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Pop (Thai: ปอบ, pronounced [pɔːp̚]) is a cannibalistic spirit of Thai folklore. It manifests itself as a creature that likes to devour human viscera.[1] Pop is related to the Phi Fa spirit.
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A traditional legend says that a long time ago, a flower could take control of them. Once, the prince said the magic words and entered the body of an animal. His servant overheard those words, repeated them, and entered the body of the prince. The servant fooled people into thinking he was the prince. Seeing this, the prince quickly entered the body of a bird and rushed to tell the truth to his wife. Upon hearing this, the prince's wife had the servant's body destroyed, and the prince challenged the false prince to enter the body of an animal. When the servant foolishly entered and took control of the animal's body, the real prince re-entered his own body. The servant was unable to re-enter his body as it was destroyed. Henceforth, his revenant spirit goes from one body to another, eating its intestines.[2]
Village legends say that this ghost lives inside a sorceress and leaves her body during sleep. Before the witch can die, the spirit has to find a body into which the Pop will be transmitted by consuming some saliva from the old sorceress.
If these ghosts succeed in haunting someone, they will eat that person's intestines while sleeping. One rumored way to get rid of them is to call in a healing dancer, chasing away the Pop by spinning dance. When the patient is watching the dance, Pop will enter into the spinning movement and be chased from the body.
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The Pop was mentioned in Ramphan Philap (รำพันพิลาป, "Lament of Bewailment"), a poem by Sunthon Phu around 1842–1843, in a single line of text. It is the oldest evidence indicates Pop in the pages of history.[3]
In November 1892, coinciding with the reign of King Rama V, there was a record of a Pop in the present city of Uttaradit. It was said that there was an old Laotian of Phuan descent named Ta Puang (the old Puang), who came to build a house and live behind the temple, Wat Pak Fang. It was only known that he floated on a raft along the Nan River and came ashore. Although already old, but Ta Puang's skin was still white, radiant, and firm, unlike that of ordinary elderly. Not long after he came to live there, three local young women died of unknown reasons in a row. Folks then spread rumors that he was a Pop.
The story of the Pop of Uttaradit was recorded in Vajrayana Viset (วชิรญาณวิเศษ), which was a publication distributed among the upper-class circles at that time.[4]
Later in 1908, at Ban Songyae in the present-day Yasothon Province, the origin of St Michael's Church, the largest wooden church in Thailand. A Pop had supposedly possessed members of five families in this village. The story calmed down when two priests, named Desaval and Ambrosio, performed an exorcism. Some Ban Songyae residents later turned to Christianity.[5]
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In 2002, there was news published in the Kom Chad Luek newspaper that there were pair of Pop running rampant in the suburb of Bangkok, around Bang Bon or Bang Khae. This pair of Pop appeared in the form of a monk holding a dog and a nun holding a cat. Some believe that they came across the border from Laos. Frightened people reported the event to the police.[5][4][6] This event also caused the price of nard (หนาด), a medicinal plant that Thais believe its leaves can ward off ghosts to sell very well, and the price increased from 20 baht to 100 baht per plant. To make matters worse, there are also rumors that they have previously resided at Wat Suan Kaew in Nonthaburi Province, regarding this issue, Phra Phayom Kalayano the abbot of the temple said, "It's nonsense and delusional."[7]
In 2007, following the mysterious and sudden deaths of four villagers in Kalasin Province's Sam Chai District, some 1000 residents raised some 35,000 Thai baht for an exorcism of Pop, allegedly dwelling in two of the female villagers.[2]
In 2012, 10 males died suddenly in Pakse, Champa Province, Laos.[citation needed] People believed that these deaths were caused by Pop.
In February 2024, a young woman told her story on TikTok that she was 6 months pregnant and on her second pregnancy. One night, she left the house to go out to eat about 10:00 pm. She smelled betel nut and cordial following her. After that, she also had a strange dream about an old woman biting her pregnant belly. She believed it was a Pop who came to eat her unborn child.[8]
In academic terms
In the technical description, it is described that 'Pop is a social process'. That is to deny people who are alienated from society or the community. The accused is a Pop who will be expelled from the village community. This belief was more prominent in the upper northeast and some central parts. It may not be found in other regions.[9][10]
Adaptations
Thai films about Pop include 1989 movie Ban Phi Pop (บ้านผีปอบ), "The House of Pop",[11] 1990 movies Ban Phi Pop 2 (บ้านผีปอบ 2), "The House of Pop 2", Lang Phao Phan Khot Phi Pop (ล้างเผ่าพันธุ์โคตรผีปอบ), "Holocaust of the Ogre Clan", Tanha Phra Chan (ตัณหาพระจันทร์), "Midnight Shade 2", and Pop Phi Hian (ปอบผีเฮี้ยน), "Pop is strong enough", all by Ekapan Banleurit,[12] as well as Phi Lop Pop Mai Lop (ผีหลบปอบไม่หลบ),[13] Phan Phi Pop (พันธุ์ผีปอบ), "The Breed of Pop",[14] and Phi Pop Chom Tingtong (ผีปอบจอมติ๊งต๊อง), "Pop at its Most Crazy".[15] In 2023, Tee Yod, "Death Whisperer" became the fastest Thai film to gross 100 million baht of the year.[16][17]
It also appears in movies with a mixture of horror and comedy, such as the 2008 film Ban Phi Poep (บ้านผีเปิบ), "The House of the Spirit Gorging itself",[18] and Krasue Fat Pop Thai: กระสือฟัดปอบ (1990) with Chutima Naiyana, in which Krasue fights against Pop, judged to be a more malevolent spirit than Krasue by the villagers.[19] Most movies about Pop are comedy horrors.
Chao Nang, "The Princess's Terror",[20] 1992 Mae Nak Choe Phi Pop (Mae Nak meets Pop),[21] 1997 Pop Phi Fa[22] and 2009 Pop Phi Fa (remake)[23] are Thai television soap operas (ละคร) based on the Pop legend. This ghost is a popular subject in the same manner as Krasue or Krahang and humorous depictions,[24] as well as gory ones, are common in Thai comics.[25]
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