Paranormal Phenomena - True Stories:
Ghost Stories:
My Experience with Ghosts:
Other Devotees Experience with Ghosts:
Near Death Experiences:

More About Death:
What to do at the time of other's death:

Your Friendly Concerned Spirit:
Bhoot Bangla:
This page is still under construction:



Ghost Stories:

 Once when Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura was opening a new centre  in a house that had been given for the use of the Gaudiya Mission, a ghostly incident occurred.

 He was staying in a room on the second floor.  One brahmacari was in attendance, reading Srimad Bhagavatam while he worked at his desk. That brahmacari suddenly saw a bone hand float in through the window.  He cried out and fainted.  When Srila Bhaktisiddhanta inquired the cause for his alarm, the brahmacari told what he'd seen, but Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati didn't seem to take it as very important.  He told the brahmacari to chant Hare Krishna, and to not cry unintelligibly.

 Thereafter the hand again appeared and floated into the room as if  to grasp the neck of Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati.  This time the brahmacari chanted Hare Krishna and then fainted.  Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati  revived the brahmacari, saying, "Don't faint.  Chant and read Srimad Bhagavatam."  When the hand came again, the brahmacari did just that.  Srila Bhaktisiddhanta saw the hand and chanted, "Haribol!", and the hand disappeared.  He then said to the brahmacari, "No need to worry, that ghost is now delivered."

 In Vrndavana (India), one baba was visiting from Bengal.  He was staying at one guest house (the owner of this guest house told this story).  So that baba, not knowing Vrndavana too well, inquired directions from the guest house owner how to visit one temple and return.  The proprietor gave him directions, but with the warning to stay off the side streets in a certain district he'd have to pass through.

 So that baba went on his tour, and when returning, he passed by those small, narrow side roads.  From down one he heard the sweet sound of kirtan. He thought, "There is a festival of Harer Nama!  It sounds ecstatic.  Let me see this.  After all, this is Krishna's own holy dhama - what can be the harm in passing this way?"

 So he went down that street, and soon came upon a group of men and women chanting the Hare Krishna mantra to khol (mridanga drum) and karatalas (hand cymbals).  They all looked like pukka Vaishnavas.  The baba happily joined in the kirtana.  After some time they offered him a place to sit for honouring prasad, but he told that he had to return.  So they rolled prasad into a banana leave and gave him.

 He arrived at the guest house in ecstasy.  "It was wonderful!"  he began telling that proprietor.  "I went down your forbidden narrow street on my way back here, and saw the most wonderful harer nama kirtan festival. And just see - they've given nice prasad!"  He unrolled the leave - there was only hunks of raw meat inside.

If you have any TRUE Ghost experiences please send them to us here 









My Personal Experiences with Ghosts:

As a small boy in my room I was lying in bed when a group of about 10 or 12 grotesque faces appeared in the upper part of the room. They were ugly and mocking me, teasing me and saying bad things to me. They were telling me that they were going to kill me - then the curtains of the room burst open inwards and I screamed out and my parents came in.
The next week I came down with scarlet fever and was ill for quite some time.
Sometimes as a small boy I used to experience like someone was trying to smother me. I would be half a sleep, and still conscious of things going on around me. Then I would find it hard to breathe, feel like something or someone was sitting on my chest, and would become paralysed and lay there helpless, whilst internally fighting to break free. It was always such a traumatic sensation that sometimes I didn't want to go back to sleep.
    I had friends who had made friends with the person(s) who did this to them, some in their youth trading sexual experiences for allowing these "hags" to enter their body. Some of my friends changed rapidly after this, engaging in all sorts of intoxication, etc.
    I had experienced these attacks throughout my life. Sometimes the person would present a dream where they were a beautiful woman and they would create a sexual scene. then as I would become aroused at the prospect of some sexual encounter Wham I would lose my semen, and awake all weak and wasted.
    As I began chanting the Hare Krishna mantra seriously these attacks changed. Prospects of sex were still made enticing, but instead of succumbing to the wishes of the person, the Holy names would burst from my mouth.
    Apparently this was common phenomena in medieval times, both priest and alchemist had methods for dealing with this, caused by a break, crack or hole in the aura, often caused by trauma, disease, or later in life by the use of intoxication. In their scientific approach to healing the alchemists would provide potions, or the priests would recite prayers and give guidance to protect the person by developing a better life-style. in this day and age with the overwhelming influence of atheistic science presented like a sword in a silken cloth of Christianity, for many these sciences have been lost, and priest instead of giving shelter and blessings have become degraded by other spirits (Johnny Walkers et al).
One evening I had the most interesting experience while I was coming home from one friend's house (Clive Pearce) whose house was by the Golf course at Pitshanger lane, near the Millet Arms and olde church cemetery 1978.
    As a small boy and youth we used to play down by the river Brent, and collect golf balls that had been lost by the golfers who played the course there. I had only ever been through there in the day time, and so didn't take a great deal of concern about the old church and graveyard that was there.
    On this evening, since becoming a devotee, and becoming more susceptible to subtleties of life the environment and atmosphere seemed much more prominent.
    Getting goose bumps just thinking about it brings me to the events of that evening. I'd been round to Clive's to take some prasadam and see how he was....etc. And had left there at about 10:30pm.
    Hand in bead bag I was walking down the only possible side of the lonely road past the Millet Arms and on past the church. Yes, you guessed it, it was a Full moon night too.
    Anyway, so I didn't really notice where I was until I felt this chill which compelled me to look to my left, which was now obvious to my sight directly, not twenty five feet from the cemetery. As if that wasn't freaky enough, suddenly on this still and bright, windless night the bushes that lined the perimeter of the cemetery bordering the road began to smash this way and that as if many people were moving through them.
    My japa became loud chants of Namaste Narasimhaya prahladhaladadayine...etc. But it just kept on going. Inside I could hear a voice saying RUN, but I kept my cool and apart from glancing continuously at the bushes continued walking as before.

