Strange and Paranormal Tales from Malacca

By Dennis De Witt

The ancient port town of Malacca is an old town rich in history. Since the beginning of Malacca, its community was made up of a colourful potpourri of cultures and beliefs. The different communities have their own understanding of the powers of the supernatural. As far back as the year 1421, there was a written account from Chinese records of the strange and paranormal witnessed in Malacca. These stories continued in Portuguese, Dutch and British eras, up to modern times. There were accounts about hauntings, poltergeists, cryptozoology, giants, spirits, sorcery, witchcraft, shapeshifting creatures, simulacra, magical cures, strange phenomena, unusual human powers and other bizarre tales. Many of these stories have now become obscured and forgotten to us. This book contains a collection of more than 50 strange and paranormal stories reported from past reports, news, accounts, statements and descriptions that were officially recorded in books, journals, articles and newspapers.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Nutmeg Publishing
• Release date: Sep 11, 2021
• ISBN: 9781005118570

Dennis De Witt

Dennis De Witt is a 5th generation Dutch Eurasian originally from Malacca, Malaysia. He has developed a keen interest on subjects relating to Dutch influences in Malaysian history due to his own heritage. His research on his ancestors has produced family data going through 300 years, down 11 generations and across 3 continents. In 2009, he was named as the winner of the ‘Dutch incentive prize for Genealogy’ for his book ‘History of the Dutch in Malaysia’ and he received his prize in the Netherlands. He was the first ever recipient of this prize who is not a Dutch citizen.

Book preview

Strange

and

Paranormal

Tales from

Malacca

Dennis De Witt

Published by

Nutmeg

Publishing

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Copyright © Dennis De Witt

2022

Ebook

Published by

Nutmeg Publishing

www.nutmegpublishing.com

www.facebook.com/nutmegpublishing

[e-mail]

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the author.

The contents of this publication are provided without liability. Neither the author nor the publisher shall be responsible for any claims, loss, damages, costs or expenses arising in any way out of or in connection with this publication.

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Book Reviews

‘Almost everyone from Malacca would have heard a version or other of paranormal tales. I too, have heard my fair share, one of which includes the tale of the celestial princess of Mt. Ophir (Puteri Gunong Ledang) and of the Banuas which De Witt captures in his book.

Dennis De Witt’s book brings together all the strange and fascinating tales from Malacca, spanning from the time of the Malacca Sultanate, through the Portuguese, the Dutch and the British periods to the present.

He has thoroughly researched the tales to their original sources for he states that many of them over time, have been transmitted orally and so have undergone many changes. Some of the early tales in this book are credited to Manuel Godinho De Eredia who was born in Malacca and spent his early childhood there. His mother was a Bugis princes from Sulawesi and his father was part of a Portuguese missionary expedition to Sulawesi.

A captivating book for all lovers of the paranormal tales.’

Devinder Raj – author of Where Eighty-Four Languages Were Once Spoken – An account of Melaka 1400 – 1824 and The Influences of Early History on Multicultural Melaka.

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‘Congratulations to Dennis De Witt on his latest book Strange and Paranormal Tales from Malacca, which will definitely do well, especially among Malaysian readers. I think it is safe to say that everyone, Malaysian or not, enjoys tales of the spooky and the supernatural, so the reader will enjoy this anthology with its various intriguing narratives ranging from haunted houses, miracles and monsters to spooky sightings, giants and ghosts.

The book is well-researched and I did learn a lot about spectral beings, inexplicable incidents and unusual creatures in my home state.

While there are probably more strange and paranormal tales from Malacca floating (Sorry, I couldn’t help that, as I’m in Twilight Zone mode!) out there, De Witt has selected only those which have been officially documented, with citations given at the end of every story, which is useful if one wants to find out more about that particular story.

I found it a good read, so congratulations again to Dennis De Witt for compiling this eclectic collection of the strange and the paranormal, and enriching us with another aspect of Malacca’s past.'

