Ma Bong
| Grouping | Legendary creature |
|---|---|
| Sub grouping | Hybrid beast |
| Similar creatures | Kelpie Tikbalang Centaur |
| Mythology | Lanna folk mythology |
| Other name(s) | Phi Ma Bong |
| Country | Thailand |
| Region | northern Thailand (Lanna) |
| Habitat | Rural area |
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Ma Bong (Thai: ม้าบ้อง, ม้าบอง), also known as Phi Ma Bong (ผีม้าบ้อง, "ghost of Ma Bong") is a supernatural being horse-like in northern Thai folklore. Ma Bong was generally described as a huge black horse with glowing red eyes, or half-human, half-horse formed. In some stories Ma Bong appears only to the sound of a horse galloping without being seen on a dark night on a deserted road or out in the countryside.[1]
Another version of Ma Bong's myth says it is the ghost of Japanese cavalry who died and suffered on duty in Thailand during World War II. Ma Bong has a body like a horse but only its face is human.[2]
There are many stories told about Ma Bong, but the well-known story is the story of two young men who are friends, named Kham and Kaew. Every evening, the two friends usually go out to flirt with girls in different houses according to the traditional northern traditions called "Aew Sao" (แอ่วสาว). One day, Kaew wondered about the behavior of Kham, who always asks to part with him to another path. So Kaew secretly stalked him and found Kham greedily licking the skull and carcass of a buffalo in the grove on the side of the road. He was shocked and was sure that his friend had become a spectral creature, Ma Bong.
The following day, he told his master, a mage monk, to ask for help. The monk suggested Kaew rub chili peppers on the buffalo's skull and throw magical eggs along the way he went back home, as well as turn the ladder of his house upside-down. He followed the instructions, and with a spicy flavour, Ma Bong became angry and chased after him. But when it encountered the eggs that Kaew left on the way, it stopped and turned to lick these eggs instead. So he had this opportunity to run away home. When Ma Bong reached his house with the stair upside-down, it murmured "right house, wrong ladder, right house, wrong ladder", repeatedly. It wandered around his house for a while before leaving.
In the morning, Kaew rushed to Kham's house, and found him dead. Some say that he found the whole carcass of a dead horse.[1]
According to the Chiang Mai people, the narrow path between the two houses along the Ping River is a passageway of Ma Bong.[3]
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Cites
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Siprinyasin, Karaket (2021-09-28). "ผีม้าบ้อง จากประสบการณ์ของแม่และเพื่อน" [Ghost of Ma Bong from the experience of my mother and friend]. Sanook (in thai). Retrieved 2022-06-24.CS1 maint: Unrecognized language (link)
- ↑ DrRED_RIVER. "MABONG #000". OpenSea.
- ↑ Ko slur (2012-11-30). "ผีม้าบ้องหน้าตาเป็นยังไง" [What does a ghost of Ma Bong look like]. Pantip.com (in thai). Retrieved 2022-06-24.CS1 maint: Unrecognized language (link)
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