Mee Rebus Charm: A True Story

The following is based on true events, as experienced by a personal friend, Alif. All names have been changed to protect identities of persons involved. All images are for illustration purposes only.

"Before my marriage to my ex-wife, Irna, she and her then-husband, Rafi, were running a canteen foodstall in a primary school in the North of Singapore, selling noodles and light snacks.

She once told me how in the beginning, business was not good for them, as another Malay stall selling rice and side dishes were more popular with the students and teachers. However, within one year, Irna and Rafi managed to turned the situation around, as their Mee Rebus and Mee Soto became their topselling dish, popular amongst the students and teachers alike.

After 7 years in the canteen food business, Irna and Rafi's marriage hit the rocks, resulting in their divorce. Nevertheless, Irna persisted with the business, but this time, with me instead. In my time running the foodstall business with her, I had noticed a few peculiar things she did, before opening and upon closing of the stall everyday. However, I did not question her as I thought it might be something routine in the running of a food business.

Personally, I do not consume nor favour Mee Rebus. However, Irna had persuaded me to try her Mee Rebus, which was now so popular in the school that sometimes even parents had told their children to pack them some Mee Rebus after school, for them at home. After some persuasion from her, I did. Upon trying Irna's Mee Rebus, I was hooked! I craved Mee Rebus everyday, and had to have Mee Rebus everyday! (However, I ate Mee Rebus only from our stall, I still did not and would not consume the dish from elsewhere).

Still perturbed by some of the things Irna did, one day I decided to closely watch as she performed her daily routine...

Every morning, before opening our stall, Irna would stand before the door located at the back of the canteen. She would stand at the same spot for an estimated 5 minutes; I observed that as she stood, her lips were moving, as if reading a mantra. It is only after this ritual was done, that she would proceed to open the stall.

Next, she would proceed to sprinkle some water in a clockwise motion from the front of the stall, to the back, to the outside area of the stall, and back inside. An important spot of this sprinkling ritual was the food display, she told me, as this was where the 'penarikan' or attraction sat. This ritual was akin to the ritual of sprinkling holy water, however, the water that Irna used was yellow in colour, and contained leaves. All these were to be done by 430am when there was no one else around, but us as the other stall owners only arrived at 5 in the morning.

In the preparation of the food items to be sold, there were rules that I had to adhere to. For one, when stirring the Mee Rebus gravy, the stirring had to be done in an 'X' formation (I do not know the rationale for this). Secondly, I was not allowed to be nearby during the preparation of the spices.

Once the food were prepared and ready for selling, Irna would retrieve a bundle wrapped in yellow clothe which contained a hundred-dollar note wrapped in plastic, and place it in our cash container.

When the recess bell rang, the students would rush down to queue for food, and all the other stall vendors would comment, "Irna, your business is so good!""

Indeed, those running a business would always be seeking ways to attract customers and means to make their business profitable. However, did Irna have to resort to the above mentioned spiritual ways to target the innocent, primary school kids?

Wallahu alam.

Susuk 101

Before plastic surgery, there was 'susuk', otherwise known as charm needles. Dating from the pre-Islamiczation of this regent, the practice of susuk-wearing has prevailed till now, a time with the advent of modern times and technology.

What is susuk? How does it work? And why do people use it?

Awang Mohd Yahya (Bomoh Artis Malaysia) performing a susuk demonstration

Susuk is more commonly known as metal-based needles made of a gold alloy, inserted into the soft tissues underneath the skin. However, there actually are a varieties of susuk that exist, namely:
● jarum mas (gold needle)
● serbuk mas (gold powder)
● perak (silver)
● kayu nibong (wood)
● raksa (mercury)
● bunga melur (jasmine flower)
● wafaq (kalimah in gold ink)
● berlian (diamond - touted to be the strongest one of all)

Depending on an individual's reason for acquiring the susuk, the susuk can be implanted in various parts of the body, including forehead, cheek, chin, lips, breast/chest, genital area and buttocks.

