Originally posted by PaJeRoMiNi Ver 1.0:
On the serious side, this "flying head" might just be what Malays call a "Penangglan"....a flying head ghost, often with the viscera trailing behind...
More on this headless entity....
"One of the most famed and feard Malaysian ghosts around. In the State of Johor, it's called Penanggal. In Malay, penanggal means remover while penanggalan is the removing action. So want to know what it looks like? It's no less than the famous headless ghost with some slight differences and appearence. Some said it takes the form from the breast up while in the other states, it's said to take the form of a flying head with only its heart and intestine hanging on to its head.
It has its intestines as her entrails dripping with blood and when it touches any mortal, severe sickness follows. Her favs are pregnant women, young children and newly born baby (and not just any baby, the first born baby! ) and suck dry the baby's blood. It cackles to announce her presence and often tries to enter through the floorboards to feast upon the victims blood.
One way to counter this spirit attack is to put sharp object like 'mengkuang leaf' or long sharp nails to hinder it away. In addition, jeruju leaves (sharp and prickly) can also be hung in houses and thorny bushes were placed outside the house. Apparently her entrails would get caught in the sharp leaves. People believed the penanggalan originated from a women who sold her soul to the devil and on the day her apprenticeship ended, she was able to fly with only her head and entrails dangling. "