SPOOKS 3: UNHOLY HOURS

Day or night, The Three Kings chapel in Goa remains shrouded in silence. But the peace of daytime transitions to eeriness after sundown. Visitors often experience an uneasy feeling or see creepy shadowy figures. If a legend attached to this church is to be believed, this was once the site of violence and bloodshed. What if the violence and bloodshed still linger on as a haunting?

One strange story. One disturbed place. Many unsolved questions. This is Spooks, a new miniseries in the world of ‘Rumors’. 

Just like Rumors, Bound helps brands and storytellers create high-quality, knowledgeable, and stellar podcasts with our end-to-end podcast and video production services. Reach out to our producer, Aishwarya Javalgekar, at aishwarya@boundindia.com to get started on your podcasting journey or analyze if a podcast is right for you.

‘Rumors’ shines a light on the darkest corners of India, where fact and fiction combine into magical and haunting stories.

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Written and voiced by Chandrima Das, a best-selling author, storyteller and an avid collector of dark tales. Follow her @hackiechan on all social media platforms.

Produced by Aishwarya Javalgekar
Sound design by Aditya Arya
Artwork by Artisto Designz

Disclaimer: This show is for entertainment purposes only and is not intended to outrage, insult, defame, or hurt any religion or religious sentiments, beliefs, feelings of any person, entity, class or community and does not encourage or propagate any superstition, black magic and/ or witchcraft. While every effort has been made in research, we do not make any representation or warranties with respect to the accuracy, applicability or completeness of the content.

