Indonesia is a country full of myths, believed to be absolutely true, sometimes even when scientific evidence shows otherwise. These myth-believers come from every strata of the society. The myths themselves are not necessarily those existing for hundreds of years. New myths seems to be invented every day.
Example of old myths are:
1. the legend of Malin Kundang, the son who disown his mother for being poor, became a rock after being cursed by the mother.
2. the legend of Jaka Tarub, a guy who stole the wings of an angel to marry her.
Aside from nation-wide known myths, local myths also exists. For example, a lake may be believed to be the lair of white crocodiles, who can turn magically into humans in certain days of the year. A tree may be believed to be the resting place of genies.
Nevertheless, the "newer" breed of myths are the ones that are more interesting. examples of these myths are:
1. shaking your car while refuelling generates more space for the fuel. Physics confirms however, that liquids shall follow the form of its container. imagine shaking a bucket full of water, does it generate more space for the water?
2. On the road, motorcyclist can do no wrong. What ever you do as a motorcyclist, however damaging to other motorists you are never wrong. This of course, is not stated anywhere in Indonesian law, however, is believed to be true by most motorcyclists.
3. common cold is caused by devilish germs, that cure must involve numerous kinds of medications, including anti biotics, even when the cold is caused by viruses.
4. ... and many others.
Debunking the myths may take a lot of time and energy at times. So when not totally necessary, just let the myths live and prosper.
