Malay ghost myths
There are many Malay ghost myths, remnants of old animist beliefs that have been shaped by later Hindu, Buddhist and Muslim influences in the modern states of Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. Some ghost concepts such as the female vampires Pontianak and Penanggal are shared throughout the region. Ghosts are a popular theme in modern Malaysian and Indonesian movies.
An old Malay belief is that a person's ghost the haunts their grave for seven days before departing to the underworld. Ghosts may also return and take possession of a living person, causing madness.[8] Ghosts are generally are believed to be active only at night time, especially during a full moon.[9] Ghosts may torment the living, causing illness and misfortune. One way to evade such a ghost is for all the victims to formally change their name, so that when the ghost returns it will not recognize them. Another is to tempt the ghost with a meal. When the ghost turns into an animal such as a chicken so that it can eat, it may be killed and destroyed.[10]
Ghosts traditionally were blamed for some illnesses. To cure them, the shaman in a village would burn incense, recite incantations, and in some cases sacrifice a goat and wash its blood into the river to appease the ghost. The Ulik Mayang dance might be performed to heal the person by driving out the ghost.[citation needed]
The Indonesian Kuntilanak is similar to Pontianak, but more commonly takes the form of a bird and sucks the blood of virgins and young women. In the female form, when a man approaches her she suddenly turns and reveals that her back is hollow (more accurately called Sundel Bolong). The bird, which makes a "ke-ke-ke" sound as it flies, may be sent through black magic to make a woman sick, the characteristic symptom being vaginal bleeding.[12]
Penanggalan is another type of female vampire attracted to the blood of new born infants, who appears as the head of a woman from which her entrails trail, used to grasp her victim. There are several stories of her origins. One is that she was a woman who was sitting meditating in a large wooden vat used for making vinegar when she was so startled that her head jumped up from her body, pulling her entrails with it. Another has her as a normal woman during the day, whose head and entrails leave her body at night. If a baby is expected, branches from the thistle, jeruju placed around the doors or windows will protect the house, since her entrails will be caught by the thorns.[11] The Philippine Manananggal is a similar vampire who can separate her upper torso from her lower body in order to fly in the night with huge bat-like wings to prey on unsuspecting, pregnant women in their homes, using an elongated proboscis-like tongue.[13] A similar concept is also found with the Thai Krasue.[14]
Hantu Bajang is a spirit who takes the form of a fox or polecat and who eats fetuses and drinks the milk of lactating women. A variant is Hantu Kopek (Nipple ghost), who appears as an old woman with pendulous breasts. The striations of pregnancy are said to be the scars left by the attack of the bajang. Sharp metal objects such as scissors placed near the baby will help to protect it from the bajang.[15]
Polong is a spirit ghost that can be used by a black magic practitioner to harm someone. It is said to have been created from the blood of a murdered person and this blood is put into a bottle for one to two weeks before the spirit is invoked with incantations and magic spells. The owner must feed the polong daily with blood from his finger.[16]
Pelesit is another ghost made by magic, in this case from the tongue of a stillborn child. It enters a house in the form of a cricket or house fly, and spreads misery and unhappiness in advance of the arrival of a polong. It also drinks blood from open cuts or wounds. Both the pelsit and the polong can be forced to reveal the name of their owner through magical questioning.[17]
Toyol or Tuyul is a small child spirit invoked by a bomoh from a dead human fetus using black magic. It is possible to buy a toyol from such a bomoh. The toyol may be used to steal things from other people, or to do mischief. A toyol is considered to be childlike in their thinking. Valuables can be protected by scattering beans on the floor, or leaving sweets or toys next to them, all of which will distract the toyol.[18] It is said that the owner of a Tuyul may become rich, but at the expense of the health, fortune and even the lives of members of their family.[19]
A Hantu Raya (great ghost) is the most dangerous of Malay ghosts. It has great strength and can change into any shape, may help its owner become rich and may cause harm or death to the owner's enemies. However, the ghost may also impersonate the owner, making love to his wife. The ghost is said to have a limited range, being unable to go far from its home.[20]
Sumpah Orang Minyak, a black and white horror movie made in 1958 is one of a number around that time based on the Orang Minyak concept of an oily rapist. It tells of a hunchback who through supernatural means becomes handsome, but then through violating his oath becomes invisible. He is offered help to achieve his worldly desires through a pact with Satan, on condition he rapes 21 girls within 7 days.[28] Jangan Pandang Belakang ("Don't Look Back") is a 2007 Malaysian horror film directed by Ahmad Idham, released on April 5, 2007 in 51 theaters across Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, and Philippines. It holds the record as the highest-grossing film in Malaysia, which was previously held by 1994 drama film Sembilu. It centers on a malicious spirit which the hero had unknowingly brought to his fiancé's home after picking up a small jar found washed up at the beach.[29]
The Indonesian 2010 soft porn horror movie Hantu Puncak Datang Bulan (The Menstruating Ghost of Puncak) caused considerable controversy at time of release. Telling of the experiences of a group of young adults in a haunted house, it has much semi-nude sexuality, and has been condemned by conservative Muslim leaders.[30]
Article Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malay_folklore#Cerita_Hantu
History
Traditional ghost beliefs are rooted in prehistoric animist beliefs. However, the area has long had extensive contact with other cultures, and these have affected the form of some of the legends.[1] Trade links with Indian kingdoms and with China were established several centuries BCE.[2] The Hindu Majapahit kingdom was founded in eastern Java in the late 13th century, and its influence stretched over much of Indonesia.[3] Islam had become the dominant religion in Java and Sumatra by the end of the 16th century. For the most part, Islam also overlaid and mixed with existing cultural and religious influences.[4] For example, the festival of Mandi Safar, in which the people bathe in the sea or river and perform ceremonies that purify and protect against misfortune, and which also serves to introduce marriageable young people, has Tamil Hindu origins, although after the introduction of Islam it was given new meaning as a festival to celebrate the recovery of Mohammed from an illness.[5] The festival has long been banned in Malaysia on the grounds that it contravenes the teaching of Islam, but continues to be celebrated in Malaysia and Indonesia.[6]Traditional beliefs
In traditional religions, still held by some isolated groups, Semangat is the general word for "soul", which can leave the person's body temporarily in dreams and finally at death. When the soul leaves the body it assumes the form of a homunculus, and in this form can feed on the souls of others. At death, the soul either returns to the creator passes, directly or indirectly, into another person, animal or plant. The spirit or ghost, usually called the anitu, continues to linger and may be harmful to its survivors.[7]An old Malay belief is that a person's ghost the haunts their grave for seven days before departing to the underworld. Ghosts may also return and take possession of a living person, causing madness.[8] Ghosts are generally are believed to be active only at night time, especially during a full moon.[9] Ghosts may torment the living, causing illness and misfortune. One way to evade such a ghost is for all the victims to formally change their name, so that when the ghost returns it will not recognize them. Another is to tempt the ghost with a meal. When the ghost turns into an animal such as a chicken so that it can eat, it may be killed and destroyed.[10]
Ghosts traditionally were blamed for some illnesses. To cure them, the shaman in a village would burn incense, recite incantations, and in some cases sacrifice a goat and wash its blood into the river to appease the ghost. The Ulik Mayang dance might be performed to heal the person by driving out the ghost.[citation needed]
Variety of ghosts
Hantu is the general term for ghost or evil spirit. There are many types of Hantu.Female ghosts and vampires
Pontianak is a Malay vampire. She is said to be the ghost of a woman who died during pregnancy or childbirth, or the vengeful spirit of a woman murdered by her own lover. Normally she is seen at the roadside or under a tree, sometime accompanied by a baby. The vengeful Pontianak may appear young and beautiful to entice men to come near, when she will turn into an ugly old woman with sharp teeth who will attack the victim and try to drink their blood. She can be killed by an iron nail driven into her neck, but if the nail is ever removed she will come back to life. She is depicted as wearing a full white dress, which may be bloodstained, with very long hair, long fangs and long fingernails. When she is close, she gives off a strong smell like flowers. Hantu Langsuir is another name for this ghost, generally used for the woman who has died in childbirth, and who is less dangerous.[11]The Indonesian Kuntilanak is similar to Pontianak, but more commonly takes the form of a bird and sucks the blood of virgins and young women. In the female form, when a man approaches her she suddenly turns and reveals that her back is hollow (more accurately called Sundel Bolong). The bird, which makes a "ke-ke-ke" sound as it flies, may be sent through black magic to make a woman sick, the characteristic symptom being vaginal bleeding.[12]
Penanggalan is another type of female vampire attracted to the blood of new born infants, who appears as the head of a woman from which her entrails trail, used to grasp her victim. There are several stories of her origins. One is that she was a woman who was sitting meditating in a large wooden vat used for making vinegar when she was so startled that her head jumped up from her body, pulling her entrails with it. Another has her as a normal woman during the day, whose head and entrails leave her body at night. If a baby is expected, branches from the thistle, jeruju placed around the doors or windows will protect the house, since her entrails will be caught by the thorns.[11] The Philippine Manananggal is a similar vampire who can separate her upper torso from her lower body in order to fly in the night with huge bat-like wings to prey on unsuspecting, pregnant women in their homes, using an elongated proboscis-like tongue.[13] A similar concept is also found with the Thai Krasue.[14]
Hantu Bajang is a spirit who takes the form of a fox or polecat and who eats fetuses and drinks the milk of lactating women. A variant is Hantu Kopek (Nipple ghost), who appears as an old woman with pendulous breasts. The striations of pregnancy are said to be the scars left by the attack of the bajang. Sharp metal objects such as scissors placed near the baby will help to protect it from the bajang.[15]
Ghosts as agents of Bomohs
A bomoh is a black magic practitioner who may create ghosts or bring them under his control to do his bidding.Polong is a spirit ghost that can be used by a black magic practitioner to harm someone. It is said to have been created from the blood of a murdered person and this blood is put into a bottle for one to two weeks before the spirit is invoked with incantations and magic spells. The owner must feed the polong daily with blood from his finger.[16]
Pelesit is another ghost made by magic, in this case from the tongue of a stillborn child. It enters a house in the form of a cricket or house fly, and spreads misery and unhappiness in advance of the arrival of a polong. It also drinks blood from open cuts or wounds. Both the pelsit and the polong can be forced to reveal the name of their owner through magical questioning.[17]
Toyol or Tuyul is a small child spirit invoked by a bomoh from a dead human fetus using black magic. It is possible to buy a toyol from such a bomoh. The toyol may be used to steal things from other people, or to do mischief. A toyol is considered to be childlike in their thinking. Valuables can be protected by scattering beans on the floor, or leaving sweets or toys next to them, all of which will distract the toyol.[18] It is said that the owner of a Tuyul may become rich, but at the expense of the health, fortune and even the lives of members of their family.[19]
A Hantu Raya (great ghost) is the most dangerous of Malay ghosts. It has great strength and can change into any shape, may help its owner become rich and may cause harm or death to the owner's enemies. However, the ghost may also impersonate the owner, making love to his wife. The ghost is said to have a limited range, being unable to go far from its home.[20]
Other ghosts
There are many other types of traditional Malay ghost:- Ceplos is a type of childish youthful male ghost which main objective is to protect its owner, especially warding off other black magic practitioner or ghost owner.
