THE GHOST WHO WALKED

During rainy season it was quite humid at Daliganj, even our house was at third story and was very airy. The drawing room a 16X16 room having four doors and three big windows opening toward garden in from of the house. This room was turned to study room by we brothers in the evening and bed  room in the night. After dinner some of us used to talk on many issues till late night. Independence day was over that day and every body was narrating what had happened in his school  and how much sweets were distributed in his school. Other one before narrating his experience  of independence day at his school , was pulling the leg of earlier brother , saying that his school was so poor to afford so much sweet for its students. Some brothers whose schooling was over they changed the conversation and started their experiences of ghosts, some very authoritatively say that they have seen the ghosts, others keep laughing on him and say there is nothing like a ghost in this material world. Nandajyu was more clear on this and would  affirm that he has never experienced any ghost. Jagda told that he himself has seen headless horse riders on running horses in the night at the roof, which was also confirmed by Bhana the next door neighbour an advocate by profession. I pretended and said that mother has told me that there is nothing like a ghost in this house as Devi ji is present at her temple at the ground floor of this house,

however Mr Bhana once told me that they have seen ghosts in this house many time in the night from their roofs, and this is haunted house. (Mr Bhana's intentions were to scare us so that our family may move away to some other place and he should easily make place for his cow at the door of our house, which he was doing since long before we occupied this house.)  After much discussions, every body fell asleep.

It was very humid night of August, only one ceiling fan was serving the whole room, Nandajyu  started sweating and thought that it would be bit cool upstairs at the roof and he rolled his bed and went upstairs, unfolded his bed and slept at the roof. After few hours he suddenly felt some  water drops  on his face, which awaken him  from sound sleep, he glazed towards sky and found it was deeply clouded and he told himself that it would rain now and he folded his bed and started moving towards stairs , holding the bed in front of him and cautiously descending,  he was on mid of the stairs suddenly he saw a big shadow emerging from the dark and deep  bottom side stairs, it was having no head on it, and it rose like a pole , having ghost stories in his sub continuous mind , he thought this figure as a ghost , and he screamed, " Ho ! " and the bed fell from his hands, and he heard the same voice, " Ho ! " from downstairs and the emerging figure dipped down. For few minutes he trembled but  he controlled his nerves and peeped down in the dark and found somebody  standing there, he came down and found Jagda standing dumb founded. All scare evaporated from him and he asked Jagda  that why he was standing there, Jagda replied that he was coming upstairs as he felt uncomfortable down there and while he reached half way he saw a ghost having no head was coming down, and jumped over him. Nandajyu laughed at him and said it was him who was coming down and scared to see the rolled bed of Jagda and his bed slipped from his hands and Jagda might have thought the bed as ghost. Both the brothers laughed and came down, unfolded their beds, and due to this disturbance others also waked up and every body listened the story and laughed.

The bed rolls were the ghosts who walked and scared the brothers. The story of headless horse riders was true. Later, it was revealed that whenever any vehicle passed on the road in the night keeping its lights on high beam, the light rays of the vehicle so passed through the carved gaps of roof railing of our house, starting from one end to other and creating shadows at the back wall of the roof top, as if horses are running from one side to other, the gaps of roof railing  gave  the picture of horses with head less riders on it.

Today, on this Independence day, I remember this episode , the presence of mind and  courage of my brothers. Hat's off dear brothers...... Happy Independence day.