Oil and Lacquer

Trau Cau, or The Betal and the Areca Tree, is one of the most famous Vietnamese legends. This version is from the book Vietnamese Legends and Folk Tales from The Gioi Publishers.

During the reign of the Fourth (some say the third) Hung King, there lived a mandarin whose family-name was Cao. He had two sons, Tan and Lang, Although not twins, they resembled each other like two drops of water, mother could not tell them apart. They had the same lofty brows, the same straight noses, and the same intelligent, sparking eyes. They were both handsome, they loved each other tenderly, and one was never seen without the other. The two brothers were still young when a fire burned down their home, causing the death of their parents and the loss of all their possessions. The two young men were left in want, and to avoid charity, went out into the life in search of work.

By chance they knocked at the door of Mandarin Luu, a very pious man, who had been an intimate friend of their parents. He received them into his stately mansion with the most cordial welcome. He had no sons of his own; but had a daughter, as fair as a white lotus, and as fresh as a spring rose.

Wishing to tighten their bonds of friendship and affection, Mandarin Luu offered to give his daughter in marriage to one of the young men. They were both attracted by the good looks and graceful manners of the pretty maiden; and each secretly loved her.

Their hearts were equally generous, however, each insisted that the other should marry the girl. For her part, the maiden was unable to choose between the two young men, they were so alike.

Tan and Lan would never have come to an agreement had the mandarin not use a clever little trick to find out which was the elder. He ordered a special meal prepared for his daughter and the two brothers. Two bowls were brought to the table, but only one pair of chop-sticks. Without hesitation, Lang picked up the chopsticks and in a very respectful manner handed them to Tan. Tan accepted them naturally, and Mandarin Luu immediately chose the elder brother to be the husband of his daughter.

Tan was not the happiest man on earth. He loved his bride passionately, and they pledged eternal love for each other. He had never known such happiness and spent his time composing love poems to describe his bliss and to show his deep affection.

He completely neglected his brother, and seemed to have never thought of him.

After his brother’s wedding, Lang triumphed easily over his secret love for the young woman. He gladly accepted his lot, for he wanted only the happiness of his beloved elder brother. But gradually he realized that Tan had become indifferent and cold towards him.

Lang waited for a long time in silence for a sign of friendship and love, but it did not come. Poor Lang!

One morning he said to himself:

“Alas! My elder brother no longer loves me. Why should I stay here at all, unloved and unwanted? The sooner I leave this place the better.”

He sprang to his feet and left the house, for he could no longer bear his grief. For a long time he walked, insensible to fatigue, until he reached the dark, blue sea. A cold wind was blowing, the sun had sunk below the horizon, and the last gleams of the sunset were swallowed up by the immense body of water.

Completely exhausted, hungry and thirsty, Lang sat down on the grass by the edge of the sea and wept until he died of grief, and was changed into a white, chalky rock.

When Tan learned that Lang had stolen away from the house, he was extremely sorry and ashamed of his selfishness. Full of regret and troubled by his conscience, he set out to look for his young brother.

He traversed the same route, crossed the same hills and passed through the same forests, until he died, changing into a tree with a straight trunk and green palm leaves. Tan had become the areca tree.

When the young bride found that her husband had left their home, she missed him so much that she set off in search. She traversed in the very same route, and arrived that the site of the white chalky rock and the areca tree. Entirely worn out, she lay down to rest at the foot of the tree. Tears of despair rolled down her cheeks, and she kept on crying sorrowful and thinking of her husband until she died. She was turned into the creeping betal plant, which twined itself around the stately trunk of the areca tree.

Enlightened by a dream, the peasants of the vicinity built a temple, in commemoration of the fraternal and conjugal love of the unfortunate brothers and the maiden. On the faced of the temple they inscribed the following motto: “Brothers united, spouses faithful.”

Years later, during a period of exceptional drought which marked the end of the reign of the fourth Hung king, the areca tree and the creeping betal plant were ht eonly green things remaining amidst the desolation. At the news of this miracle, pilgrims from all parts of the kingdom journeyed to the temple.

Hung king himself went there, and learned the story from the village notables. He was impressed by the tale and attempted to learn the divine intentions by asking his counselors the meaning of it all, but no one knew the answer.

Finally, the minister of justice, a great and wise old man, said to the king:

“Sire, when one wishes to assure himself of the consanguinity of brothers and sisters, or when one wishes to know the paternity of a child, the persons concerned are blood, and their blood is collected in the same bowl. If the blood coagulates the response is positive. We could crush together some leaves of the betal plant, with the fruit of the tree, and a fragment of rock.”

This advice was followed. The rock was heated and reduced to powder and the mixture took on a beautiful red color; the proof was clear.

The king meditated and said: “This is the true symbol of fraternal and conjugal love. Let the tree and the plant be grown everywhere in commemoration of this beautiful story.”

Brothers and sisters began to chew the quid of the betal to demonstrate fraternal love, and newly wedded couples chew it to demonstrate conjugal love. The habit spread very quickly, until the end of it became the custom to offer the quid of betal at all social meetings.

[”The Betal and Areca Tree”. Vietnamese Legends & Folk Tales. The Gioi Publishers. Vietnam, 2007. pgs. 109, 111, 113, 115, 117.]