MANILA — A chilling reminder of a superstition about answering knocks on doors is circulating on Twitter, prompting many to share their own scary experiences involving strange visitors.

On Tuesday, Palanca award-winning writer Jerry Gracio chronicled an exchange he had with his partner about visiting the province.

In one tweet, Gracio shared their conversation recalling strange knocking on the door past midnight:

Kanina, he tells me: “Kagabi, may kumatok, madaling araw.” I had to tell him, “H’wag mo bubuksan ang pinto. Alam mo ba kung ba’t pag kumakakatok nagsasabi ng ‘tawo’ or ‘tao po’?” “Bakit?” he asks. “Para malaman ng nasa loob ng bahay na tao ang kumakatok at hindi engkanto.”

Kanina, he tells me: "Kagabi, may kumatok, madaling araw."

I had to tell him, "H'wag mo bubuksan ang pinto. Alam mo ba kung ba't pag kumakakatok nagsasabi ng 'tawo' or 'tao po'?"

"Bakit?" he asks.

"Para malaman ng nasa loob ng bahay na tao ang kumakatok at hindi engkanto."

— Jerry B. Grácio (@JerryGracio) March 23, 2021

The anecdote quickly made the rounds on Twitter, as netizens shared their own similar stories, with a number saying they have the same understanding of the origin of “Tao po.”

Several recalled being told the same by their grandparents, or other family members.

Others, meanwhile, said they had mistakenly thought the expression was short for asking if there was anyone home, instead of the visitor identifying themselves as human.

Philippine historian Ambeth Ocampo, in a 2018 entry for his broadsheet column “Looking Back,” said the practice of saying “Tao po” when knocking “dates back to pre-Spanish times.”

“Doors then had no peekholes as we have today, so before opening the door to let the ‘knocker’ in, one had to make sure it was not a wild animal, which couldn’t speak and identify itself as ‘tao’ (human),” he wrote.

“Our ancestors also believed that many dangers lurked outside the safety of their homes, so doors were not opened to ‘aswang,’ elementals and evil spirits that, like animals, could not say ‘Tao po!’ to trick the household into letting them in.”

In responses to Gracio’s viral tweet, a number shared what they believe to have been encounters of the supernatural kind, upon hearing knocks on their door.

Here’s a look at some of those reactions and stories:

Tunay huhu. >6yrs kami ng jowa ko sa lumang bahay. Kakalipat lang ngayong March. unang binilin ko sa kanya pagkalipat ay silipin muna pag may kumakatok. Kasi dun sa luma, nagkamali akong buksan kasi halos magwala na sa lakas ng katok. Walang tao. Ilang linggo din na bad dreams 😰

— GMako| PandemyaBagoKampanya (@gMako13) March 23, 2021

no'ng bata pa ako, naranasan ko 'to sa dati naming bahay. sa sala kami natutulog and nando'n din 'yong main door. ang weird kasi no'ng binuksan ko 'yong pinto, wala namang tao o kahit na ano, may ilaw kami sa labas ng bahay aT MAY ANINO NG MALAKING TAO

may gate kami.

— Irth Laggui (@irthralgia) March 24, 2021

Nung hindi pa narerenovate bahay namin palaging may kumakatok ng tatlong beses tuwing madaling araw. Kinilabutan tuloy ako nung nabasa ko re, same na same sa sinabi sakin ni tita ja nung nagkwentuhan kame 🥶 https://t.co/BFT0mY7Jsw

— Levi? (@zxcvbrn) March 23, 2021

dati gising kami ni mama ng midnight tas may kumatok sa pinto 3 times e nakalock gate tas kami lang yung tao sa bahay HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA tas sabi niya "wag mo pansinin, pag kumatok ng tatlong beses, maligno yan" 🤣🤣🤣 https://t.co/gyrgTG5zfx

— rej (@_regynmorales) March 24, 2021

Sa amin naman, namboboses. Akala ko dumating na from work si Ma, kasi narinig ko na tumatawag siya. Pero walang kumatok. Deadma, baka guni-guni ko lang.

Tas yung bunso namin na special-needs/speech-delayed, kinuha ang kamay ko at pinapabukas sa akin ang pinto.

