Nang Tani, Banana Grove Spirit
Nang Tani is the spirit of wild banana trees, appearing as a woman in green with a leaf-draped skirt. She rewards respectful monks with food and punishes abusive men, especially those who strike women.
Story beats
- 1) She haunts clumps of wild banana trees, usually those that fruit on holy days.
- 2) Alms-giving monks sometimes receive phantom rice or bananas from her.
- 3) Men who exploit or harm women risk being strangled by living leaves at night.
- 4) Offerings of incense and flowers appease her; cutting her tree risks a lingering curse.
Context & symbolism
Nang Tani represents the spirit in commonplace nature—banana groves that feed but also conceal. She exacts moral balance, defending the vulnerable and rewarding virtue.
The green-clad apparition merges animist roots with Buddhist ethics of generosity and harm.
Motifs
- Tree-bound ghost
- Food offerings from spirits
- Retribution against abusers
- Fasting days heightening the supernatural
Use it in play
- Protect a monk who depends on bananas blessed by Nang Tani.
- Stop loggers from cutting her grove; negotiate a safer path.
- A cursed survivor stalks the party with leaf scars—he offended the spirit.
- Ask Nang Tani for shelter in a storm; honor her rules to leave alive.
Comparative threads
- Tree spirits: Dryads, yokai like kodama.
- Guardians of women: La Llorona inverted, banshees as warning not malice.
Hooks and campaign seeds
- A grove fruits out of season; Nang Tani has a message.
- Someone sold bananas taken from her trees; bad luck follows the buyers.
- An abusive noble seeks to chop her grove; decide where you stand.