, rather than understanding that the messages are being influenced by you, you will miss owning your developing abilities for reaching into the other realms. You will disempower yourself. Now the Board becomes your crutch. You will also miss the opportunities to learn that you are not just a pawn to the unseen forces, but instead, you are the creator of the type of interactions you choose to have. Regardless if you attribute the messages received via the Board to your subconscious mind, the ideomotor reflex, psychokinesis, telepathy or an external influence, such as spirits, the Ouija Board is merely a prop, a support, to assist you and remind you that you can discover your own latent abilities within the realms of mediumship, channeling and manifesting your experiences. The Ouija Board, as toy, tool or crutch, simply becomes your permission and modern day, right of passage, affording you the support to acknowledge and ultimately, develop such skills. Minus the Board and inherently the skills still exist within you. Happy Boarding!     Karen A. Dahlman © Author of: The Spirits of Ouija: Four Decades of Communication