My Life in the Bush of Ghosts (10 page)

After a week that I had done this wonderful work to this king and also saved his wife, then I asked him to tell me the right way to the earthly towns as he promised before. But instead of telling me the way he said—“I like you to stay here with me for the period of fifteen years, perhaps the arm may be cut unexpectedly, so that you may rejoin it again.” Of course, I did not blame him as he told me to wait for fifteen years, because he did not know that I am not a ghost. Although I believed that my trick would not succeed, then I left there at night without his knowledge and continued my journey as usual, until I entered a very clean town which resembled an earthly town, even at first I thought that it is my town.

H
aving entered this 10th town of ghosts all the inhabitants of this town rushed out from their houses to see what happens. Immediately I saw them then I ran directly to one of them who resembled an earthly person among them, but when I approached him he was my dead cousin who had died in my town since I was six and an half years old. Immediately I saw him clearly that he is my dead cousin I ran to his back and held him. After that he told all the inhabitants of this town who came to the scene that I am his junior brother. But when they heard so from him all of them shouted with gladness at a time. After this, I followed him to his house with some of the ghosts to greet him at home. Because all of the inhabitants of this town were respecting him as he is the one who brought Christianity to their town. Having reached home, he told one of his servants to give me food and drinks at once, again many of the prominent ghosts of this town were sending a variety of food and drinks through him to me for “well come”. Furthermore, when it was about eight o'clock in the night all the chiefs and king, with famous and prominent ghosts of this town gathered together at the front house
of my cousin, then the whole of us started to drink all kinds of ghosts' drinks, we were also dancing, drumming and singing the song of ghosts until daybreak, and this was the “Well come Function”. It was that day I saw that some of these ghosts were dancing in such a way until they cut into halves and again both these halves were also dancing until they joined together as usual.

After this “Well come Merriment” ended and when the day broke all of them went back to their houses, but still my cousin was receiving uncountable letters of congratulation, with presents from various towns and villages which were under this 10th town of ghosts, who were unable to come personally. Having gone back to their houses, I told my cousin that I want to sleep as all of us did not sleep throughout that night, so he opened a reserved room, then I slept on a bed which was specially decorated with expensive clothes. Of course, it is only in the Bush of Ghosts such a bed could be found. I woke up at two o'clock p.m., because I had not slept on such a bed since I left my wife the “Superlady” in the Nameless-town. After that I took my bath, then I ate and drank to my satifaction, because in the Bush of Ghosts whenever you eat drinks must follow. Then my cousin started his story after he died before he came and was established in this 10th town as follows:—

“Immediately I died in our town I went to several towns which perhaps would be suitable to establish the Christianity works, but I could not get such a suitable town until I reached here which is suitable. As you know that before I died I was one of the staunch members of the Methodist Church in our earthly town and I am still
praying to God that I shall carry on the services until the last day, which is the ‘judgement-day' because I could not die again for the second time until that day. At the same time that I came to live in this town, first of all, I went direct to H.M. the King of the Bush of Ghosts and informed him that I want to establish the Christianity works in this 10th town, so he agreed after several meetings to consider this request with himself and his councillors. After this request was approved, the second thing I did, I went round this town, then I found a suitable ground on which I built the first church and it was 90 × 70
ft., the roof was covered with flat bark of the big trees, because there were no iron sheets or other things to use at that time, and then was written on the upper entrance of the main door as follows—‘THE METHODIST CHURCH OF THE BUSH OF GHOSTS'.  It was written in bold letters with the white juice of a tree, because there was no paint at that time and also the wall which is mud was painted inside and out with a kind of leaves which yielded the grey colour when ground and mixed with water. Of course, as I was all the while sub-letting a house with a ghost during the time that I was in activity in building the church, so also after it was been completed, although some ghosts helped me. Then I found another suitable ground again and built this house in which we are at present, but it was three months before it was completed with the help of some young ghosts of this town. After that I went round the town on a Saturday evening with a flat hard wood as a bell and told them what is to be doing in that house.

