Our grandparents told us stories about ghosts and mythical creatures and we went back to bed thinking about the monsters under the bed. The idea of them have terrified humans over generations, be it their deadly abilities, origin stories or just their spine-chilling looks. Though there is no certainty about their existence, this Halloween, let's list some spine-chillers for a good night's sleep!

VAMPIRES

Originating in the folklores from Eastern Europe during the late 17th and 18th centuries, vampires were known as the creatures of the night who preyed upon humans and drank their blood. Unlike the good-looking vampires which Hollywood serves us, according to folklore, these blood-sucking creatures appeared to be bloated, pale-skinned with blood dripping from their mouths and showed no mercy to their victims. Irish writer Bram Stoker’s stories in 1897 were inspired by Dracula, Prince of Darkness or the lord of the Undead- Vlad Dracula also known as Vlad the Impaler who was a sadistic Romanian leader who tortured his foes in brutal ways, among which draining the victims from their blood was one.

BANSHEE:

Originated from Irish folklore, banshee is the most infamous mythological creature. Banshee is a female creature who is either described as a hauntingly striking beauty or an old crone who has white long hair, wears a grey cloak and has red eyes. This creature is known to be the harbinger of death to those who laid their eyes on her. The most terrifying quality of a banshee is her painful and disturbing scream that seems to have a bloodcurdling effect on humans.

WEREWOLVES:

Another well-known supernatural creature are werewolves or lycanthropes who have the ability to transform into ravenous creatures. According to mythology, men who were cursed by witches underwent a painful transformation into wolves during a full moon night and with no memory of who they were, went on a killing spree. In recent times werewolves have become the subject of classic horror films and even the object of affection in paranormal romances.

MARE, THE NORSE NIGHTMARE:

In Norse mythology, a mare was supposed to be a demonic spirit that had the ability to induce nightmares in sleeping people. During the night, a mare sneaks into a person’s bedroom, climbs up their chest and provokes terrifying nightmares based upon their darkest fears and anxieties. The victim would experience a heavy weight on their chest and find themselves unable to move or wake up from the nightmare. Mare is the ancient mythological explanation of what is now known as sleep paralysis.

SIRENS:

More popularly known as mermaids, sirens are Greek mythological creatures who attract sailors to their deaths with their beautiful and enchanting singing.

GHOULS:

Ghouls are legendary evil beings who are believed to rob graves and feed on corpses. These demon-like beings look like monstrous and are believed to be shapeshifters and roam around in graveyards to consume human flesh.

DYBBUK:

From Jewish folklore, dybbuk is a creature that will send chills down your spine. A dybbuk is a "dislocated soul" of someone deceased who has taken over a host body to complete unfinished business.

LOCH NESS MONSTER:

Locally known as Nessie, the Loch Ness Monster is a creature from Scottish folklore that is described as 'large, long-necked and with one or more humps protruding from the water'. Various professional expeditions have taken place to seek out the Loch Ness Monster.

BIGFOOT:

Known as Yeti, Sasquatch and Bigfoot are are reported to be gigantic ape-men inhabiting the forests in North America. Bigfoots are believed to stalk the woods, occasionally scaring campers, lumberjacks or hikers.

DJINN:

No, djinns are nothing like our favourite genies but invisible spirits believed to inhabit the earth and influence men to choose wrongly by appearing in the form of humans or animals.