Susuk found in a radiograph, in a patient's lower jaw/chin area

Some of the reasons that would push an individual to seek this mystical solution are:

● beauty enhancement
● an improved aura
● to attract a specific person or the opposite gender
● increased strength
● protection from physical and spiritual harm

Depending on the type of susuk required, and the practitioner's practice, the susuk can be inserted into the human body in a variety of ways. One way would be to make a small incision on the skin, after which the susuk is physically inplanted. Other ways include the non-physical, spiritual transfer including chanting of undisclosed verses or mantra. A flower bath might be necessary for some, to rid the body of negative aura, prior to the insertion.

The effectiveness of wearing susuk is still debated, with some suggesting that the effects are psychological, alike going to a hair saloon and stepping out with more confidence, even with only a minor trim. Regardless, the susuk is sought after by a spectrum of individuals, from school-going youths, to the elderly.

A struggling singer may seek to have susuk placed in his/her lips. An individual seeking sexual prowess may have his/her placed in the genitalia area; susuk bunga melur can also be implanted in breasts (an alternative to breast implants). And a person seeking to have their beauty enhanced usually has susuk implanted in the facial region. Susuk is also known to be worn by persons owning businesses, as a means to attract more customers.

But this method of attaining beauty, strength and wealth comes with prohibitions, such as:
● no consumption of a certain type of banana
● no consumption of meat from sticks (satay)
● no walking under a clothesline

Going against the prohibitions, whether on purpose or not, will cause the susuk to lose its function, or even drop out from the bodily tissues.

Though this practice is rife in Indonesia, Malaysia and even Singapore, it is not unique to the Malays or people of this region. A quick seacrch on the internet reveals that there are Chinese, Indians and even Caucasians who are susuk-wearers and are believers of its powers.





Reference:
Balasundram, S. , Yee, S. and Shanmuhasuntharam, P. (2013) Susuk: Charm needles in orofacial soft tissues. Open Journal of Stomatology, 3, 155-162. doi: 10.4236/ojst.2013.3202

Pulau Ubin: Joint Expedition

Last Saturday, the 13th of June 2015, saw the coming together of a few local paranomal groups as they took on Pulau Ubin in a joint overnight expedition. Groups in participation are: Destinasi Kebenaran, Sumpahan MJ12, KMS and D'Unknown.

(Pulau Ubin is an island off eastern Singapore, and considered the last kampung in Singapore. The setting here is akin that of 1960s mainland Singapore.)

With a combined group of 36 men and women, we set off on the trail at approximately 9pm.

A stark difference between Pulau Ubin and mainland Singapore was the non-existence of street lights or lamp posts. As seen from the photos on this post, our source of light were torchlights and handphone camera flashes.

In the darkness, the human eye sees very little. But combined with intuition, sometimes you may get a lucky shot, as follows:

We stopped a little while in a open, water catchment area for the DK crew to film the introduction segment of this trip. Save for the voices of the emcees, guest participants and cameraman, the air was still and silent.

After about half an hour here, we moved along, back on trail. Ten minutes into the walk, I noticed that the people immediately in front of me had stopped walking. Those on the very front, however, was seen rushing forward and checking both sides of the intersection that was ahead of us.

Apparently, what had happened was that while walking, the team members in front had spotted a 'penunggu', or a spiritual entity that guards a place. Abang Man, a DK member, had then moved forward and performed the necessary, in seeking the penunggu's permission for the group to proceed on with the trail.

Following which, Arif managed to capture a pocong on camera:

This took place near here:

As we passed this intersection and back into the forest, I noticed that despite the path being wider and hence the trees further from us, the temperature had taken a plunge. There was a chill I felt as I walked down this path.

About 300m away, we came to another intersection and a resting hut. Here, emcee Arif conducts an interview with Pak Wari, an esteemed healer with over 20 years' experience. 

In the photo below, two entities were captured in the background, observing our activities.

By now, we had walked an estimated 2-3km.

What now laid ahead in our route was a Muslim Cemetery, which was one of the hotspots of fierce spiritual activities. For safety, we walked in a formation where females walked in the middle, while males walked in front, behind and to our sides.

