Welcome back to Fae Friday! (Many days late…) This time, we’re traveling to Vietnam to learn all about the Faery Queen they have to thank for creating their people. Âu Cơ, an immortal mountain faery, is at the center of Vietnam’s founding myth along with the dragon god Lạc Long Quân. They both left their respective homes in order to travel the land of Vietnam; Lạc Long Quân left the sea to battle monsters and Âu Cơ left the mountains to heal the people of the land. Their story starts as a typical damsel in distress tale. Âu Cơ was attacked by a bird-like monster and transformed herself into a beautiful white crane to escape. Lạc Long Quân was known as a monster hunter who earned humans’ admiration by slaying many mythological beasts that threatened their land and their lives. Seeing the white crane in peril, Lạc Long Quân killed the giant bird and saved Âu Cơ’s life. She immediately fell in love with her hero, and the two were married. Together, they became the Mother and Father of all the Vietnamese people. Their union led to Âu Cơ giving birth to 100 eggs, each of which hatched into strong, intelligent children (Kalmusky, 2018). (Some legends specify sons, but others say 50 daughters and 50 sons.)
Even though this was a love match between the immortal faery and the sea dragon god, both beings grew homesick for what they left behind. Though they always promised to love and help one another, they decided to separate. Each took 50 of their children with them: Lạc Long Quân went south to the ocean and Âu Cơ traveled north to her mountain home. The children who went south became fisherman and built extensive coastal villages, and those who populated the mountainous jungles learned to cultivate the land (Kalmusky, 2018). The oldest of their children, Hung Vuong, became the ancestral king of Vietnam, and present-day Vietnamese people are known as the grandchildren of the faery and the dragon (Canadian Museum of History, n.d.).
Image via POPS Kids video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CI52V3lQTA
Activity
The Vietnamese people find hope within the tale of Âu Cơ and Lạc Long Quân because, even though its population might be separated by different terrain, they are still connected by that one sacred union. This post’s corresponding project is something that can help connect the earth and water elements within your own home, much like the mountain and ocean were connected in this origin story. I got the idea from a Hearth & Vine post by Patti Estep (2020) about making your own simple indoor water feature using river rocks: https://hearthandvine.com/diy-indoor-fountain/.
via https://hearthandvine.com/diy-indoor-fountain
All you need is a medium or large waterproof bowl, some beautiful river rocks of your choosing, and a small water pump to make the fountain flow. The attached post has a recommendation for an inexpensive and efficient pump you can buy on Amazon for less than $10. You simply suction this pump to the bottom of your bowl, arrange your stones around it until only the pump’s outlet is showing, add your water, and then plug it in. Easy peasy!
You can add some extra magic to this feature by using moon water to fill the bowl. Choose the phase of the moon you wish to draw from and allow a jar of water to sit in the moonbeams for a few hours to soak up the lunar power. You can also incorporate water-safe crystals such as rose quartz, amethyst, and aventurine into this fountain for a beautiful witchy touch.
References
Canadian Museum of History. (n.d.). History of Vietnam: Legends and prehistory. https://www.historymuseum.ca/cmc/exhibitions/cultur/vietnam/vitim02e.html
Estep, P. (2020, February 10). DIY indoor water fountain you can make in minutes. Hearth & Vine. https://hearthandvine.com/diy-indoor-fountain/
Kalmusky, K. (2018, May 25). Âu Cơ the fairy goddess: Mother of Vietnam’s people. https://theculturetrip.com/asia/vietnam/articles/au-co-the-fairy-goddess-mother-of-vietnams-people/