2006-09-13 20:18:51 · 5 answers · asked by Nasika 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Mythology & Folklore
I lived in Hanoi in Vietnam for a year and was told many stories about the beautiful lakes that that exist in the city. The main story that comes to mind is the tale of the Turtle in the Lake....
Many years ago there was a prince that lived in a castle surrrounded by a beautiful misty lake in the centre of Hanoi, the lake protected the prince from thieves who knew of the great treasures kept within the castle walls. One day a band of thieves hollowed out a large tree on the bank of the lake, they made a boat and sailed their way towards the castle. The prince saw the boat approaching the castle, he knew he could not protect himself against the thieves, so he transfomed himself into a turtle and crept into the lake. The thieves plundered the castle, taking all the treasure and burning the castle.
To this day, if you are lucky, you can still see the turtle full of sorrow, swimming slowly in the lake.
On a grimmer note- The Vietnamese traditional religion (of which there are many variations) is a combination of Animism and Bhuddism. There is a widely held belief that by eating a particular animal you take on the spirit of that animal and some of its powers. This is why it is very popular to eat cats and dogs. It is not something you would eat everyday. Cats are known as 'little tigers', and if you had a big challenge ahead of you it would be quite normal to visit a cat restaurant, this way you would gain a cats cunning and strengh. (I cannot remember what powers a dog gave you). I used to hate passing the cat and dog restaurants where the animals were dead and skinned, hooked up in the windows on display (like Chinese restaurants display duck).
But this is their belief, and it is not for me to judge with my Western eyes.
2006-09-13 20:52:03 · answer #1 · answered by beany 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Asia???? You know you are talking about at least 3-4 nations with more than 4000 years history. Which region do you want to know about?
2006-09-13 20:30:10 · answer #2 · answered by P J 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
How about the Great Wall of China? There are bodies of workers all over the inside of the wall. They were used for filling because they did not have enough stone.
If you believe in ghosts and such there should be enough haunted souls there.
2006-09-13 20:37:28 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
nup i just thought id get the point peace
2006-09-13 20:20:34 · answer #4 · answered by ereeeey 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
kjlk
2006-09-13 20:26:18 · answer #5 · answered by George 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