Page 95 - Nora a Living Dance Tradition of Southern Thailand
P. 95
Legends Tied to Manorah
The early Nora legends were supplemented by
Theravada tales tied to the Paรฑรฑรฃsa Jรฃtakas - apocryphal tales
of the previous life of the Buddha. They include two key
interconnected tales important in Nora culture: the Rathasena
Jรฃtaka also called the โ€Twelve Sistersโ€ focusing on Phra
Rothasen and his wife Meri and the Sudhana Jรฃtaka focusing
on Suthon and Manorah.
Both Jรฃtakas are related because Phra Rothasen
betrayed Meriโ€s love, fleeing away from her out of a duty to
retrieve his motherโ€s eyeballs that Meri kept in a different
town. The betrayal of his love caused Meriโ€s death, after which
Rothasen died, too. Since they both promised to meet again
in the next life, Phra Rothasen was reborn as Phra Suthon. In
this life, the Jรฃtaka relates he would have to search for the
reincarnated Meri, who was reborn as Manorah.
The story of Phra Suthon and Nang Manohra starts
when the Hunter, Phran Boon uses a magical rope to capture
the youngest of seven Kinnaree sisters to give to his master,
Phra Suthon. The two fell in love and got married, but when
Phra Suthon goes to war, his mother and the noblemen find
a way to eliminate Manorah, arguing she will bring destruction
to the city, so she needs to be sacrificed by fire. When she is
about to be burned, Manorah asks for her wings and tail to dance
for one last time. With her wings and tail, she flew back to her
city in the magical Himmapan forest. This saddens Phra Suthon,
who vows to go and find her to prove his true love for her.
Episodes from these two legends are often included on
the second day of Rong Khru performances, especially those
of Phra Rothasen getting the giantess drunk so he could return
to his mother, and the scene of the Hunter catching Manorah.
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