Category Archives: Myths

Sacred narratives

The Color Red and Fireworks – Chinese Myth

Nationality: Asian American
Age: 20
Occupation: Student
Residence: Santa Barbara, California
Performance Date: 03/22/2021
Primary Language: English
Language: Mandarin, Korean

Context: I went over to my friend, JK’s, place in Santa Barbara, and we went out for lunch and talked about what we did over Chinese New Year. I asked him if he knew why people wear red and make so much noise over Chinese New Year, and he told me a myth explaining the reasoning behind these things. 

Story: 

MW: “Is there a specific reason people wear red and are supposed to make a lot of noise on Chinese New Year?”

JK: “A long time ago there used to be a monster called Nian, which also means “year” in Mandarin. The monster would come to town every year to eat people, and so the people feared the monster. One year, an old man was passing by the village and noticed everyone evacuating. He was curious, so he asked why everyone was in such a hurry. The people responded by telling him that they always evacuated the village every year around this time because they were afraid that the Nian was going to eat them. The old man thought about what to do for a while and told the villagers to stay because he had a plan. The old man advised the villagers to decorate all the houses in the village with red. When the Nian came to the village, the old man and the villagers made noise using fireworks and drums. The Nian was scared and surprised and started to run away. The villagers continued to make noise and chased the monster until it was too tired to run. The villagers killed the monster and ever since, it has been a practice every year to wear red and have fireworks.”

Background: My friend first heard about this story at his elementary school when his teacher who was an Asian American told the class why Chinese New Year was celebrated and the reasons behind the practices done on the New Year. JK said that there were many reasons why people wear red on Chinese New Year, and this myth only explained one of the reasons. He states that people wear red because people believe it represents good luck and joy after the color red helped scare away the monster. People also typically wear red undergarments and underwear for good luck. The money that children receive on Chinese New Year also comes in red envelopes. 

Thoughts: Although I always knew that people were supposed to wear red on Chinese New Year, I never really knew the reasons behind wearing red. After hearing about the myth, I did some research on my own and went back home to ask my parents if they knew why people wore red on Chinese New Year. My parents said that some people believe that red scares away ghosts and evil spirits, while others say that it’s best to wear red and gold to go with the festive mood of the celebrations. The death of the Nian monster also signified a new beginning for the villagers, so it is also customary for people who celebrate the new year to wear new clothes, get a haircut, wash and change clothes and the sheets, and clean the house to signify a fresh new beginning. 

The Zodiac Ox and Second Place – Chinese Myth

Nationality: Asian American
Age: 61
Occupation: Software Developer
Residence: San Jose, California
Performance Date: 02/12/2021
Primary Language: English
Language: Mandarin

Story: “You’re already familiar with the twelve Chinese zodiac signs, but why do you think the ox is only second place and the second zodiac sign? The ox is actually very talented and good at swimming. He is a very hard worker. On the day of the Jade Emperor’s great race, he woke up very early and got straight to work making his way towards the finish line. The last part of the race was a great river that all the participants had to cross. The rat who won first place made it to the river at the same time as the ox, but the rat couldn’t swim, so he hid in the ox’s fur. The ox unknowingly carried the cunning rat across the river, and the rat jumped across the finish line off the ox’s back in the last second. That is why the ox had to grudgingly settle for second place, and the rat got first place in the great race.”

Background and Context: This is one of the twelve stories told about the twelve different Chinese zodiac signs that serve as the symbols for each year in the lunar calendar. My mother was born on the year of the ox in 1961, and the animal sign for this year (2021) was the ox. My father was born a year earlier than my mother in the year of the rat. My father told me this story of the ox after I went back home for dinner on Chinese New Year, which he heard from his parents and grandparents growing up in China. He used it to explain why working hard like the ox is good, but working smarter like the rat is better. He also stated that my mother is such a hard worker because she was born in the year of the ox, and why my mother is very good at swimming. My father says that while people born on the year of the ox are stubborn, they don’t typically hold grudges for long.

