Long ago, in the Kingdom of the Celestial Waters, where the stars whispered secrets to the moon, and the moon hummed lullabies to the earth, a sacred dance was born — the Moon Love dance.

This dance wasn't made for mortals.

It was a gift from Nearychan, the Moon Spirit herself, who would descend to the Earth on full moon nights in the form of a dancer cloaked in silver silk. Her movements were slow, gentle, and fluid, echoing the tides and winds. The villagers who saw her believed she was a dream — an illusion caused by moonlight and longing.

But one night, a young human named Sovann, an orphan boy raised by monks near the Tonlé Sap, wandered into the moonlit forest searching for herbs. He stumbled upon Nearychan dancing beside a silver pond. Enchanted, he froze — and so did time.

When Nearychan noticed him, she didn't vanish. Instead, she invited him to sit.

'Why aren't you afraid of me?' she asked, her voice like ripples in water.

Sovann bowed. 'Because your sadness is greater than any danger.'

Surprised, Nearychan wept. No one had ever seen her sorrow. She confessed that the sky spirits had banished her from returning home unless a human learned her dance — perfectly. Only then could balance be restored between Earth and Sky.

For 99 nights, Sovann trained in secret. Nearychan showed him every gesture — how to move like falling starlight, how to flutter like moon petals, how to hold the air like it was a memory.

On the 100th night, Sovann performed the dance alone beneath the full moon. The trees bent low. The lotus blossoms opened. The winds stilled.

And then — the sky opened.

Nearychan ascended slowly, her tears turning into pearls that dropped into Sovann's hands. She smiled and whispered, 'From now on, teach others this dance. It will remind the world that love, like the moon, returns.'

Years passed. Sovann became a great teacher of dance. The villagers called the piece 'Robam Phka Chan' — Moon Love Dance. Dancers dressed in shimmering white and gold, their fingers curving like lotus petals, their eyes soft with longing.

They say that when it's performed under a full moon, you can see Nearychan's silhouette watching from above… dancing back.