- Title: 'Till death do us part', says Cambodian woman to new-born calf
- Date: 20th July 2017
- Summary: SNUOL DISTRICT, KRATIE PROVINCE, CAMBODIA (JULY 18, 2017) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF HOUSE VISITORS STANDING AROUND CAMBODIAN MAN, TOL VANDY, STROKING CALF WHO HE SAYS IS THE REINCARNATE OF HIS FATHER VARIOUS OF CALF LICKING TOL VANDY'S ARM TOL VANDY SAYING (Khmer): "THE CALF ALWAYS LICKS LIKE THIS WHEN HE SEE HIS SONS OR WHOEVER HE KNOWS ARE HIS RELATIVES" WOMAN FILMING WITH HER SMARTPHONE TOL VANDY SAYING (Khmer): "BECAUSE HE IS MY FATHER, I CANNOT LEAVE HIM FAR AWAY FROM HERE IN CASE SOMEONE HURTS HIM" VISITORS WATCHING TOL VANDY AND THE CALF (SOUNDBITE) (Khmer) 32-YEAR-OLD WOMAN VISITING FROM ANOTHER PART OF KRATIE PROVINCE, THACH VIN, SAYING: "When I saw the video on Facebook, I thought it was quite unusual to see the cow go up to the house like this, so I come here to see it with my own eyes." VISITORS STANDING AROUND NEIGHBOUR TALKING TO VISITORS ABOUT THE CALF VISITORS LISTENING (SOUNDBITE) (Khmer) 54-YEAR-OLD NEIGHBOUR OF CALF OWNER, LIM RITH, SAYING: "What I have seen is that he (the calf) walks around when he goes upstairs and kisses his children, looks at the children while they sleep, and sometimes sleeps on the son's lap while the son touches his body, which means he loves his children." VARIOUS OF THE CALF FEEDING FROM HIS MOTHER CALF'S MOTHER LOOKING ON OWNER OF THE CALF WHO SHE SAYS IS THE REINCARNATE OF HER HUSBAND, KHIM HANG, SITTING NEXT TO NEIGHBOUR AND LOOKING ON (SOUNDBITE) (Khmer) 74-YEAR-OLD OWNER OF THE CALF WHO SHE SAYS IS THE REINCARNATE OF HER HUSBAND, KHIM HANG, SAYING: "I believe that he (the calf) is my husband because whatever he does when he goes upstairs - he looks at the windows, the walls, the room... - it is in exactly the same way as he (my husband) did when he was alive. At the beginning, when I first saw the calf do that, I was wondering why this calf knows those sorts of things well, but when I went to see a medium, his soul came in and said 'I am your husband' then I noted that he (the calf) licked my hair, then my neck, then kissed me so that really made me believe that he is my husband." CALF WALKING TOWARDS FAMILY MEMBERS SITTING UNDER HOUSE (SOUNDBITE) (Khmer) 74-YEAR-OLD OWNER OF THE CALF WHO SHE SAYS IS THE REINCARNATE OF HER HUSBAND, KHIM HANG, SAYING: "He (the calf) is really my husband so I will not sell him anywhere and I will keep him and take care of him for my entire life. I told my children when I die they cannot sell him, and they must continue to take care of him until he dies, then they must burn or bury him like they would a human body." CALF WALKING UP STAIRS TO HOUSE ALONGSIDE KHIM HAND'S DAUGHTER CALF BEING LED INTO HOUSE CALF STANDING ON BED AND BEING FED BY KHIM HANG AND HER DAUGHTER LIM RITH LOOKING ON CALF WALKING UP TO WINDOW AND LOOKING OUT CALF WALKING UP TO KHIM HANG AND LICKING HER HAND CALF LICKING TOL VANG'S ARM PHOTOGRAPH OF KHIM HANG'S HUSBAND WHO DIED AND IS SAID TO HAVE BEEN REINCARNATED AS THE CALF VARIOUS OF CALF LYING ON BED KHIM HANG AND HER DAUGHTER DRYING CALF WITH TOWEL KHIM HANG'S DAUGHTER PUTTING LONG PILLOW NEXT TO CALF, SAYING (Khmer): "THIS IS THE LONG PILLOW LEFT BY MY FATHER" KHIM HANG AND HER DAUGHTER DRYING CALF WITH TOWEL
- Embargoed: 3rd August 2017 04:07
- Keywords: Cambodia reincarnate belief reincarnation farmer family cow religion calf holy cow
- Location: SNUOL DISTRICT, KRATIE PROVINCE, CAMBODIA
- City: SNUOL DISTRICT, KRATIE PROVINCE, CAMBODIA
- Country: Cambodia
- Topics: Human Interest / Brights / Odd News,Society/Social Issues
- Reuters ID: LVA0016QITSNT
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: For one calf in rural Cambodia who popped out near the home of the recently-widowed Khim Hang, being (re)born was much like hitting the jackpot.
The 74-year-old woman has taken the calf under her wing, believing him to be the reincarnate of her husband Tol Khut, a Cambodian farmer who died unexpectedly just over a year ago in Cambodia's northeastern Kratie Province.
"I believe that he (the calf) is my husband because whatever he does when he goes upstairs... it is in exactly the same way as he (my husband) did when he was alive," she said.
"When I went to see a medium, his soul came in and said 'I am your husband'. Then I noted that he (the calf) licked my hair, then my neck, then kissed me so that really made me believe that he is my husband," she added.
She is not the only one to hold this belief - so too do her seven children and her neighbours.
Her son, Tol Vandy, for example, says the calf only licks the arms of his relatives. Her neighbour, Lim Rith, says it is clear that the calf "loves his children" when you see his behaviour in person.
The young cow, who was born on March 27 this year, has garnered quite a following on social media, attracting over a hundred visitors to the family compound each day.
"I thought it was quite unusual to see the cow go up to the house like this," said one visitor, 32-year-old Thach Vin, referring to a video she saw on Facebook. "So I come here to see it with my own eyes."
Inside the wooden stilted house, the calf is fed, washed and put to bed, with a long fluffy pillow propped up along his back.
He lies there from 6 p.m. to 10 a.m., the family says, with the TV frequently on in the background to keep him entertained - just as Tol Khut would have liked. After a slow morning, it's time to leave the house, walk back down the stairs and either eat grass or drink his mother's milk.
Khim Hang says the new familial addition is here to stay; "I will keep him and take care of him for my entire life," she said, adding that her children had been instructed to look after him if she dies earlier than he does, and to give him a human funeral ceremony upon his death. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2017. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
