In the folk religion of Montserrat, a jumbie is a ghost, or spirit of the dead.
Origin
People who have been evil during their lives, are destined to becomes instrument of evil (jumbie) in death. This phenonemon is widely believed in by people in the English-speaking Caribbean states that were colonized by the British and which practised "Obeah", a form of mystical wizardry that encompassed traditional African beliefs merged with Western European, primarily Anglican, images and beliefs concerning the dead.
Description
Whereas Western culture "sees" a ghost as a white misty figure, jumbies are imagined as dark shadowy figures. Jumbies can shape-shift, usually taking the form of a dog, pig or more likely a cat. So heed warnings about playing with random animals.
Powers
Various islands including Antigua and Barbuda in the east to Jamaica in the north and as far south as Trinidad have had a long held set of folklore that include the jumbie.
Jumbies are said to possess humans during ceremonies called jumbie dances, which are accompanied by jumbie drums. Jumbies receive numerous small offerings from Montserratians, such as a few drops of rum or food; they are also the subject of numerous superstitions. Four couples perform a set of five progressively quicker quadrilles during the jumbie dance, switching out with other couples until someone is eventually possessed by a jumbie.
There are many recommended ways to avoid or escape jumbie encounters such as leaving a pair of shoes outside of your; jumbies don't have feet and would spend the entire night trying on the shoes to get them to fit before moving onto you. Leaving a heap of sand or salt outside your door; jumbies are compelled to count every grain before moving. When coming home late at night, walk backwards so that the jumbie would be unable to follow you inside. If one is being chased by a said jumbie, cross a river, as they cannot follow over water. If push comes to shove (no pun intended) jump off of a cliff, as jumbies do not walk off cliffs either.