Sleep Paralysis & How Different Races in M’sia Explain It

Ever wanted to catch a break from the endless torture of your life by falling asleep, but instead of catching-up on some relaxing Zs, you’re being held down by an unknown figure or disturbed by a malevolent presence in your room?

Why can’t you catch a break? I don’t know, ask your therapist. But the good news is, you don’t have to call a bomoh/priest/Ghostbuster, you’re just experiencing sleep paralysis.

The Scientific Explanation for Sleep Paralysis

Sleep paralysis is usually described as a state of consciousness that happens after falling asleep or right before waking up.

It causes discomfort because not only are you unable to move, but most people suffer from hallucinations that can conjure some pretty disturbing apparitions.

There are several types of hallucinations during a sleepy stiffy (not the stiffy you get when you wake up, you pervert) and depending on which one you have, it can lead to different sensations. Here’s a quick rundown…

• The Intruder hallucinations: Feeling a dangerous presence in the room
• Chest pressure hallucinations: Feeling of suffocation or a sensation that feels similar to having someone sitting on your chest.
• Vestibular-motor hallucinations (or VM for people like you and me who can’t handle big words): Feeling of movement during sleep paralysis e.g. flying or having an out-of-body sensation.

It’s actually common to experience sleep paralysis and so far, there is no significant research that points to underlying health issues (relax, you’re not dying), but there are reasons as to why this could be happening to you.

It could be as simple as sleeping on your back like a vampire or just not sleeping enough at all, but sleep paralysis can also be caused by stress, mental disorders, medicine use and substance abuse.

However, the most interesting thing about sleep paralysis is that it has significant ties to culture.

Sleep paralysis is 1Malaysia

In Malay folklore, sleep paralysis is commonly tied to the Al-Kaboos jinn.

Known as an incubus that descends upon a person in their sleep, people who have been visited by the Al-Kaboos jinn feel as if there is something heavy pressing against them, which leads to a feeling of being squeezed and constricted.

Because of this, the jinn has earned the name of “the strangler” for blocking the sleeper’s airways, causing them to not be able to speak or move.

For Chinese culture, the same can be said for their experience, it’s just that they have a different name for it which is 鬼压身 or guǐ yā shēn.

It literally means “ghost pressing on body”. Kudos for not mincing words!

However, for Indian culture, sleep paralysis is something entirely different since it is actually the gateway to attaining ecstasy.

According to yogi, Paramahansa Yogananda, and this is too good to not include in full,

“Consciously enjoy in a relaxed nonchalant way the state at the border of joyous sleep as long as you can hold it without falling asleep, and you will learn to go into ecstasy at will… Try to remain in this state from five minutes to one hour, then you will know about yoga: conscious communion of your soul with God.”

Said to last minutes, hours, days, years, or for eternity (when one reaches godhood or cosmic consciousness), yoga samadhi has ties to sleep paralysis, but it is not entirely the same thing.

The stark difference is interesting to highlight since it strays away from the medical aspect of sleep paralysis and touches upon the holistic element instead.

But can sleep paralysis bleed into the supernatural? Apparently, it can.

A Malaysian’s experience with the sleepy stiffy

4 out of 10 people in the world have experienced sleep paralysis, so it’s not surprising that there are different renditions of the same occurrence.

Since we’re living in a country where there are jinns lurking in every corner, you could say that our encounters with sleep paralysis have a little more… MSG compared to the Western narrative.

According to a friend who inspired this article, sleep paralysis is not just a scientifically-backed occurrence, but it is also tinged with elements of the supernatural.

Living in a hilly area abundant with trees, which is commonly believed to be the go-to residential area for otherworldly beings, Amir has experienced the taunting presence of ghosts.

On a particularly bad day, a bomoh was called to the house to exorcise his mother, but at the same time, found something evil lurking in Amir’s room.

The bomoh said, “Are you not afraid to sleep in this room? Because there is a Pontianak hanging from your ceiling fan.”

From then on, he realised that the entity that had been paying him a visit in his sleep was not just a figment of his imagination, but it only revealed itself to him when he was unconscious.

The bomoh also drew the entity, which was a woman with a burned face and sharp nose – the same one that plagued his nightmares.

Now, before all the sceptics click off, Amir did not experience this alone.

He had a friend who slept over in that same room and experienced the same thing, except with him, the entity actually knew his name and repeatedly whispered it in his ear, as if taunting him to open his eyes and see it perching on-top of his chest.

Sleep paralysis is different for everyone. Whether it be scientific, cultural or supernatural, that’s entirely up to the individual.

Regardless of your stance, we all need sleep at the end of the day, so you might actually experience this for yourself later.

And on that comforting note, I bid you goodnight and sweet dreams.