Black Magic Or Something Godly?

This story goes back to the late 80s, when I was a kid. My maternal uncle's home was situated in a nondescript rural village, which has now become a semi-urban area. We used to visit there twice a year: first during summer holidays and the second during puja vacations. Since that was a mofussil area, power cuts used to be a constant nuisance. During the minimum 3 hours of power cuts in every evening, we used to sit together in the veranda on a mat discussing ghost stories, while a dim kerosene lantern with a flickering flame provided the perfect spooky ambience. Majority of spine-chilling stories were narrated by my grandmother, whom I used to call Didu. My father was a rationalist: he believed neither in God nor in ghost. So, back at home whenever I narrated those spooky stories to him, he laughed them off by saying, "All bogus stuff."

Emboldened by my father's rational views, I started to question those stories as I grew older. Confronted by my skepticism, Didu one day told me," So, you no longer believe my stories! What happens if I show you something very supernatural? "

I blurted," Whoa, will you show me a ghost?"

She said, "Well, it may not be ghost, but it will be a very a supernatural thing?"

She didn't elaborate it any more.

Next day, around 4 PM she took me outside. It was early November; winter had just begun to set in. By 5-30 PM, it became completely dark outside. As it was a rural area, people preferred to stay at home after 5PM. So, I was feeling a bit tensed when Didu and I were setting off for an unknown destination.

It took us about one hour's walk to reach the much awaited spot. Outside the village, there was a small hamlet, where some fishermen lived. Didu took me in front of one of the houses. By that time, there was a gathering of 10 to 15 people in front of the house. All of them were waiting outside the veranda of that tile-shed mud house. No body was talking. It appeared to me that they were waiting for somebody. For too long, I had curbed my curiosity. Before I was going to ask something, Didu said, "Hold your breath. Chandini will come out within a minute."

Strong smell of incense was coming along with stronger smell of some kind of a mosquito repellant. Tears began to drop from our sore eyes. Suddenly, a woman clad in deep red sari came out of the house. Amidst chanting of "Hail Chandini, hail Chandini" by the crowd, I noticed that the woman was in her early thirties with a very dark complexion. In a normal voice, she asked the crowd, "Have you brought the questions?"

"Yes" was the universal answer. She then quipped, "I shall answer only 15 of them. Give the questions to Hiralal. By lottery he will select 15 of them. Those whose questions will be selected have to give rupees ten each".

Hiralal did what he was asked to do. I didn't know that my Didu also had a question. She was lucky to have her question selected. In the meantime, some strange rituals of puja were performed by a purohit with Chandini seating alongside him.

I asked Didu, "What was your question? "

Didu said, "Don't you know I have an eternal sensation of burning in my body?"

I nodded my head as I recalled, Didu never used any wrapper even in a time when winter was at its peak. When we loved to skip bathing, she bathed at 5 AM in morning in pond, that too for an hour.

I asked, "Is she an astrologer?"

In a hushed tone she said, "Ma Kali will enter inside her, and she will be possessed. She will become Goddess for 15 minutes or so. The words she will utter will be the words of the Goddess. This happens once in a month. People from different places come here to solve their problems. "

While we were talking, someone in the crowd shouted, "She has fainted. "

Didu said," Now."



I became worried to see Chandini lying unconscious, froth coming out of her agape mouth. Just as I started to wonder why no body was sprinkling some cold water on her face, Chandini got up to a sitting position. I looked into her eyes. They were deep red with a completely blank look. There was complete silence among the visitors.

Hiralal sprang into action. He said, "Ma Kali has arrived inside Chandini. Please ask questions one at a time. Don't ask anything after she answered you."

Hiralal called a name. A bald, dark, middle-aged man rose up and asked, "Ma, my wife is unfaithful. She is having an affair with my neighbour. Please tell me what should I do?"

Chandini opened her mouth. It was a completely different voice from what I heard previously. It appeared to me that it was coming from a very long distance, say at least, 50 yeards.

Chandini answered, " Your wife is less at fault than your neighbour Indra. Indra is blackmailing her to continue the illicit relationship. He knows a secret about your wife. Your wife had a relationship with a boy before her marriage to you. She had hidden this fact. So, you should ward off her fear first. Then you tell her to scream whenever the man enters her room. Be prepared. Give him a good beating. "

As Hiralal instructed not to speak after Chandini has stopped, the man didn't say anything. But I saw tears coming out of his eyes.

The second man of around 45 years of age complained about his financial crisis due to lockout in the factory where he used to work. Chandini thought for 30 seconds or so, and said, "Six months! Wait for six months. The factory will reopen. In the meantime, do some part time job. There is no newspaper vendor in the area. You should take up that job."

The man was so happy to hear that his factory would open again, he offered a 50 rupees note to Hiralal.

I was trying to guess how could Chandini be offering solutions so confidently! Did she know the answers beforehand? What if she was wrong! But the next question-answer made me more puzzled.

When the next person, a short, stout man of around 30 years age with a broom-like-mustache wanted a magic mascara to make a woman, whom he intended to marry, fall in love with him, Chandini burst in anger. She fulminated, "Don't come here for cheating purpose. If you have a genuine problem, I shall offer you a solution. But you are a married man with two children. Yet, you cast evil eye on your unsuspecting neighbour's wife! Get out from here."

Didu was 7th in the queue. Hearing her problem, Chandini prescribed a body oil, which she should procure from Hiralal. At that point, suddenly my scientific temper flared up. I thought I must take on the charlatan. I stood up and shouted, "Why are you fooling people? What's the ingredient of that oil?"

There was a pin drop silence for a moment. Everyone looked at me angrily. Didu was shell-shocked. She tried to make me sit down by pulling my hands. But, I didn't. Just when I thought that I had upstaged Chandini, she rebuked me, "If you don't have faith, then why have you come here Pirik? If I tell you the ingredients, you will recognise a single one? I know you are very weak in Science."

How did she know? Even if Didu told her my name beforehand, it was not possible for her to know that I was weak in Science! Perplexed, I sat down quietly.

Chandini came up with such amazing answers to all 15 questions. After that she again fainted. Didu said, " It's over. Let's move out."

During the return journey, Didu asked, " What do you say now?"

I couldn't say much as my head was spinning. What I saw was something surreal.

 

Yes GK, it's a well-organised deception business.