Blood, black magic, undead babies. This is the story of Malaysia’s Polong and Pelesit

Malaysians are definitely no stranger to the spooky and mystical. We’ve been knee-deep in a culture of black magic, curses, and bomohs long before we even learned to speak. These days however, mysticism is more conversational banter to us than actual cultural heritage.

These days, folk tales and legends aren’t as relevant as they were in days past. Though most would have heard of the popular ones, very few would have heard of the ghostly duo: the Polong and the Pelesit. Even ghosts need friends, and these hantu besties are the closest of the bunch.

The Polong and Pelesit are created spirits used by their creators/owners as weapons of torture, usually towards people they despise. Generally, a Pelesit most commonly appears as a grasshopper or cricket, while a Polong is thought to be formless. This may have led to modern depictions describing it as a small female figure made of blood, but older depictions contrast those claims significantly.

“The Polong, whose shape is described as resembling nothing in the animal world, but whose head is formed very much like the handle of a kris; the eyes being situated at either end of the cross-guard, and the upper part of the blade representing the neck, from the extremity of which branch out two spinous leg-like processes, running nearly parallel with is spiral filiform body, widening out at the insertion, and gradually approximating at the extremities,” – excerpt from ‘Malay Spiritualism‘, Walter Skeat, 1955

 

The Polong and Pelesit are spirits made from dead children and murdered men

Understandably so, confirming the appearance of invisible entities is undoubtedly challenging, perhaps even impossible. To summon the Polong and Pelesit however, specific conditions are already set in stone. Summoning ghosts is simple, really. If you have the guts for it.

Lets start with the Polong first. Answer this question: ever killed a man? Fortunately, you don’t have to. You’ll just have to somehow get your hands on a murdered man’s blood. Somehow. Keep the blood in a flask, especially one with an opening which can fit your ring finger. You’ll see why in a minute.

Over the course of a week or two, incantations should be chanted to the blood daily. It’ll seem like you’re talking to yourself, but have faith. A Polong will appear very, very soon. You’ll know when a chirping sound resonates from the flask. Recall needing the flask’s opening to fit your ring finger? That’s cuz you gotta feed the little critter. Specifically with blood from your ring finger. Like a new pet, you gotta tame it for it to listen to you. If you neglect to feed it your blood, well, the Polong will go crazy and break its containment, sucking the blood outta you till you’re the murdered man/woman.

Great, now you have a Polong. Let’s give it it’s rightful partner, the Pelesit. First, dig out the corpse of a dead child. Yes, a dead child. Keep ahold of the child’s corpse until the night of a full moon. When a full moon arises, take the corpse to a hilltop with an ant-hill, and face it while turning your back to the full moon. If you’ve been reading up on your necro-bomoh-con, chanting out the required incantations will bring the corpse back to life.

Not for long tho. Naturally, the kid will cry and dangle its tongue out. Unnaturally, you’ll have to bite its tongue off. Nice, now you got a fresh tongue accompanying your own tongue. Keep the tongue and run-off to a location where 3 roads meet. Bury the tongue there and trust, a Pelesit will be in your hands in no time.

If you don’t feel like grave robbing, you can search for a wild Pelesit as well. Though telling the difference between a real grasshopper and a Pelesit will be quite the bother.

 

Both men and women can own these spirits, but women get a special bonus

Luckily for you, both men and women can own them. Weirdly wholesome fact: Polongs called their male owners ‘father’, and their female owners ‘mother’.

Owning these spirits to deliver personal revenges is the usual reason. If not, renting them out to make money from other’s revenge is choice #2. Now, if you’re a woman, owning the Polong also grants a unique feature: exceptional beauty.

“It is death by the Malayan code to keep one, but it is nevertheless asserted that several females are in the habit of doing so, as the possession of a Polong imparts exquisite beauty to its owner, even though she be naturally ugly.” – excerpt from ‘Malay Spiritualism‘, Walter Skeat, 1955

While considered the Polong’s pet in some cases, the Pelesit and Polong are a duo of sorts who help each other act out their attack. To put it as an analogy, if the Pelesit is a guiding system, then the Polong is the missile which reaches the target.

Alright, you’ve got a demonic grasshopper and a tiny blood lady. How do you use ’em?

Step 1: Commission the Polong to who you would love to torment thoroughly. The Polong will send the Pelesit along to find this specific person. Once the Pelesit has tracked down the target, it’ll settle itself inside the victim. Usually by entering their mouths when they are asleep. Tho the victim wouldn’t see it happen, they would feel it.

When the Pelesit is nice and cozy, it’ll begin chirping. This chirp would sound like that of a bird, which acts as a signal to the Polong to possess the unfortunate target.

Step 2: Now that the beacon (Pelesit) is set, release the Polong. Some time later, it’ll pinpoint the Pelesit’s chirping and possess the victim. Signs of a successful possession comes in stages. At first, the possessed will exhibit random bruise marks. Next, and strangely, they will ramble about cats. Sounds normal to me. But, if the possession is allowed to pass this stage, chronic insanity will set in.

 

Exorcism is possible, but getting rid of the Polong isn’t easy

Only an exorcism by a bomoh may undo the possession, so how does the exorcism work? By kindly asking the spirits who their owner is, then plainly forcing the owner to recall the spirits. BUT, that would be a little too simple wouldn’t it?

Turns out, the Polong really isn’t one to snitch. When asked for its owner’s name, the spirit will lash out at others in resistance as well as self-inflicting wounds on the possessed victim. If nothing physical works, the spirit can frame the wrong person as its owner. In some cases, a Polong would resist answering, eventually leading the possessed to die from insanity. The Polong doesn’t just have friends, it has a mother/father as well. *Dominic Toretto appears*

Comparable to the Polong not answering, a failed exorcism will also lead to death via insanity. If you somehow get ownership of a Polong, getting rid it is not a simple matter; you will have to pass the Polong down to another, never able to discard it. But you may rid of yourself of a Pelesit by containing it in a bottle and burying it. Before it enters you of course, for us regular joes.

 

There is always a price to pay, especially with the supernatural

Spooky tales are more often than not, moral lessons to life around us. The Polong and Pelesit might be a convenient solution to resolve hate and anger, but the stain of your actions will remain forever.

While the Polong and Pelesit are scary, they are by no means truly malicious. It is the ill wishes of people which cause these spirits to have evil purpose. For some of us, wicked tales might just seem like stories to scare kids, but like most things, it is never just what it seems. If we just look a little closer into death and misfortune, we might just learn a thing or two.