1.

Lady Nak of Phra Khanong (Thailand)

This legend tells the story of a pregnant woman by the name of Nak. She was deeply in love with her
husband Mak, who was sent away to war, and while he was gone, Nak and her unborn child died. A tragedy to
be sure but when Mak returned home he found his wife and child alive and well, and they lived together happily
for some time, before he eventually realised, through a mixture of neighbourly rumours and strange occurrences
at home, that he was living with ghosts. Mak eventually fled and took refuge in a temple (a holy ground that is
off-limits to supernatural entities such as ghosts) which enraged Nak so much that she haunted the region of
Phra Khanong, until she was eventually captured by an exorcist who imprisoned her spirit in an earthenware jar
and tossed it into the river. From there the legend branches off into many different endings as these things often
do. Some say that she was released after being fished out of the river accidentally, while others speak of a monk
the famous Somdej Toh no lesswho recaptured the soul and trapped it inside the skeletal remains of Naks
own body and wore it as a wrist band, and later passed it on for safe keeping to the Royal Family of Thailand.
However, if you prefer a happy ending, then this variation might be for you: Somdej Toh is said to have
captured Nak and convinced her that all would be well when reincarnated, and she could join Mak again in her
future life, and so so she left this world in peace. To this day people still visit the shrine which was created in
Phra Khanong, Bangkok to ask the spirit for favours such as successful births, and that their husband be left at
homenot forced into military service. To visit the shrine go to: Mae Nak Shrine, Wat Mahabut. Phra Khanong,
Sukhumvit Soi 77.

2. The Origin of Singapura

Sang Nila Utama was once the ruler of the Srivijaya Empire. Late in the 13th century, he discovered an
island named Temasik with beautiful white sandy shores. Sang Nila Utama decided that he would cross the
waters to reach this beautiful land. However, as he did so, a fearsome storm descended upon him and his party,
nearly capsizing the boat. In desperation, Sang Nila Utama threw his crown into the turbulent waters and
magically, the weather and the sea became calm, and the crew reached Teluk Belanga (present day Telok
Blangah) safely. Shortly after landing, the king spotted a strange beast, which they reasoned to be a lion
(although its since been proven that there were no lions and so it is more likely to have been a tiger). This
overjoyed Sang Nila Utama who decided to name the island after this symbol. And so the Lion City, or
Singapura was born. Sang Nila Utama went on to rule Singapura for 48 years from the year AD1297 before his
death. To catch a glimpse of this legend in Singapore, you can visit Fort Canning Hill which is said to be the
location of both Sang Nila Utama's palace and burial ground.

3. Pontianak (Malaysia & Indonesia)

The pontianak' is a vampiric creature in Malay and Indonesian folklore, said to be the spirit of women
who died while giving birth. They are said to take on the appearance of beautiful, pale-skinned women with
long hair and are always clothed in white. Its among the most popular folklore told in both countries, inspiring
several films and even the name of the city of Pontianak in Indonesia. This was due to claims that the first
sultan of the city was haunted by the creature. The pontianak is said to be nearby if a baby cries softly or a dog
is whining; its presence is marked with the sudden whiff of a floral-based fragrance, followed by a horrible
stench.

4. The Ap (Cambodia) and The Krasue (Thailand)

This gory old ghost story is told in many different ways and there are almost identical versions in both
Cambodia and Thailand. The tale begins when a beautiful young woman walks outside her house at night. As
she walks, she notices a mysterious red glow in the air, and she walks toward it only to be confronted with the
ghastly floating head of a beautiful young woman. Below the head, the ghost is a mess of entrailsspine and
bloody organs hanging from the neck down. The beautiful woman screams but alas, its already too late. This
particular Southeast Asian myth, may sound bizarre but it's a persistent legend throughout both Cambodia and
Thailand. How this neatly floating head came to be is debatable but the most enduring version of the myth states
that women who abuse black magic may be forced to turn into an Ap or a Krasue as a penalty for their wicked
ways. The strange dark practices of the Ap dont stop there though; shes said to feed on blood and foetuses and
many say is particularly interested in imbibing the innards of pregnant women. Legend goes on to state that the
Ap can be repelled if you put thorny vines outside your house, as the dangly heads with equally dangly
entrails may get caught in them. There are two ways that you can become an Ap or Krasueby straying down
the dark path of black magic, or the Ap herself can turn you into one by having you ingest her saliva. If she
offers you a glass of water, or a quick kiss, we suggest turning her downas politely as you can.

