“But I do believe in the paranormal, that there are things our brains just can’t understand.” — —-Art Bell

Ghosts, ghouls and the paranormal have been part of the village life in India through history and in our fables. There have been numerous stories written about ghosts and demons in mythology and children’s books too. I used to be fascinated by a series of stories about Vikram and Betaal (vampire) stories that were written nearly 2500 years ago by Mahakavi Somdev Bhatt about the stories told to the great wise King Vikramaditya by the witty spirit Betaal and every story ending with a question posed by Betaal to the king. These stories from the fables were a part of many kids growing and learning about our heritage, culture and the wise teachings of the great minds of our country.

I grew up in the city and our exposure to the paranormal and the occult was restricted to books and television. But when we went to my mum’s home town of Mangalore, nights spent in large dark rooms under mosquito nets and howling winds outside making the branches on the large trees creak made it interesting. Used to be scary but fun. The real scare was when we visited our paternal uncle in a remote village steeped in beliefs and superstitions. Late evening after dinner, everyone will gather around in the verandah sometimes round a campfire and tell ghost stories which they would really believe in and us city kids were terrified. In the remote villages, witches and ghouls are worshipped by some and there are temples built for them where animal sacrifices are common, making it more macabre.

Scotland – my adopted home is also a land of mystery, immense beauty and with a lot of history. A country of so many castles and haunted locations. This country has all the ingredients to create rumours of the ghostly kind to make up stories that are handed down through generations. The dark skies, darker history of blood and gore, ancient towns and folklore all contribute to this supernatural experience. This country is supposed to be the most haunted countries in the world with every town having its own ghost story to tell.

History has also contributed to this with the bloody battles, feuds in the families resulting in killings, curses and horrible ends. Superstition and witchcraft was rampant during the medieval period. Life was not all good even in rich families. Illness and child mortality was very high. This beautiful country has that ugly underbelly of dark history.

Nowadays if you check your TV listings, there are so many programmes on ghost hunting and night time vigils. With celebrities involved, it has become very high profile. Some of the programmes are really very engaging and it would be interesting to be involved in the investigations. But some of them are just too much with histrionics and not really achieving anything.

Last Halloween, we went on a ghost walk in our town. We walked through the lanes of Brechin, hearing about the history and the stories of the people who lived here. About the women who were accused of being witches and were imprisoned and tortured. We ended the tour in the 13th century Brechin cathedral and the Round Tower which was built in 1000 A.D.

I have experienced some weird sensations just once before – on our trip to Leith Hall – a country house built in the 17th century. There are many so called hauntings and sightings in this beautiful location. We just smelt very strong cigar smoke in the study when there was no one around but just us. Also nobody would have been smoking indoors due to regulations. It was a strange experience which when we mentioned it to someone at reception after our tour, we were told that the study was where the man of the house smoked his cigar after dinner.

I have also caught some activity twice on camera though did not realise it. The first time was when we went for a walk in the woodlands of the Burn House near Edzell. The walk follows the river North Esk – a narrow path with the river on the left and large trees of scots pine, beech, oak and rowan providing the canopy above. The river heads to north end of the walk and the pools of solitude with waterfalls, deep gorges and exquisite scenery. I took a slow motion video on my phone of one of the waterfalls and wee bridges and caught an orb floating across the bridge. Never saw it with my eyes or caught it in any of the photographs I took of the place. Couldn’t really post that video but this is the spot.

The next time was when we went for a woodland walk behind the House of Dun, Angus. Scotland… an old family home of Erskine family built in the 18th century. The estate dates back to the 14th century and has a church yard with the ruins of the old Church of Dun with medieval origins. The graves date back centuries. The church is not open to visitors due to its unstable state. I took this video on not a bright day (overcast but not dark). Part of the video suddenly turns dark and brightens up again. Could be nothing.. just eerie!! Very peaceful setting though, calm and very quiet. Again this is the churchyard but not posting the video. WordPress not accepting the mp4 format.

Being an Hindu, I believe in the afterlife, and that  the stream of consciousness continues after the death of the physical body whether it is on our plain or some other higher one. As long any belief does not impede or hinder our way of daily life, it just brings some peace to some and interest to others.