“On Sunday, which was the 1st Sunday to attend or to
hold the 1st service there, I noticed that only two young ghosts attended with me out of about four million ghosts and ghostesses who are living here. Because all of them did not know anything about God or believe that there is God who created them or believe that no other creature is above them. Though, I preached and encouraged those two who attended with me, after that the service closed at 11 a.m. But I did not attempt to hold the evening service on that Sunday. It was a short dead stump of a big tree which has a large hole inside which was beaten as the toll-bell or church-bell whenever it is time for service, because this dead stump is near the church. On Monday, I formed a campaign, I was preaching from house to house, encouraging and explaining what is God to these ghosts until the second Saturday. On Sunday which was the second Sunday, the attendance showed fifty old, thirty-eight young and forty-five child ghosts respectively who attended and all totalled = 133. So, I was exceedingly glad on that day. After the service closed at 11 a.m. I told them that all the young with children should come for Sunday-school at 2 o'clock or if any of the old who like may come as well. Again, the attendance for the Sunday-school showed fifty-seven. Of course the attendance in the evening service was very poor and was only forty-eight in all, because all ghosts like to go to the farms for their food every evening.

“After the sixth month that the church was opened, I converted it to both church and school. I was teaching ghost children of this town how to read and write and also scripture which is the main subject. But there was no paper, chalk or slates on which to write as in the earthly
towns so, instead of that I cut a 4 ft. sq. flat bark of a tree as blackboard and also cut 1 ft. sq. for each of the scholars as slates and all were using coal as chalks. As we were using the church in the ordinary day and also on Sunday as a church, then I built a big separate house as church with the help of both scholars and members of the church, because the scholars are making the former one too rough before Sunday. This second building nearly touched the former one. After some years I have had more than fifty ghost teachers out of these scholars and over nine hundred scholars were attending the school regularly. Having trained many bright scholars as teachers and headmasters, then I built over a thousand churches with schools in all provinces which are under this 10th town. So I am using the 10th town as headquarters for the rest and also the Synod is held here yearly, because I am the bishop at present. My work after the church services is only to be supervising churches and schools. Although there are many supervisors, directors of education and education officers who are carrying on their tasks according to the rules and regulations given them to my satisfaction. In my leisure hours, I taught many scholars who had been passed out from the school's sanitary work, surveying, building, first aid nursery work, but only this ‘first aid' nursery work I could teach them, because I am not a qualified doctor.

“After all these students had qualified for these various trades and carrying them on successfully to my entire satisfaction, then I introduced new plans of houses and luckily all the ghosts who are the rulers of this town agreed to follow it. Then new houses were built which
made this town to link up as the most beautiful town in the Bush of Ghosts. Though it was only disqualified at that time for the hospital which was not established in the town, although there was provision for it but no qualified doctor who could carry on the works.”

The second day my cousin took me round the town and I saw many churches, schools, hospitals and many houses which are built in modern styles. But when I asked him about the hospitals who is acting as a doctor and as nurses or who are treating the patients there as he himself is not a doctor, so he replied—“Do you see my wife?” I said—“Yes.” Then he told me in short about her as follows—“She is the native of a town in Zulu country, the town which has now been converted to a big city after she had died there. Before she died, she was a well-educated girl and after she had finished her schooling, her father sent her to a part of England as a doctor student, but after she had qualified as a doctor, she returned to her father's town and in the same week that she arrived home she met with an accident and died suddenly as a result of injuries. Having died she left that town, she was going here and there as a dead young person could not stay in a town which belongs to earthly persons, because that is forbidden for all deads and she was roaming about until she reached this town, then we got married as both of us are deads. But as this town is well improved but only disqualified by the hospitals which were not then in it, so as she is a qualified doctor before she died, she established hospitals in this town and acted as the Director of Medical Services. Having trained several thousands of nurses and medical officers.”