Audrey Lim – author of Memories of a Malaccan: the Life and Times of Lim Keng Watt (1909 - 96).

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Tree of Life

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CONTENTS

Acknowledgement

Introduction

Part 1

Reports from Malacca’s Malay Sultanate, Portuguese and Dutch Eras, 1421 to 1824

The Were-Tiger

The Magic Bracelet

The Crocodile Master

An Amazing Weed

The Bezoar Stone

The Talking Jungle

Concerning the Sorceresses

Cobra-wood

Cross in the Sky

Pontianak

The Portuguese Master Gunner

The Minangkabau Wizards

A Strange Cure from an Old Conjurer

The Spit of Cure

Part 2

Reports from Malacca’s British Era, 1825 to 1956

The Ghost of the Old Government Rest House

Sea Monsters in the Straits of Malacca

The Lady in White

How Teluk Mas Got Its Name

The Woman with the Withered Arm

Strange Lights at Sea

Monster in the River

Oldest Man in the World

The Supernatural Boy

The Crocodile Whisperer

Ball Lightning

Sight Restored

The Portuguese Soldier

The Sea Monster of Malacca

Giant Boy

Disappeared Down the Hole

Holy Tiger

Pearl of the Divine Fire

Meng Seng Building

A Mysterious Ship

The Trishawman’s Kris

Phantom Murderer

Poltergeist at Heeren Street

Crocodile in Stone

Ghost At Sea

Stones Throwing at Ujong Pasir

The Living Kramat

The Ghost Show

The Ghost Nun

The Magnetic Man

Haunted House

Part 3

Reports from Malacca’s Post-Independence and Modern Era, 1957 to 2019

Stones Falling at Kampung Banda Hilir

Magic Stones

Poltergeist at Khatijah’s Home

Spirit of Mount Ledang

Christian Ghost

The Haunted Cape

Strange Feet

Giants

Haunted Mosque

Migrating Ghosts

Oily Man

Magic Spells

The Haunted Home of the Chief Minister

Creepy Things

Dato Machap

Afterword

Bibliography

Maps

Other e-Books

Further Information

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Acknowledgement

Most of all, I wish to thank my parents for allowing me to experience all things uniquely Malaccan during the time of my youth, as well as for their many amazing stories and tales that they told me, some of which I have corroborated from documented sources and included in this book.

I had some amazing experiences while growing up in Malacca. I remember my parents bringing me to visit an old Chinese woman who lived in a dilapidated wooden shack by the Malacca River. She turned out to be a well-known soothsayer and I had my future foretold by her. In hindsight, her predictions turned out to be rather accurate. I also once had the opportunity to visit the Dato Macap kramat with my parents during its annual festival and I witnessed the huge number of offerings presented by the many devotees who came from near and far. My auntie was a regular devotee, and I must say I enjoyed eating those yellow glutinous rice (nasi kunyit) that were used as traditional offerings. Another place I remember visiting was a shrine on a hill located near Tanjung Kling village, which was said to be guarded by the spirit of a white tiger. The medium attending to the shrine got into a trance and became possessed by the spirit of the white tiger. He got down on his hands and knees, growled and gave out a roar of a hungry tiger. The spirit is said to be the protector of a particular Malacca Chinese family and their descendants, who I am also connected to.

Writing and publishing a book is never a one man’s job. This book would not have been possible without those who helped and supported me. I would like to express my special thanks and gratitude to Avery for the research and for helping me to put this book together and to Claudine for her support and dedication during the process of writing this book, as well as for editing my work.

I also wish to extend my appreciation to my fellow Malaccan authors, Ms Audrey Lim and Mr Devinder Raj, for providing their kind reviews for this book.