After about 250 meters there's a hump back bridge that crosses the river, I stood for a second or two on top of the bridge looking back to the path where I'd come, the chapel shimmering in the moonlight in the distance, headstones visible. But there was now wind, no breeze, and not a tree moved. For the next two or so miles home still there was no breeze and the full moon lit the way and I quickly walked with focus, to get home.

At Xmas time in 1977 I went to visit my parents in London, as a devotee, and stayed in their home overnight.
I used to place at my head before taking rest a double picture folder of Nrisimhadev killing Hiranyakashipu and a picture of Ganesh the Lord's attendant who removes obstacles to devotional life. I would also have a panchapatra (achaman cup and spoon) with water and Tulasi in it.
    Before taking rest I would pay obeisances to guru, etc., and pray to Lord Nrisimhadev to protect me, as I still do to this day.

During this night I had this dream, that there was this woman, who was gesturing to me to come toward her. Now bear in mind that I was at that time a strict brahmacharin (celibate monk) it puzzled me why a women, especially clad as she was with frizzed out hair, top-less, and with long finger-nails would be calling a brahmacharin.
    The situation was something like a railway station there were two ticket type boxes one each side of the entrance/exit. She stood a little beyond that beckoning me saying, "...come here!"  Feeling somewhat lost, and puzzled I replied to her, "What do you want mataji?" To which she laughed like a demoness (cackling). Suddenly I felt myself being drawn toward her, even though I couldn't stop it..........
    Then suddenly two brahmins (a dark skinned one with Ramanuja style tilak, and a fair skinned Indian with distinct Madhwa style tilak) appeared from her side but to the left near the tick boxes. One was carrying an achaman cup - with which he splashed me with its waters, the other carried a small plant of maybe three or five inches resembling a Tulasi seedling. As the waters hit me I awoke to find my panchapatra over turned, and the waters all over my pillow, but no Tulasi.

Even in the morning I looked high and low for that Tulsi leaf, but it wasn't there.

This was an interesting incident. In 1985 my wife, son and I went to visit the newly purchased New Gaudadesh land and temple, in northern most Victoria, bordering on to New South Wales and South Australia, near Mildura. Iskcon had purchased really cheap some land (16,000 acres) along the Murray River from a man who had one time sat next to Srila Prabupada on an aeroplane.
    After having a bit of a wander around and seeing the sights, late that evening we settled down to bed in our guest room. It must have been a full moon or near full moon because my room was quite well lit but without any electric lights. At least one could easily see from one side of the room to the other, which wasn't very far.
    It must have been about two in the morning I suddenly awoke. The most prominent thing in the room was the window so my eyes were immediately drawn in that direction. To my surprise I saw about six or seven Abo's (Native Aboriginal tribesmen) floating in the top half of the window that went right up to the roof.
    They all had their white markings on their faces, curly shoulder length hair and broad noses. They were all as black as coal, and carried their traditional spears and boomerang in their hands. I could see them all clearly, and as I write this can still remember the smiling faces. I think that was what left the most impression, that they were all smiling, and they peered in through the window at me.
    As I lay there chanting Hare Krishna and Nrsimha prayers, my wife lay with my son both fast asleep, unaware of any of this.