Thoughts: I didn’t really think much of the myth. Growing up, I was used to hearing the stories of the twelve zodiacs, and my parents would use the stories of the year of the snake and the year of the horse to explain the behaviors of me and my brother and what we had to watch out for. My father believes that the zodiac signs signify actual behaviors in people who are born in the associated years, but I see it as more of a coincidence. From what I’ve seen, the specific behavior of an individual that matches their zodiac sign is used to explain why the zodiac signs are significant in Chinese culture, any discrepancies that do not match associated behaviors can be dismissed due to multiple other factors such as weather when they are born, month or time of birth, the relationship of the individual’s zodiac sign with those of their family, their siblings, and many other factors. I went to a Chinese school for six years from elementary to middle schools, and my teachers would tell me similar stories. There were many similarities in the ways that my Chinese teachers and my parents treated these legends, as they refer to them with at least some form of truth and application to the real world. Even when talking about students or gossiping about coworkers, they would refer to the zodiac signs when discussing their behaviors.

The Ever-Celebrated Victory of Good Over Evil

Nationality: Indian
Age: 65
Occupation: Teacher
Residence: Baroda, India
Performance Date: 25/04/21
Primary Language: English
Language: Hindi

The Interviewer will be referred to as ‘I’, and the informant as ‘M’. Translations for Hindi words will be italicised and in parentheses. The Informant is a 65-year-old Punjabi woman, born and raised in Gujarat.

I: Many people have heard about Holi, but don’t know the story behind it. Could you share this story? 

M: So, Holi, an ancient Hindu festival, actually means burning, and is derived from the name Holika. Holika was believed to be a person, the sister of the demon king Hiranyakashyap, who wanted to avenge his brother’s death at the hands of Lord Vishnu (the preserver, protection). So, he did intense penance and appeased Lord Brahma (the creator of the universe, knowledge), who finally gave him a boon that made him (virtually) indestructible. What happened afterwards is predictable, because… he became arrogant, he started thinking he was god, and told everyone to worship him as if he was. His wife was scared, but Brahma’s son (Narasimha, who later does kill Hiranyakashyap) told her to confine herself and worship Lord Vishnu, who would keep her safe. Then, her son was born, Prahlad, and he was very devoted to Vishnu… and—and no matter how hard he tried, Hiranyakashyap couldn’t kill him—he refused to worship Hiranyakashyap as god—even though he thought he was near all-powerful because of his gift, right? So, he went mad with rage and then decided to take his sister’s help to burn his son alive in a fire—this sister being Holika. She also had a boon that made her immune to fire, so she could hold him within the fire, but he prayed to Vishnu, who called—who summoned wind that blew the shawl from Holika onto him—oh, the shawl was what made her immune to fire, it was only if she wore that. This is why Holika was burned alive, and Prahlad survived. Hiranyakashyap was obviously angry, thinking of more tricks to kill his son, but that’s another story. Basically, the day Holika burned started being celebrated as ‘Holika Dahan’, the victory of good over evil, light over darkness. 

I: Thank you! And when it comes to the celebration itself, the festival, what is generally carried out, other than the colours? 

M: People gather around—in a circle, around a pyre-looking thing, essentially signifying Holika, and they burn this as almost a cleansing ritual. You take all the flammable things you have, old things, trash, wood, anything that you want to get rid of, for a new beginning. After this is burned, people take these ashes, along with, I believe, some sandalwood and leaves, and put them on their head to promote health. On the next day, there’s the festival of colours—that’s what Holi is usually thought of… associated with, more widely. The play with colours is thought to enhance health, body and mind, and you also clean your houses to allow positive energy to flow into the home environment and get rid of bad things, like insects. It also has a big significance because… people come together, you see, it strengthens their bond when they play during this festival. This can turn enemies into friends, removes any differences between people, you give gifts to your family and friends, and you put colour on… nearly everyone you see around you. We also have this drink called Bhaang, which the adults usually drink during this celebration, it is a derivative of grass (Cannabis)… It’s celebrated before the summer and after the winter, so people are feeling lazy and tired, so at this time, Holi brings a lot of activities and happiness, new starts. People feel much better. It also brings in the spring!

I: Is the story of Holika the only origin of Holi? Because I’ve noticed that the Holika Dahan festival is more prominent in the North, not as much so in Mumbai.

M: There are many stories, relating to Holi being celebrated within Hindu stories. There’s one about Radha and Krishna and their love, their divine love… another one from the South has to do with Shiva saving the world… I’m not as familiar with those, if I’m being fully honest, but it is celebrated and thought of very differently in different states, but it’s always a festival of colours and happiness, of fun. 

