'Snakes
have always incited mixed feelings in
people; revulsion for their supposedly
cold and slimy appearance and morbid
fascination with the exotic. In the
Yangon Zoological Gardens is a group of
snake charmers with extraordinary skills
led bya girl of 19 years who perform
many daring and death-defying feats in
public with these deadly creatures. The
members of the troupe perform many
incredulous and spine chilling
acts like dancing with the writhing
coils around their neck or such like.
But the
main attraction of the show is the "Kiss
of Death" or "Kissing the Cobra"
There is no
stage or any props for the show, just a
large piece of burlap to cover the
ground but as usual there is a bowl of
offering to the appropriate nats; the
usual arrangement of bananas, a green
coconut, and some Eugenia twigs. A
candle burned by this nat offering and
incense sticks wafted their cloying
smell into the air. The master emerged
and kneeling in front of this offering
mumbled softly. He was asking the nats
to protect this show, to look after the
handlers and also to ward off all evils
and dangers.
All the
snake handlers were in traditional Shan
style baggy trousers and have tattoos.
Some tattoos are on the napes of the
necks, or on the wrists but every tattoo
has its own special significance. Many
would have been done by native medicine
men learned in the mysteries of the
occult. The wearers believe that these
tattoos give them the power of
domination over snakes and other
venomous creatures. Other designs are
prevention against misfortunes and evil.
Anyway, the banging of drums, the
tattoos, the Shan costumes all made the
scene more intriguing and mysterious.
The Master
of Ceremony announced, "Ladies and
Gentlemen, the climax of the
performance. This young girl will kiss
the Taw gyi mwe hauk (cobra of the deep
forest), the deadliest of snakes. So,
please be utterly quiet and not make a
sound as this is a very dangerous act
and not distract the girl from her death
defying action".
He added
"Please be assured that there is no
trick. The lips of the snake are not
sewn
shut nor
the venom extracted. Please feel free to
come and inspect".
But there
was no brave soul that went forward to
challenge his claims. He then uttered a
warning "If there is anybody with
malicious intent or who wants to try out
his black magic please refrain from
that. And the spectators should not sit
on their sandals backward".
People when
sitting on the ground use their sandals
as a cushion against the dirt, and
'backwards' meant that the tip of the
sandals
Ma
SoeSoeAye is the prima donna of the show
The
entrance
to the
Yangon Zoological Gardens.
must not
be facing towards the back of the
sitter.
What is
the connection between these two
announcements nobody knew but many still
looked down to check if they are sitting
on their sandals backwards! The sounds
from the native orchestra blasted at
full volume as a nine foot cobra was
taken out of the wicker basket, hissing
and spitting with anger. The seated
spectators recoiled as the cobra darted
forward as soon as it was placed on the
floor. Quickly, a young handler snatched
its tail and the snake suddenly twisted
to strike backwards but the handler was
ready and twisted his body out of harm's
way.
The girl
appeared dressed in the clothes of a
court princess. She is the prima donna
of the show. She began to dance to the
tune of the orchestra. The cobra's hood
was spread out full and the upright head
followed every movement of the girl, its
tongue darting in and out. She danced
for some time and slowly, very slowly
sat down on her haunches, her eyes
focused on the snake. She dared not let
her eyes wander for the cobra might
strike any moment. The girl's eyes
seemed to have a hypnotizing effect on
the snake and suddenly she bent over to
kiss the cobra.
No, the
attempt was not successful. Either she
misjudged the moment or the timing was
off: the cobra tried to strike and the
girl swiftly swerved her head the other
way. The fangs missed her by scant
centimeters. She continued dancing
before attempting again.
The cobra
head swayed to and fro and the small
beady eyes followed the girl. The snake
was clearly getting agitated. Spitting
left and right it tried to strike at
anyone within reach.
Suddenly
the cobra darted towards the opposite
direction and our camera crew .jumped
back. One of the handlers nimbly stepped
on the tail of the snake and the snake
stopped dead in its tracks. "No, no do
not be alarmed. We can handle the snakes
and you will not be harmed," the chief
snake handler assured us but we were not
taking any chances.
Everyone
burst out with laughter, but this was
just nervous laughter to cover the
fright. The girl attempted again. She
fixed her stare on the snake and slowly
settled on her haunches. The snake was
hypnotized by the slow movements of the
dancing girl and the twirling motion of
the shawl in the girl's left hand.
Suddenly she bent over and kissed the
snake on the top of the head. The snake
was caught by surprise and had no time
to strike the girl. This time she was
successful. Then she danced away
gracefully from the snake while her
helpers put back the reptile into the
basket. .