The next morning I mentioned it to Krodeshwar prabhu the Temple President, who casually mentioned "oh yeah, where this house is, it used to be an Abo' burial site, there's a few of them on the property.... but the boys' are pretty good."

Once when I was staying at the Melbourne Temple, guarding the Deities, while everyone was away at a festival in Murwillumbah or Colo River in the early 1980s I was awoken by a strange sensation and the sound of a little blonde boy playing on the rickety wooden stairs leading up to the brahmachari ashram (now the prasadam hall). I thought for a moment that it was one of the devotees children, and called out to him, to cut the noise out.
    As I did he kind of evaporated before my eyes...........!

You can bet I had a really good night sleep, or what was left of it after that.

When His Divine Grace Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada came to London's Bhaktivedanta Manor in August of 1977 his body was unwell, and needed rest. At that time all of us young devotees on the Bhakta program were occupying the rooms that ordinarily were above his quarters. So out of concern for his well being we were relocated with all our bedding etc to stay in the Theatre room, down stairs near the kitchen.
    There were probably about thirty of us who would sleep in there at night, like a mass of caterpillars in our sleeping bags all over the floor.

Anyway one night both myself and Purushottam prabhu woke up, looked around the room, and both saw that there was no-one there in the room, that everyone had left, and we felt that we were the last two there. So we individually wiped our place where we slept as was our system, with the bucket and cloth in the corner. Rolled up our sleeping bags and proceeded to go upstairs to get ready for Mangal arati at 4:30am.

    As we opened the Theatre room door Braja-jana prabhu the temple guard stopped us and asked where were we going. We replied up-stairs to get ready for the morning program, to which he replied, "What at mid-night???"
    He then ushered us back into the room despite our pleas that the room was empty and everyone had gone. the to our surprise when we opened the door and looked in EVERYBODY was still there, all over the floor.

To this day I'm amazed how we both saw that the floor was clear, and we step by step followed the process of wiping our places, rolling up the sleeping bags and leaving the room, with seeing anyone one there. Somehow or another the bhuta who we since found out resides in that room had covered us over, and got us out of the room, as he wanted.

When I was living at Bhaktivedanta Manor back in 1977-78 there was one room that always left a chill on your spine. It didn't matter day or night it had an eerie sense about it, but in the early morning or later at night it was FREAKY.
    One morning looking for a place to just be away from the crows of the temple room, I went into the Theatre room to chant some rounds. Immediately I began to feel oppressed as if someone or something was trying to "vibe me out" of the room. Anyway I had been working hard recently and needed to rest a little, so i decided to sit down and chant.
    It was probably about 6am or something like that. After sitting down to chant for a few minutes I began to feel sleepy and must have nodded off while chanting. the next thing I knew was feeling this oppressive shadowy figure bearing down on me as I sat there with an over powering feeling of like someone shouting at me "GET OUT!" but with no sound. As I awoke out of this, feeling all drained and weak I'm not sure what it was but I saw something returning to the area where the stage was like a shadow. I used to avoid that room after that.

In the winter of 1977 I came down with bronchial pneumonia. No-one would give me funds to go to the doctor across the road in Letchmore Heath, so as a poor brahmachari I tried to tolerate it. But I just got worse and worse.
    Anyway one night as I lay on the landing outside Prabhupada's quarters where I slept I saw this huge snake coming up the stairs toward me in the dream. then as it came closer it attacked me on the stairs by wrapping itself around my neck, and choking me. As I lie there in a desperate effort to get it off I clutched at what I thought to be the snake around my neck, and began to pull. Actually it was my neck. What I believed to be the thickness of the snake's body was in fact my very own neck, and the struggles that it made to get away from my hand were the very struggles that my hand was experiencing in trying to grasp and catch the snake. But in the dream there was another person there, he was saying "...pull harder, kill it, its goner get you!" and terms like this. Actually it was quite some time until I began to chant Hare Krishna and realised that this was a ghost who was behind all this. As the maha mantra burst from my mouth I realised, still with my hand clasped around my neck what was happening.
Again another incident on the landing out side Prabhupada's rooms at London's Bhaktivedanta Manor. It was winter, because I could remember the cold. There were a lot of devotees at the Manor at the time, so I'm guessing it was at the end of the Xmas marathon, or something like that.
    In my dream I felt threatened and woke up chanting Hare Krishna, but cannot remember the dream.
    Another devotee suddenly sat up an yelled out something in sanskrit his eyes wide open, but like it wasn't him, and glazed. Looking around the room at all the sleeping devotees, I lay there quietly chanting Hare Krishna. Then the next thing I hear from the devotee just near me was, "Get the one who recites the poetry" in a Northern English accent, coming out of the mouth of an Indian boy who sat up in his sleeping bag, staring at me with vacant eyes - but in the morning he barely spoke English.
    "Yea Gods, it's a flaming circus up here," I thought, and chanted a little louder. Suddenly all the devotees started to stir with groans of "what's going on, go to sleep, etc.
One devotee named Braja-jana prabhu was at Chaitanya College (Croom Court) - and had an interesting encounter with the Pink Lady. Apparently the Earls of Coventry who were the previous owners of the Country Estate had some interesting history. One of the aspects of it being how the Duchess of Coventry a couple of centuries ago found out that she was pregnant and gave herself an abortion, from which she died.
    The grounds man Mr Edwards told that she was often seen around but was an harmless sort.