Transcript

Chandrima Das  00:00

This show was made for entertainment purposes only. It is not intended to outrage insult, defame or hurt any religion or religious sentiments, beliefs feelings of any person, entity, class or community and does not encourage or propagate any superstition black magic and or witchcraft. listeners should exercise their discretion churches evoke a sense of peace. They're hallowed domes, pews and altars are designed to make you feel one with God. Their stately architecture lends them a sense of grandness. But what if, for a few unholy hours, the church evoked none of these emotions? What if it had once been the site of violence and bloodshed? And what of the violence and bloodshed still linger in that space in the form of a haunting? One strange story, one disturbed bliss and many unanswered questions. This is books, a miniseries From the world of romance. When viewed from the clouds southco appears as a vast, unbroken expanse of green bordered by the blue Arabian Sea. But looking closer, a small white dot stands out like an island in the sea of green this.is the three kings church it sits on the highest point in the area, a hill called Gollum Gollum Hill overlooks the sleepy village of consoling which likes to keep its distance from the touristy beaches. So if you want to visit the three kings church, signboards aren't going to help, you'll just have to ask the locals for directions to this hidden gem. And it's a hidden gem precisely because of its isolated location. The top of Quilliam, Hill offers postcard perfect views from Green carpeted fields to tiny coconut trees dotting the lanes below. And though it is isolated, the three kings church doesn't feel completely unfamiliar. You may recognize this tiny White Chapel. From the wedding scene in the film Finding funny day or night, this tiny chapel remains shrouded in silence. But what feels like these during the day, easily transitions to eeriness after sundown. Visitors are drawn here by a desire for peace and the stunning view. But many go back with an unexpected bonus, an uneasy feeling in the pit of their stomach. Over still creepy experiences of seeing shadowy figures. This established in 1599, the three kings church has undergone several repairs and reconstructions over the centuries. The current structure that stands is the one from 1721. It was originally named the Chapel of Our Lady of remedies, or Nasir send your others radios in Portuguese. But today, the Sanctum is popularly known as the three kings chapel. So why the change in name one version of its origin story says that the church was renamed after the biblical three wise men who came to baby Jesus in the manger and presented him with gifts. This is the version commonly accepted by the church and the villagers have cancer column. Every year on the sixth of January. They hold the feast of three kings at this chapel to mark the end of the Christmas season. But another story gives a different and more deadly explanation for the church's present day name. For this story, we must go back to colonial times when the Portuguese ruled gua. Back in the day, three power hungry Portuguese kings wanted to rule this land. The tussle between them went on for many years, causing unrest and bloodshed in the region. Finally, driven half mad by his lust for power. One King, Hall girl Vanga, formed a plan to sabotage his two rivals. King Hall girl launched his plan into action, by publicly declaring his desire to end the feud. He invited the two other kings to meet with him at the Chapel, so that together they could figure out a solution. The two other kings soon arrived in all their finery. They ate and drank and made promises to share power. They would put an end to the violence. But little did the two kings know that they were being tricked by the cunning Holger Holga had mixed poison in their food. As expected, soon after dinner, the two kings died a painful death. Now that his competition had been taken out, Holger was ecstatic. He rushed out of the chapel and announced himself as the ruler of the land. But news of his foul play quickly spread among the locals. They were livid. They didn't want a trickster and manipulator to rule them. A mob formed. They chased Holger demanding justice, cornered and hunted pulga hid inside the church, but the mom just wouldn't leave. Surrounded by enemies. Unable to escape, Holger ended his life by consuming the same poisoned food. He had fed his rivals. They say the villagers found the dead bodies of all three kings inside the church, they buried the bodies within its premises. Since then, the church became known as the three kings church. Legends whisper that the story did not fully end here. Local say that the three kings never left the chapel. They had bickered away in life, and their dispute continues after death. Their lust for power has kept them bound to the earthly realm as wandering spirits. Today many people believe that this tale of power and destruction causes the hauntings at the three kings church. It is the voices of three dead kings that people hear after dark. It is the who moved the furniture. But while the lord of three kings church is tragic, and quite unique, the modern day accounts of the Haunted church sound far more like your generic horror flick. One account speaks of a couple on their honeymoon who decided to pay the church a visit. Since the church isn't easy to find, they got lost on the way there. The two reached Quilliam Hill close to sunset, when they walked up to the door of the White Chapel. They found it locked. Dammit. Now what? They had traveled such a long distance. They really wanted to see what was inside. So the two broke the lock and walked in. Inside the church, strange experiences unfolded. The couple heard disembodied voices. furniture moved when they weren't looking. The man went into an inexplicable trance, and his newlywed wife struggled to break him out of it. When she finally managed to shake him back to consciousness, he was a mess. In the end, they declared this as the worst experience they had on their honeymoon, even beating out their hotel room with a broken AC. This sounds like a typical cautionary tale about not breaking the Rules designate. Another account speaks of a magnetic pole. A tourist had found his way to quill him Hill late in the evening. Much like the first account, he found a lock on the church door. But this guy was a stickler for the rules. So he stayed out of the Forbidden church, and simply took a walk around Quilliam hilltop instead. During the walk, the man received a phone call. He kept walking and talking, not paying any attention to the direction his feet were taking him in. When the call ended, the man found himself at the doorstep of the locked Church. The hair on the back of his neck stood up. A powerful presence was watching him, a presence that had magnetically pulled him towards the church. When he wasn't paying attention. The man ran for his life. As he made a hasty escape towards his bike, he felt another strong call. He felt like a large tree that grew right outside the chapel, was calling him turn around, look back, turn around, he swung his leg across the bike and scooted out of there. All the way back, he made sure not to look in the rearview mirror. What the man didn't know was that there's an urban legend around this tree. They say that as you leave the area, the tree will call to you to look back at it, but Come What May you must ignore this call. Otherwise ways this presents will follow you home. Unlike the first story of the rule breaking honeymooners, this one promises a safe escape if you follow the rules. So what's really going on here? Why are all the stories around the three kings church so obsessed with showing what happens when you break the rules or follow them? There's an unspoken law about haunted monuments and public spaces. The minute you forbid people from going somewhere after dark, it works like a signboard declaring this place is haunted. The three kings churches rule of no one being allowed after sunset has done exactly this, much like the signboard outside punker fort in Rajasthan. So it comes as no surprise that this chapel gets listed among the top haunted destinations in Goa. And unfortunately, it also ends up attracting curious tourists and locals who want to experience a haunting those who would like to debunk the creepy stories of the three kings church say that the lore much like Dona Paula is just a thrilling story designed to titillate tourists. But is it really do the church authorities really want tourists to linger here after dark and like tourist guides, the church doesn't benefit if random people come to visit hoping to see ghosts, or the church authorities really want is some peace and quiet, and the biggest challenge they have to this peace and quiet lovers. The spot on top of Quilliam Hill is sufficiently isolated and private. It also provides a great view. Both criteria attract couples to this picturesque spot, offering opportunities to get cozy after dark. Over time, the old law of the three kings has proven insufficient to keep them away. So the newer accounts of rule breaking and rule following were needed as a fresh update during these pesky frisky couples to stay the hell away. religions around the world and across cultures have used stories to get people to follow the rules for millennia. So it would come as no surprise if the authorities at the three kings church were trying to do the same. So whether or not this place is haunted. If you'd like to visit the three kings church on your next trip to go make sure that you get there well before 6pm No spirits may come chasing after you if you break the rules. But a Padre or none just might Thank you for listening to spooks, meaning series from the world of rumors. I'm Chandra Madonna's collector and Teller of dark tales and the creator of this podcast in collaboration with bound, a company that helps you grow through stories produced by Aishwarya as our shaker and Sound Design by Aditya Arya. Join me every Friday on this quest into the lesser known side of the subcontinent. Subscribe rate and review for new episodes every week. Sleep safe tonight. Who knows what awaits in the dark?