Narinig din niya. https://t.co/PPWg1VuFkp

— Anne need U like water🌊like breath🌬️like rain🌧 (@AudreyHrtbrn) March 24, 2021

hahahahaha i have the same experience sa bahay

every 1-2am may biglang kakatok ng tatlong knock may time interval pa like

Knock___10s___Knock___10s___Knock

walang "tao po" basta lang makakatok kung may tao mang papasok sa gate maingay yun kase yero sya mej sira pa😬 https://t.co/Pzl9pc87eU

— pewiwinkle✨ (@theperrytale) March 24, 2021

Omg, happened last year around 2am. Nagising na lang ako may kumakatok. Sabi ko "pasook" kasi antok pa ako. 😭😭

Tinanong ko sa neighbors ko nung umaga , tulog na raw sila non 🙃🙃 https://t.co/00cMBG2rso

— william (@wilyam_e) March 23, 2021

Huhuhu! Totoo po. Minsan nagbukas ‘yong Tita ko here sa Pangasinan mga around 10PM po tulog na mga tao, may kumakatok daw tapos nu’ng buksan niya walang ni isang anino. 😭 https://t.co/R1wv8jtUjw

— timmy #OustDuterte (@OfficialTimmyme) March 23, 2021

Storytime may time nung 8 ako tas kami lang ni lola sa bahay. At 10 pm we heard this unnaturally loud racket coming from the kaymito outside tsaka yung bubong malapit sa puno. Yung parang may nagwawala sa taas. What frightened me, and I'm getting goosebumps while I'm typing this, https://t.co/dZddqz2e5G

— Daxr's art twidder 🦆🦆🦆 (@daxramires) March 23, 2021

was her suddenly shouting in the angriest voice I've ever heard from her (she was a soft-spoken woman),

"HINDI KAMI NANG-AANO SA INYO! LUBAYAN NIYO KAMI! MAY BATA DITO!"

I was confused kase akala ko pinagalitan ako pero she was whisper-shouting to me,

"Kuya halika dito dali!"

— Daxr's art twidder 🦆🦆🦆 (@daxramires) March 23, 2021

Reminds me of that one time in my room when I woke up to knocking sounds but they were coming from 𝓲𝓷𝓼𝓲𝓭𝓮 𝓶𝔂 𝓬𝓵𝓸𝓼𝓮𝓽. 🥲🥴 https://t.co/U63Wv2z9zQ

— JL Javier (@jltjavier) March 23, 2021

Kaya literal na sinisigawan ko yung mga kumakatok ng hindi nagsasalita eh "SINO YAN?!?!" hAHAHHAAHAHAHA MAGSALITA KASI KAYO HABANG NAKATOK https://t.co/vVbGUBI9hF

— angel ♡ (@torresangelxx) March 23, 2021

Basta sabi ni tatay sa'min huwag magbubukas ng pinto sa gabi pag hindi magsalita at magpakilala. https://t.co/zG4xCrH3VJ

— C A M I L L E (@kamilApotato) March 24, 2021

I always thought the “tao po” was the person outside asking if there was anyone inside. As in “may tao po ba sa loob?” Now i know. 👍🏻

— Chinky (@chinky_blue) March 24, 2021

Yan din sabi ng nanay ko. My maternal lolo was the barrio healer when he was alive kaya lumaki kami sa mga kwento tungkol sa mga engkanto.
It's in an island near Dolores. 😊

— MommaCᴬᴰᴺ (@couchpotatochi) March 23, 2021

This is so true. Iyan din ang sabi ng lola ko sa akin.

— DarkMOde (@scarface_28) March 23, 2021

TRUE NAMAN. SA LOLA KO 'TO UNANG NARINIG.👍

— MARIA DEBLWA FERA (@_deblois_) March 23, 2021

akala ko yung "tao po" ay shorter version "may tao po ba diyan?"

kala ko naghahanap ng tao, yun pala para sa sarili yung "tao po" 😭😭😭😭😭 https://t.co/KS3XpuWAVm

— nexx. (@niksus_) March 23, 2021

Learned this when we were in Capiz. The way some things we are accustomed to actually have practical and sensible origins, is amazing. Such rich details I wish more people knew about. https://t.co/3D2utwYgUU

— Dawnavie (@_dawnavie) March 23, 2021

😳wait...so instead na question kung may tao sa loob ng bahay ang totoong purpose pala eh pag declare na tao ang kumakatok?😱 https://t.co/FDz9D31cqa

— Anj🇵🇭🇺🇲💙 (@AYAwkoseo) March 23, 2021

Kaya pala yung mga nang totokhang, katok lang.

Walang "tao po."

— NieI (@nielissimo) March 23, 2021