Exhaustive Notes on Rural Folklore, Occult Incantations, and Narrative Lore

The Setting and Mystical Encounters of Sannyal Mahashay

The physical atmosphere is characterized by a dark, secret-chamber-like room facing the west. Upon entering through the main front door, a flock of bats abruptly flies away with a swishing sound near Ranu's place. Within these traditional rural settings, local elders frequently gather and exchange detailed accounts of miraculous phenomena and esoteric occurrences.

One prominent narrative involves Sannyal Mahashay, who encountered a remarkable ascetic or fakir residing beneath a banyan tree (ashwatha) in a distant land. Whenever this fakir was offered a single bowl of cannabis (chilim of ganja), he would express immense satisfaction and ask his visitors to name any fruit they wished to eat. Upon hearing their choice, he would point toward any nearby tree and instruct them to fetch the fruit from it. Observers who followed his instructions would discover pomegranates growing on mango trees or thick bunches of bananas hanging from guava trees.

Diju Palit's Eyewitness Account of Budho Garowan

Discussions regarding magical incantations (mantras) and occult practices often prompt personal testimonies among the village elders. While Raju Ray begins to share an anecdote about his maternal uncle, Diju Palit interrupts to relate a first-hand event that he witnessed directly with his own eyes. His account centers on Budho Garowan, a cart driver from the village of Beledanga, a figure well known to brother Rajkrishto.

Budho Garowan was recognized for wearing a distinctive pair of wooden sandals (kharom) bound with rope. He regularly visited Niti the blacksmith's shop to forge and heat the iron tips of plow shares. Budho lived to the age of 100 before his passing, which occurred over 25 years prior. In his youth, Budho possessed extraordinary physical strength, such that no one could defeat him in arm-wrestling or tests of wrist power.

The Incident at Kansona Field and the Spell of Immobilization

The central event took place when Diju Palit was roughly 19 or 20 years old, returning from taking a holy dip in the Ganges River at Chakdaha. He was traveling in a bullock cart driven by Budho Garowan. The passengers inside the cart included Diju Palit himself, his aunt (Khurima), and Ram—the nephew of Ananta Mukhoupadhyay (Ananta Mukhujje), who later relocated to Khulna. As dusk fell near the desolate Kansona field, the travelers experienced acute anxiety due to the presence of women in their party and the cash money they were carrying through a region notorious for crime and danger.

Near the area where a new village stands today, four strongly built, pitch-black men approached the moving bullock cart and seized the structural bamboo poles at the rear—two men positioning themselves on the left side and two on the right. Rendered speechless by fear, Diju Palit remained frozen inside the vehicle while the men walked continuously alongside the cart, keeping their grip firm. Observing the threat, Budho Garowan glanced back with narrow, watchful eyes and motioned silently for the passengers to remain quiet.

Budho kept driving until the bullock cart reached the vicinity of the market and the Nawabganj Police Station. Realizing they were approaching law enforcement, the four attackers broke down and pleaded for mercy, addressing Budho as master (Ostadji), admitting their mistake, and begging to be set free. Budho initially refused, threatening to haul them to the police station and have them bound and locked up. After persistent begging and entreaties, Budho relented and granted them permission to leave, warning them never to repeat such actions. The men touched Budho Garowan's feet in reverence before departing.

Diju Palit confirms that the four men were immobilized entirely through the power of Budho's magical incantation (mantra). Once their hands touched the bamboo poles of the cart, the spell held them fast, rendering them incapable of letting go and forcing them to march alongside the vehicle as if nailed to the wood.

Environmental Atmosphere Around the Village Schoolhouse

These elaborate narrative sessions take place continuously as the day wears on. The surrounding landscape around the village schoolhouse (pathshala) is filled with dense wilderness, illuminated by the slanted, reddish sunlight of the late afternoon filtering through the branches of jackfruit trees and wild fig (jagdumur) trees.