- Hantu Air (water phantom) also called Hantu laut (sea phantom) is a water spirit or ghost that lives in rivers, pools or the sea. It may be the ghost of someone who has died through drowning, or may be an independent spirit. Sometimes it appears as a floating log. The ghost or spirit may be dangerous, and may drown or eat people.[21]
- Hantu Galah (pole ghost) is a very tall and thin ghost found among the trees and bamboos. To make it disappear, a person simply picks up a stick or twig and breaks it. It is normally female. [23]
- Hantu Pari-Pari - fairy ghosts. They are normally female.
- Harimau akuan: a were-tiger, or a human in the form of a tiger. It is normally male. [24]
- Jembalang Tanah are earth demons, which may act dangerously.[25]
- Jenglot is a doll-sized creature that is said to be found in the jungles of Malaysia and Indonesia, described as a vampire in habit. Dead jenglots are sometimes sold or exhibited, but appear to be man-made. Most of them are females. [26]
- Orang Bunian (whistling people) are invisible forest spirits who may lead travelers astray, but may sometimes assist them. There are stories of human men marrying female Orang Bunion, but as a result also becoming invisible. They are normally female.[27]
- Orang Minyak (Oily Man) is a rapist who believes in mystical properties of forced sex, the subject of several movies.
In the arts
Malay ghost films such as Pontianak and Revenge of Pontianak received tremendous response from the audience at that time. Concerned about their influence, the Malay government suppressed production and screening of such films. However, with a more educated and sophisticated public, and with access to foreign ghost movies, restrictions have been lifted. Ghost stories appear in magazines such as Mastika and Tok Ngah, and documentaries on the supernatural even appear on TV.[citation needed]Sumpah Orang Minyak, a black and white horror movie made in 1958 is one of a number around that time based on the Orang Minyak concept of an oily rapist. It tells of a hunchback who through supernatural means becomes handsome, but then through violating his oath becomes invisible. He is offered help to achieve his worldly desires through a pact with Satan, on condition he rapes 21 girls within 7 days.[28] Jangan Pandang Belakang ("Don't Look Back") is a 2007 Malaysian horror film directed by Ahmad Idham, released on April 5, 2007 in 51 theaters across Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, and Philippines. It holds the record as the highest-grossing film in Malaysia, which was previously held by 1994 drama film Sembilu. It centers on a malicious spirit which the hero had unknowingly brought to his fiancé's home after picking up a small jar found washed up at the beach.[29]
The Indonesian 2010 soft porn horror movie Hantu Puncak Datang Bulan (The Menstruating Ghost of Puncak) caused considerable controversy at time of release. Telling of the experiences of a group of young adults in a haunted house, it has much semi-nude sexuality, and has been condemned by conservative Muslim leaders.[30]
Article Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malay_folklore#Cerita_Hantu
Pontianak (folklore)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The pontianak (Dutch-Indonesian spelling: boentianak) is a vampiric ghost in Malay and Indonesian mythology. It is also known as a matianak or kuntilanak, sometimes shortened to kunti. As with tiyanak of the Philippines, pontianak are said to be the spirits of woman who died while pregnant. This is often confused with a related creature, the lang suir, which is the ghost of a woman who died while giving birth. The word pontianak is reportedly a corruption of the Malay perempuan mati beranak, or “woman who died in childbirth”.[1] Another theory is that the word is a combination of puan (woman) + mati (die) + anak (child). The term matianak means "death of a child". The city of Pontianak in Indonesia is named after this creature, which was claimed to have haunted the first sultan who once settled there.
Appearance
Pontianak are usually depicted as pale-skinned women with long hair and dressed in white, but they are said to be able to take on a beautiful appearance since they prey on men. In his 1977 short story collection The Consul’s File Paul Theroux posits that the phantom is an invention of Malay wives who wanted to discourage their husbands from random sexual encounters with women that they met on the road at night.[2]
In folklore, a pontianak usually announces its presence through baby cries. If the cry is soft, it means that the pontianak is close, and if it is loud, then it must be far. Some believe that if you hear a dog howling, that means that the pontianak is far away. But if a dog is whining, that means the pontianak is nearby. Its presence can sometimes be detected by a nice floral fragrance identifiable as that of the plumeria, followed by an awful stench afterward.
A pontianak kills its victims by digging into their stomachs with its sharp fingernails and devouring their organs. In some cases where the pontianak desires revenge against a male individual, it rips out the sex organs with its hands. It is said that if you have your eyes open when a pontianak is near, it will suck them out of your head. Pontianak locate prey by sniffing out clothes left outside to dry. For this reason, some Malays refuse to leave any article of clothing outside of their residences overnight.
The pontianak is associated with banana trees (pokok pisang), and its spirit is said to reside in them during the day.
To fend off a pontianak, a nail must be plunged into the hole on the nape of her neck. This is said to make her a beautiful woman and a good wife until the nail is removed. In the case of the kuntilanak, the nail is plunged into the apex of her head.
The Indonesian kuntilanak is similar to the pontianak, but more commonly takes the form of a bird and sucks the blood of virgins and young women. The bird, which makes a "ke-ke-ke" sound as it flies, may be sent through black magic to make a woman sick, the characteristic symptom being vaginal bleeding. In the female form, when a man approaches her she suddenly turns and reveals that her back is hollow, but this apparition is more specifically referred to as sundel bolong.
Lang suir
The lang suir is related to the pontianak, but is considered even more dangerous. The term is traditionally spelled as two words, but is now more often rendered langsuir or langsuyar, derived from the Malay word for eagle (helang). In popular usage, the pontianak and lang suir are often confused, but they are in fact very different. While the pontianak is the ghost of a child who died while being born, lang suir are the spirits of women who suffered from laboring sickness (meroyan) which resulted in the death of both mother and baby during childbirth. Such a woman would turn in to a lang suir 40 days after her death. To prevent this from happening, glass beads are placed in the corpses mouth. In Chinese, Lang suir means bad luck people .
Unlike the pontianak which appears beautiful and preys on men, the lang suir is hideous with red eyes and long sharp nails. Their victims are pregnant women, whom they either kill or cause to have miscarriages. Lang suir suck the blood of their victims through a hole behind its neck. If one puts the lang suir's hair in this hole or cuts their claws, it will become human again. While the pontianak is associated with banana trees, lang suir are said to be encountered near the shore of a river or sea. This way, if a human victim isn't available, they might prey on fish.
Lang suir are often depicted as being dressed in white or green. Like the kuntilanak, the lang suir is able to fly, including in the form of an owl. The Malay word for owl in fact means "ghost bird".
In popular culture
- Indonesian films
- Kuntilanak (1962) starring Ateng
- Kuntilanak (1974)
- Lawang Sewu (2007)
- Terowongan Casablanca (Kuntilanak Merah) (2007)
- Sarang Kuntilanak (2008)
- Kuntilanak (2006), Kuntilanak 2 (2007), Kuntilanak 3 (2008)
- Kuntilanak Kamar Mayat (2009)
- Kuntilanak Beranak (2009)
- Paku Kuntilanak (2009)
- Santet Kuntilanak (2012)
- Sundel Bolong
- Malaysian films
- Anak Pontianak (1958)
- Pontianak Gua Musang (1964)
- Pontianak Kembali (1963)
- Pontianak Harum Sundal Malam (2004)
- Pontianak Harum Sundal Malam 2 (2005)
- Pontianak Menjerit (2005)
Penanggalan
There are similar myths of creatures with almost exactly the same features among the Balinese of Indonesia, where it is called the Leyak, in Thailand where it is called the Krasue, in Laos where it is the Kasu or Phi-Kasu and in Cambodia where it is the Ap.
According to the folklore of that region, the Penanggalan is a detached female head capable of flying about on its own. As it flies, the stomach and entrails dangle below it, and these organs twinkle like fireflies as the Penanggalan moves through the night.
Due to the common theme of Penanggal being the result of active use of black magic or supernatural means, a Penanggal cannot be readily classified as a classical undead being. The creature is, for all intents and purposes, a living human being during daytime (much like the Japanese Nukekubi) or at any time when it does not detach itself from its body.
