Pocong
(read as: POE-TCHONK)
(read as: POE-TCHONK)
This is a kind of ghost, umm... let just say some kind of Zombie. Pocong is a traditional name, this is the condition of a moslem when they are buried after their deaths. We don't put corpses in coffins, we wrap them with white cloth called 'kaffan'. It consists of 5 layers for man corpses, and 7 layers for women. We bathe the corpse, wrap it, and bury it (yes, without coffins).
The ghost pocong appears in two kind of condition. Some people say that it will appear if you forget to untie the wrapping. There are 5 place we tie a corpse (if I'm not mistaken); feet, knees, waist, neck, and head. You have to untie all, or the soul will suffer sum kind of asphyxiation (is that the correct spelling???!)
Second condition is when something bad is about to happen, like sum kind of premonition, pocong will appear as a warning. Such as fire, flood, or disease.
Out of those two, some people just say pocong appears for revenge, or when their grave is disturbed, or if it's a she and she is pregnant.
When posong appears, you'll smell a very very bad and nasty corpse's odour. Sum people describe it as a normal fresh corpse (just like human, but it's wrapped and it's dead!). Some other say that it's a buried corpse, with burned skin, blood and stuffs, but still with the complete kaffan wrapping.
But some other say it appears as a wrapped rotten body, completed with maggots, warts, dead body liquid, and etc. When it appears as fresh corpse, the wrap is clean. But if it appears as rotten or burned corpse, the wrapping is dirty with liquids, soil, and sumtimes blood.
Most time pocong will appear is Thursday night because Friday is sacred in Indonesian traditional beliefs. So Tuesday night is a very mythical time as it is the transition (transitions of days are also mythical) from Thursday night to the dawn of Friday. But Friday night considered to be quite safer..
I've never seen one by my self, THANK GOD!!!
But I took a picture with a model when there's a movie about this ghost played in the cinema in my town. What do you think then???
