Pageblug is a Javanese term meaning 'deathly plague'.
I use the word 'deathly' instead of 'deadly' because the plague isn't just deadly (capable of producing death), it is deathly (suggestive of death, deaths are certain).
The plague itself means a lot more than a widespread disease, it means affliction.
In 1972, Pageblug descended upon three adjacent areas in Yogyakarta. The areas, Patangpuluhan, Sindurjan, and Bugisan, had a series of numerous deaths. For 6 months, death occurred once a week. The cause varied. Some died of old age, some died of illness, and some died for no apparent reason at all.
Death ceremonies were held more often than the locals could bear. People waited in terror for the sound of kentongan (a hollow large piece of wood, used to alarm people for danger or death by beating it). Especially when reports of paranormal sightings surfaced. Some people claimed they had seen four apparitions walking pass the areas holding a keranda (metal frame used to carry corpses) above their heads.
People prayed. They even asked Keraton (the royalties) for help. But nothing changed.
After 6 months, as it came without warning, it went silently.
By the time Pageblug ended, the death toll had reached well over 30.
It is now remembered as a horrid moment in Yogyakarta's long history.
I use the word 'deathly' instead of 'deadly' because the plague isn't just deadly (capable of producing death), it is deathly (suggestive of death, deaths are certain).
The plague itself means a lot more than a widespread disease, it means affliction.
In 1972, Pageblug descended upon three adjacent areas in Yogyakarta. The areas, Patangpuluhan, Sindurjan, and Bugisan, had a series of numerous deaths. For 6 months, death occurred once a week. The cause varied. Some died of old age, some died of illness, and some died for no apparent reason at all.
Death ceremonies were held more often than the locals could bear. People waited in terror for the sound of kentongan (a hollow large piece of wood, used to alarm people for danger or death by beating it). Especially when reports of paranormal sightings surfaced. Some people claimed they had seen four apparitions walking pass the areas holding a keranda (metal frame used to carry corpses) above their heads.
People prayed. They even asked Keraton (the royalties) for help. But nothing changed.
After 6 months, as it came without warning, it went silently.
By the time Pageblug ended, the death toll had reached well over 30.
It is now remembered as a horrid moment in Yogyakarta's long history.
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