Anyway, Braja-jana prabhu had changed his residence and had moved to the newly acquired Chaitanya College and resumed his night duties as temple guard. Then when many of the devotees were up and the place again deemed secure he would take rest for a few hours.
    On this morning he was laying there, in his sleeping bag, but was awoken by the intense feeling that someone was standing over him, looking at him.
    When he in fact opened his eyes, to his surprise there was the ethereal form of the Pink lady, dressed in a ball gown kind of attire, crouched beside him, not inches away from his face, looking directly at him.

Scarring here as much as himself he let out one blood curdling scream of Krishna and leapt about a metre in the air, to which she was seen gliding down the corridor.

Captain's Room at Croom Court.
The stories from Iskcon Melbourne 1985-89
The stories connected with going to Wellington to try to give some relief to one congregational member S's daughter K who was being raped by a ghost almost every night.

I sat with one older lady devotee and the girl and asked her questions about what she had been forced to undergo, and why she thought it might be happening.

She told that the "personality" came when she was asleep, and held her down and threatened her with her life. He told her she was a bad person and that's why he was coming for her, and that she deserved it.....etc.

After some consultation with her father and mother we began to set up for a yajna in their house.

At first everything was okay. Then as we began to recite the bhuta nirvaranam mantras the girl became disturbed. Then some of the people at the back of the room said they felt something brush past them, cold and heavy and the atmosphere in the room suddenly changed.

Then as we invoked Agni the fire began to flare and spit sparks right out of the fire - during the Purusha Sukta yajna I felt that as I was chanting that the air was being denied to my lungs and I was becoming weak, I stopped for a second and began chanting hare krishna in my mind to gain control, and we proceeded. Then we planned to go through the house, and it seemed like this was the last straw - suddenly the door leading out to the hall slammed closed, and then as I began to sprinkle water about the place there became this incredibly powerful and rancid smell in the room. For a moment I became the focus as my mouth felt as if it were being blocked, and I was being choked by the smell of dry stale urine. Again we gained composure and went through the place, but then as I left the house I was hit in the chest by something, which felt like a stone, but there was nothing there on the ground - the next day I broke my ankle and came down with an undiagnosable "Flu".

Shonya Klair - six different ghosts sent by a demoniac tantric Man Singh in Rajasthan.
Tajindra's family (Paramjeet's wife's suicide, Paramjeet's suicide, Karamjit's attempted suicide, Kranti's mystical ways.....)
Gaura Gopal's making mudras in Melbourne 
Sometimes as a youth I would go around to my friend Steven Bennet's house. We would sometimes be sitting there late in the evening chatting or listening to music or watching something on TV when suddenly a strong smell of lavender would enter and permeate the room. One evening I was there with Steve's brother Ray and Steve and it happened. Ray told us how it was the former owner of the house. Some of the people who were in the area before the Bennet's' told them how there used to be an old lady who lived there.  A nice old lady who always smelled distinctly of lavender, she had passed away there some years before they moved in.
    Connie, Ray and Steve's mother apparently when ever she smelled the fragrance would turn to where the smell was coming from and say, "Hello Mrs............. how are you today?" She liked to be around when Connie was home, because Connie would hold conversations with her. Steve's mum, Connie told us, "She's an interesting old thing, she's harmless, been she's been here for many years....... she likes us being here, company for her.......!"
    'Funny thing we could all smell it, and Connie was her friend, but Connie's husband Burt could, smell or feel a thing.
My grandmother, who was among her friends quite a famous clairvoyant had a visit from her husband the evening after he passed away, telling her that he was okay, and that he was going now, and not to worry. She told me this as a small boy and told me that I shouldn't fear spirits as they are just like us, but they are caught in between births.
Sleepwalking - me and my father.
When we lived in Melbourne occassionally we used to see a man in top hat who used to wander through the Philipson Rd flats. Sometimes you would hear him talking in the night, on other times you could hear his footsteps going through the room and lights would go on or off in the room. I had heard about this fellow from other devotees, like one mataji who had gone to the temple for a few minutes and while she was away her daughter was woken by the man going through, and I mean through her room.
Then once I saw him, he was dressed in the attire of a man from the 1800s - top hat long black coat, beard...a tall figure of a man. He wandered into the room looked around as if he was looking for something (it wasn't in my direction) he then walked calmly out of the room and disappeared.
An incident with an Haunted lady at the downtown Melbourne bus terminal - this was only a brief encounter.

