Indonesian horror legends and beliefs

July 10, 2021

Indonesian horror legends and beliefs

Indonesia is one of the several countries of the world that has spooky and mysterious beliefs. It is filled with unnatural and dark ideas, that often tell us about its shady past. Their ghost stories are unpaired, whether real or unreal, we can't help but feel a little freaked out when watching an Indonesian horror movie, like Impetigore, Dachira, Satan's Slave etc. Some of the well known Indonesian entities are given below-----

1. Tuyul

The tuyul is a spirit of a child or is said to be an undead newborn in South Asian tradition. We find the reference of tuyul in the mythology of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines etc. It is summoned as a helper of shamans, with the help of black magic. They look like bald, half-naked toddlers, goblin-like skin, pointed ears and cloudy eyes. It is said that if any family member of a bride owns a tuyul, it will stop by the newlywed couple before dawn and will suck the bride's toe until the bride wakens.

2.Suster Ngesot

Suster meaning nurse, and Ngesot meaning sliding, refer to the ghost of the sliding nurse. This is said to be the ghost of a nurse who was brutally assaulted and slaughtered in the Jakarta hospital. It drags her body through the walls of hospitals at night. Many people have revealed that they have heard echoing noises and hyming sounds from the walls, and a lady walking across the walls, all you can hear is the sound of her legs as she approaches you.....

3.Genderuwo

Genderuwo is described as a robust humanoid, known for its sexual craving for beautiful women. They have reddish-black skin and big eyes. It can talk to humans and exploit them to an extent. They acquire sexual desires and hypnotic skills to seduce women and expand their population. They can take shape of their husband and fooled them into having intercourse with the demon.

4. Pocong

A pocong is an Indonesian ghost that is said to be the soul of a dead person caught up in its shroud, which is a lengthy cloth used in burials. The soul of a dead person will stay on the Earth for 40 days. If it is not released, the body is said to jump out of the grave to warn people that the soul needs to be released. After it is released, it will leave the earth forever.

5. Kuntilanak

It is the most feared in Java. They are created when a woman dies while pregnant. These ghosts are reported to be gigantic, pale-skinned women, dressed in white clothes and have long hair. They lead out a child-like cry when she is near, but when she is far away, you can hear her howls. She takes small, innocent children to her vicinity, Thinking them to be her. But then what happens? No one knows. Recently people have documented white women forcibly taking the poor children, found in the streets. No one has found those innocent kids till now.