5 kinda creepy techniques M’sians use to kena lottery… and the beliefs behind them.

The chances of one winning the jackpot are about 1 in 10,000, which does sound like pretty low odds; but it’s considerably higher than the chances of being struck by lightning, which are 1 in 500,000. But honestly, none of those can compare to the chances of you getting the anime girlfriend of your dreams…

But despite these odds, that still hasn’t stopped many (non-muslim) Malaysians from queuing up outside their neighborhood lottery retailers on special draw days, because what could be better than potentially becoming a millionaire overnight, right? It’s really no surprise that people would try to bend these odds in their favor, so we asked around for some of the strangest ways that people have used to try and kena lottery, which brings us to…

1. Asking for help… from a friendly ghost

Most of us tend to stay away from all things haunted, but there are people out there who believe that spirits can provide us with assistance, whether it’s done on their own free will or against it. We spoke to Robert, who was staying in his rented room in Langkawi when he suddenly heard the sounds of children running and laughing late at night. Unlike the rest of us who would have probably started reciting religious mantras or run away screaming, Robert decided to ask the spirits in his room for some help… using a phonebook. (Yes, this was way back when we were still using phonebooks.)

“I was a little bit afraid but I realized that this could also be an opportunity for me. So, I opened up a phonebook and put it on the bed; asking the spirit to give me “numbers” for 4D. Then suddenly, the book’s pages started flipping by themselves before landing on a page with a few numbers on it.” – Robert, to CILISOS.

After this incident, Robert told us that he had a gut feeling about one of the numbers on the page, which prompted him to head to the nearest lottery retailer and place his bets. Lo and behold, while Robert was checking the lottery results that evening, he found out that he had won 500 ringgit! 

Though Robert was able to get the lottery numbers by merely asking the spirits in his room for help, many 4D enthusiasts have opted for less-friendly ways to get the assistance of spirits. Apparently, there are also ways for one to be able to force a spirit to do their bidding, but this is a far riskier option, as it may end up angering the spirits instead. One such way of doing so, would be by completing a ritual involving banana trees.

Banana Trees have always been believed to possess spirits living within them; which according to Thai folklore, is usually a female spirit called Nang Tani. Thus, banana trees have become quite a catalyst for elaborate rituals; with things like needles being stuck into a banana tree in order to force the spirit to give out winning 4D numbers, or even talismans being used on banana trees for the sake of having sex with the banana tree spirits.

2. Car Plate Numbers

If there’s one thing that Chinese people are incredibly superstitious about, it’s numbers. This rings especially true with car plate numbers, (we actually wrote an article about this back in 2016, btw.) which is why one of the most common methods for Malaysians to try to “find number” is to identify auspicious car plate number combinations.

Eh, but how exactly can someone tell if a number plate can be considered “lucky”? Well, according to the mother of one of our writers, Aunty Ping, sometimes it’s all about repetition.

“To me, coincidence plays a big role in buying numbers. Like if I were to see a few cars with the same car number plate or different variations of the same number passing by me, I would most probably buy that number.” – Aunty Ping, to CILISOS.

However, there is a slightly more morbid version that involves looking out for road accidents. Proof? A lorry driver in Malaysia once won 17 million ringgit after betting on the numbers he saw at an accident one day. Some even admit to looking for blood, as superstition suggests that the more violent the accident, the more the luck. In fact, the car plate number of the car involved in the Tanjong Pagar crash was sold out in Singapore Pool’s 4D category, within days of the tragedy’s occurrence; which shows that this belief isn’t as uncommon as we think it is.

3. Strange or Old Objects

Usually, when we talk about strange objects and antiques, we might think of the stuff of horror movies. But what if we told you that there were non-haunted-museum-owning-people out there who were even willing to pay top dollar to get their hands on one of them?

Apparently, lottery enthusiasts have been known to buy different kinds of abnormal items, like twin bananas and antiques, as they are often believed to possess some form of mystical power. For example, according to superstition, twin bananas are believed to cause siamese twins, while antiques are known to be particularly powerful in magic rituals.

