My Life in the Bush of Ghosts (11 page)

H
aving been educated and become the chief judge my mind was then at rest, I did not feel to go to my town again, even I determined that I should not go for ever. But one night, when I slept I dreamed a dream which was just as if I was in my home town and also eating with my mother and brother as we were doing before we left each other and I was also playing with my friends as before entered the Bush of Ghosts. So when I woke up in the morning I remembered all these dreams, then I began to feel to go, but however I was putting my mind away from it. When I slept the following night I dreamed the same dream again, but when I woke up in the morning I felt to go my town more than the first time. And the third time that I dreamed again I was unable to eat, play, or feel happy at all, except to go. Even if I walk to any corner it would seem as if I was with my people, doing everything we were doing before I left them. So at this stage I thought of nothing more than to go, because I could not sleep both day and night any more, and I was always dreaming without sleeping or without closing my eyes. Not knowing that my people at home had gone to an earthly fortune teller and asked him
whether I am still alive or dead already, but he told them that I am still alive in a bush, but my aim is not to come back to home any more. He said furthermore that I am living with somebody who is taking great care of me. Although he was unable to tell them the real bush that I was in and he could not tell them the kind of the person that I was living with. As he told them that I am still alive, my people simply told him to call me home with the power of his “Invisible Missive Magnetic Juju” which could bring a lost person back to home from an unknown place, how far it may be, with or without the will of the lost person. So having paid him his workmanship in advance, then he started to send the juju to me at night which was changing my mind or thought every time to go home.

B
ut as I could no longer bear to stay with my cousin except to go, then I told him, but he refused totally at the first time. When I was pressing him every time and telling a lie that I want to go and visit a friend of mine in the 7th town of ghosts, then he allowed me to go, because I was lean as if I should die within a few days. So as I was very popular with all ghosts of this 10th town and environment, when it remained one day for me to leave there I called all the ghosts of this town to my cousin’s front house for a special function for this “Bad-bye”. But none of them knows that I would not come back again as it was a “secret function” to all of them. This function was so
greatly performed so that nobody could sleep till the morning except drinking, dancing various dances, beating drums and singing. But my cousin was so sad that he did not appear.

Immediately the day broke I left them there and started to find the way to my home town as before I met my cousin in this 10th town of ghosts. This is how I left them. But as I did not know the right way straight to my town so this “Magnetic juju” was taking me to every place in either dangerous bush or not, so I started another punishment by ghosts. After the ninth month that I left my dead cousin I reached the 18th town which is
about six hundred miles away from the 10th town. Having reached there a ghost whose throat was always sounding with various voices as a motor horn received me to his house with gladness. His house was on a high rock which is above every house in this town, he was the one who was blowing the horn through his throat to all the ghosts of this town in every hour as a clock and this horn was also waking everyone at five o’clock in the morning. After a week that I arrived to his house I noticed that he was too poor to feed me, because he was very old, even he could not feed himself and had nobody to support him. But as I had already become a real ghost before I left the 10th town, so by that a ghost friend of mine taught me the art of magic, because he did not know that I am an earthly person at that time, otherwise he would not teach me to become a magician. So as I was taught this art before I reached this town, one day, when I thought within myself that this old ghost could not feed me unless I would feed him, therefore I went to a village which is near this 18th town, luckily, I met a ghost magician who was displaying his magical power for the head chief of that village at that time. Then I joined him to display my own as well before these chiefs, as a competition. But when I changed the day to the night, so every place became dark at once, then I told him to change it back to the day as usual, but he was unable. After this I changed him to a dog and he started to bark at everybody, then as my power was above his own the chief with all the scene-lookers gave me all the gifts which were to be shared for both of us. After that I changed him from the dog to a ghost as usual. Then I
packed all these gifts and kept going to the 18th town where I came to that village, I did not give him any of the gifts.

