Setting: A park in Lahore, late evening. Crickets chirp, a light breeze rustles the leaves. Two friends, Usman (superstitious) and Danish (rational thinker), are walking together, sipping chai from a thermos.
Usman: (slowing his pace) Oye Danish, let’s not sit under that tree. It’s already getting dark. You know what they say — jinns live in trees at night. Especially banyan trees. I’m not risking it, yaar.
Danish: (laughs) Usman, again with the jinn stories? We’ve been walking here every evening for months. I’ve yet to see one jinn — not even a baby one waving hello.
Usman: That’s because you don’t believe. They show themselves to believers, you know. My khala’s son’s neighbor’s cousin sat under a peepal tree after Maghrib once. Came back home muttering Arabic backward for three days.
Danish: And I’m guessing his cousin’s neighbor also saw a churail during a blackout, right? Bro, half of these stories start with “my cousin’s friend’s uncle’s…” and end with “went to a peer sahib.” Ever heard of a thing called carbon dioxide?
Usman: (confused) What does gas have to do with jinns?
Danish: It’s science, meri jaan. At night, trees stop photosynthesis and start releasing CO₂. If you sleep under a tree, especially in a closed space or with little air circulation, you might feel dizzy or short of breath. That’s not a jinn — that’s just your lungs saying “I need oxygen!”
Usman: Hmm… okay fine, maybe science has something to say. But still, how do you explain all the old folks saying “never sit under trees at night”? That many people can’t be wrong.
Danish: Tradition doesn’t always mean truth, bhai. People used to think eclipses happened because a dragon was eating the moon. Doesn’t make it true. Think about it: if trees were jinn headquarters, wouldn’t there be more Breaking News: Tree Possession! headlines?
Usman: (grins) You’d be surprised. That Express News report about a haunted mango orchard in Multan was real, okay?
Danish: Real entertainment, maybe. And besides, you’re the same guy who gets scared of WiFi signals and keeps your phone in the fridge during a thunderstorm.
Usman: Safety first!
Danish: Look, I’m not mocking you, honestly. Cultural stories are beautiful — they reflect fears, values, and imaginations. But we shouldn’t let them control our choices when there’s no proof. Ever seen any solid evidence of jinns in trees?
Usman: No, but that doesn’t mean they don’t exist. Some things are beyond science. Like… like my grandmother’s dream where she saw a jinn in our backyard and we found a dead chicken the next day.
Danish: Dead chicken? Bro, that’s probably just a hungry stray cat. Or maybe your neighbor was practicing BBQ and things got out of hand.
Usman: (laughs) Okay okay, that does sound possible.
Danish: Let’s do this — let’s sit under that tree for ten minutes. I’ll keep the thermos of chai close in case any jinn wants to share a cup.
Usman: Hmm… only if we keep reciting Ayat-ul-Kursi the whole time.
Danish: Deal. And if a jinn shows up, I’ll offer him some samosas too. You think they prefer spicy or mild?
Usman: Definitely spicy. They’ve been living in Pakistan for centuries.
(Both burst out laughing and walk toward the tree, chai in hand, under the dimming sky.)
Science Vs Superstition 
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