The Penanggalan is usually a female midwife who has made a pact with the devil to gain supernatural powers. It is said that the midwife has broken a stipulation in the pact not to eat meat for 40 days; having broken the pact she has been forever cursed to become a bloodsucking vampire/demon. The midwife keeps a vat of vinegar in her house. After detaching her head and flying around in the night looking for blood the Penanggalan will come home and immerse her entrails in the vat of vinegar in order to shrink them for easy entry back into her body.
One version of the tale states that the Penanggal was once a beautiful woman or priestess, who was taking a ritual bath in a tub that once held vinegar. While bathing herself and in a state of concentration or meditation, a man entered the room without warning and startled her. The woman was so shocked that she jerked her head up to look, moving so quickly as to sever her head from her body, her organs and entrails pulling out of the neck opening. Enraged by what the man had done, she flew after him, a vicious head trailing organs and dripping venom. Her empty body was left behind in the vat. The Penanggal, thus, is said to carry an odor of vinegar with her wherever she flies, and returns to her body during the daytime, often posing as an ordinary mortal woman. However, a Penanggal can always be told from an ordinary woman by that odor of vinegar.
A Penanggal is said to feed on human blood or human flesh although local folklore (including its variations) commonly agrees that a Penanggal prefers the blood of a newborn infant, the blood of woman who recently gave birth or the placenta (which is devoured by the Penanggal after it is buried). All folktales also agree that a Penanggal flies as it searches and lands to feed. One variation of the folklore however claims that a Penanggal is able to pass through walls. Other, perhaps more chilling, descriptions say that the Penanggal can ooze up through the cracks in the floorboards of a house, rising up into the room where an infant or woman is sleeping. Sometimes they are depicted as able to move their intestines like tentacles.
This Penanggal has a beginning. It was known to start from a woman who was notorious in the medieval time. She had a face that only a mother would love. No man dare to put eyes on her and her femininity was repeatedly denied. Her hatred on married women with families and pregnant women became her rage of vengeance. She killed and murdered many innocent people during her rampage. She was tracked and caught to face punishment. People in those days had their own ways of passing deadly sentence. She was tied to hang on her neck to a tree and her legs were tied to a raging bull. Her neck was snapped away from her body leaving her head and intestinal organs dangling on that tree. The villagers shouted happily to see their ordeals ended after her death. Little did they know that they have unleashed the most deadly demon on the loose. That night the head went missing. The village was tormented by this Penanggal for seven deadly nights. [1]
Another way of killing the vampire is for some brave men to spy on the Penanggalan as it flies around in the night.
Midwives who become Penanggalans at night appear as normal women in the daytime. They, however, can be identified as Penanggalans by the way they behave. When meeting people they will usually avoid eye contact and when performing their midwife duties they may be seen licking their lips, as if relishing the thought of feeding on the pregnant woman's blood when night comes. The men should find out where the Penanggalan lives. Once the Penanggal leaves its body and is safely away, it may be permanently destroyed by either pouring pieces of broken glass into the empty neck cavity, which will sever the internal organs of the Penanggal when it reattaches to the body; or by sanctifying the body and then destroying it by cremation or by somehow denying the Penanggal from reattaching to its body upon sunrise.
Another non-lethal way to get rid of penanggalan is to turn over the body, so that when the head attached back it will be attached reverse side, thereby revealing to everyone what she really is. [2], [3]
According to the folklore of that region, the Penanggalan is a detached female head capable of flying about on its own. As it flies, the stomach and entrails dangle below it, and these organs twinkle like fireflies as the Penanggalan moves through the night.
Due to the common theme of Penanggal being the result of active use of black magic or supernatural means, a Penanggal cannot be readily classified as a classical undead being. The creature is, for all intents and purposes, a living human being during daytime (much like the Japanese Nukekubi) or at any time when it does not detach itself from its body.
Nature
In Malaysian folklore, a Penanggal may be either a beautiful old or young woman who obtained her beauty through the active use of black magic, supernatural, mystical, or paranormal means which are most commonly described in local folklores to be dark or demonic in nature. Another cause where one becomes a Penanggal in Malaysian folklore is due to the result of a powerful curse or the actions of a demonic force, although this method is less common than the active use of black magic abovementioned.The Penanggalan is usually a female midwife who has made a pact with the devil to gain supernatural powers. It is said that the midwife has broken a stipulation in the pact not to eat meat for 40 days; having broken the pact she has been forever cursed to become a bloodsucking vampire/demon. The midwife keeps a vat of vinegar in her house. After detaching her head and flying around in the night looking for blood the Penanggalan will come home and immerse her entrails in the vat of vinegar in order to shrink them for easy entry back into her body.
One version of the tale states that the Penanggal was once a beautiful woman or priestess, who was taking a ritual bath in a tub that once held vinegar. While bathing herself and in a state of concentration or meditation, a man entered the room without warning and startled her. The woman was so shocked that she jerked her head up to look, moving so quickly as to sever her head from her body, her organs and entrails pulling out of the neck opening. Enraged by what the man had done, she flew after him, a vicious head trailing organs and dripping venom. Her empty body was left behind in the vat. The Penanggal, thus, is said to carry an odor of vinegar with her wherever she flies, and returns to her body during the daytime, often posing as an ordinary mortal woman. However, a Penanggal can always be told from an ordinary woman by that odor of vinegar.
Victims
The Penanggalan's victims are traditionally pregnant women and young children. Like a banshee who appears at a birth rather than a death, the Penanggalan perches on the roofs of houses where women are in labour, screeching when the child is born. The Penanggalan will insert a long invisible tongue into the house to lap up the blood of the new mother. Those whose blood the Penanggalan feeds upon contract a wasting disease that is almost inescapably fatal. Furthermore, even if the penanggalan is not successful in her attempt to feed, anyone who is brushed by the dripping entrails will suffer painful open sores that won't heal without a bomoh's help.A Penanggal is said to feed on human blood or human flesh although local folklore (including its variations) commonly agrees that a Penanggal prefers the blood of a newborn infant, the blood of woman who recently gave birth or the placenta (which is devoured by the Penanggal after it is buried). All folktales also agree that a Penanggal flies as it searches and lands to feed. One variation of the folklore however claims that a Penanggal is able to pass through walls. Other, perhaps more chilling, descriptions say that the Penanggal can ooze up through the cracks in the floorboards of a house, rising up into the room where an infant or woman is sleeping. Sometimes they are depicted as able to move their intestines like tentacles.
This Penanggal has a beginning. It was known to start from a woman who was notorious in the medieval time. She had a face that only a mother would love. No man dare to put eyes on her and her femininity was repeatedly denied. Her hatred on married women with families and pregnant women became her rage of vengeance. She killed and murdered many innocent people during her rampage. She was tracked and caught to face punishment. People in those days had their own ways of passing deadly sentence. She was tied to hang on her neck to a tree and her legs were tied to a raging bull. Her neck was snapped away from her body leaving her head and intestinal organs dangling on that tree. The villagers shouted happily to see their ordeals ended after her death. Little did they know that they have unleashed the most deadly demon on the loose. That night the head went missing. The village was tormented by this Penanggal for seven deadly nights. [1]
Protection and Remedies
The most common remedy prescribed in Malaysian folklore to protect against a Penanggal attack is to scatter the thorny leaves of a local plant known as Mengkuang which would either trap or injure the exposed lungs, stomach and intestines of the Penanggal as it flies in search of its prey. These thorns, on the vine, can also be looped around the windows of a house in order to snare the trailing organs. This is commonly done when a woman has just given birth. However, this practice will not protect the infant if the Penanggal decides to pass through the floorboards. In some instances, it is said that months before birth, family members of the pregnant women would plant pineapples under the house (traditional Malay houses are built on stilts and thus have a lot of room underneath). The prickly fruit and leaves of the pineapple would deter the penanggalan from entering through the floorboards. Once trapped, a Penanggalan who attacks the house can then be killed with parangs or machetes. As an extra precaution, the pregnant woman can keep scissors or betel nut cutters under her pillow, as the Penanggalan is afraid of these items.Another way of killing the vampire is for some brave men to spy on the Penanggalan as it flies around in the night.
Midwives who become Penanggalans at night appear as normal women in the daytime. They, however, can be identified as Penanggalans by the way they behave. When meeting people they will usually avoid eye contact and when performing their midwife duties they may be seen licking their lips, as if relishing the thought of feeding on the pregnant woman's blood when night comes. The men should find out where the Penanggalan lives. Once the Penanggal leaves its body and is safely away, it may be permanently destroyed by either pouring pieces of broken glass into the empty neck cavity, which will sever the internal organs of the Penanggal when it reattaches to the body; or by sanctifying the body and then destroying it by cremation or by somehow denying the Penanggal from reattaching to its body upon sunrise.
Another non-lethal way to get rid of penanggalan is to turn over the body, so that when the head attached back it will be attached reverse side, thereby revealing to everyone what she really is. [2], [3]
Differences from Manananggal
Unlike Manananggal, all Penanggal are females and there is no variation in Malaysian folklore to suggest a Penanggal to be male. Another notable difference between a Penanggal and Manananggal is that a Penanggal detaches only her head with her lungs, stomach and intestines attached while leaving the body before coming back and soaking her innards in a pre-prepared container filled with vinegar to fit back into the body. Additionally, unlike the Manananggal which uses a proboscis-like tongue, a Penanggal is commonly depicted as having fangs. The number of fangs varies from one region to another, ranging from two like the Western vampire to a mouthful of fangs.Polong
Polong is Malay for a spirit enslaved by a man (most of the time) for personal use. Like the Hantu Raya and Toyol, it has a master. It is an unseen ghost that can be used by a black magic practitioner to harm someone. It is particularly meant to harm other people, especially when the owner has wicked intentions towards these people.
