In this chapter of the Anandpur Chronicles, I will discuss my maa’s scary paranormal experiences. These occurred in the secluded jungles of Anandpur.
Maa savored a hot cup of tea. After receiving many requests to share a story, she finally recounted her ghost experience to me.
Grandpa had just died. Family members and relatives were doing his rituals. Maa was in grief. In the Hindu tradition, the deceased’s son carries a lamp alone. He walks to the cremation ground on the 10th day after the death. It’s said that the light will never be put out, and the carrier will never look back. My uncle was a young kid then. He had to do the ritual.
It was a dark, rainy night. Maa saw her younger brother, alone, heading to the cremation ground, holding a lamp. No older adult accompanied him. Amid the heavy rain, Maa jumped in to help her brother, keeping an eye on the situation. With the help of an umbrella, the brother-sister duo went past the colony. Then, the dreaded jungle started. During the day, people feared crossing the jungle, said to be haunted. Maa had heard many stories, and all the memories returned to life.
It was raining heavily, and sometimes, lightning struck the jungle’s trees. Other than that, the lamp’s light was the only source that let us move forward. Maa was terrified to the core, and so was my uncle. Midway through the jungle, Maa saw a figure standing behind the trees, watching intently. While lightning struck the tree, she saw that figure. It was unclear whether it was a ghost or a man. Maa closed her eyes and took long steps to move away from the place as soon as possible.
Maa saw a prominent white figure standing several feet above the ground when the jungle was about to end. Maa and my uncle became petrified. It was clear at that point that neither would return home alive! But the task of handing the lamp was not done. So, she reluctantly marched on to see what it was really. Upon reaching the clearing of the jungle, the crematorium started. It was early morning. Maa figured out the white figure was just a pile of old clothes Grandpa had used. They were kept there to be burnt later. A relative waited for them at the crematorium to perform the ritual.
What Maa saw in the jungle is an illusion, and a rational explanation is given. Yet, the white figure was clearly a bust. Maa would never forget walking through a dark jungle at night. She protected the lamp’s light and her younger brother. It was horrifying.
The Witty Stride 