Everyone has definitely had some kind of experience. According to the Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy, experience is the result of exposure to or contact with something or an event in the surrounding world. However, what exactly does mystical experience mean? These days, many people associate it with remarkable and paranormal occurrences.
Personal encounters with the supernatural
As a child, I had a few supernatural encounters. I have no idea how or why they occurred.
Here are some of the responses I got after questioning several people about their mystical experiences:
MOHD YUSUF SHUKRI
Lately, I’ve been getting home late at night due to late-hour shifts. It started about a week ago. I’d leave the office feeling uncomfortable, as if there was a weight on my shoulder. But it goes away once I get home. I’m sure it’s nothing, but I sometimes notice something out of the corner of my eye when I get home.
I did talk about it with several friends, but we didn’t think it would be anything serious. Should I be more concerned and seek help?
JENI JILAN
It happened in 2013, while I was studying in Mukah. At the time, there was a Most Wanted Graduate programme in which three students were selected from each course, and I was one of the representatives for my course.
We had the choice of staying at a hotel on our institution’s grounds or walking from the hostel to the venue. We three chose to stay at the hotel so that we wouldn’t have to walk too far.
I’ve heard some friends say the hotel (which was managed by our institution) was scary, but we don’t really trust them as we’ve never actually been there.
After registration, we were given keys, and headed straight to our three-bed room. Unexpectedly, one of my coursemates said that she wouldn’t stay at the hotel and would walk to the venue from her hostel. So only my other friend and I remained in the room.
Around 6.30pm, my roommate and I heard a single knock on the door. I got up and opened the door, but there was no one there. I looked outside, left and right along the corridor, but saw no one. I went to the next room, knocked on their door, and asked whether they had knocked on ours. They said no.
While having a shower at night, I had an uneasy feeling that someone was watching me. I wanted to sleep, yet I couldn’t help but feel uneasy. As I try to open my eyes, I felt something barely pressing against my body, and I was unable to move or even speak. I prayed over and over, and thankfully, after a while, I was able to open my eyes again. I went back to sleep after calming myself down.
My roommate told me when I woke up in the morning that she had also felt something pressing against her body, and that she could feel something like hair caressing her from her face to her feet.
During the programme, we talked with the other coursemate (the one who wasn’t staying with us at the hotel). Only then she told us why she didn’t want to stay in the room.
She said that as she entered the room, she saw three women: one at the bed area, another on the ceiling, and another in the bathroom. After concluding our first day’s programme, my friend and I packed our things, left the room, and returned to our hostel.
ERYNA JAMES
I don’t remember the year, but it happened on Gawai Day. At the time, my sister and I flew from Kuching to Sibu to celebrate the festival at a friend’s house in Sekuau.
This scary experience happened when we were on our way to Sibu Airport. My sister and I shared a ride with my other friend, who came with her younger brother. It was already nighttime, and it was pouring heavily.
My friend’s younger brother was our driver. However, due to the heavy downpour that limited his visibility, as well as the fact that he had recently gotten his licence and was unfamiliar with the area, we decided to switch drivers — I am now the driver.
The journey was smooth until, after about 10 minutes, I realised that our vehicle was unusually heavy. I thought that because the road was quite hilly, our car would be heavy and slow.
A four-wheel drive (4WD) that was behind us kept beaming at us the entire time we were travelling. I assumed he wanted to overtake us, so I slowed down to make it easier for him to do so. However, he was still behind and gave a high beam.
Because there were no street lights and it was raining heavily, I couldn’t make any assumptions. I continued driving as usual, but every time I pressed the accelerator, our car remained heavy and wouldn’t accelerate.
At the same time, every vehicle that passed us or overtook us (through the 4WD) turned on their high beams. There wasn’t a single one that fails to give a high beam! This made me wonder, and I was beginning to feel uneasy at this point.
I hadn’t stopped reciting the surahs, especially Al-Fatihah and 3-Qul. My heart was also racing, and sweat began to wet my face, even though the car was already cold due to the air conditioner and the rain.
I recall the 4WD overtaking us just after we reached the main road with street lights. After that, no more vehicles flashed us with high beams.
We arrived at the airport about 15 minutes later. As soon as I got out of the car, I turned to look at the car’s roof. However, I saw nothing.
I still wonder what happened to this day. Is it a spirit? However, I am grateful that “the thing” did not fly or reveal itself to us.
JULIE NGADAN
I’m still aware of the mysterious incident that took place on Friday afternoon in one of my former residences in Damai, Santubong.
At the time, I was carrying my own bag as well as the bag of my neighbour, who was still in school as he had extra classes.
The walk from the main gate to my house took three minutes because I had to go through a wide field before reaching the house. Next to the field was an empty, abandoned house.
This was where it all started! As I walked closer to the abandoned house, I saw a woman in a white dress with long black hair walking on the weeds!
I was astounded by the woman’s extraordinary skills and decided to ask for tips. I was already thinking about showing off this trick to my buddies when we play later in the evening.
Just as I was ready to open my mouth, my neighbour’s dog, which happened to be with me at the time, kept barking at the woman. I motioned for him to stay quiet so I could speak with the woman. However, Bobby (the dog) wouldn’t stop barking; it became increasingly loud.
At that point, “my brain cells started to connect!” How can a regular person stand on weeds when they are weak and easily broken with a finger?
As the woman was about to turn her body towards me, I sped off as fast as I could! At this point, I was convinced that I could outrun my school’s sprinter. At the same time, Bobby’s bark has evolved into a long howl.
Once inside my house, I quickly peered through the window to see whether the “woman” had followed me. Fortunately, “she” didn’t.
I didn’t tell anyone about this experience for years, until I was in high school. When I told my late father, he said that if we are afraid, the “thing” likes us more; therefore, be brave and always pray so that God will always protect us.
MIKE NGADAN
This happened when I was eight years old. At the time, we lived in Sungai Lumut, Jalan Sultan Tengah.
One night, my mother asked me and my older sister to help her find my little sister’s pacifier in the car, which was parked at a workshop in front of our house.
We found the pacifier after about 15 minutes of searching and immediately turned off the car’s engine. Before locking the car, my sister suggested that we both do a catwalk in our mother’s heels that were in the car.
My sister and I were having fun showing off our catwalk skills when a female voice called out my sister’s name — exactly her name!
We thought our neighbour had called out my sister’s name, but when we looked at her house, it was already dark, meaning that she was already asleep. My sister and I chose to ignore it and carry on with the catwalk.
A little while later, my sister pulled me over, stopped me, and asked, “Didn’t you hear that? A woman called me again?” I nodded, and we searched the main road for the source of the sound, but no one could be found.
Suddenly, an eerie laugh resounded, akin to Suzzanna’s Sundel Bolong movies. The woman laughed as she called my sister’s name! We ran as fast as we could; our mother’s heels snapped and scattered somewhere.
We told our mother what had happened as soon as we got home. But our mother said it could have been the wind whistling. Then my sister and I went into our room and wrapped ourselves in blankets from head to toe.
After that terrifying incident, every time my sister needed to use the loo at night, she would insist on having me accompany her. My sister’s friends said that they often saw “a woman in white” around the bus stop near our house.
• Readers who have had any supernatural encounters can share their stories with me at juliengadan@icloud.com.
