Strolling along Vietnam’s beaches when the tides are low, one might encounter a number of whimsical patterns created by countless sand pellets. These are the works of a tiny species of crustacean called dã tràng. Not only are these little crabs fascinating, thanks to their sand-sieving mechanism, which is how they obtain food, but they are also the subject of an intriguing folktale that often leaves readers pondering its philosophical implications.
The little artists of the coastlines
A rare sighting of the artist amid his artwork, even though this artwork is more like the empty wrappings after you've eaten all the chips. Photo via seb247.com.
Known as còng gió or dã tràng in Vietnamese depending on the region, sand bubbler crab is a species within the Dotillidae family that inhabits the Indo-Pacific region. They come out in droves once the tide recedes to begin their feasting sessions. Sand is their sustenance; more specifically, they eat the microorganisms that live in the sand.
When you’re at the shore, the work of these tiny crabs might catch your attention before you even notice the crabs themselves, as they only grow to approximately 1 centimeter. The somewhat random patterns created by these crabs might resemble fireworks, galaxies, or lines connected by circular shapes. These patterns always circle the holes where sand bubbler crabs emerge.
The patterns left behind by sand pellets have a certain poetic quality to them.
Dã tràng consumes the microorganisms found in the sand through a sieving process. Using special mouthparts that have evolved to become a sort of filter, the crustaceans pass the sand through their mouthparts, then use a circular motion to take in what’s edible — often detritus and plankton — and spit out sand pellets. In order to get a decent meal, the crabs have to work and eat for up to 5 hours a day. Watching these crabs in action reminds me of what I must do whenever I eat fish that has not been deboned. Having to swirl my tongue around to locate and then separate the bones, no matter how delicious the fish may be, removes the pleasure of it all. I don’t know how the crabs do it.
Dã tràng as portrayed in folklore
While dã tràng might hail from the humblest of origins compared to its other famous cousins like blue crab or king crab, the tiny sand crab has an entire fable dedicated to its origin in Vietnamese folk culture.
Once upon a time, there was a man named Dã Tràng who lived with his wife in front of a cave, home to a pair of snakes. Once, Dã Tràng saved the husband snake from being killed by its wife. To return the favor, the snake gifted Dã Tràng with a jewel that granted him the ability to understand animal speech. Later on, a murder of crows came to Dã Tràng and informed him of a dead goat atop a mountain. The crows told Dã Tràng to take the meat for himself but spare them the organs. Dã Tràng did as instructed and even informed his neighbors so they could get some meat as well, but he carefully advised them to leave the organs. The greedy folks, however, took everything. The crows confronted Dã Tràng and, despite his best efforts, the crows refused to accept his explanation. In the heat of the argument, Dã Tràng shot his arrow at the crows to scare them away, but the crows took the act as something more nefarious. They framed Dã Tràng for the death of a drowned human by sticking an arrow with Dã Tràng’s initials into the dead body. Their trick worked and Dã Tràng was apprehended by the local authorities. On the way to the capital to meet the king for judgment, Dã Tràng overheard a flock of sparrows telling one another to gather the food spilled by a nearby army, which was planning an ambush on Dã Tràng’s nation. Dã Tràng relayed the information and helped stop the attack, and for this, he was spared from prosecution.
On his way home, Dã Tràng stopped by a friend’s house to rest. The friend was glad to see him and told his wife to slaughter one of their geese to make a feast. The pair of geese was saddened to hear the news, and the male goose hatched a plan to save the female geese and their offspring by sacrificing himself. So moved by the geese’s gesture, Dã Tràng stopped his friend from slaughtering the geese. Touched by his good deed, the geese gifted him with another jewel that enabled Dã Tràng to walk underwater and could even allow him to reach the bottom of the ocean. Dã Tràng took the jewel for a test run and indeed reached all the way to Long Vương, the Dragon King of the undersea kingdom himself. Terrified by this power, Long Vương treated Dã Tràng with great generosity, but the kindness was simply an attempt to hide the plot he had devised.
Dã Tràng returned home and, with the help of the jewels, became very rich. He never let the jewels out of his sight except for one day, when Dã Tràng was rushing home from a relative’s death anniversary, he anxiously realized he had forgotten to bring the jewels with him. Upon his return, the jewels were gone, and so was his wife. He picked up a note that read: “Long Vương will crown me queen for bringing him the jewels. I am gone, don’t even bother looking for me.”
While dã tràng might hail from the humblest of origins, the tiny sand crab has an entire fable dedicated to its origin in Vietnamese folk culture.
Dã Tràng was furious. Driven to madness, he moved to the beach and swore to fill up the ocean with sand so that he could enter it to look for the jewels. But how could one ever fill up the ocean? Eventually, Dã Tràng became the sand bubbler crab, spending eternity filling up the beach with sand, forever lost in a hopeless endeavor. This fruitless pursuit enters Vietnam's lexicon in the phrase “công dã tràng,” used to described actions that surely won't yield any success.
Sisyphus and Dã Tràng, two faces of the same tragedy
Though dã tràng can be very efficient in sieving sand, filling an entire ocean is not a simple task. Photo by ngobmt via Pixabay
Dã Tràng’s ending may conjure the image of Sisyphus, the figure from Greek mythology who was condemned by the Gods to roll a boulder up a hill for all eternity only to have it slide down once it reached the top. The Myth of Sisyphus has been dissected from numerous perspectives. Famously, Albert Camus interpreted the story in an existential sense as a matter of the absurd. Only by becoming aware of the absurdity of his fate can Sisyphus find happiness and contentment in his situation. In many ways, Dã Tràng is similar to Sisyphus, as both are forced to perform a futile act for all eternity.
“Dã tràng xe cát biển đông / Sand bubbler crabs rolling sand at the East Sea
Nhọc lòng mà chẳng nên công cán gì / Much labor for none of the accolade.”
— Ancient proverb.
I used to look at Dã Tràng and Sisyphus as great tragedies. And in a sense, they really are tragedies, but so then is life for many real human beings. The plight of Dã Tràng and Sisyphus seem relevant to many of us, whether it is because we are experiencing a lifetime of repetitive tasks or facing a betrayal that deprives us of hard-earned earthly possessions. And if it’s not these two particular particular tragedies that resonate, then it will be something else. We simply cannot escape the human predicament. Only through the realization and acceptance that life is harsh and irrational can we even begin to proceed with our lives. I once thought that accepting the universe as cruel and devoid of meaning is a defeatist mindset, but I have since learned that doing so can help us to find happiness, especially if we are forced to perpetually shovel sand.
