Paranormal activity

Paranormal experience at Acchabal

The year might have been 1965-66; we lived at Jammu and would go during summer vacations to Kashmir. 

I along with my sisters and our mother arrived at our Matamal@Safakadal, this would be our vacation home for the next two months. Our younger mamaji we called Bhaiji one day accompanied us to his that time posting which was situated next to a beautiful garden at Acchabal. It was a beautiful forest hut which served as his office cum residence. The hut was located half way up the hill behind the garden and to reach it we had to travel through the garden which had in addition to flowers and lawns , beautiful ponds full of trout fish. Those days we would sit on the veranda and often saw wildlife like mountain cats, wolves and the like -  chasing each other up and down the mountain slopes making loud scary noises. One such evening I was found to have very high fever and despite all efforts of applying cold bandages to my forehead it wouldn’t come down. It was told that I had become very agitated , my eyes had bulged and I was muttering gibberish. Everybody was scared and it was  suggested that I may have been affected by some mountain spirit. Next day morning a local hindu Priest was summoned. He lit some incense in an earthen plate and proceeded to perform some sort of exorcism. Occasionally between his chants he would blow the smoke on my face. After a while he declared that I was free from any spirit and instructed to keep a small iron object under my pillow when I slept. Later a doctor was also called and he gave me an injection and some bitter mixture. Those sensations ; the events of that night still remained with me until my teen years and whenever I used to have high fever I would always follow the advise - and keep a small knife under my pillow.

My trip to Amarnath

The year was 1983. I had graduated the same year with a Master’s degree from Mysore. I wanted to meet my parents since I had been away for a long time. My father had retired and they had shifted for the summer to Kashmir. My mother had a desire to visit Amarnath - so after much discussion it was decided that I can take my mother along with my elder sister Veenaji ( née kuku) to our Matamal@safakadal for the next step. I vividly remember the people who agreed to accompany us. My elder mama ( papaji) , mami, Kiran ( pappuji) and his newly wedded wife (Santosh), and their sister Sushma. We started preparing for the journey among other things I bought a small bottle of Doctors Brandy ( purchased from Jawkak Wines - near Amira Kadak). We boarded a bus to Sonamarg and onwards to Baltal. The bus dropped us at roadside. There was a large group of people waiting there. We were told that the Baltal base is a few miles from there and a Punjabi charitable organization had a truck availability to ferry passengers to the Baltal base camp. Somehow we reached the Baltal base and started the climb in the evening. It must have been a moonlit night as the whole journey we traveled on foot during the night. Early morning we reached the cave , my mom insisted that we take a bath in the small stream of water flowing in the open. The water was freezing but after that we felt warm. Then began the long wait, as there was a long queue of pilgrims waiting. Incidentally the state CM Farouq Abdulla also came in a helicopter and everyone had to wait until he visited the cave. The cave was gigantic and my mama and me sat on a huge boulder and watched the scenery from there. Papaji ( mama) told me that the real darshan is of the cave. Some how I remember reaching inside the cave and seeing the snow formation - linga which was almost flat when we saw. We also saw two birds flying inside and everyone cheered - Jai Bhole Shankar  : the birds signify Shankar Parvati. I explore the inside of the cave and found a small chamber where some Sadhus were resting with quilts. There was no food stall there and I don’t remember anyone was hungry. On our way back our mami was having breathing problems - we gave her Oxygen at a medical tent and decided that she should return on a horseback. We took shelter under a tent where we were given kangri and spent some time resting at Brarimarg. We reached Baltal late in the evening and there we had parshad ( dinner) at the same charitable organization, they later dropped us back in the truck up to the roadside. Luckily there was a bus waiting there and we boarded it - there was general relief and  everyone dozed on the journey back.  I remember walking back to Safakadal through Idgah ( which is a giant graveyard now). Everyone came back safe and sound.