Pelesit and Bajang charms photographed in Malay Magic,1900
Actual primary plate6 diagrams inspected; exact printed title Bajang and Pelesit Charms. Documentary ritual witness, not creature anatomy; individual charm-side assignment unconfirmed.
Overview
Malay Magic describes the Pelesit as resembling a house cricket, while expressing uncertainty about the insect identification. As the Polong’s plaything, it goes before that spirit and enters a victim tail first, then chirps. It can also be directed by an owner to seek a particular person.
Skeat records women keeping it in a bottle and feeding it rice or blood, and burying it when they wish to dispose of it. In the narrated treatment of an afflicted person, the familiar answers a healer through the patient’s voice, naming its owner. Plate6 reproduces diagrams identified as Bajang and Pelesit charms. These are historical accounts of attributed possession and countermeasures, not diagnoses.
Origins & earliest records
Malay Peninsula; source-specific recorded tradition
Records & interpretation
Directly read source passage; historical collector framing retained.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
Malay Magic
Chapter VI, Birth-spirits, printed pp.329–331; plate6
Family & connections
A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.
Primary records and illustrations
Malay Magic
Chapter VI. Chapter VI, Birth-spirits, printed pp.329–331; plate6
Passage directly read. Colonial collector classifications are attributed, not normalized across living traditions.
References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Historical collection / primary recorded accountMalay Magic — Chapter VI, Birth-spirits, printed pp.329–331; plate6Research access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
Historical ritual documentPelesit and Bajang charms photographed in Malay Magic,1900
Actual primary plate6 diagrams inspected; exact printed title Bajang and Pelesit Charms. Documentary ritual witness, not creature anatomy; individual charm-side assignment unconfirmed.
