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In Thailand, where a record-breaking heatwave has been followed by a drought, Japan's popular characters 'Doraemon' and 'Hello Kitty' appeared at a rainmaking ritual.
About 200 residents of the Phayuha Khiri area in Nakhon Sawan, central Thailand, are seen parading while locking a 'Doraemon' doll in a cage during a rain ritual held at the end of last month. [Image source=Captured from X (formerly Twitter)]
On the 7th, foreign media including AFP reported that about 200 residents of the Payuhakiri area in Nakhon Sawan, central Thailand, marched through the streets carrying a cage containing a 'Doraemon' doll during a rainmaking ritual held at the end of last month. The residents carried the iron cage with the Doraemon doll around the village, and spectators sprinkled water on the doll inside the metal cage. This march is a rainmaking ritual called 'Hae Nang Meaw' (the march of the female cat), a tradition held for hundreds of years as the planting season approaches. It originated from the belief that when a female cat screams 'Meaw,' it calls for rain.
Originally, the event involved sprinkling water on real cats, which dislike water, to make them meow, but recently, due to criticism of "animal cruelty," the real cats have been replaced with cat character dolls like 'Doraemon' or 'Hello Kitty.'
During the event, a small dispute arose among residents when the cat was replaced with a Doraemon doll. Traditionally, only female cats participated in the event, but since Doraemon is a male cat, there was debate. This even led to a joke that Doraemon's younger sister, 'Dorami,' should have taken the place instead.
Meanwhile, Thailand, which recently suffered from intense heat, recorded temperatures reaching 44 degrees Celsius on the 27th of last month. On the 30th, the heat of 41 degrees caused railway tracks to bend. Fortunately, as if responding to the passion of the Thai people, rain is forecast in the Nakhon Sawan area from the 7th to the 13th.
Not only in Thailand but also in Southeast Asia, drought continues following record-breaking heatwaves. At the end of last month in the Philippines, temperatures soared to 38.8 degrees Celsius due to the 'El Ni?o phenomenon,' causing tens of thousands of schools to suspend face-to-face classes. Catholic bishops also issued special prayers hoping for the heatwave to subside and for rain to fall.
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