Unknownst to me while I took the photo at this location, an entity watches us as we explored this first cemetery for the night.

(Do you see a face with two eyes on the top left hand corner of the photo? Not edited as editing somehow makes the face disappear)

What we discovered, however, was a grave freshly dugged.

Partially visible is a batu nisan, or tombstone, as seen above. It is not known if the corpse has been removed or is still in the grave, however bits of white cloth can be seen peeking out from the soil.

From here, we walked to the second, larger cemetery with visibly more graves. The air was tense, not sure if it was the atmospheric energy, or the energies of nervous, anxious women in the group.

Here, Abang An, from DK, performed a 'tarikan', where he retrieved the below tool from beneath the soil -- much to the amazement and awe of others present. It is believed to be hundreds of years old and used for protection. It is now in the possession of DK.

It was the first time I witnessed such an event, and I know it was not going to be the last.

After covering an approximate 6-7 km in 5 hours, we finally concluded the expedition at 230am, with sore feet, aching muscles and a desperate need for shower, hydration and sleep.

Nevertheless, if indeed there was a need called the need for spiritual exploration, it was not satiated, but instead, grew, that night.

Looking forward to the next one!

Virgin Investigation with Destinasi Kebenaran (Marang)

After the conclusion of the investigation of the suicide in Eastern Singapore, we headed to South of Singapore, to recce a certain trail that has been reported to freak out joggers, regardless of time of day.

The main road, located approximately 30 metres away from this trail, was still lightly buzzing with traffic at 3am. However, as we took our first steps upslope, I became conscious of the sinister, unwelcoming atmosphere. In comparison, the earlier location, though I was fully aware of its hauntedness, did not give me a threatened feeling as did this trail.

About a 100m climb upslope later, we came across a colonial building in the darkness of the surrounding trees.

Said building is standing behind the guys in the above photo, but infortunately not visible in the photo. It is unknown if the building has living occupants.

Moving on from this spot, we climbed another approximate 100m, before we arrived at a spot that according to Abang An, was most rife with spiritual activity.

We stopped for the crew to film, hovering around closely, watching. During the shooting, someone suddenly called out a DK team member, "Boy!". I turned around to where I recalled Boy standing, somewhere a mere 5m behind me and saw Boy's form writhing while standing. Apparently an entity was trying to enter his body, and the member who shouted out for him was now at his side, aiding in the removal of the unwelcomed spirit and discarding it into the forest below us.

Upon completion of the shooting on location, we turned back and went down the trail, back to our starting point. It is here that Abang An told me how on a previous trip here, they had met with a guardian of the location, or a "penunggu", who had denied them entry into the trail. When pressed further, all the trees in the surrounding area, started shaking violently. The only thing was, it was a still, humid night and there was no wind.

According to Abang An, the encounter took place approximately 2 in the morning. This time, however, we did not experience as violent a reaction from the spiritual entities dwelling the area as unfortunately we had arrived a little too late, at almost 4 in the morning.

Perhaps next time, we might get lucky.

*Edit: After publishing this entry, I went through the photos taken at this location and found this:

What do you see? What do you think it is?

Wallahu alam.

Virgin Investigation with Destinasi Kebenaran (Pasir Ris Tower)

My interest in the otherworldly started as soon as I knew how to read. Enid Blyton and Roald Dahl were alright, but I obssessed over Russell Lee. He made my hair stand, and expanded my imagination to near-paranoia, but still, I continued reading.

It's been a long while since I held any of his books, but my affinity for the paranormal has led me to search every avenue, from movies to libraries to Youtube, to maintain my regular dose of the other dimension.

Last Saturday night, I met with an old friend, Arif, who brought me to meet with local paranormal group, Destinasi Kebenaran (referred to as DK henceforth). A little backstory, DK was founded approximately 10 years ago, with the vision to investigate places involved with paranormal mysteries, and to rake the truth, separating man-made fiction from events that truly happened.