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Introduction

In the past, I have published a number of books, articles and papers on topics relating to history and heritage. I was also asked to conduct a number of presentations for different groups of people regarding local history. My area of focus has primarily been on the Dutch era, the local Eurasian community and Malacca. For my research into these topics, I was privileged to have gained access to a large number of primary records, reports, notes and antiquated books. In some of these references, I have come across some very strange stories and amazing accounts from the past that defies logic and can only fall in the realm of the strange and paranormal.

This historic town, and the state where it is located, is now officially spelled as Melaka, the Malay version of the name. However, for the purpose of this book, I have retained its English version, Malacca, which is commonly used in many of my references.

By Southeast Asian standards, Malacca is not a very old town. The Khmer Empire in Cambodia goes back to around the year 800 and the founding of the kingdom of Champa in Vietnam goes back to the year 875. The Srivijaya kingdom was believed to have been founded in 683, whereas Ayutthaya was founded in 1351 and the Aceh Sultanate began in 1496.

The history of the founding of the town of Malacca is believed to go back to sometime before the 1400s. During the Malay Sultanate era, Malacca grew and prospered to be a grand emporium of trade in the region. By 1511, the reign of the Malay Sultanate came to an end when Malacca was captured by the Portuguese and a magnificent fortress was built by the Malacca River, called the A’ Famosa. With the coming of the Dutch to Asian waters, Portuguese Malacca eventually fell to the control of what the Portuguese considered as the new trade interlopers. By 1825, Dutch Malacca was exchanged with the British for Bengkulu in Sumatra and the town came under British control. Finally, Malaysia obtained independence from Britain in 1957 and Malacca became one of the states of Malaysia. Due to its long history, the town of Malacca is now known as the historic city of Malacca.

During its more than 600 years of existence, many people who were made up of a large potpourri of both Eastern and Western races lived in Malacca. The people there experienced all the emotions of humanity, including the joys and bitter despair of what life brought them. They felt happiness and they loved. They experienced sadness and loss, especially when someone dear to them was deceased.

They were from all echelons of society. There were sultans, court officials, governors, resident councillors, administrators, wealthy traders, property owners, ship captains as well as the ordinary farmer, fisherman, carpenter, soldier, sailor and even slaves. Many of them were accompanied by their wives and children who also lived with them in Malacca. These people were connected to the history of the town. They lived there and they died there. Records show that some even died young, from events such as an incurable illness, famine, conflicts, war and even suicide. However, not all of their graves can be found today.

Outside the town of Malacca lived the Banuas, as the early Portuguese called them. They are the native people who lived in the jungles surrounding the town. These aborigines are said to not only possess in-depth knowledge of the secrets of the jungle, but they also have special mythical powers that can control nature.

The people of Malacca understand that graves can be found practically everywhere in and around the town. Turn a corner and you will find another grave, as the locals would say. Some graves are so ancient that all evidence of their burial has been obliterated. With the accelerated modern development of the area in and surrounding the city, there must have been many buildings built over some ancient and forgotten site of the final resting place of the people who existed far back before us.

With its old ruins of churches, forts, gravestones and the old houses built by the Dutch, Malacca provides us with a glimpse of its colourful and amazing past. It also reminds us of a darker and sinister past where fierce battles took place with acts of cruelty by the conquerors and the hate and despair of the vanquished.

It is with all this and because of Malacca’s long history and mixed population that we do not wonder why Malacca should be known as one of the most uniquely haunted places in Malaysia. Malacca’s colonial past also provides us with documented reports of some very strange events that took place there.

There are lots of paranormal stories that local Malaccans tell. Practically any Malaccan we approach would have a paranormal or ghost story to tell from either his own experience or he heard from a friend. Unfortunately, their strange encounters cannot be substantiated for the lack of documented evidence. Also, the stories that people tell are often from word of mouth and it is related from one person to another. The danger in this is that, as we know, every time a story is told to another person, a little bit of the story gets either changed or distorted. Such stories often get spiced up or even transformed to something else as it is intended to capture the interest, scare and shock the listener. After several cycles of such storytelling, the original story starts to take a new form and it would be