Earlier this year we moved into a new house that came with a few banana trees in the yard. With the recent rainy season, they have flourished and filled my window view beautifully with their lush green leaves. As I sat in front of my computer with those trees in the background, I thought of what other spirit and ghost stories I should tell for this year’s Halloween special. Watching the large shadows of the banana leaves swaying in the dark got me inspired, the scene reminded me of the tales of Nang Tani – the spirit that haunts banana trees.
The banana trees outside my window
Nang Tani or lady Tani is a female spirit that is believed to inhabit certain blossoming tani trees, a type of wild banana that grows abundantly in Thailand. Also called Phi Tani or Tani ghost, she is a spirit that has emerged from the soul of a dead person who has not been reincarnated or travelled to another realm. The folklore describes her as a beautiful woman with long flowing black hair. She wears a banana-tree-green sabai, a Thai shawl wrapped around the chest covering one shoulder, and johng gra ben, a traditional Thai loincloth. Her smell, sweet like that of banana blossoms. She will appear to men that stay or come close to the trees at night, luring them in with her beauty and charm. Those who succumb to their temptations will end up as her husband.
Although a benevolent spirit to most, she is incredibly jealous and vengeful with the men who have spent the night with her. If caught with another woman, breaking promises or not offering her proper care, Nang Tani will follow and punish them. Punishment comes in the form of illnesses or accidents, or in some stories she will even hunt the men down and break their necks. It is said that these men will end up corpse-like during the day if they were under her love spell during the night, walking around with a pale complexion and an extreme lack of energy.
A painting of Nang Tani (Image source | Maegan)
A halloween costume for Nang Tani – with sabai and johng gra ben (Image source | Avashop)
Nang Tani may sound like a spirit one should fear and avoid at all costs, but on the contrary many seek her for protection and goodluck. Especially on tani trees that blossom from the middle of the trunks or ones that have died bearing fruit, believers will hold ceremonies and perform offerings to appease her. People bring incense, food, fruits, flowers and dessert and hang golden rings and necklaces on the blossoms, tying coloured cloth around the trunk. Locals usually gather to ask for blessings and luck (and winning lottery ticket numbers!).
For those who practice black magic or shamanism, they also believe that the flowers from within the heart hold special powers. Once cut, they are dried and ground into powders that are then blessed and mixed into things like makeup. A person who uses lipstick that contains this powder may be extra charming, popular and convincing with their words, making others fall in love with them or agree with them easily.
This banana tree had bananas growing from the middle of the trunk, people gathered to make offerings and it made news! (Image source | MCOT)
An example of offerings to Nang Tani (Image source | Aem Aem)
The famous legend of the spirit of Nang Tani may be true to some but others think it was born as a story to deter people from growing tani trees near their homes. This type of wild banana grows quite large, straight and tall in a short period of time (and if you’ve ever had banana trees, you’ll know they’re impossible to get rid of!). Their leaves, or baitong, are wide, thick, tough, shiny, can withstand heat and are perfect for use in the cooking and packaging of food and desserts. Although these are farmed and harvested, the fruit are not sought after and rarely eaten as they contain lots of big seeds. The only dish I could find that utilises unripe tani bananas is tum kluay tani or spicy tani banana salad.
Inside the tani banana fruit (Image source | Sampeenong)
Banana tree spirit may sound quite unbelievable, however in a country like Thailand, beliefs of deities and spirits that inhabit nature like rivers, mountains and objects have always been a part of the culture. Ghost stories are often exchanged for entertainment but many are also passed down as moral and cautionary tales. Some truly believe in them while others may not, however there is a saying that one should not disrespect the spirits regardless, just in case!
Fun fact : Banana trees are herbs and the fruit berries!
