The Mountain of the Woman who is Waiting for Her Husband

Long time ago, in a village on the highland region, lived two orphans, one was a young man about twenty years old, the other was his seven years old sister. Because they were alone in this world, they were all one for the other. On a beautiful day, On a beautiful morning, he found his wife sitting in the back yard drying her long black hair under the sunshine. At the time when she glided the comb on her hair that she lifted with her other hand,...

Sue God For Rain

Once upon a time, there was no rain for long, long time. The ground cracked all over, all plants withered, animals had to suffer from thirsty. There was so great a toad that he tried to find way to the heaven to let God know what life on the earth stood. He departed his trip and on the way to the heaven he was supported and followed by a crab, a bee, a fox, a bear and a tiger. At last they all were at the place they wanted to come. The toad saw a drum at the heaven's gate so he asked the crab to hide himself in the jar of water then told...

The Price of Love

Once upon a time, there was a young Thai couple who had yet to have a child. Like anyone else in their hamlet, they worked hard to make ends meet. The wife became more and more beautiful soon after the marriage and so her husband loved her more and more as each day passed. One day, he had to go on a long trip for about 10 days to perform viec muong, community work in the Thai-populated region. A merchant with a flock of horses happened upon the hamlet and, of course, the young wife’s beauty did not go unnoticed. “Hey, sweet girl! Where...

Legend of the Water Melon

Once upon a time, the sixth son of King Hung Vuong the Fifth named An-Tiem disobeyed the King's order and was exiled to a deserted island. The Prince had to build his own shelter, dig a well for water, and fish and hunt animals for food. One day, he found a green fruit as big and round as a ball. He split the fruit into halves and found the inside of the fruit red. He dared not eat it because he was afraid it was poisonous. Days passed...

The Story of Truong's Wife

 The temple to Truong's wife is located on the side of the Hoang river, village of Vu dien, district Ly Nhan, province of Ha Nam. Here is her story. She married a man of the Truong family. After a half a year, he was conscripted to go and fight a distant war. When he left, she was pregnant. She gave birth to boy, which she name Dan. During her husband absence, as she sat with her child, she would point to her shadow and would tell him that that was his father. After three years, her husband was released from service and came home. The...

The Golden Ax

There was once a very poor man who lived near the forest. He was able to earn enough for a bare existence by cutting firewood, which his wife would barter for rice in the market place. One day, when this man was cutting wood at the river's edge, the ax slipped from his hands and fell into the water. Although the woodcutter searched for it everywhere, it was not to be found. Discouraged, he sat down on the bank, lowered his head sadly,...

The Story of Luu Binh and Duong Le

Luu Binh Duong LeLong ago there were two very close friends. One named Luu-Binh, came from a wealthy family; the other, named Duong-Le, came from a poor family. Knowing that Duong-Le did not have enough money to study, Luu-Binh kindly invited him to come and live with him to help him. Conscious of his poverty, Duong-Le was hard working and industrious while Luu-Binh, satisfied with his wealth, was wasteful and lazy. As expected, when the...

The Moon Boy

Long, long time ago there was a clever boy whose name was Cuoi. He did nothing with his cleverness but to play trick on people around him. He lived with his uncle and aunt who were usually suffered from his cheats. Once day Cuoi came to the field and broke the bad new to the uncle that his wife had fell down from the ladder and bled. The man was so frighten that he ran to his home without saying a word. Cuoi at that time reached the...

The Hundred-Knot Bamboo

There was a rich devious landowner who used all kind of tricks to exploit his servants and laborers. He had a beautiful nubile daughter. Khoai lived as a servant in this household from the time he was a young boy. He had to work very hard. He is now in his late teens. The landowner was afraid that Khoai will leave the household and thus he would lose a very hard working helper. So, one day he called Khoai and told him: "If you stayed...

Chu Dong Tu and Princess Tien Dung

The third King Hung Vuong had a beautiful daughter named Tien-Dung ("Tiên Dung" - Divine Beauty), who, although of fairy-like loveliness, was endowed with a whimsical nature. Despite her father's entreaties, she rejected every offer of marriage, preferring, as she said, to remain single in order to satisfy her passion for visiting the many beautiful sites of her father's kingdom, known as Van Lang. As the king loved his daughter tenderly,...

The Story of Tam and Cam

Long, long ago there was a man who lost his wife and lived with his little girl named ““Tấm””. Then he married again a wicked woman. The little girl found this out on the first day after the wedding. There was a big banquet in the house, but “Tấm” was shut up in a room all by herself instead of being allowed to welcome the guests and attend the feast. Moreover, she had to go to bed without any supper. Things grew worse when a new baby...