Ghost Stories & Paranormal Encounters

India is one of the many countries which has a majority of believers. More than half of the Indian mythology as well as the epics tell of the existence of ghosts. However it is also said that ghosts rarely appear in their own form and such spirits are usually tied to some other form of life. The spirits are classified into four groups namely – unhappy or vengeful spirits, spirits of the priests who couldn’t finish what they came for, spirits whose good and bad deeds were level and those who are happy and content. The last of these will not be considered since they only come back in the form of some animal or human. We are going to deal with the other three.

Unhappy or Vengeful Spirits

Banyan Tree

These are the destructive spirits. Ones who did not get or obtain what they wanted and are determined not to let others have it either.

These spirits are traditionally said to be tied to a Banyan tree-one of the sacred trees of the Indians.It is believed that the Banyan tree forms some sort of barrier for such souls and does not allow them to wreak havoc. This is one of the underlying reasons for Banyan tree worship in India. It is said that the worship strengthens the barrier and to cut a Banyan tree is synonymous to opening Pandora’s box.

Spirits of Priests with Unfinished Business

These are not so dangerous as they had led a holy life and died suddenly. These spirits are usually tied to the Wood apple trees. However the cycle of day and night acts as their barrier. During the day these priests cannot descend on to the Earth for any reason but as night falls they are free to roam around as they wish and under the condition that they return to their tree at dawn. They can however start causing destruction if their particular tree is felled as they are rendered homeless. Which is a reason for never cutting a wood apple tree but uprooting it and replanting it elsewhere.

Spirits Whose Good and Bad Deeds are Level

These are usually the spirits of the common people who don’t exactly mean any harm to anybody. As a price for their bad deeds they have to face the torture of retaining the memories of their past life and as for their good deeds they get to see their loved ones. There are no barriers of any kind and such spirits are usually tied to a crow – a bird who is fed before the members of the house begin to eat.

These are not harmful and can never become so.

Happy and Content Spirits

These spirits are those who were happy with their life and died with no regrets. They forget their past life and start afresh. There is no danger of any sort from them as they come in forms of humans or other animals.

This is the Indian way of saying that all sorts of ghosts are tied with a certain form of life. A Banyan tree, a Wood apple tree, a Crow or a Human being or other animals.

Sent in by Sonali Mukherjee, Copyright 2010