Snake Prince and Other Stories: Burmese Folk Tales

collected and retold by Edna Ledgard The people of Burma/Myanmar call it Shwe Pyidaw, the Golden Land, their fertile valley cradled in a horseshoe of mountains. When squabbling Western nations vied for control of the newly-mapped country a century ago, the local population had already lived in the mountainous land for over a millenium. Throughout those centuries, the legends and tales rooted in animist religions created a rich tapestry of spirits that underlie the later arrival of Buddhism....