 Mae Nak shrine offerings in the inner sanctum: Portraits of the spirit and folded dresses. | |
| Creature information | |
|---|---|
| Other name(s) | Mae Nak,Nang Nak |
| Grouping | Legendary creature Tutelary deity |
| Sub grouping | Undead |
| Folklore | Thai folk mythology |
| Origin | |
| Country | Thailand |
| Region | Phra Khanong area,Bangkok |
Mae Nak Phra Khanong (Thai:แม่นากพระโขนง,[1] meaning 'Lady Nak ofPhra Khanong'), or simplyMae Nak (Thai:แม่นาก, 'Lady Nak') orNang Nak (Thai:นางนาก, 'Miss Nak'), is a well-knownThai ghost. According tolocal folklore the story is based on events that took place during the reign ofKing Rama IV.[2]
A shrine dedicated to Nak was constructed at Wat Mahabut. In 1997, the shrine was relocated to the nearbySuan Luang district of modernBangkok.
A beautiful young woman named Mae Nak, who lived on the banks of thePhra Khanong canal, had an undying love for her husband, Mak.
While Nak was pregnant, Mak was conscripted into the Thai Army and sent to war where he was seriously wounded (in some versions it is theKengtung Wars, while others are not specific). While he was being nursed back to health in central Bangkok, Nak and their child both died during childbirth. But when Mak returned home, he found his loving wife and child waiting for him. Neighbors warned him that he was living with a ghost but he rebuffed them.
One day, as Nak was preparingnam phrik, she dropped alime off the porch. In her haste to retrieve it, she stretched her arm to an impossible length to pick it up from the ground below. Upon seeing this, Mak realized his wife was a ghost. That night, Mak sneaked out the house and fled with Nak in pursuit. According to Thai folklore, ghosts are afraid of stickyBlumea leaves so Mak hid behind aBlumea balsamifera (Thai:หนาด; pronouncednat) bush.[3] He then ran into Wat Mahabut temple, which as holy ground, a ghost cannot enter.
In her grief, Nak terrorized the people of Phra Khanong, furious at them for causing Mak to leave her. However, a powerful monk captured Nak's ghost; and after confining her in an earthen jar, threw it into the Phra Khanong canal.
There are regional variations to the rest of the story. In one, an old couple new to Phra Khanong find the jar while fishing; in another two fishermen dredge up the jar. In both cases, Nak is freed when the jar is opened.
In alternative versions, a venerable monk namedSomdet Phra Phutthachan (To Phrommarangsi) defeats Nak by confining her spirit in the bone of her forehead and binds it to his waistband. Legend says the waistband is currently in the possession of theThai royal family. AdmiralPrince Abhakara Kiartivongse, Prince of Chumphon, also claimed to have had the relic.[4] In another, the monk assured Nak that in a future life she would be reunited with her beloved husband, so she voluntarily departed for the afterlife.
Anek Nawikamul, a Thai historian, researched the story and found an article in theSiam Praphet newspaper written byK.S.R. Kulap, dated March 10, 1899. Kulap claimed the story of Mae Nak was based on the life of Amdaeng Nak (อำแดงนาก, 'Mrs Nak'), daughter of aTambon Phra Khanong leader named Khun Si. Amdaeng Nak died while she was pregnant. Her son, worried that his father might remarry and his inheritance shared with his step-mother, invented the ghost story. He dressed in women's clothing and threw rocks at passing boats to make people think it was Nak's ghost. Kulap also suggested that Nak's husband was namedChum, not Mak.[5][6]
The shrine of Mae Nak stands next to Klong Phra Khanong, at Wat Mahabut, a large temple on Soi 77 offSukhumvit Road (On Nut Road). The shrine is a low building under large trees with a roof that encompasses the tree trunks. The main shrine has several minor shrines around it.[7]
A statue of Mae Nak and her infant form the centerpiece of the shrine. Devotees often make offerings, accompanied by a request for help, generally by women seeking easy childbirth or for their husband to be exempted from military conscription.[8] Offerings are usually lengths of colored cloth, wrapped around the trunk of theBo tree. Other offerings include fruit,lotuses, and incense sticks.
Toys for her child and portraits of the ghost are displayed in the shrine's inner sanctum. A collection of fine dresses offered to her are displayed behind her statue.
Offerings are also made at Phra Khanong Canal, where fish purchased live at markets are brought in buckets to the edge of the canal and freed. Stalls at the shrine sell toys, fish, lotus buds, incense sticks, and garlands for those who wish to make an offering.[7][8][9][10]
Mae Nak's story has enjoyed sustained popularity because her undying devotion to her husband inspires people of all ages.Prince Damrong, a son of KingMongkut, revealed that when he was a child, he kept askingWat Phra Kaeo visitors who was the most popular person in their opinion, and most people answered "Mae Nak".[11]
The story of Mae Nak Phra Khanong is also the subject of many films, television series, and printed media.[12] Among these are:
Representations of Mae Nak, sometimes humorous,[34][35] are very common inThai comic books,[36]animated cartoons,[37] and video games too. In the mobile puzzle game, Penny & Flo, the story of Mae Nak is present, except Mae Nak is renamed as Mae Noi.
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