Scary screams, rituals, web of superstition: Lakhs gather at “ghost fair” of MP

Narmadapuram: India is a land of festivals. When there are festivals for siblings, spouses, Gods and Goddesses, wealth, health, education, parents, children, and even long-lost ancestors, then it should not come as a surprise when there is a day dedicated to ghosts as well.

That day is known as the “Bhutadi Amavasya” or a ghostly new-moon day. While most people don’t even know about it, India’s central Madhya Pradesh state takes it a step further every year when it organises a fair of ghosts in a bizarre amalgamation of faith, superstitions, rituals, and ghostly screams.

The fair in the Narmadapuram district of Madhya Pradesh is held on the 14th day of the “pitrupaksha” or the ancestral fortnight and continues overnight till the new moon day. It is not just an isolated event of a handful of believers but the attendance at these fairs crosses more than 1 lakh every year over the course of two days.

The scenes at the fair range from amusing to petrifying. It is believed that bathing in the Narmada River during this fair rids people of supernatural problems.

Many occultists, local babas, tantriks and such can also be witnessed near the river at the fair.

According to the local people, all these people gather at the fair to get “treatment” from Padiharo Baba (local deity). Standing in the waters of Narmada, the devotees can be seen narrating the problems in the rural language to the people, while the people suffering from supernatural problems kept bathing and covering themselves in the mud.

Sometimes the game of superstition, in the name of faith goes a tad bit too far at the fair. As a part of faith, open use of swords is witnessed with serious harm and injuries to those present there. Sometimes, some of the more aggressive “possessed” people are also kept in chains and beaten as a part of the punishment.

Faith vs Psychology

“Bhutadi Amavasya” has no place in Hindu religious texts. Such a festival or day cannot be found anywhere in the puranas, vedas, upanishad, or other religious books. In fact, Hinduism has no description of ghosts either.

However, it does talk about “Pret”, a type of incarnation which happens to those who die an untimely death. These beings are unusually thirsty or hungry. But there are no mentions of them possessing or haunting people in general.

So, the association of such activities with faith is also a bit far-fetched.

On the other hand, psychology or science has absolutely no space for supernatural or ghostly talks. Most cases of ghostly possessions are categorised as schizophrenia. According to experts, India with a population of 1.4 billion has about 1 percent of its patients suffering from schizophrenia.

It usually begins at the age of 15 to 30 years but sometimes symptoms are found later as well. Due to the lack of proper medical care and prevalent superstitious beliefs, the patients in India are often left in the care of such ghost fairs and occultists who treat them with cruelty and minimal understanding.