Having left this village to a distance of a mile this ghost magician came to me on the way, he asked me to let both of us share the gifts, but when I refused he changed to a poisonous snake, he wanted to bite me to death, so I myself used my magical power and changed to a long stick at the same moment and started to beat him repeatedly. When he felt much pain and near to die, then he changed from the snake to a great fire and burnt this stick to ashes, after that he started to burn me too. Without hesitation I myself changed to rain, so I quenched him at once. Again he controlled the place that I stood to become a deep well in which I found myself unexpectedly and without any ado he controlled this rain to be raining into the well while I was inside. Within a second the well was full with water. But when he wanted to close the door of the well so that I might not be able to come out again or to die inside it, I myself changed to a big fish to swim out. But at the same moment he saw the fish he himself changed to a crocodile, he jumped into the well and came to swallow me, but before he could swallow me I changed to a bird and also changed the gifts to a single palm fruit, I held it with my beak and then flew out of the well straight to the 18th town. Without any ado he changed himself again to a big hawk chasing me about in the sky to kill as his prey. But when I believed that no doubt he would kill me very soon, then I changed again to the air and blew within a second to a distance which a person could not travel on
foot for thirty years. But when I changed to my former form at the end of this distance, to my surprise, there I met him already, he had reached there before me and was waiting for me for a long time. Now we appeared personally to ourselves. Then he asked me to bring the gifts, but after both of us struggled for many hours, then I shared the gifts into two parts, I gave him a part, but he insisted to take the whole. However, I gave him all.

Immediately he left me, then I changed to the air again, after I blew far away after him, I stopped on the way on which he would travel to his town, then I changed to a person. Before he could travel to that place I used my magical power. I killed a bush animal, I dug a hole close to this road, after that I cut the head off this animal, I put it upright inside the hole, it faced the road as if it peeped out of the ground alive, having done this, I hid myself near there. After a while he travelled to that place but when he saw this head as it appeared from the ground, he stopped suddenly and looked at it carefully for a few minutes, because it was very curious to him. Then he started to ask this head with fearful mind—“Ah! my lord, here you are?” After that he bowed down respectfully for it for three times, having done so, he was asking it—“Do you want one of these gifts?” But as it did not show any sign of motion, so he threw one of them before it. But as he wanted this head to talk to him, he said again—“Or this is the one you want?” he held the gift, showing it to this head as he was saying so. And threw that as well before it, and it was like this he was doing until he threw all these gifts before it. After that, he laughed louder and ran hastily to his town, he told
all the inhabitants with the king that he saw where the “ground has head and eyes” today. Having told them this wonderful news, the king asked him three times—“Are you sure?” he said—“Yes, I am sure.” And said furthermore that if it is a lie, then they may kill him for telling a lie. Having confirmed it, the whole of them with their king from whose head the smoke was rushing out followed them to the place to witness this ground whether it is true. But as I had removed this head together with all the gifts and went away immediately he left there for the town, so when the whole of them followed him to the place, they did not see where the “ground has head and eyes” as he told them. But as he had been promised that they may kill him for telling a lie, so the king ordered the ghosts to kill him, because they did not see any sign of what he told them. This is how I took all my gifts back from him.

Of course, I did not return to the 18th town again, but started from there to find the way to my home town as usual, because that place was too far from the 18th town.

W
hen it was about 2 o’clock p.m. I saw a ghostess who was crying bitterly and coming to me direct in a hut where I laid down enjoying myself. When she entered I noticed that she held a short mat which was woven with dried weeds. She was not more than three feet high. Immediately she entered she went direct to the fire, she spread the mat closely to the fire and then sat down on it without saluting or talking to me. So at this stage I noticed carefully that she was almost covered with sores, even there was no single hair on her head, except sores with uncountable maggots which were dashing here and there on her body. Both her arms were not more than one and an half foot, it had uncountable short fingers. She was crying bitterly and repeatedly as if somebody was stabbing her with knives. Of course, I did not talk to her, but I was looking at her with much astonishment until I saw the water of her eyes that it was near to quench the fire, then I got up with anger and told her to walk out of my hut, because if the water quenches the fire I should not be able to get another again, as there were not matches in the Bush of Ghosts. But instead of walking out as I said she started to cry louder than ever. When I could not bear her cry I asked her—“By the way what are you crying for?” She replied
—“I am crying because of you.” Then I asked again—“Because of me?” She said—“Yes” and I said—“What for?” Then she started to relate her story thus—