I was sitting waiting for a bus to Canberra, and was reading a book on Raghavendra Tirtha swami, the incanration of Prahlad maharaj. Then suddenly my mind became extremely turbulent, like when you open a door and wind rushes in and blows everything everywhere. All kinds of non-sense thoughts came to mind, out of sequence and crazy-like. Then I saw this lady about five or six feet away from me, standing in the middle of the room talking jiberish to herself. I cast a side-long glance in her direction and from facing the other direction immediately turned around and began to walk toward me saying words that no-one could understand.

I intently chanted the Nrsimha bija mantra; ugram biram maha ghoram.......and it was like she was redirected onto someone else, and followed a couple of people as they traversed through the terminal. Lord Narasimhadev ki jaya.

The haunted house we lived in when I first left home in Sudbury Hill - Wembley as a 16 year old with my girl friend Mandy and her friend Vicki Palmer.

I think our very first encounter was when we were standing at the gate and tried to take a neighbours cat down the path - the cat freaked out and scratched Mandy on the arm really bad. The landlords, who lived down stair told us that they had a cat for a while and when they moved there it ran away. Also they bought another one too and it wouldn't come into the house - like it really freaked out and would come in. It was as if something in the house scarred them away. And we felt that without anyone saying anything. We tried several of the neighbours cats, but no cat would come in that house.......

Then one night the heavy breathing began, sometimes if you were alone in the room you would feel it on the side of your face, and a presence as if someone was very close. In the late evening sometimes you could hear the same heavy breathing, almost snoring coming from the corner of the bed room, but not the side where the bed was, nor a wall that was habitated on the other side by neighbours, but in the corner where the sofa was near the closed window which always remained dark.

Once I was running up the stairs when I was physically stopped by a force on the stairs. Whoever it was it was strong enough to stop me as I ran - it was kinda freaky as you couldn't see anything there.

Often you could see what appeared to be seeing of shadows moving in the rooms but there was no light that was causing it. We checked everything.

Our last night there was ended by a creepy journey to St. Andrews church. The amazing thing was that when we got to the church epecting it to be open the church doors surprised us at being locked. Desperate to take shelter of something, some one Holy to stop our fears we went all around the church checking the doors, but they were all locked tight. Lights were on, as it was only about 7pm, and all the fonts outside were dry, where they normally keep holy waters.
    We consciously began to pray, even though outside the church, and then Vicki was inspired to try the door again, but then it was open. Nervously we all went in and sat down. Vicki pulling a seat down for the person next to her. Lots of freaky things, and then the priest came and we told him everything.

The next evening quite late the priest came around to the house. First he began to chat with us and ask us ask us where and what had happened. He then began chanting some prayers and throwing around sanctified waters - but he advised us not to stay there that night.

The priest's visit throwing water around seemed to do some good, but we were still too freaked out to live there any longer. 

The gnome/leprecorn  we saw near High Wycome. There were about four of five of us cycling up the big hill there just outside Denham, when each of us looked over and saw this small man with a big nose big pointed ears and carrying a stick over his shoulder with a bundle tied on the end.

We all kinda looked at each other and no-one said a word. At the top of the hill we all stopped for a rest, and we were all pretty silent. then one of my friends said - "Did you see that bloke?"
"What did he look like?" asked another.
"Come on there was onlt one bloke we passed going up the hill, and we all saw him!" another said.

He was just like a gnome, about three feet or four feet tall, really old looking face, big nose, impish look, and big pointed ears - and carrying the bundle. But he wore a Trilby hat, and a rain-coat - must have been on his way Gnome!!!!!

