In the thick and dark jungle in the mountainous regions in Thailand, it is said something ghostly lingers. The Kong Koi ghost is said to be thirsty for travelers’ blood. But what exactly lurks behind the trees?

Deep within the forests and mountains in southeast Asia, there is a ghost lingering, hungry for travelers’ blood.. Known as Kong Koi, this being occupies a place in folklore that blends terror with mystery. Called the “one-legged demon,” it is bound to night, shadow, and the unexplained dangers of the wild.

Read More: Check out more ghostly tales from Thailand

The Phi Kong Koi (ผีกองกอย), is found in folklore in many parts of Thailand, stretching as far into Laos and Malaysia as well, being a part of many folklore’s, although the descriptions and ghost stories of this entity varies greatly. What is really haunting the thick forests in these parts?

The One-Legged Ghost

This particular ghost is not the easiest to describe as there are many variants. Most people never see the ghost at all, but claim to have heard it echoing in the night. The name Koi Koi, is given after the sound the ghosts make. It is described as a one-legged ghost, screaming Koi, koi, koi from its fly-like or beak mouth. 

Sometimes the ghost is described as an old woman hopping on one leg, screaming about how hungry she is. Some also describe it looking like a monkey or langur in the dark. In most cases, it is described as something ugly that can’t climb the trees and is after people passing through their domain in the jungle.

The Langur Ghost: The spirit of a deceased langur is said to inhabit the body of a living one. This transformation turns the animal into a fearsome, blood-sucking being. Also, among some groups that if one drinks the blood of a langur, the body will become invulnerable and immortal.

It is also vampiric in its nature and bordering as a vampire like creature and corporal spirit. The Kong Koi ghost is said to suck blood from travelers sleeping in the jungle. It is therefore advised that those going through the jungle should keep their feet covered, or crossed when sleeping. 

The Karen or Kayin group in southern and southeastern Myanmar have a different belief of the Kong Koi as well out for blood. According to them, the Phi Kong Koi is seen as a small, agile creature with small, sharp teeth and fangs used to suck the blood of its prey for nourishment.

The Fish Stealer

In some Lao folktales, Phi Kong Koi is depicted stealing food like fish from traps out of hunger, rather than solely preying on humans. In some retellings, the Kong Koi ghost even marries a human and have children with them. Sometimes it’s voluntarily, sometimes through kidnapping. 

According to the Tai Dam people in Nong Sung district, Mukdahan province northeast in Thailand, they have their own version of the Kong Koi ghost. They believe that Phi Kong Koi is a long-haired, very small  woman with backwards feet and red hair. Some say that she has a body shape similar to a monkey, but smaller than a monkey or a gibbon. They speak in opposites and riddles. 

They also believe that the Kongkoy ghost is living in caves or hollow trees, and foraging for food by catching fish in streams or rivers. Sometimes she steals fish or people’s belongings. It is also believed that fish or valuables found along forest paths should not be taken, as they belong to Phi Kong Koi, who will come to reclaim them. If taken the ghost may harm you by pulling out their livers, kidneys, intestines and eating them as food while they sleep

The Haunted Forest: The stories of the Kong Koi ghost seem to stretch across entire nations and beyond. One of the places it is said to haunt is the ancient “Dong Phaya Fai” (Forest of the Fire King) in northeastern Thailand. It had a terrifying reputation because of the numerous deaths it has claimed. It is said that anyone who enters rarely escapes alive, due to its rugged terrain. The area is teeming with ferocious animals and malaria, and is further complicated by tales of ghosts and spirits. Before the railway came through in the late 1800s, it could only be traversed by foot. The Phaya Fai forest became the Phaya Yen forest when the railway was successfully built. //Image: Ahoerstemeier

The Buddhist Monk Against the Ghost

One of the more well known sightings of this particular ghost comes from a Buddhist monk in Thailand, part of the Thai Forest Tradition. Luang Pu Waen Suciṇṇo (หลวงปู่แหวน สุจิณโณ; 16 February 1887 – 2 July 1985) was a former abbot of Wat Doi Mae Pang in the Chiang Mai province.

The Buddhist Monk: Luang Pu Waen Suciṇṇo spent his life as a Thudong monk until he became disabled. He lived alone, practiced alone in forests, and preferred seclusion. Until a royal Thai air-force pilot spotted him meditating in the sky, Luang Por Waen was a hidden gem in rural Thailand. Though he didn’t like fame, this incident made him the most popular monk of Thailand in that decade. One day, a doctor had a rare chance to ask him about the incident of the air-force pilot. ‘Do you think I’m a bird’ – was the reply of Luang Por. // Source: Wikimedia

One of the stories he did tell of though, was about the Kong Koi ghosts. He said that when he traveled in the jungle in Khammouane in Laos, with fellow monk, Luang Pu Tue Ajala Thamฺmo, they fought with many Phi Kong Koi at night. 

He described the Phi Kong Koi as the size of 13–14 years olds, thin with bulging bellies, dark brown skin, dark hair, and a chubby nose. Armed with small crossbows or arrows and shouted “Koi”. The group he was travelling with fought back by meditating, which protected them from the Phi Kong Koi. At dawn, the Phi Kong Koi surrendered and invited both of them to their home.

