A Thai Buddhist monk tried to maintain his chanting concentration during a five-hour-long New Year prayers as a regular temple cat visitor showered him with love, affection, and many head boops.
The video of the saffron-robed monk gently pushing away the cat that crawled into his lap has delighted Thais and practically everyone else who have seen it.
The footage was posted on a temple follower’s Facebook page.
The temple, Wat Udomrangsi, is on the outskirts of Bangkok.
The cat is known to be a regular visitor.
The monk tried multiple times to resist the advances of his feline friend by repelling the cat that was kneading his shoulder and blocking his view of the scripture book.
But the monk eventually gave in and started petting the cat instead.
Cat just wanted to spend New Year countdown with monk
According to Reuters, the 25-year-monk, who uses the monastic name Luang Pi Komkrit Taechachoto, said: “I was trying to read the book. But I was more focused on the cat.”
The cat’s antics was frowned upon by a more senior monk seated adjacent to it.
Nophayong Sookphan, the temple visitor who took the video, said the cat jumped on stage at around 15 minutes to midnight and wouldn’t leave until after the countdown to New Year’s Day.
According to Reuters, she originally posted the video on a public Facebook group named “Cats’ Slaves”.
It then found its way all over social media and ended up replayed on Thai television.
It is believed to have been watched millions of times over the past three days.
Thailand has a tradition of free-roaming cats at its many Buddhist temples, Reuters reported.
The Wat Udomrangsi temple is home to at least a dozen stray cats, Komkrit said.
The cats are fed by devotees each day.
About 95 percent of Thailand’s population practise Buddhism, and respect for all living beings is a key tenet of the religion.
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