Maori woman pointing at me in a dream just after we moved to New Varshan

Each time I went past the area known as "Radha kund" my mind would freak out, and fear would over momentarily take me, cold and goosey....the shelter of the Holy name being my only solace.

Bhakta Michael at Bhaktivedanta Manor, 1977.

He was a 16 year old English boy who joined the temple. He did have a history, we later found out of mental challenges, which would have made him more suseptable to this kind of thing. Anyway, after being at the Manor for a short time he totally changed. From being a 16 year odl English speaking boy to speaking like a 40 year old Polish man, and walking dragging one leg, and with one pupil of his eye large and the other small.

There was a always a bad smell that followed him everywhere, an unclean smell.

With understanding, compassion and kindness, we took him into the office and tried to give him some prasadam and have an open conversation with him. When we tried (Virabhadra and myself) to suggest to him that he has to be strong and preach to the mind he replied, "...we have to listen to the mind, mind is like guru he knows best, mind is my friend....)

Then as I was talking to him I could feel an overbearing presence pushing down on me, and he sat there grinning from ear to ear, but with his eyes almost with a blank and cloudy stare. In my mind I began chanting the Nrsimha prayers and it broke the tension. the other prabhu ended up calling his parents who came and collected him the next day, which was when we found out about a previous history of mental problems.

Later that evening we gave him some prasadam, and as soon as it touched his lips he fell unconscious on the floor. then this aweful smell became so strong, like a gas - and we lifted him up and carried him out to the bhakta office.

Just recently (circa 1999) a Maori woman came into my room and stood near the door - she seemed upset. In my dream I went to her and compassionately embraced her and told her that it was okay. Just try to accept that you have passed on, and go to your next body now. She looked at me as if to ask how did you know....... and then as I began chanting Hare Krishna she disappeared.
We used to have a ghost who haunted our garden. During the day most parts of the garden were pretty safe, but at night when you would go there you could hear him saying "...this is my garden, you get out!"
You would actually be vibed out, until you left the garden. It happened to me on numerous occassions.
You would be okay for a few minutes and then suddenly you would feel uncomfortable and hear that voice in your  mind telling you to get out, "Go you have no business here" "Go, you're not wanted here!" stuff like that.
On last Wednesday evening ( 3rd November 1999.) I was in my room just preparing to take rest when I kept feeling uneasy as someone was there in the doorway. I didn't take much notice and carried on but kept looking toward the door expecting someone to come in. Finally I turned the light out and went to bed.
About 3am I begin dreaming about a woman collapsing and then I wake up and see an ethereal shape of a woman's face hovering in my room. Feeling threatened I panicked and began to chant Hare Krishna out loud along with the Narasimha bija mantra (ugram viram maha ghoram... etc.) and om namah smasanuvasine bhutadinam palayanam kuru kuru swaha. After a few minutes the atmosphere in the room changed and I went back to sleep after chanting Jaya Nrsimha Sri Nrisimha Jaya Jaya Nrsimhadev 21 times as prescribed in Dik-darshini-tika of Sanatan Goswami.

Today ( 9th november 1999. ) my mother rang me from England to tell me that my aunt (her elder sister) Kit had passed away after collapsing in the street last Thursday, which would correspond to Wednesday evening Thursday morning here.

I did a Narayan Bali for her and since that she hasn't been here.

At the Manukau Tourist Park a huge Pacific Islander ghost threatened me in my dreams, telling me that he was going to kill me if I didn't leave that caravan - it was his.
    The next morning (December 6th 1996) I went out to fulfil some appointments and was lead to all manner of strange places. Busses that took me miles out of my way, having to walk through fields and country roads to get to where I ordinarily should have been, then being harassed by factory owners, and even having the police called on me, something that never happened to me before - I was okay though.
    Then as I walked along my foot sunk into a hole in the grass, and I broke my leg - amazingly not even 50 metres from an ER (hospital out-patients), who put the leg in plaster.

This ugly, huge ghost might not have killed me as he angrily screamed he would, but he certainly gave me a hard time for fighting back with the Holy name - which he really didn't want to hear. Hey but, if I hadn't have had the Holy Name who knows what would have happened to me - could have become one of the millions one sees wandering the streets in their shinny suits and werewolf appearance mumbling to themselves and hurling abuse at passers by.......!

