Hanuman: His Tail on Fire
(Wat Phra Kaew, Bangkok)
In this mural scene painted at the Emerald Buddha Temple, a wise hermit tells Hanuman how to quench the fire on his tail. Hanuman kneels on a red tiled floor holding up his tail in distress. A bearded hermit listens, dressed in golden clothes as he sits in a small roofed pavillion located in the forested mountains.
After Ravana sets Hanuman's body on fire, and the invulnerable Hanuman takes revenge by burning Ravana's palace and city, Hanuman is able to quench the fire from everywhere on his body except his tail. Even though Hanuman swims in the sea surrounding the demon island of Lanka, his tail continues to burn until he finds this forest hermit who can reveal the secret. The monkey god Hanuman must put his burning tail into his own mouth to quench the demon's fire!
