And Suddenly The Room Was Cold

Before I come to the actual story or incident, I would like to share something about myself.

It was back in 1992, when I was just a 14 year old girl, single child of a single parent.

I was never the typical teenager, always a bit withdrawn, serious and very quiet, and drawn to religion and spirituality. (And to be honest, that's what I am like to this day.)

A series of incidents, had brought me to accept Islam as my religion and my way of life a couple of months earlier, the best decision I had ever made in my life.

I had already learnt some simple prayers and the shorter chapters of the Holy Qur'an by heart, but I was not as serious about practicing my newly found religion as I ought to have been.

Back then, I lived with my mother in a small suburb like bungalow in Germany. The house itself always had a slightly sad and weird feel about it. It was maybe built in the late 50's, a quick, emergency kind of construction, and definitely not very well planned. There were odd sounds coming from all nooks and crooks, and though most of them could safely be identified, there was often something that would simply send shivers down my spine.

My room was situated in the basement, with no proper door, just a heavy curtain was hung to safeguard some privacy, and yes, to make sure that the room was always cozy and warm. The room and windows, but they opened merely into 'lightshafts' and were hardly ever opened.

So, in this room I was lying one night, my bed next to the heating and all ready to sleep with my favourite cat curled up on the lower end of the bed. After a bit of reading, I turned off the light and fell asleep.

A chilly air in the room awoke me. It seemed as though a heavy gust of cold air had blown the curtains apart and chilled out the whole room. The cat that had until then slept with me peacefully, had run away, utterly terrified. I myself, was scared. Too scared to move, too scared to think, and definitely too scared to turn on the light.

I felt someone stand right next to the headside of my bed - my fright prevented me from looking around and having a full glance. I merely perceived that it was a huge, black figure, with piercing reddish eyes. It somehow communicated to me that it has come to get me. The evil radiated by this 'thing' had left me paralysed with fear. I began to recite the prayers I had learned, the testimony of faith, but that thing would just repeat it viciously after me, and laugh in the most wicked manner I could imagine. I had almost lost hope, when the words "A'oodhu billahi minash-shaytan-ir-rajeem" (translated that means: I seek refuge with Allah from the accursed Satan) passed my lips. I had hardly spoken those words, when the thing was gone, and the room had a normal feel again.

I was still lying on my bed, but the terrible fear had gone. I quickly turned on the light, made arrangements to offer the night prayer which I had not offered yet. As I went to the washroom, I still felt that evil presence lurking outside my room, but now it was anything but huge. It was dwarfed and whimping. Still having a quite childish mind, I lolled out my tongue to where I thought it was, then I prayed and went to sleep, without any further disruptions.

That was my first experience of this kind. It lies back 20 years or so, but still gives me goosebumps. There were many other incidents, too, and I hope to write about them one day.