These objects which are bought are then brought to a local shaman (aka bomoh) where a ritual is performed in order to “pull out” a set of numbers from the object, which are believed to be winning numbers for the lottery. Lottery prediction rituals, in fact, are quite popular amongst Malaysians, as a quick search on Facebook will most likely reveal special “groups” created for people to advertise their lottery number prediction services.

4. Dreams

Dreams have always been a source of superstition; with beliefs ranging from dreams giving off omens and warning signs, to deceased loved ones communicating through dreams. So, it’s really no surprise that many lottery enthusiasts rely on dreams and the objects seen in them as a way to look for winning numbers. 

Most Chinese families, especially those with older relatives will be familiar with the 4D dictionary which is commonly used to decipher one’s dreams and convert them into numbers. Though it isn’t as widely used anymore, as we now have 4D dream conversion websites that can help to convert your dreams into lottery numbers.

In addition, dreams that occur after significant life events are usually sought-after by these lottery enthusiasts, to the point where they could even be invasive. We spoke to Mark, who told us about people that he calls “dream leeches”, who would go around asking grieving people at funerals about any potential dreams of the deceased. 

Mark also told us about another creepy lottery number-hunting tradition he’d heard of that’s actually a normal practice here; which brings us to…

5. Visiting Cemeteries

As the final resting place for many departed souls, cemeteries are ultimately superstition-central; which makes them hotspots for those looking to try their luck in getting a winning lottery number. In fact, the practice of visiting cemeteries to obtain lottery numbers is so commonly practiced that it’s reached a point where cemeteries in Singapore and Malaysia are often advertised for their 4D-number-winning opportunities!

But what exactly do people do at cemeteries to get numbers anyway? Well, first of all, we heard about stories of cemetery tours, where 4D punters head to cemeteries in “organized tours” to pray for the dead and (hopefully) get some winning lottery numbers by doing so! Usually headed by a Medium or a Taoist priest, these tours often consist of elaborate rituals which are performed in order to summon a spirit to ask for help, in exchange for granting the spirit a “favor”. The “favor” could either be simple tasks like burning a stack of “hell notes”, or in more extreme cases, even seeking revenge on a living person on behalf of the spirit!

But if that wasn’t terrifying enough, we heard of another elaborate ritual that involves visiting a cemetery. Instead of merely asking a spirit for help in exchange for a favor, this ritual involves one selling salt to spirits in exchange for “payment”.  The payments would often consist of things like hell money and random objects (which would turn into real money by daybreak), or even dried leaves with lottery numbers written on them. However, there are still specific rules that need to be followed, such as not looking at the “customers”, and spending the money obtained within a week. With that being said, it really does sound like a “high risk, high reward” scenario.

Quick disclaimer, though: Please do not attempt any of these rituals, because even if you didn’t kena jampi or anything, trespassing into a cemetery at night is still illegal, so read this at your own discretion la, okei?

And all of these methods really work… if you actually win the lottery.

Most of us have probably heard of these strange methods through the very same way we’ve heard about all the other types of superstitions, through word of mouth. And though there have been events where people have actually won the lottery by using these unconventional ways, we don’t really hear about the stories of people who have failed despite attempting the same methods.

Well, it really does seem like people will always look for ways to find winning numbers, and anything could possess meaning if you interpret it well enough. And it’s hard to say whether these methods truly work; but it can be observed that human beings do have a tendency to look for meaning in the smallest of coincidences.

Scientists and Psychologists call it “Patternicity” or “Apophenia”, which is the human tendency to find patterns and connections, even where there are none. This phenomenon could likely be attributed to our own human instincts; where we are biologically hardwired to search for patterns, as a natural result of our evolutionary process as human beings.

So, whether it’s our biology, a mere coincidence, or the powers from the beyond working their magic, one thing is for sure- A lot of you are probably going to buy 6969 this weekend.