If you have any TRUE Ghost experiences please send them to us here 


Other Devotees Experience with Ghosts:

Divine Sound
The divine sound of the pure name (suddha-nama) must have its origin beyond the area of misconception or maya. The extent of maya is up to the highest planet in the material world, Satyaloka. Beyond Satyaloka is the Viraja river and the world of consciousness, Brahmaloka, and then the spiritual sky, Paravyoma. The pure name of Krsna must have its origin in Paravyoma, the spiritual sky. And if we are to examine it further, the holy name of Krsna really comes from the most original plane of all existence: Vraja, Goloka. According to this understanding, the sound must have its origin in the highest plane of the spiritual world in Vrndavana if it is to be considered the genuine Krsna name.
The mere physical sound is not the holy name of Krsna. A true conception of the holy name is necessary, not only to free us from this world of misconception, but also for the attainment of service to Krsna in Vrndavana. Only that true name of Krsna which has its origin in the plane of Vrndavana can lift us up and take us there.

Otherwise, although the spirit is within the name, if the sound we vibrate is based on any other conception, it may only take us to that layer of conception. This is quite scientific; it is not unreasonable. The mere word krsna is not the holy name. What is important is the meaning of that sound and the depth of meaning, the deep conception of the meaning of the name. That is everything - it is all-important in serving our purpose.

There's a nice story that illustrates this point. When our spiritual master, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura, was a young boy, both he and his father, Bhaktivinoda Thakura, went to visit the holy place of Kulinagrama, which is located in the Hooghly district near Calcutta. Kulinagrama was a village where the great devotee Haridasa Thakura, as well as other famous Vaisnavas, used to live, and was the home of four generations of devotees.

A Haunted Temple
They went to visit that ancient holy place, and just on the outskirts of Kulinagrama, as they were entering the village, they passed by an old temple. Suddenly a man came out of the temple and humbly asked them, "Please stay the night here. In the morning you may enter the village and take darsana of all the places there." Bhaktivinoda Thakura and our guru maharaja, who at that time was a young boy, stayed the night in that temple house.
Just after nightfall, as they were resting, Bhaktivinoda Thakura experienced something unusual. He found that brickbats were being thrown about from different directions. He thought, "How is this happening and why? Who would throw big brickbats like this?" Then he had some apprehension that there might be ghosts living there, creating disturbances. He began loudly chanting the Hare Krsna maha-mantra. After some time, the disturbance disappeared, and Bhaktivinoda Thakura and Srila Bhaktisiddhanta passed the rest of the night there peacefully.
In the morning, they entered the village and began visiting different holy places. After some time, one of the local gentlemen noticed them and said, "You entered our village early this morning. Where do you come from? And where did you spend the night?" Bhaktivinoda Thakura explained, "We stayed in that temple just outside the village there." One of them said, "Oh! How could you stay there? So many ghosts live there and throw stones and bricks at anyone who passes by that place at night. How could you stay there?" Then Bhaktivinoda Thakura said, "Yes, you are right. But when I found such a disturbance there, I began to loudly chant the Hare Krsna maha-mantra, and subsequently the problem disappeared." The men of the village then asked Bhaktivinoda, "Who are you, and where are you coming from?"
Then they came to know that he was Bhaktivinoda Thakura. They had already heard of him, and some of them had read his books. They welcomed the two of them, and showed them all the holy places they had not yet seen. At one point, they said to Bhaktivinoda Thakura, "The gentleman who was formerly the priest of that temple was transformed into a ghost after his departure. Since that time, we have regularly seen the disturbances caused by that ghost. Why did he become a ghost? As the priest of that temple, he used to regularly chant the holy name of Krsna. We are witness to that fact; we have all heard him. Why was he turned into a ghost? We cannot understand this. Please explain."

Lip-Deep Sound
Bhaktivinoda Thakura told them that the priest must have only repeated the syllables of the name, the nama-aksara. What he was producing was only a mayik sound, a physical, lip-deep sound. It did not have the spiritual essence; the life of the name was absent when he was chanting. It was nama-aparadha, offensive chanting. Bhaktivinoda asked them, "What was his character?" They said, "He was not a good man. He committed many sinful acts. That we know. But we can't deny the fact that he used to chant the name of the Lord almost always.
How could he become a ghost?"
Bhaktivinoda Thakura explained that the physical sound of the name is not the name proper. The priest had been committing offenses to the holy name (nama-aparadha), and as a result became a ghost. They asked, "Then how can he be released from that wretched condition?" Bhaktivinoda said, "If he meets a bona fide sadhu who has a genuine connection with Krsna, and he hears the real name, or the proper explanation of Bhagavad-gita or Srimad-Bhagavatam from his lips, then he may be released from his ghostly condition. It is mentioned in the scriptures that this is the only way to become free from the entanglement of material nature." After this discussion, Bhaktivinoda Thakura and Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati left Kulinagrama.

