It’s almost two months, yet the building that houses the famous Haunted House is still swarmed by people. My city, Surakarta, witnesses a popular culture ritual that is unfolding. In this post, I would argue that even ghost now attains a status as a popular culture product. Solo, Javanese Culture, and Mysticism As one of the oldest city in Java, Solo once functioned, and it does still function, as the center of Javanese culture in Indonesia. The Keraton Kasunanan (Kasunanan Palace) which was the ruler of Solo, now serves as the cultural guardian of the city. Tracing back to the history of Solo, an assimilated form of Islam is the biggest influence in the city. I argue this as an assimilated form of Islam to refer to the reality that in Solo, Islam is not practiced solely adapting its Arabic version as taught by Muhammad PBUH. Solonese practice both Islam as inscribed by the holy prophet and Javanese cultural belief ( kejawen ) which includes the rituals which are not inscribe...