Polong is one of the ghost mentioned in "Hikayat Abdullah", written by Abdullah bin Abdul Kadir, much to the amusement of Sir Thomas Stamford Bingley Raffles, his employer.[1]
After two weeks, the owner will start to hear sounds coming out of the bottle. It is the sound of crying. By then he should cut his finger and drain the blood into the bottle to feed the demon. This is the sign of allegiance and of loyalty to serve the master. The blood which feeds the demon is said to have tied both parties together: one as Master and the other as the servant.
No one has ever illustrated the figure of the demon but all agree that it is evil and hideous. In East Malaysian Malays (Malays of Sarawak, Borneo Island, Malaysia) belief, polong is described as an egg-shaped flying fiery ball when it is sent to victims or when it is left out of the bottle.
Normally the owner will keep the Polong inside the bottle but unleashes it when needed. People who have been attacked by Polong are left with bruises, a few markings and almost always have blood coming out of their mouths.[2]
Many of them know that the polong is easily weakened by black pepper seeds (mix with oil and few cloves of garlic). Normally, the shaman will place the seeds on certain parts of the body to cast off the polong. If he is a Muslim, this may be followed by Quranic recitations. The tormented polong will cry and plead, asking for the recitations to cease. It will then confess to the shaman the name of its master. However, it is not uncommon for the polong to name some other person to misguide the pawang (shaman). Hence, the admission must be taken cautiously.
Polong is one of the ghost mentioned in "Hikayat Abdullah", written by Abdullah bin Abdul Kadir, much to the amusement of Sir Thomas Stamford Bingley Raffles, his employer.[1]
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Creation
Polong is said to have been created from the blood of a murdered person and this blood is put into a bottle for one to two weeks before the spirit is invoked with incantations and magic spells.After two weeks, the owner will start to hear sounds coming out of the bottle. It is the sound of crying. By then he should cut his finger and drain the blood into the bottle to feed the demon. This is the sign of allegiance and of loyalty to serve the master. The blood which feeds the demon is said to have tied both parties together: one as Master and the other as the servant.
No one has ever illustrated the figure of the demon but all agree that it is evil and hideous. In East Malaysian Malays (Malays of Sarawak, Borneo Island, Malaysia) belief, polong is described as an egg-shaped flying fiery ball when it is sent to victims or when it is left out of the bottle.
Task
Polong has almost a similar role as the grasshopper-like Pelesit, furious when not fed and will start to harm society. Per some sources, such as Judy Sierra's Gruesome Guide to World Monsters, the Polong and Pelesit work in cooperation, with the latter serving as the former's steed.Normally the owner will keep the Polong inside the bottle but unleashes it when needed. People who have been attacked by Polong are left with bruises, a few markings and almost always have blood coming out of their mouths.[2]
Weaknesses
During possession, a Polong will not listen to anyone except its owner. The owner will come and pretentiously exorcise the demon in order to get money from people. But in some cases a polong which is "sent out" by its owner refuses to free the body that it has attacked. In fact it goes a step further by causing more suffering to the victim. At this stage a Bomoh (witch-doctor) or spiritual leader such as an Imam is called to cast out the polong.Many of them know that the polong is easily weakened by black pepper seeds (mix with oil and few cloves of garlic). Normally, the shaman will place the seeds on certain parts of the body to cast off the polong. If he is a Muslim, this may be followed by Quranic recitations. The tormented polong will cry and plead, asking for the recitations to cease. It will then confess to the shaman the name of its master. However, it is not uncommon for the polong to name some other person to misguide the pawang (shaman). Hence, the admission must be taken cautiously.
Hantu Raya
Hantu Raya in early Malay animism, refers to a supreme ghost or demon that acts as a double for a black magic practitioner. [1] Like the Toyol it has a master. In Malay folklore, it is a spirit which is supposed to confer the owner with great powers. Hantu means ghost and raya, great, in Malay.[2]
In modern Islamic Malay culture, the belief in Hantu Raya is no longer valid, but rather it is identified with a demon, Satan and the Djinn (Genie). Muslims believe that djinns and demons are more powerful than man but less intelligent.
According to legend, people who fail to untie their bond with the hantu will suffer especially during death. Hantu Raya will resemble the look of its owner ever after death and go roaming. People seeing him will assume that the deceased has been brought back to life. It will search for food and new owner at night and goes around haunting people.
Another legend goes that the dying soul will face difficulty in dying and becomes a living corpse or zombie.
Normally Hantu Raya feasts on ancak – an offering made for the spirits, containing: yellow glutinous rice, eggs, roasted chicken, rice flakes and a doll. In some cases Hantu Raya is offered the blood of a slaughtered animal as a sacrifice. Food offerings must strictly be observed in a timely manner, to avoid any harm caused by the hantu.[5]
Hantu raya is also blamed for childbirth death, which is quite common in the days before modern medicent.[6]
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Origins
Hantu Raya originates in Malaysia and is said to be the master of all ghosts (hantu). It is the leader of the underworld legion and those who make alliance with it, are considered powerful. Hantu Raya is the acronym for Hantu or Ghost and Raya, large, huge, supreme, enormous, great, gigantic, titanic, humangous, as in "Malaysia Raya" and "Asia Raya" and Hari Raya (Great Celebration or Festival).In modern Islamic Malay culture, the belief in Hantu Raya is no longer valid, but rather it is identified with a demon, Satan and the Djinn (Genie). Muslims believe that djinns and demons are more powerful than man but less intelligent.
Spirit worship
In ancient times, the Malay spirituality was a mix of animism, Hinduism and Buddhism. Spirit worship was common and these beliefs persisted in rural areas until the latter half of the 20th century. In the case of Hantu Raya, the owner is said to have formed a pact with demon or inherited it from older generations in the form known as Saka or legacy which is handed on down the generations. In return for the advantages and power, the owner agrees to provide for the ghost and appoints a new owner for it before dying.[3]According to legend, people who fail to untie their bond with the hantu will suffer especially during death. Hantu Raya will resemble the look of its owner ever after death and go roaming. People seeing him will assume that the deceased has been brought back to life. It will search for food and new owner at night and goes around haunting people.
Another legend goes that the dying soul will face difficulty in dying and becomes a living corpse or zombie.
Functions
Hantu Raya is capable of materializing itself into another human being or animals and sometimes makes itself a double for the owner.[4] Among its other trick is to form its owner's shape and sleep with the owner's partners. It can be used to perform heavy duties as commanded by its master, even to harm his enemies. It can also possess or cause death to other people if so ordered.Normally Hantu Raya feasts on ancak – an offering made for the spirits, containing: yellow glutinous rice, eggs, roasted chicken, rice flakes and a doll. In some cases Hantu Raya is offered the blood of a slaughtered animal as a sacrifice. Food offerings must strictly be observed in a timely manner, to avoid any harm caused by the hantu.[5]
Hantu raya is also blamed for childbirth death, which is quite common in the days before modern medicent.[6]
Film
Jangan Pandang Belakang (or, Don't Look Back) is a Malay horror movie based on the "hantu raya" demon. The story is about a young man named Darma (Pierre Andre) who tries to find out the truth about the death of his fiancée, Rose. A Malay family has a "saka" (thing that is passed down from generation to generation in the family), in the form of hantu raya. They keep this hantu because they want to benefit, because it can make them richer, stronger or whatever they desire, but it asks something in return. It will haunt or otherwise disturb their descendants unless somebody does something about it, like contain it or removing it altogether from the family.[7]Orang Minyak
The Orang Minyak is one of a number of Malay ghost myths. Orang Minyak literally means oily man in Malay.
According to one legend, popularised in the 1956 film Sumpah Orang Minyak (The Curse of the Oily Man) directed by and starring P. Ramlee, the orang minyak was a man who was cursed in an attempt to win back his love with magic. In this version, the devil offered to help the creature and give him powers of the black arts, but only if the orang minyak worshipped him and raped 21 virgins within a week. In another version it is under control of an evil shaman or witch doctor. Another movie based on Orang Minyak was produced in 2007.[1]
According to legend, in the 1960s the orang minyak lived around several Malaysian towns. The orang minyak of the 1960s was described as human, naked and covered with oil (supposedly to make it difficult to catch). However, there were also stories of the orang minyak where it was supposedly supernatural in origin, or invisible to non-virgins, or both. The mass panic has also led to unmarried women, typically in student dormitories, borrowing sweaty clothes to give the impression to the orang minyak that they are with a man. Other defense supposedly include biting its left thumb and covering it in batik.
Reputed sightings of the orang minyak, or events later ascribed to it, have continued with reduced frequency into the 2000s.
In 2005, there have been cases reported of rapists covered in oil roaming around, armed with knives. [2]
In 2012, the residents in Kampung (Village) Laksamana, in Gombak, Selangor Malaysia claim to have seen and heard the orang minyak around the vicinity of the Pangsapuri Laksamana and Jalan Laksamana 1. The village had been buzzing with sightings of the two paranormal creatures for the last 10 days [3]
According to one legend, popularised in the 1956 film Sumpah Orang Minyak (The Curse of the Oily Man) directed by and starring P. Ramlee, the orang minyak was a man who was cursed in an attempt to win back his love with magic. In this version, the devil offered to help the creature and give him powers of the black arts, but only if the orang minyak worshipped him and raped 21 virgins within a week. In another version it is under control of an evil shaman or witch doctor. Another movie based on Orang Minyak was produced in 2007.[1]
According to legend, in the 1960s the orang minyak lived around several Malaysian towns. The orang minyak of the 1960s was described as human, naked and covered with oil (supposedly to make it difficult to catch). However, there were also stories of the orang minyak where it was supposedly supernatural in origin, or invisible to non-virgins, or both. The mass panic has also led to unmarried women, typically in student dormitories, borrowing sweaty clothes to give the impression to the orang minyak that they are with a man. Other defense supposedly include biting its left thumb and covering it in batik.
