Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
NAGA AND NGEUAK: WATER SERPENTS OF LAO LEGEND
The origins of the
naga
are debated. Snake cults are thought to have existed in Southeast
Asia long before the arrival of Buddhism in the region, particularly in Cambodia, so it is
possible that this snake-like icon is indigenous. Another possibility is that the naga is a
cultural migrant from Hindu India. In Hindu mythology, the naga, Sanskrit for serpent, is
sometimes associated with the god Vishnu in his incarnation as Narayana, a cosmic dream-
er reclining on the body of a giant naga and floating on an endless sea. Buddhism adopted
the icon, and a story relates how, while meditating, the historic Buddha was sheltered by a
seven-headed naga during a violent rainstorm. In Laos, it is probable that the present-day
form of the naga, called
nak
or
phayanak
in Lao, is a fusion of both indigenous and impor-
ted beliefs.
The naga is both a symbol of water and its life-giving properties, and a protector of the
Lao people. An old legend is still related of how a naga residing in a hole below Vientiane's
That Dam stupa was known to rise up at critical moments and unleash itself upon foreign
invaders. While the naga is mainly a benign figure, a similar water serpent, the
ngeuak
,
is especially feared by Lao fishermen. Believed to devour the flesh of drowning victims,
ngeuak are said to infest the waters around Si Phan Don. As for the existence of naga in
modern-day Laos, the Lao point to “proof” that can be seen in a photograph displayed in
some homes, restaurants and places of business. The photo shows a line of American sol-
diers displaying a freshly caught deep-sea fish that is several metres long; some copies of
the photograph have the Lao words
nang phayanak
(Lady Naga) printed below. Skeptics
argue the picture is of a giant oarfish, found off the west coast of the US in the 1990s, but
many Lao still believe that the photo depicts a naga captured in the Mekong by American
soldiers during the Second Indochina War.
Don Khong
The largest of the Four Thousand Islands group,
DON KHONG
draws a steady stream of
visitors, most of whom use it as a base to explore other attractions in Si Phan Don. That said,
it's nowhere near as popular as Don Det and Don Khon, further south, which means it's far
easier to find a peaceful place to watch the sunset.
Now connected to the mainland by a bridge, Don Khong is surprisingly wide for a river
island, and is known locally for its venerable collection of
Buddhisttemples
, some with vis-
ible signs of a history stretching back to the sixth or seventh century. These, together with
the island's good-value accommodation and interesting cuisine, based on fresh fish from the
Mekong, make Don Khong the perfect place for indulging both adventurous and lazy moods.
Don Khong has only three settlements of any size, the port town of
Muang Sen
on the is-
land's west coast, the east-coast town of
MUANG KHONG
, where most of the accommod-