From that day on, all the troubles caused by the ghost at the temple in Kulinagrama ceased. The villagers were astonished. One of them said: "That priest who had become a ghost must have been released from his ghostly condition after hearing the holy name chanted by Bhaktivinoda Thakura. When the trouble began, Bhaktivinoda loudly chanted the name, and gradually, by hearing the holy name of Krsna from his holy lips, that suppressed soul has been liberated from his condition as a ghost ."

After that, many people journeyed to see Bhaktivinoda Thakura. They would tell him, "We are confident that you are a great Vaisnava - after hearing the holy name of Krsna from your lips, a ghost has been released." This story was published in the newspapers, and Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Prabhupada used to recount this story of his own experience with Bhaktivinoda Thakura.

The point is that simply the external sound of the name is not the real name. The most important thing is the spiritual realization backing the name - that is the real name. Otherwise, a tape recorder can pronounce that holy name of Krsna. Even a parrot can pronounce the name - but the physical sound is not the thing itself. In the background there must be spiritual truth, which is conscious. That super-knowledge is beyond the knowledge of this mundane plane.

sent to me by Jagannath Sharan dasa

  Chapter Four, Part Five:

    "Ghosts"

    [ - by Sri Hanumatpresaka Swami ]

Ghosts are just fellows who have subtle bodies of manas (mind) and buddhi (intelligence) but relatively no gross bodies. It works like that. Each different species of body is a different mix of the three subtle and five gross ingredients. Of course, cats have a lot of tactile energy (prana) in their bodies. They can jump like mad. Ghosts are usually somnabulistic dudes. They died in great fear or great distress so they are wandering around the dream world "looking for their gold".

In the USA we are very much in the mode of passion - nothing too high, nothing too low, "Just the facts, Mam". In South America and India experiences of subtler beings are much more common.

Off the top of my head I can remember three ghost stories from reputable sources but I'll just include one. Maybe we can put something more in later books if anybody is intereted. These are included just to convince us about the existence of the subtler physical planes. Then it is easier to understand the position of the spiritual plane.

My friend Bhakta Saranga Swami was living in New Mexico (The Land of Enchantment) before he joined ISKCON. His girl-friend was a native American. She purported to see peoples "auras", thoughts. One time he was sitting in her living-room with her and her two cats watching a booring TV show. Then she said, "There's a ghost moving across the room and boy is this one strange looking".

My friend said, "Cut it out. Stop it".

She said, "You don't believe me do you?".

He said, "No. Stop it.".

She said (he told me), "Then just look at the cats."

He looked at the cats who were on the floor side by side at the foot of the couch and almost jumped out of his skin. They were sitting there crouched on the floor but they were both looking at something move across the room. Their heads were moving completely in synch from left to right looking at something he couldn't see.

Rarely some of the ghosts aren't somnambulists. Some are quite aware and intelligent and can cause big problems. The Vedas list many different "species" of these subtle beings.

My friend Rohini kumar was in Mexico in a village about 1972 when they were visited at times in night by duendes, dwarves. He and four other people once saw them run across their courtyard jump to the top of an eight foot wall and disappear. They were about two or three feet tall with little jackets with little buttons. The next day they asked the local people about this and they laughed and said, "Yes, we know them. They are duendes. They live in the forest and keep to themselves. Usually only rarely does anybody see them. But because you are new and foreigners they are curious. They are like children they usually don't cause any problems for anybody".

Citreshvara is an ISKCON "Ghost Buster". He comes from a tantric family in Orissa that traditionally busts ghosts. He was asked to exorcise one new member of the temple in Australia who was obviously possessd. "Who is his closest authority?", He asked, "Because when the ghost leaves it will try to go to him". "The New Devotee Program Director," they answered but he's a long distance away driving a vehicle here". "Physical distance doesn't matter. These fellows operate on mental, emotional distance. Is he strong minded?", asked Citeshvara. I know him, Janananda. He personally told me this event. He is a very literal, down-to-earth guy. But while driving the car the ghost attacked him. He didn't know at all what was going on and only later confirmed the event and the timings. Ghosts - Beings with only psychological coverings.

Courtesy of India Divine: http://www.indiadivine.com/pigs45.htm

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