Reputed sightings of the orang minyak, or events later ascribed to it, have continued with reduced frequency into the 2000s.
In 2005, there have been cases reported of rapists covered in oil roaming around, armed with knives. [2]
In 2012, the residents in Kampung (Village) Laksamana, in Gombak, Selangor Malaysia claim to have seen and heard the orang minyak around the vicinity of the Pangsapuri Laksamana and Jalan Laksamana 1. The village had been buzzing with sightings of the two paranormal creatures for the last 10 days [3]
Orang Bunian
They are said to exist in large communities, mimicking human social structures, with families and clans. Orang Bunian are said to inhabit the deep forests, far from human contact, but they are also known to live near human communities, and are even said to share the same houses as human families. The place for orang bunian is in the West Kalimantan (West Borneo). Some hauntings are attributed to orang bunian.
Orang bunian are believed to possess great supernatural powers, and have been known to befriend and assist humans, in particular pawangs or bomohs. Orang bunian are known to abduct human children, and are often blamed for leading people astray in the deep forest.
As orang bunian are very similar to human beings (except for the fact that they are usually 'ghaib' or 'halimunan', i.e. invisible and have supernatural powers) it is not unknown for them to intermarry with humans. Orang bunian live far longer than human beings. Stories are recounted of men who married orang bunian, but pining for their families they left behind, decided to leave the orang bunian. Upon their return to human society, they found that everyone they once knew has died, and that many years have passed--similar to the tales of Rip Van Winkle and of the elves of Germanic folklore.
Article Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/
Orang bunian are believed to possess great supernatural powers, and have been known to befriend and assist humans, in particular pawangs or bomohs. Orang bunian are known to abduct human children, and are often blamed for leading people astray in the deep forest.
As orang bunian are very similar to human beings (except for the fact that they are usually 'ghaib' or 'halimunan', i.e. invisible and have supernatural powers) it is not unknown for them to intermarry with humans. Orang bunian live far longer than human beings. Stories are recounted of men who married orang bunian, but pining for their families they left behind, decided to leave the orang bunian. Upon their return to human society, they found that everyone they once knew has died, and that many years have passed--similar to the tales of Rip Van Winkle and of the elves of Germanic folklore.
Jenglot
A jenglot [ˈdʒɛŋlɔt] is a type of mysterious creature or vampire in Indonesian culture and mythology. It is described as looking much like a tiny, living human doll. It is usually depicted as a mythical creature, sometimes seen in cryptozoology, and occasionally purported to have actually been a human body. Its appearance also resembles the Medusa of Greek mythology.
Whereabouts
Jenglot is believed to be found in Indonesia, especially in Java. They are mostly found by native psychics after they have performed a supernatural ceremony. Jenglots are said to be found anywhere, from under the ground, on a wrecked house roof, and even in the trunk of a huge tree.Feeding Jenglot
Jenglot 'keepers' feed their creature with blood, either animal blood (goat) or human blood. Those who feed the creature with human blood buy it legally from the Indonesian Red Cross. The jenglot is said to not drink the blood directly. The person places the jenglot near the blood, but the jenglot doesn't even move or touch the blood. It is said that the jenglot will get the nutrients of the blood in their own way. Some say it comes alive and consumes the blood when it is alone.Exhibition
In Indonesia there has been several "exhibitions" of jenglot specimens found and showcased. Most being found on the islands of Java and Sumatra, and are held as private collections of supernatural researchers and fans. Many were found to be hoaxes, being masterful taxidermist fixings of monkeys and fish, however, not all specimens were examined, and the jenglot is an actively believed myth that many natives believe to be real. People who have caught the jenglot usually bring their creature all over Indonesia to exhibit them in order to gain some money.Becoming a Jenglot
According to an Indonesian legend, Jenglot was an ascetic who wanted to learn the "Ilmu Bethara Karang" or the way to eternal life. It also said to be a hermit whose worship demons and gain a certain power and ability. They say if a person with great supernatural power meditates in a certain cave, they'll become jenglotArticle Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/
Ghost
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The belief in manifestations of the spirits of the dead is widespread, dating back to animism or ancestor worship in pre-literate cultures. Certain religious practices—funeral rites, exorcisms, and some practices of spiritualism and ritual magic—are specifically designed to appease the spirits of the dead. Ghosts are generally described as solitary essences that haunt particular locations, objects, or people they were associated with in life, though stories of phantom armies, ghost trains, phantom ships, and even ghost animals have also been recounted.[2][3]
Terminology
The English word ghost continues Old English gást, from a hypothetical Common Germanic *gaistaz. It is common to West Germanic, but lacking in North and East Germanic (the equivalent word in Gothic is ahma, Old Norse has andi m., önd f.). The pre-Germanic form was *ghoisdo-s, apparently from a root denoting "fury, anger" reflected in Old Norse geisa "to rage". The Germanic word is recorded as masculine only, but likely continues a neuter s-stem. The original meaning of the Germanic word would thus have been an animating principle of the mind, in particular capable of excitation and fury (compare óðr). In Germanic paganism, "Germanic Mercury", and the later Odin, was at the same time the conductor of the dead and the "lord of fury" leading the Wild Hunt.Besides denoting the human spirit or soul, both of the living and the deceased, the Old English word is used as a synonym of Latin spiritus also in the meaning of "breath" or "blast" from the earliest attestations (9th century). It could also denote any good or evil spirit, i.e. angels and demons; the Anglo-Saxon gospel refers to the demonic possession of Matthew 12:43 as se unclæna gast. Also from the Old English period, the word could denote the spirit of God, viz. the "Holy Ghost". The now prevailing sense of "the soul of a deceased person, spoken of as appearing in a visible form" only emerges in Middle English (14th century). The modern noun does, however, retain a wider field of application, extending on one hand to "soul", "spirit", "vital principle", "mind" or "psyche", the seat of feeling, thought and moral judgement; on the other hand used figuratively of any shadowy outline, fuzzy or unsubstantial image, in optics, photography and cinematography especially a flare, secondary image or spurious signal.[4]
The synonym spook is a Dutch loanword, akin to Low German spôk (of uncertain etymology); it entered the English language via the United States in the 19th century.[5][6][7][8] Alternative words in modern usage include spectre (from Latin spectrum), the Scottish wraith (of obscure origin), phantom (via French ultimately from Greek phantasma, compare fantasy) and apparition. The term shade in classical mythology translates Greek σκιά,[9] or Latin umbra,[10] in reference to the notion of spirits in the Greek underworld. "Haint" is a synonym for ghost used in regional English of the southern United States,[11] and the "haint tale" is a common feature of southern oral and literary tradition.[12] The term poltergeist is a German word, literally a "noisy ghost", for a spirit said to manifest itself by invisibly moving and influencing objects.[13]
Wraith is a Scottish dialectal word for "ghost", "spectre" or "apparition". It came to be used in Scottish Romanticist literature, and acquired the more general or figurative sense of "portent" or "omen". In 18th- to 19th-century Scottish literature, it was also applied to aquatic spirits. The word has no commonly accepted etymology; OED notes "of obscure origin" only. An association with the verb writhe was the etymology favored by J. R. R. Tolkien.[14] Tolkien's use of the word in the naming of the creatures known as the Ringwraiths has influenced later usage in fantasy literature. Bogie is an Ulster Scots term for a ghost, and appears in Scottish poet John Mayne's Hallowe'en in 1780.[15][16]
A revenant is a deceased person returning from the dead to haunt the living, either as a disembodied ghost or alternatively as an animated ("undead") corpse. Also related is the concept of a fetch, the visible ghost or spirit of a person yet alive.
Typology
Anthropological context
A notion of the transcendent, supernatural or numinous, usually involving entities like ghosts, demons or deities, is a cultural universal.[17] In pre-literate folk religions, these beliefs are often summarized under animism and ancestor worship.[18]In many cultures malignant, restless ghosts are distinguished from the more benign spirits involved in ancestor worship.[19]
Ancestor worship typically involves rites intended to prevent revenants, vengeful spirits of the dead, imagined as starving and envious of the living. Strategies for preventing revenants may either include sacrifice, i.e., giving the dead food and drink to pacify them, or magical banishment of the deceased to force them not to return. Ritual feeding of the dead is performed in traditions like the Chinese Ghost Festival or the Western All Souls' Day. Magical banishment of the dead is present in many of the world's burial customs. The bodies found in many tumuli (kurgan) had been ritually bound before burial,[20] and the custom of binding the dead persists, for example, in rural Anatolia.[21]
Nineteenth-century anthropologist James Frazer stated in his classic work, The Golden Bough, that souls were seen as the creature within that animated the body.[22]
Ghosts and the afterlife
Although the human soul was sometimes symbolically or literally depicted in ancient cultures as a bird or other animal, it appears to have been widely held that the soul was an exact reproduction of the body in every feature, even down to clothing the person wore. This is depicted in artwork from various ancient cultures, including such works as the Egyptian Book of the Dead, which shows deceased people in the afterlife appearing much as they did before death, including the style of dress.Fear of ghosts
Main article: Fear of ghosts
While deceased ancestors are universally regarded as venerable, and often imagined as having a continued presence in some sort of afterlife, the spirit of a deceased person which remains present in the material world (viz. a ghost) is regarded as an unnatural or undesirable state of affairs and the idea of ghosts or revenants is associated with a reaction of fear. This is universally the case in pre-modern folk cultures, but fear of ghost also remains an integral aspect of the modern ghost story, Gothic horror and other horror fiction dealing with the supernatural.Common attributes
Another widespread belief concerning ghosts is that they are composed of a misty, airy, or subtle material. Anthropologists link this idea to early beliefs that ghosts were the person within the person (the person's spirit), most noticeable in ancient cultures as a person's breath, which upon exhaling in colder climates appears visibly as a white mist.[18] This belief may have also fostered the metaphorical meaning of "breath" in certain languages, such as the Latin spiritus and the Greek pneuma, which by analogy became extended to mean the soul. In the Bible, God is depicted as animating Adam with a breath.In many traditional accounts, ghosts were often thought to be deceased people looking for vengeance, or imprisoned on earth for bad things they did during life. The appearance of a ghost has often been regarded as an omen or portent of death. Seeing one's own ghostly double or "fetch" is a related omen of death.[23]
White ladies were reported to appear in many rural areas, and supposed to have died tragically or suffered trauma in life. White Lady legends are found around the world. Common to many of them is the theme of losing or being betrayed by a husband or fiancé. They are often associated with an individual family line or regarded as a harbinger of death similar to a banshee.