Again I asked him these questions:—(1) Who ordained you before you came up to the rank of a bishop? (2) Who is supplying you all kinds of medicines and apparatus which you are using in the hospitals? (3) Who are supplying you all the educational books, religious books as bibles, songs books and papers or stationery, as the flat bark of the trees are no more in use by the scholars? (4) From whom are you getting the iron sheets and all the building materials, as all the houses are no more thatched with grasses and flat bark of the trees? Then he replied as follows—“(1) As I am carrying on this Christianity work for many years and faithfully to all creatures and did not doubt once for everything that I am doing, so one night, I dreamed a dream and heard the holy voice from heaven that I am ordained as a bishop from heaven as from this night. When the day broke which was Sunday and I explained this news to all the members they confirmed it since that day. (2) Thank you, we are getting the medicines with apparatus for the hospitals from the dead medicine-makers and hospital apparatus-makers who are expert in such works before dying and living in the Deads' town which belongs only to deads. (3) All deads who are the publishers of religious books, educational books and stationery before they died and went to live in the Deads' town are supplying us from there. (4) Deads are supplying us everything that we need here after we had entered into the agreement with them and they are acting for us as the ‘Crown Agent'.”

Having answered all the four questions, then we came back to the house. After that he called his four daughters
and two sons, after a while his wife who is the Director of Medical Services came back from the hospitals and showed me to them and explained how I am related to him. Those two sons were still attending the school, but the four daughters had passed out from the school and also qualified as nurses and doctors.

After the third day that he had told me his stories, then he told me to give him the home news which went thus—“After you had died and before I myself entered into the Bush of Ghosts none of our family die, but one of them was sick seriously for three weeks before he became well. After the sixth month that you died a war of slavery broke into the town and drove me into this Bush of Ghosts, even I was seven years old before I entered it. At present I could not definitely say anything about their condition at home, because I left there over twenty years ago. So since I left the town my mind does not rest at all at a time except to return and I am still looking for the way until I reached here and instead of seeing the way I was only punished in the bush by the merciless ghosts. So I am exceedingly glad as I meet you in this town and I shall be very glad as well if you will allow me to live with you here for a short period to rest for some time for all the punishment which I had met past and then to continue to find the way as before I reached here or I shall be glad too if you will tell me the right way direct to the town.”

After I told him some of my stories in this Bush of Ghosts, then he asked this question—“Have you died before entered this bush?” I replied—“Not at all sir.” But at the same moment that this reply came out of my
mouth, he shouted with his loudest voice “Ah!” together with some ghosts who sat with us at that time. Then he said—“You will not be able to live with deads, of course, as you soon become a full ghost and also hear the language of ghosts, so by that I will teach you until you will qualify to be a full dead person.”

After some weeks he handed me to one of the principals of his schools as a new scholar, then I started to learn how to read and write. In the evening my cousin would be teaching me how to be acting as a dead man and within six months I had qualified as a full dead man. And again as I had a quick brain at that time, so I finished my schooling after a few years. Then I was sent without hesitation direct to the Deads' town as a student to learn how to judge cases, as police and also all the branches of the court works. Having become expert in this field, then I returned and started the works. But at the first time we built police stations, courts and prison yards in every part of the town, because these works were not yet established before I reached there. After that I taught many ghosts who had just passed out from the schools all these works and later on I was chosen as the chief judge of the highest court which is the “Assize court”. So I was judging all of the important cases which were sent to me from the lower courts.

One day my cousin called me to discuss about his four daughters with the two sons. He asked me who would marry the four daughters, because they are at the ripe age to be married, but no earthly man in any part of the Bush of Ghosts could marry them and again no earthly ladies for the two sons to marry. When he asked me like
this, I told him to let us advertise them on the earthly newspapers several times, perhaps we would get those who would marry them, he agreed to my suggestion and told me to advertise them on the earthly newspapers. “So do you like to marry one of them? If it is so, please, choose any and only one of these numbers—733, 744, 755, 766 and 777, 788 respectively, so that his or her picture may be sent to you or to come to you personally.”