“I was born over two hundred years ago with sores on my head and all over my body. Since the day that I was born I have no other work more than to find out the doctor who could heal it for me and several of them had tried all their best but failed. Instead of healing or curing it would be spreading wider and then giving me more pains. I have been to many sorcerers to know whether the sore would be healed, but every one of them was telling me that there is an earthly person who had been lost in this Bush of Ghosts, so that if I can be wandering about I might see you one day, and the sorcerers said that if you will be licking the sore every day with your tongue for ten years it would be healed. So that I am very lucky and very glad that I meet you here today and I shall also be exceedingly glad if you will be licking the sore with your tongue every day until the ten years that it will be healed as the sorcerers had told me. And I am also crying bitterly in respect of you because I believe that no doubt you have been struggling for many years in this Bush of Ghosts for the right way to your home town, but you are seeing the way every day and you do not know it, because every earthly person gets eyes but cannot see. Even it is on the right way to your home town that you found this hut and sleep or sit in it every day and night. Although I believe that you will not refuse to lick the sore until it is healed.”

Having related her story and said that if I am licking the sore it would be healed as the sorcerers said, so I
replied—“I want you to go back to your sorcerers and tell them I refuse to lick the sore.” After I told her like this she said again—“It is not a matter of going back to the sorcerers, but if you can do it look at my palm or hand.” But when she told me to look at her palm and opened it nearly to touch my face, it was exactly as a television, I saw my town, mother, brother and all my playmates, then she was asking me frequently—“Do you agree to be licking the sore with your tongue, tell me, now, yes or no?”

B
ecause when I thought over how the sore was dirty and smelling badly, especially those maggots which were dashing here and there all over the sore, so it was hard for me to say “yes”. But as I was seeing my town with all my people, it was also hard for me to say “No”. But as I was hearing on this television when my mother was discussing about me with one of her friends with a sorrowful voice at that time that—“She was told by a fortune teller that I am still alive in a bush.” So as I was enjoying these discussions the television-handed ghostess took away the hand from my face and I saw nothing again except the hand.

After that she asked again whether I would do her request, of course, I was unable to answer at that moment, but only thinking about my people whom I saw on the television and also thinking how to reach the town as quickly as possible. But as it was just a dream for me, I told her again to let me look at them once more before I would answer her request. Immediately she showed it to me my people appeared again at the same time and as I was looking at them and also hearing what they were talking about me which I ought to answer if I was with
them, luckily, a woman brought her baby who had a sore on its foot to my mother at that time to tell her the kind of leaf which could heal the sore. But as my mother knows many kinds of leaves which can heal any sore, so she told this woman to follow her. Having reached a small bush which is near the town, then she cut many leaves on a kind of plant and gave them to this woman, after that she told her that she must warm the leaves in hot water before using it for the sore. But as I was looking at them on the television I knew the kind of leaf and also heard the direction how to use it. After a while this “Television-handed ghostess” took her hand away from my face and I saw nothing again. Then she asked again whether I would do her request, so I said—“Yes, but not with my tongue would I heal the sore.” After I said “yes” I got out of the hut and I went round near the hut. God is so good, this kind of leaf or plant were full up there. Then I cut some and came back to the hut, after that I was using it for the sore according to the direction that my mother told the woman who brought her baby to her. It was so I was using these leaves for the sore every day and to my surprise, this sore had been healed within a week. But when this “Television-handed ghostess” saw that she had no more sores again she was exceedingly glad.

Having eaten and drunk to my satisfaction I told her to tell me the right way to my home town as she had promised me before I healed her sore. She agreed, but warned me seriously that I must not attempt to enter into the Bush of Ghosts forever, because 90% of ghosts hate any of the earthly persons to enter this bush, as I
myself am aware of it since I have been struggling to find the right way back to my town, but none of the merciless ghosts would show me the way. After the above warning she said further—“Do not tell anybody that I am the ‘Television-handed ghostess' who shows you the right way whenever you reach your town.” Then she opened her palm as usual, she told me to look at it, but to my surprise, I simply found myself under the fruit tree which is near my home town (the Future-Sign). It was under this fruit tree my brother left me on the road when he was running away from the enemies' guns which were driving me farther and farther until I entered into the Bush of Ghosts, and it was the fruit of this tree I ate first immediately I entered the Bush of Ghosts. This is how I got out of the Bush of Ghosts, which I entered when I was seven years old.