Legends of ghost ships have existed since the 18th century; most notable of these is the Flying Dutchman. This theme has been used in literature in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Coleridge.
Locale
See also: Haunted house
A place where ghosts are reported is described as haunted, and often seen as being inhabited by spirits of deceased who may have been former residents or were familiar with the property. Supernatural activity inside homes is said to be mainly associated with violent or tragic events in the building's past such as murder, accidental death, or suicide — sometimes in the recent or ancient past. But not all hauntings are at a place of a violent death, or even on violent grounds. Many cultures and religions believe the essence of a being, such as the 'soul', continues to exist. Some philosophical and religious views argue that the 'spirits' of those who have died have not 'passed over' and are trapped inside the property where their memories and energy are strong.History
Ancient Near East and Egypt
Main article: Ghosts in Mesopotamian religions
Main article: Ghosts in ancient Egyptian culture
There are many references to ghosts in Mesopotamian religions - the religions of Sumer, Babylon, Assyria and other early states in Mesopotamia. Traces of these beliefs survive in the later Abrahamic religions that came to dominate the region.[24] Ghosts were thought to be created at time of death, taking on the memory and personality of the dead person. They traveled to the netherworld, where they were assigned a position, and led an existence similar in some ways to that of the living. Relatives of the dead were expected to make offerings of food and drink to the dead to ease their conditions. If they did not, the ghosts could inflict misfortune and illness on the living. Traditional healing practices ascribed a variety of illnesses to the action of ghosts, while others were caused by gods or demons.[25]The Hebrew Bible contains few references to ghosts, associating spiritism with forbidden occult activities cf. Deuteronomy 18:11. The most notable reference is in the First Book of Samuel (I Samuel 28:3-19 KJV), in which a disguised King Saul has the Witch of Endor summon the spirit/ghost of Samuel.
Classical Antiquity
Further information: Shade (mythology) and Magic in the Greco-Roman world
Archaic and Classical Greece
Ghosts appeared in Homer's Odyssey and Iliad, in which they were described as vanishing "as a vapor, gibbering and whining into the earth". Homer’s ghosts had little interaction with the world of the living. Periodically they were called upon to provide advice or prophecy, but they do not appear to be particularly feared. Ghosts in the classical world often appeared in the form of vapor or smoke, but at other times they were described as being substantial, appearing as they had been at the time of death, complete with the wounds that killed them.[28]By the 5th century BC, classical Greek ghosts had become haunting, frightening creatures who could work to either good or evil purposes. The spirit of the dead was believed to hover near the resting place of the corpse, and cemeteries were places the living avoided. The dead were to be ritually mourned through public ceremony, sacrifice and libations, or they might return to haunt their families. The ancient Greeks held annual feasts to honor and placate the spirits of the dead, to which the family ghosts were invited, and after which they were “firmly invited to leave until the same time next year”.[29]
The 5th century BC play Oresteia contains one of the first ghosts to appear in a work of fiction.
Roman Empire and Late Antiquity
The ancient Romans believed a ghost could be used to exact revenge on an enemy by scratching a curse on a piece of lead or pottery and placing it into a grave.[30]Plutarch, in the 1st century AD, described the haunting of the baths at Chaeronea by the ghost of a murdered man. The ghost’s loud and frightful groans caused the people of the town to seal up the doors of the building.[31] Another celebrated account of a haunted house from the ancient classical world is given by Pliny the Younger (c. 50 AD).[32] Pliny describes the haunting of a house in Athens by a ghost bound in chains. The hauntings ceased when the ghost's shackled skeleton was unearthed, and given a proper reburial.[33] The writers Plautus and Lucian also wrote stories about haunted houses.
In the New Testament, Jesus has to persuade the Disciples that he is not a ghost following the resurrection, Luke 24:37-39 (note that some versions of the Bible, such as the KJV and NKJV, use the term "spirit"). In a similar vein, Jesus' followers at first believe him to be a ghost (spirit) when they see him walking on water.
One of the first persons to express disbelief in ghosts was Lucian of Samosata in the 2nd century AD. In his tale "The Doubter" (circa 150 AD) he relates how Democritus "the learned man from Abdera in Thrace" lived in a tomb outside the city gates to prove that cemeteries were not haunted by the spirits of the departed. Lucian relates how he persisted in his disbelief despite practical jokes perpetrated by "some young men of Abdera" who dressed up in black robes with skull masks to frighten him.[34] This account by Lucian notes something about the popular classical expectation of how a ghost should look.
In the 5th century AD, the Christian priest Constantius of Lyon recorded an instance of the recurring theme of the improperly buried dead who come back to haunt the living, and who can only cease their haunting when their bones have been discovered and properly reburied.[35]
Middle Ages
Ghosts reported in medieval Europe tended to fall into two categories: the souls of the dead, or demons. The souls of the dead returned for a specific purpose. Demonic ghosts were those which existed only to torment or tempt the living. The living could tell them apart by demanding their purpose in the name of Jesus Christ. The soul of a dead person would divulge their mission, while a demonic ghost would be banished at the sound of the Holy Name.[36]Most ghosts were souls assigned to Purgatory, condemned for a specific period to atone for their transgressions in life. Their penance was generally related to their sin. For example, the ghost of a man who had been abusive to his servants was condemned to tear off and swallow bits of his own tongue; the ghost of another man, who had neglected to leave his cloak to the poor, was condemned to wear the cloak, now "heavy as a church tower". These ghosts appeared to the living to ask for prayers to end their suffering. Other dead souls returned to urge the living to confess their sins before their own deaths.[37]
Medieval European ghosts were more substantial than ghosts described in the Victorian age, and there are accounts of ghosts being wrestled with and physically restrained until a priest could arrive to hear its confession. Some were less solid, and could move through walls. Often they were described as paler and sadder versions of the person they had been while alive, and dressed in tattered gray rags. The vast majority of reported sightings were male.[38]
There were some reported cases of ghostly armies, fighting battles at night in the forest, or in the remains of an Iron Age hillfort, as at Wandlebury, near Cambridge, England. Living knights were sometimes challenged to single combat by phantom knights, which vanished when defeated.[39]
From the medieval period an apparition of a ghost is recorded from 1211, at the time of the Albigensian Crusade.[40] Gervase of Tilbury, Marshal of Arles, wrote that the image of Guilhem, a boy recently murdered in the forest, appeared in his cousin's home in Beaucaire, near Avignon. This series of "visits" lasted all of the summer. Through his cousin, who spoke for him, the boy allegedly held conversations with anyone who wished, until the local priest requested to speak to the boy directly, leading to an extended disquisition on theology. The boy narrated the trauma of death and the unhappiness of his fellow souls in Purgatory, and reported that God was most pleased with the ongoing Crusade against the Cathar heretics, launched three years earlier. The time of the Albigensian Crusade in southern France was marked by intense and prolonged warfare, this constant bloodshed and dislocation of populations being the context for these reported visits by the murdered boy.
Haunted houses are featured in the 9th century Arabian Nights (such as the tale of Ali the Cairene and the Haunted House in Baghdad).[41]
European Renaissance to Romanticism
The Child ballad "Sweet William's Ghost" (1868) recounts the story of a ghost returning to beg a woman to free him from his promise to marry her, as he obviously cannot being dead. Her refusal would mean his damnation. This reflects a popular British belief that the dead haunted their lovers if they took up with a new love without some formal release.[44] "The Unquiet Grave" expresses a belief even more widespread, found in various locations over Europe: ghosts can stem from the excessive grief of the living, whose mourning interferes with the dead's peaceful rest.[45] In many folktales from around the world, the hero arranges for the burial of a dead man. Soon after, he gains a companion who aids him and, in the end, the hero's companion reveals that he is in fact the dead man.[46] Instances of this include the Italian fairy tale "Fair Brow" and the Swedish "The Bird 'Grip'".
Modern period of western culture
Spiritualist movement
Main article: Spiritualism
Spiritualism is a monotheistic belief system or religion, postulating a belief in God, but with a distinguishing feature of belief that spirits of the dead residing in the spirit world can be contacted by "mediums", who can then provide information about the afterlife.[47]Spiritualism developed in the United States and reached its peak growth in membership from the 1840s to the 1920s, especially in English-language countries,[48][49] By 1897, it was said to have more than eight million followers in the United States and Europe,[50] mostly drawn from the middle and upper classes, while the corresponding movement in continental Europe and Latin America is known as Spiritism.
