The Good Spirit

January 22, year 2001, I had gone to meet my client, the "Yuvray", prince of an erstwhile Princly state in India. I had to clear the pending bills of a heritage hotel interior project, I had completed.
The Yuvraj ordered his attendant to put me up at the adjoining guest room, since pending work had to be completed the next morning.The attendant instead, took me to the new Heritage Hotel, since the guest rooms section had an electrical fault.

The Hotel, a small palace, was in the midst of a two square kilometre garden, couple of kilometres away from the palace. I occupied the Royal suite.

The room had a bath with a sink, tub and even the water closet all made from imported glass. The tiles on the dado too were of imported mirror. In short, the place was truly Royale.

The only other human on the entire campus was an eighty five year old puggy (care taker), who stayed in a small cabin next to the entrance, a half kilometre away from my Room.

I decided to make the most of the Royal facility. After a bath, I jumped into the bed, bouncing gently on the Royal bed. And almost instantly fell asleep.

I felt someone waking me up, tapping on the shoulder thrice. Opening my eyes, I saw the bathroom lights on. I swayed to the bath and switched it off. I looked at my pager; it was 2:27 am. It may have taken maybe ten minutes before I dozed off again.

Again, I felt the gentle three taps on my shoulder. I woke up to find the bathroom lights on. This time I was more awake, and walked to the bath. On reaching the doorsill, I realised that I had enacted this once before in the night. The pager showed 5:40 am.

This time I was nervy, and decided to switch on all the lights in the room. Feeling edgy, I walked out into the courtyard, thinking it would be safer outside. The courtyard too looked a little uncanny. I stepped outside the palatial hotel, the wooden gate creaking.

To my relief I spotted the old puggy warming his hands on a small fire.

I walked up to him and he greeted me, in a husky voice.

“You do wake up early, sir?”

I really did not know what to answer him; I did not wish to disclose my status, so I just smiled. The event had me all stressed, and I walked towards a nearby bush to wet it. Just then, the puggy, called.

“Hello Sir, not there, you may go this side” pointing to another bush on the opposite side. I quickly turned around and relieved myself behind the bush.

“Why did you ask me not to go on this trail?”

“This is the path, the Pir (a holy spirit), takes on his way back to his grave, on the edge of the palace campus “

“He is a very good spirit” he added.

“Oh!” I exclaimed.

“Yes” said the old man, “the good spirit does not even allow bad dreams disturb the guests at night here”.

“And how does he do that?”

The old man answered me, and, since then I have never visited that place again.