Legend of the Snake Sisters

By Wang Yiyang. 

I want to tell a story. This is an Asian story about a normal woman who is actually a snake. After five thousand years of practice in nature, she becomes human, but she retains all her powers and snake magic. The story takes place in Zhejiang province, China, at a pagoda, which is a traditional Chinese tower. She is standing on an arch bridge, looking toward the pagoda, waiting for her sister. Her sister is also a snake. The first sister’s skin is green, so she is called Green Snake. Her sister’s skin is white, so she is called White Snake. White Snake lives under the pagoda with a human named Xiaoqing, who is famous in China. He is seen as weak and irresponsible. He has children with White Snake but abandons them, influenced by a monk who insists that White Snake, being a snake, will hurt him. The monk wants to punish White Snake for falling in love with a human, claiming it breaks the rules — humans cannot fall in love with fairies. But her love is true. Xiaoqing abandons her, but the bond between the sisters is strong. Green Snake promises her sister that she will find her and wait for her return.
Interestingly, at some point, the pagoda collapsed. Some people in China believe that White Snake went free, and that the two sisters may still exist in the world today, appearing as humans. Perhaps I am White Snake. You never know. This is the story I wanted to share.