The religion flourished for a half century without canonical texts or formal organization, attaining cohesion by periodicals, tours by trance lecturers, camp meetings, and the missionary activities of accomplished mediums. Many prominent Spiritualists were women. Most followers supported causes such as the abolition of slavery and women's suffrage.[48] By the late 1880s, credibility of the informal movement weakened, due to accusations of fraud among mediums, and formal Spiritualist organizations began to appear.[48] Spiritualism is currently practiced primarily through various denominational Spiritualist Churches in the United States and United Kingdom.
Spiritism
Main article: Spiritism
Spiritism, or French spiritualism, is based on the five books of the Spiritist Codification written by French educator Hypolite Léon Denizard Rivail under the pseudonym Allan Kardec reporting séances in which he observed a series of phenomena that he attributed to incorporeal intelligence (spirits). His assumption of spirit communication was validated by many contemporaries, among them many scientists and philosophers who attended séances and studied the phenomena. His work was later extended by writers like Leon Denis, Arthur Conan Doyle, Camille Flammarion, Ernesto Bozzano, Chico Xavier, Divaldo Pereira Franco, Waldo Vieira, Johannes Greber[51] and others.Spiritism has adherents in many countries throughout the world, including Spain, United States, Canada,[52] Japan, Germany, France, England, Argentina, Portugal and especially Brazil, which has the largest proportion and greatest number of followers.[53]
Scientific skepticism
See also: Paranormal
The physician John Ferriar wrote An essay towards a theory of apparitions in 1813 in which he argued that sightings of ghosts were the result of optical illusions. Later the French physician Alexandre Jacques François Brière de Boismont published On Hallucinations: Or, the Rational History of Apparitions, Dreams, Ecstasy, Magnetism, and Somnambulism in 1845 in which he claimed sightings of ghosts were the result of hallucinations.[54][55]Joe Nickell of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, wrote that there was no credible scientific evidence that any location was inhabited by spirits of the dead.[56] Limitations of human perception and ordinary physical explanations can account for ghost sightings; for example, air pressure changes in a home causing doors to slam, or lights from a passing car reflected through a window at night. Pareidolia, an innate tendency to recognize patterns in random perceptions, is what some skeptics believe causes people to believe that they have 'seen ghosts'.[57] Reports of ghosts "seen out of the corner of the eye" may be accounted for by the sensitivity of human peripheral vision. According to Nickell, peripheral vision can easily mislead, especially late at night when the brain is tired and more likely to misinterpret sights and sounds."[58]
Some researchers, such as Michael Persinger of Laurentian University, Canada, have speculated that changes in geomagnetic fields (created, e.g., by tectonic stresses in the Earth's crust or solar activity) could stimulate the brain's temporal lobes and produce many of the experiences associated with hauntings.[59] Sound is thought to be another cause of supposed sightings. Richard Lord and Richard Wiseman have concluded that infrasound can cause humans to experience bizarre feelings in a room, such as anxiety, extreme sorrow, a feeling of being watched, or even the chills.[60] Carbon monoxide poisoning, which can cause changes in perception of the visual and auditory systems,[61] was speculated upon as a possible explanation for haunted houses as early as 1921.
Alternative explanations
In the early days of the Society for Psychical Research many researchers investigated reportings of ghosts and apparitions and were seeking a scientific explanation for such phenomena. Some of the psychical researchers had rejected that ghosts were spirits of the deceased and instead claimed ghosts and apparitions were not real entities but were hallucinations caused by a telepathic mechanism. Frank Podmore was a main advocate of the telepathic theory of ghosts, he discussed this theory in his book Telepathic Hallucinations (1909). Other researchers disagreed with the telepathy theory and instead advocated the widely known spirit theory of ghosts, the belief that ghosts are discarnate spirits which was most popular amongst spiritualists.[62]The psychical researcher Thomson Jay Hudson also developed his own theory about ghosts which involved telepathy however Hudson did not claim ghosts are hallucinations. Instead he claimed ghosts and apparitions are memories or thoughtforms from the mind of the subject materialising or "projecting" themselves externally. Hudson also explained that where more than one person had visualised the same ghost then it can be explained by telepathic communication.[63] The paranormal writer Paul Roland in his book The Complete Book of Ghosts (2007) argues that ghosts are the "manifestation of people still living, proving that out-of-body experiences are not as rare or as impossible as some people might think".[64]
Ernest Holmes suggested two explanations for ghosts, that they are spirits of the deceased or a form of thought that can materialize itself then gradually fade away. Holmes wrote that further investigation was needed to prove which explanation is correct.[65]
According to (Willin, 2005) Peter Underwood favours the "electronic impulse wave theory" which claims brain waves become more active in higher stress rates and that at a certain level will produce a ghost which is a "telepathic image that is capable of being picked up by someone else" and will fade away when people are not experiencing it.[66] The parapsychologist George N. M. Tyrrell argued that apparitions and ghosts were telepathic hallucinations which emanate from the subconscious mind.[67]
Jeff Danelek in The Case for Ghosts: An Objective Look at the Paranormal (2006) wrote that another explanation of ghosts is the Stone Tape theory which claims that ghosts are collections of energy that can become stored in physical matter which can be released resulting in a display of recorded activity. According to this hypothesis, ghosts are not spirits but simply non-interactive recordings similar to a movie.[68][69] The parapsychologist William G. Roll agreed with the Stone Tape theory, he claimed that a person's mind can create an apparition from "psychic traces" left from the past.[70]
Paul Devereux claims that many ghost sightings can be explained by "earthlights", clouds of plasma being charged by strong electromagnetic fields occurring in areas of seismic activity, he claims that that such natural phenenoma "can respond to witness movement and thought". He explores these ideas in his book Haunted Land (2003).[71][72]
The spirit theory of ghosts in recent years has been termed the survival hypothesis and is advocated by some psychical researchers over the other alternative explanations.[73]
By religion
Judæo-Christian
 | This section may be unbalanced towards certain viewpoints. Please improve the article by adding information on neglected viewpoints, or discuss the issue on the talk page. (April 2012) |
In the New Testament, Jesus has to persuade the Disciples that He is not a ghost following the resurrection, Luke 24:37-39 (note that some versions of the Bible, such as the KJV and NKJV, use the term "spirit"). In a similar vein, Jesus' followers at first believe Him to be a ghost (spirit) when they see him walking on water.[74]
As such, much of the Christian Church considers ghosts as beings who while tied to earth, no longer live on the material plain.[75] Furthermore, some Christian denominations teach that ghosts are beings who linger in an interim state before continuing their journey to heaven.[75][76][77][78] On occasion, God would allow the souls in this state to return to earth to warn the living of the need for repentance.[79] Nevertheless, Jews and Christians are taught that it is sinful to attempt to conjure or control spirits in accordance with Deuteronomy XVIII: 9–12.[80][81]
Accepting, but moving beyond this position, some ghosts are actually said to be demons in disguise,[82] who the Church teaches, in accordance with I Timothy 4:1, that they "come to deceive people and draw them away from God and into bondage."[83] As a result, attempts to contact the dead may lead to unwanted contact with a demon or an unclean spirit, as was said to occur in the case of Robbie Mannheim, a fourteen year old Maryland youth.[84]
Islam
The Koran discusses spirits known as jinn.[85] Certain groups of ghosts are claimed to be capable of harming people. Therefore, Muslims defend themselves against ghosts through amulets, knives, and needles, which are considered reliable means of protection against evil.[86] However, in cases in which the ghosts had already caused harm, Muslims may seek clergy who are purported to have the power over ghosts.[86]Buddhism
In Buddhism, there are a number of Planes a person can be reborn into, one of which is the realm of Hungry Ghosts.By culture
European folklore
Belief in ghosts in European folklore is characterized by the recurring fear of "returning" or revenant deceased who may harm the living. This includes the Scandinavian gjenganger, the Romanian strigoi, the Serbian vampir, the Greek vrykolakas, etc. British folklore is particularly notable for its numerous haunted locations.Belief in the soul and an afterlife remained near universal until the emergence of atheism in the 18th century. In the 19th century, spiritism resurrected "belief in ghosts" as the object of systematic inquiry, and popular opinion in Western culture remains divided.[87]
South and Southeast Asia
India
Main article: Bhoot (ghost)
A bhoot or bhut (भूत, ભૂત, or بهوت) is a supernatural creature, usually the ghost of a deceased person, in the popular culture, literature and some ancient texts of the Indian subcontinent. Interpretations of how bhoots come into existence vary by region and community, but they are usually considered to be perturbed and restless due to some factor that prevents them from moving on (to transmigration, non-being, nirvana, or heaven or hell, depending on tradition). This could be a violent death, unsettled matters in their lives, or simply the failure of their survivors to perform proper funerals.[88]In Central and Northern India, Shaman spirit guides play a central role.[citation needed]. It duly happens when in the night someone sleeps and decorates something on the wall and they say that if one sees the spirit the next thing in the morning he will become a spirit to and that to a skondho kata which means a spirit without a head and the soul of the body will remain the dark with the dark lord from the spirits who reside in the body of every human in Central and Northern India. It is also believed that if someone calls you from behind never turn back and see because the spirit may catch the human to make it a spirit. Other types of spirits in Hindu Mythology include Baital, an evil spirit who haunts cemeteries and takes demonic possession of corpses, and Pishacha, a type of flesh-eating demon.
