Phaya Naga
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The Phaya Naga or Naga are serpent-like creatures believed by locals to live in the Laotian stretch of the Mekong river. People in both Laos and Thailand attribute the Naga fireballs to these creatures, which are likely to be extremely overgrown giant mottled eels (Anguilla marmorata), an undiscovered species of eel or just methane (see external links).
[edit] History
Lao myth maintains that the Naga are the protectors of Vientiane, and by extension, the Lao state. The Naga association was most clearly articulated during and immediately after the reign of Anouvong. Leup Phasun, an important poem from this period discusses relations between Laos and Siam in a veiled manner, using the Naga and the Garuda, to represent Laos and Siam, respectively. The Naga is incorporated extensively into Lao iconography, and features prominently in Lao culture throughout the length of the country, not only in Vientiane.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Mekong River Commission paper on eels (pdf)
- Dr. Kanoksilpa, a pediatrician at Nong Khai hospital, studied this phenomenon for four years and concludes the most likely explanation to be seasonal accumulations of methane gas. (Panida, 2538 B.E. : 78-79)Thai folk : The knowledge of Thai life-style[1]
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