10 Strange Mysteries Of Doppelgangers

According to legend, doppelgangers (German for “double-walker”) are paranormal duplicates of a real person. They can manifest in a number of ways: You can see them out of the corner of your eye, meet them on a lonely road somewhere, or, chillingly, see them standing behind you when looking in a mirror. Sometimes a doppelganger can’t be seen by the person at all, but instead manifests to other people in a completely different location. It may even cooperate with the person, help them with tasks, or act as a surrogate body of sorts.



There are many explanations for the doppelganger phenomenon. Mystics throughout the ages have believed they are supernatural creatures: either spiritual copies of the person or downright demonic twins. Meanwhile, scientists say they’re just electrical glitches of the brain, or mental illnesses such as schizophrenia. Only two things are certain about these eerie apparitions: They are often bad news, and a surprising number of significant historical figures have claimed to be haunted by them.