Analysis:

There is a lot that comes with Holi, the favourite festival of many, but it is known largely for its more familiar portion of the festival of colours. However, the story behind it is not as familiar to people, and neither is the ceremonial burning of Holika, at least outside of North India. Most Indian festivals celebrate the victory of light over darkness, good over evil, and Holi is no exception. Another such festival would be Diwali, the festival of lights, in celebration of Lord Rama’s defeat of Raavana. This story specifically, the one of Hiranyakashyap, Prahlad, and Holika, has a lot of mythological significance due to its divine characters (Hinduism is polytheistic): Brahma, the creator of the universe, and Vishnu, its preserver, two out of the Trimurti of principal Hindu deities (the third is Shiva, the destroyer, also part of the continuation of this seemingly never-ending epic story). This continued emphasis on the victory of good over evil says a lot about the values that ancient conceptions of Hinduism and its traditions are built upon: the belief that good will always win, and light will always prosper, even after the darkest times. Simultaneously, the way these celebrations are conducted, the traditions and rituals within them have a lot to do with colours and light, but primarily with a coming-together of the community, where people find joy and love in each other, no matter what, and have fun. The coming of spring is also a widely celebrated thing across the world, and this celebration usually falls sometime in March, around the time the Springtime comes in, in the states that do experience it!

Kohelepelepe

Nationality: Asian
Age: 55
Occupation: Businessman
Residence: Honolulu, HI
Performance Date: 4/23/21
Primary Language: English

Background

Informant is college educated and has lived on Oahu, Hawaii for their whole life. Informant was dating the Interviewer’s mother for around a year.

Context

Informant discusses a Hawiian legend about the formation of the Koko head crater on Oahu. Koko head is a long dormant volcano.

Transcript

Informant: “Kohelepelepe?”

Interviewer: “Yes.”

Informant: “Koko head, if you look at it from an aerial shot, it looks like a vagina.”

Interviewer: “Oh, alright, there we go!”

Informant: “And the story is, is that Pele’s sister, Hi’iaka, they were fighting over, uh, Kamapuaa, the pig god. So pele’s sister threw her vagina, landed by koko head, and that’s how that became Kohelepelepe, which means labia lips. If you look at it from the top it looks like-”

Interviewer: “It looks like a vagina.”

Informant: “It looks like a lady.”

Thoughts

    Many Hawaiian legends, like the legends of many other cultures, have a strong emphasis on human reproductive organs. While throwing a vagina may be something completely foreign in modern western culture, stories like this exist not only in Hawaii, but other cultures as well. Off the top of my head, there’s an inuit legend of a woman cutting off her breasts and throwing them at her brother who raped her in her sleep; the sister ran away and the brother went after her, the pair would go on to become the sun and the moon. The sterilization of any talk of human anatomy in not only western legends, but western social norms as well shows how taboos are culture specific, and that actions are only taboo when society says the topic is taboo.

Irish Leprechaun Folk Belief

Nationality: American
Age: 53
Occupation: N/A
Residence: Chicago, IL
Performance Date: 05/03/2021
Primary Language: English

Main Piece:

“If you follow a rainbow there is supposed to be a Leprechaun’s pot of gold at the end. I first heard that from my Father or grandmother, who was from Ireland. Leprechaun’s were thought to tricksters and when my children were younger, they would make traps with sticky surfaces in attempt to catch them, so they could lead them to their pot of gold.

Background:

My informant is a 53-year-old Chicago native. Her grandmother, on her father’s side, was born in Ireland before immigrating to America. She does not remember exactly when she first heard this tale but it was from one of her Irish parental figures. She recalls how around St. Patrick’s day she would use this knowledge and help her children try to trap them. She said she never really used the knowledge else-wise.

Context:

The informant is my mother. I acquired this information during a Facetime call with her, on which I asked if she had any folk knowledge or beliefs.

My Thoughts:

Leprechauns are widely known mythological, folk figures. Especially around St. Patrick’s Day in at least America, many younger children will try to capture them and some people will even dress up as them. Their role as tricksters is relatable to many other cultures that have different figures that represent the trickster stereotype. I think the association of Leprechauns with money, meaning their gold, might show an Irish opinion of money as being hard to keep hold of and as often being lost to swindlers. I also think its likely that the traditional depiction of Leprechauns was very possibly tweaked by American capitalist to better advertise St. Patrick’s Day as a holiday.