We convened with the team slightly before midnight at Pasir Ris Park. After introductions were made and a short briefing by the founder, Abang An, we set off for the Pasir Ris Swamp at 12.03am.

As we approached the entrance to the swamp trail, I had a brief flashback of my last walk here with the Singapore Paranormal Investigators in conjunction with Republic Polytechnic's Halloween Night programme, in 2006. I remembered being thoroughly freaked out, or maybe I was just feeling the energies of everyone else.

The darkness beckoned, and entered the trail we did. The air was still, the only sounds were of our footsteps and the occasional low-voiced chatter among the group. I did not come prepared with a torchlight, but was offered one by a member of DK. Unfortunately, barely minutes into the walk, it stopped working. My vision, from then on, was aided only by the light from others' behind, who were occasionally flashing their lights in the swamps, and at the trees on both sides of the swamp, in the hopes of catching a glimpse of an otherworldly being.

Truth be told, I do not know how much we walked or how much time passed till we came to our first destination, the infamous Pasir Ris Park Look-out Tower. Here, it was just as dark, if not even darker than the route leading to it, as not a single lamp post was in sight. The only light was the moonlight and the quick flashes of light from the team's cameraphones.

There are variations to the story of the tower, first being of a jilted, heartbroken female who took her own life from the top story of the tower, and another, of a murder of a couple. Both versions are available online. But more importantly, are the many accounts of hauntings at this spot.

I was intimidated by the fact that a suicide had possibly taken place at the very place I was standing, it gave me the creeps. I mean, it takes a lot of rage or sadness for someone to inflict violence upon themselves. You don't expect a soul with that much negative energy in life, to be cordial in death. Right?

Fortunately, my ego refused to let me be a wuss surrounded by the team of 13 men. Furthermore, I was not really feeling anything, I was frightened only by imagined possibilities and not what was in actual. So up the tower I went, an estimated 4-storeys in height. As the crew discussed the footage they would take, I snapped away on my phone, hoping to capture something, anything, on screen.

From the standing area in the middle of the top floor of the tower, I walked towards the area to the right of the staircase, and this was where I felt the hair on my legs stand. Strange, because I was dressed in long pants, and if I was feeling cold, I would have goosebumps on an exposed part of my body, which in this case, should be my hands, should it not?

At this point, the team's cameraperson captured a lady entity on screen, right behind the area behind me and Arif. Was the entity the lady who ended her life by leaping off this tower? We had to find out.

(Paragraphs here onwards have been typed 3 times, as the words kept on disappearing after every save. Freaky? Maybe. Annoying? Very.)

We came down from the tower and headed towards an area to the right of the tower which Abang An pointed out to us as feeling rampant with energies, also the same area from which the female entity was captured on our cameraman's screen. It led to yet another path into the swamp area, and we sauntered again into the forested darkness.

After a few hundreds of metres, we came to a resting point, at approximately 1am, which was to be where the presences were summoned. 

A hush fell over the group as Abang Man proceeded to walk a little further from us, and began chanting a mantra, calling on present entities to come forward.

A few minutes later, an entity entered the body of Wan, apparent as he started clawing at the wooden flooring, on his knees. He did not respond as another team member greeted, "Assalamualaikum". This is indication of a non-Muslim entity in possesion of the human body, as a Muslim entity would not fail to respond with "Waalaikumsalam".

Arif stepped in to enquire if the entity knew of the tale of the female who lost her life from the tower, to which it hissed, "Kenapa kau tanya aku? / Why are you asking me?"

Prodding further, Arif asked of the mystical happenings in the vicinity, to which the entity replied "Sundel bolong". The entity in possession of Wan's body claimed to be a sundel bolong, only one of the many present with us at the moment. When asked where were the rest, the entity turned 45 degrees toward its left, indicating that the rest were at the back, on the roof of the resting point.

As for the story of the girl who jumped to her death from the look-out tower, the entity offered, "She had problems, so we influenced her to jump".

Wallahu alam.

(Next post: Marang Trail, Singapore)

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