5. Lac Long Quan (Vietnam)

Lac Long Quans story is perhaps the most intriguing of all the myths and legends of Southeast Asia, for
it apparently tells the story of how the Vietnamese people came to be. Its said that dragon blood flowed through
Lac Long Quan's veinsthe Dragon Lord and second Hng king of the Hng Bng Dynasty of
ancient Vietnam. He would take on sea monsters and all manner of enemy to keep his people safe. In fact, all
his countrymen had to do was call his name or Father and he would appear to help them. He spent much of
his life in such a manner until finally, one thing alone stopped him in his tracks: the incredibly beautiful Au Co
an immortal mountain fairy. The Dragon Lord, Lac Long Quan was enamoured of her and so he married her
immediately. Just a short while later, she produced a large sac of eggs, which grew larger and larger until on the
seventh day it was so big that it burst and 100 children were born (each bearing one of the 100 Vietnamese
family names) to the dragon lord and his fairy wife. At first, this new royal family lived in harmony, but this
was no regular king. No, he was of course a dragon, and so he needed to live by water, and the beautiful Au Co
missed her ancestral mountain home so much that she craved to return. So it was that Lac Long Quan took 50 of
the children and moved seawards, where he taught them the necessary skills to survivehow to fish, how to
sew and cook rice and how to wear tattoos to scare away sea monsters. Au Co, however took the other 50
children and moved high into the highlands, where she taught them to raise animals, grow fruit trees and to
build homes out of sturdy bamboo stilts. The couple lived forever separately, but together they watched
over their beloved country. The stories of the suns and daughters that followed explain the rise of Vietnam and
the beginnings of the Vietnamese people as they are today.

6. The Fairy Princess of Mount Ophir (Malaysia)

At the heart of this story is a beautiful fairy princess who lived up the Mount Ophir (more commonly
known by its Malay name, 'Gunung Ledang') and who swore to never take a husband. However, making such an
oath could only attract the unwanted attentions of powerful men. According to the legend of the Princess
of Gunung Ledang, the Raja of Melaka, already married to both the Princess of Java and the Princess of China,
decided that he wanted to take a wife quite unlike any other. A wife of the like that no other King or Prince
possesses. He decided that he wanted the fairy princess's hand in marriage and so he dispatched a group of
his finest warriors including his finest warrior, Hang Tuah to the mountain to deliver his proposal. Upon
arrival, strong winds, singing bamboos and clouds close enough to touch attempted to prevent them from going
any further. However, one of the warriors, Tum Mamat made it through these obstacles, eventually reaching a
beautiful, lush garden where he found four women, to whom he delivered the Rajas proposal.
However, all four women quickly vanished into thin air. Later that night, a withered old woman appeared before
him and demanded that the Raja make for his would-be bride. both a bridge of gold and a bridge of
silver, which would stretch from Melaka to Gunung Ledang. Also requested was a collection of gifts: seven
trays of mosquito hearts, seven trays of mite hearts, seven barrels of beetlenut juice from dried Areca nuts,
seven barrels filled with virgin maiden tears and a bowl containing the blood of the Raja's son. Clearly, the
princess did not want to marry him. The Raja informed them that he was able to meet all but one of her requests
that he would not give the blood of his son. This version of the tale ends abruptly suggesting that the fairy
princess fled to the mountain, where she continues to live in a hidden cave, to this day. However, there
are numerous versions, where some state that the two do marry, in others the princess has an army of sisters and
in one, the princess is even said to be the Rajas own daughter.

7. The Origin of Garlic (Philippines)

There once lived a beautiful young girl whose mother arranged a betrothment to the son of one of the
richest people in the land. The problem was that the girl was said to be so beautiful that a rival suitor murdered
her fianc. And as we all know, murder snowballs and that rival was, in turn, killed by the dead fianc's
exceptionally loyal slave. As news of these deaths spread throughout the land, the young maiden ran up a sacred
mountain and screamed to the heavensdirectly to Bathala (in ancient Tagalog theology, Bathala is said to be
the creator of the universe) to take her away so that her beautiful face will cause no further deaths. Thus, her
selflessness is recognised by Bathala who struck her with lightning. Her body is retrieved by her mother who
buried her and cried by her grave, watering the grave with tears. A short while later, the mother, tending to the
grave saw some grass-like plants sprouting on top of her dead daughter's final resting place. Thinking it was
some useless weed, the mother decided to pull it out and to her astonishment, she sees seeds that
look bizarrely like her dead daughter's teeth. Then, as though the heavens themselves have opened, she hears a
supernatural voice boom: "Those are your daughter's teeth." The mother then gave thanks, knowing this
is Bathala's way of giving her something that will remind her of her daughter and she planted the seeds all over
her land to help spread the memory of her beautiful, tragic daughter. And what was to grow from these seeds?
Garlic.