This is the topic I dislike to talk about but in the spirit of finding out the truth and for the purpose of comparative studies, I will share this sensitive topic to you.
We often like to compare which magical system is more powerful but most of the time, our discussions would be purely academic because real magic practitioners are next to none. Here I will share a not so friendly personal experience to compare Vietnamese ngai magic with Hindu magic. The below description is my real life experience and no attempt is made to exaggerate the stories:
Story 1
My pal, Eric was having problems with one of his business rival and this opponent, Gopal was a master in Hindu magic. One day both of the gentlemen engaged in some acute verbal exchange and Gopal threw some dead curse on Eric.
Felt life threatened, Eric came to me for help. Feeling a little hesitation as to which magic system to use against Hindu curses, I decided to try the traditional Taoist magic by giving some talismans to Eric and performed the Big Dipper (北斗七星) ritual in the hope to shield him from the dead curse.
A week later, Eric suffered acute headache and he visited me again claiming that Gopal gave him an evil smile and pointed his finger to the photo of goddess Kali perhaps signifying the curse Gopal cast was related to Kali.
Now I fell into a dilemma as my masters have not taught me how to deal with cross-cultural magical issues. The Big Dipper seemed to be helpless, I could perhaps make use of some tantric fire offerings or conjuring some jinn to help. That was frankly the most difficult choice to make.
So I sat in my altar room and meditated for hours until I blurred out: "Who dares to face Kali?"
That of course came out from my mouth due to frustration. I didn't expect any responses. But alas! My snake ngai plant suddenly shook by an unseen force. So I thought this snake ngai wanted to be put into action.
I immediately dug out a small piece of snake ngai root and handed it over to Eric. I asked him to plant the ngai root in front of his house and take care of the plant until it grows.
For a month or so I didn't hear from Eric until one evening. On that evening Eric visited me again and this time he gave me an envelope with money. He said that Gopal was found succumbed to heart attack in his house last evening.
This is not what I hope to see and perhaps it was just a coincidence. But Eric was happy as his worries were gone with the wind.
Then you might say that this is just a coincidence. So I will tell you a second story.
Story 2
Another friend Jess was having trouble with Muthu who was a lawyer. Seems that Muthu kept disturbing Jess and threatened her that she will be sued due to some business related matters.
Felt agitated, Jess approached me and wanted me to make Muthu 'go away'. But I told Jess that it would not be easy as Muthu was a faithful Shiva believer. So said, Jess kept bugging me until I said that I will try to do something but there would be no promises on my end. After all, the best solution for Jess should be in the court and not using magical means.
Again, I gave Jess a piece of my snake ngai and asked her to plant the ngai at the back of her house. She must keep me informed on the events between her and Muthu.
Two weeks later, Jess rang me. She said that Muthu was hospitalized due to heart failure and he was in critical condition. I asked Jess to pull out the snake ngai plant for the fear of Muthu's life.
Unfortunately Jess didn't follow my instruction on time and Muthu was a goner too.
Conclusion
Although with only two examples, perhaps I can say that Vietnamese ngai did busted Hindu magic in one way. Due to lost of lives, I do not intend to practise ngai magic thereafter so no further conclusion can be made.