Do what you will with the fantastical tales about the fabled monk and his adventures as you will. What were the things they fought against in the jungle, really? Some say that it actually could have been what they called the Kha Ra Dae (ข่าระแด) an ethnic group, rumored to be cannibalistic. Although this is not really confirmed at all. 

Who were the Ka Ra Dae?: The term Kha in Thai, is in this context used as the word slave and the Laotian name of the tribe. It was often used on a group of people living in the jungle in the Mekong region that Thai people were enslaved. The Kha people do not call themselves as “Kha”, but call themselves as “Bru”, which means “mountain.” This happened until the reign of King Rama V as he started banning slavery. Could these encounters just be with other tribal groups in the jungle, and the stories about ghosts and blood sucking spirits sprouted from there? 

Origin of the Koi Koi Ghost

Koi koi is not the only name given to this blood-sucking vampire ghost. As most Thai ghosts, it is named as Phi (ghost) and something else. It has been called the Phi Pong (ผีโป่ง) or Phi Pong Kang (ผีโป่งค่าง; ‘mineral lick ghost’) as well as Phi Teen Diao (ผีตีนเดียว; ‘one-footed ghost’).

The Mineral Spirit: There is an additional explanation: Phi Pong refers to a spirit associated with natural salt licks (din pong), areas where wild animals such as deer, gaur, and elephants gather to obtain essential minerals from the soil. The spirit is thought to guard and oversee these sites, which are vital to the survival of wildlife.

As mentioned earlier, there is a lot of controversy about exactly where the stories about jungle ghosts come from. Many think that the encounters of the Kong Koi ghost is actually an encounter with other tribal people living in the mountain and jungle regions, and the ghost stories were actually from a fear of the unknown and also a dose of racism between the different groups.. 

The word koi (กอย) however has most often been used to mean “An ethnic group having black skin, curly hair in the Malay Peninsula, also known as Sakai.” Sakai is in this case referring to the aboriginal peoples of Malaysia. This term in this context most likely refers to the Orang Asli or the Semang groups of people in Malaysia. 

Now, the tales about the Kong Koi ghost are told in so many places that it is difficult to narrow it down to one specific group the stories first came from though. The theory that the jungle ghost is actually a jungle tribe that hasn’t been seen for a long time, has been much discussed. 

Footprints and Modern Sightings of the Kong Koi Ghost

Although the ghost stories about the Kong Koi ghost started in a time when the jungle and mountains were bigger, thicker and more difficult to go through and more uncertain at what actually was inside there, the stories about sighting the ghost have continued to this day. And much like with Bigfoot, it often starts with some mysterious footprints. 

In September 2016, strange footprints were found at a cave in the forest in mountainous Loei province in upper northeastern Thailand. This is also one of the more sparsely populated places in the country. The picture of the footprints taken by tourists visiting the Din Phiang cave on top of Phubobid. After posting them online, they went viral and reached the news. 

The picture seemed to show human feet, only smaller with three toes, more like a monkey. They were shown to some elders and a Buddhist monk, who claimed it had to be of the ghost. 

Perhaps it was only the footprints of a monkey or a langur, animals long connected with the legend. Perhaps it was only a hoax or a prank played on the tourists? The director of a local cultural agency said Phi Kong Koi are real and that they are ethnic group which has not been seen for a long time though. Could it be that the ghost stories are actually just long lost tribes living secluded in the caves and thick forest. 

An alleged sighting of the ghost people could follow on camera in mid-August 2024. This was from one posting on Youtube claiming his home in Surin province, also called Isan ,in the lower part of northeastern Thailand, had been invaded by the Phi Kong Koi. He and his wife had only been living in the house for about three months when  they began to hear strange tapping or knocking sounds on the outer wall of their second-floor bedroom almost every night. 

When investigating, he found nothing so he installed surveillance cameras, but nothing showed up. He sprinkled powder on the balcony and on the stairs leading up to the rooftop. The next morning, he discovered what appeared to be a large, human-like footprint, but only the right foot. It had six toes and a long, pointed big toe. He was convinced it was the footprint of the Phi Kong Koi. He insisted the event was real and not part of a content stunt. It is worth noting he was a Youtuber.

The videos started to catch attention, even ending up on the news. Associate Professor Veerachai Phutthawong, or Professor Odd, a lecturer in the Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Kasetsart University, had another theory though. If it were a real ghost, the force of walking wouldn’t put so much weight on the ground to leave such clear footprints as in the picture. But if it’s a human footprint, it’s possible that the foot stepping in ash, salt, or flour could appear larger because of the water evaporating. 

The mystery remained unsolved and in the quiet hours between sunset and sunrise, when shadows stretch long and paths disappear into darkness, the memory of Kong Koi still lingers in the imagination. Then again, if not a prank and not a ghost. Is it more comforting to have a strange human hopping around your house at night, or is it perhaps even worse?

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References:

<j)hya Anuman CJlajathon &dited by sr(argaret Boughlin 

Kong koi – Wikipedia

LAOS- Folklore Spirits and Legends: The Kasu, Phi Kong Koi & More – Studocu

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Luang Pu Waen Suciṇṇo – Wikipedia 

Tai Kha

Folktales of the Kong Koi Ghost
Lao Folktales: Phi Kongkoi, the Ghost Named Kongkoi – Nye Noona

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