Naga Tasik Chini bukan sekadar kisah lagenda yang diwariskan turun-temurun, tetapi merupakan wacana budaya yang sarat dengan makna politik, ekologi, dan identiti kolektif masyarakat Malaysia. Artikel ini meneliti bagaimana lagenda tersebut telah direka ulang dan ditafsir semula dalam konteks Malaysia pascakolonial melalui proses pengkomodifikasian yang digerakkan oleh pelancongan, geopark, dan naratif pembangunan negara. Dengan menggabungkan pendekatan teori ekologi politik, pascakolonialisme, dan water humanities, perbincangan ini memperlihatkan bagaimana air Tasik Chini diposisikan sebagai “ruang sakral” yang kemudiannya berubah menjadi medan perebutan makna antara komuniti Orang Asli, agensi kerajaan, dan pasaran global. Kajian ini menggunakan kaedah kualitatif dengan analisis dokumen yang diperoleh daripada perpustakaan, arkib, dan sumber atas talian. Ia menegaskan bahawa lagenda Naga Tasik Chini harus dibaca semula bukan hanya sebagai cerita rakyat, tetapi sebagai tapak kritik terhadap hegemoni pembangunan, marginalisasi komuniti tempatan, serta krisis ekologi kontemporari yang semakin parah. Kebaharuan artikel ini terletak pada usahanya menyingkap semula mitos air dalam konteks Malaysia pascakolonial dengan mendedahkan paradoks antara simbolisme warisan, eksploitasi sumber, dan realiti ekologi semasa, sekali gus memperluas horizon wacana tentang hubungan antara air, mitos, dan kuasa di Malaysia dan rantau Asia Tenggara.

Abstract: The legend of the Naga of Tasik Chini is more than a tale passed down through generations; it constitutes a cultural discourse deeply embedded with political, ecological, and identity-based meanings. This article examines how the legend has been reimagined within the postcolonial Malaysian context through processes of commodification driven by tourism, geopark development, and state-led narratives of modernisation. Drawing upon the theoretical frameworks of political ecology, postcolonialism, and water humanities, the discussion reveals how the waters of Tasik Chini have been transformed from a “sacred space” into a contested site of meaning among the Orang Asli community, the state, and the global market. Employing a qualitative methodology, the research undertakes documentary analysis based on materials gathered from libraries, archives, and online sources. It argues that the legend of the Naga of Tasik Chini should be reread not merely as folklore, but as a critical locus for interrogating the hegemony of development, the marginalisation of indigenous communities, and the unfolding ecological crisis. The originality of this study lies in its reinterpretation of a water myth within Malaysia’s postcolonial setting, uncovering the paradox between heritage symbolism, resource exploitation, and environmental realities—thus expanding the intellectual horizon of political heritage studies on the interrelationship between water, myth, and power in Malaysia and the wider Southeast Asian region.

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