Like every other country, Malaysia is also home to many paranormal creatures that are as creepy and scary as the ones you see in western movies.
For some reason, when watching Malaysian horror movies, they don’t seem that scary.
But when you take it out of the film context and imagine a ghost like one of these haunting your kampung, then you’ll probably leave the light on while sleeping tonight.
1. Pontianak
This ghost is believed to be a woman who died during childbirth returning to haunt the living.
The Pontianak appears as a beautiful woman who charms men and later kills them but eating their organs.
This ghost is often seen wandering around areas with shady tress and is attracted to banana tress for some reason.
So, if there’s any banana trees near your house, how about you avoid lepak-ing near it at night?
Here you can watch a few videos of Pontianak sightings in Malaysia and Indonesia.
2. Hantu Pocong
Also known as hantu punjut or hantu bungkus, this ghost resembles a corpse that is wrapped in kafan cloth, which is that traditional Malay burial ritual.
It is said that this ghost appears in protest because the person who did the burial ritual forgot to untie the knot of the corpse’s kafan cloth before burial.
Many people say that when it appears and meets people, it will ask them to untie the knot of their kaftan cloth.
Due to the way it is wrapped, it cannot walk as usual and so it moves by hopping or rolling on the ground. But don’t try to run away from it, it is as fast as a moving car.
Like most ghosts, the hantu pocong is said to only disturb people who are weak spirited. Well, if you’re reading this before dark and starting to get the heebie-jeebies, be careful not to look behind you.
3. Hungry Ghost
Every year in either July, August or September, depending on the Chinese calendar, there’s the hungry ghost month.
It is said that during this month, the gates of hell are opened and all the spirits roam earth freely and hungrily. They rely on their relatives to burn money or offer food for them.
This is why, during those months, we often see food along the roadsides so that the hungry ghosts have food to eat and do not disturb the living.
Here are some real-life ghost month stories that will make your blood run cold.
4. Nu Gui
Nu Gui is the Mandarin term for female ghost. The Chinese believe that the Nu Gui is a spirit of a woman who committed suicide while wearing a red dress symbolizing anger and vengeance.
It is believed that the Nu Gui is a ghost that seeks to exact its revenge on husbands or men that hurt them, through abuse or rape, while they were alive.
The spirit seduces young men and suck their essence of life, sometimes killing them.
This ghost is said to have long hair, pale skin, red eyes and wearing a long white or red dress.
5. Penanggal
Probably one of the scariest and creepiest Malaysian ghosts is the penanggal that has been in existence since early civilization till today. This ghost appears in several southeast Asian legends.
It is said that the Penanggal to be a woman with black magic that can separate her head from her body and the head can fly around with the internal organs hanging from it.
It is believed that the Penanggal like the blood of women that are giving birth and if they drink it, the woman will die because of severe blood loss.
This is why in the olden days when women are giving birth at home, their houses are surrounded with thorny leaves. The Penanggal does not dare to go near the house because it is scared that the intestines will get stuck to the thorns.
6. Toyol
Toyol are supernatural creatures that the Malays believe it. These toyols are kinda like jins that are kept for stealing, meaning that the owner of the toyol gets it to steal money from the neighbours.
It is said that the toyol is kept in a small bottle and the owners feed it their own blood every full moon. If they fail to do so, then the toyol will suck the blood of the family member closets to the owner.
Toyol are believed to be the souls of babies that died at birth.
Here a video that could be a toyol sighting.
7. Mohini
This ghost is believed by the Indian community to be a woman did not find her true love or be sexually satisfied while she was alive.
The Mohini preys on bachelors and usually takes a trip to pound town with unmarried men leaving them exhausted for more than 2 days.
She is said to look beautiful and gorgeous to straight men.
What we understand from this is that Mohini’s just dry and needs some action la.
8. Langsuir
The langsuir is type of a vampire that is a ghost of a woman who passed during childbirth. It is actually just a vampire version of the Pontianak.
They also take the form of a beautiful woman with long black hair but having long nails, hand extending down to their feet and wearing green robes.
It is believed to love the blood of newborn male children but if cannot get then female also can la.
9. Kuman Thong
The Kuman Thong is actually a Thai folk religion household divinity.
The Kuman Thongs is actually worshipped to obey their worshippers’ requests which are mostly for personal gain like protection or wealth.
It is believed that the Kuman Thong is a spirit of a baby and must be worshipped and given sweets and toys in return for completing your request and if you stop worshipping them or abandon them then there will be severe consequences.
Most Kuman Thong spirits come in the forms of hyper-realistic dolls of children that are injected with the spirit.
There have been a lot of creepy cases related to this tradition.
In 2011, a man in Laos murdered his pregnant wife to use the fetus as a Kuman Thong.
10. Orang Minyak
Another horny ghost, the orang minyak is said to be a naked man covered in oil that is black in colour that breaks into homes to rapes women.
It is said that the orang minyak is actually a normal human who practices black magic and in his search for power was cursed by a demon and can only recover after raping 40 women.
Apparently, with the curse, the man will have the power of entering locked doors, sticking on walls like a lizard and vanish when being chased.
