Thursday, May 7, 2009

Afraid of Pocong ???

A pocong is a Malaysian/ Indonesian ghost that is said to be the soul of a dead person trapped in their suit. The pocong suit (shroud) is used by Muslims to cover the body of the dead person. They cover the dead body with white fabric called mori and tie the clothing over the head, under the feet, and on the neck. According to the native beliefs, the soul of a dead person will stay on the earth for 40 days after the death. When the ties aren't released after 40 days, the body is said to jump out from the grave to warn people that the soul need the bonds to be released. After the ties are released, the soul will leave the earth and never show up anymore. Because of the tie under the feet, the ghost can't walk. This causes the pocong to hop.

Pocong in Modern Culture

Pocongs often appear in religion-based movies or TV serials. In the early 2000s, TV stations in Indonesia purported to capture ghost appearances with their cameras and put the records on a specific show of their own. In these shows, the pocong appearances could be seen very often, along with the kuntilanak. There was also a movie with the title "Pocong", which was banned due to the scary scenes. Not long after it was banned, the director created a sequel, "Pocong 2". In 2007, a third movie, "Pocong 3", was introduced in theaters in Indonesia.

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