Austronesia
There are many Malay ghost myths, remnants of old animist beliefs that have been shaped by later Hindu, Buddhist and Muslim influences in the modern states of Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. Some ghost concepts such as the female vampires Pontianak and Penanggalan are shared throughout the region. Ghosts are a popular theme in modern Malaysian and Indonesian films. There are also many references to Ghosts in Filipino culture, ranging from ancient legendary creatures such as the Manananggal and Tiyanak to more modern urban legends and horror films. The beliefs, legends and stories are as diverse as the people of the Philippines..JPG)
There was widespread belief in ghosts in Polynesian culture, some of which persists today. After death, a person's ghost normally traveled to the sky world or the underworld, but some could stay on earth. In many Polynesian legends, ghosts were often actively involved in the affairs of the living. Ghosts might also cause sickness or even invade the body of ordinary people, to be driven out through strong medicines.[89]
East and Central Asia
Further information: Preta
China
Main article: Ghosts in Chinese culture
The ghosts take many forms, depending on how the person died, and are often harmful. Many Chinese ghost beliefs have been accepted by neighboring cultures, notably Japan and south-east Asia. Ghost beliefs are closely associated with traditional Chinese religion based on ancestor worship, many of which were incorporated in Taoism. Later beliefs were influenced by Buddhism, and in turn influenced and created uniquely Chinese Buddhist beliefs.
Many Chinese today believe it possible to contact the spirits of their ancestors through a medium, and that ancestors can help descendants if properly respected and rewarded. The annual ghost festival is celebrated by Chinese around the world. On this day, ghosts and spirits, including those of the deceased ancestors, come out from the lower realm. Ghosts are described in classical Chinese texts as well as modern literature and films.
A recent article in the China Post stated that nearly eighty seven percent of Chinese office workers believe in ghosts, and some fifty two percent of workers will wear hand art, necklaces, crosses, or even place a crystal ball on their desks to keep ghosts at bay, according to the poll.
Japan
Yūrei (幽霊) are figures in Japanese folklore, analogous to Western legends of ghosts. The name consists of two kanji, 幽 (yū), meaning "faint" or "dim" and 霊 (rei), meaning "soul" or "spirit". Alternative names include 亡霊 (Bōrei) meaning ruined or departed spirit, 死霊 (Shiryō) meaning dead spirit, or the more encompassing 妖怪 (Yōkai) or お化け (Obake).
Like their Chinese and Western counterparts, they are thought to be spirits kept from a peaceful afterlife.
Tibet
Main article: Ghosts in Tibetan culture
There is widespread belief in ghosts in Tibetan culture. Ghosts are explicitly recognized in the Tibetan Buddhist religion as they were in Indian Buddhism,[91] occupying a distinct but overlapping world to the human one, and feature in many traditional legends. When a human dies, after a period of uncertainty they may enter the ghost world. A hungry ghost (Tibetan: yidag, yi-dvags; Sanskrit: preta, प्रेत) has a tiny throat and huge stomach, and so can never be satisfied. Ghosts may be killed with a ritual dagger or caught in a spirit trap and burnt, thus releasing them to be reborn. Ghosts may also be exorcised, and an annual festival is held throughout Tibet for this purpose. Some say that Dorje Shugden, the ghost of a powerful 17th-century monk, is a deity, but the Dalai Lama asserts that he is an evil spirit, which has caused a split in the Tibetan exile community.Americas
Mexico
Main article: Ghosts in Mexican culture
There is extensive and varied belief in ghosts in Mexican culture. The modern state of Mexico before the Spanish conquest was inhabited by diverse peoples such as the Maya and Aztec, and their beliefs have survived and evolved, combined with the beliefs of the Spanish colonists. The Day of the Dead incorporates pre-Columbian beliefs with Christian elements. Mexican literature and films include many stories of ghosts interacting with the living.United States
Further information: Ghosts of the American Civil War and Shadow people
According to the Gallup Poll News Service, belief in haunted houses, ghosts, communication with the dead, and witches had an especially steep increase over the 1990s.[92] A 2005 Gallup poll found that about 32 percent of Americans believe in ghosts.[93]Depiction in the arts
Ghosts are prominent in the popular cultures of various nations. The ghost story is ubiquitous across all cultures from oral folktales to works of literature.Renaissance to Romanticism (1500 to 1840)
Ghosts figured prominently in traditional British ballads of the 16th and 17th centuries, particularly the “Border Ballads” of the turbulent border country between England and Scotland. Ballads of this type include The Unquiet Grave, The Wife of Usher's Well, and Sweet William's Ghost, which feature the recurring theme of returning dead lovers or children. In the ballad King Henry, a particularly ravenous ghost devours the king’s horse and hounds before forcing the king into bed. The king then awakens to find the ghost transformed into a beautiful woman.[95]...at the historical point at which ghosts themselves become increasingly implausible, at least to an educated elite, to believe in them at all it seems to be necessary to assert their immateriality, their invisibility. ... The drapery of ghosts must now, indeed, be as spiritual as the ghosts themselves. This is a striking departure both from the ghosts of the Renaissance stage and from the Greek and Roman theatrical ghosts upon which that stage drew. The most prominent feature of Renaissance ghosts is precisely their gross materiality. They appear to us conspicuously clothed.
One of the key early appearances by ghosts in a gothic tale was The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole in 1764.[96]
Washington Irving's short story The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (1820), based on an earlier German folktale, features a Headless Horseman. It has been adapted for film and television many times, such as Sleepy Hollow, a successful 1999 feature film.[97]
Victorian/Edwardian (1840 to 1920)
Famous literary apparitions from this period are the ghosts of A Christmas Carol, in which Ebenezer Scrooge is helped to see the error of his ways by the ghost of his former colleague Jacob Marley, and the ghosts of Christmas Past, Christmas Present and Christmas Yet to Come.
Oscar Wilde's comedy The Canterville Ghost has been adapted for film and television on several occasions. Henry James's The Turn of the Screw has also appeared in a number of adaptations, notably the film The Innocents and Benjamin Britten's opera The Turn of the Screw.
Oscar Telgmann's opera Leo, the Royal Cadet (1885) includes Judge's Song about a ghost at the Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston, Ontario.[99]
Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things is a 1904 collection of Japanese ghost stories collected by Lafcadio Hearn, and later made into a film.
In the United States, prior to and during the First World War, folklorists Olive Dame Campbell and Cecil Sharp collected ballads from the people of the Appalachian Mountains, which included ghostly themes such as The Wife of Usher's Well, The Suffolk Miracle, The Unquiet Grave, and The Cruel Ship's Carpenter. The theme of these ballads was often the return of a dead lover. These songs were variants of traditional British ballads handed down by generations of mountaineers descended from the people of the Anglo-Scottish border region.[100]
Modern Era (1920 to 1970)
Professional parapsychologists and “ghosts hunters”, such as Harry Price, active in the 1920s and 1930s, and Peter Underwood, active in the 1940s and 1950s, published accounts of their experiences with ostensibly true ghost stories such as Price's The Most Haunted House in England, and Underwood's Ghosts of Borley (both recounting experiences at Borley Rectory).Children’s benevolent ghost stories became popular, such as Casper the Friendly Ghost, created in the 1930s and appearing in comics, animated cartoons, and eventually a 1995 feature film.
Noël Coward's play Blithe Spirit, later made into a film, places a more humorous slant on the phenomenon of haunting of individuals and specific locations.
With the advent of motion pictures and television, screen depictions of ghosts became common, and spanned a variety of genres; the works of Shakespeare, Dickens and Wilde have all been made into cinematic versions. Novel-length tales have been difficult to adapt to cinema, although that of The Haunting of Hill House to The Haunting in 1963 is an exception.[96]
Sentimental depictions during this period were more popular in cinema than horror, and include the 1947 film The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, which was later adapted to television with a successful 1968-70 TV series.[96] Genuine psychological horror films from this period include 1944's The Uninvited, and 1945's Dead of Night.
Main article: List of ghost films
Post-modern (1970-present)
The 1970s saw screen depictions of ghosts diverge into distinct genres of the romantic and horror. A common theme in the romantic genre from this period is the ghost as a benign guide or messenger, often with unfinished business, such as 1989's Field of Dreams, the 1990 film Ghost, and the 1993 comedy Heart and Souls.[101] In the horror genre, 1980's The Fog, and the A Nightmare on Elm Street series of films from the 1980s and 1990s are notable examples of the trend for the merging of ghost stories with scenes of physical violence.[96]Popularised in such films as the 1984 comedy Ghostbusters, ghost hunting became a hobby for many who formed ghost hunting societies to explore reportedly haunted places. The ghost hunting theme has been featured in reality television series, such as Ghost Adventures, Ghost Hunters, Ghost Hunters International, Ghost Lab, Most Haunted and A Haunting. It is also represented in children's television by such programs as The Ghost Hunter and Ghost Trackers. Ghost hunting also gave rise to multiple guidebooks to haunted locations, and ghost hunting "how-to" manuals.
The 1990s saw a return to classic "gothic" ghosts, whose dangers were more psychological than physical. Examples of films from this period include 1999's The Sixth Sense, The Others, and HBO's 2001-2005 series Six Feet Under.
Asian cinema has also produced horror films about ghosts, such as the 1998 Japanese film Ringu (remade in the US as The Ring in 2002), and the Pang brothers' 2002 film The Eye.[102] Indian ghost movies are popular not just in India, but in the Middle East, Africa, South East Asia and other parts of the world. Some Indian ghost movies such as the comedy / horror film Chandramukhi have been commercial successes, dubbed into several languages.[103] Generally the films are based on the experiences of modern people who are unexpectedly exposed to ghosts. They usually draw on traditional Indian literature or folklore, but in some cases are remakes of western films, such as Anjaane, based on Alejandro Amenábar's ghost story The Others.[104]
In fictional television programming, ghosts have been explored in series such as Supernatural, Ghost Whisperer and Medium. In animated fictional television programming, ghosts have served as the central element in series such as Casper, Danny Phantom, and Scooby-Doo. Various other television shows have depicted ghosts as well.
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