Why do the boats in The Story About Ping have eyes?

I'm not sure, and I would have guessed that the boats were so important to their way of life that it was like when a person names a car or whatever... to make them more human than just an object?  Do you have any inanimate objects with names (besides toys)?  As a cook, I would imaging that you might name your favorite pot or your stove or something, and that you might talk to it about what you needed it to do for you today? A hunter might name his gun.. when an object is vital to your daily work, sometimes it develops a personality?



Searching the internet came up with this:
Why Mekong Eyes? – One of the traditional ceremonies performed on a newly constructed Mekong boat is the “eye opening”. The eyes are painted on the bow for good luck, a wide-awake crew and fast and safe journeys.
http://www.mekongtours.biz/mekong-tour-cruise-eyes.html

and this:
All the boats on the Mekong Delta have eyes painted on them to frighten the crocodiles. It works - we didn't see one!
http://realtravel.com/e-169796-vietnam_entry-viet_nam_from_saigon_to_hanoi

and:
About 2,000 years ago, Vietnamese fishermen were plagued by sharks who overturned their sampans and attacked the occupants. According to legend, a girl on a whale suggested that the fishermen paint eyes and teeth on the prows of their vessels for protection. The eyes must have worked. Today even the Vietnamese Navy Yabutas have them painted on their red prows, a design American Advisors are fond of calling the "screaming eagle."
http://www.pcf45.com/sealords/cuadai/cuadai.html
 
Interestingly, all these are in reference to Vietnamese boats, I could find almost nothing about Chinese boats with eyes.  I found a few more references, mostly about protection from sea monsters, sharks, alligators, and the generic "evil." Also, for good luck, looking forward to the future, looking ahead, etc., so they seem to be mostly for protection and luck.